Columbia Livestock Auction market report — October 19, 2026

Lake City, FL · Monday sale · USDA report published 10/19/2026 · Sale days

Head sold

649

Last week 677 (−28)
Last year 712

5-wt steers (500–599 lb)

$391.65 /cwt

$2,040 per head · 8 hd
vs last week +15.92

7-wt steers (700–799 lb)

— /cwt

None sold in this weight at the latest sale

Compared to one week ago: Slaughter cattle mostly steady. Feeder cattle unevenly steady. Replacement type cows 3.00 to 5.00 lower.
USDA Market News reporter, October 19, 2026

Feeder steers — Oct 19

Steers, Medium and Large frame, No. 1 and 1–2 muscle, regular lots, head-weighted by 100-lb band. Last week = sale of Oct 12. Last year = sale of Oct 20. No. 2 = lighter-muscled cattle, a separate grade line in the USDA report. These are kept out of the main price. † Based on fewer than 5 head; treat as a rough price.
Weight	Head	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	vs last week	vs last year	No. 2 $/cwt
300–399 lb	19	353 lb	$556.38	$1,966	−1.49	+76.54	$479.42 (8 hd)
400–499 lb	28	451 lb	$422.11	$1,904	+20.54	−47.20	$378.49 (9 hd)
500–599 lb	8	521 lb	$391.65	$2,040	+15.92	−6.15	$367.71 (4 hd)†
600–699 lb	6	620 lb	$330.24	$2,047	−7.57	−37.47	—

Feeder heifers — Oct 19

Heifers, Medium and Large frame, No. 1 and 1–2 muscle, regular lots, head-weighted by 100-lb band. Last week = sale of Oct 12. Last year = sale of Oct 20. No. 2 = lighter-muscled cattle, a separate grade line in the USDA report. These are kept out of the main price.
Weight	Head	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	vs last week	vs last year	No. 2 $/cwt
300–399 lb	74	360 lb	$451.77	$1,626	−72.19	−21.80	$412.98 (15 hd)
400–499 lb	31	449 lb	$384.10	$1,723	+10.43	−43.60	$325.31 (8 hd)
500–599 lb	24	550 lb	$340.29	$1,872	+7.51	−27.64	$316.07 (5 hd)
600–699 lb	12	623 lb	$290.47	$1,810	−34.63	—	—

Slaughter cows — Oct 19

Grade	Dressing	Head	Avg wt	Avg $/cwt	Range $/cwt
Boner 80-85%	High	4	1,285 lb	$139.53	$138.00–$141.00
Boner 80-85%	Average	14	1,258 lb	$131.16	$128.00–$134.00
Lean 85-90%	Average	14	1,130 lb	$120.65	$117.00–$124.00

Price trends

Steers 500–599 lb Rising

Latest (week of October 19, 2026): $391.65/cwt
4-week average: $367.07
13-week average: $357.58
4-week vs 13-week: +2.7%

52-wk low $311.74high $489.19

Sales in 9 of the last 13 weeks.

Steers 700–799 lb Steady

Latest (week of October 12, 2026): $280.48/cwt
4-week average: $282.25
13-week average: $284.05
4-week vs 13-week: −0.6%

52-wk low $280.48high $372.48

Sales in 3 of the last 13 weeks.

Heifers 500–599 lb Easing

Latest (week of October 19, 2026): $340.29/cwt
4-week average: $328.87
13-week average: $338.70
4-week vs 13-week: −2.9%

52-wk low $308.03high $465.47

Sales in 10 of the last 13 weeks.

Direction compares the 4-week average with the 13-week average: Rising +1% or more, Steady within ±1%, Easing −1% to −3%, Falling −3% or more. Weekly prices are head-weighted averages of Medium and Large No. 1 and 1–2 feeder cattle, regular lots.

The label describes recent prices; it is not a forecast. In our backtest of every barn since 2019 (about 35,000 barn-weeks), barns labeled Falling went on to beat other barns' average move over the next 13 weeks 61% of the time, and barns labeled Rising trailed it 56% of the time.

Last 52 weeks

Weekly average $/cwt4-week average

Price history since 2019

Weekly average $/cwt

When to sell: the seasonal pattern

5-weight steers

For 500–599 lb steers, prices since 2019 ran highest against their yearly average in Feb and Mar and lowest in Oct and Aug.

Each month's head-weighted average price compared with the centered 12-month average around it, then averaged across years. Past patterns are not a forecast.
Month	vs year avg	Years above	Years
Jan	+3.0%	57%	7
Feb	+6.7%	100%	7
Mar	+5.0%	100%	7
Apr	+0.7%	71%	7
May	+0.9%	29%	7
Jun	+1.0%	62%	8
Jul	+0.8%	50%	8
Aug	−3.5%	38%	8
Sep	−1.7%	43%	7
Oct	−4.7%	14%	7
Nov	−3.3%	14%	7
Dec	−1.5%	43%	7

7-weight steers

Not enough history yet for a seasonal pattern.

Recent sales

Last 13 weeks. † Based on fewer than 5 head; treat as a rough price. Download the weekly history as CSV.
Sale	Head sold	Steers 500–599 $/cwt	Steers 700–799 $/cwt	Heifers 500–599 $/cwt
Mon Oct 19	649	$391.65	—	$340.29
Mon Oct 12	677	$375.73	$280.48	$332.78
Mon Oct 5	676	$355.36	$284.01	$308.03
Mon Sep 28	496	$345.54	—	$334.39
Mon Sep 14	614	—	—	$312.02†
Mon Sep 7	617	$322.81	—	—
Mon Aug 31	541	$311.74	—	$312.35
Mon Aug 24	409	—	—	$346.17
Mon Aug 17	536	$362.11	—	$348.73
Mon Aug 10	516	$371.37	$287.67	$363.49†
Mon Jul 27	414	$381.93†	—	$388.75
Mon Jul 20	805	$378.48	—	$380.08

Nearby barns this week

Straight-line distance between towns. Barns tagged unweaned show unweaned-calf prices. Every Florida sale this week.
Barn	Distance	Sale	Steers 500–599	Steers 700–799
Townsend Livestock Auction, Madison	50 mi	Oct 20	$365.29	—
Cattlemen's Livestock Auction, Lakeland	153 mi	Oct 20	$352.85	$285.00†
Arcadia Livestock Auction, Arcadia	211 mi	Oct 21	$379.34	—
Okeechobee Livestock Auction, Okeechobee	231 mi	Oct 20	$360.67	—

Sale days

Sale	Latest report	Head	Sales in 52 weeks	USDA report
Monday	October 19, 2026	649	45	AMS_1418

Source: USDA AMS Livestock, Poultry and Grain Market News, “Columbia Livestock Auction - Lake City, FL” (AMS_1418). See something wrong? Report a correction. Feeder prices are Medium and Large frame No. 1 and 1–2 cattle, $/cwt, grouped into 100-lb bands by average weight and weighted by head count. Value-added, unweaned and No. 2 lots are shown in their own columns; other lot types (fancy, fleshy, thin-fleshed, spayed, replacement) are left out. $/head = $/cwt × average weight ÷ 100.