Imperial Auction Market market report — October 23, 2026

Imperial, NE · Friday sale · USDA report published 10/23/2026 · Sale days

Head sold

1,116

Last sale (Oct 9) 1,952 (−836)
Last year —

5-wt steers (500–599 lb)

$440.46 /cwt

$2,488 per head · 223 hd
vs last week —

7-wt steers (700–799 lb)

— /cwt

None sold in this weight at the latest sale

No comparison to last week. Demand was good to moderate on a nice selection offered.
USDA Market News reporter, October 23, 2026

Feeder steers — Oct 23

Steers, Medium and Large frame, No. 1 and 1–2 muscle, regular lots, head-weighted by 100-lb band. No sale last week to compare. Last year = sale of Oct 21.
Weight	Head	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	vs last week	vs last year
300–399 lb	51	342 lb	$587.53	$2,010	—	+35.85
400–499 lb	53	452 lb	$480.43	$2,169	—	−23.69
500–599 lb	223	565 lb	$440.46	$2,488	—	−18.76
600–699 lb	185	636 lb	$410.09	$2,609	—	—

Feeder heifers — Oct 23

Heifers, Medium and Large frame, No. 1 and 1–2 muscle, regular lots, head-weighted by 100-lb band. No sale last week to compare. Last year = sale of Oct 21.
Weight	Head	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	vs last week	vs last year
300–399 lb	32	388 lb	$470.03	$1,824	—	−48.23
400–499 lb	76	461 lb	$420.57	$1,939	—	−20.49
500–599 lb	117	540 lb	$406.19	$2,193	—	−3.99
600–699 lb	13	637 lb	$349.23	$2,225	—	—
800–899 lb	53	883 lb	$327.75	$2,894	—	—
900–999 lb	15	950 lb	$300.60	$2,856	—	—

Slaughter cows — Oct 23

No slaughter cows reported at the latest sale.

Price trends

Steers 500–599 lb Rising

Latest (week of October 19, 2026): $440.46/cwt
4-week average: $448.89
13-week average: $443.33
4-week vs 13-week: +1.3%

52-wk low $394.96high $509.13

Sales in 3 of the last 13 weeks.

Steers 700–799 lb Steady

Latest (week of October 5, 2026): $340.00/cwt
4-week average: $358.50
13-week average: $358.50
4-week vs 13-week: 0.0%

52-wk low $340.00high $408.00

Sales in 2 of the last 13 weeks.

Heifers 500–599 lb Rising

Latest (week of October 19, 2026): $406.19/cwt
4-week average: $399.07
13-week average: $393.63
4-week vs 13-week: +1.4%

52-wk low $382.75high $470.19

Sales in 3 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 Mar and Jan and lowest in Nov and Dec.

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	+3.5%	71%	7
Feb	+3.3%	100%	6
Mar	+7.1%	100%	6
Apr	−0.5%	50%	6
May	+0.9%	33%	6
Jun	—	—	2
Jul	—	—	2
Aug	−3.4%	67%	3
Sep	+3.2%	80%	5
Oct	−2.5%	20%	5
Nov	−6.7%	0%	5
Dec	−4.2%	17%	6

7-weight steers

For 700–799 lb steers, prices since 2019 ran highest against their yearly average in Aug and Sep and lowest in Apr and Feb.

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	−1.1%	40%	5
Feb	−3.3%	0%	5
Mar	−1.2%	20%	5
Apr	−3.5%	33%	6
May	−1.5%	50%	6
Jun	+2.2%	100%	3
Jul	—	—	2
Aug	+4.7%	83%	6
Sep	+4.2%	50%	6
Oct	+3.4%	86%	7
Nov	+2.4%	75%	4
Dec	−2.3%	20%	5

Recent sales

Last 13 weeks. Download the weekly history as CSV.
Sale	Head sold	Steers 500–599 $/cwt	Steers 700–799 $/cwt	Heifers 500–599 $/cwt
Fri Oct 23	1,116	$440.46	—	$406.19
Fri Oct 9	1,881	$457.31	$340.00	$391.94
Fri Sep 25	1,700	$432.22	$377.00	$382.75
Fri Sep 11	807	—	—	—

Nearby barns this week

Straight-line distance between towns. Barns tagged unweaned show unweaned-calf prices. Every Nebraska sale this week.
Barn	Distance	Sale	Steers 500–599	Steers 700–799
Ogallala Livestock Auction, Ogallala	43 mi	Oct 22	$459.28	$386.22
North Platte Stockyards Livestock Auction,	63 mi	Oct 20	$463.66	$380.00
Lexington Livestock Market, Lexington	101 mi	Oct 23	$447.22	—
Huss Livestock Market, Kearney	135 mi	Oct 21	$452.32	$370.66
Burwell Livestock Market, Burwell	157 mi	Oct 23	$467.63	$375.00
Valentine Livestock Auction, Valentine	173 mi	Oct 22	$462.82	$400.00

Sale days

Sale	Latest report	Head	Sales in 52 weeks	USDA report
Friday	October 23, 2026	1,116	16	AMS_1854

Source: USDA AMS Livestock, Poultry and Grain Market News, “Imperial Auction Market - Imperial, NE” (AMS_1854). 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.