Markets / Feeder Cattle
Feeder Cattle
Nov Feeders futures · $ per hundredweight
Feeder Cattle is down 3.4% since January 1. By this point in a typical year (2021–2025) it was up 21.6%. From here to year-end, the price rose in 3 of the last 5 years, down 0.8% on average. Front-month futures. Past patterns don't predict prices; weather, demand and policy change every year.
As of Tuesday, Oct 6, hedge funds and commodity advisors are net long 9,386 contracts (more bullish than the week before, +1,220). That's more bullish than 39% of weeks in the last 3 years. CFTC Commitments of Traders, Disaggregated Futures Only. Published Fridays with Tuesday's positions.
Every contract month
Feeder Cattle futures trade Jan, Mar, Apr, May, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov only; there are no other months.
Deferred months are priced below Nov Feeders (an inverse): the market wants it now.
| Month | Last | Change | vs. Nov |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct Feeders | 343.62 | -$0.23 | +$2.35 |
| Nov Feeders | 341.27 | -$0.68 | — |
| Jan Feeders | 335.88 | -$0.48 | -$5.40 |
| Mar Feeders | 331.75 | -$0.42 | -$9.52 |
| Apr Feeders | 331.02 | -$0.43 | -$10.25 |
| May Feeders | 329.48 | -$0.23 | -$11.80 |
| Aug Feeders | 330.73 | -$0.35 | -$10.55 |
| Sep Feeders | 328.00 | -$0.23 | -$13.27 |
| Oct 27 Feeders | 324.75 | unch | -$16.52 |
Text me when Nov Feeders hits my number
Pick the month and the price. We text you the second it trades there, plus feeders at 10:00 and 2:00.
Set up Nov Feeders alertsPasture condition
Pasture & range: 23% rated good to excellent, up 4 from last week.
Cattle on Feed
11.16 million head on feed September 1, 1% above a year ago. Placements in August: 1.62 million head, 9% below a year ago. Marketings: 1.52 million head, 3% below a year ago.
Why it moved
Cattle Slipping Back on Monday. Live cattle (-0.21%) were lower too, so the selling was across the livestock market. Corn was up 0.78%, which raises feed costs for feeder buyers.
Reports coming up
- Fri Oct 23Cattle on Feed2:00pm CT
- Fri Oct 23USDA Cold Storage2:00pm CT
About this market
CME feeder cattle, 50,000 lb, cash-settled to the CME Feeder Cattle Index. Moves with corn: cheaper feed means more for feeders.