DTN Midday Livestock Comments          02/20 11:31

   Cattle Trade Lower Ahead of a Busy Friday Afternoon

   It will be a busy afternoon in the cattle complex with the monthly Cattle on 
Feed report set to be released and the fed cash cattle market expected to trade 
at any minute.

ShayLe Stewart
DTN Livestock Analyst

GENERAL COMMENTS:

   The livestock complex is trading mixed into Friday's noon hour as the cattle 
contracts dip slightly lower ahead of seeing this afternoon's Cattle on Feed 
report and upon not seeing any fed cash cattle trade yet. Bids are currently on 
the table live at $245, but no cattle have sold. March corn is up 2 1/4 cents 
per bushel and March soybean meal is up $6.90. The Dow Jones Industrial Average 
is down 110.11 points and NASDAQ is up 87.11 points.

LIVE CATTLE:

   The live cattle complex is trading mildly lower as the market continues to 
wait for some fed cash cattle trade to develop. Bids are currently on the table 
in both regions, with live prices being offered in both the North and the South 
at $245, but no cattle have traded yet. And there's a chance that feedlot 
managers may hold out until after this afternoon's Cattle on Feed report is 
released before they sell any cattle. In the meantime, the live cattle 
contracts are trading slightly lower as traders try to remain patient, but 
there's yet to be anything substantially developed from a bullish fundamental 
perspective to help boost the futures market moral. February live cattle are 
down $0.10 at $247.40, April live cattle are up $0.75 at $242.65 and June live 
cattle are up $0.55 at $238.32.

   Boxed beef prices are higher: choice up $1.50 ($366.67) and select up $1.26 
($361.05) with a movement of 65 loads (54.27 loads of choice, 2.46 loads of 
select, 4.79 loads of trim and 3.66 loads of ground beef).

FEEDER CATTLE:

   Keeping in alignment with the live cattle complex, the feeder cattle 
contracts are also trading lower into Friday's noon hour. March feeders are 
down $0.75 at $369.47, April feeders are down $1.07 at $366.57 and May feeders 
are down $0.87 at $362.67. And unless the direction of the live cattle 
contract's change, it's unlikely that the feeder cattle contracts will find 
much more support ahead of the afternoon's close, even though demand is strong 
for calves and feeders and the Cattle on Feed report is expected to be bullish.

LEAN HOGS:

   The lean hog contracts continue to scale higher as traders are not currently 
up against any immediate fears of resistance pressure. April lean hogs are up 
$0.45 at $93.90, June lean hogs are up $0.77 at $107.95 and July lean hogs are 
up $0.92 at $109.90. And yes, pork cutout values are still lower, but traders 
don't feel like they need an abundance of fundamental support given that 
they're not challenging technical resistance pressure right now.

   The projected lean hog index for 2/19/2026 is up $0.36 at $87.95, and the 
actual index for 2/18/2026 is up $0.40 at $87.59. Hog prices on the Daily 
Direct Morning Hog Report average $88.96, ranging from $86.00 to $92.00 on 
1,353 head and a five-day rolling average of $88.96. Pork cutouts total 181.28 
loads with 163.70 loads of pork cuts and 17.59 loads of trim. Pork cutout 
values: down $0.39, $95.89.

   ShayLe Stewart can be reached at shayle.stewart@dtn.com




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