farmcfo.com.au/tools/cattle-trading-margin · 0412 759 847Cattle trading margin calculator
Enter the purchase weight and price, days on hand, expected daily gain, sale price and costs. The calculator works out the sale weight, margin per head and for the mob, the breakeven sale price in c/kg and the return on the cash tied up, allowing for deaths.
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- Sale weight
- 450 kg lwt
- Sale value per head sold
- $2,105.06
- Cost per head bought
- $1,328.84
- Margin per head bought
- $704.72
- Margin for the mob
- $70,472
- Breakeven sale price
- 308 c/kg lwt
- Cost per kg gained
- $0.71
- Return on cash
- 56.8%
190 kg gained
Purchase $1,193.40, interest $88.09
After deaths, selling costs and interest.
Costs other than the purchase, per kg of gain.
56.8% a year
The defaults follow the NSW DPI steer growout budget (July 2025): 260 kg steers bought at 459 c/kg lwt, held 12 months, sold at about 450 kg for 468 c/kg lwt direct to a feedlot, $25 freight each way, a $5 MLA levy, $22.35 animal health and 2% deaths. The interest rate is RBA's August 2026 average small business rate on new loans (7.23%). DPI's budget charges no interest and counts pasture costs this calculator leaves out, so the margins differ.
The working
- Sale weight = purchase weight + daily gain x days on hand.
- Sale value per head = sale weight x price (c/kg lwt) / 100, or sale weight x dressing % x price (c/kg cwt) / 100.
- Income per head bought = sale value x (1 - deaths %) - commission - selling costs on the survivors.
- Costs per head = purchase price + buying costs + feed or agistment + animal health + interest on the purchase cost for the days on hand.
- Breakeven sale price = the c/kg at which the margin is zero.
General information only. This calculator doesn't take account of your circumstances and isn't tax, credit or financial product advice. Check figures with your accountant before relying on them.
Want the numbers done for you?
Farm CFO builds the budget, the monthly cashflow and the tests your lender will run, at a fixed price.
Read next: Budgeting and cashflow for cattle
Questions
Should I include interest if I'm paying cash for the cattle?
Yes. Cash in cattle is cash not reducing the overdraft, so charge interest at your overdraft rate. It makes long holds comparable with short ones.
What daily gain should I use?
Use your own records for the season and class of cattle. A conservative figure is safer, because a lower gain also pushes the sale date out.
Where can I see current cattle prices?
MLA publishes saleyard and indicator prices on its website. We link to them rather than copy them.