Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, May 5, 2021

196 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest East Tennessee Livestock Center report →

light 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $142.14/cwt +13.14 vs last sale · ≈ $763/hd at 537 lb · 10 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 196 248 199
Feeder cattle 106 169 134
Slaughter cattle 62 70 56
Replacement cattle 28 9 9

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows and bulls gauging 3.00 to 5.00 higher overall, with no comparisons available for feeder classes due to limited comparable receipts.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285 285 1 170.00 $170.00 $484 —
355–395 379 6 150.00–154.00 $151.60 $575 -12.40
455 455 1 159.00 $159.00 $723 —
500–543 537 10 139.00–149.00 $142.14 $763 +13.14
555–585 575 5 130.00–139.00 $136.65 $786 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315 315 1 145.00 $145.00 $457 —
390 390 1 136.00 $136.00 $530 —
445 445 1 130.00 $130.00 $578 —
555 555 1 127.00 $127.00 $705 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285 285 1 160.00 $160.00 $456 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
248 248 3 148.00 $148.00 $367 —
275 275 1 130.00 $130.00 $358 -7.55
300–305 303 3 129.00–141.00 $137.04 $415 -0.76
355–390 379 5 124.00–128.00 $127.03 $481 -4.42
400–440 422 5 116.00–123.00 $119.43 $504 -7.36
455 value added 455 1 129.00 $129.00 $587 —
461–495 473 8 118.00–120.00 $119.35 $565 -8.62
520–548 538 5 115.00–127.00 $122.27 $658 +3.17
550 550 1 105.00 $105.00 $578 -13.21
570 value added 570 1 129.00 $129.00 $735 —
565–585 573 4 114.00–127.00 $121.08 $694 +2.87
600–635 value added 618 2 124.00–129.00 $126.57 $782 —
600–640 620 2 114.00–119.00 $116.58 $723 +8.08
650 650 1 128.00 $128.00 $832 +19.00
725–735 730 2 98.00–104.00 $100.98 $737 +3.48
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1175 1175 1 81.00 $81.00 $952 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310 310 1 125.00 $125.00 $388 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
325 325 1 158.00 $158.00 $514 +5.58
385 385 1 150.00 $150.00 $578 -1.88
425–445 437 3 138.00–147.00 $141.60 $619 -3.51
475–495 485 2 133.00–134.00 $133.49 $647 -9.70
500–535 518 2 134.00–140.00 $136.90 $709 +2.95
550–590 570 4 125.00–133.00 $130.17 $742 +2.99
650 650 1 121.00 $121.00 $786 +1.00
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255 255 1 130.00 $130.00 $332 -9.98
355 355 1 140.00 $140.00 $497 —
410 410 1 130.00 $130.00 $533 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
420–425 423 2 129.00 $129.00 $546 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1060–1840 1430 75-80% 18 60.50–69.50 $64.29 $919 —
1520 1520 75-80% 2 73.50–76.00 $74.75 $1,136 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
995–1255 1127 80-85% 8 61.50–69.00 $66.67 $751 —
1180–1420 1269 80-85% 6 70.00–76.00 $72.11 $915 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
825–1135 1008 85-90% 8 55.50–65.50 $59.71 $602 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1600–1815 1710 3 87.00–94.00 $91.15 $1,559 —
1805 1805 1 100.50 $100.50 $1,814 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900–1150 1025 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 900.00–1,050.00 $975.00
1200 1200 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 790.00 $790.00
1050–1350 1233 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 3 790.00–890.00 $853.33
1400 1400 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 980.00 $980.00
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
800 800 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 640.00 $640.00
800 800 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 640.00 $640.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900 900 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 800.00 $800.00

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Bred Heifers

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
750 750 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 700.00 $700.00

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Reading this report

What does "Medium and Large 1" mean?

USDA feeder grades describe frame size and muscle thickness, not quality of the individual animal. "Medium and Large" is the frame score; the number is muscle (1 = heaviest muscled). "Medium and Large 1–2" pens mix both muscle scores — common across the Southeast.

What is $/cwt?

Dollars per hundredweight — per 100 lb of animal. A 500-lb calf at $450/cwt brings 5 × $450 = $2,250. Lighter cattle usually bring more per cwt but less per head.

Why are some prices per head?

Bred cows, cow-calf pairs, and some replacement classes sell by the head, not by weight. We show those exactly as USDA reports them — a $/head figure is never converted into $/cwt on this site.

Where do these numbers come from?

From the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's Livestock Market News — federal reporters at the sale. We publish each report in full and link the official USDA document at the top of the page.