Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, May 19, 2021

246 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 246 221 245
Feeder cattle 158 125 152
Slaughter cattle 62 66 87
Replacement cattle 26 30 6

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows remaining mostly steady overall with no comparisons available for slaughter bulls or feeder classes due to limited comparable receipts, however, a higher undertone was noted for feeder heifers and slaughter bulls.

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
210–240 234 5 164.00–165.00 $164.41 $385 —
270–280 273 4 158.00–162.00 $160.97 $439 —
490 490 1 150.00 $150.00 $735 —
605–645 630 4 130.00–141.00 $134.18 $845 —
650–695 677 3 128.00–130.00 $128.98 $873 —
740 740 1 125.00 $125.00 $925 —
755 755 1 120.00 $120.00 $906 —
1015 1015 1 101.00 $101.00 $1,025 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
208 208 2 142.50 $142.50 $296 —
257–285 269 6 138.00–140.00 $139.30 $375 —
315 315 1 133.00 $133.00 $419 -3.03
360–395 378 2 129.00–130.00 $129.48 $489 +1.49
405–445 425 4 125.00–133.00 $128.46 $546 +4.69
450–480 465 2 124.00–128.00 $125.94 $586 +1.17
510–535 523 6 119.00–128.00 $122.44 $640 +5.20
585 585 2 114.00–116.00 $115.00 $673 -2.24
700 700 1 108.00 $108.00 $756 +8.00
800–840 820 2 100.00–104.00 $101.95 $836 +16.95
890 890 1 95.00 $95.00 $846 —
1010 1010 1 88.00 $88.00 $889 —
1085 1085 1 91.00 $91.00 $987 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
325 325 1 129.00 $129.00 $419 +4.00

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300–345 321 4 149.00–156.00 $151.03 $485 -2.78
350–395 369 8 140.00–153.00 $146.90 $542 -3.10
400–445 428 6 143.00–148.00 $144.36 $618 +3.08
465 fancy 465 1 150.00 $150.00 $698 —
455–490 476 6 130.00–142.00 $138.76 $660 +3.46
510–545 521 5 130.00–134.00 $132.42 $690 +5.09
550–580 565 2 125.00–129.00 $126.95 $717 +1.96
615 615 1 119.00 $119.00 $732 -1.96
820 820 1 99.00 $99.00 $812 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
525 525 1 126.00 $126.00 $662 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
820–1225 1099 80-85% 17 63.50–72.50 $67.69 $744 —
1080–1290 1176 80-85% 4 74.50–82.50 $78.62 $925 +1.78
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1240–1670 1384 75-80% 6 60.00–71.00 $65.33 $904 —
1580 1580 75-80% 1 57.00 $57.00 $901 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
885–1035 943 85-90% 5 56.50–60.50 $58.99 $556 —
945 945 85-90% 1 82.00 $82.00 $775 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1415–2140 1710 6 94.00–100.00 $96.58 $1,652 —
1710 1710 1 103.00 $103.00 $1,761 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1300–1400 1350 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 900.00–980.00 $940.00
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900 900 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 740.00 $740.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
800 800 (<2 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 800.00 $800.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Aged (>8 yrs)Open 2 890.00–1,025.00 $957.50 —
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,050.00 $1,050.00 —
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 860.00 $860.00 —

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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.