Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, March 23, 2022

206 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 206 248 318
Feeder cattle 106 104 176
Slaughter cattle 81 139 116
Replacement cattle 19 5 26

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows and bulls mostly steady 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
450–493 482 4 198.00–204.00 $199.40 $961 +36.90
530 value added 530 1 188.00 $188.00 $996 —
520–545 533 2 170.00–179.00 $174.61 $931 —
550–570 561 4 150.00–170.00 $160.98 $903 -16.19
568 value added 568 4 178.00 $178.00 $1,011 —
650–680 665 2 149.00–150.00 $149.49 $994 -2.04
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
555 555 1 140.00 $140.00 $777 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
280–295 288 2 153.00–160.00 $156.59 $451 —
320 fancy 320 1 163.00 $163.00 $522 —
330–335 333 3 140.00–150.00 $144.02 $480 -14.98
365–385 372 5 150.00–154.00 $151.58 $564 —
405–440 423 5 144.00–154.00 $147.74 $625 -2.08
440 440 1 140.00 $140.00 $616 -9.82
460 460 3 144.00 $144.00 $662 +2.67
490 value added 490 2 148.00 $148.00 $725 —
525–535 530 2 130.00 $130.00 $689 -2.99
550–580 564 4 128.00–139.00 $131.69 $743 -6.94
690 value added 690 1 134.00 $134.00 $925 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255–285 270 2 130.00–141.00 $135.19 $365 —
375 375 1 143.00 $143.00 $536 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 1 134.00 $134.00 $523 —
455 455 1 130.00 $130.00 $592 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
345 345 1 215.00 $215.00 $742 —
370–385 377 3 180.00–197.50 $188.26 $710 —
400–445 423 2 160.00–163.00 $161.58 $683 -10.48
450 fancy 450 1 189.00 $189.00 $850 —
475–490 483 2 162.00–163.00 $162.49 $785 -1.08
530 530 1 147.00 $147.00 $779 -7.91
610 610 1 150.00 $150.00 $915 +11.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
515 515 1 126.00 $126.00 $649 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1070–1720 1246 80-85% 16 77.50–90.50 $83.10 $1,035 —
1305–1385 1345 80-85% 2 98.50–108.00 $103.39 $1,391 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1395–1400 1398 75-80% 2 93.00–95.50 $94.25 $1,318 —
1290–1830 1485 75-80% 12 79.00–89.50 $84.15 $1,250 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
920–1120 1022 85-90% 6 67.00–76.00 $71.08 $726 —
1065 1065 85-90% 1 82.00 $82.00 $873 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1700–2170 1884 7 107.50–119.00 $114.55 $2,158 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
950 950 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 860.00 $860.00
1000 1000 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 730.00 $730.00
1250 1250 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,025.00 $1,025.00
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900 900 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 840.00 $840.00

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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
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,225.00 $1,225.00 —

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Dairy Heifers

Large 3-4 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
540 540 1 70.00 $70.00 $378 —
635 635 1 72.00 $72.00 $457 —

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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.