Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 28, 2022

172 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 172 177 253
Feeder cattle 56 118 63
Slaughter cattle 113 50 180
Replacement cattle 3 9 10

Market comments — USDA reporter

**No comparisons available due to no sale last week in observance of the Christmas holiday.

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
555 value added 555 1 157.00 $157.00 $871 —
600 600 1 147.00 $147.00 $882 -17.97
665 value added 665 1 154.00 $154.00 $1,024 —
690 690 2 152.00–155.00 $153.50 $1,059 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
480 480 1 160.00 $160.00 $768 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
380 380 1 135.00 $135.00 $513 -18.00
460 460 2 130.00 $130.00 $598 +0.18
505–535 520 2 122.00–128.00 $125.09 $650 +4.09
555–565 562 3 132.00–136.00 $133.34 $749 -2.66
625 625 1 124.00 $124.00 $775 -5.66
845 845 1 104.00 $104.00 $879 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
445 445 1 160.00 $160.00 $712 -4.00
680 680 1 127.00 $127.00 $864 -0.47

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1160–1840 1510 75-80% 29 67.50–79.00 $74.15 $1,120 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1185–1315 1222 80-85% 5 64.00–66.00 $65.21 $797 -4.21
895–1575 1278 80-85% 19 68.00–78.50 $73.12 $934 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1015–1095 1039 85-90% 4 50.50–52.00 $51.13 $531 —
950–1190 1075 85-90% 7 53.00–61.00 $56.22 $604 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1110–1820 1512 8 93.00–104.00 $99.10 $1,498 —
1940–1955 1948 2 110.00–113.00 $111.49 $2,172 —

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Bred Cows

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
850 850 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 540.00 $540.00

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
273 273 2 125.00 $125.00 $341 —
Large 4 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
218 218 2 117.50 $117.50 $256 —

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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.