Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, February 8, 2023

346 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 bulls $179.04/cwt +21.21 vs last sale · ≈ $967/hd at 540 lb · 12 head
heavy 4-weight L 3 steers $139.00/cwt ≈ $659/hd at 474 lb · 10 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 346 158 221
Feeder cattle 194 94 141
Slaughter cattle 147 57 69
Replacement cattle 5 7 11

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows sharply lower overall, with slaughter bulls 6.00 to 10.00 lower. 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
413 413 2 210.00 $210.00 $867 —
460–479 475 5 201.00–214.00 $203.52 $967 —
510 510 1 174.00 $174.00 $887 +0.52
563–585 570 3 170.00–175.00 $173.29 $988 +6.68
700 700 1 157.00 $157.00 $1,099 +3.00
Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
474 474 10 139.00 $139.00 $659 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305 305 6 166.00 $166.00 $506 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
820 820 1 141.00 $141.00 $1,156 —
1098 1098 2 130.00 $130.00 $1,427 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
345 345 3 171.00–175.00 $172.67 $596 —
370 370 1 183.00 $183.00 $677 —
400–430 415 2 168.00–179.00 $173.30 $719 —
455–495 480 3 154.00–169.00 $159.10 $764 —
515–529 525 9 145.00–164.00 $160.45 $842 +2.45
550–590 570 6 140.00–157.00 $148.18 $845 +3.07
655–685 670 2 122.50–125.00 $123.78 $829 —
715–720 718 3 120.00–132.00 $128.02 $919 —
805 805 1 123.00 $123.00 $990 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
400–435 418 2 135.00–137.00 $136.04 $569 —
485–495 490 2 134.00–145.00 $139.56 $684 —
515 515 1 140.00 $140.00 $721 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
525 525 1 138.00 $138.00 $724 +13.00

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255–295 268 3 180.00–205.00 $194.33 $521 —
280 fancy 280 1 237.50 $237.50 $665 —
308–335 315 4 197.00–220.00 $208.15 $656 —
320 fancy 320 1 230.00 $230.00 $736 —
365–395 375 4 209.00–225.00 $214.69 $805 —
425–445 438 3 181.00–199.00 $188.44 $825 —
467 fancy 467 3 197.00 $197.00 $920 —
465–480 470 4 171.00–193.00 $183.52 $863 —
505–549 540 12 175.50–184.00 $179.04 $967 +21.21
563–580 567 4 174.00–176.50 $175.86 $997 —
600–625 612 3 162.00–170.00 $167.00 $1,022 +37.00
663 663 7 150.00 $150.00 $994 —
735 735 1 124.00 $124.00 $911 -3.76
750 750 1 135.00 $135.00 $1,012 +19.00
1115 1115 1 94.00 $94.00 $1,048 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
690 690 1 126.00 $126.00 $869 +14.00

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
955–1295 1142 80-85% 5 70.50–76.50 $72.82 $832 -28.91
880–1450 1207 80-85% 27 78.00–88.50 $84.42 $1,019 —
1260–1395 1330 80-85% 4 92.00–106.00 $97.15 $1,292 -17.41
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1100–1500 1300 75-80% 2 73.50–74.00 $73.71 $958 —
1165–1865 1468 75-80% 22 78.50–90.00 $84.96 $1,247 —
1325–1620 1473 75-80% 2 94.00–103.00 $98.95 $1,458 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
950–1340 1077 85-90% 9 61.50–67.00 $64.64 $696 —
1085 1085 85-90% 1 83.50 $83.50 $906 —
940–1460 1180 85-90% 15 69.50–80.00 $75.85 $895 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1280–1480 1380 2 87.50–92.00 $89.59 $1,236 —
1365–2435 1809 7 104.00–110.50 $108.28 $1,959 —

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Bred Cows

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
750 750 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 900.00 $900.00
900 900 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 950.00 $950.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900 900 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 720.00 $720.00

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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.