Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, April 5, 2023

254 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $186.02/cwt ≈ $1,072/hd at 576 lb · 14 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $238.97/cwt +8.95 vs last sale · ≈ $918/hd at 384 lb · 12 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $194.34/cwt -0.66 vs last sale · ≈ $751/hd at 387 lb · 12 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 254 319 300
Feeder cattle 213 219 180
Slaughter cattle 39 91 97
Replacement cattle 2 9 23

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows 1.00 to 5.00 higher overall, with no comparisons available for slaughter bulls and 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
375–380 378 2 240.00–250.00 $245.03 $926 —
410–435 423 2 218.00–245.00 $231.10 $978 -13.90
460–495 478 2 230.00–235.00 $232.41 $1,111 +12.41
505–540 520 3 214.00–235.00 $222.88 $1,159 —
550–595 572 5 205.00–220.00 $212.19 $1,214 -3.81
610 610 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,159 -31.03
650–655 653 2 190.00–204.00 $197.03 $1,287 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
535 535 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,016 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
295 295 2 200.00 $200.00 $590 —
340–345 343 3 180.00–202.50 $187.54 $643 -7.46
360 fancy 360 1 218.00 $218.00 $785 —
365–395 389 11 180.00–200.00 $192.19 $748 -2.81
405–440 426 5 180.00–200.00 $190.00 $809 +4.06
465–488 482 5 186.00–202.50 $197.80 $953 +13.80
500 fancy 500 1 215.00 $215.00 $1,075 —
503–540 519 9 180.00–205.00 $197.77 $1,026 +23.35
545 545 1 167.50 $167.50 $913 -6.92
560–595 575 11 180.00–196.00 $185.93 $1,069 —
578 value added 578 2 200.00 $200.00 $1,156 —
590 590 1 159.00 $159.00 $938 —
605–635 625 6 153.00–171.00 $163.09 $1,019 +13.09
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
458–470 462 3 170.00–174.00 $172.64 $798 -2.36
540 540 1 170.00 $170.00 $918 +13.55
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
295 295 1 175.00 $175.00 $516 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310–315 313 2 252.50–255.00 $253.76 $794 +6.26
375–390 384 12 220.00–245.00 $238.97 $918 +8.95
400–403 402 3 237.50–250.00 $245.85 $988 +35.85
450–465 455 3 215.00–239.00 $226.21 $1,029 +26.21
530 530 1 180.00 $180.00 $954 -36.00
505–545 532 3 190.00–206.00 $200.93 $1,069 -15.07
555–558 557 3 203.00–213.00 $209.68 $1,168 +0.85
604 604 6 182.00 $182.00 $1,099 -0.21
665–695 677 3 160.00–182.00 $170.51 $1,154 +9.51
718–725 719 5 152.00–153.00 $152.20 $1,094 —
745 745 1 149.00 $149.00 $1,110 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
418 418 4 216.00 $216.00 $903 +20.00
705 705 1 130.00 $130.00 $916 —
761 761 6 147.00 $147.00 $1,119 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
345 345 1 229.00 $229.00 $790 —
428–435 430 3 157.00–191.00 $179.54 $772 —
560–565 563 2 150.00–179.00 $164.56 $926 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1030–1205 1118 80-85% 2 79.00–86.00 $82.23 $919 —
1055–1430 1232 80-85% 8 89.00–98.00 $94.07 $1,159 +5.33
1405–1570 1488 80-85% 2 99.00–104.50 $101.90 $1,516 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1025 1025 85-90% 1 72.00 $72.00 $738 —
955–1315 1143 85-90% 7 74.00–83.00 $78.18 $894 +7.22
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1275–1460 1383 75-80% 4 89.00–97.50 $93.87 $1,298 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1230 1230 1 106.00 $106.00 $1,304 —
1070–2020 1484 5 115.50–121.00 $118.09 $1,752 —

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 1,300.00 $1,300.00 —

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Dairy Steers

Small 4 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305 305 1 140.00 $140.00 $427 —
350 350 1 137.50 $137.50 $481 —

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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.