Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, April 19, 2023

185 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 $178.67/cwt -10.35 vs last sale · ≈ $1,039/hd at 581 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 185 301 339
Feeder cattle 124 203 204
Slaughter cattle 53 64 118
Replacement cattle 8 34 17

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows holding mostly steady 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
365–397 388 5 241.00–262.00 $254.64 $988 —
435–440 438 3 210.00 $210.00 $920 -30.00
480–485 483 2 225.00–230.00 $227.51 $1,099 +12.24
490 value added 490 1 244.00 $244.00 $1,196 —
508 value added 508 2 238.00 $238.00 $1,209 —
540 540 1 235.00 $235.00 $1,269 —
570 value added 570 1 239.00 $239.00 $1,362 —
601–630 608 8 222.00–224.50 $223.85 $1,361 +3.85
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470–485 478 2 200.00–205.00 $202.46 $968 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
510 510 1 186.00 $186.00 $949 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
230 230 1 200.00 $200.00 $460 ±0.00
310 value added 310 1 220.00 $220.00 $682 —
330 330 1 205.00 $205.00 $676 -15.09
365–388 378 4 215.00–231.00 $222.54 $841 +28.00
420 value added 420 1 223.00 $223.00 $937 —
445 445 1 218.00 $218.00 $970 +25.52
465–470 468 2 190.00–199.00 $194.48 $910 +1.06
495 thin fleshed 495 1 171.00 $171.00 $846 —
563 value added 563 3 199.00 $199.00 $1,120 —
579 579 5 180.00 $180.00 $1,042 -9.02
585–598 595 5 161.00–175.00 $165.15 $983 -23.87
610 610 1 175.00 $175.00 $1,068 -12.00
655–695 675 2 150.00–160.00 $155.15 $1,047 -2.35
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305 305 1 182.50 $182.50 $557 —
400 400 1 160.00 $160.00 $640 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
250–280 265 2 165.00–177.00 $170.66 $452 +0.66

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260 260 1 215.00 $215.00 $559 —
310 310 1 250.00 $250.00 $775 —
390 390 1 215.00 $215.00 $838 -7.60
440–445 443 3 227.50–245.00 $236.80 $1,049 +4.31
515 515 1 211.00 $211.00 $1,087 +11.78
555–575 562 3 186.00–211.00 $202.47 $1,138 +1.29
600–620 610 2 185.00–210.00 $197.30 $1,204 -4.15
685 685 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,233 -3.28
710 710 1 145.00 $145.00 $1,030 -17.44
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300 300 1 200.00 $200.00 $600 -14.00
440 440 1 187.50 $187.50 $825 —
460–495 478 2 181.00–206.00 $193.96 $927 -6.04
595 595 1 181.00 $181.00 $1,077 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260 260 1 185.00 $185.00 $481 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1000–1560 1244 80-85% 16 88.50–98.50 $93.16 $1,159 —
1240–1275 1258 80-85% 2 101.50–106.50 $104.03 $1,309 +9.83
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1530 1530 75-80% 1 102.50 $102.50 $1,568 —
1295–1760 1555 75-80% 10 85.50–99.50 $94.44 $1,469 +1.36
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
800–870 825 85-90% 3 61.00–74.00 $66.86 $552 —
865–1145 981 85-90% 7 78.00–84.00 $81.02 $795 +15.09

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1175 1175 1 112.50 $112.50 $1,322 —
1410–2150 1808 3 119.00–125.50 $121.43 $2,195 —

↑ Back to top

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 2 950.00–1,150.00 $1,050.00 —
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 1,225.00–1,450.00 $1,337.50 —

↑ Back to top

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.