Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, September 20, 2023

315 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 $214.89/cwt -3.95 vs last sale · ≈ $1,128/hd at 525 lb · 11 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 315 249 160
Feeder cattle 243 182 86
Slaughter cattle 60 60 66
Replacement cattle 12 7 8

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows gauging 1.00 to 7.00 lower overall, with no comparisons available for slaughter bulls or 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
375 375 3 246.00 $246.00 $922 +38.50
400–435 422 5 225.00–250.00 $238.16 $1,005 +8.16
480 value added 480 4 261.00 $261.00 $1,253 —
505–530 517 6 230.00–250.00 $240.77 $1,245 +0.77
580–590 587 3 227.00–236.00 $233.03 $1,368 +23.03
600–625 615 3 224.00–238.00 $229.36 $1,411 —
660 660 1 234.00 $234.00 $1,544 —
705 705 1 221.00 $221.00 $1,558 —
770 770 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,694 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
460 460 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,058 —
530 530 1 221.00 $221.00 $1,171 —
575 575 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,265 —
645 645 2 215.00–221.00 $218.00 $1,406 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
276 276 4 210.00 $210.00 $580 —
335 335 1 221.00 $221.00 $740 —
375–395 383 3 221.00–232.50 $227.39 $871 +17.39
415–430 423 3 214.00–226.00 $220.35 $932 —
450 450 1 195.00 $195.00 $878 -9.00
460 fancy 460 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,058 —
460–495 478 6 204.00–220.00 $214.49 $1,025 -6.33
510–540 524 5 197.00–206.00 $200.94 $1,053 -0.22
555–568 563 4 200.00–204.00 $203.00 $1,143 +2.45
630 630 1 192.50 $192.50 $1,213 -13.28
650 650 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,170 ±0.00
725 725 1 183.00 $183.00 $1,327 +12.69
775 775 1 177.00 $177.00 $1,372 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 180.00 $180.00 $792 —
620 620 1 179.00 $179.00 $1,110 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
380 380 1 235.00 $235.00 $893 -7.51
420–430 425 2 210.00–230.00 $219.88 $934 -14.87
470–485 478 2 221.00–227.50 $224.20 $1,072 +9.48
503–540 525 11 210.00–217.00 $214.89 $1,128 -3.95
560–580 571 5 195.00–210.00 $203.35 $1,161 -6.89
610–625 615 4 180.00–190.00 $185.47 $1,141 -22.85
670 670 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,206 ±0.00
750 750 1 174.00 $174.00 $1,305 +3.00
820 820 1 152.00 $152.00 $1,246 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
445 445 2 160.00 $160.00 $712 —
480 480 1 185.00 $185.00 $888 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
405 405 1 200.00 $200.00 $810 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
885–1165 1033 80-85% 4 80.50–90.50 $86.80 $897 —
955–1500 1224 80-85% 20 94.50–106.50 $100.66 $1,232 —
1145–1360 1283 80-85% 3 109.00–113.00 $110.37 $1,416 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
890 890 85-90% 1 74.00 $74.00 $659 -6.00
735–1245 935 85-90% 12 80.00–93.00 $86.52 $809 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1030–1190 1110 75-80% 2 87.00–90.50 $88.62 $984 —
1070–1740 1401 75-80% 8 94.00–107.50 $99.89 $1,399 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1250–1840 1460 3 125.50–126.50 $126.21 $1,843 —
2245 2245 1 118.50 $118.50 $2,660 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900 900 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,125.00 $1,125.00
1050 1050 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,525.00 $1,525.00
1100 1100 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,375.00 $1,375.00
1300 1300 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,375.00 $1,375.00

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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 1,500.00 $1,500.00 —
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,675.00 $1,675.00 —
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,275.00 $1,275.00 —
— — Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,700.00 $1,700.00 —
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 1,475.00–1,725.00 $1,600.00 —
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,500.00 $1,500.00 —

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
334 value added 334 9 196.00 $196.00 $655 —
Small 4 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
420 420 1 120.00 $120.00 $504 —

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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.