Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, October 4, 2023

269 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 269 249 160
Feeder cattle 199 154 86
Slaughter cattle 60 78 66
Replacement cattle 10 17 8

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, breaker and boning cows 1.00 to 4.00 lower, with lean cows steady, and slaughter bulls sharply 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
426 426 4 237.50 $237.50 $1,012 +12.50
450 450 1 260.00 $260.00 $1,170 —
505–520 515 4 220.00–231.00 $228.05 $1,174 —
550–560 555 2 225.00–230.00 $227.52 $1,263 —
625 625 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,250 —
655–690 670 5 215.00–224.00 $218.53 $1,464 -11.47
830 830 1 205.00 $205.00 $1,702 —
875 875 1 187.00 $187.00 $1,636 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
400–435 412 3 205.00–223.00 $211.15 $870 -2.85
465 fancy 465 1 216.00 $216.00 $1,004 —
470–480 475 3 185.00–205.00 $193.39 $919 +5.32
533–535 534 3 182.00–206.00 $197.98 $1,057 -7.55
550 fancy 550 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,155 —
565–595 586 5 164.00–195.00 $172.16 $1,009 +17.16
615–645 628 3 169.00–184.00 $176.63 $1,109 -18.37
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 2 160.00 $160.00 $704 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260–290 275 2 210.00–235.00 $223.18 $614 —
330–335 332 3 212.50–220.00 $215.03 $714 -14.97
360–375 366 5 220.00–250.00 $230.89 $845 -3.36
410–435 423 2 207.50 $207.50 $878 -32.06
475–490 fancy 483 2 230.00–240.00 $234.92 $1,135 —
495 495 2 185.00–200.00 $192.50 $953 -32.59
565–580 570 4 167.50–181.00 $176.70 $1,007 -18.30
605–645 621 7 150.00–170.00 $166.89 $1,036 —
675 675 1 177.50 $177.50 $1,198 +4.21
785 785 1 145.00 $145.00 $1,138 -20.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 195.00 $195.00 $858 -1.25

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
970–1765 1386 75-80% 17 82.00–97.50 $88.23 $1,223 —
1490 1490 75-80% 1 108.50 $108.50 $1,617 —
1475–1565 1520 75-80% 2 76.00–77.50 $76.73 $1,166 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
915–1430 1090 80-85% 9 77.50–88.50 $82.53 $900 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
880 880 85-90% 1 65.00 $65.00 $572 —
945–1310 1108 85-90% 6 72.50–79.50 $76.07 $843 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1500–2045 1753 4 110.50–115.00 $111.85 $1,961 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1100 1100 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 950.00 $950.00
1050–1200 1125 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,075.00–1,100.00 $1,087.50
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900 900 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 800.00 $800.00

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Bred Heifers

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
750 750 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 900.00 $900.00

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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 1,375.00 $1,375.00 —

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Dairy Heifers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
595 595 5 100.00 $100.00 $595 —
749 749 5 95.00 $95.00 $712 —

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
605 605 1 135.00 $135.00 $817 —

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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.