Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, October 18, 2023

324 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $172.29/cwt +32.56 vs last sale · ≈ $1,187/hd at 689 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 324 321 272
Feeder cattle 217 228 190
Slaughter cattle 87 71 72
Replacement cattle 20 22 10

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, feeder heifers and bulls sharply higher overall with no comparisons available for feeder steers due to limited comparable receipts. Slaughter cows gauging 2.00 to 3.00 higher with slaughter bulls 3.00 lower.

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
535 535 1 219.00 $219.00 $1,172 +6.68
570 570 2 215.00 $215.00 $1,226 +3.01
670 670 2 214.00–215.00 $214.50 $1,437 +41.19
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
450 450 1 213.00 $213.00 $958 +62.12
610 value added 610 1 195.00 $195.00 $1,190 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305–343 329 7 190.00–215.00 $200.33 $659 +38.33
360–397 387 5 187.00–195.00 $189.08 $732 +1.29
423–440 429 5 190.00–210.00 $200.07 $858 +31.97
453–475 458 5 185.00–200.00 $193.92 $888 +29.53
500–535 507 6 184.00–200.00 $193.75 $982 +42.55
565 565 1 170.00 $170.00 $960 -7.40
655–697 689 13 160.00–175.00 $172.29 $1,187 +44.70
705 705 1 155.00 $155.00 $1,093 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
270 270 1 180.00 $180.00 $486 —
360 360 1 180.00 $180.00 $648 —
525 525 1 160.00 $160.00 $840 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
525 525 1 162.50 $162.50 $853 +32.50
680 680 1 150.00 $150.00 $1,020 +35.00
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
635 635 1 164.00 $164.00 $1,041 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
278 278 2 215.00 $215.00 $598 +15.00
345 345 1 210.00 $210.00 $724 —
350–375 365 3 210.00–235.00 $219.68 $802 +28.82
365 fancy 365 1 255.00 $255.00 $931 —
400–420 414 5 205.00–227.50 $218.55 $905 +3.17
490–498 495 6 204.00–212.00 $206.31 $1,021 +9.35
515–530 523 2 190.00–209.00 $199.36 $1,043 +11.90
560–580 570 2 190.00–195.00 $192.46 $1,097 +18.46
590 590 1 175.00 $175.00 $1,032 +1.00
605–630 620 4 170.00–187.50 $180.73 $1,121 +14.32
655 655 1 172.50 $172.50 $1,130 +13.76
710–745 730 4 162.50–170.00 $166.03 $1,212 +18.17
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
500–535 518 2 180.00 $180.00 $932 —
585 585 1 174.00 $174.00 $1,018 —
650 650 1 160.00 $160.00 $1,040 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310 310 1 205.00 $205.00 $636 +56.46

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1425–1525 1467 75-80% 3 79.50–83.00 $81.54 $1,196 —
1130–1850 1471 75-80% 17 86.00–99.00 $92.18 $1,356 —
1310–1635 1490 75-80% 3 101.50–106.00 $104.34 $1,555 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
745–995 910 85-90% 3 72.00–74.00 $72.73 $662 —
825–1365 1051 85-90% 14 77.00–88.00 $81.92 $861 +2.92
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
835–1315 1102 80-85% 11 84.00–94.50 $87.40 $963 -8.47
1115 1115 80-85% 1 82.50 $82.50 $920 -13.37

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1295–1310 1303 2 114.00 $114.00 $1,485 —
1595–2125 1760 4 116.00–125.00 $119.43 $2,102 -12.57
1885 1885 1 133.00 $133.00 $2,507 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
700 700 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 3 750.00 $750.00

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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 1,025.00 $1,025.00
900 900 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,000.00 $1,000.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
800 800 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 780.00 $780.00
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
850 850 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 810.00 $810.00

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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 1,675.00 $1,675.00 —

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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.