Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, March 6, 2024

195 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 195 377 191
Feeder cattle 129 248 124
Slaughter cattle 61 121 57
Replacement cattle 5 8 10

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows mostly steady overall with no comparisons 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
238 238 4 340.00 $340.00 $809 —
265 265 1 370.00 $370.00 $980 +50.00
330 330 3 330.00 $330.00 $1,089 —
375–395 382 4 290.00–327.00 $309.56 $1,183 -10.44
400 fancy 400 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,400 —
400–435 412 3 300.00–317.50 $309.72 $1,276 -15.28
470 470 1 290.00 $290.00 $1,363 -10.00
500 500 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,400 —
655 value added 655 1 242.50 $242.50 $1,588 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
230–248 239 4 270.00–275.00 $273.80 $654 —
265 fancy 265 1 315.00 $315.00 $835 —
280–295 288 2 275.00 $275.00 $792 —
300–330 313 4 270.00–295.00 $279.94 $876 +9.94
300–345 fancy 323 2 308.00–311.00 $309.40 $999 —
390–395 393 6 260.00–287.00 $269.72 $1,060 -0.30
395 fancy 395 1 322.50 $322.50 $1,274 —
410–435 423 2 265.00–288.00 $276.16 $1,168 +30.95
430–445 fancy 437 3 295.00–300.00 $298.36 $1,304 +25.97
463 463 2 260.00 $260.00 $1,204 +40.52
510–530 520 2 205.00–220.00 $212.64 $1,106 -10.97
640 640 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,280 -24.64
715 value added 715 1 182.50 $182.50 $1,305 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
453 453 2 247.50 $247.50 $1,121 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300–340 315 3 300.00–325.00 $308.99 $973 -1.01
395 395 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,304 +5.48
400 400 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,080 -27.50
410 fancy 410 1 320.00 $320.00 $1,312 —
415–435 425 3 277.50–295.00 $283.70 $1,206 -13.80
458–479 473 7 272.50–277.50 $276.12 $1,306 -15.80
668 668 4 230.00 $230.00 $1,536 +14.00
790 790 1 192.50 $192.50 $1,521 —
815 815 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,467 ±0.00
860 860 1 175.00 $175.00 $1,505 —
915 915 1 177.50 $177.50 $1,624 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
333 333 2 275.00 $275.00 $916 —
355 355 2 290.00 $290.00 $1,030 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350 350 1 287.50 $287.50 $1,006 —
550 550 1 247.50 $247.50 $1,361 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
995–1265 1124 80-85% 17 104.00–119.00 $111.89 $1,258 ±0.00
1220–1340 1273 80-85% 4 123.00–133.00 $129.31 $1,646 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1205–1775 1445 75-80% 11 110.00–125.00 $116.34 $1,681 —
1615 1615 75-80% 1 129.00 $129.00 $2,083 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
835 835 85-90% 1 89.00 $89.00 $743 —
805–1275 1042 85-90% 10 95.00–108.00 $100.61 $1,048 -13.39

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1500–1635 1552 3 130.00–133.00 $131.62 $2,043 —
2275 2275 1 144.00 $144.00 $3,276 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1200 1200 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,300.00 $1,300.00
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
800 800 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,050.00 $1,050.00

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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.