Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, March 20, 2024

206 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $274.84/cwt -14.64 vs last sale · ≈ $1,172/hd at 426 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 206 195 216
Feeder cattle 152 129 143
Slaughter cattle 47 61 69
Replacement cattle 7 5 4

Market comments — USDA reporter

**No comparisons available due to reporter absence last week. The Customer Appreciation event will be included as a part of next week's sale.

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
430 430 1 317.50 $317.50 $1,365 +7.78
490 490 1 320.00 $320.00 $1,568 +30.00
590 590 2 270.00 $270.00 $1,593 —
755 755 1 240.00 $240.00 $1,812 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
345 345 1 302.50 $302.50 $1,044 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
410 410 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,230 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
220 220 1 280.00 $280.00 $616 +6.20
290 290 1 300.00 $300.00 $870 +25.00
310–315 313 2 255.00–290.00 $272.64 $853 -7.30
385 385 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,078 +10.28
405–435 420 6 247.00–267.00 $256.64 $1,078 -19.52
420–443 value added 432 7 277.00–303.00 $290.44 $1,255 —
475 value added 475 2 275.00 $275.00 $1,306 —
490 490 3 250.00–255.00 $253.33 $1,241 -6.67
528 528 2 225.00 $225.00 $1,188 +12.36
555–585 571 8 240.00–250.00 $247.56 $1,414 —
615 615 1 205.00 $205.00 $1,261 +5.00
790 value added 790 5 200.00 $200.00 $1,580 —
925 925 1 170.00 $170.00 $1,572 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315 315 1 235.00 $235.00 $740 —
410 410 1 220.00 $220.00 $902 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
410 410 1 200.00 $200.00 $820 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
280–290 283 3 340.00–370.00 $350.24 $991 —
303 303 2 325.00 $325.00 $985 +16.01
355–380 375 5 300.00–330.00 $321.28 $1,205 -8.72
439 value added 439 4 315.00 $315.00 $1,383 —
440 440 2 280.00 $280.00 $1,232 -3.70
458–460 459 3 280.00–312.00 $290.70 $1,334 +14.58
505–543 533 6 269.00–281.00 $275.27 $1,467 —
563–585 569 4 235.00–259.00 $252.83 $1,439 —
668–670 669 3 220.00 $220.00 $1,472 -10.00
733 733 2 182.50 $182.50 $1,338 —
780 780 1 221.00 $221.00 $1,724 +28.50
835 835 2 181.00 $181.00 $1,511 +1.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
545 545 1 237.00 $237.00 $1,292 —
1008 1008 2 141.00 $141.00 $1,421 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 252.50 $252.50 $1,111 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
870 870 80-85% 1 130.00 $130.00 $1,131 —
1065–1355 1210 80-85% 5 126.00–138.00 $129.59 $1,568 —
1095–1455 1268 80-85% 6 107.00–117.00 $113.81 $1,443 -15.50
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
900–1285 1030 85-90% 6 94.00–106.00 $100.02 $1,030 -0.59
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1430–1520 1467 75-80% 3 114.00–127.00 $121.42 $1,781 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1420–1790 1656 4 145.00–155.00 $149.73 $2,480 —
1860–1995 1937 3 158.00–167.00 $161.76 $3,133 —

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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)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,500.00 $1,500.00
950 950 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,550.00 $1,550.00
1000 1000 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,525.00 $1,525.00
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
800 800 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 925.00 $925.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,775.00 $1,775.00 —
— — Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,775.00 $1,775.00 —

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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.