Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, March 27, 2024

792 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $249.25/cwt ≈ $1,962/hd at 787 lb · 61 head
light 8-weight M&L 1 steers $235.10/cwt ≈ $1,914/hd at 814 lb · 60 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $274.50/cwt ≈ $1,460/hd at 532 lb · 41 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 792 206 319
Feeder cattle 672 152 219
Slaughter cattle 92 47 91
Replacement cattle 28 7 9

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to this sale last week, insufficient comparable receipts to develop trends. Quality was good, demand was good. Slaughter cows/bulls 4.00 to 12.00 higher. Video load :: https://www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/ams_2228.pdf

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
787 value added 787 61 249.25 $249.25 $1,962 —
814 value added 814 60 235.10 $235.10 $1,914 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 fancy 275 1 410.00 $410.00 $1,128 —
288–295 292 4 340.00–360.00 $350.12 $1,022 —
320–335 328 2 325.00–350.00 $337.21 $1,106 —
340–345 343 2 275.00–305.00 $289.89 $994 —
368–395 380 8 330.00–350.00 $335.81 $1,276 —
400–445 413 10 302.00–317.50 $310.08 $1,281 -7.42
458–465 value added 459 5 330.00–332.50 $331.99 $1,524 —
480–485 483 2 280.00–287.50 $283.73 $1,370 -36.27
502–543 528 18 288.00–300.00 $294.27 $1,554 —
500–547 value added 541 17 310.00–318.00 $310.99 $1,682 —
560–580 570 5 293.00–307.50 $302.58 $1,725 +32.58
605–631 625 9 282.00–285.00 $284.41 $1,778 —
633 value added 633 2 295.00 $295.00 $1,867 —
663–665 664 4 270.00–280.00 $275.01 $1,826 —
710 710 1 192.00 $192.00 $1,363 —
818–840 829 4 214.00–225.00 $219.43 $1,819 —
995 995 1 224.00 $224.00 $2,229 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
225 225 1 310.00 $310.00 $698 —
295 295 1 305.00 $305.00 $900 —
385 385 1 302.50 $302.50 $1,165 —
445 445 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,246 —
455–490 473 6 267.50–277.50 $271.32 $1,283 —
520 520 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,456 —
565–585 575 2 230.00–267.50 $248.42 $1,428 —
605–630 615 3 221.00–242.00 $228.27 $1,404 —
835 835 1 182.00 $182.00 $1,520 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340 340 1 335.00 $335.00 $1,139 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285 285 1 340.00 $340.00 $969 +40.00
300–340 313 5 320.00–325.00 $323.04 $1,011 +50.40
355–397 377 14 312.50–322.50 $314.64 $1,186 +34.64
402–409 value added 407 12 310.00 $310.00 $1,262 +19.56
400–440 423 4 287.50–307.50 $297.69 $1,259 +41.05
465–495 470 8 265.00–287.50 $269.59 $1,267 +16.26
485 value added 485 3 292.00 $292.00 $1,416 +17.00
510–535 524 35 250.00–273.00 $264.20 $1,384 +39.20
560 560 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,232 -27.56
556–595 564 11 244.00–258.00 $253.06 $1,427 +5.50
582 value added 582 15 260.00 $260.00 $1,513 —
610–640 631 8 220.00–228.00 $225.92 $1,426 +20.92
715–725 718 3 199.00–210.00 $202.70 $1,455 —
878 878 2 170.00 $170.00 $1,493 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
278–290 280 9 295.00–300.00 $295.57 $828 —
303–345 312 8 290.00–305.00 $302.93 $945 +67.93
350–390 382 10 280.00–300.00 $289.93 $1,108 —
400–425 417 3 255.00–268.00 $263.84 $1,100 +43.84
480–495 489 5 229.00–258.00 $246.63 $1,206 —
500–545 522 7 220.00–240.00 $233.39 $1,218 —
595 595 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,368 —
685 685 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,302 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
532 value added 532 41 274.50 $274.50 $1,460 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
665 665 1 165.00 $165.00 $1,097 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–365 358 3 315.00–350.00 $338.12 $1,210 +16.84
400–445 424 4 285.00–300.00 $295.63 $1,253 +15.63
429 fancy 429 4 307.50 $307.50 $1,319 —
465 fancy 465 1 310.00 $310.00 $1,442 —
465–495 475 4 285.00–300.00 $291.93 $1,387 +1.23
510–525 518 2 267.50–278.00 $272.83 $1,413 -2.44
525 fancy 525 1 290.00 $290.00 $1,522 —
565–595 576 7 240.00–259.00 $252.47 $1,454 -0.36
620 620 1 247.00 $247.00 $1,531 —
715–720 719 5 217.50–230.00 $219.99 $1,582 +37.49
780 780 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,560 -21.00
825–845 835 2 190.00–200.00 $195.06 $1,629 +14.06
890 890 1 166.00 $166.00 $1,477 —
915 915 1 178.00 $178.00 $1,629 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355 355 4 275.00 $275.00 $976 —
470–490 480 5 225.00–272.50 $253.26 $1,216 —
528–545 534 3 240.00–247.00 $242.38 $1,294 +5.38
580 580 1 217.00 $217.00 $1,259 —
605 605 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,150 —
680 680 3 210.50 $210.50 $1,431 —
845 845 1 178.00 $178.00 $1,504 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
373 373 3 295.00 $295.00 $1,100 —
440 440 1 267.50 $267.50 $1,177 +15.00
470 470 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,034 —
645 645 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,354 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1010–1240 1152 80-85% 3 109.00–118.00 $113.72 $1,310 —
890–1460 1165 80-85% 20 123.00–133.00 $128.02 $1,491 —
960–1415 1227 80-85% 5 134.00–149.00 $139.10 $1,707 +9.51
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
905 905 85-90% 1 99.00 $99.00 $896 —
915–1095 1001 85-90% 5 127.00–132.00 $129.74 $1,299 +29.72
890–1220 1021 85-90% 6 100.00–110.00 $105.31 $1,075 +5.29
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1425 1425 75-80% 1 139.00 $139.00 $1,981 —
1305–1700 1481 75-80% 5 124.00–130.00 $126.58 $1,875 +5.16

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1145 1145 1 132.00 $132.00 $1,511 —
1205–2115 1687 9 148.00–162.00 $154.64 $2,609 +4.91
1930–2215 2089 4 164.00–170.00 $168.37 $3,517 —

↑ Back to top

Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— — Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 1,585.00–2,325.00 $1,955.00
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,575.00 $1,575.00
— — Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,825.00 $1,825.00

↑ Back to top

Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— — Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,110.00–1,750.00 $1,430.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— — Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,250.00 $1,250.00

↑ Back to top

Beef Dairy Heifers

Medium and Large 4 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
898 898 3 177.50 $177.50 $1,594 —

↑ Back to top

Beef Dairy Steers

Medium and Large 4 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
490 490 2 184.00 $184.00 $902 —
585 585 1 182.00 $182.00 $1,065 —
773 773 2 182.00 $182.00 $1,407 —
900 900 1 187.50 $187.50 $1,688 —

↑ Back to top

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 1,700.00 $1,700.00 —
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 2,350.00 $2,350.00 —
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 1,900.00 $1,900.00 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 2 1,450.00 $1,450.00 —
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 1,000.00 $1,000.00 —

↑ Back to top

Dairy Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
307 307 3 245.00 $245.00 $752 —
388 388 2 247.50 $247.50 $960 —
410 410 1 225.00 $225.00 $922 —
515 515 3 202.50 $202.50 $1,043 —
756 756 4 190.50 $190.50 $1,440 —
930 930 10 164.00 $164.00 $1,525 —

↑ Back to top

Heifer Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 1,400.00 $1,400.00 —

↑ Back to top

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.