Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, June 26, 2024

227 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $250.58/cwt ≈ $1,421/hd at 567 lb · 20 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $272.46/cwt ≈ $1,553/hd at 570 lb · 10 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 227 176 202
Feeder cattle 135 104 130
Slaughter cattle 88 68 60
Replacement cattle 4 4 12

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows and bulls gauging 2.00 to 5.00 higher overall with 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
345 345 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,121 —
493 493 3 286.00 $286.00 $1,410 —
500–540 value added 513 3 280.00–285.00 $281.75 $1,445 —
560–580 570 10 270.00–275.00 $272.46 $1,553 —
661 value added 661 4 265.00 $265.00 $1,752 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
505 505 2 261.00 $261.00 $1,318 —

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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 1 275.00 $275.00 $605 —
295 295 1 270.00 $270.00 $796 —
305–325 315 2 260.00–265.00 $262.42 $827 -57.58
365–370 368 2 255.00–260.00 $257.52 $948 -10.26
405–443 432 4 260.00–270.00 $262.35 $1,133 -3.00
460–483 475 3 245.00–248.00 $245.97 $1,168 -21.49
482 value added 482 3 265.00 $265.00 $1,277 —
502–515 509 6 255.00–260.00 $257.53 $1,311 +12.53
555–571 567 20 236.00–258.00 $250.58 $1,421 —
620 620 3 215.00–219.00 $216.33 $1,341 -10.67

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–395 382 5 265.00–295.00 $278.63 $1,064 -28.97
400–445 425 3 272.50–310.00 $285.14 $1,212 -7.29
503–543 522 6 255.00–262.50 $259.01 $1,352 -11.55
565 565 1 235.00 $235.00 $1,328 -15.00
620 620 1 237.50 $237.50 $1,472 -12.50
710 710 1 209.00 $209.00 $1,484 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
960–1390 1160 80-85% 21 136.00–148.00 $141.60 $1,643 +4.73
1170–1385 1278 80-85% 2 155.00–156.00 $155.54 $1,988 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1355 1355 75-80% 1 133.00 $133.00 $1,802 —
1240–1600 1389 75-80% 12 138.00–150.50 $145.25 $2,018 —
1505–1575 1547 75-80% 3 153.50–159.00 $156.03 $2,414 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
875–1470 1110 85-90% 6 127.00–136.00 $131.15 $1,456 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
850–1135 1010 4 154.00–162.00 $158.43 $1,600 —
1325–1985 1618 6 169.00–175.50 $172.57 $2,792 —

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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 1,750.00 $1,750.00 —
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 2,375.00 $2,375.00 —

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Dairy Cows

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
995–1255 1083 85-90% 3 127.00–131.00 $128.84 $1,395 —
1440 1440 80-85% 1 139.00 $139.00 $2,002 —
1405–1690 1548 75-80% 2 138.00–138.50 $138.27 $2,140 —
1685 1685 75-80% 1 128.00 $128.00 $2,157 —

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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.