Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 18, 2024

132 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 132 138 109
Feeder cattle 73 106 58
Slaughter cattle 54 26 40
Replacement cattle 5 6 11

Compared to last week, slaughter cows gauging 2.00 to 8.00 higher overall , with higher-quality offerings noted. No comparisons available for slaughter bulls and feeder classes due to limited comparable receipts. No sales will be held the next two weeks in observance of the Christmas and New Year holidays.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
435 435 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,414
620 620 1 249.00 $249.00 $1,544 +6.00
775 775 1 225.00 $225.00 $1,744
905 value added 905 4 210.00 $210.00 $1,900
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
520 520 1 265.00 $265.00 $1,378

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Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355 355 1 290.00 $290.00 $1,030 -2.50
415 415 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,162 +32.50
480 480 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,296 +6.53
503 value added 503 2 260.00 $260.00 $1,308
535–545 540 2 245.00 $245.00 $1,323 -8.39
655 655 1 222.50 $222.50 $1,457
805 805 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,530
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
415 415 1 227.50 $227.50 $944 +20.00

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Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
365 365 1 370.00 $370.00 $1,350 +40.00
453–480 460 4 312.50–317.50 $313.81 $1,444
515 515 1 267.50 $267.50 $1,378 -1.50
580–598 589 4 239.00–255.00 $246.88 $1,454
610–640 625 2 217.50–234.00 $225.55 $1,410 -8.12
700–703 702 4 220.00–225.00 $221.25 $1,553 +6.25
846 846 4 197.50 $197.50 $1,671
855–895 875 2 180.00–190.00 $185.11 $1,620
950 950 1 172.50 $172.50 $1,639
1000–1020 1010 2 170.00–185.00 $177.57 $1,793
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
365–380 373 2 285.00–315.00 $299.70 $1,118
785 785 1 185.00 $185.00 $1,452

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Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1185–1680 1415 75-80% 3 120.50–124.50 $122.20 $1,729
1275–1600 1440 75-80% 6 105.50–118.50 $113.37 $1,633
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1125–1200 1160 80-85% 3 111.00–118.00 $114.94 $1,333
1055–1275 1165 80-85% 2 120.50–123.50 $122.14 $1,423
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
795 795 85-90% 1 95.00 $95.00 $755

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YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1825–2075 1950 2 140.50–141.50 $140.97 $2,749

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1050 1050 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,350.00 $1,350.00
1200 1200 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,000.00 $2,000.00

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 2,400.00 $2,400.00

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N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1085–1375 1220 85-90% 3 80.00–91.50 $87.53 $1,068
1220–1615 1413 85-90% 6 95.00–111.00 $101.90 $1,440
1255–1660 1418 80-85% 5 103.50–118.50 $111.63 $1,583
1390–1795 1655 75-80% 5 103.00–108.00 $105.79 $1,751

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Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
590 590 2 171.00 $171.00 $1,009
625 625 3 167.50 $167.50 $1,047

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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.