Cattle Market Pulse

East Tennessee Livestock Center Market Report

Sweetwater, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, February 18, 2026

237 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1 bulls $402.35/cwt +59.85 vs last sale · ≈ $2,338/hd at 581 lb · 14 head
light 4-weight M&L 1 bulls $505.87/cwt -18.30 vs last sale · ≈ $2,206/hd at 436 lb · 11 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1 heifers $483.12/cwt +19.34 vs last sale · ≈ $1,797/hd at 372 lb · 10 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 237 179 0
Feeder cattle 166 114 0
Slaughter cattle 52 57 0
Replacement cattle 19 8 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows and bulls sold mostly steady with no comparisons for feeder classes due to limited comparable receipts.

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
360 value added 360 1 600.00 $600.00 $2,160 —
835 value added 835 1 330.00 $330.00 $2,756 —
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
455 455 1 400.00 $400.00 $1,820 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
235 235 1 515.00 $515.00 $1,210 —
302 302 3 515.00 $515.00 $1,555 —
350–390 372 10 450.00–502.50 $483.12 $1,797 +31.41
403–425 411 5 457.50–500.00 $480.91 $1,977 +41.63
485 485 4 429.00–442.50 $432.38 $2,097 +29.88
510–537 526 5 400.00–430.00 $409.69 $2,155 +11.53
550–585 573 3 387.50 $387.50 $2,220 —
615–630 value added 623 2 360.00–362.50 $361.23 $2,250 —
690 690 1 327.50 $327.50 $2,260 —
720 720 1 320.00 $320.00 $2,304 —
764 value added 764 5 317.50 $317.50 $2,426 —
843 value added 843 2 318.00 $318.00 $2,681 —
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260–285 270 3 415.00–470.00 $452.01 $1,220 —
535 535 2 340.00 $340.00 $1,819 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
400 400 1 417.50 $417.50 $1,670 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
225 225 2 640.00 $640.00 $1,440 —
260–295 272 3 580.00–620.00 $596.07 $1,621 -123.93
323 323 2 625.00 $625.00 $2,019 +65.00
350–353 352 4 545.00–580.00 $562.57 $1,980 -18.20
415–445 436 11 495.00–520.00 $505.87 $2,206 -18.30
463–485 474 9 462.50–507.50 $475.63 $2,254 +75.63
500–540 515 3 412.50–420.00 $416.56 $2,145 -18.44
558–595 581 14 395.00–425.00 $402.35 $2,338 +57.35
610–615 613 2 375.00–385.00 $379.98 $2,329 —
655–685 674 5 342.50–375.00 $354.84 $2,392 +22.22
705 fancy 705 1 392.50 $392.50 $2,767 —
715–743 734 3 332.50–370.00 $357.82 $2,626 —
763 value added 763 2 360.00 $360.00 $2,747 —
778 778 2 328.00 $328.00 $2,552 +11.77
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
205 205 1 560.00 $560.00 $1,148 —
315 315 1 530.00 $530.00 $1,670 +40.00
490 490 1 425.00 $425.00 $2,082 —
535 535 1 370.00 $370.00 $1,980 —
605–645 623 3 317.50–320.00 $319.14 $1,988 —
720 720 1 300.00 $300.00 $2,160 —
820 820 1 272.50 $272.50 $2,234 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
482 482 3 452.50 $452.50 $2,181 +55.00
735 735 1 325.00 $325.00 $2,389 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
850–1205 1051 80-85% 9 163.00–175.00 $170.30 $1,790 —
1220–1330 1258 80-85% 3 179.00–184.00 $181.59 $2,284 —
1260 1260 80-85% 1 154.00 $154.00 $1,940 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
930–1075 1003 85-90% 2 139.00–144.00 $141.68 $1,421 —
965–1185 1065 85-90% 8 149.00–163.00 $154.82 $1,649 +12.39
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1245–1345 1298 75-80% 3 167.00–174.00 $171.65 $2,228 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1475 1475 1 209.00 $209.00 $3,083 —
1465–1905 1717 3 195.00–205.00 $198.70 $3,412 —
2455 2455 1 225.00 $225.00 $5,524 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 1,750.00–2,200.00 $1,975.00

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 3,100.00 $3,100.00
— — Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 2,850.00 $2,850.00
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,600.00 $2,600.00
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— — Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,925.00 $1,925.00

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Beef/Dairy Steers

Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
770 770 1 300.00 $300.00 $2,310 —

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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
— — Aged (>8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 2,350.00 $2,350.00 —
— — Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 2,700.00 $2,700.00 —

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Dairy Cows

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
905 905 85-90% 1 140.00 $140.00 $1,267 —
1190–1440 1298 85-90% 3 156.00–163.00 $158.59 $2,058 —
1630 1630 75-80% 1 178.00 $178.00 $2,901 —

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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.