Cattle Market Pulse

Knoxville Livestock Center Market Report

Knoxville, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, December 12, 2023

902 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 9-weight M&L 1 steers $200.38/cwt ≈ $1,843/hd at 920 lb · 218 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $214.50/cwt ≈ $1,677/hd at 782 lb · 68 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $205.44/cwt +8.20 vs last sale · ≈ $970/hd at 472 lb · 33 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 902 1,287 1,382
Feeder cattle 814 1,120 1,214
Slaughter cattle 73 135 117
Replacement cattle 15 32 51

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, feeder steers and bulls sharply higher overall, with exception of bulls weighing 350-450 lbs. mostly steady. Feeder heifers weighing up to 500 lbs. 3.00 lower with those weighing over 500 lbs. 4.00 higher. Slaughter cows and bulls steady to 2.00 lower overall. Today's offerings included the following load lots: 1 load ML 1 preconditioned Steers, 782 lbs., $214.50, medium flesh, mostly black; 2 loads ML 1 preconditioned Steers, 904 lbs., $201.85, medium flesh, mixed colors; 1 load ML 1 preconditioned Steers, 946 lbs., $198.00, medium flesh, mixed colors.

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
782 value added 782 68 214.50 $214.50 $1,677 —
904–946 value added 920 218 198.00–201.85 $200.38 $1,843 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
318–340 324 4 257.50–270.00 $266.72 $864 —
355 fancy 355 1 295.00 $295.00 $1,047 —
350–370 360 2 257.50–270.00 $263.92 $950 -5.08
404–425 value added 407 12 270.00–275.00 $271.75 $1,106 +6.75
400–440 428 19 248.50–265.00 $252.59 $1,081 +21.75
450–467 value added 460 5 250.00–255.00 $251.97 $1,159 +12.80
450–495 474 7 230.00–245.00 $235.98 $1,119 +12.88
520–525 value added 521 6 242.50–247.50 $246.66 $1,285 —
510–546 532 11 222.50–237.50 $229.79 $1,222 +4.78
555–580 566 15 217.00–232.50 $226.41 $1,281 +12.10
583 value added 583 5 237.50 $237.50 $1,385 +2.50
602–645 617 10 217.50–222.50 $219.49 $1,354 +16.31
655–675 663 4 215.00–222.50 $219.71 $1,457 +16.14
900 value added 900 1 194.00 $194.00 $1,746 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
292 292 2 230.00 $230.00 $672 —
745 745 1 195.00 $195.00 $1,453 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
535 535 2 212.50 $212.50 $1,137 +7.50

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
271–285 275 4 212.50–225.00 $221.76 $610 +9.04
315–332 326 3 212.50–217.50 $215.89 $704 -8.01
360–397 373 5 197.00–216.00 $202.40 $755 -10.97
405–422 value added 414 12 225.00–236.00 $230.36 $954 +5.37
400–448 432 17 190.00–213.00 $200.50 $866 -6.92
453–495 470 23 187.50–211.00 $198.68 $934 +2.87
477 value added 477 10 221.00 $221.00 $1,054 +8.75
505–544 530 18 187.50–203.00 $193.88 $1,028 +13.88
538 value added 538 5 210.00 $210.00 $1,130 -6.38
550–590 565 17 189.00–200.00 $193.59 $1,094 +3.92
567 value added 567 2 207.50 $207.50 $1,177 -1.47
603 value added 603 3 200.00 $200.00 $1,206 —
600–635 616 9 170.00–190.00 $182.98 $1,127 +11.30
653–695 673 11 172.50–189.00 $183.53 $1,235 —
703–723 712 7 172.50–177.50 $174.68 $1,244 —
757–787 766 9 165.00–170.00 $166.68 $1,277 +6.68
835 835 2 159.00 $159.00 $1,328 —
855 855 1 150.00 $150.00 $1,282 —
955–975 965 2 140.00 $140.00 $1,351 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315 315 1 185.00 $185.00 $583 —
465 465 1 175.00 $175.00 $814 —
587 587 2 177.50 $177.50 $1,042 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
280–285 283 2 270.00–280.00 $275.04 $778 +32.56
305 fancy 305 1 305.00 $305.00 $930 +15.00
315–345 330 2 270.00–290.00 $279.55 $923 +16.91
355–390 fancy 373 2 285.00–305.00 $294.53 $1,099 —
385–390 387 3 250.00–275.00 $262.55 $1,016 +6.11
400–440 418 4 230.00–245.00 $237.99 $995 +1.39
455–475 464 5 230.00–237.50 $231.54 $1,074 +16.55
505–545 528 15 215.00–228.00 $224.80 $1,187 +27.79
550–592 571 14 207.50–222.50 $214.93 $1,227 +15.24
601–647 623 11 197.50–217.50 $212.58 $1,324 +28.60
682–685 684 5 187.50–190.00 $189.50 $1,296 —
700–725 712 7 172.50–182.50 $178.19 $1,269 —
755–770 760 3 155.00–167.50 $162.20 $1,233 —
805 805 1 140.00 $140.00 $1,127 —
860 860 1 128.00 $128.00 $1,101 —
915–940 934 4 122.50–136.00 $127.16 $1,188 —
965–980 973 2 120.00 $120.00 $1,168 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
220–242 235 3 220.00–230.00 $223.13 $524 —
335 335 1 240.00 $240.00 $804 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 220.00 $220.00 $968 —
490 490 1 215.00 $215.00 $1,054 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
980 980 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 1 1,350.00 $1,350.00 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
925–1480 1205 80-85% 15 80.50–88.00 $85.13 $1,026 —
1225 1225 80-85% 1 96.50 $96.50 $1,182 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1305 1305 75-80% 1 80.00 $80.00 $1,044 —
1480 1480 75-80% 1 97.00 $97.00 $1,436 —
1220–1960 1529 75-80% 11 82.00–92.00 $86.67 $1,325 -2.31
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
800–875 838 85-90% 2 63.00–64.00 $63.48 $532 —
860–1175 1036 85-90% 8 69.50–80.00 $75.58 $783 +5.20

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1475–1745 1640 3 126.00–128.00 $127.31 $2,088 —
1745–1790 1768 2 102.00–105.00 $103.52 $1,830 —
1290–2080 1774 8 109.00–123.00 $118.21 $2,097 —

↑ 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.