Cattle Market Pulse

Knoxville Livestock Center Market Report

Knoxville, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, April 2, 2024

1,140 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 4-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $302.20/cwt -13.41 vs last sale · ≈ $1,296/hd at 429 lb · 51 head
light 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $282.04/cwt -1.56 vs last sale · ≈ $1,188/hd at 421 lb · 50 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $277.05/cwt -5.62 vs last sale · ≈ $1,318/hd at 476 lb · 34 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,140 1,045 1,217
Feeder cattle 1,002 894 1,047
Slaughter cattle 119 121 133
Replacement cattle 19 30 37

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, feeder steers sharply lower overall, with feeder heifers and bulls weighing up to 450 lbs. sharply lower, heifers weighing over 450 lbs. 3.00 higher, and bulls weighing over 450 lbs. 3.00 lower. Lower prices on feeders due, in part. to recent drop in feeder cattle futures in response to reports of Avian Influenza found in dairy herds in multiple states. Slaughter cows steady to 3.00 higher with slaughter bulls mostly steady.

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
332–335 334 4 290.00–312.50 $295.65 $987 -56.85
357–393 376 14 307.50–327.50 $320.59 $1,205 -14.37
400–448 425 21 295.00–320.00 $307.80 $1,308 -17.52
415–445 value added 430 4 332.00–335.00 $333.55 $1,434 —
450–492 468 22 288.00–325.00 $297.38 $1,392 -3.19
480 480 1 275.00 $275.00 $1,320 -25.57
505–530 value added 526 6 310.00–320.00 $318.40 $1,675 —
520–545 535 16 275.00–300.00 $284.62 $1,523 -9.79
555–575 565 6 262.50–282.50 $270.81 $1,530 -28.68
555–592 value added 583 15 290.00–295.00 $293.76 $1,713 —
612–621 616 10 260.00–267.50 $263.50 $1,623 -13.89
658–685 value added 660 12 282.50–290.00 $283.15 $1,869 —
650–695 673 11 250.00–270.00 $260.39 $1,752 -0.83
705–735 724 5 230.00–255.00 $248.95 $1,802 +3.54
760–770 765 2 212.50–220.00 $216.27 $1,654 —
798 value added 798 18 233.00 $233.00 $1,859 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
801 801 3 210.00 $210.00 $1,682 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
245 245 2 295.00–320.00 $307.50 $753 —
250–295 271 13 295.00–307.50 $298.48 $809 -32.72
300–332 315 25 297.50–317.50 $307.07 $967 -17.49
315 fancy 315 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,024 —
361 361 3 247.50 $247.50 $893 -66.70
350–396 375 27 287.50–312.50 $300.88 $1,128 -13.32
400–440 417 16 250.00–277.50 $263.70 $1,100 -12.23
400–445 423 34 282.50–300.00 $290.67 $1,230 +14.74
450–477 value added 473 8 290.00–300.00 $293.77 $1,390 -11.23
450–495 474 23 265.00–285.00 $274.11 $1,299 -3.38
496 496 3 255.00 $255.00 $1,265 +12.50
500–510 value added 505 6 280.00–285.00 $280.83 $1,418 +20.78
500–515 508 2 227.50–237.50 $232.57 $1,181 -16.52
500–545 515 25 245.00–270.00 $259.15 $1,335 +10.06
550–591 574 12 232.00–254.00 $239.98 $1,377 +1.01
600–630 618 13 220.00–236.00 $230.62 $1,425 +2.38
641 641 4 214.00 $214.00 $1,372 +1.50
662 value added 662 15 237.00 $237.00 $1,569 —
660–682 672 6 218.00–223.00 $219.49 $1,475 —
862 value added 862 2 185.00 $185.00 $1,595 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
210–245 231 6 335.00–365.00 $350.99 $811 —
270–286 282 6 290.00–310.00 $298.18 $841 —
300–340 318 14 297.50–325.00 $313.05 $995 -34.92
335–345 fancy 339 5 325.00–345.00 $333.07 $1,129 —
350–395 fancy 356 8 330.00–340.00 $334.00 $1,189 —
350–395 376 21 290.00–325.00 $308.26 $1,159 -16.00
400–445 429 47 287.50–315.00 $299.99 $1,287 -18.54
415–437 fancy 429 4 320.00–335.00 $328.22 $1,408 —
455–456 fancy 456 5 315.00–320.00 $319.00 $1,455 —
450–480 458 18 292.50–307.50 $298.41 $1,367 +9.74
522 522 2 257.50 $257.50 $1,344 -30.40
500–545 527 24 267.50–287.50 $276.01 $1,455 -11.89
550–587 568 19 262.50–280.00 $271.99 $1,545 -1.29
600 600 2 237.50 $237.50 $1,425 +17.50
601–643 620 11 240.00–265.00 $250.21 $1,551 -6.52
660–677 666 10 227.00–237.50 $229.25 $1,527 -25.75
700–740 727 11 210.00–223.00 $216.86 $1,577 -6.66
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
365 365 2 272.50 $272.50 $995 -22.00
437 437 2 282.50 $282.50 $1,235 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
990 990 80-85% 1 131.00 $131.00 $1,297 —
920–1520 1151 80-85% 39 114.00–129.00 $122.20 $1,407 —
840–1500 1198 80-85% 11 131.00–151.00 $135.25 $1,620 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
800 800 85-90% 1 133.00 $133.00 $1,064 —
870–895 883 85-90% 2 89.00–96.00 $92.45 $816 -8.55
945 945 85-90% 1 123.00 $123.00 $1,162 +2.36
820–1145 988 85-90% 16 105.00–119.00 $112.89 $1,115 -16.11
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1365–1540 1453 75-80% 2 137.00–148.00 $142.83 $2,075 +3.12
1225–1890 1493 75-80% 12 119.00–135.00 $128.50 $1,919 -11.21

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1115–1225 1170 2 145.00–147.00 $146.05 $1,709 +8.81
1450–2060 1695 11 146.00–158.00 $153.04 $2,594 —
1510–2160 1808 4 165.00–177.00 $168.70 $3,050 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
870 870 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 1,325.00 $1,325.00
885 885 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,500.00 $1,500.00
900–1225 1067 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 1,700.00–1,775.00 $1,745.51

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
885 885 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,600.00 $1,600.00

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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
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 2,600.00 $2,600.00 —
— — Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 1,400.00 $1,400.00 —
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,410.00 $1,410.00 —
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 1,600.00 $1,600.00 —
— — Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,550.00 $1,550.00 —

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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 1,460.00 $1,460.00 —

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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.