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Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, March 11, 2021

615 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Powell Livestock Market report →

light 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $120.60/cwt +2.26 vs last sale · ≈ $510/hd at 423 lb · 26 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $121.55/cwt +6.75 vs last sale · ≈ $566/hd at 466 lb · 22 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1-2 steers $149.31/cwt -4.73 vs last sale · ≈ $560/hd at 375 lb · 21 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 615 350 702
Feeder cattle 507 281 621
Slaughter cattle 100 67 75
Replacement cattle 8 2 6

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, boning type slaughter cows were 2.00 to 3.00 lower; breaking type slaughter cows and slaughter bulls were lightly tested and were 6.00 to 8.00 lower. Feeder steers were mostly 2.00 to 5.00 higher; heifers mostly 3.00 to 7.00 higher; and feeder bulls were mostly 8.00 to 10.00 higher. Demand was good; market activity and buyer interest were active. Offerings of cattle were fairly heavy. Cattle quality was average to attractive.

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
204 204 1 134.00 $134.00 $273 +2.53
260–298 280 8 129.00–146.00 $137.15 $384 +1.30
300–348 327 14 136.00–156.00 $146.12 $478 -0.64
354–398 375 21 140.00–158.00 $149.31 $560 -4.73
402–446 421 14 148.00–167.00 $160.99 $678 +4.39
442 442 1 130.00 $130.00 $575 -26.60
450–486 463 12 159.00–172.00 $166.82 $772 +11.35
508–546 527 10 150.00–162.00 $158.09 $833 +13.16
554–584 576 8 141.00–156.00 $147.48 $849 —
608–644 620 6 120.00–130.00 $126.79 $786 +3.26
672 672 1 124.00 $124.00 $833 +2.35
750 750 1 114.00 $114.00 $855 —
1213 1213 4 80.00 $80.00 $970 —
1384 1384 1 73.50 $73.50 $1,017 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
224–236 230 2 120.00–121.00 $120.49 $277 —
250–290 263 5 115.00–123.00 $118.91 $313 +1.25
302–346 326 10 116.00–134.00 $124.23 $405 -1.77
350–396 379 12 114.00–130.00 $123.30 $467 +7.30
402–432 419 9 114.00–131.00 $120.63 $505 —
470–478 474 2 118.00–121.00 $119.49 $566 —
524 524 1 125.00 $125.00 $655 —
576 576 1 114.00 $114.00 $657 +4.00
720 720 1 103.00 $103.00 $742 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
286 286 1 100.00 $100.00 $286 —
410–446 435 5 93.00–110.00 $101.84 $443 -3.16
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
318 318 1 85.00 $85.00 $270 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
262–294 287 10 119.00–127.00 $122.39 $351 +0.22
308–348 326 10 114.00–130.00 $125.97 $411 +1.16
358–394 377 15 116.00–130.00 $125.89 $475 +1.24
400–448 423 26 114.00–130.00 $120.60 $510 +1.64
450–494 466 22 115.00–126.00 $121.55 $566 +6.75
502–546 525 19 106.00–120.00 $112.78 $592 +3.89
552–588 560 12 107.00–118.00 $110.65 $620 +6.48
566–576 572 3 100.00 $100.00 $572 -4.17
602–648 623 9 100.00–108.00 $103.98 $648 +3.02
660–684 673 3 95.00–102.00 $97.97 $659 -2.03
902 902 1 75.00 $75.00 $676 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
264–296 285 5 106.00–114.00 $111.21 $317 +1.21
302–334 313 3 100.00–105.00 $103.03 $322 -5.99
350–388 373 3 91.00–110.00 $103.21 $385 —
404–446 424 7 90.00–110.00 $103.38 $438 -0.24
454–482 468 6 100.00–110.00 $104.32 $488 +8.34
506 506 1 90.00 $90.00 $455 -5.69
564 564 1 80.00 $80.00 $451 -6.72
820 820 1 70.00 $70.00 $574 -3.00
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
234 234 1 100.00 $100.00 $234 -0.89
284–288 286 3 90.00–97.00 $92.67 $265 -3.39
344 344 1 94.00 $94.00 $323 -0.20
376 376 1 90.00 $90.00 $338 —
446 446 1 88.00 $88.00 $392 —
526 526 1 80.00 $80.00 $421 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
218–248 237 3 72.00–84.00 $78.94 $187 —
Small 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
270 270 1 77.00 $77.00 $208 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
452–498 475 11 145.00–164.00 $155.41 $738 +8.47
470–496 483 2 131.00–134.00 $132.54 $640 -14.40
502 502 1 125.00 $125.00 $628 -14.26
510–548 534 5 142.00–152.00 $147.41 $787 +8.15
576 576 1 120.00 $120.00 $691 -17.02
552–596 578 8 136.00–149.00 $141.69 $819 +4.67
612 612 1 107.00 $107.00 $655 -2.95
604–646 621 7 120.00–126.00 $124.54 $773 +14.59
650–672 663 4 117.00–120.00 $118.74 $787 +9.09
666–698 685 3 101.00–106.00 $103.63 $710 -6.02
716 716 1 96.00 $96.00 $687 +3.27
838–848 843 2 90.00–92.00 $91.01 $767 -0.49
858–898 869 5 88.00–94.00 $91.81 $798 +4.81
982 982 1 85.00 $85.00 $835 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
454–498 476 2 121.00–123.00 $122.05 $581 —
516–546 533 3 100.00–112.00 $103.87 $554 +23.87
552 552 1 104.00 $104.00 $574 -9.00
654–666 660 2 100.00–106.00 $103.03 $680 +28.03
708 708 1 86.00 $86.00 $609 —
808–826 815 3 78.00–82.00 $80.01 $652 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
702–1132 939 85-90% 11 34.00–44.00 $39.65 $372 —
898–1344 1058 85-90% 19 48.00–58.00 $53.96 $571 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
880–1430 1103 80-85% 25 59.00–67.00 $63.15 $697 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1316–1446 1381 75-80% 2 55.00–56.00 $55.52 $767 -6.84

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1164–1524 1323 4 71.00–78.00 $74.98 $992 —
1954 1954 1 92.00 $92.00 $1,798 —

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
952–1030 991 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 2 725.00–750.00 $737.01 —
1044 1044 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 825.00 $825.00 —
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
584–870 727 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 375.00–575.00 $494.67 —
782 782 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 725.00 $725.00 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
874 874 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 900.00 $900.00 —
Small 3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
552 552 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 525.00 $525.00 —

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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.