Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, August 12, 2021

458 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 4-weight M&L 1-2 steers $143.75/cwt +0.24 vs last sale · ≈ $601/hd at 418 lb · 22 head

heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $133.52/cwt -5.84 vs last sale · ≈ $637/hd at 477 lb · 19 head

light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $123.81/cwt +5.37 vs last sale · ≈ $645/hd at 521 lb · 16 head

Receipts

Head	This sale	Last sale	Last year
Total receipts	458	407	360
Feeder cattle	359	335	306
Slaughter cattle	44	71	53
Replacement cattle	55	1	1

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows were 3.00 to 5.00 higher; there were too few comparable slaughter bulls the previous week to establish an adequate market comparison. Feeder steers were mostly steady to 1.00 higher on a fairly light test; heifers were mostly 4.00 to 6.00 higher; while feeder bulls were mostly 4.00 to 6.00 lower. Demand, market activity, and buyer interest were moderate. Offerings of cattle were moderate. Cattle quality was average.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
244–248	246	2	159.00–163.00	$160.98	$396	+22.66
274–286	280	2	147.00–150.00	$148.53	$416	-5.50
304–348	330	10	148.00–161.00	$156.51	$516	-7.82
350–394	375	9	141.00–150.00	$148.56	$557	-4.44
400–448	418	22	136.00–150.00	$143.75	$601	+0.24
532–546	539	2	130.00–131.00	$130.49	$703	-8.24
560–562	561	2	125.00–135.00	$129.99	$729	-5.65
604–620	612	2	124.00–125.00	$124.49	$762	-12.51
702–732	719	7	120.00–123.00	$120.98	$870	-8.58
816–840	830	3	107.00–115.00	$110.37	$916	—

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
356–398	381	4	122.00–130.00	$125.78	$479	—
406–430	418	5	119.00–130.00	$123.86	$518	+0.11
564–590	573	3	110.00–120.00	$116.57	$668	—

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
404–426	417	3	104.00–116.00	$110.11	$459	—

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
260–298	282	8	130.00–139.00	$135.71	$383	-7.56
304–344	330	11	132.00–143.00	$137.06	$452	+0.53
354–398	379	10	124.00–134.00	$130.14	$493	+2.68
402–446	429	10	125.00–137.00	$131.80	$565	+5.53
462–494	475	15	122.00–135.00	$128.18	$609	+4.59
502–544	521	16	118.00–130.00	$123.81	$645	+11.31
552–578	568	8	120.00–126.00	$122.62	$696	+5.95
610–636	625	4	117.00–123.00	$120.01	$750	+8.64
658–694	676	2	124.00–129.00	$126.43	$855	+17.16
722–738	732	3	109.00–114.00	$112.32	$822	+13.62

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
340–342	341	2	107.00–117.00	$112.01	$382	-8.62
366–372	369	3	115.00–124.00	$119.02	$439	+0.27
411–426	419	2	111.00–120.00	$115.58	$484	—
454–498	472	5	105.00–116.00	$111.20	$525	—
500–528	513	4	100.00–106.00	$102.98	$528	-4.20
556–582	569	2	97.00–100.00	$98.47	$560	-9.64

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
450–498	477	19	127.00–140.00	$133.52	$637	-5.84
500–540	520	10	119.00–130.00	$124.45	$647	-2.80
552–598	576	13	116.00–127.00	$122.07	$703	-4.99
610–638	622	8	105.00–115.00	$110.36	$686	-10.46
654–692	668	5	109.00–112.00	$110.00	$735	-7.39
706–738	724	5	106.00–113.00	$109.60	$794	—
766–786	777	3	104.00–105.00	$104.66	$813	-6.59
806–844	819	3	97.00–104.00	$99.63	$816	—
900–910	904	3	81.00–85.00	$82.66	$747	—

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
462–490	479	3	110.00–115.00	$111.70	$535	—
516–544	530	2	114.00–116.00	$115.03	$610	—
562–588	575	4	114.00–116.00	$114.75	$660	-0.21

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
966–1252	1086	80-85%	3	76.00–81.00	$79.02	$858	+1.49
1018–1400	1235	80-85%	15	69.00–74.00	$71.23	$880	—

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
782–1132	957	85-90%	2	55.00	$55.00	$526	-5.35
870–1080	975	85-90%	2	69.00–71.00	$69.89	$681	+9.54
896–1102	995	85-90%	6	60.00–66.00	$63.50	$632	+3.15

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1376–1400	1388	75-80%	2	65.00–69.00	$67.02	$930	—

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1190–1714	1491	3	80.00–87.00	$83.38	$1,243	—
1322–1736	1529	2	100.00–106.00	$103.41	$1,581	—

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
706–1004	852	Young (2-4 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	4	585.98–883.52	$729.65
864–972	900	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	3	673.92–816.48	$744.60
816–1064	928	Young (2-4 yrs)	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	5	753.36–1,000.16	$879.83
900–1086	993	Young (2-4 yrs)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	2	756.00–1,411.80	$1,114.61
842–1186	1015	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	8	665.18–903.04	$780.41
1016	1016	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	1	894.08	$894.08
852–1148	1017	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	3	621.96–964.32	$804.69
962–1072	1017	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	2	779.22–879.04	$831.83

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
798–860	827	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	3	527.36–688.00	$618.72

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
756	756	Young (2-4 yrs)	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	1	665.28	$665.28
724–824	774	(<2 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	2	644.36–799.28	$726.82
796	796	(<2 yrs)	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	1	780.08	$780.08

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
692	692	(<2 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	1	588.20	$588.20

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
744	744	Young (2-4 yrs)	Open	1	1,200.00	$1,200.00	—
842–930	886	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	2	1,075.00–1,100.00	$1,088.12	—
892	892	Aged (>8 yrs)	Open	1	875.00	$875.00	—
902	902	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	1	1,200.00	$1,200.00	—
772–1086	919	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	5	975.00–1,350.00	$1,167.98	—
940	940	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	Open	1	1,150.00	$1,150.00	—

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
624–744	673	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	3	825.00–875.00	$858.89	—

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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.