Cattle Market Pulse

Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, December 9, 2021

274 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 $131.14/cwt +3.64 vs last sale · ≈ $555/hd at 424 lb · 18 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $129.69/cwt -2.39 vs last sale · ≈ $686/hd at 529 lb · 13 head
light 4-weight M&L 1-2 steers $152.66/cwt -2.84 vs last sale · ≈ $663/hd at 434 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 274 478 433
Feeder cattle 231 387 352
Slaughter cattle 43 91 81

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows were steady to 2.00 higher, while slaughter bulls were 1.00 to 2.00 lower. Feeder cattle were mostly 5.00 to 9.00 higher on a fairly light test. Demand was good; market activity and buyer interest were active. Offerings of cattle were fairly light. 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 $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
328–336 332 2 161.00–164.00 $162.52 $540 +25.86
356–390 372 6 149.00–162.00 $155.64 $579 +14.85
406–449 434 13 149.00–160.00 $152.66 $663 -0.24
452–461 459 4 155.00–165.00 $162.54 $746 +25.45
576–585 582 5 136.00–143.00 $141.01 $821 +5.76
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
204–240 227 3 125.00–136.00 $130.58 $296 —
258–272 264 3 116.00–122.00 $118.29 $312 —
300–342 320 5 126.00–132.00 $129.91 $416 +7.56

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
278–286 282 2 124.00–129.00 $126.46 $357 —
306–308 thin fleshed 307 2 124.00–126.00 $125.00 $384 —
360–394 378 7 135.00–144.00 $138.82 $525 +5.59
410–432 421 15 130.00–138.00 $132.64 $558 +5.14
428–446 thin fleshed 436 3 120.00–126.00 $123.67 $539 —
452–496 475 9 128.00–139.00 $134.12 $637 +7.04
512–546 532 7 120.00–129.00 $125.31 $667 +7.91
558–598 573 6 116.00–127.00 $121.34 $695 +5.84
580–596 thin fleshed 589 3 110.00–113.00 $111.32 $656 —
718–730 724 2 90.00 $90.00 $652 -6.57
750 750 4 100.00 $100.00 $750 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
322–330 327 3 110.00–120.00 $114.67 $375 -0.29
364–392 379 3 111.00–120.00 $114.66 $435 +4.66
420–426 423 2 116.00–118.00 $117.01 $495 +1.99
476–498 488 4 110.00–116.00 $111.74 $545 —
552–560 556 2 100.00–101.00 $100.50 $559 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
314–332 323 2 95.00–100.00 $97.57 $315 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
458–498 472 9 144.00–151.00 $148.01 $699 +8.28
524–530 thin fleshed 527 2 120.00–124.00 $122.01 $643 —
508–548 529 11 130.00–135.00 $131.09 $693 -0.99
552–582 thin fleshed 567 2 120.00 $120.00 $680 +7.05
550–594 568 7 125.00–130.00 $127.55 $724 +1.73
602–632 611 5 114.00–124.00 $119.36 $729 —
683–694 685 5 113.00–119.00 $117.59 $805 +17.59
704–718 713 3 107.00–112.00 $110.35 $787 +1.37
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
472–494 485 3 115.00–123.00 $117.69 $571 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
894–1288 1077 80-85% 10 56.00–61.00 $58.86 $634 —
916–1332 1150 80-85% 4 65.00–70.00 $67.66 $778 +9.53
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
928–942 935 85-90% 2 24.00–27.00 $25.49 $238 —
846–1290 1081 85-90% 4 50.00–53.00 $51.55 $557 +4.79
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1174–1300 1237 75-80% 2 62.00–63.00 $62.53 $773 —
1380–1622 1501 75-80% 2 50.00 $50.00 $750 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
940–972 956 2 60.00–62.00 $61.02 $583 —
1490–2042 1766 2 90.00–94.00 $92.31 $1,630 —
1696–1882 1789 2 80.00–82.00 $80.95 $1,448 —

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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.