Cattle Market Pulse

Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, February 3, 2022

469 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $130.52/cwt +7.24 vs last sale · ≈ $738/hd at 565 lb · 38 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1-2 steers $175.41/cwt +18.42 vs last sale · ≈ $659/hd at 375 lb · 28 head
light 4-weight M&L 1-2 steers $171.73/cwt +7.98 vs last sale · ≈ $733/hd at 427 lb · 19 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 469 386 507
Feeder cattle 396 304 399
Slaughter cattle 72 82 106
Replacement cattle 1 — 2

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows were 1.00 to 3.00 higher and slaughter bulls were 5.00 to 6.00 higher. Feeder cattle were mostly 6.00 to 8.00 higher. Demand was good; market activity and buyer interest were moderate to active. Offerings of cattle were moderate. Cattle quality was average to attractive. "By the head" calves ranged 95.00 to 120.00 per head.

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
330–346 341 6 159.00–172.00 $166.53 $568 +13.09
350–396 374 10 160.00–174.00 $166.35 $622 +15.20
360–385 value added 375 16 179.00–188.00 $184.93 $693 —
376–396 thin fleshed 386 2 144.00–145.00 $144.49 $558 -0.55
400–436 415 9 157.00–171.00 $164.89 $684 +3.20
418–442 value added 438 10 176.00–179.00 $177.89 $779 —
462–468 fancy 465 2 179.00–180.00 $179.50 $835 +7.97
464–486 477 5 166.00–177.00 $169.56 $809 +6.07
500–544 525 3 159.00–169.00 $162.87 $855 +11.92
560–582 571 7 153.00–163.00 $160.40 $916 +7.63
600–606 602 3 144.00–148.00 $146.66 $883 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
200–240 220 3 130.00–132.00 $130.97 $288 —
302–334 322 5 131.00–141.00 $136.85 $441 +5.80
404–418 412 4 140.00–146.00 $141.99 $585 +9.98
626–643 635 2 130.00 $130.00 $826 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
208–246 231 5 118.00–125.00 $122.53 $283 —
270–298 281 3 128.00–130.00 $129.35 $363 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
202–216 209 2 120.00–124.00 $121.93 $255 —
274–296 285 3 124.00–126.00 $124.97 $356 —
314–344 330 6 125.00–132.00 $130.45 $430 -1.93
350–390 377 4 131.00–140.00 $134.52 $507 +4.52
378–390 thin fleshed 384 2 122.00–124.00 $122.98 $472 —
407–446 417 17 128.00–136.00 $132.05 $551 +6.08
456–498 469 11 128.00–140.00 $133.60 $627 +11.76
526 value added 526 3 135.00 $135.00 $710 —
526–532 530 4 122.00–128.00 $124.76 $661 -0.24
532–540 thin fleshed 536 2 119.00 $119.00 $638 —
550–569 value added 561 28 130.00–134.00 $132.81 $745 —
560–585 575 8 123.00–128.00 $125.37 $721 +2.09
582–594 thin fleshed 588 2 119.00 $119.00 $700 —
626–646 644 12 122.00–129.00 $128.35 $827 +7.12
666–696 681 2 115.00–124.00 $119.40 $813 —
706–716 711 5 110.00–116.00 $112.20 $798 +10.24
762–780 770 3 101.00–105.00 $102.65 $790 +7.65
894 894 2 87.00–89.00 $88.00 $787 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
254–288 272 5 112.00–122.00 $116.78 $318 —
310–336 325 3 116.00–120.00 $118.73 $386 +0.72
350–394 376 10 110.00–120.00 $114.42 $430 +2.18
434–442 438 2 114.00–116.00 $114.99 $504 +4.99
500–540 515 3 107.00–114.00 $111.03 $572 —
580–598 589 2 102.00 $102.00 $601 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
168–194 181 2 100.00 $100.00 $181 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
452–480 thin fleshed 463 3 146.00–152.00 $149.33 $691 —
462–463 value added 463 6 175.00–179.00 $178.33 $826 —
472–496 484 7 154.00–166.00 $158.15 $765 +4.94
508–542 520 14 150.00–160.00 $155.47 $808 +18.68
550–580 561 7 145.00–153.00 $148.38 $832 +7.80
560–590 thin fleshed 575 2 129.00–132.00 $130.46 $750 —
600 value added 600 11 145.00 $145.00 $870 —
618–630 624 2 136.00–139.00 $137.49 $858 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470–490 480 2 120.00–128.00 $123.92 $595 —
600–641 627 6 120.00–126.00 $124.05 $778 +10.04
706–730 718 4 110.00–116.00 $112.75 $810 +2.75

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
704–1000 833 85-90% 6 39.00–46.00 $43.84 $365 —
794–1078 944 85-90% 8 60.00–65.00 $62.92 $594 —
998–1088 1056 85-90% 3 77.00–79.00 $78.00 $824 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1158–1208 1183 80-85% 2 79.00–86.00 $82.43 $975 +5.94
1100–1294 1211 80-85% 11 65.00–71.00 $68.81 $833 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1308–1652 1433 75-80% 3 75.00–77.00 $75.93 $1,088 +2.74

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1068–1546 1307 2 70.00–77.00 $72.86 $952 —
1018–2042 1575 4 96.00–102.00 $100.38 $1,581 —
1960–2004 1982 2 105.00–110.00 $107.53 $2,131 —

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
700 700 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 700.00 $700.00 —

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
970 970 2 78.00 $78.00 $757 —

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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.