Cattle Market Pulse

Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, February 17, 2022

555 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 $195.15/cwt +1.63 vs last sale · ≈ $833/hd at 427 lb · 42 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 steers $193.20/cwt +4.47 vs last sale · ≈ $887/hd at 459 lb · 25 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1-2 steers $185.84/cwt -3.73 vs last sale · ≈ $691/hd at 372 lb · 23 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 555 390 51
Feeder cattle 470 318 6
Slaughter cattle 84 69 45
Replacement cattle 1 3 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, breaking type slaughter cows were 1.00 to 2.00 higher and boning type slaughter cows were 3.00 to 5.00 higher; slaughter bulls were steady to 1.00 lower. Feeder cattle were mostly 1.00 to 5.00 lower. Demand for value added and fancy feeder cattle was good, others moderate; market activity and buyer interest was fairly active. Offerings of cattle were mostly moderate. Cattle quality was mostly average to attractive. "By the head" calves were 125.00 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
300–306 thin fleshed 303 2 155.00–158.00 $156.49 $474 —
304–326 315 3 159.00–164.00 $162.39 $512 -30.54
300–342 321 7 165.00–171.00 $167.03 $536 -25.90
326–348 fancy 340 5 180.00–194.00 $186.28 $633 —
350–388 364 11 170.00–185.00 $176.89 $644 -17.75
356–398 fancy 379 12 190.00–200.00 $194.04 $735 —
400–426 fancy 411 11 190.00–200.00 $194.81 $801 —
401–447 value added 432 29 191.00–199.00 $197.49 $853 —
436–442 439 2 161.00–165.00 $162.99 $716 -30.53
454–466 value added 459 22 186.00–197.00 $194.10 $891 -2.90
450–466 fancy 461 3 181.00–190.00 $186.64 $860 —
534 value added 534 12 177.00 $177.00 $945 —
552 552 3 163.00 $163.00 $900 +3.32
612–614 613 3 134.00–135.00 $134.67 $826 -15.33
632 632 12 155.00–158.00 $157.75 $997 +7.75
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
222–234 228 2 141.00–142.00 $141.49 $323 —
338 338 2 134.00–147.00 $140.50 $475 +0.03
384–398 393 3 140.00–150.00 $146.06 $574 —
414–434 thin fleshed 421 3 120.00–122.00 $120.66 $508 —
438–440 439 2 134.00–140.00 $137.01 $601 +7.04
Medium 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
272–294 283 2 120.00–126.00 $122.88 $348 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
444 444 2 104.00–111.00 $107.50 $477 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
274–298 284 5 136.00–142.00 $139.21 $395 —
306–346 330 5 135.00–142.00 $138.91 $458 +4.55
356–390 375 11 130.00–140.00 $133.83 $502 -5.00
400–436 409 13 128.00–135.00 $130.63 $534 -4.42
410 value added 410 3 156.00 $156.00 $640 —
450–490 471 11 128.00–135.00 $131.86 $621 -3.03
500–548 522 16 125.00–135.00 $128.91 $673 -8.91
550–592 568 8 125.00–133.00 $128.61 $731 -1.52
614–644 625 13 120.00–126.00 $122.16 $764 -7.80
678–688 683 2 120.00–121.00 $120.50 $823 -3.02
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
220–234 229 3 120.00–129.00 $123.40 $283 —
266–296 281 2 119.00–120.00 $119.47 $336 —
302–346 325 7 120.00–128.00 $123.83 $402 +5.26
356–390 373 2 120.00–125.00 $122.39 $457 —
400–424 411 3 122.00–127.00 $123.62 $508 +8.12
Medium 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
408–438 423 2 110.00–115.00 $112.59 $476 +11.97
472–496 482 3 106.00–110.00 $108.30 $522 —
514–530 522 2 100.00–110.00 $104.92 $548 —
674–680 676 3 110.00–111.00 $110.33 $746 —
702–748 725 2 106.00–109.00 $107.45 $779 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
464–486 475 2 90.00–94.00 $92.05 $437 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
452–482 fancy 468 4 180.00–185.00 $182.77 $855 —
468–486 475 3 150.00–161.00 $157.37 $748 -24.50
480 value added 480 7 184.00 $184.00 $883 —
472–488 483 3 170.00–171.00 $170.34 $823 -11.53
500–524 thin fleshed 512 2 141.00 $141.00 $722 —
510–514 512 2 150.00–158.00 $153.98 $788 -3.80
504–549 522 12 162.00–171.00 $167.51 $874 +9.73
552–592 569 7 140.00–154.00 $147.22 $838 -8.60
572 572 2 136.00–139.00 $137.50 $786 -18.32
604–638 619 5 130.00–137.00 $132.21 $818 -2.31
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
456–472 464 2 125.00–131.00 $127.95 $594 —
500–528 515 4 124.00–132.00 $127.97 $659 -0.44
508–528 thin fleshed 518 2 104.00–116.00 $110.12 $570 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
756–950 849 85-90% 5 48.00–50.00 $49.57 $421 —
742–1050 895 85-90% 12 63.00–70.00 $68.54 $613 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
904–1184 1110 80-85% 6 74.00–79.00 $76.48 $849 —
1204–1300 1252 80-85% 2 88.00–89.00 $88.48 $1,108 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1346–1398 1367 75-80% 3 74.00–79.00 $76.04 $1,039 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1064–1946 1375 7 86.00–90.00 $88.33 $1,215 —
1562–2152 1832 3 109.00–115.00 $113.05 $2,071 —

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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
944 944 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 700.00 $700.00 —

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Dairy Heifers

Small 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
424 424 1 83.00 $83.00 $352 —

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1118 1118 1 87.00 $87.00 $973 —

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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.