Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, February 24, 2022

574 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 $158.22/cwt -36.92 vs last sale · ≈ $676/hd at 427 lb · 41 head

light 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $134.63/cwt -0.76 vs last sale · ≈ $564/hd at 419 lb · 27 head

light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $126.38/cwt -2.53 vs last sale · ≈ $652/hd at 516 lb · 27 head

Receipts

Head	This sale	Last sale	Last year
Total receipts	574	555	328
Feeder cattle	480	470	298
Slaughter cattle	92	84	29
Replacement cattle	2	1	1

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows were 4.00 to 6.00 lower and slaughter bulls were 2.00 to 3.00 lower. Feeder steers and bulls were mostly 10.00 to 13.00 lower; heifers were mostly 6.00 to 7.00 lower. Demand, market activity, and buyer interest were moderate. Offerings of cattle were mostly 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
232–246	239	2	147.00–153.00	$150.09	$359	—
258–272	265	2	152.00–159.00	$155.59	$412	—
300–348	330	6	148.00–156.00	$150.90	$498	-16.13
342 value added	342	6	181.00	$181.00	$619	—
358–382	370	2	140.00–145.00	$142.58	$528	-34.31
362–392 fancy	372	4	161.00–164.00	$162.23	$603	-31.81
352–398	383	15	146.00–158.00	$151.81	$581	-25.08
410–430 fancy	421	5	160.00–170.00	$163.24	$687	-31.57
402–444	423	19	146.00–158.00	$150.74	$638	-12.25
414–438 thin fleshed	425	3	140.00–141.00	$140.66	$598	—
400–442	427	4	143.00–144.00	$143.74	$614	-19.25
438 value added	438	10	181.00	$181.00	$793	-16.49
456	456	2	151.00–164.00	$157.50	$718	—
500–512	506	3	145.00–150.00	$148.00	$749	—
565 fancy	565	6	172.00	$172.00	$972	—
572	572	2	144.00	$144.00	$824	-19.00
644 fancy	644	8	164.00	$164.00	$1,056	—

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
206–246	229	6	126.00–134.00	$130.29	$298	-11.20
318–336	327	2	120.00–126.00	$123.08	$402	-17.42
358–394	375	8	127.00–134.00	$130.47	$489	-15.59
400–432	416	5	123.00–131.00	$127.22	$529	-9.79
466–476	471	2	127.00–135.00	$130.96	$617	—

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
280–294	287	2	110.00	$110.00	$316	—

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
262–284	273	2	128.00–130.00	$128.96	$352	-10.25
308–346	328	6	134.00–144.00	$140.36	$460	+1.45
350–396	373	7	130.00–143.00	$136.25	$508	+2.42
404–436	414	5	129.00	$129.00	$534	-1.63
404–445	420	19	131.00–140.00	$137.63	$578	+7.00
410–430 thin fleshed	421	3	124.00–126.00	$125.00	$526	—
450–498	477	13	124.00–132.00	$128.10	$611	-3.76
502 fancy	502	8	139.00	$139.00	$698	—
500–536	519	16	120.00–126.00	$122.32	$635	-6.59
524–542	533	3	112.00–116.00	$114.36	$610	-14.55
554–596	571	5	119.00–127.00	$122.06	$697	-6.55
562–594 thin fleshed	578	2	112.00–118.00	$114.92	$664	—
606–648	622	6	110.00–112.00	$110.50	$687	-11.66
658–684	671	5	110.00–114.00	$111.18	$746	-9.32
714–734	724	2	100.00–110.00	$105.07	$761	—

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
160–190	175	2	114.00–119.00	$116.29	$204	—
362–396	386	8	112.00–122.00	$117.43	$453	-4.96
402–436	419	4	112.00–121.00	$116.49	$488	-7.13
402–446	421	4	100.00–103.00	$100.72	$424	-22.90
470–488 fancy	478	3	120.00	$120.00	$574	—
486–498	492	2	110.00–111.00	$110.49	$544	—
518–534	529	4	106.00–110.00	$108.27	$573	—
562–584 fancy	573	2	112.00–115.00	$113.47	$650	—

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
184–192	187	3	110.00–114.00	$111.65	$209	—
216–230	223	2	103.00–112.00	$107.64	$240	—

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
454–494	474	12	140.00–150.00	$143.60	$681	-13.77
480–492 thin fleshed	486	2	133.00–135.00	$133.99	$651	—
502–538	515	13	131.00–142.00	$137.37	$707	-16.61
538–544	541	2	129.00–130.00	$129.50	$701	-38.01
558–584	568	12	130.00–139.00	$136.66	$776	-10.56
550–586	576	4	125.00–129.00	$126.73	$730	-10.77
602–630	616	2	130.00–133.00	$131.53	$810	-0.68
600–636	618	8	118.00–126.00	$120.96	$748	-11.25
652–678 thin fleshed	668	3	100.00–101.00	$100.34	$670	—
652–680	669	3	110.00–113.00	$111.69	$747	—
692–698	695	2	120.00	$120.00	$834	—
732–742	737	2	110.00–113.00	$111.49	$822	—
734–740 thin fleshed	737	2	103.00–105.00	$104.00	$766	—
760–782	771	2	110.00–114.00	$111.97	$863	—
776–798 thin fleshed	787	2	100.00–102.00	$101.01	$795	—
828–848	835	3	107.00–110.00	$108.33	$905	—

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
456–466	461	2	120.00–130.00	$124.95	$576	-3.00
502–506	504	2	115.00–120.00	$117.49	$592	-10.48
532–534 thin fleshed	533	2	106.00–110.00	$108.00	$576	-2.12
584–586	585	2	109.00–112.00	$110.50	$646	—

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
942–1318	1129	80-85%	18	68.00–75.00	$71.80	$811	-4.68
1044–1620	1257	80-85%	9	78.00–83.00	$79.86	$1,004	-8.62

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
808–908	858	85-90%	2	40.00	$40.00	$343	—
606–1164	945	85-90%	7	60.00–62.00	$61.06	$577	—

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1236–1634	1506	75-80%	4	70.00–72.00	$70.73	$1,065	—

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1014–1670	1201	6	70.00–76.00	$73.49	$883	—
1006–1452	1260	4	85.00–90.00	$86.31	$1,088	—
1908–1960	1934	2	105.00–110.00	$107.53	$2,080	—

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 3 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
812	812	Aged (>8 yrs)	Open	1	600.00	$600.00	—

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
742	742	Aged (>8 yrs)	Open	1	500.00	$500.00	—

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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.