Cattle Market Pulse

Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, April 7, 2022

444 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 3-weight M&L 1-2 steers $161.19/cwt +20.02 vs last sale · ≈ $612/hd at 379 lb · 19 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $149.16/cwt +6.68 vs last sale · ≈ $711/hd at 477 lb · 18 head
light 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $148.07/cwt +13.66 vs last sale · ≈ $631/hd at 426 lb · 16 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 444 358 471
Feeder cattle 325 272 402
Slaughter cattle 117 76 68
Replacement cattle 2 10 1

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, breaking type slaughter cows were 7.00 to 8.00 lower and boning type slaughter cows were 1.00 to 2.00 lower; there were too few comparable slaughter bulls to establish an adequate market comparison. Feeder cattle were mostly 3.00 to 6.00 higher. Demand for feeder cattle was fairly good; market activity and buyer interest were fairly active. Offerings of cattle were moderate. Cattle quality was average to attractive.

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
306–324 315 2 151.00–153.00 $152.03 $479 +16.03
300–348 325 11 158.00–170.00 $163.70 $532 +17.96
354–362 fancy 358 2 168.00–174.00 $170.97 $612 —
354–395 382 17 154.00–167.00 $160.04 $611 +23.53
410–436 value added 425 5 171.00–175.00 $173.21 $736 —
400–446 428 10 155.00–166.00 $160.19 $686 +21.20
462–488 473 3 154.00–160.00 $156.28 $739 +7.28
522–524 524 4 150.00–160.00 $157.51 $825 +14.90
563–599 584 12 144.00–157.00 $151.35 $884 —
660 value added 660 12 155.00 $155.00 $1,023 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
244–248 247 3 127.50–135.00 $131.66 $325 -4.81
300–324 314 3 138.00–148.00 $142.39 $447 +12.84
384–394 391 4 130.00–135.00 $133.27 $521 +6.00
506–546 527 3 135.00–144.00 $140.56 $741 —
562–588 575 2 133.00–135.00 $134.02 $771 —
812–848 830 2 120.00 $120.00 $996 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
356–394 375 2 110.00–111.00 $110.53 $414 -2.44

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
208–248 225 3 138.00–143.00 $139.83 $315 +10.39
278 278 2 131.00–137.00 $134.00 $373 —
308–346 334 6 134.00–144.00 $138.41 $462 +8.18
360–388 value added 367 4 149.00–150.00 $149.74 $550 —
352–392 373 4 131.00–140.00 $136.63 $510 +1.31
404–446 418 8 137.00–146.00 $141.33 $591 +5.98
409–449 value added 434 8 149.00–158.00 $154.82 $672 —
452–493 478 11 129.00–138.00 $134.30 $642 +1.64
481 value added 481 4 151.00 $151.00 $726 —
502–548 522 14 121.00–131.00 $126.10 $658 -0.76
564–572 568 2 126.00–127.00 $126.50 $719 +9.85
606 606 5 126.00 $126.00 $764 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
556–582 565 4 100.00–107.00 $103.24 $583 +3.24
660–692 680 4 94.00–101.00 $97.78 $665 —
738–744 741 2 102.00–103.00 $102.50 $760 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
254–290 275 3 125.00–129.00 $127.13 $350 +3.51
360–364 362 2 122.00–123.00 $122.50 $443 +1.02
432–442 437 2 122.00–129.00 $125.46 $548 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
472–490 481 2 110.00 $110.00 $529 -5.71
542–544 543 2 115.00–116.00 $115.50 $627 —
668–692 680 2 109.00–111.00 $110.02 $748 -3.98

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
450–488 fancy 475 5 157.00–161.00 $160.05 $760 —
456–492 477 4 134.00–141.00 $138.75 $662 -3.73
454–496 478 9 143.00–153.00 $147.74 $706 +5.26
504–518 fancy 511 2 153.00–155.00 $153.99 $787 —
510–534 520 5 140.00–145.00 $141.99 $738 +4.70
550–598 577 10 135.00–144.00 $139.29 $804 +3.43
602–648 628 4 131.00–136.00 $133.78 $840 -0.22
686–696 690 3 128.00–135.00 $130.99 $904 -4.01
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
494–496 495 2 128.00 $128.00 $634 +3.99
550–568 558 4 120.00–125.00 $121.99 $681 -1.01
702–722 712 2 123.00–125.00 $123.99 $883 +3.49
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
754–790 773 3 116.00–118.00 $117.32 $907 -0.68
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
870 870 2 90.00–91.00 $90.50 $787 -5.50

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1100–1298 1208 80-85% 23 72.00–80.00 $76.69 $926 —
1146–1276 1209 80-85% 6 65.00–69.00 $66.51 $804 —
1144–1294 1232 80-85% 8 81.00–86.00 $83.05 $1,023 +9.62
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1304–1508 1380 75-80% 5 65.00–70.00 $69.06 $953 -19.94
1378–1856 1545 75-80% 17 72.00–80.00 $77.09 $1,191 -7.49
1408–1978 1630 75-80% 6 81.00–83.00 $81.83 $1,334 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
804–968 864 85-90% 3 40.00–43.00 $40.93 $354 —
814–940 871 85-90% 6 59.00–63.00 $60.95 $531 —
828–1008 934 85-90% 6 74.00–80.00 $77.37 $723 —
900–1090 967 85-90% 10 65.00–71.00 $68.56 $663 +13.29

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1188–1494 1341 2 80.00–89.00 $83.99 $1,126 —
1646–2108 1877 2 105.00–110.00 $107.81 $2,024 -12.19

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
818 818 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 775.00 $775.00 —
874 874 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 850.00 $850.00 -149.63

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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.