Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, May 26, 2022

385 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 3 heifers $116.30/cwt ≈ $610/hd at 525 lb · 14 head

heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 steers $160.25/cwt -0.74 vs last sale · ≈ $766/hd at 478 lb · 12 head

heavy 3-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $137.52/cwt -2.14 vs last sale · ≈ $520/hd at 378 lb · 10 head

Receipts

Head	This sale	Last sale	Last year
Total receipts	385	342	429
Feeder cattle	301	280	378
Slaughter cattle	51	62	49
Replacement cattle	33	—	2

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, boning type slaughter cows were 3.00 to 4.00 higher, while breaking type slaughter cows were 6.00 to 7.00 lower and slaughter bulls were 2.00 to 3.00 lower. Feeder cattle were mostly 3.00 to 10.00 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
280–292	285	3	150.00–160.00	$154.07	$439	-2.59
312–346	331	5	153.00–166.00	$159.56	$528	+3.12
352 value added	352	2	172.00	$172.00	$605	—
356–398	378	8	150.00–160.00	$153.46	$580	-0.16
410–420	415	2	144.00–149.00	$146.47	$608	-8.04
416–432	423	3	150.00–156.00	$152.67	$646	-1.84
454–488	469	7	150.00–155.00	$151.15	$709	-9.84
490 value added	490	5	173.00	$173.00	$848	—
522–524	523	2	141.00–142.00	$141.50	$740	-19.34
526	526	2	150.00–155.00	$152.50	$802	-8.34
560	560	4	152.00	$152.00	$851	-3.90

Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
230–232	231	2	138.00–140.00	$139.00	$321	—
266–286	275	3	130.00–140.00	$134.27	$369	—
310–320	314	5	130.00–143.00	$136.81	$430	—
360–380	370	2	118.00–124.00	$121.08	$448	—
412–434	421	5	126.00–132.00	$129.20	$544	—
414–432	423	2	115.00–120.00	$117.45	$497	—

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
190–194	192	2	102.00–110.00	$106.04	$204	—
372–386	379	2	97.00–99.00	$97.98	$371	-15.95

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
228–246	239	4	120.00–125.00	$121.78	$291	—
264–276	270	2	125.00	$125.00	$338	—
262–292	273	3	114.00–116.00	$114.96	$314	—
308–314	311	3	120.00–129.00	$124.64	$388	—
362–390	378	5	123.00–129.00	$126.59	$479	—
406–426	416	4	124.00–127.00	$125.24	$521	—
452–496	474	5	120.00–129.00	$123.46	$585	—
462–498	483	4	110.00–113.00	$111.23	$537	—
502–536	519	4	93.00–100.00	$96.76	$502	—
520–532	527	10	119.00–127.00	$124.11	$654	—
560–566	563	3	113.00–114.00	$113.67	$640	—
558–588	583	6	122.00–123.00	$122.16	$712	—

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
330–342	336	2	132.00–133.00	$132.51	$445	—
354–396	376	7	130.00–140.00	$133.46	$502	-6.20
382 value added	382	3	147.00	$147.00	$562	—
400–436	424	5	130.00–136.00	$132.58	$562	-7.68
452–492	481	8	130.00–136.00	$132.34	$637	-3.02

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
358–370	364	2	106.00–107.00	$106.49	$388	-1.00

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
454–492	472	6	118.00–120.00	$118.99	$562	+43.50
506–534	516	3	110.00–114.00	$111.97	$578	—
510–544	527	3	121.00–126.00	$122.67	$646	—
602–644	623	2	117.00–127.00	$121.83	$759	—
638–648	643	2	98.00–100.00	$98.99	$637	—
676–684	680	2	110.00–114.00	$112.01	$762	—

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
454–498	477	7	132.00–142.00	$138.02	$658	-6.83
506–530	522	4	130.00–135.00	$133.24	$696	-16.67

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
680–684	682	2	65.00–73.00	$68.99	$471	—

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
838–984	905	85-90%	3	55.00–61.00	$57.59	$521	-3.20
806–1056	921	85-90%	3	52.00–54.00	$53.35	$491	-7.44
890–1068	976	85-90%	6	65.00–71.00	$68.76	$671	—
924–1050	999	85-90%	4	80.00–85.00	$81.77	$817	—

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1150–1246	1191	80-85%	3	87.00–93.00	$89.92	$1,071	+14.05
1130–1294	1196	80-85%	5	78.00–82.00	$79.46	$950	+3.59

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1304–1588	1445	75-80%	3	74.00–77.00	$75.24	$1,087	-6.60

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1084–1212	1148	2	89.00–90.00	$89.53	$1,028	—
1138–1862	1500	2	96.00–101.00	$99.10	$1,486	—
1324–1940	1632	2	110.00	$110.00	$1,795	—

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
488–890	658	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	9	700.00–875.00	$770.83	—
666–672	669	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	2	850.00–875.00	$862.44	—
732	732	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	1	875.00	$875.00	—
688–968	853	Aged (>8 yrs)	Open	6	700.00–900.00	$821.75	—

Small 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
484–500	492	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	2	575.00–625.00	$599.59	—
410–660	509	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	3	525.00–625.00	$583.19	—

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
1130	1130	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	Open	1	1,100.00	$1,100.00	—
1154	1154	Aged (>8 yrs)	Open	1	900.00	$900.00	—

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Dairy Steers

Small 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
196	196	1	82.00	$82.00	$161	—
206	206	1	84.00	$84.00	$173	—
528	528	1	65.00	$65.00	$343	—

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
298	298	1	82.00	$82.00	$244	—

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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.