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Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, December 15, 2022

198 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 198 504 349
Feeder cattle 143 375 309
Slaughter cattle 55 127 40
Replacement cattle — 2 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Slaughter cattle sold 1.00 to 8.00 higher. Feeder bulls and heifers sold 3.00 to 5.00 higher, steers 5.00 to 10.00 higher. Demand was moderate; market activity and buyer interest were moderate. Offering of cattle were light. Cattle quality was average.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
150–180 164 4 123.00–131.00 $125.07 $205 +7.07
238 238 1 132.00 $132.00 $314 +4.71
280 280 1 124.00 $124.00 $347 -4.32
322–346 332 3 120.00–143.00 $131.61 $437 +1.21
376 376 1 120.00 $120.00 $451 -18.21
404–416 411 3 121.00–142.00 $127.88 $526 -0.23
458–496 473 3 130.00–135.00 $132.60 $627 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
246 246 1 142.00 $142.00 $349 —
293 293 3 177.00 $177.00 $519 +29.34
334–340 337 2 176.00 $176.00 $593 +24.60
356 356 3 167.50 $167.50 $596 +15.90
410 410 1 144.00 $144.00 $590 -13.71
400–444 426 4 154.00–170.00 $164.79 $702 +7.08
630 630 1 139.00 $139.00 $876 +0.46
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
162–168 165 2 92.50–110.00 $101.09 $167 -8.19
188 thin fleshed 188 1 89.00 $89.00 $167 —
204–238 219 3 104.00–120.00 $111.15 $243 +17.16
252 252 1 100.00 $100.00 $252 —
406 406 1 112.00 $112.00 $455 —
882 882 1 85.00 $85.00 $750 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
316–340 328 6 129.00–148.00 $141.92 $465 +7.92
382–390 385 3 128.00–143.00 $137.02 $528 +5.51
410–412 411 2 124.00–138.00 $131.02 $538 -2.85
470–492 485 5 124.00–140.00 $135.71 $658 +0.88
500–516 508 2 124.00–133.00 $128.57 $653 +14.57
568 568 1 125.00 $125.00 $710 -1.75
584 584 1 111.00 $111.00 $648 -15.75
610–634 622 2 121.00–124.00 $122.53 $762 +2.18
1060 1060 1 90.00 $90.00 $954 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
194 194 1 123.00 $123.00 $239 —
228 228 1 121.00 $121.00 $276 —
284 284 1 121.00 $121.00 $344 +12.00
357–398 383 5 115.00–123.00 $118.56 $454 +4.87
438–444 441 2 112.00–120.00 $116.03 $512 +4.42
464–498 482 5 99.00–116.00 $106.21 $512 -5.31
528 528 1 90.00 $90.00 $475 -18.67
574–576 575 2 88.00–110.00 $99.02 $569 -2.29
612 612 2 82.00–83.00 $82.50 $505 -9.50
668 thin fleshed 668 1 77.00 $77.00 $514 —
800 800 1 70.00 $70.00 $560 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
156–192 174 4 92.50–116.00 $103.43 $180 +8.34
300–340 320 2 103.00–110.00 $106.28 $340 +7.38
382 thin fleshed 382 1 80.00 $80.00 $306 —
428–448 438 2 92.00–97.50 $94.81 $415 +8.93
490 490 1 92.50 $92.50 $453 +2.50
546 546 1 80.00 $80.00 $437 -5.00
680 680 1 74.00 $74.00 $503 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
450–492 471 2 110.00–135.00 $121.94 $574 +9.42
530 530 1 120.00 $120.00 $636 +9.67
540 thin fleshed 540 1 101.00 $101.00 $545 —
558–584 572 3 90.00–116.00 $104.14 $596 -3.86
608 608 1 80.00 $80.00 $486 —
610 thin fleshed 610 1 82.00 $82.00 $500 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
504–544 528 3 137.00–140.00 $138.97 $734 +0.19
530 530 1 120.00 $120.00 $636 -18.78
570 570 1 135.00 $135.00 $770 +4.89
700–724 710 3 101.00–121.00 $112.23 $797 —
874 874 1 85.00 $85.00 $743 -12.00

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
862 862 85-90% 1 53.00 $53.00 $457 —
714–1288 1029 85-90% 19 54.00–64.00 $59.73 $615 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
858–1344 1109 80-85% 8 65.00–80.00 $71.02 $788 +0.24
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1230–1654 1408 75-80% 7 67.00–81.00 $75.25 $1,060 +15.25

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
936–1118 1027 2 61.00–70.00 $65.90 $677 —
972–2536 1678 14 80.00–106.00 $96.67 $1,622 —
1482–1950 1811 4 110.00–113.00 $112.13 $2,031 —

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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.