Cattle Market Pulse

Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, February 22, 2024

492 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $302.56/cwt +9.72 vs last sale · ≈ $1,585/hd at 524 lb · 40 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $256.99/cwt +41.79 vs last sale · ≈ $1,341/hd at 522 lb · 33 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 bulls $312.56/cwt +8.48 vs last sale · ≈ $1,457/hd at 466 lb · 25 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 492 488 522
Feeder cattle 437 391 468
Slaughter cattle 54 78 54
Replacement cattle 1 19 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cattle were 3.00 to 5.00 higher. Feeder cattle were 4.00 to 8.00 higher. Demand was very good; market activity and buyer interest were 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 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
368–399 390 7 320.00–340.00 $333.10 $1,299 +13.10
405 405 3 332.50 $332.50 $1,347 +9.77
516–525 524 40 300.00–303.00 $302.56 $1,585 +9.72
553 553 5 295.00 $295.00 $1,631 +18.91
704 704 1 227.50 $227.50 $1,602 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
520–528 524 2 212.50–215.00 $213.76 $1,120 -26.24

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
308–332 324 6 222.50–252.50 $239.10 $775 +6.88
350–398 371 18 230.00–272.50 $250.27 $929 +10.99
402–446 424 16 228.00–270.00 $255.02 $1,081 +14.47
450–492 473 13 217.50–255.00 $242.55 $1,147 +18.03
521 value added 521 26 268.00 $268.00 $1,396 —
506–540 524 7 200.00–230.00 $216.11 $1,132 +36.11
556–592 582 9 195.00–235.00 $216.87 $1,262 +10.57
624–640 632 2 195.00–215.00 $204.87 $1,295 +32.86
664–697 682 5 175.00–182.00 $179.81 $1,226 —
733 value added 733 2 208.00 $208.00 $1,525 —
750 750 1 175.00 $175.00 $1,312 —
800 value added 800 2 186.00 $186.00 $1,488 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
230–234 232 2 205.00–210.00 $207.48 $481 +1.05
250–290 276 7 190.00–220.00 $201.03 $555 -13.97
336–344 339 4 200.00–220.00 $214.93 $729 —
352–370 361 2 220.00–225.00 $222.56 $803 +19.31
418–442 432 3 192.50–227.50 $213.65 $923 +24.54
464 464 1 180.00 $180.00 $835 +20.00
544 544 1 162.50 $162.50 $884 -2.39
564 564 1 140.00 $140.00 $790 -23.80
572 572 1 167.50 $167.50 $958 +3.70
662 662 1 120.00 $120.00 $794 -21.00
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
274–280 277 2 175.00–180.00 $177.53 $492 +7.53
310–316 313 2 172.50–180.00 $176.21 $552 —
364 364 1 170.00 $170.00 $619 —
480 480 1 155.00 $155.00 $744 —
562 562 1 152.50 $152.50 $857 —
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
224 224 1 160.00 $160.00 $358 +20.07
280–296 288 2 140.00–150.00 $145.14 $418 —
376 376 1 140.00 $140.00 $526 -5.00
444 444 1 135.00 $135.00 $599 —
464 464 1 140.00 $140.00 $650 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
218 218 1 270.00 $270.00 $589 —
310–348 329 8 265.00–322.50 $296.13 $974 -4.71
368–399 381 10 280.00–327.50 $305.44 $1,164 -1.42
400–444 428 24 265.00–332.50 $305.21 $1,306 -11.27
450–498 466 25 275.00–333.00 $312.56 $1,457 +8.48
520–546 533 6 255.00–275.00 $264.11 $1,408 -17.66
566–588 584 10 235.00–275.00 $256.76 $1,499 +32.96
588 588 1 227.50 $227.50 $1,338 +3.70
600–642 625 14 200.00–240.00 $226.23 $1,414 +56.47
656–696 676 5 190.00–222.50 $206.85 $1,398 +30.20
714–748 736 3 185.00–200.00 $193.24 $1,422 +33.24
760 760 1 197.50 $197.50 $1,501 +50.00
784 784 1 167.00 $167.00 $1,309 +19.50
812–840 827 3 170.00–175.00 $171.64 $1,419 +16.82
868 868 1 160.00 $160.00 $1,389 +2.48
974 974 1 145.00 $145.00 $1,412 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
200–226 215 3 220.00–247.50 $232.77 $500 +19.34
260–266 263 2 225.00–235.00 $230.06 $605 +0.72
318–348 333 2 220.00 $220.00 $733 -16.13
360–376 369 4 240.00–260.00 $251.83 $929 +1.83
414–436 424 4 220.00–255.00 $241.13 $1,022 +28.11
478–498 487 7 220.00–260.00 $241.08 $1,174 +12.82
514–548 531 3 220.00–222.50 $221.69 $1,177 +33.64
566–594 578 4 185.00–225.00 $210.22 $1,215 +21.47
654–672 663 2 152.50–167.50 $159.90 $1,060 +9.90
772 772 1 147.50 $147.50 $1,139 +15.50
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
244–246 245 2 190.00–200.00 $195.02 $478 —
268–286 280 5 175.00–202.50 $192.33 $539 —
308–348 323 5 160.00–205.00 $188.79 $610 +11.29
370–396 379 3 175.00–203.00 $192.85 $731 +7.85
404–410 406 3 180.00–200.00 $187.46 $761 —
454–464 459 2 160.00–167.50 $163.79 $752 —
568 568 1 160.00 $160.00 $909 +20.00
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
224 224 1 140.00 $140.00 $314 —
276–296 286 2 147.50–165.00 $156.56 $448 -10.94
400–428 414 4 140.00–160.00 $152.42 $631 —
464 464 1 119.00 $119.00 $552 —
544 544 1 135.00 $135.00 $734 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1400 1400 75-80% 1 96.00 $96.00 $1,344 —
1206–1980 1481 75-80% 12 107.00–136.00 $119.17 $1,765 +9.01
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1126–1256 1191 80-85% 2 118.00 $118.00 $1,405 —
1116–1380 1280 80-85% 8 99.00–113.00 $106.64 $1,365 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1092–1122 1110 85-90% 4 70.00–76.00 $71.73 $796 —
890–1404 1149 85-90% 5 88.00–93.00 $90.13 $1,036 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
970–1878 1229 6 116.00–133.00 $121.63 $1,495 —
1822–2178 1973 4 137.00–141.00 $138.65 $2,736 —

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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
1124 1124 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 1,525.00 $1,525.00 —

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
736 736 1 122.50 $122.50 $902 —

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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.