Cattle Market Pulse

Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, March 12, 2026

344 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $311.56/cwt -15.95 vs last sale · ≈ $1,918/hd at 615 lb · 19 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 bulls $432.39/cwt -39.27 vs last sale · ≈ $2,015/hd at 466 lb · 15 head
light 4-weight M&L 1 bulls $440.90/cwt -55.37 vs last sale · ≈ $1,896/hd at 430 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 344 468 415
Feeder cattle 296 386 355
Slaughter cattle 44 72 60
Replacement cattle 4 10 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cattle were 2.00 to 4.00 higher. Feeder cattle were 15.00 to 20.00 lower. Demand was moderate; market activity and buyer interest were moderate. Offerings of cattle were moderate. Cattle quality was plain to average.

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
234 234 1 510.00 $510.00 $1,193 —
318 value added 318 2 550.00 $550.00 $1,749 —
352 value added 352 1 550.00 $550.00 $1,936 +30.00
384 384 2 520.00 $520.00 $1,997 —
515 value added 515 3 412.50 $412.50 $2,124 -90.00
500–549 525 4 390.00–400.00 $394.77 $2,073 -92.80
561 value added 561 4 387.50 $387.50 $2,174 —
650 650 3 351.00 $351.00 $2,282 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
216–238 227 2 425.00–430.00 $427.38 $970 -25.03
252–296 273 6 405.00–435.00 $416.83 $1,138 -40.31
316–340 326 7 415.00–430.00 $423.51 $1,381 -7.79
366–388 379 4 420.00–470.00 $433.98 $1,645 -5.53
408–440 429 12 427.50–480.00 $456.03 $1,956 -2.79
452–476 466 11 400.00–455.00 $435.26 $2,028 -10.29
500–544 519 11 290.00–351.00 $324.92 $1,686 -56.56
568 568 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,534 -78.27
560–590 575 6 307.50–351.00 $336.71 $1,936 -11.56
612 value added 612 13 314.00 $314.00 $1,922 —
614–646 623 6 300.00–307.50 $306.27 $1,908 -21.24
656–668 662 2 290.00–300.00 $295.05 $1,953 -14.79
718 718 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,939 -8.45
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
346 346 1 400.00 $400.00 $1,384 +45.00
356 356 1 400.00 $400.00 $1,424 +19.89
536 536 1 260.00 $260.00 $1,394 —
586–598 592 2 277.50–300.00 $288.86 $1,710 -8.00
614–644 629 2 257.50–270.00 $263.60 $1,658 +3.60
692 692 1 245.00 $245.00 $1,695 -25.00
730 730 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,679 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
268 268 4 340.00 $340.00 $911 —
400–434 423 3 300.00–350.00 $330.80 $1,399 —
648 648 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,620 —
714 714 1 235.00 $235.00 $1,678 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
409 409 2 350.00 $350.00 $1,432 -40.00
490 490 1 320.00 $320.00 $1,568 —
516 516 1 290.00 $290.00 $1,496 -45.08
576 576 1 260.00 $260.00 $1,498 —
664 664 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,859 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
210 210 1 430.00 $430.00 $903 -52.87
270–276 273 2 440.00–445.00 $442.53 $1,208 -65.66
302–336 325 9 440.00–540.00 $481.96 $1,566 +2.07
352–382 363 9 460.00–535.00 $508.01 $1,844 +33.57
408–445 430 13 427.50–455.00 $440.90 $1,896 -47.66
452–496 466 15 390.00–445.00 $432.39 $2,015 -39.27
538–542 540 2 360.00–370.00 $364.98 $1,971 -68.85
582–592 587 2 320.00–365.00 $342.31 $2,009 -85.37
620–630 623 3 295.00–370.00 $344.73 $2,148 -7.94
650–680 673 4 325.00–350.00 $331.04 $2,228 +1.04
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
408–424 416 2 340.00–370.00 $354.71 $1,476 -95.29
486–498 492 3 300.00–350.00 $323.41 $1,591 —
518–542 529 3 300.00–330.00 $311.51 $1,648 —
646 646 1 290.00 $290.00 $1,873 +4.95
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
326 326 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,141 -27.38
372–378 374 3 340.00–350.00 $346.68 $1,297 —
422 422 1 365.00 $365.00 $1,540 —
450 450 1 360.00 $360.00 $1,620 —
864 864 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,728 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
212 212 1 400.00 $400.00 $848 —
292 292 1 405.00 $405.00 $1,183 —
390 390 1 400.00 $400.00 $1,560 +45.00
508–540 524 2 290.00–375.00 $331.20 $1,735 -23.80
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
312 312 2 295.00 $295.00 $920 —
426 426 2 300.00 $300.00 $1,278 —
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
244 244 1 335.00 $335.00 $817 —
366 366 1 345.00 $345.00 $1,263 -6.32
442 442 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,326 -52.55
600 600 1 185.00 $185.00 $1,110 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
912–1270 1116 80-85% 10 145.00–167.50 $155.01 $1,730 —
952–1314 1130 80-85% 7 172.50–185.00 $176.02 $1,989 —
1336–1358 1347 80-85% 2 130.00–139.00 $134.46 $1,811 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
818–1008 933 85-90% 8 127.50–142.50 $132.71 $1,238 +53.97
922–1272 1121 85-90% 3 120.00 $120.00 $1,345 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1304–1406 1355 75-80% 2 152.50–155.00 $153.70 $2,083 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1280 1280 1 147.50 $147.50 $1,888 —
1212–1906 1560 4 165.00–196.50 $187.43 $2,924 —

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Stock Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
890 890 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 180.00 $180.00 $1,602

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Bred Heifers

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
689 689 (<2 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 179.00 $179.00 $1,233

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Small 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
642 642 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,450.00 $1,450.00 —

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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.