Cattle Market Pulse

Powell Livestock Market Report

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, May 28, 2026

318 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 3-weight M&L 1 heifers $480.13/cwt +17.63 vs last sale · ≈ $1,822/hd at 380 lb · 22 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 bulls $449.92/cwt -4.12 vs last sale · ≈ $2,104/hd at 468 lb · 19 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 bulls $413.58/cwt -3.86 vs last sale · ≈ $2,167/hd at 524 lb · 14 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 318 314 320
Feeder cattle 237 272 266
Slaughter cattle 68 38 53
Replacement cattle 13 4 1

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cattle were 4.00 to 8.00 higher. Feeder cattle were unevenly steady to mixed. Demand was good; market activity and buyer were active. 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
346 346 1 485.00 $485.00 $1,678 —
470–498 477 4 435.00–440.00 $436.31 $2,081 -28.29
780 value added 780 4 370.00 $370.00 $2,886 —
824 824 1 290.00 $290.00 $2,390 —
878 878 1 287.50 $287.50 $2,524 —
992 992 1 230.00 $230.00 $2,282 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
598 598 1 405.00 $405.00 $2,422 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240 240 1 480.00 $480.00 $1,152 -10.36
288–296 292 2 460.00–490.00 $474.79 $1,386 -10.21
310–346 325 3 450.00–470.00 $458.15 $1,489 -7.24
328 value added 328 2 525.00 $525.00 $1,722 —
364–389 373 14 430.00–475.00 $465.35 $1,736 +12.85
391 value added 391 8 506.00 $506.00 $1,978 +21.00
402–440 423 8 445.00–475.00 $461.26 $1,951 +4.50
450–492 470 12 420.00–470.00 $447.70 $2,104 +17.70
484 484 1 370.00 $370.00 $1,791 -60.00
510–548 532 6 370.00–415.00 $387.07 $2,059 -11.04
538 538 1 370.00 $370.00 $1,991 -28.11
572 572 1 345.00 $345.00 $1,973 -31.41
560–588 576 4 330.00–375.00 $360.02 $2,074 -16.39
618 618 1 320.00 $320.00 $1,978 -7.50
672 672 1 310.00 $310.00 $2,083 +15.60
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
224 224 1 400.00 $400.00 $896 -5.00
368 368 1 415.00 $415.00 $1,527 +13.33
406–438 421 4 385.00–435.00 $411.20 $1,731 -1.31
478–486 482 2 345.00–350.00 $347.48 $1,675 -2.52
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
374–378 376 2 350.00 $350.00 $1,316 —
412 412 1 305.00 $305.00 $1,257 -20.00
456 456 1 290.00 $290.00 $1,322 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
210–244 230 5 480.00–535.00 $508.55 $1,170 -18.17
272–298 285 3 490.00–500.00 $496.51 $1,415 -14.28
314 value added 314 1 560.00 $560.00 $1,758 —
300–336 320 4 485.00–520.00 $499.46 $1,598 -1.46
358–384 365 9 470.00–515.00 $498.44 $1,819 +20.37
434–448 442 3 440.00–460.00 $453.45 $2,004 +2.42
450 value added 450 7 467.50 $467.50 $2,104 —
460–498 478 12 420.00–460.00 $439.67 $2,102 -14.37
500–536 524 14 400.00–440.00 $413.58 $2,167 -3.86
550–556 thin fleshed 553 2 430.00–445.00 $437.54 $2,420 —
562–588 576 7 367.50–415.00 $397.64 $2,290 +16.35
606–622 614 4 350.00–376.00 $367.02 $2,254 +12.19
618–630 624 2 320.00–335.00 $327.57 $2,044 -27.26
660–692 675 5 317.50–350.00 $327.33 $2,209 +9.83
726–728 727 2 290.00–312.50 $301.23 $2,190 +1.23
944 944 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,888 —
950 950 1 220.00 $220.00 $2,090 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–342 328 4 435.00–460.00 $449.81 $1,475 +44.81
358–388 373 2 435.00–450.00 $442.20 $1,649 +42.20
414–448 430 7 400.00–430.00 $420.15 $1,807 —
490 490 1 355.00 $355.00 $1,740 +15.62
522–536 530 4 350.00–375.00 $359.89 $1,907 +9.89
576 576 1 377.50 $377.50 $2,174 +12.50
606 606 1 282.50 $282.50 $1,712 —
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
290 290 1 410.00 $410.00 $1,189 —
330 330 1 400.00 $400.00 $1,320 +25.00
434 434 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,519 +10.00
544 544 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,768 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
854–858 856 85-90% 2 90.00–95.00 $92.51 $792 -21.90
704–1250 972 85-90% 11 110.00–135.00 $126.73 $1,232 —
750–1400 1041 85-90% 15 137.50–162.50 $149.58 $1,557 +49.58
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1076–1118 1097 80-85% 2 185.00–187.00 $185.98 $2,040 —
942–1268 1116 80-85% 13 161.00–180.00 $168.39 $1,879 —
1128 1128 80-85% 1 140.00 $140.00 $1,579 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1244 1244 75-80% 1 145.00 $145.00 $1,804 —
1396–1696 1510 75-80% 11 152.50–178.00 $162.41 $2,452 +6.65

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1434–1606 1530 3 221.00–260.00 $233.71 $3,576 —
1638–2132 1835 5 205.00–217.50 $210.97 $3,871 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
850–918 884 (<2 yrs)Open 2 217.50 $217.50 $1,923
964–1066 1022 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 3 200.00–220.00 $206.76 $2,113
968–1096 1032 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 195.00–205.00 $200.31 $2,067
Small 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
584–738 667 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 150.00–170.00 $154.88 $1,033
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
658 658 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,316

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1096 1096 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 212.50 $212.50 $2,329

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Dairy Steers

Small 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
692 692 1 130.00 $130.00 $900 —

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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.