Cattle Market Pulse

Volunteer Stockyards Market Report

Greeneville, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Saturday, November 20, 2021

582 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Volunteer Stockyards report →

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $113.94/cwt -0.82 vs last sale · ≈ $648/hd at 569 lb · 18 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $131.07/cwt +1.48 vs last sale · ≈ $676/hd at 516 lb · 17 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $115.66/cwt +3.04 vs last sale · ≈ $766/hd at 662 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 582 1,066 1,272
Feeder cattle 426 871 962
Slaughter cattle 113 148 233
Replacement cattle 43 47 77

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, based on a lighter test this week, feeder heifers measuring 2.00 higher with feeder bulls weighing up to 500 lbs. 8.00 higher and those weighing over 500 lbs. mostly steady. No comparisons available for feeder steers due to limited comparable receipts. Slaughter cows holding mostly steady overall with slaughter bulls 2.00 to 4.00 lower.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 1 157.00 $157.00 $612 —
405 405 2 152.00 $152.00 $616 +12.00
458–470 462 3 147.00–154.00 $149.37 $690 -6.46
535 fancy 535 1 151.00 $151.00 $808 -7.00
535–545 541 5 130.00–138.00 $134.82 $729 -0.01
555 value added 555 1 143.00 $143.00 $794 —
600–625 613 2 130.00–141.00 $135.39 $830 +0.84
654–655 654 8 132.50–135.00 $133.13 $871 +2.55
745 745 1 122.00 $122.00 $909 -5.18
855 855 1 119.00 $119.00 $1,017 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–395 375 11 119.00–126.00 $121.73 $456 +4.85
400 fancy 400 1 131.00 $131.00 $524 —
405–440 417 9 118.00–127.00 $123.50 $515 +6.25
450–490 475 9 112.00–118.00 $116.13 $552 +1.57
505–540 525 8 109.00–118.00 $113.25 $595 -1.04
553–590 569 18 109.00–119.00 $113.94 $648 +1.57
609–645 618 8 112.00–116.00 $115.23 $712 +4.88
650–690 662 13 112.00–119.00 $115.66 $766 +3.04
720 720 1 106.00 $106.00 $763 -3.46
765 765 1 106.00 $106.00 $811 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335–340 337 3 140.00–142.50 $140.83 $475 +4.34
355–395 378 4 142.00–159.00 $150.42 $569 +13.96
415–435 423 9 141.00–149.00 $143.85 $608 +12.03
460–490 471 12 134.00–145.00 $138.17 $651 +6.33
505 fancy 505 2 149.00 $149.00 $752 -1.00
500–540 517 15 123.00–140.00 $128.68 $665 +0.66
565–590 580 6 114.00–127.00 $121.02 $702 -4.72
600–640 615 3 111.00–120.00 $115.31 $709 -0.11
655–678 673 7 108.00–119.00 $114.45 $770 +1.50
710 fancy 710 1 120.00 $120.00 $852 —
710–745 732 7 100.00–111.00 $105.99 $776 -0.10
765 765 1 106.00 $106.00 $811 +11.07

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1170–2175 1500 75-80% 34 50.00–62.00 $54.06 $811 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
820–930 872 80-85% 3 64.00–72.00 $68.73 $599 —
1050 1050 80-85% 1 63.00 $63.00 $662 —
920–1410 1142 80-85% 13 53.00–61.00 $56.32 $643 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
760–770 765 85-90% 2 61.00–65.00 $63.01 $482 —
1000 1000 85-90% 1 61.00 $61.00 $610 —
895–1215 1004 85-90% 8 49.00–55.00 $51.00 $512 -2.04

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1615–1805 1710 2 85.00–86.00 $85.47 $1,462 —
1270–2260 1761 11 70.00–81.00 $74.45 $1,311 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1000 1000 Aged (>8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 675.00 $675.00
1000 1000 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 800.00–900.00 $850.00
900–1200 1050 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 650.00–695.00 $672.50
1050 1050 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 825.00 $825.00
900–1300 1150 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 6 825.00–1,025.00 $937.50
1100–1400 1213 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 4 925.00–1,030.00 $963.75
1250 1250 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,010.00 $1,010.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
950 950 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,000.00 $1,000.00

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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
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 1,225.00–1,350.00 $1,287.50 —
— — Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 1,130.00 $1,130.00 —
— — Aged (>8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,075.00 $1,075.00 —
— — Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 950.00 $950.00 —
— — Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 1,000.00 $1,000.00 —
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,035.00 $1,035.00 —

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Dairy Steers

Large 3-4 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
445 445 2 81.00 $81.00 $360 —

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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.