Cattle Market Pulse

Volunteer Stockyards Market Report

Greeneville, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Saturday, October 7, 2023

694 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $182.41/cwt -18.38 vs last sale · ≈ $1,055/hd at 579 lb · 25 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $176.56/cwt +6.49 vs last sale · ≈ $1,084/hd at 614 lb · 23 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $178.43/cwt -14.08 vs last sale · ≈ $1,120/hd at 627 lb · 22 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 694 782 857
Feeder cattle 569 623 665
Slaughter cattle 113 149 161
Replacement cattle 12 10 31

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, feeder heifers sharply lower with feeder bulls 2.00 higher overall. No comparisons available for feeder steers due to limited comparable receipts, but a higher undertone was noted. Slaughter cows and bulls 1.00 to 5.00 higher overall.

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
355 355 2 245.00 $245.00 $870 +20.23
410–445 428 2 235.00–240.00 $237.40 $1,016 +5.70
450 450 1 197.50 $197.50 $889 —
480–495 488 2 212.50–220.00 $216.19 $1,055 —
500–545 510 9 210.00–243.00 $232.10 $1,184 +11.85
524 fancy 524 4 250.00 $250.00 $1,310 —
550–575 564 7 220.00–228.00 $226.53 $1,278 +9.73
620 620 1 212.00 $212.00 $1,314 +2.62
660–665 664 5 205.00–217.50 $211.10 $1,402 +11.10
775 775 2 187.00 $187.00 $1,449 -12.00
975 975 1 165.00 $165.00 $1,609 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 275 1 217.50 $217.50 $598 —
310–330 321 4 190.00–202.50 $195.73 $628 -15.38
350–370 359 5 190.00–207.50 $198.78 $714 -10.42
400–445 430 19 170.00–196.00 $182.28 $784 -22.44
455–496 479 18 170.00–185.00 $177.82 $852 -27.11
510 fancy 510 2 200.00 $200.00 $1,020 —
508–545 519 14 170.00–185.00 $175.27 $910 -24.49
555 fancy 555 4 205.00 $205.00 $1,138 —
550–598 583 21 162.50–186.00 $178.11 $1,038 -22.19
600–630 fancy 610 6 193.00–201.50 $198.97 $1,214 —
600–645 634 16 165.00–184.00 $170.73 $1,082 -21.78
650 650 2 152.50 $152.50 $991 -28.75
655–675 667 4 162.50–175.00 $169.33 $1,129 -11.92
710–741 732 8 169.00–177.50 $170.69 $1,249 +5.18
750 750 2 182.00 $182.00 $1,365 —
820–840 833 3 150.00–160.00 $153.28 $1,277 -12.71
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315 315 1 180.00 $180.00 $567 -12.50
510 510 1 160.00 $160.00 $816 -5.00

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
230 230 2 245.00 $245.00 $564 —
275–290 282 3 222.50–242.50 $230.67 $650 —
315 fancy 315 1 270.00 $270.00 $850 —
303–345 323 9 220.00–260.00 $242.90 $785 +17.61
355–385 368 3 210.00–230.00 $220.96 $813 -10.83
383 fancy 383 4 256.00 $256.00 $980 —
400–440 420 8 217.50–230.00 $222.30 $934 -1.01
450–475 463 6 210.00–230.00 $221.97 $1,028 -2.87
500–545 525 12 207.00–225.00 $215.10 $1,129 +8.53
550 fancy 550 1 195.00 $195.00 $1,072 —
553–599 575 19 165.00–185.00 $172.70 $993 -17.63
600–635 614 19 162.00–180.00 $172.95 $1,062 +2.88
600–635 fancy 615 4 188.00–200.00 $193.68 $1,191 —
650–670 655 9 152.50–182.50 $174.67 $1,144 +12.28
700–735 715 5 155.00–174.00 $162.39 $1,161 +7.39
750–775 763 3 147.00–161.00 $152.66 $1,165 +5.33
765 765 1 140.00 $140.00 $1,071 -7.33
765 fancy 765 1 176.00 $176.00 $1,346 —
820 820 2 155.00–159.00 $157.00 $1,287 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470–482 477 5 190.00–200.00 $193.94 $925 —
505–545 526 4 175.00–180.00 $176.83 $930 -3.17
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
443 443 2 190.00 $190.00 $842 -6.59
489 489 4 182.00 $182.00 $890 -8.86

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1125–1660 1398 75-80% 25 87.00–101.00 $93.21 $1,303 —
1405 1405 75-80% 1 83.00 $83.00 $1,166 -8.11
1245–1695 1518 75-80% 5 103.00–111.00 $106.55 $1,617 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1125–1150 1138 80-85% 2 79.00–80.00 $79.49 $905 —
915–1325 1175 80-85% 20 83.00–95.00 $88.34 $1,038 —
1025–1410 1194 80-85% 8 98.00–107.00 $103.22 $1,232 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
985–1240 1118 85-90% 9 73.00–84.00 $78.99 $883 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1460–1970 1712 11 115.00–131.00 $125.62 $2,151 —

↑ Back to top

Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
950–1300 1125 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 1,100.00–1,125.00 $1,112.50

↑ Back to top

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)Open 2 1,825.00 $1,825.00 —
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,300.00 $1,300.00 —
— — Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,355.00 $1,355.00 —

↑ Back to top

Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370 370 1 125.00 $125.00 $462 —

↑ Back to top

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.