Cattle Market Pulse

Volunteer Stockyards Market Report

Greeneville, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Saturday, October 21, 2023

491 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $206.99/cwt +17.66 vs last sale · ≈ $1,312/hd at 634 lb · 24 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $198.06/cwt +2.53 vs last sale · ≈ $1,121/hd at 566 lb · 16 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $219.72/cwt +10.80 vs last sale · ≈ $1,153/hd at 525 lb · 14 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 491 551 796
Feeder cattle 352 392 579
Slaughter cattle 130 147 170
Replacement cattle 9 12 47

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, feeder heifers measuring 2.00 lower overall. Feeder bulls 2.00 to 3.00 lower, with exception of those weighing up to 400 lbs. sharply higher and those weighing over 650 lbs. sharply lower. No comparisons available for feeder steers due to limited comparable receipts. Slaughter cows gauging 3.00 to 7.00 lower overall with slaughter bulls 2.00 to 5.00 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
375 375 1 240.00 $240.00 $900 +6.13
425 425 1 217.50 $217.50 $924 -14.85
435 435 1 235.00 $235.00 $1,022 +2.65
454 value added 454 4 260.00 $260.00 $1,180 —
470–495 483 2 217.50–237.50 $227.24 $1,098 -3.28
500 value added 500 1 247.00 $247.00 $1,235 —
522–540 529 5 216.00–237.00 $228.63 $1,209 +0.89
585 585 2 228.00–229.00 $228.50 $1,337 +26.00
610 value added 610 1 227.00 $227.00 $1,385 —
600–625 613 3 208.00–214.00 $210.35 $1,289 -9.65
720 720 1 207.00 $207.00 $1,490 +14.52
815 815 2 184.00–200.00 $192.00 $1,565 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 470 1 200.00 $200.00 $940 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310 310 1 230.00 $230.00 $713 +25.38
365 365 1 200.00 $200.00 $730 -6.53
350–395 378 5 205.00–220.00 $210.70 $796 +4.17
420 value added 420 2 219.00 $219.00 $920 —
410–445 433 8 200.00–212.00 $206.27 $893 -0.14
460 460 1 165.00 $165.00 $759 -41.61
450–495 468 6 199.00–212.50 $207.53 $971 +0.92
500 value added 500 1 207.50 $207.50 $1,038 —
523–545 533 9 188.00–206.00 $199.37 $1,063 +31.87
560 560 1 175.00 $175.00 $980 -1.55
565 565 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,017 +3.45
550–595 566 11 190.00–205.00 $195.68 $1,108 +19.13
567 value added 567 3 220.50 $220.50 $1,250 —
600–635 618 2 172.50–176.00 $174.30 $1,077 -3.70
605–645 624 5 182.00–192.00 $187.03 $1,167 +9.03
638 value added 638 16 219.75 $219.75 $1,402 —
645 645 1 168.00 $168.00 $1,084 -27.00
650–665 658 2 160.00–166.00 $163.03 $1,073 -28.55
655–680 667 3 170.00–175.00 $172.70 $1,152 -18.88
700 700 1 153.00 $153.00 $1,071 -27.98
705 705 1 172.00 $172.00 $1,213 -8.98
735 735 1 166.00 $166.00 $1,220 -14.98
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
420–425 423 2 187.50–193.00 $190.27 $805 —
475–495 483 3 185.00–193.00 $189.33 $914 —
535 535 1 183.00 $183.00 $979 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305 305 1 177.50 $177.50 $541 —
440 440 1 182.50 $182.50 $803 +2.50
480 480 2 181.00–185.00 $183.00 $878 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310–335 323 2 235.00–270.00 $251.82 $813 —
350 fancy 350 1 287.50 $287.50 $1,006 —
350–385 366 4 232.50–269.00 $251.63 $921 +29.36
415–445 430 3 220.00–227.50 $224.22 $964 -5.44
450 fancy 450 1 247.00 $247.00 $1,112 —
470–485 477 5 215.00–230.00 $223.80 $1,068 +14.28
510 fancy 510 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,173 +7.50
500–540 526 13 206.00–225.00 $218.93 $1,152 +11.71
550–580 569 8 187.50–204.00 $194.50 $1,107 -5.70
580 fancy 580 1 215.00 $215.00 $1,247 —
605–635 621 5 169.00–190.00 $175.51 $1,090 -10.91
625 625 1 155.00 $155.00 $969 -31.42
643 fancy 643 2 200.00 $200.00 $1,286 —
650–695 672 5 150.00–170.00 $158.61 $1,066 -21.56
730–740 735 3 140.00–150.00 $143.67 $1,056 -6.33
750–775 763 2 137.00–155.00 $146.15 $1,115 —
805–835 819 4 130.00–154.00 $141.74 $1,161 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
295 295 1 202.50 $202.50 $597 —
425 425 1 205.00 $205.00 $871 +5.00
510 510 1 180.00 $180.00 $918 —
555 555 1 180.00 $180.00 $999 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
505 505 1 195.00 $195.00 $985 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1190–1695 1373 75-80% 23 87.00–99.00 $93.76 $1,287 +8.20
1235–1480 1387 75-80% 3 83.00–85.00 $84.31 $1,169 -1.25
1455–1580 1504 75-80% 4 104.00–106.00 $105.26 $1,583 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1015–1515 1214 80-85% 24 82.00–93.00 $87.28 $1,060 -7.31
1215 1215 80-85% 1 78.00 $78.00 $948 -16.59
1185–1295 1240 80-85% 2 95.00–100.00 $97.39 $1,208 -8.80
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
935–1055 995 85-90% 2 67.00–68.00 $67.47 $671 —
800–1205 1003 85-90% 2 89.00–91.00 $89.80 $901 —
975–1300 1104 85-90% 14 73.00–84.00 $79.49 $878 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1275–1430 1353 2 109.00–112.00 $110.41 $1,494 —
1520–1720 1616 4 100.00–112.00 $105.32 $1,702 —
1720 1720 1 135.00 $135.00 $2,322 +10.32
1655–2270 1839 8 116.00–126.00 $120.48 $2,216 -13.52

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
850 850 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 840.00 $840.00

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Bred Cows

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900–950 925 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 850.00–925.00 $887.50
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
950 950 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 875.00 $875.00

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Bred Heifers

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
800 800 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 950.00 $950.00

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
520 520 1 142.00 $142.00 $738 —

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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.