Cattle Market Pulse

Volunteer Stockyards Market Report

Greeneville, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Saturday, December 9, 2023

535 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $219.63/cwt +19.82 vs last sale · ≈ $1,140/hd at 519 lb · 22 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $191.02/cwt +4.37 vs last sale · ≈ $1,010/hd at 529 lb · 15 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $195.09/cwt -2.60 vs last sale · ≈ $910/hd at 466 lb · 14 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 535 605 483
Feeder cattle 367 451 380
Slaughter cattle 128 139 98
Replacement cattle 40 15 5

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, feeder heifers measuring 4.00 lower overall, with feeder bulls sharply higher with high demand noted, and no comparisons available for feeder steers due to limited comparable receipts. Slaughter cows steady to 2.00 higher with slaughter bulls mostly steady.

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
425 425 1 222.00 $222.00 $944 +11.00
480 480 1 242.50 $242.50 $1,164 +25.33
500–545 522 7 232.00–238.00 $234.92 $1,226 +25.57
555–595 575 2 210.00–217.50 $213.62 $1,228 -4.69
600–640 620 2 204.00–211.00 $207.61 $1,287 -0.88
655–660 658 2 199.00–205.00 $202.01 $1,329 +0.46
715 715 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,358 —
850 850 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,615 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
640 640 3 181.00 $181.00 $1,158 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
500 500 1 205.00 $205.00 $1,025 —
635 635 1 174.00 $174.00 $1,105 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
215 215 1 182.50 $182.50 $392 —
280 280 1 190.00 $190.00 $532 —
310–335 323 3 185.00–192.00 $189.07 $611 -25.30
365–390 375 5 187.50–192.50 $190.03 $713 -12.68
385 fancy 385 1 209.00 $209.00 $805 —
405–445 426 10 186.00–202.50 $195.11 $831 +7.61
450–490 466 13 187.50–201.00 $194.10 $905 -3.59
470 fancy 470 1 208.00 $208.00 $978 —
500–547 529 15 180.00–197.00 $191.02 $1,010 +4.37
550–590 573 9 180.00–190.00 $185.85 $1,065 +7.97
615–631 628 6 175.00–180.00 $179.18 $1,125 -6.57
630 value added 630 1 182.00 $182.00 $1,147 —
645 645 1 169.00 $169.00 $1,090 -16.75
650–690 670 4 162.50–171.00 $167.48 $1,122 -9.94
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 330 1 180.00 $180.00 $594 —
355 355 1 180.00 $180.00 $639 —
400 400 1 180.00 $180.00 $720 —
450–455 453 2 180.00–182.50 $181.24 $821 +0.24

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
308–345 321 5 211.00–230.00 $217.72 $699 +9.92
350 fancy 350 1 249.00 $249.00 $872 +19.00
360–390 376 4 210.00–221.00 $213.93 $804 -4.93
400–440 421 7 225.00–247.50 $232.71 $980 +16.37
450–495 466 12 213.00–240.00 $225.62 $1,051 +28.12
480 fancy 480 1 247.50 $247.50 $1,188 —
500–548 519 22 202.50–229.00 $219.63 $1,140 +13.12
550–575 564 7 200.00–215.00 $205.72 $1,160 +25.72
605–645 623 7 178.00–200.00 $187.58 $1,169 +10.08
655–685 661 9 176.00–187.00 $183.83 $1,215 +11.33
700–730 711 4 170.00–185.00 $176.97 $1,258 +11.42
793 793 2 150.00 $150.00 $1,190 —
800 800 1 170.00 $170.00 $1,360 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 330 1 201.00 $201.00 $663 —
405 405 1 213.00 $213.00 $863 —
495 495 1 196.00 $196.00 $970 -2.78
595 595 1 195.00 $195.00 $1,160 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1065–1250 1162 80-85% 3 79.00–82.00 $80.59 $936 —
1000–1440 1260 80-85% 27 83.00–97.00 $89.21 $1,124 -9.23
1395 1395 80-85% 1 100.00 $100.00 $1,395 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1020–1260 1140 75-80% 2 80.00–83.00 $81.66 $931 —
1165–1835 1475 75-80% 18 86.00–98.00 $91.61 $1,351 —
1555–1635 1595 75-80% 2 100.00–102.00 $101.03 $1,611 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
955–960 958 85-90% 2 66.00–71.00 $68.49 $656 —
970–1280 1084 85-90% 7 75.00–87.00 $81.21 $880 +1.56

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1030–1130 1080 2 91.00–97.00 $93.86 $1,014 —
1535–2100 1795 5 112.00–124.00 $116.76 $2,096 +8.76
1930–2275 2039 4 127.00–130.00 $128.56 $2,621 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1050 1050 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 850.00 $850.00
900–1400 1060 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 5 1,125.00–1,450.00 $1,245.00
1100 1100 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,175.00 $1,175.00
900–1350 1104 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 12 900.00–1,300.00 $1,090.83
1300–1450 1375 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,485.00–1,725.00 $1,605.00
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
850–950 900 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 870.00–995.00 $932.50

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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.