Cattle Market Pulse

Volunteer Stockyards Market Report

Greeneville, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Saturday, May 11, 2024

444 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $254.38/cwt +13.19 vs last sale · ≈ $1,335/hd at 525 lb · 20 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $234.57/cwt +13.22 vs last sale · ≈ $1,473/hd at 628 lb · 14 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $258.25/cwt +7.80 vs last sale · ≈ $1,208/hd at 468 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 444 431 740
Feeder cattle 281 315 518
Slaughter cattle 128 106 185
Replacement cattle 35 10 37

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, feeder heifers weighing up to 500 lbs. 3.00 higher, with feeder heifers weighing over 500 lbs. and feeder bulls sharply higher overall. No comparisons available for feeder steers due to limited comparable receipts. Regarding slaughter classes- breaker and boning cows 6.00 higher overall, with lean cows 2.00 to 3.00 higher, and bulls 1.00 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
405–445 421 4 310.00–317.50 $313.61 $1,320 +15.36
460–495 478 3 285.00–305.00 $296.58 $1,418 +12.52
510–535 528 4 270.00–301.00 $291.41 $1,539 +5.42
535 value added 535 1 304.00 $304.00 $1,626 —
575 value added 575 2 275.00 $275.00 $1,581 -10.00
600–620 606 6 257.50–273.00 $268.03 $1,624 +5.45
678 678 2 253.00 $253.00 $1,715 -0.63
725 725 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,668 +4.35
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
660 660 1 227.50 $227.50 $1,502 +17.50

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335 335 3 272.50–280.00 $275.83 $924 -6.72
355–380 366 4 270.00–277.50 $272.52 $997 +6.73
415–448 433 12 252.50–275.00 $264.65 $1,146 +42.15
460–465 463 2 240.00–246.00 $243.02 $1,125 -9.11
450–480 464 9 250.00–267.00 $257.03 $1,193 +4.90
490 value added 490 2 279.00 $279.00 $1,367 —
505–548 525 20 245.00–261.00 $254.38 $1,335 +13.19
550–580 565 5 239.00–256.00 $247.90 $1,401 +17.31
610 610 1 201.00 $201.00 $1,226 -13.58
628 value added 628 5 249.00 $249.00 $1,564 +16.36
605–645 630 8 217.50–237.00 $229.75 $1,447 +15.17
675 value added 675 1 254.00 $254.00 $1,714 —
665–690 679 5 225.00–230.00 $227.49 $1,545 —
722 value added 722 7 240.00 $240.00 $1,733 —
700–745 723 4 217.00–229.00 $222.48 $1,609 +7.48
750 value added 750 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,650 —
770 770 1 212.50 $212.50 $1,636 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335 335 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,005 -13.85
370–380 375 2 305.00–322.50 $313.87 $1,177 +5.46
400–433 415 8 292.50–317.50 $308.22 $1,279 +29.04
420 420 1 287.50 $287.50 $1,208 +8.32
470 470 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,269 -2.95
450–485 472 7 290.00–315.00 $300.53 $1,419 +27.58
490 490 1 272.50 $272.50 $1,335 -0.45
500–530 512 3 275.00–289.00 $279.83 $1,433 +6.32
530 530 1 257.50 $257.50 $1,365 -16.01
550–595 577 9 257.50–267.50 $262.80 $1,516 +27.80
600–620 610 2 235.00–240.00 $237.54 $1,449 +2.11
600–645 619 9 244.00–257.50 $249.30 $1,543 +13.87
655 655 1 222.00 $222.00 $1,454 -5.76
650–695 667 6 230.00–250.00 $239.07 $1,595 +11.31
715 715 1 235.00 $235.00 $1,680 +23.68
745 745 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,490 -11.32
765–785 773 3 207.50–228.00 $216.00 $1,670 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 1 275.00 $275.00 $1,072 —
620–625 623 2 212.50–215.00 $213.74 $1,332 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
965–1370 1160 80-85% 23 115.00–128.00 $121.88 $1,414 +5.97
1005–1375 1223 80-85% 8 130.00–137.00 $132.57 $1,621 —
1275 1275 80-85% 1 111.00 $111.00 $1,415 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1175–1510 1297 75-80% 3 112.00–115.00 $113.47 $1,472 —
1335 1335 75-80% 1 145.00 $145.00 $1,936 —
1195–1890 1456 75-80% 26 119.00–136.00 $126.50 $1,842 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
845–1015 926 85-90% 6 104.00–117.00 $108.98 $1,009 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1200–1430 1311 4 125.00–134.00 $129.29 $1,695 —
1075–1905 1529 9 140.00–157.00 $149.30 $2,283 —
1825 1825 1 166.00 $166.00 $3,030 -2.01

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900–1200 1042 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 6 1,270.00–1,450.00 $1,353.33
1100 1100 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,875.00 $1,875.00
1200–1500 1367 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 6 1,450.00–2,100.00 $1,687.50

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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
— — Aged (>8 yrs)Open 3 2,000.00–2,550.00 $2,216.67 —
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 10 1,810.00–2,775.00 $2,188.50 —
— — Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 3 2,025.00–2,100.00 $2,066.67 —

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Dairy Cows

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1130 1130 80-85% 1 133.00 $133.00 $1,503 —
1250–1475 1363 80-85% 2 120.00–123.00 $121.38 $1,654 —
1740 1740 75-80% 1 113.00 $113.00 $1,966 —

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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.