Cattle Market Pulse

Volunteer Stockyards Market Report

Greeneville, Tennessee · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Saturday, May 17, 2025

299 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1 bulls $353.54/cwt -13.68 vs last sale · ≈ $1,869/hd at 529 lb · 14 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $319.51/cwt -20.71 vs last sale · ≈ $1,659/hd at 519 lb · 12 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 bulls $358.48/cwt -9.67 vs last sale · ≈ $1,705/hd at 476 lb · 11 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 299 345 360
Feeder cattle 258 254 248
Slaughter cattle 41 68 112
Replacement cattle — 23 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

**No market trends available due to limited comparable receipts.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
405–420 412 3 407.50–420.00 $412.43 $1,699 +6.43
450–490 468 3 380.00–382.50 $380.83 $1,782 -2.87
505–535 518 5 335.00–361.00 $354.72 $1,837 -21.43
600 600 1 312.50 $312.50 $1,875 -10.89
665 665 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,995 +21.22
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
680 680 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,904 —
760–795 778 2 257.50–275.00 $266.05 $2,070 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
250 250 1 375.00 $375.00 $938 —
390–398 395 4 367.50–377.50 $375.00 $1,481 -0.72
415–425 value added 420 2 380.00 $380.00 $1,596 —
405–440 425 3 320.00–325.00 $321.69 $1,367 -29.05
405–445 432 6 340.00–367.50 $353.34 $1,526 +30.84
450 value added 450 2 367.50 $367.50 $1,654 +5.00
450–485 475 5 322.50–347.50 $333.96 $1,586 -8.30
495 495 1 310.00 $310.00 $1,534 -32.26
510 value added 510 1 335.00 $335.00 $1,708 -25.66
500–538 520 11 307.50–330.00 $318.10 $1,654 -13.03
560–597 579 6 300.00–315.00 $303.74 $1,759 -21.55
590 590 1 287.50 $287.50 $1,696 -37.79
610–625 619 6 280.00–300.00 $289.59 $1,793 +14.59
635 635 1 252.50 $252.50 $1,603 -22.50
657–670 661 11 255.00–280.00 $269.09 $1,779 -5.91
735 735 1 247.50 $247.50 $1,819 -7.53
760 760 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,748 -17.50
780 780 1 245.00 $245.00 $1,911 -2.50
800 800 1 221.00 $221.00 $1,768 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
443 thin fleshed 443 2 340.00 $340.00 $1,506 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–330 324 4 400.00–450.00 $431.29 $1,397 -5.62
350–370 358 4 400.00–455.00 $419.97 $1,503 +7.15
410 410 1 357.50 $357.50 $1,466 -31.43
405–435 421 5 370.00–400.00 $385.67 $1,624 -3.26
465 465 2 330.00–337.50 $333.75 $1,552 -34.40
450–490 476 7 345.00–370.00 $359.39 $1,711 -8.76
485 value added 485 2 380.00 $380.00 $1,843 —
500–545 528 12 347.50–375.00 $357.26 $1,886 -9.96
530–535 533 2 327.50–335.00 $331.23 $1,765 -35.99
550–590 565 5 315.00–340.00 $326.45 $1,844 -21.27
630–640 637 3 260.00–280.00 $271.62 $1,730 -34.20
665–685 672 3 270.00 $270.00 $1,814 -14.90
728 728 3 235.00 $235.00 $1,711 -23.00
750–795 778 4 240.00–250.00 $244.33 $1,901 —
860 860 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,978 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1010–1295 1108 80-85% 9 138.00–153.00 $146.51 $1,623 -2.53
1120–1125 1123 80-85% 2 155.00–161.00 $158.01 $1,774 +8.97
1175–1425 1300 80-85% 2 130.00–132.00 $130.90 $1,702 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1330–1525 1422 75-80% 7 143.00–154.00 $148.75 $2,115 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
850–1110 988 85-90% 4 126.00–133.00 $129.67 $1,281 —
1095 1095 85-90% 1 117.50 $117.50 $1,287 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1395 1395 1 170.00 $170.00 $2,372 —
1475–1605 1542 3 179.00–185.00 $181.95 $2,806 —

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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.