Cattle Market Pulse

Wilkes Livestock Exchange Market Report

North Wilkesboro, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, May 19, 2021

106 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Wilkes Livestock Exchange report →

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 106 64 37
Feeder cattle 82 47 24
Slaughter cattle 22 15 12
Replacement cattle 2 2 1

Market comments — USDA reporter

Head calves 55.00 To 85.00 Slaughter cattle 2.00 To 3.00 higher Feeder cattle 3.00 To 6.00 Lower Demand Good Activity Moderate Offerings Light ( Hay time ) Quality Average

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
270–295 285 3 138.00–146.00 $142.56 $406 —
360–365 363 2 157.00–158.00 $157.50 $572 +7.02
415–420 416 7 140.00–151.00 $149.41 $622 +0.41
500 500 1 136.00 $136.00 $680 -2.00
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260 260 1 134.00 $134.00 $348 —
330 330 1 130.00 $130.00 $429 —
385–390 388 2 140.00–145.00 $142.52 $553 +31.52
460 460 1 124.00 $124.00 $570 —
Medium 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
270 270 1 110.00 $110.00 $297 —
335 335 1 72.00 $72.00 $241 —
390 390 1 121.00 $121.00 $472 —
390 thin fleshed 390 1 100.00 $100.00 $390 —
Small 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375 thin fleshed 375 1 60.00 $60.00 $225 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 1 119.00 $119.00 $470 -20.73
450–490 478 6 115.00–122.00 $118.49 $566 -1.51
520 520 1 120.00 $120.00 $624 -2.00
570 570 2 124.00 $124.00 $707 —
665 665 4 105.00–111.00 $109.50 $728 +19.50
843 843 2 95.00 $95.00 $801 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–395 375 2 92.00–95.00 $93.58 $351 -31.94
480 480 1 90.00 $90.00 $432 —
510–545 528 2 80.00–90.00 $84.83 $448 -22.17
585–595 590 2 112.00 $112.00 $661 —
640 640 1 80.00 $80.00 $512 —
650–685 668 2 85.00–95.00 $90.13 $602 —
735 735 1 82.00 $82.00 $603 —
Medium 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
425 425 1 73.00 $73.00 $310 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
435 435 1 147.00 $147.00 $639 -1.15
460–495 478 3 135.00–141.00 $136.92 $654 -2.27
515–535 527 3 116.00–127.00 $122.95 $648 -9.05
565–590 578 2 111.00–120.00 $115.60 $668 -11.40
600–625 613 5 118.00–128.00 $122.36 $750 -12.64
670 670 1 126.00 $126.00 $844 —
940 940 1 96.00 $96.00 $902 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 118.00 $118.00 $519 —
465 465 1 122.00 $122.00 $567 —
540–545 543 2 100.00–110.00 $105.02 $570 -12.98
550–580 568 3 95.00–101.00 $98.62 $560 —
610–630 622 3 111.00–117.00 $114.99 $715 —
690 690 1 105.00 $105.00 $724 —
Medium 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
635 635 1 90.00 $90.00 $572 —
825 thin fleshed 825 1 71.00 $71.00 $586 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
905–990 946 80-85% 4 55.00–64.00 $60.34 $571 —
1010–1155 1079 80-85% 4 66.00–73.00 $70.36 $759 +7.48
925–1310 1148 80-85% 3 43.00–54.00 $49.47 $568 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1245–1335 1290 75-80% 2 69.00–73.00 $70.93 $915 —
1310 1310 75-80% 1 64.00 $64.00 $838 -4.15
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
830 830 85-90% 1 50.00 $50.00 $415 —
1020 1020 85-90% 1 57.00 $57.00 $581 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1010 1010 1 75.50 $75.50 $763 +0.50
1035–1200 1118 2 90.00–93.00 $91.61 $1,024 —
1390–1635 1513 2 98.00–99.50 $98.69 $1,493 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1265 1265 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 860.00 $860.00

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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
1165 1165 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 750.00 $750.00 —

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Dairy Steers

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
790 790 1 78.00 $78.00 $616 —
910 910 1 60.00 $60.00 $546 —

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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.