Cattle Market Pulse

Wilkes Livestock Exchange Market Report

North Wilkesboro, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, October 4, 2023

185 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $249.00/cwt ≈ $1,457/hd at 585 lb · 26 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $211.50/cwt ≈ $1,286/hd at 608 lb · 23 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $235.00/cwt +46.94 vs last sale · ≈ $1,137/hd at 484 lb · 10 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 185 91 90
Feeder cattle 149 46 50
Slaughter cattle 35 36 40
Replacement cattle 1 9 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Slaughter cattle 4.00 To 5.00 Lower Feeder cattle 6.00 To 12.00 Higher Demand Very Good Activity Active Offerings Heavy Quality Attractive

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
310 310 1 248.00 $248.00 $769 —
415 415 3 245.00 $245.00 $1,017 —
505 505 1 242.00 $242.00 $1,222 +46.00
585 585 26 249.00 $249.00 $1,457 —
645 645 2 214.00 $214.00 $1,380 —
650 650 4 219.00 $219.00 $1,424 +36.00
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
640 640 3 177.00 $177.00 $1,133 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 1 214.00 $214.00 $835 —
455 455 1 206.00 $206.00 $937 —
Small 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
415 415 1 100.00 $100.00 $415 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
445 445 9 257.00 $257.00 $1,144 +59.00
484 484 10 235.00 $235.00 $1,137 +46.94
565–590 578 6 192.00–195.00 $193.53 $1,119 —
608 608 23 211.50 $211.50 $1,286 —
650–680 670 3 160.00–170.00 $166.77 $1,117 -17.23
860 860 1 155.00 $155.00 $1,333 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
250 250 1 160.00 $160.00 $400 —
345 345 1 208.00 $208.00 $718 —
390 390 1 198.00 $198.00 $772 —
400 400 5 239.00 $239.00 $956 —
460–470 465 2 180.00–190.00 $184.95 $860 +44.95
570–585 578 2 148.00–160.00 $154.08 $891 +2.08
735 735 1 140.00 $140.00 $1,029 -10.27
775 775 1 159.00 $159.00 $1,232 +4.00
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240 240 1 160.00 $160.00 $384 —
260 260 1 182.00 $182.00 $473 +11.00
375 375 1 160.00 $160.00 $600 —
430–440 435 2 170.00–180.00 $174.94 $761 +44.94
455–495 475 3 130.00–140.00 $133.33 $633 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255–280 268 2 210.00 $210.00 $563 —
460–480 470 3 175.00–186.00 $178.92 $841 —
505–535 521 4 169.00–180.00 $174.68 $910 +24.68
565–585 572 3 159.00–170.00 $163.08 $933 +12.08
700 700 1 142.00 $142.00 $994 -10.00
790 790 1 110.00 $110.00 $869 —
830 830 1 134.00 $134.00 $1,112 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375 375 1 80.00 $80.00 $300 —
385 thin fleshed 385 1 79.00 $79.00 $304 —
460 460 1 110.00 $110.00 $506 —
515–545 530 2 124.00–130.00 $126.92 $673 —
595 595 1 90.00 $90.00 $536 -40.00
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
455–460 458 2 190.00–201.00 $195.47 $895 —
625 625 1 170.00 $170.00 $1,062 +6.00
720–730 725 2 140.00–145.00 $142.52 $1,033 -25.48
Medium 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
455 455 1 110.00 $110.00 $500 —
Small 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
485 485 1 94.00 $94.00 $456 -26.00

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
905–990 948 80-85% 2 102.00–112.00 $107.22 $1,016 —
960 960 80-85% 1 68.00 $68.00 $653 —
910–1215 1046 80-85% 8 70.00–78.00 $73.65 $770 +4.65
950–1505 1177 80-85% 13 80.00–90.00 $82.87 $975 -4.79
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
695 695 85-90% 1 70.00 $70.00 $486 —
725 725 85-90% 1 90.00 $90.00 $652 —
735–810 773 85-90% 2 52.00–57.00 $54.62 $422 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1135–1965 1658 75-80% 3 81.00–88.00 $84.14 $1,395 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1355–1495 1425 2 100.00–105.00 $102.38 $1,459 —
1775–1860 1818 2 113.00–119.00 $115.93 $2,108 —

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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
980 980 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 1,075.00 $1,075.00 —

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Dairy Heifers

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
195 195 1 154.00 $154.00 $300 —
380 380 1 100.00 $100.00 $380 —

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Dairy Steers

Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
430 430 1 58.00 $58.00 $249 —
465 465 1 92.00 $92.00 $428 —

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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.