Cattle Market Pulse

Wilkes Livestock Exchange Market Report

North Wilkesboro, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, February 18, 2026

237 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $521.03/cwt +52.03 vs last sale · ≈ $2,204/hd at 423 lb · 21 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 2 heifers $427.33/cwt ≈ $2,423/hd at 567 lb · 21 head
light 5-weight M 2 bulls $481.55/cwt ≈ $2,494/hd at 518 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 237 131 0
Feeder cattle 219 105 0
Slaughter cattle 16 22 0
Replacement cattle 2 4 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Slaughter Cattle 9.00 To 14.00 Higher Feeder Cattle 35.00 To 84.00 Higher Demand Very Good Activity Active Offerings Average Quality Average To 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
320–335 328 2 670.00–675.00 $672.56 $2,206 +177.56
395 395 1 615.00 $615.00 $2,429 +35.00
405 405 1 610.00 $610.00 $2,470 +120.00
510 510 1 502.00 $502.00 $2,560 +91.94
680 680 5 415.00 $415.00 $2,822 —
850 850 1 350.00 $350.00 $2,975 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
420 420 1 550.00 $550.00 $2,310 —
450 450 1 400.00 $400.00 $1,800 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
190 190 1 445.00 $445.00 $846 —
240 240 1 440.00 $440.00 $1,056 -20.00
255–285 270 2 415.00–445.00 $430.83 $1,163 -39.17
300–330 320 3 525.00–540.00 $533.59 $1,707 —
350–365 357 3 540.00–560.00 $550.05 $1,964 +77.63
402–429 423 21 500.00–524.00 $521.03 $2,204 +52.03
450 450 4 480.00–489.00 $486.75 $2,190 +58.47
547 547 4 590.00 $590.00 $3,227 +202.73
551–570 554 13 449.00–500.00 $491.93 $2,725 +199.93
730 730 3 347.00 $347.00 $2,533 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–345 335 3 445.00–495.00 $471.47 $1,579 —
375–385 382 3 480.00–530.00 $506.46 $1,935 —
405–440 423 7 450.00–495.00 $471.31 $1,994 —
475–495 488 5 405.00–435.00 $421.13 $2,055 —
534 534 4 535.00 $535.00 $2,857 —
566–567 567 21 424.00–431.00 $427.33 $2,423 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
406–435 413 4 410.00–427.00 $422.53 $1,745 +152.53
505–520 510 3 385.00–420.00 $408.10 $2,081 —
555–592 583 7 390.00–406.00 $396.17 $2,310 —
600 600 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,800 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240 240 1 525.00 $525.00 $1,260 -65.00
291 291 4 640.00 $640.00 $1,862 +55.00
320–328 325 3 667.00–670.00 $667.98 $2,171 —
355–370 359 4 635.00–649.00 $645.39 $2,317 +120.39
400 400 1 595.00 $595.00 $2,380 +117.68
457–480 464 7 522.00–529.00 $527.42 $2,447 +84.88
525 525 1 675.00 $675.00 $3,544 +253.00
550–583 573 8 430.00–445.00 $434.34 $2,489 +33.46
625–640 630 3 399.00–402.00 $400.98 $2,526 +11.98
685 685 1 397.00 $397.00 $2,719 +38.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
250–255 253 2 525.00 $525.00 $1,328 —
310 310 1 635.00 $635.00 $1,968 —
350–390 377 9 535.00–600.00 $574.38 $2,165 —
400–437 416 5 495.00–525.00 $508.83 $2,117 +51.83
487 487 5 500.00 $500.00 $2,435 —
520 520 2 590.00 $590.00 $3,068 —
595 595 1 375.00 $375.00 $2,231 —
610 610 1 370.00 $370.00 $2,257 -5.00
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305 305 1 550.00 $550.00 $1,678 —
435 435 1 462.00 $462.00 $2,010 +162.00
490–495 493 2 410.00–450.00 $429.90 $2,119 —
506–537 518 13 449.00–500.00 $481.55 $2,494 —
610 610 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,830 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
950–1145 1048 80-85% 2 110.00–120.00 $114.53 $1,200 —
1100–1180 1140 80-85% 2 162.00–183.00 $172.87 $1,971 +3.91
1100–1330 1195 80-85% 3 155.00–156.00 $155.63 $1,860 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
770 770 85-90% 1 139.00 $139.00 $1,070 —
890 890 85-90% 1 166.00 $166.00 $1,477 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1380 1380 75-80% 1 178.00 $178.00 $2,456 +9.01
1500 1500 75-80% 1 157.00 $157.00 $2,355 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215–1285 1250 2 190.00–200.00 $194.86 $2,436 —
1026–2070 1605 3 205.00–216.00 $212.07 $3,404 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
950 950 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,800.00 $2,800.00

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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
1050 1050 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 2,200.00 $2,200.00 —

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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.