Channel catfish farming is currently considered to be the most successful aquaculture business in the United States.  Improvements in technology have allowed aquaculture to become more intensive over time.  With this increase in production intensity, the effects of interactions among factors related to stocking density, feeding rate and water quality on costs and net returns become more important to farmers.  Little research has been done using current production practices to quantitatively define these relationships.  Twelve (0.25-acre) ponds at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) Aquaculture Research station were used for the study.  Fingerlings (5-6 inches) were stocked in March at densities of 3,500; 7,000; 10,500 and 14,000 fish/ac with three replications per treatment to constitute four treatment groups.  Fish were fed daily to apparent satiation with a 32% floating commercial catfish feed.  A blower-type feeder administered feed to all ponds.  This study monitored water quality at different stocking densities under satiation feeding to determine how stocking density affects growth, yield, survival, and feed conversion ratios (FCR).  Mean weight at harvest decreased significantly as stocking density increased (P < 0.05).  However, there was no difference in mean weight of fish stocked at 3,500/ac and 7,000/ac or between 10,500/ac and 14,000/ac.  Nitrite, nitrate, total ammonia nitrogen (TAN), chlorophyll (a), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), chemical oxygen demand (COD) and secchi disk were monitored monthly, chlorides three times during the study, alkalinity and hardness twice, pH weekly and temperature and dissolved oxygen were measured twice daily.  The relationships between stocking and feeding rates and various water quality parameters were also analyzed.  The overall costs of producing channel catfish at different stocking densities and the respective effect on net returns were estimated.