Rayonier Inc. (NYSE:RYN) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Rayonier Inc. (NYSE:RYN) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $24.80.

RYN has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen raised Rayonier from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Rayonier from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $24.00 price target on shares of Rayonier in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Rayonier from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Rayonier from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rayonier

In other news, CFO Wayne Wasechek sold 2,920 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.17, for a total transaction of $61,816.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 115,530 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,445,770.10. This represents a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Rayonier

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new position in shares of Rayonier in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Rayonier by 65.7% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,581 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Hartford Financial Management Inc. grew its position in Rayonier by 49.7% in the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 1,732 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 575 shares during the last quarter. Bayban purchased a new position in Rayonier in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. increased its stake in Rayonier by 74.0% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 2,279 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 969 shares during the period. 89.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rayonier Stock Performance

Shares of RYN opened at $21.44 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.10 and a beta of 0.88. Rayonier has a 52-week low of $19.49 and a 52-week high of $27.33. The company has a quick ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 2.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $20.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.55.

Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $276.79 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $280.92 million. Rayonier had a net margin of 68.61% and a return on equity of 3.61%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 233.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.02) earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Rayonier will post 0.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Rayonier Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. Rayonier’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.44%.

About Rayonier

Rayonier, Inc (NYSE: RYN) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust specializing in timberland ownership and management. The company’s core business revolves around sustainably growing, harvesting, and marketing timber and timber-related products. Rayonier’s timberland portfolio encompasses approximately 2.7 million acres across the United States and New Zealand, focusing on softwood and hardwood fiber for use in paper, packaging and building materials.

Rayonier operates through two primary segments: Timber and Real Estate Solutions.