Rayonier Inc. (NYSE:RYN) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.26

Rayonier Inc. (NYSE:RYN) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, July 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be given a dividend of 0.26 per share by the real estate investment trust on Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 16th.

Rayonier has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.2%annually over the last three years. Rayonier has a dividend payout ratio of 160.0% indicating that the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Analysts expect Rayonier to earn $0.56 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $1.04 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 185.7%.

Rayonier Stock Performance

NYSE:RYN opened at $22.13 on Friday. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $20.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.66 billion, a PE ratio of 7.33 and a beta of 0.88. Rayonier has a 12-month low of $19.49 and a 12-month high of $27.33.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.01. Rayonier had a return on equity of 3.61% and a net margin of 68.61%.The company had revenue of $276.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $280.92 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.02) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 233.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Rayonier will post 0.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Rayonier

In other news, CFO Wayne Wasechek sold 2,920 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.17, for a total value of $61,816.40. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 115,530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,445,770.10. The trade was a 2.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 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. 0.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rayonier

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new position in Rayonier in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew 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 last quarter. Bayban acquired a new stake in shares of Rayonier in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Rayonier by 49.7% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of Rayonier by 74.0% in the first 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 last quarter. 89.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.