Verition Fund Management LLC Boosts Stake in Rayonier Inc. (NYSE:RYN)

Verition Fund Management LLC increased its position in Rayonier Inc. (NYSE:RYN - Free Report) by 85.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 102,969 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 47,307 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Rayonier worth $3,314,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of RYN. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Rayonier by 308.5% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 31,717 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $923,000 after acquiring an additional 23,953 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in Rayonier in the second quarter worth approximately $732,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rayonier during the 3rd quarter worth $2,525,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Rayonier during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,275,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Rayonier by 148.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 120,462 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $3,504,000 after purchasing an additional 71,961 shares in the last quarter. 89.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rayonier Price Performance

Shares of Rayonier stock traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $31.27. The company's stock had a trading volume of 190,381 shares, compared to its average volume of 605,646. The company has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a PE ratio of 29.64 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a current ratio of 1.99. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $31.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $30.42. Rayonier Inc. has a 12-month low of $27.40 and a 12-month high of $35.29.

Rayonier (NYSE:RYN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $195.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $211.21 million. Rayonier had a return on equity of 2.95% and a net margin of 15.84%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.13 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Rayonier Inc. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rayonier Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be paid a $1.80 dividend. This is a boost from Rayonier's previous special dividend of $0.20. Rayonier's payout ratio is presently 107.55%.

Rayonier announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Monday, December 2nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to repurchase up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on RYN. Truist Financial upped their price target on Rayonier from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of Rayonier from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, November 16th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rayonier

In related news, Director V. Larkin Martin sold 10,011 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.57, for a total value of $306,036.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 40,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,227,935.76. This trade represents a 19.95 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.83% of the company's stock.

About Rayonier

Rayonier is a leading timberland real estate investment trust with assets located in some of the most productive softwood timber growing regions in the United States and New Zealand. As of December 31, 2023, Rayonier owned or leased under long-term agreements approximately 2.7 million acres of timberlands located in the U.S.