Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Rayonier from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Rayonier from $32.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Rayonier from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th.

Rayonier Stock Performance

Shares of RYN stock opened at $26.07 on Monday. Rayonier has a one year low of $24.88 and a one year high of $35.29. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $26.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $29.25. The firm has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a current ratio of 1.12.

Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.08. Rayonier had a return on equity of 3.86% and a net margin of 28.44%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Rayonier will post 0.55 EPS for the current year.

Rayonier announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, December 2nd that allows the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the real estate investment trust to repurchase up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Rayonier Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.2725 per share. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.18%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Rayonier’s payout ratio is currently 48.31%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rayonier

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in RYN. Vestcor Inc acquired a new position in Rayonier during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,749,000. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in Rayonier by 209.6% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 57,289 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,843,000 after purchasing an additional 38,783 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rayonier by 119.7% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 457,370 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $14,718,000 after buying an additional 249,173 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in Rayonier in the 4th quarter worth approximately $467,000. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Rayonier by 2.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,279,512 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $137,715,000 after purchasing an additional 104,464 shares in the last quarter. 89.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Rayonier Company Profile

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.