Central Securities Corp Has $27.28 Million Stake in Rayonier Inc. $RYN

Key Points

• Central Securities Corp increased its Rayonier stake by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 1,260,130 shares valued at about $27.28 million.
• Rayonier recently reported quarterly earnings of $0.07 per share, beating analyst expectations, though revenue came in slightly below forecasts at $276.79 million.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, implying an annualized yield of about 5.0%; meanwhile, analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with a $24.80 price target.

Central Securities Corp raised its position in Rayonier Inc. (NYSE:RYN - Free Report) by 4.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,260,130 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 58,656 shares during the quarter. Rayonier accounts for approximately 2.2% of Central Securities Corp's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Central Securities Corp owned 0.78% of Rayonier worth $27,282,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Rayonier by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC now owns 12,942 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC increased its position in shares of Rayonier by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 78,219 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,693,000 after acquiring an additional 492 shares during the last quarter. Greenwood Gearhart Inc. increased its position in shares of Rayonier by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Greenwood Gearhart Inc. now owns 10,802 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $234,000 after acquiring an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Rayonier by 1.8% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 28,345 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $752,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Rayonier by 2.2% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 24,299 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $645,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.12% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

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 transaction of $61,816.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 115,530 shares in the company, valued at $2,445,770.10. The trade was a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 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. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on RYN. Raymond James Financial raised Rayonier from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $26.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $24.00 price target on Rayonier in a report on Thursday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Rayonier from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Weiss Ratings cut Rayonier from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on Rayonier from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rayonier has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $24.80.

Rayonier Trading Up 2.0%

Rayonier stock opened at $20.94 on Wednesday. Rayonier Inc. has a 52 week low of $19.49 and a 52 week high of $27.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a current ratio of 2.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.93 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.64.

Rayonier (NYSE:RYN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.01. Rayonier had a return on equity of 3.61% and a net margin of 68.61%.The business had revenue of $276.79 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $280.92 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.02) earnings per share. Rayonier's quarterly revenue was up 233.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Rayonier Inc. will post 0.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Rayonier Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. Rayonier's payout ratio is currently 34.44%.

Rayonier Profile

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.

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