Rayonier Inc. (NYSE:RYN) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Rayonier Inc. (NYSE:RYN) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 8,719,309 shares, a growth of 34.9% from the February 26th total of 6,462,151 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,588,248 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days. Currently, 2.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Rayonier Price Performance

Shares of RYN traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $20.31. The company had a trading volume of 1,872,473 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,497,112. The company has a current ratio of 3.26, a quick ratio of 3.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Rayonier has a 12-month low of $19.49 and a 12-month high of $28.14. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.91. The company has a market capitalization of $6.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.66 and a beta of 0.98.

Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.08. Rayonier had a net margin of 97.94% and a return on equity of 4.09%. The company had revenue of $117.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $108.71 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.24 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 24.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Rayonier will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Rayonier Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Rayonier’s payout ratio is 34.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on RYN shares. Raymond James Financial raised Rayonier from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $26.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Rayonier from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Rayonier in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Rayonier from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Rayonier from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Eric J. Cremers sold 169,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.44, for a total value of $3,627,648.00. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 709,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,213,459.52. This trade represents a 19.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rayonier

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RYN. Painted Porch Advisors LLC raised its position in Rayonier by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 14,421 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $312,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Rayonier by 167.3% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 15,721 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $340,000 after purchasing an additional 9,840 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rayonier during the 4th quarter worth approximately $285,000. Sankala Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rayonier during the 4th quarter worth approximately $929,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Rayonier by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 811,944 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $17,579,000 after purchasing an additional 38,763 shares during the last quarter. 89.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rayonier Company 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.