Comparing Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) & BlueLinx (NYSE:BXC)

Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) and BlueLinx (NYSE:BXC) are both construction companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Rayonier and BlueLinx, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rayonier	0	3	1	0	2.25
BlueLinx	0	1	2	0	2.67

Rayonier currently has a consensus target price of $27.75, suggesting a potential upside of 6.66%. BlueLinx has a consensus target price of $91.00, suggesting a potential upside of 25.87%. Given BlueLinx’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe BlueLinx is more favorable than Rayonier.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

89.1% of Rayonier shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 90.8% of BlueLinx shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of Rayonier shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.8% of BlueLinx shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Rayonier and BlueLinx”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rayonier	$1.26 billion	3.21	$359.15 million	$4.95	5.26
BlueLinx	$2.95 billion	0.19	$53.12 million	$3.37	21.45

Rayonier has higher earnings, but lower revenue than BlueLinx. Rayonier is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than BlueLinx, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Rayonier and BlueLinx’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rayonier	68.53%	3.39%	1.91%
BlueLinx	0.96%	3.48%	1.39%

Risk & Volatility

Rayonier has a beta of 1, meaning that its share price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, BlueLinx has a beta of 1.74, meaning that its share price is 74% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

BlueLinx beats Rayonier on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. South (1.85 million acres), U.S. Pacific Northwest (418,000 acres) and New Zealand (421,000 acres).

About BlueLinx

BlueLinx Holdings Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the distribution of residential and commercial building products in the United States. It distributes specialty products, including engineered wood, siding, millwork, outdoor living, specialty lumber and panels, and industrial products; and structural products, such as lumber, plywood, oriented strand boards, rebars and remesh, as well as other wood products that are used for structural support in construction projects. It also provides various value-added services and solutions to customers and suppliers. The company serves national home centers, pro dealers, cooperatives, specialty distributors, regional and local dealers, and industrial manufacturers. BlueLinx Holdings Inc. was incorporated in 2004 and is headquartered in Marietta, Georgia.