Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) executives highlighted a year of stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter results, record real estate performance in 2025, and the completion of the company’s merger of equals with PotlatchDeltic, which closed ahead of schedule on Jan. 30. Management said the combined company will initially retain the Rayonier name but plans to announce a new company name and ticker symbol later in the first quarter.
Merger closes; integration and rebranding plans underway
President and CEO Mark McHugh said the transaction created a “premier land resources company” with a “well-diversified timberland portfolio spanning over 4 million acres,” along with a real estate platform and a wood products manufacturing business. Management emphasized cultural alignment and said integration work is focused on organizational optimization and applying best practices across both legacy companies.
Fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results
McHugh said Rayonier finished 2025 with better-than-expected fourth-quarter results and delivered full-year Adjusted EBITDA of $248 million, up 8% from 2024 and above the high end of prior guidance. He attributed the outperformance primarily to a record year from the real estate segment.
For the fourth quarter, the company reported Adjusted EBITDA of $62 million and pro forma net income of $32 million, or $0.20 per share. McHugh noted that fourth-quarter Adjusted EBITDA was down year over year, in part because real estate closing activity in 2024 was heavily concentrated in the fourth quarter.
Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer April Tice said fourth-quarter sales totaled $117 million, operating income was $27 million, and net income attributable to Rayonier was $26 million, or $0.16 per share. On a pro forma basis, net income was $32 million, or $0.20 per share, including $6 million of costs related to the PotlatchDeltic merger.
Real estate drives results; development projects highlighted
Management repeatedly pointed to strength in real estate. Tice said real estate Adjusted EBITDA totaled $127 million in 2025, above the company’s original guidance range of $86 million to $96 million, calling it a record contribution. She said results were supported by a large conservation sale in the third quarter and sustained demand for rural and development properties.
In the fourth quarter, real estate revenue totaled $42 million on roughly 3,800 acres sold at an average price of $9,700 per acre. The company said the comparison to the prior-year period was affected by large dispositions in 2024. Real estate segment Adjusted EBITDA was $33 million in the quarter.
Management provided detail on improved development activity:
- Improved development sales were $15 million, including $9 million from the Wildlight project and $6 million from the Heartwood project.
- At Wildlight, Rayonier sold a 112-acre residential pod at an average price of $80,000 per acre, with management noting potential additional upside over time from builder participation and fees. The next phase, the Garden District, is underway, with builders expected to complete model construction and begin sales this summer.
- At Heartwood, sales included two residential pods totaling 143 acres at $33,000 per acre and a 7.1-acre commercial parcel at $140,000 per acre.
In the question-and-answer session, McHugh said real estate results are “lumpy” but argued rural higher-and-better-use (HBU) premiums have expanded in recent years. He said the company historically viewed rural HBU premiums at roughly 50% over timberland value, but more recently has seen premiums of “more like 100%+,” which he believes is underappreciated and can be net asset value accretive.
Timber segments: Southern pricing pressure, Northwest volume impact
In the Southern Timber segment, Rayonier reported fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA of $32 million, down 8% from the prior-year period. Tice said harvest volumes increased 10% due to drier weather conditions and increased green log demand as hurricane salvage operations subsided, but lower weighted-average net stumpage realizations weighed on results.
Average sawlog net stumpage pricing was $25 per ton, up 2% year over year, while pulpwood net stumpage pricing was approximately $12 per ton, down 27% due to weaker demand after recent mill closures in the Atlantic region, an unfavorable geographic mix shift, and dry weather conditions. Management said it expects near-term headwinds to pulpwood pricing from dry conditions and planned maintenance shutdowns, but expressed longer-term confidence that supply could tighten, citing estimates from the Georgia Forestry Association that Hurricane Helene impacted approximately 26 million tons of pine and 30 million tons of hardwood in 2024.
In the Pacific Northwest Timber segment, fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA was $5 million, down year over year as harvest volumes fell 26%, reflecting Washington dispositions completed in late 2024. Average delivered domestic sawlog pricing was $87 per ton, down 3%, while pulpwood pricing rose 26% to $38 per ton due to reduced availability of sawmill residuals. Management cited recent improvement in lumber pricing and said it is optimistic log markets will tighten through 2026, pointing to factors including improving demand, the lifting of China’s log export ban, and Canadian mill curtailments.
Liquidity, capital allocation, and 2026 outlook
Tice said cash available for distribution (CAD) was $199 million in 2025, up from $141 million in the prior year, driven by higher Adjusted EBITDA, lower cash interest expense, higher interest income, and lower capital expenditures. Prior to the merger announcement, Rayonier repurchased about 110,000 shares for $2.9 million, and the company ended 2025 with roughly $230 million remaining on its share repurchase authorization. Rayonier also paid a $1.40 per share special dividend in the fourth quarter, distributed in a combination of cash and shares tied to taxable gains from the earlier sale of its New Zealand joint venture interest.
Rayonier finished the quarter with $843 million of cash and roughly $1.1 billion of debt. Wasechek said immediately post-close, the combined company expects pro forma net debt of about $1.3 billion to $1.4 billion and stated it remains comfortably within a 3x net debt to mid-cycle EBITDA leverage target. He also said management believes the stock trades at a significant discount to net asset value and described share buybacks as a compelling near-term use of capital.
For 2026, Wasechek said the company is providing limited segment guidance given the recent merger close, reflecting PotlatchDeltic’s pro rata contribution beginning Jan. 31. Key items included:
- Southern Timber: expected harvest volumes of 12.1 million to 12.6 million tons, with regional pine stumpage realizations trending modestly higher from fourth-quarter levels; however, average pine sawtimber realizations for the combined company are expected to be lower than legacy Rayonier’s prior-year levels due to geographic mix.
- Northwest Timber: expected harvest volumes of 2.0 million to 2.3 million tons, with average log pricing expected to be higher than legacy Rayonier’s prior-year pricing based on demand improvement and mix; management noted increased sensitivity to lumber prices due to indexed Idaho sawlog sales, and later clarified that about 75% of Idaho sawtimber volume is indexed.
- Wood Products: for 11 months of contribution in 2026, expected lumber shipments of approximately 1.1 billion board feet, with a “slightly positive” Adjusted EBITDA contribution anticipated in the first quarter based on current pricing and realizations.
- Real Estate: expected first-quarter Adjusted EBITDA contribution of $30 million to $35 million and full-year contribution of $180 million to $200 million.
On land-based solutions, McHugh said the combined company continues to pursue opportunities in solar, carbon capture and storage, and carbon offsets, while noting project timelines for solar and CCS have been pushed out amid public policy and regulatory uncertainty.
McHugh also recognized the retirement of Doug Long, the company’s outgoing Executive Vice President and Chief Resource Officer, after 30 years of service.
About Rayonier (NYSE:RYN)
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.
