Rayonier is a leading international forest products company structured as a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) with three core businesses: Timber, Real Estate and Performance Fibers. It owns, leases or manages 2.6 million acres of timber and land in the U.S., New Zealand and Australia. The company's holdings include approximately 200,000 acres with residential and commercial development potential along the fast-growing Interstate 95 corridor between Savannah, Georgia, and Daytona Beach, Florida. Its Performance Fibers business is the world's leading producer of high-value specialty cellulose fibers. Approximately 40 percent of the company's sales are outside the U.S. to customers in more than 50 countries.
Rayonier converted to a REIT on January 1, 2004. As a REIT, Rayonier has been able to capture significant tax benefits relative to timber harvesting, establish a capital structure that enhances its ability to finance growth and, at the same time, substantially increase tax efficient distributions to shareholders. Rayonier is focused on increasing its cash flow by maximizing benefits from its REIT status and optimizing cash allocation strategies to increase total shareholder returns.
Rayonier's Timber business is a steady cash generator. To complement earnings from the sale of timber, Rayonier's real estate subsidiary, TerraPointeSM, is focused on moving up the development value chain and maximizing the value of its higher-and-better use properties. In Performance Fibers, Rayonier's position as the world's leading producer of high-value specialty cellulose fibers helps insulate it from the volatility of commodity pulp and paper markets. Nearly two-thirds of its annual production goes to these high-margin markets and are used in the manufacture of LCD screens for televisions and computers, textiles, cigarette filters, paints, impact-resistant plastics, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and food products.
With its three strong core businesses and tax-efficient REIT structure, Rayonier is well-positioned to grow the company and consistently deliver superior value to shareholders through continued growth in earnings, dividends and an enhanced asset base.
