S&P Global Ratings upgrades Rayonier to ’BBB’ after NZ joint venture sale\nInvesting.com -- S&P Global Ratings has upgraded Rayonier Inc (NYSE: RYN) to ’BBB’ from ’BBB-’ following the completion of its New Zealand joint venture sale, with a stable outlook.\n\nThe timber company completed the sale for approximately $710 million in gross proceeds, with net proceeds expected to be around $699 million. Rayonier plans to use at least half of these funds to reduce debt and return capital to shareholders, with the remainder allocated to potential acquisitions and other capital investments.\n\nThe rating agency noted that Rayonier’s leverage has 'materially improved' following the transaction. The company expects its net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio to decrease to approximately 0.3x before considering special dividends or other uses of the proceeds.\n\nAs of March 31, Rayonier’s S&P Global Ratings-adjusted debt to EBITDA was 3.5x, down from 4.4x a year earlier. This improvement largely resulted from debt reduction related to significant asset sales over the past two years. Including the New Zealand disposition, Rayonier has completed $1.45 billion in dispositions, exceeding its initial $1 billion target set in November 2023.\n\nS&P views the joint venture transaction as relatively neutral to Rayonier’s business risk profile. While the sale reduces geographic diversification, the agency believes the business simplification is positive, allowing Rayonier to become a pure-play, U.S.-focused timberland company with reduced exposure to log export markets.\n\nDuring the first half of 2025, Rayonier completed approximately $37.6 million of share repurchases. As of June 30, the company had approximately $262 million remaining availability under its share repurchase program.\n\nThe stable outlook reflects S&P’s expectation that Rayonier will maintain debt to EBITDA below 3x throughout a full cycle, in line with its updated financial policy, which was lowered from the previous target of 4.5x or lower.\n\nThis article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.

S&P Global Ratings upgrades Rayonier to ‘BBB’ after NZ joint venture sale

S&P Global Ratings upgraded Rayonier Inc to 'BBB' from 'BBB-' following the completion of its New Zealand joint venture sale, which generated $710 million in gross proceeds. The company plans to use funds to reduce debt, return capital to shareholders, and invest in acquisitions. The rating upgrade reflects improved leverage and debt-to-EBITDA ratios, with a stable outlook.