Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $45.80.

Several analysts recently commented on PCH shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Potlatch in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Zacks Research upgraded Potlatch from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Potlatch from $45.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $40.00 target price (down from $54.00) on shares of Potlatch in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on Potlatch from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 13th.

Potlatch Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of PCH stock opened at $40.30 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.15 and a beta of 1.09. Potlatch has a fifty-two week low of $36.82 and a fifty-two week high of $48.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Potlatch (NASDAQ:PCH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $354.19 million during the quarter. Potlatch had a net margin of 5.76% and a return on equity of 3.38%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Potlatch will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Potlatch Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. Potlatch’s dividend payout ratio is currently 219.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Eric J. Cremers sold 24,123 shares of Potlatch stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.33, for a total value of $948,757.59. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 296,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,643,371.19. This trade represents a 7.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP William R. Dereu sold 3,278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.33, for a total transaction of $128,923.74. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 73,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,904,323.85. This trade represents a 4.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 42,831 shares of company stock valued at $1,685,049. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Potlatch

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Potlatch during the second quarter valued at $217,543,000. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in Potlatch by 13.9% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,819,875 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $108,199,000 after acquiring an additional 344,553 shares in the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its stake in Potlatch by 19.8% during the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 2,792,075 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $107,132,000 after acquiring an additional 461,356 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Potlatch by 58.3% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,288,642 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $52,512,000 after purchasing an additional 474,526 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Potlatch by 74.3% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,027,190 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,413,000 after purchasing an additional 438,032 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.06% of the company’s stock.

About Potlatch

PotlatchDeltic Corporation, which trades on the NASDAQ under the ticker PCH, is a real estate investment trust (REIT) specializing in the ownership and sustainable management of timberland. Headquartered in Spokane, Washington, the company holds approximately two million acres of forested land across the United States. Its integrated business model combines timberland stewardship with manufacturing and marketing of wood products to serve residential, agricultural and industrial markets.

In its timberland segment, PotlatchDeltic focuses on responsible forest management practices, including reforestation, habitat conservation and wildfire mitigation.