MagnoliaReporter.com,
Dec 24, 2021,
PotlatchDeltic Corporation has announced a merger with Loutre Land and Timber Company of El Dorado.
PotlatchDeltic issued 1.96 million shares of common stock and assumed debt of $6.6 million in exchange for Loutre’s 51,340 acres of high-quality, well-stocked timberlands in southern Arkansas and northern Louisiana.
Thursday’s closing stock price for PotlatchDeltic was $56.58 per share.
Loutre owns about 800 acres of land in Columbia County, mostly in the Emerson-Atlanta area. PotlatchDeltic has a sawmill in Waldo and extensive timber and real estate interests in Arkansas, and has its Southern Division headquarters in El Dorado.
PotlatchDeltic listed these key attributes of the Loutre timberlands:
— Stocking levels of approximately 90 tons per acre
— Average age of the timber is greater than 40 years
— Sawlogs represent approximately 70% of the timber inventory
— Highly integrated with PotlatchDeltic’s existing timberlands and sawmills
— Expect annual average EBITDDA of $8.5 million and annual average capital expenditures of $600,000 over the first 10 years
“Loutre is a highly-attractive bolt-on acquisition that enhances our existing timberland footprint in southern Arkansas and northern Louisiana,” said Eric Cremers, president and chief executive officer of PotlatchDeltic. “We know the markets well and our integrated operating model will create additional value as we process the mature timber in our Waldo and Warren sawmills. Loutre also increases our stable cash flows, which is key to growing our regular dividend sustainably over time,” said Cremers.
“Loutre has a long, rich history dating back to 1907,” said Jeff Nolan, president and chief executive officer of Loutre. “This tax-free transaction provides a way for Loutre shareholders to maintain ties to that timber legacy, while creating liquidity for our growing shareholder base,” said Nolan.
“Most of Loutre’s shareholders were also shareholders of Deltic Timber Corporation,” said Chip Murphy, chairman of Loutre. “The PotlatchDeltic merger has been very successful and we have benefited from the management and performance of the combined entity. Transferring Loutre’s timberlands for increased ownership in PotlatchDeltic provides higher dividends, flexibility and diversification to Loutre shareholders,” said Murphy.
PotlatchDeltic manages its timberlands on a sustainable basis. Forestry practices on the acquired acres will be subject to third-party certification to standards developed by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative.