4. CatchMark Timber Trust, Inc. (CTT)
Third Avenue Management Real Estate Value Fund, in its Q4 2021 investor letter, mentioned CatchMark Timber Trust, Inc. (NYSE: CTT) and discussed its stance on the firm. CatchMark Timber Trust, Inc. is a Atlanta, Georgia-based real estate investment trust company with a $396.4 million market capitalization. CTT delivered a -6.89% return since the beginning of the year, while its 12-month returns are down by -22.09%. The stock closed at $8.11 per share on February 4, 2022.
Here is what Third Avenue Management Real Estate Value Fund has to say about CatchMark Timber Trust, Inc. in its Q4 2021 investor letter:
“Founded in 2005 and listed in 2013, Catchmark Timber Trust Inc. (“Catchmark”) is a US-based REIT that owns approximately 370,000 acres of productive timberlands in the US South. These holdings are primarily located in some of the top “wood baskets” in Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama where the company primarily grows and harvests Southern Yellow Pine (“SYP”) that is used in residential and commercial construction, as well as pulp and paper products.
Although Catchmark is a “pure-play” owner of Southern timberlands today, the company’s path to arrive here has not been without challenges. Most notably, Catchmark was required to book a significant impairment on its previous $200 million subordinated investment in the 1.1 million acre “Triple T” venture, which seemingly led to Executive and Board changes. Further, the existing control group had to take other actions to “right size” its balance sheet and payout ratios by selling off non-core timberlands—as well cutting the company’s dividend by 50% in the most recent quarter.
These moves were undoubtedly in the interests of long-term holders, but they unavoidably led to pressure on the company’s shares—which appeared to be further exacerbated when Catchmark was removed from a major real estate index in November. Alongside these developments, Catchmark common declined by more than 40% during the quarter, allowing the Fund to initiate a position at prices that seemed rather compelling relative to a conservative estimate of Catchmark’s NAV…” (Click here to see the full text)
Our calculations show that CatchMark Timber Trust, Inc. (NYSE: CTT) failed to obtain a mark on our list of the 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. CTT was in 9 hedge fund portfolios at the end of the third quarter of 2021, compared to 12 funds in the previous quarter. CatchMark Timber Trust, Inc. (NYSE: CTT) delivered a -9.59% return in the past 3 months. In December 2021, we also shared another hedge fund’s views on CTT in another article.
