Potlatch to issue special $15.15 dividend

Spokane-based Potlatch Corp. said Friday that it will issue a special, one-time dividend of $15.15 a share as part of its conversion to a real estate investment trust.

The dividend will be paid on March 31 to people who own stock in the company on Feb. 14, the company said in a press release.

Shareholders can elect to receive the dividend in cash or stock or a combination of the two, Potlatch said. The company will cap the cash portion of the total $445 million distribution at 20 percent, said Michael Sullivan, Potlatch spokesman.

Both the cash and stock distributions are taxable to stockholders, he said.

Potlatch also will increase its authorized common stock to 100 million shares, from 40 million, Sullivan said. A small number of those additional shares likely will be used for the distribution, with the rest held in reserve for future purposes, such as stock splits or acquisitions.

Potlatch converted to a real estate investment trust on Jan. 1, following a timber-industry trend. Being organized as a REIT has tax advantages for companies that own timberlands. Potlatch owns 1.5 million acres of timber in Idaho, Oregon, Minnesota and Arkansas.

The company also announced its first regular quarterly dividend as a REIT, of 65 cents a share. That dividend is payable Feb. 28 to shareholders of record on Feb. 13.