Weyerhauser faces overhaul, selling shipping line, railroads

Slumping timber giant Weyerhauser, in an attempt to attract the attention of Wall Street investors, may have to considering a radical transformation of its company, a report in the Seattle Times Saturday suggested.

The Pacific Northwest-based Weyerhauser is one of the last wholly vertically integrated companies in the lumber business, meaning it controls every aspect of the process, including transportation activities. But the company has struggled mightily this year.

The clamor for change from big investors could intensify Tuesday, when Weyerhaeuser is expected to report its third straight quarterly loss, the newspaper reported. The company likely will finish the year without a profit for the first time since 1991.

Along with shedding some ancillary businesses, the newspaper said Weyerhauser has put up for sale its four-vessel Westwood Shipping Line and four small railroads used to deliver newsprint, lumber and other products.The article suggests that the cause of Weyerhauser's anticipated demise is its shift from its core business to more of a focus on real estate holdings, as well as its $8.1 billion hostile takeover of competitor Willamette Industries in 2002. 

Source: American Shipper