Weyerhaeuser falls back before merging ahead in Q4

Weyerhaeuser Company is looking forward to its big merger with Plum Creek, but in the meantime, it sustained year-over-year decreases in both its fourth quarter and full fiscal year.

Net earnings for the fourth quarter came in at $59 million, with net sales of $1.7 billion. That's down from last year's net earnings of $166 million on sales of $1.8 billion.

Weyerhaeuser noted that this year's quarterly earnings includ net after-tax charges of $62 million from special items. Excluding these items, the company reported net earnings of $121 million.

For the full year of 2015, Weyerhaeuser reported net earnings of $462 million on net sales of $7.1 billion. That's compared to net earnings of $1.8 billion on net sales of $7.4 billion for the same period last year.

2014 results included after-tax earnings of $998 million from discontinued operations, related to the divested Weyerhaeuser Real Estate Company, however.

Plus, 2015's figure includes net after-tax charges of $71 million from special items. Excluding these items, the company reported net earnings of $533 million.

"2015 was a milestone year for Weyerhaeuser, as we announced a transformational merger that will create the world's premier timber, land and forest products company," said Doyle R. Simons, president and CEO. "At the same time, we maintained our relentless focus on improving our relative performance and delivered on our 2015 operational excellence targets. Finally, we fulfilled our commitment to return cash to shareholders through a 7% dividend increase and the repurchase of over $500 million of common shares. Looking forward to 2016, completion of our merger with Plum Creek, the strategic review of our Cellulose Fibers business, and our continued focus on operational excellence and disciplined capital allocation will position us to drive value for our shareholders."