CatchMark Timber Trust, Inc. announced Thursday that a prospective buyer has exercised its option to purchase approximately 3,000 acres of CatchMark land holdings in Georgia for approximately $9 million under an existing option agreement with the company. The transaction is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of 2014, subject to customary closing conditions. Under terms of the agreement with the buyer, no other details were announced.

Jerry Barag, President and CEO of CatchMark, said: "This pending transaction is in keeping with our previous guidance for completing $8 million to $10 million in land sales during 2014. We continue to assess opportunistic dispositions across our portfolio with a view toward maximizing the value of our land base and taking advantage of higher-and-better use land sale opportunities where available."