MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Trading Up 4.3% on Analyst Upgrade

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP)’s share price was up 4.3% on Friday after Barclays upgraded the stock to a strong-buy rating. The stock traded as high as $65.60 and last traded at $64.4160. Approximately 6,805,147 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 4% from the average daily volume of 7,075,487 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.74.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on MP. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $82.00 price objective on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Wednesday. TD Securities upgraded shares of MP Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Wedbush upped their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MP Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.08.

Insider Transactions at MP Materials

In other MP Materials news, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal purchased 17,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $56.62 per share, for a total transaction of $962,540.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer directly owned 1,333,673 shares in the company, valued at $75,512,565.26. This trade represents a 1.29% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 259,179 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $16,595,231.37. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 12,505,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $800,756,938.95. This trade represents a 2.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 666,000 shares of company stock worth $43,103,382 in the last 90 days. 8.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key MP Materials News

Here are the key news stories impacting MP Materials this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays initiated coverage of MP Materials with a Buy rating and a $69 price target, reinforcing the broader bullish Wall Street view that has most analysts rating the stock a Buy. MP Stock Stays Perfect but Trading Has Been Strange Lately
• Positive Sentiment: MP’s COO, Michael Stuart Rosenthal, disclosed the purchase of 17,000 shares, a move investors often view as a confidence signal from management. Michael Stuart Rosenthal Buys 17,000 Shares of MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Rare-earth stocks broadly rallied on funding news and fading China fears, which supported MP alongside peers, but the move also reflected sector volatility rather than a company-specific catalyst. Rare Earth Stocks Rally On Funding News, Fading China Fears
• Neutral Sentiment: MP’s latest earnings update showed strong revenue growth and a narrower operating loss, but the company remains unprofitable, keeping investors cautious about the pace of a turnaround. MP’s Operating Losses Continue in Q1: Can It Revert to Profitability?
• Negative Sentiment: A comparison piece argued that Idaho Strategic has the edge over MP Materials thanks to profitability, rising earnings, and a lower valuation, highlighting competitive and valuation concerns for MP. MP Materials vs. IDR: Which Mining Stock Has More Upside?

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MP. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of MP Materials during the 4th quarter worth $82,531,000. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 168.4% during the 3rd quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 2,589,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $173,705,000 after buying an additional 1,624,908 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 76.3% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,921,542 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,200,000 after buying an additional 1,264,243 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 71.6% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,834,914 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,220,000 after buying an additional 1,183,307 shares during the period. Finally, Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd now owns 14,861,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $996,741,000 after buying an additional 1,000,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

MP Materials Trading Up 4.3%

The company has a current ratio of 7.18, a quick ratio of 6.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company’s fifty day moving average is $58.67 and its 200-day moving average is $59.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.47 billion, a P/E ratio of -153.37 and a beta of 1.90.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.04. The business had revenue of $90.65 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $74.82 million. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 28.00% and a negative return on equity of 2.27%. MP Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 49.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.12) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MP Materials Company Profile

MP Materials Corporation operates as a vertically integrated producer of rare earth materials in North America. The company owns and manages the Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine and Processing Facility in California, the only commercially viable rare earth mining and processing site in the United States. MP Materials extracts, separates and refines critical rare earth elements—such as neodymium, praseodymium, and cerium—which are essential inputs for permanent magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, and various defense applications.

The Mountain Pass mine first began commercial rare earth production in the 1950s and was later operated by Molycorp until its bankruptcy in 2015.