MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Shares Down 2.3% After Analyst Downgrade

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP)’s stock price traded down 2.3% during trading on Thursday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on the stock from $70.00 to $61.00. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has a buy rating on the stock. MP Materials traded as low as $51.60 and last traded at $51.7870. Approximately 3,286,299 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 51% from the average session volume of 6,685,120 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.00.

MP has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on MP Materials from $70.00 to $71.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $69.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $81.00 target price on the stock. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $82.00 target price on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $79.54.

Insider Activity

In other MP Materials news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 185,167 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.14, for a total value of $12,802,446.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,620,798 shares in the company, valued at $803,461,973.72. This represents a 1.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $54.30 per share, with a total value of $543,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer owned 136,622 shares in the company, valued at $7,418,574.60. This trade represents a 7.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,205,167 shares of company stock worth $79,371,654. 8.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

More MP Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target on MP Materials to $71.50 from $70 and kept an overweight rating, signaling confidence in additional upside for the shares. MP Materials price target raised by Morgan Stanley
• Positive Sentiment: Deutsche Bank lowered its target to $61 from $70 but still maintained a buy rating, implying analysts continue to see meaningful upside from current levels. MP Materials price target lowered by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry coverage notes a rare-earth talent crunch could slow the U.S. supply-chain rebuild, a backdrop that supports MP’s strategic importance but also suggests execution challenges ahead. Rare Earth Talent Crunch Could Slow US Supply Chain Rebuild
• Negative Sentiment: MP Materials filed a lawsuit against USA Rare Earth, accusing it of stealing proprietary magnet technology and unlawfully recruiting key engineers, which introduces legal uncertainty and underscores competitive pressure in the sector. MP Materials (MP) Sues USA Rare Earth Over Magnet Technology And Engineer Hiring
• Negative Sentiment: Separate business coverage also highlighted the same trade-secrets dispute, keeping attention on litigation risk rather than operations or growth catalysts. MP Materials sues competitor over trade secrets in Fort Worth Business Court

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MP Materials

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MP. Costello Asset Management INC lifted its holdings in MP Materials by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 1,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Composition Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of MP Materials by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Composition Wealth LLC now owns 18,334 shares of the company’s stock worth $926,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. ARS Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of MP Materials by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. ARS Investment Partners LLC now owns 19,980 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,009,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 1.0% in the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 21,444 shares of the company’s stock worth $713,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 12,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $618,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. 52.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MP Materials Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $9.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -123.30 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a quick ratio of 6.58, a current ratio of 7.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a 50 day moving average of $60.67 and a 200 day moving average of $59.41.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by $0.04. MP Materials had a negative return on equity of 2.27% and a negative net margin of 28.00%.The firm had revenue of $90.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $74.82 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.12) EPS. MP Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 49.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About MP Materials

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.