MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Stock Price Down 8.6% – Here’s What Happened

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) shares traded down 8.6% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $57.15 and last traded at $57.6850. 13,952,254 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 29% from the average session volume of 10,777,356 shares. The stock had previously closed at $63.09.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of MP Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Daiwa America raised shares of MP Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $76.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of MP Materials from $78.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $77.80.

MP Materials Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $71.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 3.60 and a quick ratio of 3.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -91.56 and a beta of 2.32.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.16) by $0.03. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 41.87% and a negative return on equity of 9.34%. The business had revenue of $57.39 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $44.84 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.17) earnings per share. MP Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 83.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.19 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at MP Materials

In other news, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal sold 150,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.02, for a total value of $10,803,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 1,284,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $92,503,136.18. The trade was a 10.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MP Materials

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MP. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 52.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,750 shares of the company’s stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 1,975 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 22.5% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,597 shares of the company’s stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 2,316 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in MP Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $213,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in MP Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $437,000. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in MP Materials by 119.8% during the 1st quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 93,593 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,285,000 after purchasing an additional 51,016 shares during the last quarter. 52.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MP Materials Company Profile

MP Materials Corp., together with its subsidiaries, produces rare earth materials. The company owns and operates the Mountain Pass Rare Earth mine and processing facility in North America. It holds the mineral rights to the Mountain Pass mine and surrounding areas, as well as intellectual property rights related to the processing and development of rare earth minerals.