MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Trading Down 1.9% – Here’s Why

Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) were down 1.9% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $52.97 and last traded at $53.2720. Approximately 4,637,561 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 31% from the average daily volume of 6,746,371 shares. The stock had previously closed at $54.28.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on MP shares. Barclays began coverage on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $69.00 price target for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $82.00 price objective on MP Materials in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded MP Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 8th. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating on shares of MP Materials in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $80.14.

MP Materials Stock Down 0.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 7.18 and a quick ratio of 6.58. The company has a market cap of $9.48 billion, a PE ratio of -126.84 and a beta of 1.86. The business’s 50 day moving average is $61.32 and its 200-day moving average is $59.38.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last announced 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. The business had revenue of $90.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $74.82 million. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 28.00% and a negative return on equity of 2.27%. The company’s revenue was up 49.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.12) EPS. As a group, analysts predict that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.04 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at MP Materials

In other MP Materials news, 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 cost of $54.30 per share, with a total value of $543,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer directly owned 136,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,418,574.60. This represents a 7.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 185,167 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,620,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $803,461,973.72. This represents a 1.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 1,205,167 shares of company stock worth $79,371,654 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 8.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MP Materials

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MP. EMC Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of MP Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new position in shares of MP Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. REAP Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of MP Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in MP Materials during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Financial Consulate Inc. lifted its position in MP Materials by 555.3% in the fourth quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. now owns 557 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. 52.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.