MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Shares Up 3.5%

Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) were up 3.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $13.29 and last traded at $13.25. Approximately 770,161 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 3,429,552 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.80.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MP shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on MP Materials from $15.50 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on MP Materials from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on MP Materials from $36.00 to $28.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded MP Materials from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $20.00 to $16.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.50.

MP Materials Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 10.29 and a quick ratio of 9.28. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $15.42 and a 200-day moving average of $16.01.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported ($0.08) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by ($0.04). MP Materials had a net margin of 1.62% and a negative return on equity of 0.61%. The business had revenue of $48.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $46.00 million. On average, analysts expect that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at MP Materials

In other MP Materials news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.93, for a total value of $846,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 325,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,502,605.53. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.93, for a total transaction of $846,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 325,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,502,605.53. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Andrew A. Mcknight sold 317,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.07, for a total transaction of $5,741,742.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 86,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,554,020. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 12.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MP Materials

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,861,266 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,216,000 after acquiring an additional 225,554 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in MP Materials by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,122,224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,976,000 after buying an additional 411,771 shares in the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its stake in MP Materials by 26.2% in the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 2,960,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,756,000 after buying an additional 614,088 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in MP Materials by 59.2% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,314,985 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,956,000 after buying an additional 860,960 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in MP Materials by 2,536.8% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,661,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,767,000 after buying an additional 1,598,861 shares in the last quarter. 52.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.