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

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded MP Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on MP Materials from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $82.00 price objective on MP Materials in a report on Friday, May 8th. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on MP Materials in a research report on Monday, June 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $81.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $80.14.

MP Materials Trading Down 1.9%

The company has a fifty day moving average of $61.89 and a 200-day moving average of $59.44. 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 has a market capitalization of $9.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -126.84 and a beta of 1.86.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 185,167 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal acquired 10,000 shares of MP Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $54.30 per share, with a total value of $543,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer owned 136,622 shares in the company, valued at $7,418,574.60. The trade was a 7.90% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,205,167 shares of company stock worth $79,371,654. 8.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MP Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MP. Norges Bank acquired a new position in MP Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $82,531,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in MP Materials by 76.3% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,921,542 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,200,000 after acquiring an additional 1,264,243 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in MP Materials by 71.6% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,834,914 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,220,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183,307 shares in the last quarter. Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd lifted its stake in MP Materials by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd now owns 14,861,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $996,741,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 1,320.8% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 954,317 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,934,000 after purchasing an additional 887,148 shares during the last quarter. 52.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.