MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Shares Up 8.3% – What’s Next?

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) shares traded up 8.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $70.07 and last traded at $69.1450. 12,290,448 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 26% from the average session volume of 9,784,645 shares. The stock had previously closed at $63.82.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Daiwa Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of MP Materials in a report on Monday, September 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $80.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of MP Materials from $78.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised MP Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $68.00 to $71.00 in a report on Monday, November 10th. William Blair began coverage on MP Materials in a report on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, Daiwa America raised MP Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $78.91.

MP Materials Stock Up 3.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 8.05 and a quick ratio of 7.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.22 billion, a P/E ratio of -97.13 and a beta of 1.62. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $58.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $62.82.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.15) by $0.05. MP Materials had a negative return on equity of 7.69% and a negative net margin of 50.55%.The firm had revenue of $53.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.72 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.12) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other MP Materials news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 38,146 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $2,288,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 156,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,399,960. This represents a 19.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 385,000 shares of MP Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.94, for a total transaction of $24,231,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 13,105,965 shares in the company, valued at $824,889,437.10. This represents a 2.85% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 991,557 shares of company stock valued at $62,785,202 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MP Materials

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of MP Materials in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 420.0% in the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 168.7% in the second quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of MP Materials by 181.3% in the second quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,010 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 651 shares during the period. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of MP Materials during the third quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

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.