MP Materials (NYSE:MP) CEO Sells $15,456,461.37 in Stock

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) CEO James Litinsky sold 234,651 shares of MP Materials stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.87, for a total transaction of $15,456,461.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,855,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $780,952,414.55. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

MP Materials Trading Down 3.4%

Shares of MP stock traded down $2.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $64.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,062,831 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,944,660. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.52. MP Materials Corp. has a 12-month low of $19.60 and a 12-month high of $100.25. The company has a quick ratio of 6.58, a current ratio of 7.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.50 billion, a PE ratio of -153.75 and a beta of 1.90.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last issued 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. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 28.00% and a negative return on equity of 2.27%. The business had revenue of $90.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $74.82 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.12) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 49.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MP Materials

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MP has been the topic of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $69.00 target price on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $82.00 target price on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Friday, May 8th. TD Securities raised shares of MP Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MP Materials presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.08.

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.