MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Stock Price Down 1.7% – Time to Sell?

Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) fell 1.7% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $57.01 and last traded at $58.9770. 6,826,458 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 20% from the average session volume of 8,504,578 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.00.

Trending Headlines about MP Materials

Here are the key news stories impacting MP Materials this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MP reported an EPS beat and moved to quarterly profitability (Q4 EPS $0.09 vs. estimates). MP Materials Corp. (MP) Q4 Earnings Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 profit was helped by a $51M Price Protection Agreement from the U.S. Department of Defense and adjusted EBITDA recovery, signaling government backing for MP’s domestic supply-chain role. MP Materials posts Q4 profit, unveils $1.25B Texas magnet factory plans
• Positive Sentiment: MP selected Northlake, Texas for its “10X” rare-earth magnet campus — a roughly $1.25B investment intended to scale U.S. magnet production and vertically integrate NdPr to NdFeB magnet output. MP Materials Selects Northlake, Texas, as the Site of “10X”
• Positive Sentiment: Operational progress: MP produced first NdFeB magnets on commercial equipment and reported higher REO and NdPr output, supporting its transition toward downstream magnet sales. MP Materials Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: MP disclosed a supply agreement with an unnamed automaker, indicating commercial traction for its domestic rare-earth supply. MP Materials inks rare earths deal with mystery automaker
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts compare MP to peers (e.g., USA Rare Earth) and generally see MP as having a near-term edge as U.S. magnet capacity ramps — important context but not an immediate price driver. MP Materials vs. USA Rare Earth
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue missed expectations (Q4 sales ~$52.7M vs. analyst estimates near $76M); management halted rare-earth sales to China per a government agreement, which reduced near-term revenue. MP Materials Revenue Falls After Halting Rare Earth Sales to China
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the profit beat, MP still shows negative net margin/return on equity and the large 10X capex raises near-term financing and execution risk; the stock dipped in after-hours reaction to the mixed release. MP Materials Beat on Earnings, Missed on Sales. The Stock Dips After the Close.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of MP Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $77.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley upgraded MP Materials from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $68.50 to $71.00 in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised MP Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $75.00 to $74.00 in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.91.

MP Materials Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $64.18. The firm has a market cap of $10.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -113.42 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 8.05, a quick ratio of 7.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Insider Transactions at MP Materials

In other news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 385,000 shares of MP Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.94, for a total value of $24,231,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 13,105,965 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $824,889,437.10. The trade was a 2.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 38,146 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $2,288,760.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 156,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,399,960. This trade represents a 19.58% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 723,146 shares of company stock valued at $45,767,276 over the last quarter. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MP Materials

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 26.5% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 234,185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,716,000 after purchasing an additional 49,052 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in MP Materials in the first quarter worth about $215,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MP Materials during the first quarter worth about $219,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 10,793 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,000 after acquiring an additional 479 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 36.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 193,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,734,000 after buying an additional 51,348 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.