Essex Investment Management Co. LLC Sells 52,947 Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP)

Key Points

• Essex Investment Management Co. LLC reduced its holdings in MP Materials Corp. by 41.5%, selling 52,947 shares and owning 74,759 shares valued at $1.825 million as of the last quarter.
• MP Materials reported a loss of ($0.12) earnings per share in its latest quarterly results, missing expectations and showing a 24.9% year-over-year revenue increase of $60.81 million.
• Equities research analysts remain divided, with five rating MP Materials a buy and five a hold, and an average price target of $46.11 despite recent price upgrades.

Essex Investment Management Co. LLC decreased its holdings in MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP - Free Report) by 41.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 74,759 shares of the company's stock after selling 52,947 shares during the quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC's holdings in MP Materials were worth $1,825,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NBC Securities Inc. raised its stake in MP Materials by 119,900.0% during the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,200 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,199 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the first quarter worth $35,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of MP Materials by 40.3% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,441 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 47.8% during the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,970 shares of the company's stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 960 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional bought a new position in MP Materials in the 1st quarter worth $79,000. 52.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on MP Materials from $52.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $33.00 price objective (up from $32.00) on shares of MP Materials in a report on Monday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Thursday. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $65.00 price objective on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of MP Materials from $27.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of MP Materials from $20.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MP Materials presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $49.56.

MP Materials Trading Up 0.7%

MP stock traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $61.27. 9,599,057 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 23,002,740. MP Materials Corp. has a one year low of $10.02 and a one year high of $65.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.02 billion, a PE ratio of -94.26 and a beta of 2.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 3.58 and a current ratio of 4.12. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $37.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.43.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($0.02). MP Materials had a negative net margin of 48.41% and a negative return on equity of 9.77%. The firm had revenue of $60.81 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.74 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.04) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 24.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.19 EPS for the current year.

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.