Guardian Partners Inc. Invests $1.57 Million in MP Materials Corp. $MP

Key Points

• Guardian Partners Inc. has acquired a new stake in MP Materials Corp., purchasing 68,500 shares valued at approximately $1.57 million during the first quarter.
• Insider selling was reported as COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal sold 150,000 shares for $10.8 million, reducing his ownership by 10.46%.
• Analysts set a consensus price target of $66.88 for MP Materials, with several firms giving it a 'buy' rating.

Guardian Partners Inc. bought a new stake in MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 68,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,568,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. NBC Securities Inc. grew its position in MP Materials by 119,900.0% during the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,200 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,199 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management grew its position in MP Materials by 132.7% during the first quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 1,403 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the period. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in MP Materials during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in shares of MP Materials by 47.8% in the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,970 shares of the company's stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 960 shares during the last quarter. 52.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at MP Materials

In related news, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal sold 150,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.02, for a total value of $10,803,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 1,284,409 shares in the company, valued at $92,503,136.18. The trade was a 10.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 12.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of MP Materials from $52.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Cfra Research upgraded shares of MP Materials to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of MP Materials from $18.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of MP Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $80.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of MP Materials from $64.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MP Materials has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.88.

MP Materials Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE:MP traded down $0.73 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $62.42. 7,444,697 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,247,685. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $61.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $37.91. MP Materials Corp. has a 52-week low of $13.40 and a 52-week high of $82.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 3.60 and a quick ratio of 3.12. The firm has a market cap of $11.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -99.08 and a beta of 2.32.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $57.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.84 million. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 41.87% and a negative return on equity of 9.34%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 83.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.17) EPS. As a group, analysts predict that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.19 EPS for the current year.

About MP Materials

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.