Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 5,456 Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP)

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its stake in MP Materials Corp. by 11.4%, selling 5,456 shares and ending the quarter with 42,199 shares valued at approximately $1,030,000.
• Analysts have recently upgraded MP Materials with positive ratings; Jefferies Financial Group upgraded to "buy" with a target price of $80.00, while the consensus rating remains a "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $60.63.
• MP Materials reported a significant 83.6% year-over-year increase in revenue for the most recent quarter, totaling $57.39 million, despite a reported earnings per share of ($0.13).

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its holdings in shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP - Free Report) by 11.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 42,199 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,456 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in MP Materials were worth $1,030,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 119,900.0% in the first 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. bought a new position in MP Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of MP Materials in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in shares of MP Materials by 47.8% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,970 shares of the company's stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 960 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional bought a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the 1st quarter valued at $79,000. 52.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of MP Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $80.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen raised MP Materials from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on MP Materials from $52.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on MP Materials from $18.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.63.

MP Materials Stock Up 3.1%

NYSE:MP traded up $2.25 on Tuesday, hitting $74.94. The stock had a trading volume of 12,325,846 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,742,240. The company has a quick ratio of 3.12, a current ratio of 3.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. MP Materials Corp. has a 52 week low of $11.08 and a 52 week high of $82.50. The business's fifty day moving average is $46.30 and its 200 day moving average is $31.49. The company has a market cap of $12.25 billion, a PE ratio of -118.95 and a beta of 2.30.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.16) by $0.03. MP Materials had a negative return on equity of 9.34% and a negative net margin of 41.87%. The company had revenue of $57.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.84 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.17) earnings per share. MP Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 83.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.19 EPS for the current fiscal 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.