MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Trading Down 2.7% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• MP Materials Corp.'s stock fell by 2.7% during mid-day trading, with a last traded price of $72.92 and a significant drop in share volume.
• Analysts have shown mixed reactions, with Jefferies Financial Group upgrading the stock to a "buy" rating and a price target of $80.00, while Deutsche Bank set a lower target of $69.00.
• In its recent earnings report, MP Materials beat profit expectations with a reported ($0.13) EPS and revenue of $57.39 million, marking an 83.6% increase from the previous year.

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) shares traded down 2.7% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $74.02 and last traded at $72.92. 4,896,339 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 47% from the average session volume of 9,191,646 shares. The stock had previously closed at $74.95.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of MP Materials from $18.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of MP Materials in a report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $65.00 target price on shares of MP Materials and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MP Materials from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of MP Materials from $20.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $60.63.

MP Materials Trading Up 0.3%

The business's 50-day moving average price is $47.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.79. The company has a market cap of $12.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -119.75 and a beta of 2.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 3.12 and a current ratio of 3.60.

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

Institutional Trading of MP Materials

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 52.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,750 shares of the company's stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 1,975 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,118,580 shares of the company's stock worth $33,050,000 after buying an additional 7,453 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in MP Materials in the 1st quarter worth about $213,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund acquired a new stake in MP Materials in the 1st quarter worth about $1,460,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in MP Materials by 193.1% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 123,455 shares of the company's stock worth $3,014,000 after purchasing an additional 81,337 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.55% of the company's stock.

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.