MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Stock Price Down 2.8% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Shares fell about 2.8% to $50.47 midday, with roughly 6.15 million shares traded—about 41% below the stock's average daily volume and down from a prior close of $51.93.
• Wall Street is broadly bullish: the stock carries a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with an average price target of $78.91, and several firms recently upgraded or initiated coverage with targets in the $71–$82 range.
• Fundamentals remain weak—MP is still unprofitable (negative EPS, -50.6% net margin, PE -71.09) with revenue down ~15% year‑over‑year—and insiders have sold large blocks (about 691,557 shares worth ~$43.5M in the past 90 days).

Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) were down 2.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $50.41 and last traded at $50.4740. Approximately 6,152,398 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 41% from the average daily volume of 10,435,628 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.93.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on MP. Morgan Stanley raised shares of MP Materials from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $68.50 to $71.00 in a research report on Friday, December 5th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $82.00 price target on shares of MP Materials in a report on Thursday, November 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on MP Materials in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $77.00 price target for the company. Daiwa America upgraded shares of MP Materials to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded MP Materials from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $76.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Monday, November 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $78.91.

MP Materials Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 8.05, a quick ratio of 7.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.73. The company has a market cap of $8.95 billion, a PE ratio of -71.09 and a beta of 1.70.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.15) by $0.05. MP Materials had a negative return on equity of 7.69% and a negative net margin of 50.55%.The business had revenue of $53.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $49.72 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.12) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MP Materials news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 38,146 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $2,288,760.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 156,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,399,960. This represents a 19.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 385,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 13,105,965 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $824,889,437.10. This represents a 2.85% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 691,557 shares of company stock worth $43,538,586. Insiders own 12.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of MP Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MP. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new position in MP Materials during the second quarter worth about $132,238,000. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of MP Materials by 19,314.3% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,013,462 shares of the company's stock worth $66,987,000 after acquiring an additional 2,003,091 shares during the last quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 168.4% in the 3rd quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 2,589,908 shares of the company's stock valued at $173,705,000 after purchasing an additional 1,624,908 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of MP Materials by 76.3% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,921,542 shares of the company's stock valued at $97,200,000 after buying an additional 1,264,243 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of MP Materials by 429.3% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,550,124 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,839,000 after buying an additional 1,257,282 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.55% of the company's stock.

About MP Materials

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.

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