MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Stock Price Up 2.9% After Analyst Upgrade

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) was up 2.9% on Friday after Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on the stock from $27.00 to $55.00. Canaccord Genuity Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. MP Materials traded as high as $50.98 and last traded at $46.53. Approximately 18,479,183 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 257% from the average daily volume of 5,176,001 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.23.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of MP Materials from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on MP Materials from $30.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on MP Materials from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley raised MP Materials from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $23.00 to $34.00 in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $33.00 price target (up from $32.00) on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Monday. Four 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 company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $31.28.

Insider Activity at MP Materials

In other MP Materials news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 199,180 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.08, for a total transaction of $5,393,794.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 13,643,076 shares in the company, valued at $369,454,498.08. This trade represents a 1.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.50% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MP Materials

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MP. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in MP Materials by 2.8% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,955 shares of the company's stock worth $412,000 after buying an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. JT Stratford LLC increased its holdings in MP Materials by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. JT Stratford LLC now owns 63,685 shares of the company's stock valued at $993,000 after buying an additional 424 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in MP Materials by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 10,793 shares of the company's stock valued at $265,000 after buying an additional 479 shares during the period. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of MP Materials by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,566 shares of the company's stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of MP Materials by 51.0% during the 2nd quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,510 shares of the company's stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 52.55% of the company's stock.

MP Materials Stock Up 2.9%

The company has a quick ratio of 3.58, a current ratio of 4.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.61 billion, a P/E ratio of -71.58 and a beta of 2.26. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.46.

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

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.