MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Trading Down 2.5% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• MP Materials shares fell 2.5% to $53.87, with trading volume below average. The stock has a market capitalization of approximately $9.59 billion and trades below its 200-day moving average.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $78.21, although several firms recently reduced their targets and one rating was downgraded to “Sell.”
• The company matched quarterly EPS estimates at a loss of $0.01 while revenue reached $108.49 million, up 89% year over year and above expectations. Insider activity was mixed, with the COO buying shares while the CEO and other insiders sold stock over the past 90 days.

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report)'s stock price fell 2.5% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $53.50 and last traded at $53.87. Approximately 5,551,389 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 17% from the average session volume of 6,667,951 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.24.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MP has been the topic of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on shares of MP Materials from $81.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $69.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen lowered MP Materials from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $82.00 target price on shares of MP Materials in a report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their target price on MP Materials from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $78.21.

MP Materials Trading Down 2.5%

The company has a market cap of $9.59 billion, a PE ratio of -158.44 and a beta of 1.88. The stock's 50 day moving average is $52.12 and its 200-day moving average is $57.29. The company has a quick ratio of 8.56, a current ratio of 9.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.01). MP Materials had a negative net margin of 19.85% and a negative return on equity of 1.21%. The business had revenue of $108.49 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $96.89 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.13) earnings per share. MP Materials's quarterly revenue was up 89.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that MP Materials Corp. will post 0.04 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at MP Materials

In related news, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal purchased 17,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $56.62 per share, for a total transaction of $962,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 1,333,673 shares in the company, valued at approximately $75,512,565.26. The trade was a 1.29% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 234,651 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.87, for a total value of $15,456,461.37. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,855,965 shares in the company, valued at $780,952,414.55. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 585,167 shares of company stock valued at $39,028,272. 8.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of MP Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EMC Capital Management purchased a new position in MP Materials during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of MP Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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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