MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Trading Up 4.3% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• MP Materials shares rose 4.3% on Friday, trading as high as $65.60 after closing at $61.74 the prior day. Volume came in slightly below average, with about 6.8 million shares traded.
• Analyst sentiment remained bullish, highlighted by Barclays initiating coverage with a Buy rating and $69 price target. Overall, the stock still carries a consensus Buy rating and an average price target of $80.08.
• Recent news flow and insider activity were positive, including COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal buying 17,000 shares and broader rare-earth stocks gaining on funding optimism and easing China supply fears. MP also posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with revenue up 49.1% year over year.

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) was up 4.3% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $65.60 and last traded at $64.4160. Approximately 6,805,147 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 4% from the average daily volume of 7,075,487 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.74.

Key Stories Impacting MP Materials

Here are the key news stories impacting MP Materials this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays started coverage of MP Materials NYSE: MP with a Buy rating and $69 price target, adding to already bullish analyst sentiment and suggesting Wall Street expects further upside. MP Stock Stays Perfect but Trading Has Been Strange Lately
• Positive Sentiment: MP’s chief operating officer bought 17,000 shares, a sign of insider confidence that can support investor sentiment. Michael Stuart Rosenthal Purchases 17,000 Shares of MP Materials NYSE: MP Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Rare-earth stocks have been rebounding on funding news and fading concerns that China’s supply constraints are easing, which has helped sentiment across the group, including MP Materials. Rare Earth Stocks Rally On Funding News, Fading China Fears

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MP shares. Wall Street Zen raised MP Materials from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, March 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of MP Materials in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating on shares of MP Materials in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on MP Materials from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Wedbush increased their price target on MP Materials from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $80.08.

MP Materials Trading Up 4.3%

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $58.63 and a 200 day moving average of $59.13. The company has a market capitalization of $11.47 billion, a P/E ratio of -153.37 and a beta of 1.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 6.58 and a current ratio of 7.18.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.01) by $0.04. MP Materials had a negative return on equity of 2.27% and a negative net margin of 28.00%.The company had revenue of $90.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $74.82 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.12) EPS. MP Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 49.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that MP Materials Corp. will post 0.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 259,179 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $16,595,231.37. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,505,965 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $800,756,938.95. This trade represents a 2.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal bought 17,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $56.62 per share, for a total transaction of $962,540.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer owned 1,333,673 shares in the company, valued at $75,512,565.26. This trade represents a 1.29% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 666,000 shares of company stock valued at $43,103,382. 8.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MP Materials

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EMC Capital Management bought a new stake in MP Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new stake in MP Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in MP Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in MP Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Financial Consulate Inc. raised its holdings in MP Materials by 555.3% during the fourth quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. now owns 557 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares during the period. 52.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MP Materials Company Profile

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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