Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Lowers Stake in MP Materials Corp. $MP

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. reduced its stake in shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) by 45.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,896 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,027 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in MP Materials were worth $1,267,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new stake in MP Materials during the second quarter worth about $132,238,000. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 19,314.3% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,013,462 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,987,000 after buying an additional 2,003,091 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in MP Materials by 76.3% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,921,542 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,200,000 after buying an additional 1,264,243 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new stake in MP Materials in the second quarter worth approximately $19,962,000. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new position in MP Materials during the second quarter valued at approximately $16,140,000. Institutional investors own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

MP Materials Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE:MP opened at $58.00 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -81.69 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 7.51, a current ratio of 8.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a fifty day moving average of $59.78 and a 200 day moving average of $64.90. MP Materials Corp. has a 52 week low of $18.64 and a 52 week high of $100.25.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. William Blair initiated coverage on shares of MP Materials in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of MP Materials from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $76.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of MP Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, TD Securities upgraded MP Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MP Materials has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $78.91.

Insider Transactions at MP Materials

In other MP Materials news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 38,146 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $2,288,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 156,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,399,960. This represents a 19.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 272,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.17, for a total value of $17,492,742.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 12,805,965 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $821,758,774.05. This trade represents a 2.08% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 991,557 shares of company stock valued at $62,785,202. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

MP Materials 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.