MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Stock Price Up 1.9% – Time to Buy?

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP)’s share price shot up 1.9% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $58.59 and last traded at $58.0260. 3,062,963 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 67% from the average session volume of 9,271,175 shares. The stock had previously closed at $56.95.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of MP Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 15th. William Blair began coverage on MP Materials in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded MP Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $75.00 to $74.00 in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised MP Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on MP Materials in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $77.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.91.

MP Materials Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $59.66 and its 200 day moving average is $64.85. The stock has a market cap of $10.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -81.73 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 8.05 and a quick ratio of 7.51.

Insider Transactions at MP Materials

In related news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 38,146 shares of the firm’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 value of $2,288,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 156,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,399,960. This trade represents a 19.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 385,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.94, for a total value of $24,231,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 13,105,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $824,889,437.10. The trade was a 2.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 971,557 shares of company stock valued at $61,630,802. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MP Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Calamos Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in MP Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $16,726,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its position in MP Materials by 132.7% during the second quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 176,984 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,888,000 after buying an additional 100,915 shares in the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new position in shares of MP Materials in the third quarter worth $670,000. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the third quarter valued at $550,000. Finally, Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the third quarter valued at $1,089,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

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.