MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Stock Price Down 1.7% – Here’s Why

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) shares traded down 1.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $57.01 and last traded at $58.9770. 6,826,458 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 20% from the average session volume of 8,504,578 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.00.

Trending Headlines about MP Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Posted fourth-quarter profit and an earnings-per-share beat (first profitable quarter of the year), driven in part by a government price-protection payment — evidence of improving profitability. MP Materials Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Announced a large-scale, vertically integrated rare-earth magnet campus (“10X”) in Northlake, Texas — a $1.25B investment intended to secure U.S. magnet manufacturing capacity and deepen long-term addressable markets. MP Materials Selects Northlake, Texas, as the Site of “10X”
• Positive Sentiment: Reported operational progress: doubled NdPr oxide output year-over-year, produced first NdFeB magnets on commercial equipment and increased REO production — supporting the company’s move up the value chain. Q4 Highlights & Production Details
• Positive Sentiment: Signed a supply deal with an unnamed automaker, indicating commercial demand for U.S.-sourced rare-earths and potential recurring revenue streams. MP Materials inks rare earths deal with mystery automaker
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts note MP may hold a near-term edge over peers like USA Rare Earth as U.S. magnet capacity ramps, but competitive and execution risks remain. MP Materials vs. USA Rare Earth: Which Rare-Earth Stock has an Edge?
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings-call materials and transcripts provide more detail on production ramps and strategy; these give visibility but little near-term clarity on revenue recovery after policy-driven changes. Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue fell ~14% year-over-year and missed estimates after MP halted rare-earth sales to China under a U.S. government agreement; the top-line weakness pressured investor sentiment despite the EPS beat. MP Materials Revenue Falls After Halting Rare-Earth Sales to China
• Negative Sentiment: The planned $1.25B campus, while strategically important, increases capital intensity and execution risk — investors may worry about funding, timelines and near-term margin pressure absent clearer funding sources beyond government support. MP Materials posts Q4 profit, unveils $1.25B Texas magnet factory plans

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of MP Materials in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on MP Materials in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $77.00 price target on the stock. TD Securities raised MP Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. William Blair started coverage on MP Materials in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded MP Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $74.00 in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Two investment 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, MP Materials presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.91.

MP Materials Trading Down 1.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 7.51 and a current ratio of 8.05. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $60.05 and a 200-day moving average of $64.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -83.07 and a beta of 1.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at MP Materials

In other MP Materials news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 385,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 13,105,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $824,889,437.10. This trade represents a 2.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 38,146 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $2,288,760.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 156,666 shares in the company, valued at $9,399,960. This trade represents a 19.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 723,146 shares of company stock worth $45,767,276. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sit Investment Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. now owns 59,375 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,000,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in MP Materials by 71.7% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 30,877 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,560,000 after acquiring an additional 12,897 shares in the last quarter. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in MP Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 404.4% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 107,642 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,438,000 after acquiring an additional 86,303 shares during the period. Finally, Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC bought a new position in shares of MP Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $477,000. 52.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.