Banque Transatlantique SA Sells 114,772 Shares of MP Materials Corp. $MP

Banque Transatlantique SA decreased its stake in shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) by 70.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 114,772 shares during the period. Banque Transatlantique SA’s holdings in MP Materials were worth $2,426,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new position in MP Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. REAP Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in MP Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MP Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Financial Consulate Inc. lifted its position in shares of MP Materials by 555.3% during the 4th quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. now owns 557 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 472 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Montag A & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 106.2% in the third quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 635 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares in the last quarter. 52.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MP Materials Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of MP stock opened at $60.83 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $59.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 7.18 and a quick ratio of 6.58. MP Materials Corp. has a 1 year low of $29.58 and a 1 year high of $100.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -144.83 and a beta of 1.86.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last posted its quarterly 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. The firm had revenue of $90.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $74.82 million. MP Materials had a negative return on equity of 2.27% and a negative net margin of 28.00%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 49.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.12) earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 185,167 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.14, for a total value of $12,802,446.38. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,620,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $803,461,973.72. This represents a 1.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 109,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,176,275. This trade represents a 15.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,205,167 shares of company stock valued at $79,371,654. Corporate insiders own 8.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of MP Materials in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on MP Materials in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $81.00 price target for the company. Wedbush lifted their price objective on MP Materials from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on MP Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $69.00 price objective on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MP Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $80.14.

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.