MP Materials Corp. $MP Stock Holdings Lifted by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) by 10.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 154,311 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 14,376 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.09% of MP Materials worth $7,297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MP. State Street Corp boosted its position in MP Materials by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,773,746 shares of the company’s stock valued at $435,408,000 after buying an additional 376,519 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in MP Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $65,230,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of MP Materials by 32.4% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 919,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,355,000 after acquiring an additional 225,009 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of MP Materials by 26.0% during the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 763,110 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,087,000 after acquiring an additional 157,272 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of MP Materials by 1.5% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 564,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,635,000 after acquiring an additional 8,556 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

Key MP Materials News

Here’s some of the latest news about MP:

• Positive Sentiment: Call-option trading was unusually active, with volume about 64% above its typical level, suggesting increased speculative interest in potential gains.
• Neutral Sentiment: The key question is whether the sharp revenue growth can be sustained; it depends in part on rare-earth prices and continued sales growth. Can Q3 growth be sustained?
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary cautions that a high valuation and rising costs could constrain the investment case, despite the earnings beat and commercial progress.

MP Materials Stock Up 3.3%

MP stock traded up $1.25 during trading on Friday, hitting $38.70. 7,891,761 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,989,354. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.90 billion, a P/E ratio of -175.92 and a beta of 2.05. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.71. The company has a quick ratio of 6.04, a current ratio of 6.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. MP Materials Corp. has a 1 year low of $31.90 and a 1 year high of $76.80.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.06. The company had revenue of $147.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $117.37 million. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 9.90% and a negative return on equity of 0.05%. MP Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 175.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.10) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.21 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Ryan Corbett acquired 5,476 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $36.25 per share, for a total transaction of $198,505.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 114,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,150,371.25. This trade represents a 5.02% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Randall J. Weisenburger acquired 55,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $36.00 per share, with a total value of $1,980,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 205,899 shares in the company, valued at $7,412,364. The trade was a 36.45% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 92,476 shares of company stock worth $3,353,475. 8.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of MP Materials in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on MP Materials from $81.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on MP Materials from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Barclays decreased their target price on MP Materials from $65.00 to $54.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 9th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Monday, August 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.50.

MP Materials Profile

MP Materials operates the Mountain Pass rare earth mine and processing facility in California. The site is a major North American source of rare earth materials, which are used in products such as electric vehicles, wind turbines, electronics and defense systems. The company mines and processes rare earth ore into concentrate and separated products, including neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr), a key input for high-strength permanent magnets. MP Materials is also developing domestic magnet manufacturing capabilities to extend its business further along the supply chain.