MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Trading 1.2% Higher – Still a Buy?

Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) rose 1.2% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $58.51 and last traded at $58.0010. Approximately 4,552,884 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 9,614,948 shares. The stock had previously closed at $57.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on MP Materials in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $77.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $82.00 price objective on shares of MP Materials in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded MP Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $71.00 in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of MP Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $74.00 in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.91.

MP Materials Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $10.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -81.69 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. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $64.91.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 38,146 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $2,288,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 156,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,399,960. This trade represents a 19.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 272,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 8th. The shares were 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 991,557 shares of company stock worth $62,785,202 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MP. Calamos Advisors LLC bought a new stake in MP Materials during the third quarter worth approximately $16,726,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 132.7% during the 2nd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 176,984 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,888,000 after acquiring an additional 100,915 shares during the period. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new stake in MP Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at $670,000. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in MP Materials during the third quarter worth $550,000. Finally, Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of MP Materials during the third quarter valued at $1,089,000. 52.55% of the stock is 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.