MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $19.89.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America cut their price target on MP Materials from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on MP Materials from $15.50 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $30.00 price target on shares of MP Materials in a report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of MP Materials from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 15th.

MP Materials Trading Up 0.1 %

MP Materials stock opened at $13.80 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $13.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.52. The company has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -92.00 and a beta of 2.22. MP Materials has a 52 week low of $10.02 and a 52 week high of $22.81. The company has a quick ratio of 6.17, a current ratio of 6.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported ($0.17) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.08). MP Materials had a negative net margin of 21.94% and a negative return on equity of 4.28%. The business had revenue of $31.26 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.03 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.07 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 51.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MP Materials will post -0.44 EPS for the current year.

MP Materials announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, September 3rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 13.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal acquired 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $10.84 per share, with a total value of $325,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,402,975 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,208,249. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 12.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MP Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. TFO Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 153,700.0% during the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 1,537 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in MP Materials by 2,316.7% during the 1st quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,320 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 2,224 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in MP Materials by 3,803.8% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,060 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 3,956 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in MP Materials in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $72,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of MP Materials during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $100,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

About MP Materials

MP Materials Corp., together with its subsidiaries, produces rare earth materials. The company owns and operates the Mountain Pass Rare Earth mine and processing facility in North America. It holds the mineral rights to the Mountain Pass mine and surrounding areas, as well as intellectual property rights related to the processing and development of rare earth minerals.