MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Stock Price Down 4.5% After Insider Selling

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) shares dropped 4.5% on Thursday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $26.28 and last traded at $26.33. Approximately 2,736,275 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 34% from the average daily volume of 4,175,003 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.58.

Specifically, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 199,180 shares of MP Materials stock in a transaction on Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.08, for a total transaction of $5,393,794.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,643,076 shares in the company, valued at approximately $369,454,498.08. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on MP Materials from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of MP Materials from $25.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, MP Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.61.

MP Materials Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 6.93 and a quick ratio of 6.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.29 billion, a PE ratio of -44.47 and a beta of 2.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $24.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.19.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported ($0.14) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $60.99 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $50.71 million. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 32.09% and a negative return on equity of 8.44%. Research analysts anticipate that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MP Materials

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MP. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 119,900.0% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,199 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in MP Materials by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,441 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 701 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in MP Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in MP Materials by 205.4% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,749 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,849 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional purchased a new position in MP Materials during the 1st quarter valued at about $79,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

MP Materials Company Profile

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.