MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $18.20, but opened at $19.25. MP Materials shares last traded at $19.55, with a volume of 1,010,044 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on MP shares. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on MP Materials from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of MP Materials from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on MP Materials from $13.50 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MP Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.10.

MP Materials Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $18.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $16.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.00 and a beta of 2.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 6.13 and a current ratio of 6.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MP Materials news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.50, for a total value of $752,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 260,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,590,451.50. This trade represents a 11.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 300,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.45, for a total value of $5,535,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 18,221,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $336,191,767.20. This trade represents a 1.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 884,862 shares of company stock valued at $17,484,482 over the last 90 days. 12.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of MP Materials

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in MP Materials by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 11,734 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,000 after buying an additional 557 shares during the period. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 0.5% during the third quarter. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. now owns 190,098 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,355,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares during the period. Aurora Investment Counsel lifted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 1.7% during the second quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 66,153 shares of the company’s stock worth $842,000 after purchasing an additional 1,122 shares during the period. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. grew its stake in shares of MP Materials by 0.4% in the third quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 255,495 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,509,000 after purchasing an additional 1,135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in MP Materials by 8.2% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 16,207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $206,000 after purchasing an additional 1,228 shares during the period. 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.