MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Price Target Raised to $25.00 at Robert W. Baird

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) had its price objective increased by Robert W. Baird from $20.00 to $25.00 in a report released on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. 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. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on MP Materials in a research report on Monday, July 15th. They set a market perform rating and a $16.50 target price on the stock. Benchmark reiterated a buy rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of MP Materials from $13.50 to $16.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $20.67.

MP Materials Stock Up 8.8 %

NYSE:MP opened at $18.39 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.04 billion, a P/E ratio of -122.60 and a beta of 2.22. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $13.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.54. MP Materials has a 1-year low of $10.02 and a 1-year high of $20.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 6.90 and a quick ratio of 6.17.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported ($0.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $31.26 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $40.03 million. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 21.94% and a negative return on equity of 4.28%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 51.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.07 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that MP Materials will post -0.47 EPS for the current year.

MP Materials declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, September 3rd that permits the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 13.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at MP Materials

In other news, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal purchased 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $10.84 per share, for a total transaction of $325,200.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,402,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,208,249. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 12.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of MP Materials

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MP. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of MP Materials by 1.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,861,266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $198,216,000 after acquiring an additional 225,554 shares during the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. raised its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 2,819,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,895,000 after buying an additional 76,288 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in MP Materials by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,355,982 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,993,000 after acquiring an additional 71,454 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in MP Materials by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,733,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,068,000 after acquiring an additional 26,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of MP Materials by 2,536.8% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,661,887 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,767,000 after purchasing an additional 1,598,861 shares in the last quarter. 52.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.