MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $21.04 and last traded at $20.88, with a volume of 838626 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $19.64.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on MP Materials from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. DA Davidson raised their target price on MP Materials from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on MP Materials from $13.50 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on MP Materials from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.10.

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 company has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.48. The stock has a market cap of $3.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -38.59 and a beta of 2.23.

MP Materials declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at MP Materials

In related news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 15,195 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.30, for a total transaction of $278,068.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 295,021 shares in the company, valued at $5,398,884.30. The trade was a 4.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 300,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were 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 owns 18,221,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $336,191,767.20. This represents a 1.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 12.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MP. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of MP Materials by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,861,266 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,216,000 after acquiring an additional 225,554 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of MP Materials by 2,536.8% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,661,887 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,767,000 after buying an additional 1,598,861 shares during the last quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of MP Materials by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 222,680 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,184,000 after buying an additional 8,341 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank grew its stake in shares of MP Materials by 16.7% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 71,564 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,023,000 after buying an additional 10,264 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the 1st quarter worth approximately $356,000. Institutional investors 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.