Cerity Partners LLC Raises Position in MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP)

Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) by 160.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,762 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 18,934 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in MP Materials were worth $543,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. raised 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 valued at $3,355,000 after acquiring an additional 910 shares in the last quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel raised its holdings in MP Materials by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 66,153 shares of the company’s stock worth $842,000 after purchasing an additional 1,122 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of MP Materials by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 16,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $206,000 after purchasing an additional 1,228 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 35.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,733 shares of the company’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in shares of MP Materials by 0.4% during the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 365,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,659,000 after buying an additional 1,280 shares during the period. 52.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MP Materials Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE MP opened at $19.72 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a PE ratio of -36.52 and a beta of 2.24. The company has a current ratio of 6.93, a quick ratio of 6.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. MP Materials Corp. has a 12-month low of $10.02 and a 12-month high of $24.01. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $18.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.65.

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

Insider Activity at MP Materials

In other news, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 15,195 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.30, for a total value of $278,068.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 295,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,398,884.30. This represents a 4.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 300,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 18,221,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $336,191,767.20. This trade represents a 1.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 884,862 shares of company stock valued at $17,484,482 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 12.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MP shares. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on MP Materials from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on MP Materials from $16.00 to $18.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price 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. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of MP Materials from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of MP Materials from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.10.

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.