MP Materials Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:MP)

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) saw some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Traders acquired 8,137 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 83% compared to the typical daily volume of 4,444 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on MP. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on MP Materials from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of MP Materials from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $19.50 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.45.

MP Materials Trading Up 10.3 %

NYSE MP opened at $24.52 on Wednesday. MP Materials has a 12 month low of $10.02 and a 12 month high of $24.78. The company has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -45.40 and a beta of 2.34. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $19.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $17.01.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported ($0.15) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $62.93 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.30 million. MP Materials had a negative return on equity of 6.78% and a negative net margin of 32.24%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.02 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that MP Materials will post -0.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at MP Materials

In related news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 300,000 shares of MP Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.22, for a total value of $6,066,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 18,043,076 shares in the company, valued at approximately $364,830,996.72. This trade represents a 1.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Ryan Corbett sold 35,000 shares of MP Materials stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 884,862 shares of company stock valued at $17,484,482. 12.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MP Materials

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Oak Family Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MP Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $530,000. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its position in shares of MP Materials by 32.7% during the third quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 1,245,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,988,000 after purchasing an additional 306,933 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of MP Materials by 806.0% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 42,944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $758,000 after purchasing an additional 38,204 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in MP Materials during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,300,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in MP Materials by 167.3% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 35,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $560,000 after buying an additional 22,473 shares during the period. 52.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.