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

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders purchased 8,211 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 120% compared to the average volume of 3,728 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on MP shares. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on MP Materials from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on MP Materials from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on MP Materials from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on MP Materials from $13.50 to $16.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on MP Materials from $16.00 to $18.50 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, MP Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.10.

Insider Transactions at MP Materials

In related news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 234,667 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.68, for a total value of $4,852,913.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 17,608,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $364,141,898.12. This trade represents a 1.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 260,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,590,451.50. This represents a 11.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 884,862 shares of company stock worth $17,484,482 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 12.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MP Materials

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 557 shares during the period. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. boosted its position in MP Materials by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. now owns 190,098 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,355,000 after buying an additional 910 shares during the period. Aurora Investment Counsel boosted its position in MP Materials by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 66,153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $842,000 after buying an additional 1,122 shares during the period. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. boosted its position in MP Materials by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 255,495 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,509,000 after buying an additional 1,135 shares during the period. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its position in MP Materials by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 16,207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $206,000 after buying an additional 1,228 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

MP Materials Trading Down 8.6 %

Shares of MP Materials stock opened at $21.13 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.57. The company has a market cap of $3.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.13 and a beta of 2.24. MP Materials has a fifty-two week low of $10.02 and a fifty-two week high of $24.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 6.13 and a current ratio of 6.93.

MP Materials announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, September 3rd that allows the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 13.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.