FirstWave Capital Management LLC Grows Position in MP Materials Corp. $MP

FirstWave Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) by 23.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 61,473 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,820 shares during the period. MP Materials accounts for about 1.5% of FirstWave Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. FirstWave Capital Management LLC’s holdings in MP Materials were worth $3,443,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MP. EMC Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of MP Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in MP Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in MP Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted its position in shares of MP Materials by 73.3% in the second quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of MP Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at MP Materials

In related news, COO Michael Rosenthal bought 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $54.30 per share, with a total value of $543,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 136,622 shares in the company, valued at $7,418,574.60. This trade represents a 7.90% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 8.20% of the company’s stock.

MP Materials Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE MP opened at $54.42 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $51.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.61. The company has a current ratio of 9.51, a quick ratio of 8.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -160.05 and a beta of 1.94. MP Materials Corp. has a 12-month low of $37.81 and a 12-month high of $100.25.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.01). MP Materials had a negative return on equity of 1.21% and a negative net margin of 19.85%.The company had revenue of $108.49 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $96.89 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.13) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 89.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays dropped their price target on MP Materials from $69.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of MP Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $70.00 to $61.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on MP Materials from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their target price on MP Materials from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $78.21.

MP Materials Profile

MP Materials Corporation operates as a vertically integrated producer of rare earth materials in North America. The company owns and manages the Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine and Processing Facility in California, the only commercially viable rare earth mining and processing site in the United States. MP Materials extracts, separates and refines critical rare earth elements—such as neodymium, praseodymium, and cerium—which are essential inputs for permanent magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, and various defense applications.

The Mountain Pass mine first began commercial rare earth production in the 1950s and was later operated by Molycorp until its bankruptcy in 2015.