MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) Shares Bought by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP - Free Report) by 26.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 847,240 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 176,219 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned 0.51% of MP Materials worth $10,785,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in MP Materials by 3,803.8% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,060 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 3,956 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of MP Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $72,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in MP Materials in the second quarter worth approximately $100,000. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership lifted its stake in MP Materials by 15.9% in the first quarter. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership now owns 8,000 shares of the company's stock worth $114,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares during the period. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in MP Materials in the second quarter valued at about $118,000. Institutional investors own 52.55% of the company's stock.

MP Materials Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of MP traded up $0.42 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $17.38. The company had a trading volume of 2,314,307 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,391,332. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $13.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.67. The company has a quick ratio of 6.17, a current ratio of 6.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The stock has a market cap of $2.87 billion, a PE ratio of -115.87 and a beta of 2.23. MP Materials Corp. has a 1-year low of $10.02 and a 1-year high of $20.85.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported ($0.17) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $31.26 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $40.03 million. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 21.94% and a negative return on equity of 4.28%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 51.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.07 EPS. Research analysts forecast that MP Materials Corp. will post -0.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MP Materials announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, September 3rd that authorizes the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 13.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at MP Materials

In other news, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal bought 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $10.84 per share, with a total value of $325,200.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 1,402,975 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,208,249. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 12.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on MP. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on MP Materials from $13.50 to $12.50 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $13.50 to $16.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on shares of MP Materials from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MP Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $20.85.

MP Materials 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.