MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Hits New 1-Year Low After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday after Barclays lowered their price target on the stock from $69.00 to $65.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. MP Materials traded as low as $43.82 and last traded at $44.6680, with a volume of 743785 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $45.46.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on MP. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on MP Materials from $70.00 to $61.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of MP Materials in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on MP Materials from $70.00 to $71.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC started coverage on MP Materials in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $81.00 price target for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $79.25.

Insider Activity at MP Materials

In other MP Materials news, CEO James H. Litinsky sold 185,167 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.14, for a total transaction of $12,802,446.38. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,620,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $803,461,973.72. This trade represents a 1.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Michael Stuart Rosenthal acquired 10,000 shares of MP Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $54.30 per share, for a total transaction of $543,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer directly owned 136,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,418,574.60. This trade represents a 7.90% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,164,346 shares of company stock valued at $76,757,068. 8.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

MP Materials News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting MP Materials this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays cut its price target on MP Materials to $65 from $69, but kept an Overweight rating, suggesting analysts still see meaningful upside from current levels. Barclays lowers MP Materials price target but keeps Overweight rating
• Positive Sentiment: MP Materials announced it will report second-quarter 2026 results on August 6, which keeps investors focused on upcoming catalysts and could provide clarity on production, costs, and the company’s rare-earth scale-up progress. MP Materials announces date for second quarter 2026 financial results and webcast
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analyst write-ups highlighted MP’s improving operating performance, strong liquidity, and policy support from the U.S. rare-earth push, but also noted premium valuation and execution risks around project ramp-up. MP Materials stock outlook hinges on rare earth scale-up plans
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerage sentiment remains constructive overall, with an average “Buy” recommendation from analysts, reinforcing a generally favorable outlook. MP Materials receives average recommendation of Buy from brokerages
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary also stressed rising costs, incomplete project ramps, and customer/execution uncertainty, which could limit earnings momentum and help explain why MP remains volatile. MP Materials and the U.S. rare earth push are starting to align

Institutional Trading of MP Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in MP Materials by 16.5% in the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 46,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,604,000 after buying an additional 6,600 shares during the period. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 46.7% during the 2nd quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 18,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,010,000 after acquiring an additional 5,738 shares during the period. Crumly & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MP Materials by 18.8% during the 2nd quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. now owns 7,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $428,000 after acquiring an additional 1,211 shares during the period. Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the second quarter worth approximately $10,648,000. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the second quarter worth approximately $202,000. 52.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MP Materials Trading Down 0.5%

The business’s fifty day moving average is $58.24 and its 200-day moving average is $59.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.05 billion, a PE ratio of -107.73 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a quick ratio of 6.58, a current ratio of 7.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by $0.04. MP Materials had a negative net margin of 28.00% and a negative return on equity of 2.27%. The company had revenue of $90.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $74.82 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.12) earnings per share. MP Materials’s revenue was up 49.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that MP Materials Corp. will post 0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MP Materials Company 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.