MP Materials (NYSE:MP) Sets New 52-Week Low Following Analyst Downgrade

MP Materials Corp. (NYSE:MP) hit a new 52-week low 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 traded. The stock had previously closed at $45.46.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on MP. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $82.00 price target on MP Materials in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Wednesday. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $82.00 price objective on shares of MP Materials in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of MP Materials from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC began coverage on shares of MP Materials in a research report on Monday, June 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $81.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MP Materials has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.25.

Insider Transactions at MP Materials

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

Key Stories Impacting MP Materials

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

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in MP Materials by 26.5% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 234,185 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,716,000 after acquiring an additional 49,052 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the 1st quarter worth about $215,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MP Materials in the 1st quarter valued at about $219,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in shares of MP Materials by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 10,793 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,000 after purchasing an additional 479 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of MP Materials by 36.0% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 193,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,734,000 after purchasing an additional 51,348 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.55% of the company’s stock.

MP Materials Stock Down 0.5%

The firm has a market cap of $8.05 billion, a P/E ratio of -107.73 and a beta of 1.86. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $58.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 7.18 and a quick ratio of 6.58.

MP Materials (NYSE:MP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.04. MP Materials had a negative return on equity of 2.27% and a negative net margin of 28.00%.The firm had revenue of $90.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $74.82 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.12) earnings per share. MP Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 49.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that MP Materials Corp. will post 0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About MP Materials

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.