MP Materials hits record high on strong output, Pentagon and Apple deals

Staff Writer | August 8, 2025 | 

MP Materials’ Mountain Pass rare earths mine in southern California is the only rare earths producer in the United States. Credit: MP Materials

MP Materials (NYSE: MP) shares surged to an all-time high on Friday after the United States’ only rare earths producer posted stronger-than-expected quarterly results.

The Las Vegas-based miner’s shares jumped as much as 10.45% in early trading to $78.50, before settling at $75.99 by midday in New York, valuing the company at $13.46 billion.

MP’s stock has more than quadrupled in 2025, buoyed by US efforts to secure domestic supplies of critical minerals and reduce reliance on China.

In the second quarter, production of neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr), key materials for high-strength permanent magnets used in EV motors, wind turbines and electronics, soared 119% year-over-year to a record 597 metric tonnes. Rare earth oxide (REO) output was the company’s second-highest on record at 13,145 tonnes, up 45% from the prior year.

NdPr sales volumes more than tripled to 443 tonnes. In the third quarter, the company expects its NdPr production to climb another 10–20% sequentially.

Revenue rose 84% to $57.4 million, driven by higher output of separated products and initial sales of magnetic precursor materials. The Magnetics Segment generated $19.9 million in revenue and $8.1 million in adjusted EBITDA, while the Materials Segment also saw profitability improve.

MP reported an adjusted net loss of $21.4 million or $0.13 per share, beating analyst estimates of a $0.19 loss. Adjusted EBITDA improved by $14.5 million year-over-year to a loss of $12.5 million.

Pentagon price floor deal

In July, MP signed a multibillion-dollar agreement with the US Department of Defense (DoD) that sets a $110/kg price floor for NdPr, nearly double prevailing Chinese market prices. The deal could make the Pentagon MP’s largest shareholder and provides long-term revenue certainty.

The agreement comes as Washington accelerates efforts to secure critical mineral supply chains in the face of geopolitical tensions and China’s dominance in the rare earths market.

Shortly after the DoD deal, MP announced a $500 million rare earth magnet supply agreement with Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL). The tech giant will source US-made magnets from MP’s Fort Worth, Texas facility, with production lines tailored specifically for Apple products.

Apple’s prepayments will fund most of the expansion at MP’s Independence mine in Texas, accelerating downstream integration. The deal is part of Apple’s broader plan to spend over $500 billion in the US over the next four years.

CEO James Litinsky said the partnerships position MP for “sustained growth in the emerging era of physical AI,” pointing to the company’s unique role in a secure US supply chain for rare earth magnets.

As reported by Reuters, TD Cowen analysts highlighted that strong upstream volumes and magnetics output drove a 40% EBITDA beat, and said MP is now on track to hit a 60,000-tonne annual REO run rate a year earlier than planned.

Stage III magnetics operations are already EBITDA-positive and, alongside government and Apple funding, leave the company well-capitalized to accelerate growth, brokerage DA Davidson said.