Jim Cramer on MP Materials: “They’ve Got the Government’s Backing”

On the Lightning Round of Mad Money on April 29, 2026, a caller named Kimo from California, whose fiancée Michelle had gifted him Jim Cramer’s book the prior December, told the host he had “done quite well between December and now” on his rare earths bet. Cramer’s verdict on the name in question was unambiguous: “I like it very much. It’s the only one in that whole area really blessed because they’ve got the government’s backing.” He added that the company has “really good solid management and they’re doing just a huge number of good things, so I say yes to that one.”

The stock in question is MP Materials (NYSE:MP), the operator of the Mountain Pass mine in California and the only scaled domestic producer of separated rare earth oxides. Shares last traded around $64.21, with the stock up roughly 149.39% over the past year and 21.34% year-to-date.

What “Government’s Backing” Actually Means Here

Cramer’s framing has teeth. In July 2025, MP unveiled a public-private partnership with the U.S. Department of War that includes a Price Protection Agreement setting a $110/kg floor price for NdPr products, plus preferred shares and warrants giving the government an equity stake. The PPA commenced October 1, 2025 and contributed $51.02 million in PPA income in Q4 2025 alone.

Moreover, Texas added a $200 million incentive package for MP’s planned 10X magnetics facility in Northlake. You can read the underlying disclosure in MP’s Q4 2025 8-K.

The strategic logic is supply-chain reshoring. MP ceased all rare earth concentrate sales to China in mid-2025 and pivoted to higher-value separated oxides and magnets, with offtake commitments from Apple and General Motors.

The Numbers Behind the Narrative

Q4 2025, reported February 26, 2026, delivered EPS of $0.09 against a $0.02 consensus, while revenue of $52.69 million missed the $58.93 million expectation as China sales rolled off. Net income swung to $9.43 million from a $22.34 million loss a year earlier, and cash jumped 312.83% YoY to $1.166 billion. Full-year NdPr oxide production hit a record 2,599 metric tons, up 101% YoY.

Where Wall Street Sits

Analyst coverage skews bullish, with 15 buy or strong-buy ratings, no holds, no sells, and an average target of $78. Wedbush initiated coverage at Outperform with a $90 target on April 20, 2026 and cited the same government-support thesis Cramer endorsed. Counterweights exist: the stock trades at 39.54x trailing sales, CEO James Litinsky sold 300,000 shares around $64 under a 10b5-1 plan, and the DoW arrangement itself carries appropriations and legislative risk flagged in MP’s filings.

Q1 2026 results land May 7, 2026, the next real test of whether the magnet ramp at Independence and the Northlake groundbreaking justify the multiple Cramer’s callers are paying for “the government’s backing.”