Is UUUU Set to Dominate the U.S. Heavy Rare Earth Element Market?

Energy Fuels Inc. UUUU has initiated the pilot-scale production of heavy rare earth element (HREE) oxides at its White Mesa Mill in Utah. Currently, it is the only facility in the United States producing HREEs from mined ores at a commercial site. This makes Energy Fuels a pioneer in domestic HREE production, crucial for the permanent magnet industry and national supply-chain security.

Energy Fuels started producing Dysprosium (Dy) oxide at a purity of at least 99.5%, with plans to produce pilot-scale Terbium (Tb) by November 2025 and samarium (Sm) oxide on a pilot scale in January 2026.

Once the pilot production is successful, Energy Fuels can produce Dy, Tb and Sm on a commercial scale at its existing Phase 1 REE separation circuit at the White Mesa mill following minor modifications by the fourth quarter of 2026 from existing feed sources. The company has previously demonstrated its ability to separate NdPr on a commercial scale successfully through the commissioning of its Phase 1 REE separations circuit at the mill in April 2024. 

Energy Fuels’ Donald Project in Australia could start production by the end of 2027. It is one of the richest deposits of HREEs in the world and could complement UUUU’s domestic operations. 

Also, its Toliara Project in Madagascar and the Bahia Project in Brazil contain significant quantities of light and heavy REE oxides, which can be supplied to U.S. and European manufacturers.

Recently, its peer, MP Materials MP, entered into a long-term agreement to supply Apple AAPL with rare earth magnets manufactured in the United States from fully recycled materials. Per the deal, MP Materials will supply Apple with magnets produced at Independence, its Fort Worth, TX, facility using recycled rare earth feedstock processed at its Mountain Pass site in California.

The feedstock will be sourced from post-industrial and end-of-life magnets, marking a major milestone in both Apple and MP Material’s long-standing efforts to create sustainable, domestic supply chains.

UUUU’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates

Energy Fuels shares have gained 82.5% so far this year compared with the industry’s 4.6% growth.

UUUU is trading at a forward 12-month price/sales multiple of 19.24X, at a significant premium to the industry’s 2.78X. 

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Energy Fuels’ 2025 loss is pegged at 27 cents per share. The bottom-line estimate for 2026 is pegged at earnings of six cents per share. Here is how the EPS estimates for 2025 and 2026 have been revised over the past 60 days.

The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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