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Side-by-side financial comparison of LEE ENTERPRISES, Inc (LEE) and MP Materials Corp. (MP). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

LEE ENTERPRISES, Inc is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($130.1M vs $90.6M, roughly 1.4× MP Materials Corp.). LEE ENTERPRISES, Inc runs the higher net margin — -4.3% vs -8.8%, a 4.5% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, MP Materials Corp. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (49.1% vs -10.0%). Over the past eight quarters, MP Materials Corp.'s revenue compounded faster (70.3% CAGR vs -5.8%).

Lee Enterprises, Inc. is a publicly traded American media company. It publishes 72 daily newspapers in 25 states, and more than 350 weekly, classified, and specialty publications. Lee Enterprises was founded in 1890 by Alfred Wilson Lee and is based in Davenport, Iowa.

MP Materials Corp. is a U.S.-based producer of rare earth materials. The company owns and operates the Mountain Pass mine in California, the only active rare earth mining and processing facility in the Western Hemisphere, producing essential materials for electric vehicles, wind turbines, and defense applications.

LEE vs MP — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
LEE
LEE
1.4× larger
LEE
$130.1M
$90.6M
MP
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
MP
MP
+59.1% gap
MP
49.1%
-10.0%
LEE
Higher net margin
LEE
LEE
4.5% more per $
LEE
-4.3%
-8.8%
MP
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
MP
MP
Annualised
MP
70.3%
-5.8%
LEE

Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q1 FY2026

Metric
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Revenue
$130.1M
$90.6M
Net Profit
$-5.6M
$-8.0M
Gross Margin
Operating Margin
4.0%
Net Margin
-4.3%
-8.8%
Revenue YoY
-10.0%
49.1%
Net Profit YoY
66.5%
64.8%
EPS (diluted)
$-0.92
$-0.04

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
$90.6M
Q4 25
$130.1M
$52.7M
Q3 25
$139.1M
$53.6M
Q2 25
$141.3M
$57.4M
Q1 25
$137.4M
$60.8M
Q4 24
$144.6M
$61.0M
Q3 24
$158.6M
$62.9M
Q2 24
$150.6M
$31.3M
Net Profit
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
$-8.0M
Q4 25
$-5.6M
$9.4M
Q3 25
$-6.4M
$-41.8M
Q2 25
$-1.9M
$-30.9M
Q1 25
$-12.5M
$-22.6M
Q4 24
$-16.7M
$-22.3M
Q3 24
$-10.1M
$-25.5M
Q2 24
$-4.3M
$-34.1M
Operating Margin
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
Q4 25
4.0%
-7.0%
Q3 25
-1.0%
-125.2%
Q2 25
3.3%
-76.5%
Q1 25
-3.3%
-57.2%
Q4 24
-2.3%
-72.1%
Q3 24
-2.3%
-62.8%
Q2 24
3.3%
-171.1%
Net Margin
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
-8.8%
Q4 25
-4.3%
17.9%
Q3 25
-4.6%
-78.0%
Q2 25
-1.4%
-53.8%
Q1 25
-9.1%
-37.2%
Q4 24
-11.6%
-36.6%
Q3 24
-6.4%
-40.5%
Q2 24
-2.8%
-108.9%
EPS (diluted)
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
$-0.04
Q4 25
$-0.92
$0.07
Q3 25
$-1.02
$-0.24
Q2 25
$-0.31
$-0.19
Q1 25
$-2.07
$-0.14
Q4 24
$-2.80
$-0.12
Q3 24
$-1.68
$-0.16
Q2 24
$-0.73
$-0.21

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$12.6M
$1.7B
Total DebtLower is stronger
$1.0B
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$-48.7M
$2.0B
Total Assets
$592.6M
$3.8B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.51×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
$1.7B
Q4 25
$12.6M
$1.2B
Q3 25
$10.0M
$1.1B
Q2 25
$14.1M
$261.5M
Q1 25
$4.7M
$198.3M
Q4 24
$6.1M
$282.4M
Q3 24
$9.6M
$284.4M
Q2 24
$13.4M
$295.6M
Total Debt
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
$1.0B
Q4 25
$998.7M
Q3 25
$997.3M
Q2 25
$910.8M
Q1 25
$909.8M
Q4 24
$908.7M
Q3 24
Q2 24
Stockholders' Equity
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
$2.0B
Q4 25
$-48.7M
$2.0B
Q3 25
$-43.3M
$2.0B
Q2 25
$-40.5M
$1.0B
Q1 25
$-38.9M
$1.0B
Q4 24
$-26.7M
$1.1B
Q3 24
$-9.9M
$1.1B
Q2 24
$4.0M
$1.1B
Total Assets
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
$3.8B
Q4 25
$592.6M
$3.9B
Q3 25
$601.7M
$3.8B
Q2 25
$622.7M
$2.3B
Q1 25
$623.9M
$2.4B
Q4 24
$633.0M
$2.3B
Q3 24
$649.2M
$2.3B
Q2 24
$677.5M
$2.4B
Debt / Equity
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
0.51×
Q4 25
0.50×
Q3 25
0.51×
Q2 25
0.90×
Q1 25
0.88×
Q4 24
0.86×
Q3 24
Q2 24

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$4.5M
$-1.9M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$3.7M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
2.9%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
0.6%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$1.5M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
$-1.9M
Q4 25
$4.5M
$-46.9M
Q3 25
$-6.3M
$-42.0M
Q2 25
$8.9M
$-3.7M
Q1 25
$-790.0K
$-63.2M
Q4 24
$-7.3M
$30.5M
Q3 24
$-261.0K
$-6.8M
Q2 24
$-1.9M
$30.8M
Free Cash Flow
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
Q4 25
$3.7M
$-109.3M
Q3 25
$-8.3M
$-92.5M
Q2 25
$8.3M
$-32.7M
Q1 25
$-2.2M
$-93.7M
Q4 24
$-8.9M
$-11.2M
Q3 24
$-2.9M
$-53.3M
Q2 24
$-5.5M
$-15.6M
FCF Margin
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
Q4 25
2.9%
-207.4%
Q3 25
-6.0%
-172.8%
Q2 25
5.9%
-56.9%
Q1 25
-1.6%
-154.0%
Q4 24
-6.1%
-18.3%
Q3 24
-1.8%
-84.7%
Q2 24
-3.6%
-50.1%
Capex Intensity
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
Q4 25
0.6%
118.5%
Q3 25
1.4%
94.3%
Q2 25
0.4%
50.5%
Q1 25
1.0%
50.1%
Q4 24
1.1%
68.3%
Q3 24
1.7%
73.8%
Q2 24
2.4%
148.7%
Cash Conversion
LEE
LEE
MP
MP
Q1 26
Q4 25
-4.97×
Q3 25
Q2 25
Q1 25
Q4 24
Q3 24
Q2 24

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

LEE
LEE

Advertising And Marketing Services$60.0M46%
Subscription And Circulation$57.7M44%
Other$12.4M10%

MP
MP

Materials Segment$72.2M80%
Magnetics Segment$21.1M23%

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