NEW YORK, Feb 17, 2026, 08:29 EST — Premarket
- EMAT popped higher in premarket after surging sharply in the previous session.
- Eyes now turn to Evolution Metals, with investors awaiting the Feb. 19 investor and analyst webinar.
- An investor presentation put the spotlight on a planned $2.5 billion U.S. campus expansion, prompting new questions about financing and when the project might break ground.
Shares of Evolution Metals & Technologies Corp (NASDAQ: EMAT) jumped roughly 7.5% to $10.64 in premarket action, building on a close of $9.90 from the previous session. Back on Feb. 13, just before the U.S. market holiday, the stock had surged about 30%. (Tiger Brokers)
This shift is notable. EMAT, trading on Nasdaq, has quickly turned into a high-volatility ticker, fueled by investor appetite for “critical minerals” — the essential inputs for magnets, batteries, electronics — plus momentum to diversify supply chains away from China. Its fresh IPO status and short track record only heighten the stock’s sharp moves.
The company, in a February investor presentation submitted to the U.S. securities regulator, detailed a proposed $2.5 billion capital spend aimed at a new U.S. “industrial campus.” Plans include recycling operations and facilities for processing rare earths and battery materials. One slide broke down the numbers: $395 million tagged for an e-scrap recycling plant, $1.364 billion set aside for hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical processing, plus additional line items.
Evolution Metals is positioning itself as a supplier of rare earth oxides, metals, alloys and permanent magnets, along with battery metals and intermediates like precursor cathode active materials, or pCAM — a key input for lithium-ion battery cathodes. The company operates in both the United States and South Korea, and it’s looking to duplicate and grow its existing footprint through a U.S.-based campus. Hydrometallurgy refers to chemical extraction; pyrometallurgy, by contrast, relies on high-temperature processing. (GlobeNewswire)
Coming up, management is set to host a webinar on Feb. 19 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. ET, featuring both a presentation and a live Q&A. Investors are expected to zero in on questions about financing, construction timing, and whether any supply or customer contracts are lined up to back the expansion. (Barchart)
Shares of Evolution Metals started trading on Nasdaq as EMAT after Welsbach Technology Metals Acquisition Corp wrapped up its merger with Evolution Metals LLC on Jan. 6. Executive Chairman David Wilcox, in the deal’s announcement, called the new company “a U.S. based platform” designed to compete with China’s grip on rare earth magnets. Chief Executive Frank Moon pointed to plans to “replicate and scale” those capabilities domestically. (GlobeNewswire)
Volatility hasn’t let up. Shares have swung across a broad 52-week range, a pattern that underscores the company’s brief time on the public markets and its exposure to speculative small-cap materials trading. (Investing)
The U.S. equity markets reopen Tuesday after being shut for Washington’s Birthday on Feb. 16, kicking off the first full session of the week. That post-holiday gap tends to sharpen initial moves—particularly for thinly traded stocks—as pent-up orders hit the tape. (Nasdaq)
The risk factors stack up, too. In its Feb. 11 filing, the company singled out hurdles: getting the business plan off the ground, finding financing, ramping up facilities, locking in feedstock and offtake deals, and clearing the needed permits and regulatory green lights. Any of these could take the steam out of the U.S. expansion narrative traders are betting on.
Investors are eyeing EMAT to see if its early gains this week can stick once markets open. Thursday brings a webinar that could shed some light on funding specifics and target dates tied to the company’s U.S. campus project. (Stocktitan)
