The Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price has exploded in the past year.
Shares in the pure-play lithium company have surged 125% in the last 52 weeks to $4.80 apiece as at Tuesday's market close.
So is now a good time to sell, or is it better to hold Pilbara Minerals shares?
Hold or sell?
Pilbara operates the Pilgangoora Project near Port Hedland in Western Australia. This is regarded as one of the biggest hard rock lithium deposits in the world.
Red Leaf Securities CEO John Athanasiou recently recommended investors "sell" Pilbara Minerals shares, citing the company's recent gains. Commenting on The Bull, he said:
The company's been benefiting from higher lithium prices.
In fiscal year 2022, the company generated sales revenue of $1.2 billion, a 577 per cent increase on the prior corresponding period. Investors may want to consider cashing in some gains.
Meanwhile, UBS recently rated the Pilbara share price as a sell with a $2.65 price target, my Foolish colleague Tristan reported.
On the flipside, Macquarie placed a $5.60 price target on Pilbara shares in September, as reported by my Foolish colleague James.
A recent federal government report forecasted lithium prices to rise in 2023 before easing in 2024.
In news on Tuesday, Pilbara updated investors on its latest Battery Material Exchange (BMX) auction. The company has accepted a pre-auction offer of US$7,100 per dry metric tonne (dmt) for a shipment of 5,000dmt of spodumene concentrate in mid-November.
Pilbara is also due to release a quarterly activities report next Tuesday.
Share price snapshot
Pilbara shares have soared almost 50% year to date, however, they are down 4% in the past week.
For perspective, the S&P/ASX 200 (ASX: XJO) has fallen 8% in the past year.
Pilbara has a market capitalisation of about $14.2 billion based on the current share price.
