Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) Trading 5.6% Higher – Here’s What Happened

Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQT) traded up 5.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $27.30 and last traded at $27.4070. Approximately 517,408 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 1,744,782 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.96.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on ARQT. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Arcutis Biotherapeutics has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.57.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics Stock Up 5.2%

The company’s 50-day moving average is $25.84 and its 200 day moving average is $24.39. The company has a current ratio of 2.92, a quick ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a PE ratio of 129.91 and a beta of 1.50.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.05. Arcutis Biotherapeutics had a return on equity of 15.05% and a net margin of 6.15%.The business had revenue of $129.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $118.85 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc. will post 0.42 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Arcutis Biotherapeutics

In related news, Director Howard G. Welgus sold 4,730 shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.18, for a total transaction of $123,831.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 36,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $954,915.50. This trade represents a 11.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Masaru Matsuda sold 9,989 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.03, for a total transaction of $250,024.67. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 116,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,908,035.46. The trade was a 7.92% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 79,225 shares of company stock worth $2,015,966 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 9.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Montanova Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 0.9% during the second quarter. Montanova Capital LLC now owns 12,437,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $326,098,000 after acquiring an additional 110,000 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth about $276,502,000. Polar Capital Holdings Plc lifted its position in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 5,556,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $161,351,000 after buying an additional 257,415 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the second quarter valued at $78,330,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,753,307 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,967,000 after buying an additional 146,842 shares during the last quarter.

About Arcutis Biotherapeutics

Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing treatments for immune-mediated dermatological conditions. The company’s research and development activities are centered on therapies intended to address significant unmet needs in inflammatory skin diseases.

Arcutis’s primary commercial product is ZORYVE (roflumilast), a topical, nonsteroidal phosphodiesterase-4 inhibitor. The product is available in multiple formulations and strengths for certain patients with plaque psoriasis, seborrheic dermatitis and atopic dermatitis.