Short Interest in Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQT) Declines By 9.3%

Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQT) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 20,970,000 shares, a decline of 9.3% from the December 31st total of 23,110,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,050,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 10.2 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics in a report on Thursday, November 7th. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 price target on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.60.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics Price Performance

ARQT traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $13.58. 530,274 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,873,744. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.57 and a beta of 1.30. Arcutis Biotherapeutics has a 52-week low of $5.38 and a 52-week high of $16.20. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $13.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.02.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by $0.09. The business had revenue of $44.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.05 million. Arcutis Biotherapeutics had a negative net margin of 140.97% and a negative return on equity of 119.11%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Arcutis Biotherapeutics will post -1.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Arcutis Biotherapeutics news, Director Terrie Curran sold 8,687 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.85, for a total transaction of $94,253.95. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,139 shares in the company, valued at approximately $110,008.15. This represents a 46.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Masaru Matsuda sold 5,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.68, for a total transaction of $43,530.20. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 178,273 shares in the company, valued at $1,547,409.64. The trade was a 2.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 68,291 shares of company stock worth $841,466 in the last 90 days. 9.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arcutis Biotherapeutics

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Arcutis Biotherapeutics during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Algert Global LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $97,000. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the third quarter valued at approximately $104,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 9.9% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,843 shares of the company’s stock worth $119,000 after acquiring an additional 1,155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning purchased a new position in Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the third quarter worth approximately $127,000.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics Company Profile

Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing treatments for dermatological diseases. Its lead product candidate is ARQ-151, a topical roflumilast cream that has completed Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of plaque psoriasis and atopic dermatitis.