Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQT) Short Interest Down 9.3% in January

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ARQT. Mizuho upped their price target on Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 target price on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 price objective on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics in a research report on Monday, January 13th. 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 company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.60.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics Stock Performance

ARQT traded down $0.43 during trading on Friday, hitting $13.24. 1,663,063 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,736,981. The company has a quick ratio of 2.38, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Arcutis Biotherapeutics has a 1-year low of $5.38 and a 1-year high of $16.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $13.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.40 and a beta of 1.30.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.33) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.42) by $0.09. Arcutis Biotherapeutics had a negative net margin of 140.97% and a negative return on equity of 119.11%. The firm had revenue of $44.76 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.05 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Arcutis Biotherapeutics will post -1.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Masaru Matsuda sold 5,015 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 178,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,547,409.64. This represents a 2.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Howard G. Welgus sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.67, for a total value of $146,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 151,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,229,018.48. This trade represents a 6.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 68,291 shares of company stock worth $841,466 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arcutis Biotherapeutics

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 727.5% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 257,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,393,000 after purchasing an additional 226,258 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 35.3% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 512,696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,768,000 after buying an additional 133,645 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 31.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 40,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $375,000 after buying an additional 9,537 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the 2nd quarter worth $97,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the third quarter valued at about $412,000.

About Arcutis Biotherapeutics

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.