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

Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQT) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 20,970,000 shares, a drop of 9.3% from the December 15th 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.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics Stock Performance

NASDAQ ARQT traded down $1.07 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $12.68. The company had a trading volume of 2,290,922 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,978,374. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.78. Arcutis Biotherapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $3.11 and a fifty-two week high of $16.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.38, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.08 and a beta of 1.30.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. Arcutis Biotherapeutics had a negative return on equity of 119.11% and a negative net margin of 140.97%. The firm had revenue of $44.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.05 million. Equities analysts forecast that Arcutis Biotherapeutics will post -1.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Arcutis Biotherapeutics

In related news, Director Terrie Curran sold 8,687 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.85, for a total value of $94,253.95. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 10,139 shares in the company, valued at approximately $110,008.15. The trade was a 46.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Howard G. Welgus sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.65, for a total value of $86,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 171,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,487,315.60. This trade represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 78,291 shares of company stock valued at $927,966. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 48,087 shares of the company’s stock valued at $670,000 after purchasing an additional 9,754 shares in the last quarter. LVW Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the 4th quarter worth about $166,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,296,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,061,000 after purchasing an additional 11,833 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,470,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,977,000 after purchasing an additional 48,868 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its position in Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 45.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 253,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,356,000 after buying an additional 79,579 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.