Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) Shares Down 6.9% After Analyst Downgrade

Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARQT) dropped 6.9% during mid-day trading on Monday after Mizuho lowered their price target on the stock from $37.00 to $35.00. Mizuho currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Arcutis Biotherapeutics traded as low as $25.02 and last traded at $25.1110. Approximately 486,601 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 1,429,953 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.97.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on ARQT. HC Wainwright lifted their price objective on Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Wall Street Zen cut Arcutis Biotherapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Larry Todd Edwards sold 2,052 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.50, for a total value of $52,326.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 148,865 shares in the company, valued at $3,796,057.50. The trade was a 1.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Latha Vairavan sold 1,320 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.50, for a total value of $33,660.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 63,607 shares in the company, valued at $1,621,978.50. This trade represents a 2.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 112,999 shares of company stock worth $2,960,174. 9.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arcutis Biotherapeutics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sit Investment Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $376,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 59.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 307,382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,926,000 after acquiring an additional 114,430 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at about $255,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new position in Arcutis Biotherapeutics in the fourth quarter worth about $1,374,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 209.0% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,545 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 1,045 shares during the period.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics Trading Down 6.5%

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.92. The company has a current ratio of 3.17, a quick ratio of 2.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -180.09 and a beta of 1.66.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.10. Arcutis Biotherapeutics had a negative net margin of 4.29% and a negative return on equity of 10.26%. The business had revenue of $129.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $110.79 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc. will post -1.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Arcutis Biotherapeutics

Arcutis Biotherapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapies for immuno-inflammatory skin diseases. The company’s research and development efforts center on targeted treatments that address the underlying biology of conditions such as plaque psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, seborrheic dermatitis and vitiligo. Arcutis employs a precision-medicine approach to deliver topical therapies designed to improve efficacy and tolerability compared with existing treatment options.

In August 2022, Arcutis received U.S.