Wall Street Zen Upgrades Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) to Strong-Buy

Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings raised Arcutis Biotherapeutics from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Thursday. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Arcutis Biotherapeutics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.57.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics Stock Performance

Shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics stock opened at $25.29 on Friday. Arcutis Biotherapeutics has a 1 year low of $13.69 and a 1 year high of $31.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 2.92 and a quick ratio of 2.67. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $26.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.68. The company has a market capitalization of $3.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 120.43 and a beta of 1.49.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ:ARQT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $129.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $118.85 million. Arcutis Biotherapeutics had a return on equity of 15.05% and a net margin of 6.15%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Arcutis Biotherapeutics will post 0.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Arcutis Biotherapeutics

In related news, insider Todd Watanabe sold 4,375 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.12, for a total transaction of $114,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 717,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,733,342.36. This represents a 0.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Howard G. Welgus sold 4,096 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.41, for a total transaction of $99,983.36. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 38,378 shares in the company, valued at approximately $936,806.98. This represents a 9.64% 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 a total of 16,237 shares of company stock valued at $408,214 in the last ninety days. 9.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Arcutis Biotherapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. UBS Group AG boosted its position in Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,243,432 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,189,000 after acquiring an additional 294,994 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL acquired a new position in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics during the third quarter valued at $1,319,000. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS increased its holdings in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 55.1% during the first quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 175,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,143,000 after purchasing an additional 62,485 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,253,936 shares of the company’s stock valued at $210,654,000 after purchasing an additional 107,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,136,000.

More Arcutis Biotherapeutics News

Here are the key news stories impacting Arcutis Biotherapeutics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong second-quarter performance: Arcutis reported adjusted EPS of $0.11, exceeding estimates of $0.06–$0.09 and improving from a $0.13 loss a year earlier. Revenue rose 59% year over year to $129.9 million, beating the $118.9 million consensus estimate. Arcutis Q2 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Raised sales outlook and expanding ZORYVE opportunity: Management increased 2026 net product-sales guidance to $525 million–$540 million. ZORYVE also gained an expanded pediatric plaque-psoriasis approval, while the FDA accepted an application for use in infants with atopic dermatitis. Arcutis Second-Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains favorable: Needham raised its price target from $36 to $40 and reiterated a Buy rating. HC Wainwright’s 2027 estimates project quarterly EPS rising from $0.08 in the first quarter to $0.48 in the fourth quarter, suggesting expectations for continued earnings growth. Benzinga analyst report
• Neutral Sentiment: Commercial leadership changes: Arcutis announced key changes to its commercial leadership team. The move could support execution, but investors may initially view management transitions as an operational uncertainty. Arcutis Announces Key Commercial Leadership Changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider selling was limited and prearranged: Three executives sold a combined 6,560 shares to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards under Rule 10b5-1 plans, reducing the bearish significance of the transactions.

Arcutis Biotherapeutics Company Profile

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.