Arcturus Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ARCT) Downgraded to "Strong Sell" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Arcturus Therapeutics to “Strong Sell”, while Weiss Ratings maintained a “sell (D-)” rating. Despite this, the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy,” with a $24.25 target price.
• ARCT shares opened at $5.76 after falling 2.7%, near their 12-month low of $5.50 and well below the 12-month high of $24.17. The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.95 per share, beating estimates, but revenue of $2.06 million significantly missed the $6.30 million consensus.
• Institutional investors own 94.54% of the company, with several major funds increasing their positions. Arcturus is developing mRNA medicines and vaccines using its STARR® and LUNAR® platforms, including candidates for phenylketonuria and COVID-19.

Arcturus Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ARCT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Arcturus Therapeutics in a research report on Friday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $24.25.

Arcturus Therapeutics Trading Down 2.7%

Shares of ARCT opened at $5.76 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $163.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.05 and a beta of 2.37. Arcturus Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $5.50 and a 12 month high of $24.17. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.43.

Arcturus Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ARCT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.95) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.03) by $0.08. Arcturus Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 143.80% and a negative return on equity of 36.55%. The firm had revenue of $2.06 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.30 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Arcturus Therapeutics will post -3.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arcturus Therapeutics

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ARK Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Arcturus Therapeutics by 39.4% during the 4th quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 2,611,099 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $16,006,000 after buying an additional 738,378 shares during the period. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. raised its holdings in Arcturus Therapeutics by 12.9% in the 1st quarter. Amova Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 2,288,935 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $17,648,000 after acquiring an additional 262,347 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its position in Arcturus Therapeutics by 12.9% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 2,288,935 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $17,671,000 after acquiring an additional 262,347 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Arcturus Therapeutics by 4.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,885,605 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $34,752,000 after acquiring an additional 75,440 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Arcturus Therapeutics by 112.0% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 620,055 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $11,428,000 after acquiring an additional 327,626 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.54% of the company's stock.

Arcturus Therapeutics Company Profile

Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing messenger RNA (mRNA) medicines that address a range of diseases. The company leverages its proprietary STARR® mRNA platform to enable precise control over mRNA expression, supported by its lipid nanoparticle delivery technology, LUNAR®. Arcturus's approach is designed to address both therapeutic and prophylactic applications, with an emphasis on vaccines and treatments for rare genetic and infectious diseases.

The company's pipeline includes ARCT-810, an mRNA therapeutic candidate for phenylketonuria (PKU), and ARCT-021 (also known as LUNAR-COV19), a COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed in collaboration with Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore.

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