NEW YORK, January 1, 2026, 21:21 ET — Market closed
- ARQT last closed at $29.04, up 3.42% in the final U.S. session of 2025
- Shares traded between $28.08 and $29.67 on about 1.87 million shares
- Next catalysts include expected Feb. 24 earnings and a June 29 FDA decision deadline
With U.S. markets closed for New Year’s Day, shares of Arcutis Biotherapeutics Inc (ARQT) last closed up 3.42% at $29.04 in the final trading session of 2025. The stock ranged from $28.08 to $29.67 on volume of about 1.87 million shares. ARQT is up about 99% over the past year and has traded between $11.13 and $31.77 over the last 52 weeks. 1
The year-end gain keeps the commercial-stage immuno-dermatology company in focus as investors reset positions for 2026. For Arcutis, the near-term trade has turned on prescription momentum for its ZORYVE franchise and how cleanly it can expand indications while protecting exclusivity.
That matters because Arcutis is no longer judged only on clinical milestones. The stock’s biggest swings have increasingly followed product execution — demand, payer coverage and whether revenue growth can outpace rising commercial costs.
In November, Arcutis said the FDA accepted a supplemental New Drug Application, or sNDA — a request to add a new use for an already approved medicine — for ZORYVE (roflumilast) cream 0.3% in plaque psoriasis patients ages 2 to 5. The agency set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target date of June 29, 2026, the FDA’s deadline for action on the application. “This milestone brings us closer to helping families and clinicians caring for young children with plaque psoriasis,” CEO Frank Watanabe said. 2
Broader markets ended 2025’s final session lower in holiday-thinned trading, with the S&P 500 down 0.74% and the Nasdaq off 0.76%, Reuters reported. U.S. stock markets were closed Thursday for New Year’s Day and are set to reopen Friday. 3
Biotech was softer too: the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index finished Dec. 31 lower, with its adjusted close at 5,700.73 versus 5,749.61 a day earlier, according to Yahoo Finance historical data. 4
For Arcutis, investors have also been watching the defensive side of the story — how long it can keep generic competition at bay. A quarterly filing for the period ended Sept. 30 showed Arcutis is in U.S. patent litigation against Padagis over a proposed generic version of ZORYVE 0.3% cream and that Teva has filed oppositions at the European Patent Office challenging two European patents tied to topical roflumilast; oral proceedings for one opposition are scheduled for Jan. 8, 2026. A patent opposition is a process that allows third parties to contest a patent’s validity. 5
Those proceedings do not change prescriptions day to day, but they can shape longer-term expectations for pricing power and market share. Any sign that exclusivity could shorten tends to pressure valuation multiples for commercial-stage biotechs.
Before next session: Traders will watch whether ARQT can hold above Wednesday’s $28.08 low and reclaim the $30 level, a common technical “round-number” marker. Volume tends to normalize after the holidays, which can sharpen reactions to even modest headline flow.
Zacks’ earnings calendar lists Arcutis’ next quarterly report for Feb. 24, with expectations for about $0.02 per share. Investors typically focus on net product revenue trends and any commentary on gross-to-net adjustments — the discounts and rebates that reduce the price collected per prescription — along with cash runway and operating expense discipline. 6
Beyond that, the June 29 FDA deadline remains the next major fundamental waypoint, with the decision potentially expanding ZORYVE’s label into younger pediatric patients. How Arcutis navigates that timeline — and the competitive and legal backdrop around its roflumilast franchise — is likely to set the tone for the stock early in 2026.
