Exploring Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT) Investor Profile: Who’s Buying and Why?

You're looking at Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT) and wondering why the stock is trading near its 52-week low of $7.26, but the smart money is still holding strong. Honestly, the investor profile tells a clear story of high-risk, high-reward biotech conviction, not a retail trade; institutional ownership is an eye-popping 95.32%, with giants like BlackRock, Inc. and Vanguard Group Inc. holding significant stakes, signaling deep belief in the pipeline's potential. Here's the quick math: while the company reported Q3 2025 revenue of only $17.2 million and is still posting a net loss of ($0.49) per diluted share, those institutions are betting on the proprietary STARR self-amplifying messenger RNA (sa-mRNA) platform, especially the positive Phase 2 interim data for their Cystic Fibrosis and OTC deficiency treatments. What this estimate hides is the significant volatility-the stock is down over 57% from its 2024 high-but with an average analyst target price suggesting a potential upside to $36.00, the big players are clearly focused on the 2026 commercialization and pivotal trial milestones, not the near-term revenue dips. The question isn't if the technology works, but when a blockbuster therapeutic hits the market.

Who Invests in Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT) and Why?

If you're looking at Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT), you're essentially looking at a stock driven by institutional conviction, not retail buzz. The direct takeaway is that a massive 94.54% of the company's stock is held by institutional investors and hedge funds as of late 2025, which means the market's view is largely shaped by big money and its outlook on the company's messenger RNA (mRNA) platform.

Key Investor Types: The Institutional Dominance

The investor profile of Arcturus Therapeutics is a classic biotech story: high risk, high potential reward, and therefore, dominated by sophisticated institutional capital. Retail investors (individual traders) hold a smaller, but still meaningful, portion of the float, likely around 13.18% when you factor in public companies and individual investors. This is not a stock where a Reddit-fueled short squeeze is the primary force; it's a battle of analysts and portfolio managers.

The institutional ownership is split across a few key categories, each with a different mandate. Passive funds, like those managed by Vanguard Group Inc. and Blackrock, Inc., hold significant stakes because ARCT is included in various indexes and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that track the biotech sector. Active managers and hedge funds, however, are the ones making the big, directional bets.

• Passive Institutional: Hold for index tracking and broad biotech exposure.
• Active Mutual Funds: Seek long-term growth from pipeline success.
• Hedge Funds: Execute high-conviction, high-volatility growth strategies.

Here is a quick look at the top institutional holders, based on their latest public filings from the third quarter of 2025 (9/30/2025 data):

Investment Motivations: Betting on mRNA Technology and Future Profitability

The core motivation for buying Arcturus Therapeutics is a belief in their proprietary LUNAR lipid-mediated delivery and STARR mRNA technology platforms. This is a pure growth play. Investors aren't buying for dividends-the company doesn't pay one-they're buying for the potential of a blockbuster drug.

The near-term focus is on the company's pipeline, which targets infectious disease vaccines and treatments for rare diseases in the liver and respiratory systems. Investors are keenly watching clinical trial results for key candidates. Honestly, a single positive Phase 3 readout could send the stock soaring; a negative one, like the disappointing interim Phase 2 results for ARCT-032, creates a massive headwind.

The financial picture for 2025 is still a loss, but the trajectory is what matters. Analysts forecast Arcturus Therapeutics to report a full-year 2025 revenue of approximately $97.6 million, with an expected net loss around ($76.47 million). Here's the quick math: investors are willing to stomach the loss today because they anticipate an earnings surge of 64.77% per year, with a path to profitability within three years. That's the growth story in a nutshell. This is why the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT) are so critical for institutional investors to track.

Investment Strategies: Growth, Momentum, and Volatility

The typical strategies seen among ARCT investors are heavily skewed toward high-growth and momentum trading, especially among the hedge funds. The high institutional ownership and the nature of clinical-stage biotech make this stock defintely volatile.

The consensus analyst rating is a 'Moderate Buy' with a one-year average price target of around $36, suggesting a significant potential upside from the current price. This consensus reinforces the growth-oriented strategy.

• Growth Investing: The primary strategy, focused on the potential for massive revenue growth from successful pipeline commercialization.
• Short-Term Trading/Momentum: Firms like Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership saw a massive quarterly increase in shares of over 1,371.4% in late 2025, a clear sign of a short-term, momentum-based trade.
• Long-Term Passive Holding: The presence of index funds ensures a stable, long-term base that buys and holds the stock regardless of short-term news.

What this estimate hides is the extreme volatility. A biotech stock's price is often a binary bet on clinical outcomes, so expect wild swings. Your action here is to understand which camp your investment falls into: are you a long-term believer in the mRNA platform, or are you trying to trade the clinical trial catalysts? The majority of the capital is betting on the former, but the trading volume is often driven by the latter.

Institutional Ownership and Major Shareholders of Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT)

You're looking at Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT) and trying to figure out who the big players are and, more importantly, what they see that you might be missing. The short answer is that institutional money is heavily committed: as of the most recent filings, institutional investors and hedge funds own a staggering 94.54% to 95.32% of the stock. That's a massive vote of confidence, but it also means the stock is highly sensitive to their collective movements.

This level of concentration is typical for a clinical-stage biotechnology company. It tells us that the investment thesis is a high-conviction, long-term bet on the success of their messenger RNA (mRNA) platform and pipeline, not a short-term trading vehicle for retail investors. It's a specialist's game right now.

Top Institutional Investors: Who Holds the Keys?

When you see institutional ownership this high, you know the company's fate is largely in the hands of major asset managers. The top shareholders are generally colossal firms managing trillions of dollars, and their positions in Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. reflect a belief in the company's strategic pivot toward rare disease therapeutics.

Here's a quick look at the top institutional holders, based on the most recent publicly disclosed data, which for the largest players often stems from late 2024 filings but remains the foundational ownership structure:

Note that the share counts for Federated Hermes, BlackRock, Inc., and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings, Inc. are from Q4 2023 filings, but they establish the core ownership structure. ARK Investment Management LLC, a firm known for its focus on disruptive innovation, reported owning approximately 2,008,480 shares in its Q1 2025 filing. These are the firms that drive the stock's long-term price action, not the day-to-day noise.

Recent Shifts: Are Institutions Buying or Selling?

The trend in 2025 has been a modest, yet consistent, increase in holdings by many large investors, signaling continued confidence in the company's refocused strategy. While some firms are taking profits or adjusting positions, the net flow has been positive accumulation.

Here are some concrete examples of accumulation from the first half of the 2025 fiscal year:

• ARK Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings by 3.9% in Q1 2025, adding 74,629 shares.
• US Bancorp DE significantly raised its stake by a massive 218.9% during Q1 2025.
• Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. increased its position by 4.5% in Q1 2025.
• New positions were established in Q1 2025, including a $191,000 position by Diversify Advisory Services LLC and a $244,000 position by Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd.

To be fair, you also see hedge funds like Susquehanna International Group, LLP and Wolverine Trading, LLC actively trading in Q3 2025, buying and selling both shares and options, which is normal for sophisticated market makers. But the overall picture is one of institutional accumulation, especially from those focused on the long-term biotech growth story.

Impact of Institutional Investors on Strategy and Stock Price

The role of these large investors is twofold: they provide capital stability and they exert strategic influence. When you have institutions owning over 94% of the float, their collective buying and selling dictates the stock price movement. The current accumulation suggests they approve of management's direction.

The key driver for their buying is Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc.'s bold strategic shift, announced in 2025, to pivot away from non-core vaccine programs and focus intently on its core mRNA therapeutics for rare diseases, like ARCT-032 for cystic fibrosis and ARCT-810 for ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) deficiency. This move extends the company's cash runway into 2028, which is a critical financial cushion for a development-stage biotech. Institutional investors are betting that this focus on high-impact, high-value orphan drug markets will translate into commercial success.

Here's the quick math: fewer, more focused clinical programs mean lower operating expenses. In Q2 2025, operating expenses dropped by 43.7% year-over-year, from $71 million to $39.9 million, a clear sign of fiscal prudence. This capital efficiency, combined with positive interim Phase II data for their lead programs, is why institutional money is sticking around and even adding to positions. They are funding the runway to the next major clinical milestone.

For a deeper dive into the company's financial stability that underpins this institutional confidence, I defintely recommend reading Breaking Down Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors.

Key Investors and Their Impact on Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT)

The investor profile for Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT) is dominated by institutional money, which holds a commanding position in the company's equity. This high institutional ownership-around 94.54% of the stock as of late 2025-means major funds, not individual retail traders, are the primary drivers of stock movement and valuation.

The key takeaway is that the stock's performance is tightly coupled with the conviction of a few large, long-term institutional holders who are betting on the company's messenger RNA (mRNA) technology pipeline. You need to watch their quarterly moves, not the daily noise. This is a biotech story, so the big money is focused on clinical milestones, not quarterly earnings per share (EPS) alone.

The Institutional Heavyweights: Who Owns the Most

The largest shareholders are global asset managers and specialized funds, reflecting a belief in the long-term, disruptive potential of Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc.'s proprietary LUNAR and STARR mRNA platforms. These are typically passive, long-horizon investors, but their sheer size gives them significant influence.

As of the September 30, 2025, filings, the top institutional holders control a substantial portion of the outstanding shares:

• Federated Hermes, Inc.: Holds the largest stake with 4,694,060 shares.
• BlackRock, Inc.: A major passive holder with 2,564,644 shares.
• The Vanguard Group, Inc.: Another index-fund giant holding 1,885,605 shares.
• ARK Investment Management LLC: A key thematic investor holding 1,872,721 shares.

For a company with a negative consensus EPS forecast of ($2.22) for the full fiscal year 2025, this level of institutional commitment signals that investors are valuing the pipeline-specifically the cystic fibrosis (ARCT-032) and ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) deficiency (ARCT-810) programs-over near-term profitability.

Investor Influence: Passive Giants and Active Thematic Bets

The influence of these investors is generally passive, but still powerful. Firms like BlackRock, Inc. and The Vanguard Group, Inc. primarily file Schedule 13G, meaning their investment is passive and not intended to change or influence control of the company.

However, their massive holdings mean their voting power shapes corporate governance, including board elections and executive compensation. When a passive investor like BlackRock, Inc. holds 9.03% of your company, they don't need to be an activist to get management's attention.

ARK Investment Management LLC, led by Cathie Wood, is the notable exception to the passive rule. They are a thematic investor, and their continued investment in Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. is a direct vote of confidence in the transformative potential of mRNA technology in rare diseases. Their buying and selling is often scrutinized by the market as a proxy for conviction in the entire biotech innovation space.

Recent Moves and the Biotech Volatility

The period leading up to November 2025 has seen significant, and sometimes contradictory, investor activity, which is typical for a clinical-stage biotech company. The market is reacting to clinical trial data and strategic shifts.

Here are some of the most notable moves from the third quarter of 2025 (Q3 2025) filings:

The net buying by major index funds and thematic funds like Vanguard Group Inc. and ARK Investment Management LLC, who added 75,440 and 157,681 shares, respectively, in the quarter ending September 30, 2025, shows a continued belief in the long-term story despite the company's Q3 2025 net loss of $13.5 million.

You can see the tension here: while the big index funds are accumulating, some hedge funds like Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC are trimming their position by 116,580 shares, likely taking profits or de-risking ahead of major clinical data readouts. This is a defintely a battle between long-term conviction and short-term volatility. For a deeper dive into the company's foundation, you can review Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money.

Next Step: Track the Q4 2025 13F filings (due in early 2026) for any major shifts in ownership by Federated Hermes, Inc. or ARK Investment Management LLC, as this will signal their reaction to the recent interim Phase 2 data for the cystic fibrosis program.

Market Impact and Investor Sentiment

You're looking at Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT) and seeing a biotech story with a lot of institutional backing but a volatile stock chart. The quick takeaway is this: major shareholders remain committed, holding a massive stake, but recent clinical setbacks have tanked near-term sentiment, creating a huge disconnect between the street's long-term price targets and the current trading price.

Institutional ownership-the percentage held by big firms like BlackRock, Inc. and Vanguard Group Inc.-is incredibly high at over 94.54% of the shares outstanding. This level of conviction from seasoned money managers suggests a belief in the company's core messenger RNA (mRNA) technology platform, LUNAR, and its long-term pipeline value, despite the near-term noise. Honestly, that kind of institutional concentration is a strong vote of confidence in the underlying science, even if the stock is having a rough time.

To be fair, the immediate sentiment is weak, which you can see in the price action. The stock holds a 'Moderate Buy' consensus from analysts, but the insider sentiment is currently 'Neutral'. Near- and mid-term trading signals are weak, pressuring the overall neutral long-term outlook.

The Disconnect: Recent Market Reactions to Pipeline News

The stock market's reaction to clinical trial news has been brutal and swift, which is typical for a clinical-stage biotech company. The most significant move recently was the massive sell-off following the Phase 2 trial results for their inhaled mRNA therapy, ARCT-032, for cystic fibrosis.

Here's the quick math: on October 22, 2025, the stock plummeted a staggering 50.17%, closing at $11.54 per share, because the trial failed to show a meaningful improvement in lung function (FEV1). That single event wiped out half the company's value overnight. This kind of volatility is the risk you sign up for in this sector. The stock continued to fall, trading at just $7.27 on November 14, 2025, down -27.08% in the preceding 10 days.

Still, it's not all bad news. While ARCT-032 was a huge disappointment, the company reported positive interim Phase 2 data for ARCT-810, their mRNA therapy for Ornithine Transcarbamylase (OTC) deficiency, and they are preparing for regulatory meetings in the first half of 2026. This is the kind of binary event that can send the stock soaring again. You can read more about the company's history and mission here: Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (ARCT): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money.

• Stock dropped 50.17% on October 22, 2025, after ARCT-032 data.
• Q3 2025 net loss was approximately $13.5 million.
• Cash runway extended into 2028 due to cost cuts.

Analyst Perspectives and Key Investor Influence

The analyst community is trying to balance the long-term potential of the LUNAR platform against the recent setbacks. This balancing act is why you see such a wide range in 12-month price targets. The consensus price target from analysts is around $36.00, but the range is massive, from a low of $9.00 (Citigroup) to a high of $72.00 (Piper Sandler), with both ratings updated in November 2025.

What this estimate hides is the speculative nature of the valuation. The high targets are based on the successful commercialization of pipeline assets, while the low targets reflect the immediate financial and clinical risks. For example, the delay of the KOSTAIVE BLA filing due to sudden FDA regulatory changes also added to the uncertainty, putting pressure on the stock.

The key institutional investors, including Federated Hermes, Inc., BlackRock, Inc., and ARK Investment Management LLC, are holding significant stakes, which influences market perception. Their continued presence, and in some cases, modest increases in Q2 holdings, signals a belief that the current price is defintely undervalued relative to the potential of the remaining pipeline, like ARCT-810.

Here is a snapshot of the top institutional holders as of September 30, 2025, which shows where the real money is betting:

Finance: Monitor the Q4 2025 13F filings closely for any significant changes in the top institutional positions, as that will be the next clear signal of a shift in major shareholder sentiment.