It’s been a rock for several months Novo nordisk.
IQVIA prescription data suggests Novo’s obesity drug Wegovy is losing competition from competitors Yililai. Wegovy’s potential successor, Cagrisema, Short Investor expectations are in a closely watched Phase 3 trial. Last year, Novo shares fell more than 20%, and there are concerns that the company will get worse when it releases its fourth-quarter earnings and 2025 outlook on Wednesday.
Instead, Novo beat the fourth quarter expectations and offered a 16% to 24% sales growth forecast — consistent with what 20% Wall Street looked for. Novo shares rose more than 4% on Wednesday.
Novo CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen raised concerns about Novo falling behind Lily in an interview with CNBC.
“We are very confident that as we enter the year we will be offering more and more introductory doses, we can see a nice step in our number and serve more and more patients,” Jorgensen said. “You can say that the guidance we gave this year proves an important ramp for our business. So we are confident in the market demand and our supply and competitiveness in that market.”
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People taking Wegovy start with the lowest dose (or appetizing dose) and then work to reach a stronger formula so their bodies can get used to the medication. Sometimes, Novo limits the starting dose for shipments because it struggles To make enough medication and to want to ensure that people who have used the medication can stay on the medication.
The company said in its earnings call that Novo’s 2025 sales guidance means a 30% increase in the number of patients taking one of the company’s GLP-1 drugs, such as Ozempic.
The company also attempts to assure investors the effectiveness of Cagrisema. Jorgensen said some people lost weight quickly, while others continued to lose weight, showing no signs of stopping at the end of the trial, so they might need longer treatment.
“I’m very confident in the effectiveness of biology here,” he said.
People are watching earlier treatments – the amygdala – even closer. The experimental drug recently showed encouraging results in phase 1B/2A trials.
Jorgensen said Novo is talking to the FDA about the possibility of going directly to the third phase of the trial.
