Novo Nordisk Raises Outlook as Wegovy Pill Sales Beat Forecasts
The Danish drugmaker topped expectations on sales and operating profit, lifted its full-year guidance and named a new finance chief.
Novo Nordisk reported stronger-than-expected third-quarter results on Wednesday and raised its outlook for the year, helped by sales of its new weight-loss pill, CNBC reported. The company’s shares rose as much as 6 percent.
The quarter
The Danish drugmaker posted sales of 79.2 billion Danish kroner, about $11.9 billion, up 4 percent from a year earlier. Analysts had expected 73.6 billion kroner, according to CNBC.
Adjusted operating profit was 31.7 billion kroner, compared with forecasts of 28.6 billion.
The pill
Sales of the Wegovy pill, an oral version of the company’s blockbuster weight-loss injection, reached 5.4 billion kroner in the quarter. That beat analyst expectations of about 4.5 billion kroner, CNBC reported.
The pill is a key part of Novo’s effort to regain ground in the obesity drug market, where it has faced intense competition from Eli Lilly and pressure on prices.
A better outlook
Novo now expects adjusted sales and operating profit for the year to range from a 2 percent decline to 2 percent growth at constant exchange rates. Its previous guidance called for results ranging from a 6 percent decline to flat.
Chief Executive Mike Doustdar urged caution about reading too much into a single quarter. “Turnaround and recovery is not done based on one data point,” he said, according to CNBC.
Leadership change
Novo also announced that Chief Financial Officer Karsten Munk Knudsen will leave the company at the end of 2026. He will be succeeded by Luigi La Corte, CNBC reported.
The stakes
Novo Nordisk was for years one of Europe’s most valuable companies on the strength of its diabetes and obesity drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy. Its shares fell sharply over the past two years amid slowing growth, competition and profit warnings.
Wednesday’s results suggest that the oral version of Wegovy is catching on faster than analysts expected. Investors will be watching whether that momentum continues as more patients and insurers gain access to the pill and as competitors bring their own oral treatments to market.
Sources: Associated Press, CNBC.
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