Novo Nordisk hiked its full-year steering Thursday as gross sales of its weight-loss drug Wegovy greater than doubled within the first 3 months of 2024. The Danish pharmaceutical massive, which become Europe’s most precious corporate final yr, mentioned internet gross sales jumped 22% to 65.3 billion Danish kroner ($9.1 billion) within the first quarter, beating estimates. Gross sales of its fashionable diabetes remedy Ozempic rose 42% to 27.8 billion kroner, whilst gross sales of anti-obesity drug Wegovy surged 106% to 9.4 billion kroner. Each medication comprise the similar…
Novo Nordisk
hiked its full-year steering Thursday as gross sales of its weight-loss drug Wegovy greater than doubled within the first 3 months of 2024.
The Danish pharmaceutical massive, which become Europe’s most precious corporate final yr, mentioned internet gross sales jumped 22% to 65.3 billion Danish kroner ($9.1 billion) within the first quarter, beating estimates. Gross sales of its fashionable diabetes remedy Ozempic rose 42% to 27.8 billion kroner, whilst gross sales of anti-obesity drug Wegovy surged 106% to 9.4 billion kroner. Each medication comprise the similar energetic component.
In spite of the robust call for, stocks of the corporate, which faces fierce pageant from U.S. rival
Eli Lilly
,
fell 2.9% in early Eu buying and selling. Its American depositary receipts (ADRs) fell 3.1%.
Nearly all of Wegovy income, 8.2 billion kroner of it, used to be generated within the U.S. however the corporate mentioned call for continues to be exceeding provide.
Novo Nordisk
decreased the availability of decrease dose energy Wegovy in Would possibly 2023 and began regularly expanding it early this yr. Previous this yr Novo’s guardian agreed to drug producer Catalent. Novo then bought 3 production websites that were owned via
Catalent
with a purpose to building up manufacturing.
The drug now has greater than 130,000 weekly prescriptions, the corporate published in its income document.
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The luck of its weight-loss remedies manner 2024 gross sales at the moment are anticipated to be between 19% and 27% upper than the former yr at consistent change charges, when put next with a prior vary of 18% to 26% expansion. It’s a small building up but it surely highlights that Novo Nordisk is making development on expanding output to satisfy the hovering call for.
Traders can have been anticipating extra, specifically given the recognition of Novo’s weight-loss medication and the inventory’s 55% upward push during the last yr. First-quarter gross sales had been additionally not up to the 65.9 billion kroner it generated within the fourth quarter of 2023.
Ramping up manufacturing will probably be a very powerful if Novo Nordisk is to deal with its place as marketplace chief and completely capitalize at the call for for its weight-loss medication.
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Write to Callum Keown at callum.keown@barrons.com
