Novo Nordisk falls 13.8% pre-market as weight loss drug trial loses to Eli Lilly's product
Key Points
- Novo Nordisk's drug CagriSema failed to meet the primary clinical endpoint of non-inferiority in weight loss compared to Eli Lilly's tirzepatide.
- The company's stock price plummeted on Monday, reaching its lowest level since June 2021.
- The Danish pharmaceutical company is simultaneously facing multiple pressures, including intensified competition, price reductions in the U.S. market, and the loss of exclusive protection for Wegovy and Ozempic in some markets.
Novo Nordisk's stock fell by 13.8% in pre-market trading on Monday after the company announced that its next-generation weight loss drug failed to achieve the key objective of proving it is not inferior to Eli Lilly's competing product.
Novo Nordisk stated in a Monday morning press release that after 84 weeks of treatment, its drug CagriSema did not reach the primary endpoint of non-inferiority in weight loss compared to Eli Lilly's tirzepatide.
Tirzepatide is the active ingredient in Eli Lilly's blockbuster drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound, both of which have surpassed Novo Nordisk's semaglutide (brand names Ozempic and Wegovy) in U.S. prescription volume.
Novo Nordisk's Copenhagen-listed shares dropped 15% to 256 Danish kroner, hitting the lowest level since June 2021.
Eli Lilly's stock price rose 3.5% in pre-market trading.
Novo Nordisk said that patients using a 2.4mg dose of CagriSema lost 23% of their weight after 84 weeks, while those using a 15mg dose of tirzepatide lost 25.5%.
The company stated it will conduct more clinical trials for CagriSema, including testing higher combination doses. This drug is a compound formulation of semaglutide and cagrilintide, the latter being another appetite-regulating hormone secreted by the pancreas in which Novo Nordisk had placed high hopes.
Novo Nordisk Chief Scientific Officer Martin Holst Lange stated:
“CagriSema has the potential to become the first GLP‑1/amylin combination weight-loss drug to reach the market, demonstrating that cagrilintide can deliver significantly greater clinical weight-loss efficacy than a single GLP‑1 mechanism on top of the known benefits of semaglutide.” He added that subsequent trials will “comprehensively evaluate CagriSema's weight-loss potential.”
Nevertheless, the clinical trial results announced Monday dealt another blow to the Danish pharmaceutical company—its product failed to outperform already marketed competitors. In 2025 alone, the company's stock price has plunged nearly 50%.
Earlier this month, Novo Nordisk projected that sales and profit growth in 2026 would slow to 5% to 13% due to fierce competition, price reductions in the U.S. market, and the loss of exclusive sales rights for Wegovy and Ozempic in some markets.
At that time, the company’s CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen told CNBC:
“People should expect the stock price to fall first and then recover.”
Editor: Guo Mingyu
Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.
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