No recommendation
No news or research item is a personal recommendation to deal. Hargreaves Lansdown may not share ShareCast's (powered by Digital Look) views.
(Sharecast News) - Shares in Novo Nordisk plunged on Monday, after a trial for a new weight-loss treatment failed to meet its end target.
The Danish owner of obesity and diabetes drugs Ozempic and Wegovy said novel treatment CagriSema - a once-weekly injection combining two molecules - achieved 23% weight loss after 84 weeks of treatment in an open-label phase 3 trial.
In contrast, patients who were given 15mg of tirzepatide achieved 25.5% weight loss. Tirzepatide is the active ingredient in rival Eli Lilly treatments, Mounjaro and Zepbound.
The end target had been for CagriSema to show non-inferiority on weight loss when compared to tirzepatide.
As at 1130 GMT, the stock had plunged 16% in both Copenhagen and in pre-market trading in New York.
However, Martin Holst Lange, chief scientific officer at Novo Nordisk, said the company was "pleased" with the 23% weight loss.
"CagriSema has the potential to be the first GLP-1/amylin-combination product to reach the market for people living with obesity," he added. "Based on learnings from completed studies, we look forward to the Redefine 11 readout and the initiation of the higher-dose CagriSema trial, which are both designed to assess the full weight-loss potential of CagriSema."
Redefine is the global clinical development programme for the use of CagriSema in obesity, and includes a number of phase 3 trials.
CagriSema contains semaglutide, the active ingredient in GLP-1 drugs such as Wegovy, and new molecule cagrilintide. Novo is looking to secure a new pipeline of drugs as it battles various headwinds, including stiff competition for its blockbuster treatments, falling prices in the US and looming patent expiry dates.
It submitted CagriSema to the US Food and Drug Administration in December, based on earlier trial data. A decision is anticipated by "late 2026", Novo said.
The value of investments can go down in value as well as up, so you could get back less than you invest. It is therefore important that you understand the risks and commitments. This website is not personal advice based on your circumstances. So you can make informed decisions for yourself we aim to provide you with the best information, best service and best prices. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment please contact us for advice.