Wegovy maker Novo Nordisk cuts profit forecast as US prescriptions tail off | Pharmaceuticals industry

Novo Nordsek in Denmark has reduced its annual revenues and profit after “Flaby” sales disappointing from Wegov to lose weight, as American recipes were placed.

A Breaks in Wegov sales and OzemPIC Diabetes It helped transfer the pharmaceutical maker to the most valuable Europe company, at a value of 615 billion dollars (461 billion pounds) at its peak last year.

However, the prescriptions in the United States, its largest market, have not grown since February, although Novo Nordsek has increased the production of Wegovy to meet the demand for slimming medicine. The market value decreased to half to about 310 billion dollars.

It is possible that the expected sales growth will be deepened from investor fears that the largest company in Denmark is losing its market share for its competitor in the United States, making diabetes and obesity Mountjaro and Zepbound.

Susanna Striter, an analyst at Hargrves Lansdon, said that Novo Nordisk “looked like a meager profit machine, but her sales turned into Fitir as a major competition Eli Lily acquires more muscles in space.”

Wegovy was the first of a new wave of anti-obese drugs-known as the GLP-1 after the bowel hormone-to hit the market. The total sales of the injection drug amounted to 17.36 billion Danish kronor (1.98 billion pounds) between January and March, a 13 % decrease from the previous quarter. This was less than Kroner’s expectations 18.7 billion by analysts.

The total revenues increased by 18 %, pre-tax profits increased by 16 % to 37 billion kronor at fixed exchange rates in the first quarter, but Novo said that it was beaten-made by pharmacies using patented ingredients.

This began in the United States after the drug regulator declared the Wegovy, Ozmpic and Zepbound, allowing patients to buy compound products for less than $ 199 a month, while brand medicines cost more than $ 1,000. The deficiency has eased since then.

“There is a group of two compounds, but the signs of questions still exceed their enforcement. The end of the shortage also raises questions about the health of the American demand. This also reflects in the Novo deal last week with the US health provider to provide We Grouvy to patients with a logic of $ 499,” said Dern Nathan, head of stock research at Hargreaves Lansdown.

The Danish company expects sales growth by 13 % to 21 % this year, a decrease from 16 % to 24 % at the beginning of the year. Operating profits are expected to increase by 16 % to 24 %, compared to the previous estimate of 19 % to 27 %.

Analysts expect sales and operating profits this year by 17.8 % and 21.5 %, respectively.

“In the first quarter of 2025, we achieved 18 % growth in sales and we continued to expand the innovative GLP-1 treatments. However, we reduced our perception of the whole year due to the planned GLP-1, which is affected by rapid expansion of expansion in the United States in the United States,” said Novo CEO Lars Fergard Jurgensen.

The company’s financing head said he was skeptical that Donald Trump’s executive order to reduce the time it is approved by pharmaceutical factories in the United States would change the timelines significantly for this industry.

Trump signed the executive order on Monday as part of the regulations to encourage international drug makers to transfer their operations into the country.

Karsten Munk Knudsen told the pharmaceutical company to build a factory according to quality protocols that are implemented by the US Food and Drug Administration, “Karsten Munk Knudsen told the pharmaceutical company to build a factory according to quality protocols that are implemented by the US Food and Drug Administration. “We welcome if there are more realistic ways through it, but I am skeptical that it will significantly change the timelines in our industry,” he said.

The Danish company also gave up its global gender goals in the United States, after Trump’s executive orders to stop the initiatives of diversity, shares and integration (DEI). Other European drug makers – GSK, Roche and Novartis – took similar steps.

Nathan said that although sales growth in the United States, by 39 %, was “barely pedestrians”, most of her growth was driven by sales in other markets. He said that Novo faced “intense competition” from Eli Lily to provide an oral alternative to Wakfi to the market.

Competition is more likely to heat up with other drug makers who develop GLP-1 drugs of the next generation, and the cheapest public publications coming to the market.

“At the present time, the obesity market is still dominated by Eli Lily and Novo Nordisk, but there are many continuous clinical experiences with competitors looking to enter the space,” said Cina Perry, Coherreter Health Care Analyst.