Shares of Wegovy and Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk fell more than 21% Tuesday, pacing what would be the stock’s largest plunge since the 1980s after the Danish pharmaceutical firm cut its full-year guidance for sales and profit, as growth for its obesity and weight loss treatments are expected to slow in the U.S.
The Danish firm said weaker Wegovy and Ozempic sales are expected as competition ramps up and compounded options become more available.
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Key Facts
Novo Nordisk’s shares plummeted about 21% to just above $54 as of around 10:50 a.m. EDT, marking what would be the company’s largest loss since a 19% decline in April 2002 and nearing its next-largest decline of 23% in October 1984.
The pharmaceutical firm said Tuesday expectations for its full-year sales growth in 2025 were lowered to between 8% to 14%, down from an earlier target of 13% to 21%, and profit growth lowered to between 10% to 16%, down from estimates of 16% to 24%.
Novo Nordisk said it expects sales growth for Wegovy and Ozempic in the U.S. to decline amid “slower-than-expected market expansion and competition” and “persistent use” of compounded alternatives.
The sale of “unsafe and unlawful” compounded drugs—generic drugs altered to meet a patient’s needs—has continued despite the Food and Drug Administration indicating it would take action against distributors by April 22, Novo Nordisk claims.
Novo Nordisk is “deeply concerned” that, without “aggressive intervention” by federal and state regulators and law enforcement, patients will be exposed to the “significant risks by knockoff” drugs, the company said.
What To Watch For
Novo Nordisk will release its Q2 earnings report on Aug. 6.
Tangent
Maziar Mike Doustdar was announced Tuesday as Novo Nordisk’s new president and CEO, after Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen was abruptly ousted in May. Doustdar’s appointment will take effect Aug. 7. He previously served as the company’s vice president of international operations, a unit Novo Nordisk said had sales more than double to about $17.3 billion in 2024 under Doustdar.
Key Background
Shares of Copenhagen-based Novo Nordisk have dropped 37% on the year, as the company has battled increased availability of compounded Ozempic and Wegovy. The FDA allowed pharmacies to compound and sell copies of both drugs amid shortages, and production of these drugs was granted a period during which the agency would not take action. The FDA has since declared shortages of Novo Nordisk’s weight loss and obesity drugs as “resolved” and removed the drugs from its shortage list, though the company has claimed compounded drugs—which are unapproved by the FDA—are still on the market. Novo Nordisk has asked the FDA to outright ban compounded Ozempic and Wegovy, as the agency has noted various “concerns” about the drugs as they do not meet the agency’s requirements for safety, effectiveness or quality. The FDA has warned of counterfeit Ozempic on the market in recent months, and said the products could cause adverse reactions like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain.
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