Novo Nordisk Reports Surging Demand for Diabetes, Obesity Drugs Ozempic and Wegovy
Source: Dow Jones News
By Dominic Chopping
Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk on Thursday expanded its share buyback program by 2 billion Danish kroner ($297 million) as first-quarter earnings beat forecasts amid surging demand for its Ozempic diabetes drug and Wegovy obesity treatment.
Net profit in the quarter rose to DKK19.81 billion from DKK14.21 billion, beating the DKK19.12 billion forecast by analysts in a FactSet poll.
Sales rose 27% to DKK53.37 billion, versus the roughly DKK52.5 billion implied by recent company guidance.
The company last month pre-announced approximate first-quarter earnings figures and raised full-year guidance after noting strong sales trends for Wegovy. It also expects higher sales of Ozempic which was developed to treat diabetes but is being used "off label" by patients to treat obesity as it shares the same active ingredient as Wegovy--semaglutide.
Semaglutide is a glucagon-like peptide-1 drug, or GLP-1; a class of drugs that mimic a hormone to produce more insulin, lower blood glucose and slow stomach emptying after eating, helping to treat both Type 2 diabetes and obesity.
Ozempic sales rose 63% on the year to DKK19.64 billion, while Wegovy sales soared to DKK4.56 billion from DKK1.4 billion.
"Growth is driven by increasing demand for our GLP-1-based diabetes and obesity treatments, particularly in the U.S. where the prescription trend for Wegovy highlights the high unmet need for people living with obesity," Chief Executive Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen said.
The company still expects 2023 sales growth of 24%-30% and operating profit growth of 28%-34% on year in local currencies.
Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 04, 2023 02:16 ET (06:16 GMT)
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