Wegovy pill sales smash forecasts after launch as Novo Nordisk hikes guidance
The company said the pill logged about 1.3 million prescriptions in the first quarter and helped lift profit above forecasts.
- On Wednesday, Novo Nordisk beat first-quarter profit forecasts as Wegovy pill sales reached 2.26 billion kroner, well above the 1.16 billion kroner analyst estimate. The company raised its 2026 guidance, now expecting adjusted sales and operating profit declines of 4% to 12%.
- Novo has spent the past year on the defensive, contending with disappointing trial results and weaker sales that erased more than $400 billion in market value since 2024. The company is banking on the Wegovy pill to drive a near-term recovery.
- Total first-quarter sales jumped 32% to 96.8 billion Danish kroner, while operating profit surged 65% to 59.6 billion kroner, both far exceeding analyst expectations. The Wegovy pill recorded around 1.3 million prescriptions in the U.S., marking the strongest-ever GLP-1 volume launch.
- Rival Eli Lilly launched its oral weight-loss pill Foundayo in early April, intensifying competition. Lilly CEO David Ricks said the ramp-up was going to take "quarters, not days," as initial Foundayo prescriptions significantly lagged Wegovy's comparable period.
- Novo's stock has slowly tracked upwards since late March on rising hopes for the Wegovy pill, signaling a potential shift in investor sentiment. Analysts continue monitoring GLP-1 prescription trends, which remain a key driver for pharmaceutical valuations amid ongoing market uncertainty.
54 Articles
54 Articles
Scoring 2 Million Prescriptions, Novo’s GLP-1 Pill Crushes Expectations
The weight is finally over for Novo Nordisk. Novo launched its GLP-1 pill, the oral version of Wegovy, in January, and the results are in: Doctors scribbled 1.3 million prescriptions in the first quarter, bringing in $354 million in sales for the Danish drugmaker. That’s double what analysts predicted. One month into the second quarter, Novo said prescriptions have surpassed 2 million. The pill’s blockbuster success led Novo to boost its annual…
Novo Nordisk's oral Wegov surpasses 500 billion won in first-quarter sales; Q1 diabetes and obesity business revenue reaches approximately 14.9 trillion won; 1 million people use Wegov pill within 16 weeks of launch; pursuing competitor US-based Eli Lilly with Foundayor. Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk's oral obesity treatment, Wegov pill.
Novo Nordisk shares rise on strong demand for GLP-1 pill
Novo Nordisk’s new weight loss pill is proving more popular than expected, boosting the company’s shares as it looks to rebound from a prolonged slump. The Danish pharmaceutical giant was briefly Europe’s most valuable firm thanks to Ozempic, but has since struggled to keep up with American rival Eli Lilly. Novo said Wednesday that its Wegovy medication saw some 1.3 million prescriptions in the first quarter of 2026. Its CEO said Novo has benefi…
Is the weight-loss drug boom moving past the Ozempic era?
Sales are booming for Novo Nordisk’s new weight-loss pill. In its first earnings report since the release of an alternative to its hit GLP-1 shot, Novo Nordisk’s outlook is looking a bit brighter. The company, which now makes Wegovy in pill form, raised its guidance for the year in light of the first quarter’s success. Novo reported 1.3 million prescriptions for its weight-loss pill, which is now available in the U.S., in the first quarter of …
Novo Nordisk shares jump after the company raises expectations and provides news about pill sales.
Novo Nordisk's less-bad news on its Wegovy pill boosts earnings and share price
Want to stay on top of the science and politics driving biotech today? Sign up to get our biotech newsletter in your inbox. Good morning. We’ve got more earnings today, and my colleague Drew Joseph brings us a dispatch from Rome. The need-to-know this morning German drug maker Bayer said it is acquiring Perfusion Therapeutics, a privately held developer of treatments for eye diseases. Vivek Ramaswamy, the biotech executive-turned politician, w…
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