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Novo Nordisk (NVO) Launches Wegovy in UK Amid Supply Issues
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Novo Nordisk A/S (NVO - Free Report) announced the launch of Wegovy (semaglutide injection 2.4mg) in the U.K. on Sep 4, 2023, in a controlled and limited fashion, to tackle the supply constraints related to Wegovy.
Wegovy, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, was first approved in the United States in 2021 for weight management in people living with obesity. It is indicated for adults as well as pediatric patients aged 12 years and older.
The U.K. becomes the fifth country where Novo Nordisk launched Wegovy after the United States, Norway, Denmark and Germany. The company aims to provide an additional option to support people living with obesity by making Wegovy available in the U.K., looking forward to working with healthcare providers to achieve this.
Per NVO, the obesity management drug will be made available in the U.K. through two channels. The first channel will be through the specialist NHS weight management services for people in the U.K., who meet the National Institute for Care and Excellence (NICE) criteria. The drug will also be made available privately through a registered healthcare professional.
Furthermore, Novo Nordisk reported that patients receiving Wegovy through the specialist NHS services will also receive support with diet and exercise measures to follow through a multi-disciplinary team.
Year to date, shares of Novo Nordisk have shot up 39.8% compared with the industry’s 7.2% rise.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The company also reaffirmed in the press release that it expects the supply of Wegovy to be constrained for the foreseeable future. Under such circumstances, the company has decided to allocate a proportion of the available supply of the drug in the U.K. for use only within the NHS to allow healthcare professionals to implement NICE guidance.
However, per a Reuters article, there is a rising concern among medical experts in the U.K. regarding wealthy people who could get easier access to Wegovy compared with those seeking treatment in the country's state-run health service. Availability of Wegovy in the private market, amid increasing demand, is expected to shoot up prices for the drug, which would, in turn, risk worsening health inequality in the country.
The increasing demand trend of Wegovy is both a boon and a bane for the Danish pharma company. On one hand, Novo Nordisk increased its sales and operating profit guidance based on Wegovy prescription trends in the second quarter and higher full-year expectations for sales of Wegovy in the United States. On the other hand, the company is struggling to meet demand outside the United States, even with increased production capacity.
If the supply issues continue to prevail for a long period, it could result in the loss of market share for the company in the presence of other pharma bigwigs, in the obesity and diabetes care market, like Pfizer (PFE - Free Report) and Eli Lilly (LLY - Free Report) .
In May 2023, Pfizer shared study data showing that its oral type II diabetes candidate, danuglipron, helped patients lose weight faster than Novo Nordisk’s popular diabetes weekly injection, Ozempic. Pfizer’s danuglipron is an orally administered, small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist. But this has not been approved yet
In June 2023, Pfizer announced that it is moving forward with the late-stage development of danuglipron to treat adult patients with obesity and Type 2 diabetes mellitus. Pfizer’s present phase IIb study in obesity is fully enrolled and plans for the phase III study will be subject to results from the ongoing phase II study on the candidate.
Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro/tirzepatide, a dual GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist (GIP/GLP-1 RA), was launched in the United States last year for type II diabetes and already competes with Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic/Wegovy. Mounjaro is also approved in Europe and Japan. Its Mounjaro showed superior weight-loss reduction in two late-stage clinical studies (SURMOUNT-3 and SURMOUNT-4) for the obesity indication.
LLY has already filed regulatory applications seeking the expansion of Mounjaro’s indication to include obesity and weight management in the United States and EU. In the United States, the FDA has assigned priority review to the regulatory filing with a decision expected by the end of the year.
Now, if danuglipron is also successful in further studies and eventually approved, it can enjoy strong demand trends as the demand for weight loss drugs is huge and rising, posing a serious threat to Novo Nordisk. Also, danuglipron is an oral pill versus weekly injections with Ozempic/Wegovy, which is an easier-to-use formulation.
In the past 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Dynavax’s 2023 loss per share has narrowed from 51 cents to 24 cents. The estimate for Dynavax’s 2024 earnings per share is currently pegged at 2 cents. Year to date, shares of Dynavax have risen by 36.7%.
DVAX’s earnings beat estimates in two of the trailing four quarters and missed the mark in the other two, delivering an average surprise of 25.78%.
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Novo Nordisk (NVO) Launches Wegovy in UK Amid Supply Issues
Novo Nordisk A/S (NVO - Free Report) announced the launch of Wegovy (semaglutide injection 2.4mg) in the U.K. on Sep 4, 2023, in a controlled and limited fashion, to tackle the supply constraints related to Wegovy.
Wegovy, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, was first approved in the United States in 2021 for weight management in people living with obesity. It is indicated for adults as well as pediatric patients aged 12 years and older.
The U.K. becomes the fifth country where Novo Nordisk launched Wegovy after the United States, Norway, Denmark and Germany. The company aims to provide an additional option to support people living with obesity by making Wegovy available in the U.K., looking forward to working with healthcare providers to achieve this.
Per NVO, the obesity management drug will be made available in the U.K. through two channels. The first channel will be through the specialist NHS weight management services for people in the U.K., who meet the National Institute for Care and Excellence (NICE) criteria. The drug will also be made available privately through a registered healthcare professional.
Furthermore, Novo Nordisk reported that patients receiving Wegovy through the specialist NHS services will also receive support with diet and exercise measures to follow through a multi-disciplinary team.
Year to date, shares of Novo Nordisk have shot up 39.8% compared with the industry’s 7.2% rise.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The company also reaffirmed in the press release that it expects the supply of Wegovy to be constrained for the foreseeable future. Under such circumstances, the company has decided to allocate a proportion of the available supply of the drug in the U.K. for use only within the NHS to allow healthcare professionals to implement NICE guidance.
However, per a Reuters article, there is a rising concern among medical experts in the U.K. regarding wealthy people who could get easier access to Wegovy compared with those seeking treatment in the country's state-run health service. Availability of Wegovy in the private market, amid increasing demand, is expected to shoot up prices for the drug, which would, in turn, risk worsening health inequality in the country.
The increasing demand trend of Wegovy is both a boon and a bane for the Danish pharma company. On one hand, Novo Nordisk increased its sales and operating profit guidance based on Wegovy prescription trends in the second quarter and higher full-year expectations for sales of Wegovy in the United States. On the other hand, the company is struggling to meet demand outside the United States, even with increased production capacity.
If the supply issues continue to prevail for a long period, it could result in the loss of market share for the company in the presence of other pharma bigwigs, in the obesity and diabetes care market, like Pfizer (PFE - Free Report) and Eli Lilly (LLY - Free Report) .
In May 2023, Pfizer shared study data showing that its oral type II diabetes candidate, danuglipron, helped patients lose weight faster than Novo Nordisk’s popular diabetes weekly injection, Ozempic. Pfizer’s danuglipron is an orally administered, small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist. But this has not been approved yet
In June 2023, Pfizer announced that it is moving forward with the late-stage development of danuglipron to treat adult patients with obesity and Type 2 diabetes mellitus. Pfizer’s present phase IIb study in obesity is fully enrolled and plans for the phase III study will be subject to results from the ongoing phase II study on the candidate.
Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro/tirzepatide, a dual GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist (GIP/GLP-1 RA), was launched in the United States last year for type II diabetes and already competes with Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic/Wegovy. Mounjaro is also approved in Europe and Japan. Its Mounjaro showed superior weight-loss reduction in two late-stage clinical studies (SURMOUNT-3 and SURMOUNT-4) for the obesity indication.
LLY has already filed regulatory applications seeking the expansion of Mounjaro’s indication to include obesity and weight management in the United States and EU. In the United States, the FDA has assigned priority review to the regulatory filing with a decision expected by the end of the year.
Now, if danuglipron is also successful in further studies and eventually approved, it can enjoy strong demand trends as the demand for weight loss drugs is huge and rising, posing a serious threat to Novo Nordisk. Also, danuglipron is an oral pill versus weekly injections with Ozempic/Wegovy, which is an easier-to-use formulation.
Novo Nordisk A/S Price and Consensus
Novo Nordisk A/S price-consensus-chart | Novo Nordisk A/S Quote
Zacks Rank and Stock to Consider
Novo Nordisk currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
A better-ranked stock from the overall medical sector is Dynavax Technologies (DVAX - Free Report) , carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present.
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
In the past 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Dynavax’s 2023 loss per share has narrowed from 51 cents to 24 cents. The estimate for Dynavax’s 2024 earnings per share is currently pegged at 2 cents. Year to date, shares of Dynavax have risen by 36.7%.
DVAX’s earnings beat estimates in two of the trailing four quarters and missed the mark in the other two, delivering an average surprise of 25.78%.