Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy Sales Hit by US Pricing Pressure
- Revenue squeezed by concessions to pharmacy benefit managers
- Still in the ‘early days’ of saturating US market, CEO says
Novo is vying with Lilly for supremacy in the pharmaceutical industry’s fastest-growing new business, obesity drugs.
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Novo Nordisk A/S reported disappointing sales of its blockbuster weight-loss treatment Wegovy, a rare setback for the Danish drugmaker as it braces for more competition in the booming market.
Revenue from the drug was hit by higher-than-expected price concessions to US managers of pharmacy benefits in the latest quarter, Chief Financial Officer Karsten Knudsen said in a conference call with journalists. He called it a one-time factor, but the size of the shortfall raised concerns among investors about growing pricing pressure as Eli Lilly & Co. muscles in with its rival product.