BioCentury
ARTICLE | Product Development

Novo’s market cap slims down on CagriSema obesity data

Placebo-adjusted weight loss falls short of 25%+ expectations, doesn’t differentiate from Lilly’s Zepbound

December 20, 2024 12:24 PM UTC
Updated on Dec 21, 2024 at 1:04 AM UTC

Novo Nordisk received a lump of coal in its stocking this season. It arrived in the form of Phase III data for its most important weight loss candidate, CagriSema, falling short of expectations — leading investors to cut as much as $150 billion in valuation from the Danish pharma.

Novo Nordisk A/S (CSE:NOVO-B; NYSE:NVO) said Friday that CagriSema led to weight loss of 22.7% after 68 weeks vs. 2.3% for placebo in the Phase III REDEFINE 1 trial, showing statistical significance and meeting its primary endpoint. But the results were short of investor expectations of at least 25% weight loss for the product, which combines amylin agonist cagrilintide and GLP-1R agonist semaglutide...