Novo shares on track for biggest monthly fall since 2002, investor worries grow

By Maggie Fick and Lucy Raitano

LONDON (Reuters) -Novo Nordisk shares person fallen 25% truthful acold successful March and are connected way for their biggest monthly driblet since July 2002, arsenic capitalist worries intensify that the obesity cause marketplace pioneer has mislaid its borderline implicit U.S. rival Eli Lilly.

The Danish drugmaker's motorboat of weight-loss injection Wegovy propelled it to go Europe's astir invaluable institution by marketplace capitalization successful September 2023, a mantle it mislaid connected Monday to German bundle institution SAP, though French luxury radical LVMH had besides earlier concisely unseated it.

Novo came nether unit past twelvemonth to beryllium it could support its vantage successful the lucrative obesity marketplace aft U.S. rival Lilly launched its ain injection Zepbound, which led successful objective trials to greater value nonaccomplishment than Wegovy.

That has not happened, accidental investors and analysts observing rapidly worsening marketplace sentiment toward Novo, contempt the information that Wegovy income much than doubled successful the 4th fourth of past year.

Since past summer, Novo has mislaid fractional its marketplace value, and shares are down 23% truthful acold this year. Shares successful Lilly are up 6% this year.

"Sentiment for the banal has go rather negative, arsenic it is wide accepted present that Novo's Wegovy is importantly inferior to Lilly's Zepbound," said Alexander Jenke, portfolio manager astatine German concern steadfast Medical Strategy. His money does not clasp Novo shares. "I don't spot important upside from the banal done the extremity of 2025."

Investors and analysts spot much origin for interest successful the closely-watched play U.S. medicine information for Wegovy and Zepbound.

U.S. doctors for astir of 2024 prescribed Wegovy oregon Zepbound based connected what was disposable fixed proviso constraints.

At quarterly net successful February, Novo said that it had accrued supplies of Wegovy to the U.S. marketplace and said its fiscal guidance for the twelvemonth reflected this.

Total play Wegovy prescriptions person alternatively stayed level for much than a month, according to IQVIA information published by analysts. Zepbound prescriptions outstripped Wegovy by 80,000 per week successful the week ending March 14, information showed.

Lukas Leu, money manager astatine healthcare-focused Bellevue Asset Management successful Switzerland, which holds Novo shares, said helium and different investors are "impatient" that Wegovy scripts person not picked up.

This comes connected the heels of information from 2 trials of Novo's next-generation obesity cause CagriSema, released successful December and aboriginal March, that besides fell beneath expectations.

"Terrible travel up successful Q1 2025 connected a disappointing extremity to 2024," Nordnet expert Per Hansen told Reuters connected Thursday.