Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) stock fell Wednesday after the Danish drugmaker issued a softer-than-expected outlook for fiscal 2026.
The stock is trading closer to the lower end of the 52-week range of $43.08-$93.80.
On Tuesday, the company said it expects adjusted sales growth for 2026, which excludes revenue from the reversal of 340B provisions, to be -5% to -13% at constant exchange rates (CER).
The sales outlook is impacted by lower realized prices, including impacts related to the “Most Favoured Nations” agreement in the U.S. and the patent expiry of the semaglutide molecule in certain international operation markets, as well as competition.
Earnings Snapshot
The weight loss drug maker reported earnings of 94 cents per share (6.44 Danish kroner), beating the consensus of 89 cents. Adjusted net profit decreased by 6% to 28.66 billion Danish kroner.
The company reported fourth-quarter 2025 sales of roughly $12.34 billion (79.14 billion Danish kroner), ahead of the consensus of $12.08 billion.
Sales in the fourth quarter of 2025 decreased by 8% measured in Danish kroner and by 2% at CER compared to the fourth quarter of 2024, driven by U.S. operations.
GLP-1 diabetes sales decreased by 5% at CER to 37.53 billion Danish kroner, and Obesity care sales increased by 11% to 22.45 billion Danish kroner. Insulin sales decreased by 10% to 13.40 billion Danish kroner, and Rare disease sales remained flat at 5.35 billion Danish kroner.
Operating profit decreased by 14% to 31.74 billion Danish kroner and by 4% at CER, driven by the decline in sales combined with impacts of amortizations and depreciations related to the three former Catalent manufacturing sites. Operating margin fell from 42.9% to 40.1%.
Ozempic sales increased marginally by 1% to 31.83 billion Danish kroner, and Wegovy sales jumped 17% to 21.86 billion Danish kroner.
Novo Nordisk also said that it initiated a share repurchase program for 2026 of up to 15 billion Danish kroner.
Management Commentary
“In 2026, Novo Nordisk will face pricing headwinds in an increasingly competitive market. However, we are very encouraged by the promising early uptake from the U.S. launch of Wegovy pill, and we remain confident in our ability to drive volume growth over the coming years.”
“Also for this year, we look forward to regulatory decisions for next-generation treatments, such as Mim8 within haemophilia and CagriSema within obesity, as well as a number of exciting R&D read-outs, including phase 3 read-outs for etavopivat and ziltivekimab,” said Mike Doustdar, president and CEO.
Pipeline Update
Novo Nordisk terminated a phase 1 trial with an oral NRLP3 inhibitor (NN6705) and discontinued further development due to portfolio considerations.
There were no reported safety or tolerability issues during the trial. Novo Nordisk continues to pursue other preclinical NLRP3 inhibitors.
Novo Nordisk terminated the development of the Pumpsulin project due to portfolio considerations. The ongoing phase 1 trial will continue to completion as planned.
The company also terminated the development of TMPRSS6, an RNAi in early development for rare blood disease, due to portfolio considerations.
NVO Price Action: Novo Nordisk shares were down 4.27% at $48.15 during premarket trading on Wednesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Image via Shutterstock
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