DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Why Pfizer's latest stumble in the obesity market is a boon for Eli Lilly
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | In Kevinstankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

In June, the New York-based pharmaceutical giant stopped developing a different obesity pill, known as lotiglipron , due to concerns about liver safety. Meanwhile, Eli Lilly shares were mainly flat in afternoon trading, at around $591apiece. We lifted our Eli Lilly price target Friday to $630 per share, up from $600. Eli Lilly and Danish rival Novo Nordisk (NVO) are the two dominant players in the obesity market. The longer it takes for competitors to get to this burgeoning market, the more revenue first-movers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk can capture.

Persons: Eli Lilly, Jim Cramer, Lilly's, Novo's, Jim, Eli Lilly —, —, Eli, that's, — Novo's, Novo, semaglutide, Jim Cramer's, AJ Mast Organizations: Pfizer, Club, Novo Nordisk, Pharmaceutical, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bank of America, U.S . National Library of Medicine, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, CNBC, Bloomberg, Getty Locations: New York, Danish, Lilly, U.S, Indianapolis , Indiana

☆ Novo Nordisk sues two pharmacies for allegedly selling tainted Wegovy, Ozempic knockoffs
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Compounding pharmacies prepare custom-made versions of commercially available treatments to meet the specific needs of a patient. Novo Nordisk first sued Brooksville Pharmaceuticals over copycat versions of Wegovy and Ozempic in July. Including the newest lawsuits, Novo Nordisk has filed 12 legal actions against compounding pharmacies, medical spas and weight loss clinics allegedly selling dupes of Wegovy and Ozempic. That puts patients "at risk of taking drug products that are less effective than expected based on their labeling," according to Novo Nordisk. Several states have also threatened to take legal action against compounding pharmacies that make or distribute unapproved variations of Novo Nordisk's weight loss treatments.

Persons: Eli Lilly, Jason Brett, Novo Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Wells Pharmacy Network, Brooksville Pharmaceuticals, Nordisk, Wells Pharmacy, Novo, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, FDA, CNBC PRO Locations: Oslo, Norway, Florida, U.S, Danish, Ozempic

☆ Novo Nordisk finds compounded Wegovy up to 33% impure, sues Florida pharmacies
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Patrick Wingrove | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Injection pens of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drug Wegovy are shown in this photo illustration in Oslo, Norway, November 21, 2023. The Danish drugmaker said it found impurities in all the drugs tested from Wells Pharmacy and Brooksville Pharmaceuticals, both based in Florida. Novo said the compounded versions of Wegovy tested from Brooksville were also less potent than advertised, with one sample shown to be at least 19% weaker than indicated. The drugmaker has already filed 12 lawsuits against medical spas, weight-loss clinics and compounding pharmacies offering products that claim to contain semaglutide. The case against Wells was filed in the U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida, Ocala division and the suit against Brooksville in U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida, Tampa division.

Persons: Victoria Klesty, Danish drugmaker, Novo, Brooksville, ” Jason Brett, Eli Lilly, Mounjaro, Wells, Patrick Wingrove, Josephine Mason, Bill Berkrot, Jane Merriman Organizations: REUTERS, Novo Nordisk, Wells Pharmacy, Brooksville Pharmaceuticals, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, FDA, Novo's, Middle District of, Brooksville, Thomson Locations: Oslo, Norway, Victoria, Danish, Florida, Wells, U.S, Middle District, Middle District of Florida, Ocala, Tampa

☆ Sima Sistani says its time for WeightWatchers to embrace Ozempic. Will its users agree?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Sima Sistani, the 44-year-old CEO of WeightWatchers, is aware of this, and she recognized WeightWatchers had to evolve – or else. She also landed a massive deal to buy a telehealth business that can issue virtual prescriptions to patients for these weight loss drugs. Semaglutide was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat type 2 diabetes as Ozempic, but it was also used off-label for weight loss. Some longtime users of the program feel betrayed by the pivot away from in-person meetings and toward medication-based solutions. “Sadly, they don’t want to do the work,” she said, of tracking food or exercising to achieve weight loss goals.

Persons: New York CNN —, Sima Sistani, WeightWatchers, she’s, Sistani, “, ” Sistani, Erica Shroeder, ”, Jaap Arriens, ” Goldman Sachs, Jenny Craig, Adam Rockmore, Ged, Angela Weiss, Variety Sistani, there’s, Semaglutide, aren’t, “ there’s, Oprah Winfrey, Jamie Yonash, influencers, Velanti, Michael Nagle, We’re Organizations: New, New York CNN, Walmart, CNN, WeightWatchers, Variety, US Food and Drug Administration, Bloomberg, Getty Locations: New York, Cola, Wegovy

☆ Suspected fake Ozempic causes hypoglycemia in 11 in Lebanon
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Patrick Wingrove | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Three of the people who took the suspected fake Ozempic did so to control their diabetes, while four took it for weight management, Karam said. People with diabetes need to closely manage their blood sugar, which can be done with a variety of medicines including Ozempic. Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health issued two recalls related to Ozempic in January 2023, according to its website. Karam said Ozempic is neither purchased nor provided by the Ministry of Public Health. Several people have been hospitalized in Austria for hypoglycemia after taking potentially fake versions of Ozempic.

Persons: Rita Karam, Eli Lilly's, Novo's, Karam, Ozempic, Patrick Wingrove, Caroline Humer, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Lebanese Ministry of Public Health, Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health, Novo Nordisk, World Obesity, Obesity, International Diabetes Federation, Ministry of Public Health, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Germany, Egypt, Russia, United States, Novo, Britain, Belgium, Austria

REUTERS/George Fre/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 27 (Reuters) - Overweight or obese adults lost more weight and shed pounds faster using Eli Lilly's (LLY.N) Mounjaro than those taking Novo Nordisk's (NOVOb.CO) popular rival weight loss drug, according to an analysis of health records and other data. After 3 months of treatment, patients on Mounjaro had lost an average of 2.3% more body weight than those taking Ozempic, the study also found. By 6 months, the difference had widened to 4.3%, and by 12 months, the Mounjaro group had lost an average of 7.2% more weight. An Eli Lilly spokesperson said the company does not promote or encourage the off-label use of any of its medicines, although its drug is now approved for weight loss. A trial is underway comparing the weight loss formulations of the two injected medicines in patients overweight or obese but without type 2 diabetes.

Persons: Lilly, George Fre, Eli Lilly's, Mounjaro, Eli Lilly, Nancy Lapid, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Pharmacy, REUTERS, Novo, Thomson Locations: Provo , Utah, U.S

Injection pens and boxes of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drug Wegovy are shown in this photo illustration in Oslo, Norway, November 21, 2023. REUTERS/Victoria Klesty/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsSummaryCompanies Novo racing to meet demand for obesity drugsObesity market to reach $100 billion by 2030-analystsNew investment in France will boost capacity for obesity, diabetes drugsPARIS/LONDON Nov 23 (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) on Thursday announced a $2.3 billion investment to boost production of its wildly popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs at a site in Chartres, France as it races to meet soaring demand. There is a growing crisis in Europe over supply of diabetes therapy Ozempic, which uses the same ingredient semaglutide as the hugely popular weight-loss drug Wegovy, which is not yet widely available in Europe. Thursday's announcement comes after Novo earlier this month announced a $6 billion investment in its native Denmark to boost production. Analysts have estimated the obesity drug market will be worth as much as $100 billion by 2030.

Persons: Victoria Klesty, Danish drugmaker, Emmanuel Macron, Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen, Eli Lilly, Novo, Anna Ringstrom, Ludwig Burger, Terje Solsvik, David Goodman, Emelia Organizations: REUTERS, Novo Nordisk, WIN, French, Thomson Locations: Oslo, Norway, Victoria, France, PARIS, Chartres, Danish, Europe, Union, Germany, Belgium, Denmark, U.S, Paris

☆ Ozempic maker plans manufacturing blitz as market for the drug is expected to top $100 billion in 2030
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Jake Swearingen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Novo Nordisk makes Ozempic and Wegovy, two hit drugs that treat obesity. In the past two weeks, it's announced more than $8 billion in manufacturing investments. AdvertisementNovo Nordisk, maker of the popular anti-obesity drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, is investing billions to ramp up production capacity amid surging demand. The move comes just after Novo Nordisk unveiled plans to shell out over $6 billion to expand manufacturing capacity in Denmark. That money will go toward increasing production capacity for semaglutide, the key ingredient in Ozempic and related medications.

Persons: it's, —, Ozempic, Emmanuel Macron, Eli Lilly, David Ricks, Lilly, Goldman Sachs Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Service Locations: France, Chartres, Denmark, Europe, Novo

Handout via REUTERS/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsSummaryCompanies Ozempic shortages expected throughout 2024Victoza shortages expected until at least Q2 2024Diabetes drug Ozempic used 'off label' to treat obesityNov 21 (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) will ration starter kits of Ozempic in Europe and reduce supplies of another diabetes drug, Victoza, to prioritise producing Ozempic, which has seen a surge in demand from people using it to lose weight. Ozempic contains semaglutide, an ingredient in Novo's hugely popular anti-obesity drug Wegovy. Intermittent Ozempic shortages are expected throughout 2024, while Victoza shortages are expected at least until the second quarter of 2024, according to the statement on the EMA's website. "No new patients should be started on Victoza until at least Q2 2024 when supply is expected to normalise," Novo urged doctors in the document. It also told doctors to consider other injectable GLP-1 drugs or "other suitable alternatives" where Ozempic or Victoza are not available for patients.

Persons: Ozempic, hasn't, Novo, Eli Lilly's, tirzepatide, Ludwig Burger, Eva Mathews, Emelia Sithole, Mark Potter Organizations: Handout, REUTERS, Diabetes, Novo Nordisk, European Medicines Agency, EU, Thomson Locations: Novo, London, Britain, Europe, Danish, United States, France, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Wegovy, Norway, Denmark, EU

REUTERS/George Frey/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 21 (Reuters) - Tema ETFs has launched a new exchange traded fund (ETF) that tracks popular drugmakers like Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) and Eli Lilly (LLY.N), aiming to tap into growing demand for their weight-loss and diabetes drugs. The Tema Cardiovascular & Metabolic ETF (HRTS.O) invests in companies tackling diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular diseases, according to the New York-headquartered platform's website. The advances of the class of weight-loss and diabetes therapies known as GLP-1 receptor agonists, are only the tip of the iceberg, said David K. Song, investment partner and head of life sciences at Tema ETFs. The Tema fund has a net expense ratio of 0.75%. Reporting by Bansari Mayur Kamdar in Bengaluru; Editing by Emelia Sithole-MatariseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Lilly, George Frey, Eli Lilly, Mounjaro, David K, Morgan Stanley, Bansari Mayur, Emelia Sithole Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Pharmacy, REUTERS, Metabolic, Morgan Stanley Research, VanEck Pharmaceutical, Thomson Locations: Provo , Utah, U.S, Tema, Novo, New York, Bengaluru

Analysts attended earnings calls in the third quarter armed with questions for healthcare and consumer companies about the potential effect on their sales from the growing popularity of these drugs, known as GLP-1 agonists. A Reuters analysis of earnings transcripts for the third quarter showed "GLP-1" or alternatives like "obesity" or "weight-loss medications" were mentioned 256 times across 29 U.S. and European healthcare and consumer companies. That's more than double the mentions for the second quarter, when those phrases came up 127 times. While some consumer companies have talked about factors such as fewer calories being consumed, "these kind of large extrapolations" seem to be a bit of a stretch, said BMO Capital analyst Evan Seigerman. For big pharma manufacturers like Pfizer (PFE.N) and Amgen (AMGN.O), analyst questions were aimed at their obesity drug candidates.

Persons: Lilly, George Frey, Jeff Jonas, it's, Eli Lilly's, John Furner, Mondelez, Eli Lilly, Evan Seigerman, LVMH, Rajesh Kumar, Jonas, Bhanvi Satija, Savyata Mishra, Arpan Varghese, David Gaffen, Shounak Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Pharmacy, REUTERS, Gabelli, Novo, Walmart, Walmart U.S, Hershey, Truist Securities, Krispy, BMO Capital, Danish, pharma, Pfizer, Devices, HSBC, Thomson Locations: Provo , Utah, U.S, United States, Novo, Bengaluru

☆ How well-off Brits still buy Ozempic online for weight loss
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-18 | by ( Maggie Fick | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +12 min

NHS diabetes patients – including Gradwell, who went for weeks without full medication – pay nothing for their medication. The shortage persists even after Ozempic's manufacturer Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) launched Wegovy, a semaglutide drug solely for weight loss, in September. Rightangled told Reuters it is within its rights to continue to prescribe Ozempic for weight loss. Two had stopped offering it for weight loss by October, but Rightangled continued to make it available as of Nov. 17, Reuters found. He said his oncologist said that while he could not prescribe Ozempic, it would be good for his health if he took it for weight loss.

Persons: Kim Gradwell, –, John, it's, Rightangled, Gradwell, Penny Ward, I've, Abdullah Sabyah, Ward, Juniper, Ben, Doctors, Novo, Ozempic, semaglutide, prescribers, Rightangled's Sabyah, Tyne wasn't, Gradwell's, Yaasir Mamoojee, We've, Maggie Fick, Marine Strauss, Charlotte Van Campenhout, Chad Terhune, Sara Ledwith, Josephine Mason Organizations: Diabetes, National Health Service, Novo Nordisk, King's College, Department of Health, Social Care, John, Reuters, Oxford University ., NHS, Alliance Healthcare, Alliance, Diabetes UK, NICE, semaglutide, Oxford University, General Pharmaceutical Council, Tyne, Thomson Locations: Dudley , North Tyneside, Britain, Novo, United States, London, U.S, England, Europe, Ozempic, Newcastle, Brussels, Los Angeles

☆ Explainer: What’s behind the scramble for semaglutide?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-18 | by ( Maggie Fick | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Semaglutide, developed by Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) over decades, is the active ingredient in type 2 diabetes treatments Ozempic and Rybelsus, as well as Wegovy, which is used for weight loss only. Semaglutide in injected form was first approved for use in the U.S. as a treatment for type 2 diabetes in 2017. Booming demand for both drugs has propelled Novo Nordisk to its highest-ever profits. People taking part in clinical trials for drugs based on semaglutide may also continue to take it. The curbs will be in force until August 2024, but may end sooner if supplies improve, a spokesperson for the health ministry said.

Persons: Maggie Fick, Marine Strauss, Charlotte Van Campenhout, Josephine Mason, Sara Ledwith Organizations: Novo Nordisk, World Health Organization, International Diabetes Foundation, Supply, BMI, Thomson Locations: Britain, Germany, Belgium, United States, U.S, Denmark, Brussels

☆ German drug regulator considering export ban on Ozempic
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A box of Ozempic, a semaglutide injection drug used for treating type 2 diabetes and made by Novo Nordisk, is seen at a Rock Canyon Pharmacy in Provo, Utah, U.S. March 29, 2023. REUTERS/George Frey REFILE - CORRECTING MONTH/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Novo Nordisk A/S FollowBERLIN, Nov 15 (Reuters) - The head of Germany's drug regulator BfArM is considering an export ban on Novo Nordisk's (NOVOb.CO) diabetes drug Ozempic, which is in high demand for its weight-loss benefits, to prevent a further worsening of a supply shortage. There is a risk of Ozempic being moved out of the country because it is cheaper there than in many other countries, BfArM president Karl Broich told Spiegel magazine. "We know that some of the syringes that are supplied to Germany for our diabetes patients are channelled to other European countries or the United States," he told Spiegel on Wednesday. We need the medication for the care of diabetes patients and not as a lifestyle drug."

Persons: George Frey REFILE, Karl Broich, Spiegel, Miranda Murray, Ludwig Burger Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Pharmacy, REUTERS, Novo Nordisk's, Spiegel, Ludwig Burger Our, Thomson Locations: Provo , Utah, U.S, Germany, United States

☆ German regulator eyes Ozempic export ban amid shortages across Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Ludwig Burger | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Use of Ozempic for weight loss has caused shortages across Europe. Novo Nordisk, which has earmarked $6 billion to boost production in Denmark, said last week the industry was far from being able to produce enough weight-loss drugs to meet global demand. The German association of drug wholesale distributors PHAGRO said in a statement that there was no certainty that exports were causing the shortages. Portugal, Poland, Romania, Belgium, Slovakia and Spain, in turn, have rules in place that likely make it impossible to export the drug, Affordable Medicines said. It also urged "all relevant actors" not to export the drugs.

Persons: George Frey REFILE, Spiegel, Lilly, Karl Broich, Eli Lilly's, tirzepatide, BfArM's Broich, Broich, PHAGRO, Germany's BfArM, Ludwig Burger, Miranda Murray, Patricia Weiss, Matthias Williams, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Pharmacy, REUTERS, BfArM, EU, Novo Nordisk's, Spiegel, European Union, Medicines, Thomson Locations: Provo , Utah, U.S, FRANKFURT, United States, Europe, Britain, Belgium, Germany, Norway, Denmark, Medicines Europe, Austria, France, Greece, Czech Republic, Portugal, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Frankfurt, Berlin

☆ Zepbound: The newest obesity medication explained by an expert
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Katia Hetter | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —The US Food and Drug Administration approved the medication Zepbound last week to treat chronic obesity. Tirzepatide joins a similar medication called semaglutide that was also initially developed for diabetes treatment under the name Ozempic and has since been approved to treat obesity under the name Wegovy. Studies on both have shown high effectiveness in treating diabetes and obesity. The injectable medication Zepbound, manufactured by Eli Lilly, was approved by the FDA on November 8 to treat chronic obesity. Note that technically, the versions of the medicines someone needs for obesity treatment are Zepbound and Wegovy.

Persons: Eli Lilly, Tirzepatide, —, Leana Wen, Wen, Zepbound, Ozempic Organizations: CNN, Food and Drug Administration, George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, FDA, The New England, of Medicine, JAMA, Novo Nordisk, semaglutide, BMI Locations: The, tirzepatide, Wegovy

☆ Belgium bans use of Ozempic for weight loss until summer
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Marine Strauss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Boxes of Ozempic, a semaglutide injection drug used for treating type 2 diabetes made by Novo Nordisk, is seen at a Rock Canyon Pharmacy in Provo, Utah, U.S. March 29, 2023. Ozempic is approved to treat Type 2 diabetes but has increasingly been prescribed "off-label" to treat weight loss because it has the same active ingredient as Novo's hugely popular - and scarce - anti-obesity drug Wegovy. In Britain, doctors and prescribers, including private online pharmacies, have been ordered to stop prescribing Ozempic to people who don't have type 2 diabetes as soon as possible. They are also banned from starting new patients with type 2 diabetes on the medicine for as long as the shortage lasts. Last month, Belgium's federal medicine agency recommended doctors and pharmacists only prescribe Ozempic to diabetic patients due to the surge in demand.

Persons: George Frey, Ozempic, Marine Strauss, Mark Potter Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Pharmacy, REUTERS, Marine, Thomson Locations: Provo , Utah, U.S, Belgium, Britain

☆ Novo Nordisk shares rise as Wegovy shows heart benefits beyond weight loss
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Maggie Fick | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) shares rose 3% on Monday as the market reacted to data the drugmaker presented over the weekend showing that the heart protective benefits of its popular obesity drug Wegovy are not solely due to weight loss. Wegovy is part of a class of drugs that mimic a gut hormone that helps regulate blood sugar and appetite. U.S. companies across sectors such as food and beverage makers have addressed investor concerns on the potential impact to their businesses from the growing popularity of the promising weight-loss drugs. Novo was first to market with its highly effective weight loss drugs. At the close of markets on Friday, Novo's shares were up 47.5% this year.

Persons: Markus Manns, Jefferies, Wegovy, Novo, Eli Lilly's, Lilly, Novo's, Maggie Fick, Boleslaw Lasocki, Medha Singh, Louise Heavens Organizations: Novo Nordisk, Novo, Union Investment, Reuters, Pfizer, Jefferies, U.S, Thomson Locations: United, Germany, Novo, U.S, Bengaluru

☆ Here's what Wall Street is saying about obesity drug Wegovy following Novo Nordisk's key study
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Wegovy contains semaglutide, the same active ingredient in Novo's type 2 diabetes drug Ozempic. A rising tide for Eli Lilly? Though the study was specifically about Wegovy, Wall Street sees a positive readthrough for similar medications from other providers, particularly Eli Lilly 's Zepbound. Similarly, UBS analyst Trung Huynh called the weekend data a "best-case" scenario for Eli Lilly. And the positive outcomes for both in the Wegovy study can be viewed as encouraging for how Zepbound should perform, the analyst added.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Mark Purcell, Richard Vosser, Peter Verdult, Eli Lilly, Eli Lilly's, Lilly, Andrew Baum, Trung Huynh, That's, it's, Zepbound, Huynh, Citi's Baum, James Shin isn't, Michael Bloom, Christina Cheddar Berk, Angelica Peebles Organizations: Novo Nordisk, American Heart Association, cardiologists, JPMorgan, Citi, ., UBS, North American, Tandem Diabetes Care, Deutsche Bank

☆ Trial confirms heart benefits of Wegovy, but is weight loss responsible – or something else?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Meg Tirrell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

To cardiologist Dr. Steven Nissen of the Cleveland Clinic, who wasn’t involved in the trial but is leading a similar one of tirzepatide, those effects are all evidence of the benefits of weight loss. Tirzepatide has shown greater levels of weight loss than semaglutide in clinical trials, leading many, including Nissen, to hope it will show even stronger cardiovascular benefits. Importantly, participants didn’t have a history of diabetes; a previous trial had shown that treating people with diabetes with a GLP-1 drug, Ozempic, reduced their cardiovascular risk. The Wegovy trial showed that 569 of 8,803 people taking the drug had a heart attack or stroke or died from heart-related causes, or 6.5%. The amount of weight loss seen in the trial, 9.4%, was less than in other studies of Wegovy, which showed average weight loss closer to 15%.

Persons: Ania Jastreboff, Wegovy, Dr, Amit Khera, National Institutes of Health’s Dr, Tiffany M, Powell, Wiley, Eli Lilly, Steven Nissen, wasn’t, ” Nissen, “, Tirzepatide, Nissen, Michael Lincoff, Lincoff, ”, Jastreboff, Sanjay Gupta, hadn’t, “ semaglutide Organizations: CNN, Nordisk’s Wegovy, American Heart Association, Yale Obesity Research Center, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center Dallas, National Institutes of Health’s, New England, of Medicine, US Food and Drug, Cleveland Clinic, Novo Nordisk, Cleveland, CNN Health Locations: Philadelphia, Powell

☆ Novo Nordisk says Wegovy heart benefits due to more than weight loss
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Patrick Wingrove | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A 0.25 mg injection pen of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drug Wegovy is shown in this photo illustration in Oslo, Norway, September 1, 2023. REUTERS/Victoria Klesty/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsPHILADELPHIA, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) on Saturday said the heart protective benefits of its wildly popular Wegovy obesity treatment are due to more than weight loss alone, according to new data presented at a major medical meeting on Saturday. Given that patients had not started losing weight when the cardiovascular benefits first appeared suggests the heart protection was not purely the result of weight loss, Novo said. Though the trial was not conducted to test weight loss, participants lost an average of nearly 10% of their total body weight. Novo said patients in the heart study were not required to track diet and exercise as they are in obesity trials.

Persons: Victoria Klesty, Wegovy, Novo, Martin Lange, Lange, Eli Lilly's, Patrick Wingrove, Bill Berkrot Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Novo Nordisk, American Heart Association, New England, of Medicine, Novo Nordisk's, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, Thomson Locations: Oslo, Norway, Victoria, Philadelphia, U.S, EU

The company's research and development (R&D) engine is intact and therefore it is unlikely to do transformative deals soon, Jorgensen said. It was the latest in a series of similarly-sized deals the company has done this year. Last week, when reporting quarterly earnings, it forecast another year of double-digit sales growth for its two most popular drugs: weight-loss drug Wegovy and diabetes Ozempic. To keep up with demand, Novo is racing to increase production of those drugs, which contain the same active pharmaceutical ingredient, semaglutide, and are delivered in self-injection pens. A healthcare banker, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters after the interview there were many companies in the cardiometabolic space with early-stage drugs that Novo Nordisk may be able to buy.

Persons: Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen, Wegovy, Jorgensen, Novo, Novo's, Jacob Gronholt, Maggie Fick, Terje Solsvik, Emelia, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Novo, Novo Nordisk, Reuters, KBP Biosciences, Nordisk, Pedersen, Thomson Locations: Novo, COPENHAGEN, Singapore, Copenhagen, London

As the company's fortunes soar on demand for its popular weight-loss medicine Wegovy, Jorgensen said Novo sought to acquire companies working on medicines in the areas where it is already focused. The company's research and development (R&D) engine is intact and therefore it is unlikely to do transformative deals soon, Jorgensen said. It was the latest in a series of similarly-sized deals the company has done this year. Last week, when reporting quarterly earnings, it forecast another year of double-digit sales growth for its two most popular drugs: weight-loss drug Wegovy and diabetes Ozempic. To keep up with demand, Novo is racing to increase production of those drugs, which contain the same active pharmaceutical ingredient, semaglutide, and are delivered in self-injection pens.

☆ AstraZeneca adds player to obesity drug race, but Eli Lilly remains in the lead
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | In Kevinstankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Eli Lilly (LLY) remains our favorite way to play the weight-loss drug market, despite a new entry this week from AstraZeneca (AZN). Eli Lilly shares had their worst day of the year Thursday, falling 4.5% in the session to close at $591.32. AstraZeneca's encroachment on turf currently dominated by Eli Lilly and Danish rival Novo Nordisk (NVO) may have contributed to Thursday's declines. That approval, despite being widely expected, pushed Eli Lilly to an all-time closing high Wednesday, at $619.13 per share. Our desire to own Eli Lilly over Novo Nordisk hinges, in part, on our confidence in Eli Lilly's other treatment opportunities, such as in Alzheimer's.

Persons: Eli Lilly, Jim Cramer, Jim, Lilly's, Eli Lilly's tirzepatide, Zepbound, Novo's, Eli Lilly's, Eli Lilly's GLP, Dave Ricks, Lilly, Ricks, AstraZeneca's, ECC5004, retatrutide, Jim Cramer's, David Ricks, Eli Lilly Scott Mlyn Organizations: AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk, American Heart Association, Novo Nordisk's semaglutide, CNBC, Reuters, Citigroup Locations: Danish, GLP, North Carolina, Novo, Denmark, Zepbound, Alzheimer's

A 0.25 mg injection pen of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drug Wegovy is shown in this photo illustration in Oslo, Norway, August31, 2023. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday said Eli Lilly (LLY.N) could begin selling its drug tirzepatide for weight loss, making it the second obesity drug in a class known as GLP-1s. Studies of Novo's Wegovy showed that it led to 15% weight loss over 68 weeks, while Lilly's drug, which also targets a second hormone called GIP, demonstrated weight loss of more than 22% over 72 weeks. Drugstore chain Walgreens is seeing "enormous demand" for GLP-1s, said John Driscoll, president, U.S. healthcare at Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA.O). Much has been made of the impact the new weight loss drugs might have on consumer habits such as snack food purchases, but Driscoll said Walgreens has not seen that yet.

Persons: Victoria Klesty, Eli Lilly, Novo, Novo's Wegovy, Lawrence Tabak, John Driscoll, Tabak, Driscoll, Walgreens, Julie Steenhuuysen, Caroline Stauffer, Deena Beasley, Jamie Freed Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Total Health, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, U.S . National Institutes of Health, Walgreens, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Thomson Locations: Oslo, Norway, August31, Victoria, Chicago, U.S, satiety

Search resuls for: "semaglutide"

25 mentions found