In this illustration photo taken at a pharmacy in Krakow, Poland, on April 8, 2024, Novo Nordisk Wegovy packaging manufactured by Novo Nordisk is seen. (Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Jakub Porzycki | Only photo |
Novo Nordisk reported weaker-than-expected second-quarter net profit on Wednesday and revised down its operating profit forecast.
The pharmaceutical giant said its net profit for the three months to the end of June was 20.05 billion Danish kroner ($2.93 billion), compared with an overall forecast by LSEG of 20.9 billion Danish kroner.
EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) amounted to DKK 25.93 billion in the second quarter, also below the LSEG forecast of DKK 26.86 billion.
Novo Nordisk also lowered its operating profit forecast for the full year 2024, Growth is now expected to be between 20 and 28 percent instead of the previously expected range of 22 to 30 percent.
Novo Nordisk shares plunged as the market opened in Europe, closing 6.85 percent lower at 8:07 a.m. London time.
In the first quarter of 2024, the Wegovy maker reported a 28% increase in net profit to DKK 25.4 billion year-on-year, slightly increasing its forecasts for sales and operating profit growth.
Expectations for sales growth were raised again on Wednesday. The company now issued a forecast of 22 to 28 percent at constant exchange rates for the full year 2024. Previously, the sales growth forecast for this period had been estimated at 19 to 27 percent.
Sales of the popular weight-loss drug Wegovy increased by 55% in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, reaching 11.66 billion crowns.
Novo Nordisk faces increasing competition in the weight-loss space from both smaller companies and pharmaceutical giants such as Roche, which last month released promising results from early-stage testing of its own potential obesity drug.
Novo Nordisk's Wegovy has also brought promising news in recent months. The drug was approved in China in the second quarter, making it available in the world's second-largest economy. Elsewhere, British and European health authorities said they would back Wegovy because it could reduce the risk of serious heart problems in overweight and obese adults.
This breaking news story will be updated.
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