Novo Nordisk presented more than 40 abstracts at the American Diabetes Association conference and met with analysts over dinner, impressing BMO Capital Markets, according to a June 8 report. CEO Maziar Mike Doustdar and CFO Karsten Munk Knudsen acknowledged recent challenges but conveyed optimism about ongoing changes in the company.
The competition between Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk in the U.S. weight loss drug market remains strong, with both companies unveiling new data on obesity-related conditions during the conference. Novo Nordisk showcased posthoc analyses demonstrating benefits of semaglutide—marketed as Wegovy for weight loss and Ozempic for diabetes—in reducing asthma-related adverse outcomes and systolic blood pressure among patients with uncontrolled hypertension who are overweight or obese. In the SELECT cardiovascular outcomes trial, patients treated with semaglutide experienced fewer adverse events compared to placebo controls.
Jason Brett, principal medical head at Novo Nordisk, said, “There are a lot of GLP-1 receptors in the lungs... It’s probably not spoken about as much, but [asthma] is an important complication of obesity.” He also pointed out that certain forms of asthma associated with obesity can be particularly difficult to control.
Additional posthoc analyses indicated improvements in liver health for those taking semaglutide and reductions in fatty liver index scores over 68 weeks. These findings come as Eli Lilly reported that its triple-G therapy retatrutide cut body weight by more than 30% in some patients over two years, reinforcing its leading position in metabolic treatments.
Brett emphasized Novo Nordisk’s “breadth of assets” across cardiometabolic diseases and noted extensive experience with semaglutide: “We have over 49 million cumulative patient years of experience between clinical trials and real-world experience with the molecule.” The company is also awaiting data from studies involving ziltivekimab for inflammation related to atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
Looking ahead, BMO expressed optimism about the launch of Novo’s Wegovy pill while noting continued commercial pressures from Lilly’s tirzepatide. Prescriptions for Wegovy have surpassed three million since FDA approval last December. An FDA decision on CagriSema—a combination therapy—is expected by year-end.
