Novo Nordisk opens decisively drop on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange, where the stock is losing around 3,2% after having already slipped by more than 6% last night on Wall Street. It is not so much the second quarter results that are weighing on the stock, but rather the Investor concerns on the group's future growth, the strength of its pipeline, and the prospects for new obesity drugs.
The Danish pharmaceutical company has improved forecasts for 2026 again, but the market was expecting more ambitious indications. The increase in guidance was thus overshadowed by the lower-than-expected sales of the pill Wegovy in the United States and a new setback for CagriSema, one of the treatments on which Novo Nordisk is relying to strengthen its presence in the market for new-generation weight-loss drugs.
Novo Nordisk: Sales up, but operating profit slows
In the second quarter of 2026, Novo Nordisk recorded revenues of DKK 78,49 billion, or approximately USD 12,09 billion. Sales increased 3% at constant exchange rates and 7% on an adjusted basis.operating profit However, it stood at 27,06 billion kronor, a decrease of 16% at constant currency. Excluding some extraordinary items, operating profit increased by 11% to 33,39 billion kronor. The company now expects adjusted sales and adjusted operating profit for the full year 2026 to decline by 6% to remain stable at constant currency. The previous forecast indicated a possible decline of up to 12%.
The improvement in estimates, however, failed to dispel the doubts of the marketInvestors have focused their attention above all on the group's ability to support long-term growth, as competition increases in the GLP-1 drug sector.
Novo Nordisk: Wegovy continues to grow, but the market is looking further ahead
The new CEO Mike Doustdar has indicated Wegovy as one of the main drivers of the group's results. The pill version of the drug has surpassed 5 million prescriptions in the United States since its launch, while encouraging signs are also coming from international markets and from the new 7,2-milligram formulation Wegovy HD.
"The Wegovy product portfolio remains a key growth driver for Novo Nordisk in 2026, driven by the continued rapid adoption of the Wegovy pill in the United States," said Doustdar. According to the CEO, "the growing momentum of GLP-1s in the United States, combined with continued growth and new launches in International Operations," has allowed the company to raise its guidance for the year again.
However, the positive indications on the flagship product were not enough. The turnover of the oral version of Wegovy has slightly missed expectations and the market fears that the current expansion will not be sufficient to offset the risks associated with the future expiration of the patents on semaglutide.
The central theme for Novo Nordisk thus becomes the ability to build a new generation of treatments capable of supporting and, ultimately, replacing semaglutide-based products. CagriSema, a drug candidate against obesity, has registered new setback in the experimentThe setback adds to other disappointments in the trials and has fueled doubts about the robustness of the group's research portfolio.
First test for the new CEO
La conference call with analysts and investors It therefore represents a delicate step for Doustdar, who is called upon to demonstrate that Novo Nordisk has a credible strategy beyond Wegovy and semaglutide.
The market awaits clarification on US sales of the pill Wegovy, the implications of the latest CagriSema results, and future research priorities. Investors will also be looking to see whether the difficulties encountered in internal development could push the group toward new acquisitions or licensing agreements.
Following the decline in US depositary receipts on Wall Street, the negative opening in Copenhagen confirms that the forecast increase was insufficient. Investors' judgment is now focused less on the quarter's results and increasingly on Novo Nordisk's ability to maintain its leadership in the obesity market in the coming years.
