KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Novo Nordisk’s experimental weight loss treatment amcryetin reportedly shows promising results in a Phase I trial.
- Early results suggest that it may be more effective than the highly popular Wegovy.
- The Phase II trial of the drug will be launched in the second half of 2024, with results expected in early 2026.
- Novo Nordisk’s shares jumped to a new record high and were up more than 8% in early trading Thursday in New York.
The American depositary receipts (ADRs) of Novo Nordisk A/S (NVO) gained more than 8% in early trading Thursday after the Danish maker of Ozempic and Wegovy released promising data on an experimental daily pill aimed at treating obesity.
The highly anticipated amycretin pill reportedly showed higher weight loss than Novo Nordisk’s popular Wegovy treatment.
In a Phase I trial, amycretin pills helped participants lose 13.1% of their weight after 12 weeks versus a weight loss of 6% after 12 weeks in a Wegovy trial, the company said at an investor meeting.
Phase 1 is when the experimental drug or therapy is initially introduced to humans.
Amcryetin is a “long-acting co-agonist of GLP-1 and amylin intended for once-weekly subcutaneous treatment or once-daily oral treatment,” Novo Nordisk said in its 2023 annual report. The drugmaker also has five other obesity treatments in the pipeline, it said in the annual report released at the end of January.
In January, Novo Nordisk said it expected its sales to grow between 18% and 26% in constant terms this year on the back of buoyant demand for weight loss drugs. Morgan Stanley estimates that the global obesity market could reach $77 billion annually by 2030.
The phase 2 trial—where the focus of the drug is on its effectiveness—is set for the second half of 2024, with results expected in early 2026, the company reportedly said.
Novo Nordisk ADRs were up 8.2% at $135.03 about an hour into Thursday’s session. The stock has gained 33% since the start of the year on the back of the investor craze for anti-obesity drugs, especially as many of them have been found to treat other ailments. Ozempic, for instance, has been found to cut the risk of kidney disease progression.