By Mariam Sunny and Mrinalika Roy
(Reuters) -Novo Nordisk reported promising mid-stage results for its experimental obesity drug amycretin in diabetes patients on Tuesday, sending its Denmark-listed shares up more than 5% as investors bet on the company’s bid to reclaim leadership in the weight-loss market.
The update comes a day after the Danish drugmaker reported disappointing results for semaglutide, the active ingredient in its blockbuster obesity drug Wegovy, in closely watched Alzheimer’s trials, as the company races to strengthen its pipeline ahead of looming patent expirations.
Amycretin not only mimics the gut hormone GLP-1, but also the effect of a hunger-suppressing pancreatic hormone called amylin.
The mid-stage results are pivotal as Novo has also been losing ground in the lucrative weight-loss market to U.S. rival Eli Lilly, which is surging ahead with its own amylin-based drug, eloralintide.
Amycretin is among Novo’s most closely watched next-generation candidates, widely viewed as a potential “best-in-class” therapy. It follows CagriSema, once touted as a potent successor to Wegovy, but ultimately disappointed investors after delivering lower-than-expected weight loss in two prior studies.
Novo’s mid-stage trial, the first to test amycretin in type 2 diabetes patients, studied once-weekly subcutaneous and oral versions of the drug compared to placebo in 448 people inadequately controlled on metformin with or without an SGLT2 inhibitor, a common class of diabetes treatment.
Amycretin helped patients lose up to 14.5% of their body weight over 36 weeks with weekly injections, far outperforming placebo. The oral version delivered weight loss of up to 10.1%.
The data, though not enough to completely change the narrative for Novo, marks a step in the right direction for the company, BMO Capital analyst Evan Seigerman said.
No weight-loss plateau was observed in either injectable or oral route for amycretin, which suggests potential for additional weight-loss if patients are dosed for longer periods of time, Seigerman said.
Amycretin showed statistically significant reductions in blood glucose levels, meeting the main goal of the study, with up to 89.1% of patients achieving HbA1c levels below 7%. Side-effects were mostly mild gastrointestinal issues, Novo said. It plans to start late-stage trials in 2026.
“The level of weight-loss seen bodes well not only for its potential in diabetes but also in obesity,” Kepler Cheuvreux analyst David Evans said.
Morningstar analyst Karen Andersen estimates amycretin peak sales of $8 billion in combined diabetes and obesity sales by 2034, following a 2029 launch, with roughly a 50/50 split between indications.
(Reporting by Mariam Sunny and Mrinalika Roy in Bengaluru, additional reporting by Bhanvi Satija in London and Stine Jacobsen in Copenhagen; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
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