Novo Nordisk's (NVO 3.84%) latest move in the retail sphere was met with approval from market participants Wednesday. They bid the stock up by nearly 4% following the company's news, a performance that easily beat the recovering S&P 500's (^GSPC 1.12%) 1.1% gain.
The story was different with Hims & Hers Health (HIMS 0.99%), which earlier this year had stepped into a key Novo Nordisk product segment. That stock rose on Wednesday, but only by 1%.
Before market open, Novo Nordisk announced the launch of its NovoCare Pharmacy, a direct-to-patient delivery service for its best-selling Wegovy weight loss drug. All four dose strengths of Wegovy are offered with the service, at a reduced cost of $499 monthly. The service targets uninsured patients, in addition to people with insurance who lack coverage for obesity treatments.
Novo Nordisk said that its move comes after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) declared in mid-February that a shortage of semaglutide (Wegovy's molecule) products had been resolved. The shortage created a legal loophole that allowed third parties such as Hims & Hers to sell compounded semaglutide.
In its press release touting the new service, Novo Nordisk pointed out that more than 55 million people in this country have insurance coverage for obesity drugs. Regarding Wegovy, the company said patients with coverage pay nothing to $25 per month for the treatment.
Novo Nordisk's push into direct retail is surely a result of that brief period where outsiders could effectively sell the pharmaceutical company's wares. It's clearly making a bid to have a solid retail presence with its wares, and this feels like a sensible way to do it. I'm not surprised that investors applauded this good strategic move.
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