By Dominic Chopping

Novo Nordisk shares fell after the pharmaceutical giant released fresh trial results for its CagriSema developmental weight-loss drug.

The Danish company said CagriSema helped obese or overweight type 2 diabetics lose an average 15.7% of their weight in a late stage trial.

Shares were down 8.1% in afternoon European trade.

CagriSema is a two-drug combination that mixes its blockbuster Semaglutide drug found in Ozempic and Wegovy, with a experimental drug cagrilintide.

An earlier study of the drug late last year disappointed investors with the weight-loss it achieved, wiping out nearly $100 billion of the drugmaker's stock-market value. That trial showed overweight or obese volunteers without type 2 diabetes lost an average of 22.7% of their weight, falling short of the 25% Novo Nordisk had expected.

The Danish pharmaceutical giant said Monday that in the latest trial, patients were given a once-weekly jab over 68 weeks, with participants allowed to modify their dosing throughout.

Sydbank senior analyst Soren Lontoft Hansen said the results of the trial appear to show CagriSema achieved greater weight-loss than Novo Nordisk's Wegovy did in a similar trial, but at the same time it hasn't outperformed Eli Lilly's Zepbound.

"In our opinion, this is the reason for today's price drop."

Novo Nordisk said CagriSema appeared to have a safe and well-tolerated profile in the latest trial. The most common adverse events were gastrointestinal, and the vast majority were mild to moderate and diminished over time.

Novo Nordisk expects to file for the first regulatory approval of CagriSema in the first quarter of 2026.

Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 10, 2025 09:48 ET (13:48 GMT)

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