MW FDA says Ozempic and Wegovy shortage is ending. That's bad news for this wellness stock.

By Bill Peters

'We will continue to offer access to personalized treatments as allowed by law to meet patient needs,' Hims & Hers CEO says

Shares of wellness-product platform Hims & Hers Health Inc. tumbled on Friday after the Food and Drug Administration said the shortage of GLP-1 medications like Ozempic and Wegovy had been "resolved" - a move that threatens alternatives to those popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs sold by the company.

Hims & Hers shares $(HIMS)$ were down 22.2% on Friday. However, the stock has surged more than 440% over the past 12 months.

GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic, which are made by Novo Nordisk $(NVO)$, have seen a shortage since 2022 amid rising demand. While that shortage was in effect, it allowed compounders - drug makers that manufacture custom medications - to offer alternative versions of the drug. Hims & Hers had been selling compounded GLP-1 drugs on its platform.

The FDA, in its announcement on Friday, said state-licensed pharmacies and physicians had until April 22 to halt production of compounded versions of the drugs. Outsourcing facilities had until May 22.

Novo Nordisk said it has the manufacturing resources to meet "present and projected national demand" but that patients "may still see intermittent and limited localized supply disruptions as the products move through the supply chain from the manufacturer and distributors to local pharmacies."

Hims & Hers said in November that it had seen "seen strong retention rates" for those drugs and that it planned to bring a generic GLP-1 drug, liraglutide, to the platform this year.

Many patients have sought out those alternatives due to their availability and lower price. More broadly, Hims & Hers - which also sells drugs like Cialis, which is used to treat erectile dysfunction and high blood pressure, along with anxiety medications - has leaned into more personalized, customized medications as it expands.

The company, when reached for comment, referred to remarks posted by Chief Executive Andrew Dudum on X.

"Now that the FDA has determined the drug shortage for semaglutide has been resolved, we will continue to offer access to personalized treatments as allowed by law to meet patient needs," he said.

He added: "We're also closely monitoring potential future shortages, as Novo Nordisk stated two weeks ago that it would continue to have 'capacity limitations' and 'expected continued periodic supply constraints and related drug shortage notifications.'"

-Bill Peters

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February 21, 2025 13:36 ET (18:36 GMT)

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