NVO Stock Continues To Decline Pre-Market After Monday’s Crash Amid CagriSema Setback – But Tuesday Brings Some Hope From China

Developed in partnership with United Laboratories International Holdings, Novo Nordisk said that UBT251 delivered up to 19.7% mean weight loss after 24 weeks in a phase 2 trial in China.

• The company stated that the UBT251 trial conducted by United Laboratories showed statistically significant improvements when compared to placebo on key secondary endpoints.
• Novo Nordisk stated that from a baseline mean body weight of 92.2 kg, the highest mean weight loss observed for people treated with UBT251 was 19.7%, compared to 2% in the placebo group.
• The company’s Chief Scientific Officer, Martin Holst Lange, added that Novo Nordisk is looking forward to reporting data from a global trial with UBT251 next year.

Novo Nordisk AS (NVO) on Tuesday announced that its phase 2 clinical trial of a new obesity drug in China has shown successful results.

Developed in partnership with United Laboratories International Holdings, Novo Nordisk said that UBT251 delivered up to 19.7% mean weight loss after 24 weeks in a phase 2 trial in China.

However, Novo Nordisk shares declined nearly 3% in Tuesday’s pre-market trade. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits around the company trended in the ‘bullish’ territory with message volumes at ‘extremely high’ levels at the time of writing.

UBT251 Trial Results Show Significant Improvements

The company stated that the UBT251 trial conducted by United Laboratories showed statistically significant improvements compared with placebo on key secondary endpoints, including waist circumference, blood glucose, blood pressure, and lipids.

The trial investigated the safety and efficacy of UBT251 at doses of 2 mg, 4 mg, and 6 mg.

Novo Nordisk stated that from a baseline mean body weight of 92.2 kg, the highest mean weight loss observed for people treated with UBT251 was 19.7%, or about 17.5 kg, compared to 2% or 1.6kg in the placebo group after 24 weeks of treatment.

“We are very encouraged by these data from the trial in China, which demonstrate the potential of UBT251 and its differentiated clinical profile and safety and tolerability profile,” said Novo Nordisk’s Chief Scientific Officer, Martin Holst Lange.

Lange added that the company is looking forward to reporting data from a global trial with UBT251 next year.

Why Is NVO Stock Declining Pre-Market?

Novo Nordisk shares continued to decline in Tuesday’s pre-market session. This is after a fall of more than 16% on Monday, following the company's announcement that CagriSema demonstrated 23% weight loss in people with obesity in the Redefine 4 trial, failing to meet its primary endpoint.

According to TheFly, analysts at JPMorgan downgraded Novo Nordisk to ‘Neutral’ from ‘Overweight’, calling the CagriSema results “disappointing.”

The firm also further reduced its CagriSema forecasts by up to 63% through 2030, expecting a more challenging uptake for the product given its "inferiority" to Eli Lilly and Co.’s (LLY) Zepbound.

Analysts at Kepler Cheuvreux downgraded NVO to ‘Hold’ from ‘Buy’ and stated that the company’s Redefine 4 study was a “major negative surprise.”

Nordea analysts also downgraded Novo Nordisk to ‘Hold’ from ‘Buy’, with the firm citing a lack of near-term catalysts following Monday’s obesity study results.

NVO stock is down 23% year-to-date and 55% over the past 12 months.

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