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Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Analysis-Wall Street sees new obesity pills as priced near Wegovy and Zepbound
By Maggie Fick and Bhanvi Satija SEATTLE (Reuters) -U.S. prices for obesity-treatment pills that Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk aim to launch next year likely will be on par with their weight-loss injections, analysts and investors say, in a departure from the usual practice of charging more for new medicines despite pressure to cut prices. Neither drugmaker has disclosed pricing plans for their new daily oral medications. With regulatory approvals and launches still months away, pricing plans could change. Denmark-based Novo expects approval later this year and to launch soon after, while Indianapolis-based Lilly expects to launch by August 2026. Novo's Wegovy and Lilly's Zepbound, administered as weekly injections, are the only highly effective weight-loss drugs targeting the GLP-1 hormone, and the United States is their biggest market. U.S. list prices are about $1,000 per month or more, with both companies offering a monthly supply for $499 to customers paying cash rather than using health insurance. Both companies have said they developed oral weight-loss drugs to meet patient needs and widen access to the market, mindful that some people are averse to injections. The pills, however, are not more effective than the injections. Lilly said this month its pill orforglipron cut weight by 12.4% after 72 weeks in a trial. That compares with weight loss of 15% for Novo's daily oral semaglutide. Both trail Lilly's injection at up to 21%. UBS analyst Trung Huynh said that will cap Lilly's pricing. The price is "probably going to come on par with the current drugs today or slightly lower," Huynh said. TD Cowen analyst Michael Nedelcovych said he expects Novo's pill to debut near Wegovy's price, citing the precedent of its diabetes pill Rybelsus being priced at parity with injection Ozempic, the diabetes-treatment version of Wegovy. Novo executives told analysts this month they were not in a hurry for discount pricing for the new pill. Oral GLP-1 drugs will fill a niche rather than displace injections, according to analysts. TD Cowen estimates that pills will account for a percentage share of the global obesity drug market in the mid-teens by 2030, which could reach $150 billion by then. GROWING CASH PAY U.S. doctors, patients and insurers are pressing for lower prices to make the weight-loss drugs more affordable for the 40% of Americans who are obese. Typically, drugmakers launch new drugs at higher prices, citing scientific advances. President Donald Trump and lawmakers from both parties have urged the companies to reduce U.S. prices. Novo declined to comment on pricing, pointing to August 6 comments by David Moore, its U.S. operations head, saying that the company may tap customers paying cash directly via its new NovoCare pharmacy, which was launched this year to sell Wegovy outside of insurance. A Lilly spokesperson called it premature to comment on pricing and launch plans for its pill because the company has not yet submitted data for regulatory approval. Peak annual sales forecasts for Lilly's orforglipron fell to as low as $10 billion after its trial data from earlier estimates of up to $30 billion, according to a Reuters review of analyst estimates. HSBC forecasts $15 billion in peak annual sales for Novo's pill, while Barclays expects only $1 billion. MANUFACTURING VOLUME A key question is how much supply will be available at the time of launch. Shortages of injectable GLP-1s in 2023 and 2024 opened the U.S. market to cheaper compounded versions as the manufacturers failed to anticipate the huge demand. "It's all about scale and pricing," said Kevin Gade, portfolio manager at Bahl & Gaynor, which owns Lilly shares. Gade pointed to Novo's manufacturing challenge. The pill form requires about 75 times more active ingredient than the highest-dose Wegovy injection, two analysts told Reuters. Lilly has said it already has $808.5 million in orforglipron inventory for next year's expected launch. Novo has said it will launch its pill without supply constraints after billions of dollars in investment to expand semaglutide production. Despite the high production needs, Novo is unlikely to debut its pill at a higher price than Wegovy, said Karen Andersen, healthcare strategist at Morningstar. "Particularly in the growing cash-pay market, I doubt it can risk a launch at a premium to Wegovy," Andersen added. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
One in four US adults with diabetes used a GLP-1 drug last year, survey finds
By Bhanvi Satija (Reuters) -More than one in four U.S. adults with diabetes used one of the injectable medicines that target the GLP-1 protein last year, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday. The wildly popular and effective GLP-1 drugs Mounjaro from Eli Lilly and Ozempic from Novo Nordisk are approved in the United States for treating type 2 diabetes. They are sold as Zepbound and Wegovy, respectively, for weight loss and are being tested for other conditions. Use of the injectable drugs was highest among adults with diabetes aged 50–64 at 33.3%, reflecting the more significant disease burden in this group, the report said. A quarter or 25.3% of adults with diabetes aged 18 to 34 reported using a GLP-1 drug, while the adoption rate was 20.8% among those 65 and older. The data are from a nationally representative annual survey of U.S. adults aged 18 and older that was conducted in person and with follow-up by phone in 2024. In 2024, for the first time, participants in the annual survey who had diabetes were asked if they were using the Lilly or Novo blockbusters or other GLP-1 drugs to lower blood sugar or lose weight. The drugs mimic the activity of a hormone that regulates blood sugar levels, slows digestion and helps people feel full for longer. Drugmakers Lilly and Novo have faced criticism about the cost of the treatments, which carry a list price of about $1,000 for a month's supply. Roughly 31% of survey participants who reported using insulin also reported using GLP-1 drugs, as did about 28% of patients who were using oral drugs to control their blood sugar, according to the report, indicating that these treatments are being integrated into combination regimens. Hispanic adults with diabetes had the highest rate of GLP-1 use, at 31.3%, followed by Black non-Hispanic and White non-Hispanic adults, at 26.5% and 26.2%, respectively, the survey found. Only 12.1% of Asian non-Hispanic adults with diabetes used the drugs, which may reflect disparities in access or adoption of the therapies. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
24-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Roche considering selling drugs directly to US patients, CEO says
By Bhanvi Satija and Maggie Fick LONDON (Reuters) -Roche is considering selling its prescription medicines in the U.S. directly to consumers to lower costs for patients as part of talks with the U.S. government, which is pressuring drugmakers to cut prices, Roche's CEO said on Thursday. A direct-to-consumer (DTC) model would work for all of the Swiss company's medicines, CEO Thomas Schinecker said on a call with reporters, without detailing how the scheme might work. U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order in May directing drugmakers to lower medicine prices to align with what other countries pay. Last week, Bristol Myers and Pfizer said they would begin selling their blockbuster blood thinner, Eliquis, directly to cash-paying U.S. patients at a discount. Typically, U.S. drug prices are shaped by complex negotiations involving pharmacy benefit managers that act as middlemen between drugmakers and consumers. They negotiate volume discounts and fees with drugmakers on behalf of employers and health plans, create lists of drugs that are covered by insurance, and reimburse pharmacies for prescriptions. The system has often been criticised for inflating costs. An industry source told Reuters on Wednesday that the most viable DTC candidates were small-molecule drugs dispensed at retail pharmacies - such as treatments for diabetes, cardiovascular conditions, or respiratory diseases like asthma - because they are simpler to distribute and price directly for patients compared to complex medicines, such as some cancer drugs, which often require special handling and injection. Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk already offer their popular weight-loss drugs Zepbound and Wegovy directly to U.S. patients for rates below the drugs' list prices. Lilly's chief financial officer, Lucas Montarce, said at an industry conference last month that the company had shared details of how it implemented its DTC model with the Trump administration. Schinecker said a DTC model would help lower costs in the U.S. quickly by cutting out pharmacy benefit managers. The model could appeal not only to the uninsured or under-insured, but also to insured patients comparing the cost of accessing drugs through insurers with cash prices, the industry source said. For example, if a patient was required to pay $20 to an insurer for a drug with a list price of $100, a DTC offer would need to beat that to be attractive. Roche has also increased inventories to avoid potential disruptions from tariffs, Schinecker said. The company announced in April plans to invest $50 billion in the U.S. over the next five years. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
USA Today
23-06-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Novo Nordisk halts Wegovy deal with Hims & Hers, triggering 31% stock drop
Drugmaker Novo Nordisk said on Monday it would halt its Wegovy weight-loss drug agreement with U.S. telehealth company Hims & Hers Health HIMS.N, pushing Hims shares down 31% in morning trading. The two companies had announced a collaboration in April for Hims & Hers to sell Novo's Wegovy through a bundled offering on the telehealth company's platform. The end of the collaboration means Hims will no longer be able to sell branded Wegovy drugs. Novo said that Hims & Hers' decision to continue supplying doses of compounded semaglutide - the active ingredient in Wegovy - was not in accordance with the law because the drug was no longer in shortage. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration had allowed compounded versions made by pharmacies during the drug's shortage. In case you missed it: Wegovy weight-loss drug discounted to $199 until July, but there's a catch Earlier this month, Hims said that it would continue selling "personalized" doses of semaglutide, starting at around $165 a month. Hims has said personalized doses are allowed for patients who need different doses for clinical reasons such as limiting side effects. Hims & Hers shares were trading at $44.55 on Monday. Hims also sells liraglutide, a generic version of another older Novo diabetes drug that causes weight loss, as well as Eli Lilly's LLY.N rival Zepbound. Wall Street analysts have questioned whether Hims' offerings actually qualify as "personalized" and say it is unclear if Novo, which has said mass production of copies is breaking the law, will allow it. Hims & Hers was not immediately available for a comment. A U.S. federal judge on Friday rejected a bid by compounding pharmacies to allow them to continue making copies of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, upholding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's decision to remove the drugs' active ingredient, semaglutide, from the shortage list. "Efforts will continue to make authentic, FDA-approved Wegovy directly available through NovoCare Pharmacy to select telehealth organizations that share our commitment to safe and effective medical treatment for patients," Novo said. Novo's share price fell following the announcement, extending an earlier decline to trade down 6.5% by 1315 GMT. Shares of Hims & Hers fell 22% to $50.02 in U.S. premarket hours. Reporting by Louise Breusch Rasmussen, Bhanvi Satija and Amina Niasse; Editing by Terje Solsvik, Catherine Evans and Aidan Lewis
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Muscle-preserving drugs could generate over $30 billion in sales by 2035, TD Cowen says
By Bhanvi Satija (Reuters) -Treatments designed to help patients preserve muscle while losing weight with popular obesity drugs by Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk could generate more than $30 billion in sales by 2035, analysts at TD Cowen said on Friday. About a dozen companies are racing to develop such therapies, most of which are being tested in combination with Lilly's Zepbound or Novo's Wegovy, both of which target the GLP-1 protein to help control appetite. The initial Wall Street estimates for muscle-preserving therapies follow promising mid-stage results from experimental drugs developed by Regeneron and Scholar Rock. Investors are closely watching mid-stage data from Lilly's muscle mass-preserving drug, bimagrumab, which is scheduled for presentation at a medical conference next week. Analysts have projected that obesity drugs sales could reach $150 billion a year by the early 2030s. The unmet need to preserve muscle will grow with the use of GLP-1 drugs for obesity, said TD Cowen analyst Tyler Van Buren. Doctors have raised concerns that patients may experience a decrease in overall strength due to muscle loss associated with Zepbound and Wegovy, while experts suggest that more muscle can help patients maintain long-term weight loss. Van Buren said that the first such treatment could launch by 2028, although regulatory challenges remain because these treatments must demonstrate additional health benefits to secure approval. "We believe quality of weight loss and lean mass preservation ... is far too important for long-term health outcomes to be ignored and that this will be figured out," Van Buren said. Some of the new drugs target the myostatin protein, which is associated with muscle growth, and are expected to see broader use due to their superior safety profile, capturing the majority of the market share, Van Buren said. Other drugs target activin, a protein with multiple biological functions. Van Buren said that activin-based drugs will be reserved for patients at higher risk of losing strength, forecasting sales of about $5 billion by 2035. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
