Latest news with #HelgeLund
Daily Mail
20-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Shell boss cautious over bidding for BP as shareholders rebel over plans to ramp up gas production
Shell's boss has not ruled out launching an audacious takeover bid for rival BP – but said the bar to such a deal was 'very high'. Chief executive Wael Sawan's comments yesterday followed fresh speculation this month that the oil giant is weighing up a bid for struggling BP. Shell has reportedly called in advisors to work on a potential offer but it is waiting for oil prices and its competitor's valuation to fall further before making a swoop. Speaking at Shell's annual general meeting, Sawan was cautious about the prospect of a deal. When asked about a potential bid, he said: 'The bar for mergers and acquisitions is very high.' He said Shell's share price makes buybacks an especially attractive way of spending money. A deal, which would be one of the biggest in the sector, would strike a devastating blow to both BP and London's stock market. It comes as 116-year-old BP's share price lags behind its peers following an ill-fated pivot towards renewable energy. While the arch-rivals were once neck-and-neck, BP is now worth around £58billion whereas Shell sits at £147billion. Sawan's re-election to the board won the support of 98.7pc of shareholders at the AGM yesterday while chairman Andrew Mackenzie secured the backing of 91.4 per cent. In contrast, BP chairman Helge Lund only received around 76 per cent at this year's shareholder meeting and is set to step down following investor pressure. However, Shell faced a backlash from a group of investors over its fossil fuel strategy. Around a fifth of shareholders backed an activist resolution asking the company for more information on its liquefied natural gas (LNG) expansion and how it is compatible with climate targets. The resolution was defeated, but the level of votes cast in favour requires the company to consult shareholders further on the issue within six months. In his opening address, Mackenzie argued that Shell expects fossil fuel demand to stay strong for the 'foreseeable future'. Shell's shares inched up 0.6 per cent, or 13.5p, to 2486.5p.
Bloomberg
16-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Ozempic CEO's Exit From Novo Started With Teams Call Surprise
When Novo Nordisk A/S Chief Executive Officer Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen dialed into a Teams video call with Chairman Helge Lund, he was expecting an ordinary catchup. Instead, Jorgensen says Lund was effectively telling him he needed to go.
Al Jazeera
16-05-2025
- Business
- Al Jazeera
In surprise move Wegovy-maker Novo Nordisk ousts CEO amid sagging sales
Wegovy-maker Novo Nordisk has pushed out CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen over concerns the company is losing its first-mover advantage in the highly competitive obesity drug market. Novo Nordisk announced the decision on Friday. Days earlier, Novo Nordisk cut its sales and profit forecast for the first time since the launch of Wegovy four years ago, though Jorgensen had predicted a return to growth in its biggest market in the second half of this year. Novo's chairman, Helge Lund, tried to reassure analysts and investors on a call that the company's strategy was intact and the plan for executing it had not changed. He told the Reuters news agency that discussions to replace Jorgensen had occurred over the past few weeks. Novo said earlier that Jorgensen will remain in his role until a successor is found. Under Jorgensen's leadership, Novo Nordisk became a world leader in the weight-loss drug market, with skyrocketing sales of its Wegovy and Ozempic treatments. Analysts and investors were unconvinced of the need to replace him. 'He was leading the company for eight years and was, in my opinion, extremely successful,' Lukas Leu, a portfolio manager at Bellevue Asset Management, told Reuters. Danske Bank analyst Carsten Lonborg Madsen was similarly caught off guard. 'The way we know Novo Nordisk is that normally you have patience when you're on the right track, and then you let things move in the right direction once you have the strategy right,' he said. 'It just feels like there's something that has gone pretty wrong here,' he said on the call. Novo's shares have plunged since hitting a record high in June last year as competition, particularly from US rival Eli Lilly, makes inroads into its market share and as its pipeline of new drugs has failed to impress investors. 'The changes are made in light of the recent market challenges Novo Nordisk has been facing, and the development of the company's share price since mid-2024,' Novo said in its statement. Jorgensen, at 58, has been CEO since 2017. He said in an interview with Danish broadcaster TV2 that he did not see the decision coming, and was only informed very recently. Booming sales of Wegovy helped make Novo the most valuable listed company in Europe, worth $615bn at its peak in June last year, but its market value has halved to about $310bn. Novo Nordisk's share price fell on the news, trading 0.8 percent lower by 14:01 GMT after being 4 percent higher earlier in the day. The shares are down 32 percent year-to-date and 59 percent from their all-time high. Eli Lilly has seen US prescriptions for its Zepbound obesity shot surpass Wegovy since mid-March in its biggest market. Eli Lilly shares were up 2.6 percent after the news. Camilla Sylvest, Novo's head of commercial strategy and corporate affairs and a consistent presence alongside CEO Jorgensen, stepped down last month without citing a reason. Former CEO of Novo Nordisk for 16 years and current chair of the Novo Nordisk Foundation, Lars Rebien Sorensen, will join the board as an observer with immediate effect with the aim of taking a seat at the next annual general meeting, Novo said. The company is controlled by the Novo Nordisk Foundation through its investment arm, which owns 77 percent of the voting shares.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Talks to replace Novo Nordisk CEO lasted several weeks, board chair says
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) -Discussions between Novo Nordisk and the Novo Nordisk Foundation that controls the company regarding a CEO change have been ongoing for the past few weeks, the company's board Chair Helge Lund told Reuters on Friday. Meanwhile, outgoing Chief Executive Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen told Danish broadcaster TV2 that he was surprised by the decision, and that he had only been informed "very recently". "I did not see this coming," Fruergaard Jorgensen told TV2. 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
Reuters
16-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Talks to replace Novo Nordisk CEO lasted several weeks, board chair says
COPENHAGEN, May 16 (Reuters) - Discussions between Novo Nordisk ( opens new tab and the Novo Nordisk Foundation that controls the company regarding a CEO change have been ongoing for the past few weeks, the company's board Chair Helge Lund told Reuters on Friday. Meanwhile, outgoing Chief Executive Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen told Danish broadcaster TV2 that he was surprised by the decision, and that he had only been informed "very recently". "I did not see this coming," Fruergaard Jorgensen told TV2.
