Pre-market stock price of Novo Nordisk A/S Sponsored ADR Class B (NVO.US) plummets, the weight loss effect of the new generation of weight-loss drugs on diabetic patients is lower than expected.

Novo Nordisk A/S Sponsored ADR Class B (NVO.US) announced on Monday that its experimental new drug, CagriSema, helped overweight or obese type 2 diabetes patients lose 15.7% of their body weight after 68 weeks. As of the time of writing, Novo Nordisk A/S Sponsored ADR Class B was trading down 6.64% at $81.38 before market open. Analyst David Evans from Kepler Cheuvreux stated that investors had originally expected this number to be closer to 20%. This is the second large study for CagriSema that has disappointed, as a trial last December in a non-diabetic population showed lower weight loss results than expected. Evans said, "This result further weakens the prospects for CagriSema and raises doubts about the future pipeline of Novo Nordisk A/S Sponsored ADR Class B." The stock fell 6.5% in Copenhagen, marking the largest intraday decline since CagriSema released its first large study report on December 20th. The stock price has dropped 37% in the past 12 months as investors worry about the company's long-term competitiveness in the weight loss market. The new data from the phase 3 trial named REDEFINE 2, released on Monday, is based on approximately 1200 type 2 diabetes patients with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 27 or higher, over a 68-week period. Novo Nordisk A/S Sponsored ADR Class B stated in a release that the REDEFINE 2 trial had a flexible design, allowing patients to adjust their dosage during the trial. The company also added that after 68 weeks, 61.9% of patients receiving CagriSema treatment were using the highest dose. If all patients continued to use CagriSema treatment, overall weight loss after 68 weeks was 15.7%, compared to 3.1% in the placebo group. A common primary endpoint was achieving a weight loss of 5% or more, with 89.7% of patients on CagriSema treatment reaching this goal, compared to 30.3% in the placebo group. CagriSema is a fixed-dose combination of the long-acting GLP-1 receptor agonist 2.4 mg semaglutide and 2.4 mg sotagliflozin. These two molecules help with weight loss by reducing hunger and increasing satiety, aiding in eating less and reducing calorie intake.