Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) has raised its full-year outlook based on a strong first half of 2023 driven by continued high demand for its popular weight-loss drug Wegovy.
The Denmark-headquartered global pharmaceutical company expects its sales for 2023 to be up 27% to 33% from the last year, from its prior guidance range of 24% to 30%.
It expects its operating profit to increase by 31% to 37%, compared to its prior expectation of growth of 28% to 34%.
For the second quarter, Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO)’s earnings per American Depository Receipt of $1.26 missed the Street estimate of $1.34, per Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Revenue grew by about 30% (in Danish kroner) to US$7.94 billion, below estimates of US$8.43 billion, driven by increased demand for GLP-1-based diabetes and obesity treatments like Wegovy.
The company will continue to restrict U.S. supplies of starter doses of Wegovy well into 2024 as it struggles to keep up with demand for the drug, Novo Nodisk’s CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen told Reuters on Thursday.
The company’s US-listed shares moved lower on its weak 2Q sales and earnings miss, down 3% at US$181.92 on Thursday afternoon.
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