|
|
|
|
|||||
|
|
|
No pharmaceutical stock investor likes it when one of their holdings slices drug prices.
This one is reducing the costs of a top medicine in a huge Asian market.
Since pharmaceutical companies rely on the revenue generated from approved medicines, price cuts can put pressure on their fundamentals. That was the dynamic behind Novo Nordisk's (NYSE: NVO) fall on the stock market Monday; news that its Wegovy would cost less in a major market drove the company's shares down by nearly 2%.
Novo Nordisk stated only that it was reducing the prices of its highly popular drug in China, although it did not provide details on the specific reductions. Reuters cited a report from Chinese media outlet Yicai stating that the two highest monthly doses of Wegovy received a 48% cut apiece, to between 987 yuan ($141) and 1,284 yuan ($183).
Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue »
Image source: Getty Images.
In a statement Novo Nordisk provided to Reuters, the Danish pharmaceutical company wrote, "We believe this pricing adjustment in China will further help alleviate the treatment burden for patients and improve their quality of life."
The move likely has more to do with staying competitive in the massive Asian country. The company's patent on semaglutide, the active ingredient in the drug, expires in 2026. Local pharmaceutical companies are currently developing either their own versions of semaglutide or similar weight-loss treatments.
This isn't a new tactic by Novo Nordisk, which has faced intense competition from both approved medicines (like Eli Lilly's Zepbound) and third-party "compounders" (makers of custom drugs) that use legal loopholes to continue concocting Wegovy-like products. In November, for example, the company reduced Wegovy prices by as much as 37%.
This hot, competitive landscape is a fact of life for Novo Nordisk, but I think management is being as reactive and strategic as it can to try and cope. Meanwhile, its activity in the lab is yielding results; it recently earned approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for an orally administered version of Wegovy.
Before you buy stock in Novo Nordisk, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Novo Nordisk wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $507,744!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,153,827!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 983% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 195% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of December 30, 2025.
Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Novo Nordisk. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
| 4 hours | |
| 6 hours | |
| 7 hours | |
| 8 hours | |
| 12 hours | |
| Dec-29 | |
| Dec-29 |
Joel Habener, Whose Research Helped Develop Weight-Loss Drugs, Dies at 88
NVO
The Wall Street Journal
|
| Dec-29 | |
| Dec-29 | |
| Dec-29 | |
| Dec-29 | |
| Dec-29 | |
| Dec-29 | |
| Dec-29 | |
| Dec-29 |
Join thousands of traders who make more informed decisions with our premium features. Real-time quotes, advanced visualizations, backtesting, and much more.
Learn more about FINVIZ*Elite