Novo Nordisk Shares Hit Four-Year Low After Alzheimer’s Drug Trial Fails to Meet Main Goal

(Seoul=Yonhap Infomax) Jang Won Lee – Denmark-based pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk (NYS:NVO) announced that its clinical trial for an Alzheimer’s disease treatment failed to meet its primary endpoint.

According to CNBC on the 24th (U.S. local time), Novo Nordisk tested whether semaglutide—the active ingredient in its diabetes and obesity drugs Ozempic and Wegovy—could help slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

Novo Nordisk stated, “While semaglutide treatment showed improvements in Alzheimer’s-related biomarkers, this did not translate into a delay in disease progression.”

The original goal was to slow cognitive decline in patients by at least 20%.

Following the announcement, Novo Nordisk shares plunged as much as 9.55% intraday, marking their lowest level since July 2021.

The stock later pared some losses to close down 5.5% at $44.97.

Shareholders had hoped a successful trial would help reverse Novo Nordisk’s recent share price decline, but the failure dealt a blow to investor sentiment.

However, experts had previously described the trial’s chances of success as a “long shot,” and Novo Nordisk itself likened the outcome to a “lottery ticket,” indicating low expectations for the results.

Alzheimer’s disease is notoriously difficult to treat, and its significance is growing amid global population aging.

Current treatments from competitors such as Eli Lilly (NYS:LLY) with Kisunla and Biogen (NAS:BIIB) with Leqembi are known to slow disease progression but carry serious side effect risks.

Following news of Novo Nordisk’s setback, Eli Lilly shares rose about 0.8%, while Biogen gained 0.8%.

jang73@yna.co.kr

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