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Key Takeaways
- Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk is set to report earnings for the third quarter of 2024 on Wednesday morning.
- Sales of its popular weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy will be Novo investors’ focus.
- Analysts are generaly bullish on the stock, with five “hold” ratings and six “buy” ratings and an average price target about 28% above recent levels.
Novo Nordisk (NVO), maker of popular weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, is set to report third-quarter earnings Wednesday morning, with Wall Street analysts generally bullish on the Danish drugmaker’s stock.
Analysts with current ratings tracked by Visible Alpha have six “buy” and five “hold” or equivalent ratings. The average price target for the company’s shares on its home stock exchange is 963.36 Danish krone (about $140), about 28% over its Monday close.
The company could face increased competition in the weight-loss market in coming years. Companies like Viking Therapeutics (VKTX) and AstraZeneca (AZN) this week offered new data for their own weight-loss drugs in various stages of clinical trials.
Novo Nordisk, Eli Lilly Have Production ‘Moats’ Over Competitors
Deutsche Bank analysts said Monday that they believe Novo Nordisk, along with Mounjaro and Zepbound-maker Eli Lilly (LLY), have “built moats” that will make it difficult for other companies to scale production enough to challenge their dominant positions in the weight-loss market.
Analysts expect Novo Nordisk to report 72.17 billion krone ($10.48 billion) in revenue for the quarter, with Ozempic and Wegovy sales projected to rise 28% and 63%, respectively, from the same time last year.
Eli Lilly’s results missed estimates last week, with sales of Mounjaro and Zepbound continuing to rise and bolster Lilly’s revenue.