Novo Nordisk sees promising early results for weight loss pill

Shares in Novo Nordisk sparked on Thursday, after the Danish pharmaceutical firm detailed promising trial data for its experimental anti-obesity drug amycretin.

Addressing investors at a capital markets day, Novo Nordisk said participants in a phase 1 trial of an oral pill version of amycretin lost 13.1% of their weight after 12 weeks.

That compares to a 6% weight loss in the same period for Wegovy, its blockbuster anti-obesity jab.

As at 1300 GMT, shares in the Copenhagen-listed firm, which have soared 82% over the last year, were up 5%.

Last year, Novo Nordisk saw sales rocket 31% to £26.6bn and net profits surge 51% on the back of booming demand for its weight loss treatments.

Sales of Wegovy were up 407% over the year, following successful launches in the US, UK, much of northern Europe and the United Arab Emirates.

Global sales of Ozempic, which is used to treat Type 2 diabetes, rose 60%.

Along with Wegovy and Ozempic, amycretin belongs to a class of drugs known as GLP-1. Amycretin, however, has a different formulation to Wegovy and Ozempic.