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Important information: The value of investments can go down as well as up so you may get back less than you invest. Investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. This is a third-party news feed and may not reflect Fidelity’s views.

Novo Nordisk sees promising early results for weight loss pill

(Sharecast News) - 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.

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