Novo Nordisk Raised Its 2026 Outlook Again as Its Wegovy Pill Beat Forecasts

Novo Nordisk raised its 2026 outlook for the third time this year after its Wegovy pill beat sales forecasts in the third quarter.

Novo Nordisk A/S is a Danish drugmaker built on diabetes and obesity medicines. Its B shares trade on Nasdaq Copenhagen as Novo-B. Its American depositary receipts trade in New York as NVO. The company employs more than 66,500 people worldwide.

The outlook rose for the third time

Novo now expects adjusted sales growth of -2% to +2% at CER in 2026. CER means constant exchange rates, growth with currency moves stripped out. Adjusted operating profit growth carries the same new range.

The prior range pointed down. Both lines were expected to fall by 0% to 6%. Reuters noted this was the third raise this year. The driver was higher expectations for GLP-1 product sales. GLP-1 medicines mimic a gut hormone that curbs appetite.

Chief Executive Mike Doustdar claimed a stronger quarter. He said Novo had "delivered a stronger-than-expected third quarter." It was "raising our full-year outlook for adjusted sales and adjusted operating profit."

Adjusted profit beat while reported profit fell

Third-quarter net sales were DKK 79.2 billion. Sales rose 6% in Danish crowns and 4% at CER. Adjusted sales matched reported sales exactly this quarter. Nine-month net sales reached DKK 254.51 billion.

Adjusted operating profit was DKK 31.72 billion. It rose 34% in crowns and 27% at CER. Analysts had expected DKK 28.39 billion, per the company-compiled consensus carried by Reuters. Adjusted sales beat the DKK 73.22 billion consensus.

Reported operating profit told the opposite story. It fell to DKK 23.01 billion, down 3% in crowns. At CER the drop was 9%. Non-cash impairment charges of DKK 8.7 billion drove the fall.

The charges split two ways. Ziltivekimab accounted for DKK 4.6 billion. Right-sizing the manufacturing network added DKK 4.1 billion. The adjusted growth also flattered the comparison. The year-earlier quarter carried DKK 9 billion of transformation costs.

The bottom line fell too, per dpa-AFX. Net profit was DKK 16.74 billion, down 16%. Earnings per share were DKK 3.79, also down 16%. Adjusted net profit fell 12% to DKK 25.60 billion. It fell even as adjusted operating profit rose. The reports do not explain that gap.

The Wegovy pill carried the quarter

Wegovy pill sales reached DKK 5.39 billion in the quarter. The company-compiled consensus expected DKK 4.62 billion, per Reuters. Sales rose 53% from the second quarter. The pill launched in the US in January.

The US supplied DKK 4.18 billion of pill sales. International markets added DKK 1.22 billion. US prescriptions reached about 3.6 million in the quarter. They pass eight million since the January launch.

By the end of September the pill sold in four markets. They were the US, the UAE, the UK and Germany. Four more launches since lifted the total to eight. The franchise leads US new patient starts. Its share of the branded obesity market tops 50%.

The older injection is fading in the US. Injectable Wegovy sales there fell 13% at CER, per Reuters. Combined US Wegovy sales still rose 21%. The pill is only about 6% of expected sales. Analysts still see it as Novo's main route back to growth.

The rival is Eli Lilly. Its Foundayo pill is winning a growing share of new prescriptions, per Reuters. Lilly also raised its outlook last week. Novo once stood as Europe's most valuable listed company. A two-year slump of profit warnings followed.

A second pill is building quietly. The Ozempic pill launched in the US in May. Weekly new-to-brand prescriptions run about 100% above pre-launch levels. Those levels date from its years under the Rybelsus brand.

The pipeline added longer-dated support

Novo labeled the trial results company-reported readouts. CagriSema cut weight by 21% at week 68 in REDEFINE 9. That obesity trial tested the 1.0/1.0 milligram dose.

In REIMAGINE 5, the diabetes trial, CagriSema cut weight by 12.4%. Tirzepatide at 5 milligrams cut it by 9.1%. CagriSema matched on blood-sugar control at week 60. Novo also started AMAZE 9 in September. That phase 3 trial tests oral zenagamtide.

Frehemgo, a blood-disorder drug, won a positive CHMP opinion on September 17. CHMP is the European regulator's medicines committee. First EU launches are planned around the turn of the year. They await full approval. US review continues, with a launch expected in the first half of 2027.

A new finance chief arrives mid-turnaround

Novo also announced a finance-chief change, per Reuters. Karsten Munk Knudsen will leave at the end of December 2026. He is stepping down to pursue other opportunities. Luigi La Corte will join as chief financial officer. La Corte has been Galderma's CFO since May 2026.

What remains unknown

What remains unknown starts with durability. One strong pill quarter drove this raise. Whether prescription growth holds against Foundayo is unproven. The fourth-quarter ramp will test it first.

Whether reported profit recovers is also open. That depends on impairments not repeating at this scale. The earnings call may clarify the charge mix. Detail on the CFO handover timing is still thin.

What to watch next

What to watch next starts today. Novo holds its earnings call at 7:00 a.m. Eastern. Watch management on pill supply and prescription trends.

Watch the fourth-quarter pill ramp against Lilly's Foundayo. Watch whether reported profit steadies as impairments pass. Watch for fuller detail on the finance-chief handover.