Novo Nordisk CEO to quit as he competes for weight stock price

Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen is resigning as Wegovy Maker tries to restore his ill fate amid increasingly fierce competition, it said Friday.

Danish pharmaceutical giant says Jørgensen has been in charge for eight years,,,,, Will remain in his post “for a while to support a smooth transition to a new leadership.” It added that searches for successors are underway and are announced as appropriate.

The final trade for Novo Nordisk stock was 2.3% lower. Meanwhile, stocks of competitor obesity drug manufacturers Yililai Previously it grew 1.6% in listing transactions.

The decision comes as Novo Nordisk's stock price has been attacked over the past year, due to increased competition in the obesity drug market and disappointing trial results for next-generation treatments.

The company's share price is currently down more than 50% since mid-2024.

“Novo Nordisk's strategy remains the same and the board is confident in the company's current business plan and its ability to execute it,” Chairman Helge Lund said in a statement.

“However, given the recent market challenges Novo Novers faces and the changes in the company's share price development since mid-2024,” the company said in a statement.

The company said that in connection with the change, Lars Rebien Sørensen, former Novo CEO and current chairman of the Novo Nordisk Foundation, will join Novo Nordisk's board, initially as an observer.

Novo reported last week that its flagship Wegovy obesity drug had lower-than-expected first-quarter sales

Jorgensen told CNBC's Charlotte Reed that “the compounder took a part of our business.”

Nevertheless, the company said sales are expected to improve as the availability of mimic compound drugs is phased out as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ended its drug shortage ruling.

Meanwhile, Novo strives to shake negative emotions over a series of disappointing trial results from its next-generation obesity drug cagrisema. Jørgensen had previously said he was “very optimistic” about the treatment prospects.

“From the data we have, Cagrisema is the best product to be tested or tested on the market, and we believe we can get that data better.”