Novo Nordisk narrowed its full-year forecast on Wednesday in Bagsværd, Denmark. The company said US demand for its new Wegovy pill had partly offset falling prices and generic competition for semaglutide in several overseas markets. The maker of Ozempic and Wegovy still expects sales and operating profit to decline in 2026 at constant exchange rates.

The company had warned investors in February that 2026 would bring its first annual sales decline in decades. It blamed lower US prices following its pricing agreement with the Trump administration, along with the expiry of semaglutide patents in markets including China, Canada and Brazil. Novo Nordisk's shares lost about 19% of their value over the past year as Eli Lilly overtook it in the obesity market.

The oral version of Wegovy launched in the United States in January and has become a rare bright spot for the company. Novo Nordisk said prescriptions for the pill continued to rise through the third quarter, helped by cash-pay sales through its NovoCare pharmacy and telehealth partners. Sales of injectable Wegovy and Ozempic in the US fell as average prices dropped.

Chief executive Maziar Mike Doustdar, who took over in 2025, has cut around 9,000 jobs as part of a restructuring aimed at saving billions of kroner a year. He said the company was focused on volume growth as prices fall across the obesity market. Analysts at Danish banks had expected Novo Nordisk to tighten rather than raise its guidance, given intensifying competition from Lilly's orforglipron pill.

The results come as US employers and insurers weigh broader coverage of obesity drugs ahead of 2027. Medicare is preparing for expanded access to GLP-1 treatments under the administration's pricing deals with Novo Nordisk and Lilly. Investors will watch whether lower prices bring in enough new patients to restore growth next year.