Latest news with #Zepbound
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Why This Weight Loss Drug Company's Stock Surged Today
Investors are optimistic about the initiation of a phase 3 trial for a weight loss drug from Viking Therapeutics. The real value in the biopharmaceutical company may lie in the oral formulation of the drug. 10 stocks we like better than Viking Therapeutics › Shares in biopharmaceutical company Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ: VKTX) were up by 6.3% at 12:30 a.m. ET today. The move likely stems from the market digesting the previous day's news that Viking had initiated a phase 3 trial of its most promising program in its pipeline, namely VK2375, a treatment for metabolic disorders, including obesity. There are probably two key reasons why the market likes the initiation of a phase 3 trial: VK2375 is a dual GLP-1/GIP receptor agonist similar to Eli Lilly's blockbuster weight loss drug Zepbound. Viking is developing VK2375 in both subcutaneous (under the skin) and oral formulations. The subcutaneous phase 3 trial is currently underway, while the phase 2 oral dosing trial results are expected to be released later this year. For reference, Novo Nordisk also offers a highly successful weight loss drug, Wegovy, a GLP-1 receptor agonist. While Viking Therapeutics, with a $3.2 billion market capitalization, will face challenges in competing with Eli Lilly's Zepbound unless it can demonstrate superior efficacy in the phase 3 trial, the real value in the business may lie in the oral formulation. There are obvious convenience and accessibility advantages to an oral formulation over a subcutaneous one, and a successful phase 2 trial may encourage a much larger pharmaceutical company to consider acquiring the company to take it through phase 3. As such, look out for the phase 2 results later in the year. In addition, note that Novo Nordisk has submitted to the FDA for approval of an oral formulation of Wegovy , and Eli Lilly recently reported positive results in a phase 3 trial for an oral GLP-1 agonist, orforglipron. All this means that the field is getting crowded. Before you buy stock in Viking Therapeutics, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Viking Therapeutics wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $687,731!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $945,846!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 818% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 175% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 23, 2025 Lee Samaha has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Novo Nordisk and Viking Therapeutics. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Why This Weight Loss Drug Company's Stock Surged Today was originally published by The Motley Fool Erreur lors de la récupération des données Connectez-vous pour accéder à votre portefeuille Erreur lors de la récupération des données Erreur lors de la récupération des données Erreur lors de la récupération des données Erreur lors de la récupération des données
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
5 Revealing Analyst Questions From Eli Lilly's Q1 Earnings Call
Eli Lilly's first quarter saw rapid revenue growth, but the market responded negatively due to profit shortfalls and emerging competitive pressures. Management credited the surge in sales to the continued success of its diabetes and obesity medicines, particularly Mounjaro and Zepbound, which now account for a significant portion of total revenue. However, executives also acknowledged that higher marketing and R&D spending, as well as elevated costs tied to launching new products and acquiring late-stage assets, weighed on profitability. CEO Dave Ricks noted that the company is facing 'a lot of investor focus right now on tariffs and trade,' while CFO Lucas Montarce cited a '26% increase in marketing, selling and administrative expenses' as Lilly ramped up promotion for new launches. Is now the time to buy LLY? Find out in our full research report (it's free). Revenue: $12.73 billion vs analyst estimates of $12.62 billion (45.2% year-on-year growth, 0.9% beat) Adjusted EPS: $3.34 vs analyst expectations of $3.46 (3.4% miss) Adjusted EBITDA: $4.24 billion vs analyst estimates of $5.05 billion (33.3% margin, 16% miss) The company reconfirmed its revenue guidance for the full year of $59.5 billion at the midpoint Management lowered its full-year Adjusted EPS guidance to $21.53 at the midpoint, a 7.4% decrease Operating Margin: 29%, in line with the same quarter last year Market Capitalization: $711.3 billion While we enjoy listening to the management's commentary, our favorite part of earnings calls are the analyst questions. Those are unscripted and can often highlight topics that management teams would rather avoid or topics where the answer is complicated. Here is what has caught our attention. Asad Haider (Goldman Sachs) asked about the impact of the CVS formulary loss on Zepbound's market share and future PBM dynamics. CEO Dave Ricks replied that the affected segment is relatively small and emphasized a continued focus on broadening access rather than engaging in exclusive deals. Geoff Meacham (Citibank) questioned whether orforglipron could be developed for more indications beyond diabetes and obesity. Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Dan Skovronsky said oral convenience opens opportunities in broader indications, including primary care and combination therapies. Chris Schott (JPMorgan) sought clarity on the role of orforglipron in the obesity and diabetes markets relative to injectables. President of Cardiometabolic Health Patrik Jonsson noted that many patients prefer oral medications and that orforglipron could reach new populations with needle aversion. Tim Anderson (Bank of America) probed the likelihood and implications of more PBMs shifting to single-product formularies. Jonsson indicated such arrangements remain rare and that the company will continue to prioritize access over exclusivity. James Shin (Deutsche Bank) asked if the pricing headwind guidance remains intact after recent payer decisions. CFO Lucas Montarce confirmed that mid to high single-digit price headwinds are expected to persist and have been factored into the full-year outlook. In the coming quarters, the StockStory team will monitor (1) results from additional Phase 3 trials of orforglipron and their potential to reshape the diabetes and obesity markets; (2) trends in PBM and payer coverage, particularly any changes in employer opt-in rates or further formulary restrictions; and (3) the pace of manufacturing expansions and supply chain execution to meet rising demand. Progress on new product launches and updates on regulatory submissions will also serve as key markers of business momentum. Eli Lilly currently trades at $793, down from $896.02 just before the earnings. In the wake of this quarter, is it a buy or sell? See for yourself in our full research report (it's free). Market indices reached historic highs following Donald Trump's presidential victory in November 2024, but the outlook for 2025 is clouded by new trade policies that could impact business confidence and growth. While this has caused many investors to adopt a "fearful" wait-and-see approach, we're leaning into our best ideas that can grow regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate. Take advantage of Mr. Market by checking out our Top 5 Growth Stocks for this month. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025). Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Kadant (+351% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.
CNBC
3 days ago
- Health
- CNBC
Healthy Returns: New weight loss drug data show Eli Lilly is gaining ground
Competition in the blockbuster weight loss drug market is ramping up, as drugmakers share fresh data on new and existing treatments. The annual American Diabetes Association conference in Chicago showcased results on obesity injections, pills and other therapies this past weekend. Companies big and small are vying for a slice of the weight loss drug space – and for good reason. Some analysts estimate the market could be worth more than $150 billion a year by the end of the decade. While I didn't attend the conference in person this year, I've rounded up some highlights: Eli Lilly steals the show – Wall Street breathed a sigh of relief after the company's experimental pill, orforglipron, helped patients lose weight without serious side effects in a late-stage clinical trial. The highest dose helped patients with Type 2 diabetes lose 7.6% of their body weight during the 40-week study, with no signs of liver damage in those who took the daily treatment. Eli Lilly, which released initial data from the study in April, will unveil results from a separate trial on obese or overweight patients without diabetes later this year. The company plans to launch the pill next year. The drugmaker also teased the future of its portfolio, showcasing treatments that "could further extend Lilly's dominance in the space," BMO Capital Markets analyst Evan Seigerman said in a note on Sunday. Another experimental Eli Lilly drug, bimagrumab, helped preserve lean muscle mass and drive greater fat loss in patients taking the popular obesity treatment Wegovy from Novo Nordisk in a mid-stage trial. The therapy appears to offer a potential solution to a problem that has emerged with existing weight loss injections. Some doctors are concerned that patients may be losing too much lean muscle mass while taking the shots, particularly older adults who can be more frail. Eli Lilly is now running additional studies of the drug in combination with its own weight loss injection, Zepbound, Ken Custer, president of Lilly Cardiometabolic Health, told CNBC. "We think we can get even better [results] on top of tirzepatide," Custer said, referring to the active ingredient in Zepbound. Another experimental therapy from Eli Lilly also helped patients shed pounds with few side effects in a small study, impressing analysts. The drug, called eloralintide, is part of a class of drugs that mimic the hormone amylin, which slows down digestion and makes people feel fuller for longer. Novo Nordisk scrambles to catch up – As Eli Lilly tries to maintain or grow its edge in the weight loss drug market, chief rival Novo Nordisk released full results from late-stage trials on its experimental weekly injection, CagriSema. Investors hammered the company's stock in December after preliminary trial results showed CagriSema had missed its target of 25% average weight loss, with less than half of the patients hitting that goal. But the full results show that patients lost significant weight, even if they chose to stick with a lower dose of the treatment. The studies allowed patients to stop at lower doses if they wanted to manage side effects or if they were already losing enough weight. The full data at the conference also highlighted a "relatively clean safety profile" for CagriSema, Seigerman said in a separate note on Monday. The drug had similar side effects to Wegovy despite delivering more weight loss. CagriSema is a combination of cagrilintide – which mimics amylin – and semaglutide, the active ingredient in Wegovy. Novo Nordisk also released data from a pair of early trials on another experimental drug called amycretin. The drug helped patients lose as much as 24.3% of their weight after 36 weeks, and also showed signs of improving blood sugar levels with side effects generally in line with other obesity medicines. The treatment mimics the same gut hormone as Wegovy to tamp down appetite and regulate blood sugar, but also combines it with amylin. The companies plan to advance both injectable and oral versions of amycretin into late-stage trials for weight management, Novo Nordisk said in a release. Amgen outlines next steps for obesity injection – As Amgen tries to make waves in the two-company race, it needs to improve on results from late-stage trials on its experimental monthly weight loss injection, Seigerman said in a separate note on Monday. Amgen has laid out its plan for the weight loss market, which is based on results it presented on two trials at the conference. The company said its drug, MariTide, led to significant weight loss but high rates of side effects and discontinuations in a mid-stage trial. Amgen released initial data from that trial back in November. Rates of patients who discontinued the drug due to side effects were high, ranging from 10% to 29% within different groups that took it. Rates of vomiting ranged from 43% to 92%. Groups of patients that gradually increased dosage had lower rates of discontinuations and vomiting than those who did not. However, a smaller phase one study showed that starting patients on lower doses of MariTide and using more gradual dose escalation improved how well they tolerated the drug. The two groups with the lowest starting initial doses experienced rates of vomiting of around 23% and 24%, and there were no discontinuations due to side effects. "Lower starting doses and more steps helps patients," Jay Bradner, executive vice president of research and development at Amgen, told CNBC. He added that MariTide's side effects are "short-lived," and that the data informed the design of Amgen's 72-week phase three trials on the drug. The company is using lower starting doses and three steps of dose escalation over an eight-week period in those studies. By week eight, patients will reach one of three different target doses of MariTide. "What we achieve by dose escalation is to allow the brain to tolerate the next step of doses," Bradner said, noting that it's a strategy used with Wegovy and Zepbound. But MariTide may have an advantage over those rival treatments since it will use fewer steps and increase doses over a shorter period of time, he said. In a note on Monday, Jefferies analysts said they believe the phase three data will come in "better than expectations." They said the key takeaway is that Amgen's lower and slower dosing plan will significantly improve side effects and lower discontinuations, and "might even further boost efficacy" in the trials if patients stay on the drug and experience its full effects. At the end of the year, Amgen will also have data on patients who took MariTide every quarter, according to Bradner. Feel free to send any tips, suggestions, story ideas and data to Annika at The investments just keep pouring in. Abridge on Tuesday announced it closed a $300 million funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from Khosla Ventures. The round comes just months after the startup raised another $250 million in fresh capital earlier this year. Founded in 2018, Abridge uses artificial intelligence to draft clinical notes in real time as doctors consensually record their visits with patients. The startup is part of a market that has exploded as health-care executives search for solutions to help reduce staff burnout and daunting administrative workloads. Abridge has now raised nearly $818 million, according to PitchBook, and it partners with more than 150 health systems across the U.S. The company earned a spot on CNBC's Disruptor 50 list this year. "It's a privilege, ultimately, to continue to create the impact that we want to continue to have for clinicians, patients and other members of the healthcare ecosystem," Julia Chou, Abridge's chief operating officer, told CNBC in an interview. Chou said that Abridge's fresh capital will help the company to push beyond traditional clinical notes. The startup is working to embed relevant revenue cycle information into its product, for instance, which would help make the documentation more compliant and alleviate downstream workflows. Abridge is not the only AI documentation startup that's thinking about health-care billing. Another AI scribing startup, Ambience Healthcare, has also been exploring applications around revenue cycle management. The company announced a new medical coding model in May that can listen to patient encounters and identify ICD-10 codes, which are internationally standardized classifications for different diseases and conditions. Ambience has raised more than $100 million from investors including Kleiner Perkins, Andreessen Horowitz and the OpenAI Startup Fund, according to PitchBook. The company is seeking fresh capital at a valuation of over $1 billion, according to a report from The Information. AI scribing companies' push into billing could help them market their products to cash-strapped health systems as true revenue drivers, and not just time-saving tools. Abridge says it is just getting started. "AI is coming to the doctor's office," Chou said. "The aspiration is for it to make your visits feel really human again." Feel free to send any tips, suggestions, story ideas and data to Ashley at
Economic Times
3 days ago
- Health
- Economic Times
New data show most US patients now stay on Wegovy, Zepbound after a year
IANS Representational Image Nearly two-thirds of patients who started on weight-loss drugs Wegovy or Zepbound last year were still taking them a year later, according to an analysis of U.S. pharmacy claims. That level of persistence is higher than what prior analyses have shown, suggesting that more patients might be staying on the popular GLP-1 drugs for obesity as product shortages ease, insurance coverage expands and doctors manage side effects better, health experts say. Sixty-three percent of patients starting on Novo Nordisk's Wegovy or Eli Lilly's Zepbound during the first quarter of 2024 were still taking them 12 months later. For Wegovy, that was up significantly from 40% who started therapy in 2023 and 34% who began three years ago in this analysis by Prime Therapeutics, a pharmacy benefits manager (PBM). Patrick Gleason, Prime's assistant vice president for health outcomes and a co-author of the analysis, said he was surprised to see persistence rise above 50%. "It's a near doubling from one-third persistent to roughly two-thirds now," Gleason said. "This is a dramatic change, and I believe this is more reflective of what we will see going forward." Zepbound's results were relatively unchanged year over year, though the number of U.S. patients starting on the medication in 2023 was limited since it did not launch until November of that year. Wegovy was approved in June 2021. The analysis shared with Reuters does not include details about why patients continued or stopped therapy. Some people have reported stopping because the drugs became unaffordable or their insurance no longer covered them. Others quit due to common gastrointestinal side effects, inability to get refills due to supply shortages or achievement of their weight-loss goal, among other factors. Studies have shown that most patients who quit their GLP-1 drugs usually regain most of the weight. The medications may require extended use to yield meaningful benefits for patients' health. Many employers and government agencies remain wary of adding coverage for these highly effective, but expensive medicines due to the significant upfront investment and uncertainty about any future savings. Dr. Ezekiel J. Emanuel, co-director of the Healthcare Transformation Institute at the University of Pennsylvania, said low persistence on these weight-loss drugs had been concerning and the new data might indicate that increased insurance coverage is helping to turn the tide. Novo declined to comment on the data, and Lilly did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Prime is owned by 19 U.S. Blue Cross and Blue Shield health insurance plans and manages pharmacy benefits for about 73 million people. In its analysis, Prime reviewed pharmacy and medical claims for 23,025 people with commercial health plans who received prescriptions for either Wegovy or Zepbound and had a diagnosis of obesity. Prime excluded patients with a diabetes diagnosis in their medical claims or who were using a drug for type 2 diabetes, for which these GLP-1 medicines were originally developed. The mean age of patients in the year-over-year analysis was 46 and 77% were female. Patients were deemed persistent with their medication if they had no 60-day gaps in supply. The data allowed for switching among GLP-1 products. The data does not include patients who took compounded versions of the weight-loss drugs or paid for their prescription out of pocket outside of insurance. Prime also did a separate analysis of longer-term use. Only 14% of patients were still taking Wegovy after three years, the data show. That was a drop from 24% on Wegovy at the two-year mark. That longer-term analysis examined 5,780 patients who had remained enrolled in their health insurance for three years and did not have type 2 diabetes. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration removed semaglutide, the active ingredient in Wegovy, from its shortage list earlier this year and did the same for tirzepatide, the active ingredient in Zepbound, in December. Those moves eventually barred compounding pharmacies from making cheaper copies of the weight-loss drugs. Some patients have purchased these weight-loss medications directly from the drugmakers outside of their health insurance. Those prescriptions were not tracked in this analysis and that cohort of patients may behave differently, said David Lassen, Prime's vice president of clinical pharmacy services. "That group could have a different adherence pattern," Lassen said. "That's something we want to continue to watch."
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
3 days ago
- Health
- Business Standard
New data shows just how powerful the next weight-loss drugs may be
Doctors call the new weight-loss drugs revolutionary. Game-changing. Unprecedented. Soon, they may also call them obsolete. Drugmakers are racing to develop the next wave of obesity and diabetes medications that they hope will be even more powerful than those currently on the market. 'I think what we are going to see very quickly is that Wegovy has received a lot of the press attention, because it got there first,' said Simon Cork, a senior lecturer at Anglia Ruskin University in England who has studied obesity. 'But it will be rapidly overtaken by much more potent medications.' On Saturday, researchers presented data at an annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association on perhaps the most anticipated of these medications: a daily pill. A late-stage study showed that the drug, called orforglipron, appeared to be about as effective as a weekly Ozempic injection at inducing weight loss and lowering blood sugar. It is just one of over a dozen experimental medications that researchers will share data about at the conference this weekend. Some of these drugs are still in early trials, but others could hit the market as soon as next year. They include medications that may lead to more weight loss than the roughly 15 to 20 percent body weight people lose on existing drugs. They may also be easier to take than weekly injections and help people shed pounds without dropping as much muscle. More competition — and, in the case of the pill, lower manufacturing costs — might also mean that, eventually, patients pay less. 'A lot of people are like, 'Oh, we have Ozempic, everything's good now,'' said Megan Capozzi, a research assistant professor at the University of Washington Medicine who studies treatments for diabetes and obesity. 'But I think there are so many more things to improve on.' More convenience, less muscle loss By some estimates, one in eight adults in the United States has already taken a medication like Wegovy or Zepbound. But researchers believe far more people would use — and stick with — weight-loss drugs that did not require weekly injections. Simply put, Dr. Capozzi said, 'people would rather takes pills than shots.' That's why doctors and investors are so excited about orforglipron. Like Ozempic and other drugs on the market, orforglipron mimics a hormone that regulates blood sugar and curbs appetite. In the data presented at the conference, researchers who followed over 500 patients with Type 2 diabetes reported that those who took the highest dose lost an average of around 16 pounds after nine months. Around two-thirds of people who took the drug also saw their blood sugar levels fall to a target range. If the drug is more broadly used in people with obesity and not just diabetes, those with higher body weights may see even more weight loss, since people with diabetes alone tend to lose less on these kinds of drugs, said Dr. Scott Hagan, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Washington. Eli Lilly, the pharmaceutical company that makes the pill, will release data from additional studies in orforglipron in people with obesity later this year. The company will seek regulatory approval for the drug first as an obesity treatment and later for Type 2 diabetes. It could be available as soon as next year. The company has not said how much orforglipron will cost, but it's generally cheaper to mass-produce pills than shots. If it does have a significantly lower price tag than the currently available drugs, which can cost hundreds or even around a thousand dollars a month, more patients could afford the medication. More insurers might even cover it. Over the next few days, researchers will also present data on other, earlier-stage drugs that could be more convenient than weekly shots. This includes MariTide, an injectable drug made by the biopharmaceutical company Amgen that patients could take once a month. Some new medications in development are also trying to solve for a persistent side effect of existing drugs: Patients who lose fat also tend to lose muscle. This can be particularly dangerous for older adults because it makes them more likely to fall and can worsen osteoporosis. One experimental drug combines the substance in Ozempic and a compound that blocks the receptors that regulate skeletal muscle and fat mass. Several others simulate the hormone amylin, which has been shown in rodent studies to preserve some lean muscle tissue, though more data is needed in humans. Some researchers remain skeptical that any drug can lead to significant weight loss without sacrificing at least some muscle. Potential for even more weight loss While the incoming generation of drugs might offer more convenience or help safeguard muscle, it's still unclear whether they would offer significantly greater weight loss. Investors and doctors had high hopes for a drug called CagriSema, which is a weekly injection that combines the substance in Ozempic with a new compound. Novo Nordisk, the company that makes the drug, had set a goal of 25 percent weight loss, but the early results fell short, showing that people with obesity who took the drug lost nearly 23 percent of their body weight after over a year. That was not enough for analysts to consider the drug a clear winner over Zepbound, which is widely considered the most effective option on the market. 'The threshold for a slam dunk is now getting just higher and higher,' Dr. Hagan said. But some drugs that are less far along in development look more promising, including retatrutide, a weekly injection that beat the Zepbound results in early trials. That medication is still long away from potential approval, however. Even if some medications that hit the market soon deliver only equivalent weight loss, or nearly as much, their arrival could have a big impact, for a few reasons. The biggest of these is that a cheaper or more convenient medication could help more patients stay on a weight-loss drug for longer. People are supposed to stay on weight-loss drugs for the rest of their lives — if patients stop taking a drug, they often regain weight. But by some estimates, over half of patients go off these drugs within a year, sometimes because of insurance issues, side effects or intermittent shortages of the medications. These interruptions help explain why people lose much less weight in the real world than they do in carefully controlled clinical trials. 'We're going to turn around in three to five years and find out that the vast majority of people were only on these drugs for eight or nine months, gone off these drugs and gained back the weight,' said Dr. David Kessler, a former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration who has written a book about weight-loss drugs. 'We're going to conclude that this has been one big failure — unless we can figure out how to use these drugs in the real world,' he added. Many of the medications in development also work slightly differently from those currently on the market. This might mean that individual people will respond better to them, Dr. Hagan said. By some estimates, around 15 percent of people do not lose substantial weight on the drugs available now. The more options there are, the better doctors can make sure patients are getting the drug best suited for them, Dr. Hagan said. 'We're starting to shift out of the initial phase where, 'Oh, wow, we finally have some drugs that are safe and effective,'' he said. 'We have a menu of them.'
