GLP-1 maker Novo Nordisk's big reveal leaves the City cold

What Brokers Say Health Written by: Ian Lyall 07:29 Tue 22 Sep 2026 --> Disclaimer No investment advice About this content Editorial Standards & Policies Share article About this content × About Ian Lyall Ian Lyall, a seasoned journalist and editor, brings over three decades of experience to his role as Managing Editor at Proactive. Overseeing Proactive's editorial and broadcast operations across six offices on three continents, Ian is responsible for quality control, editorial policy, and content production. He directs the creation of 50,000 pieces of real-time news, feature articles, and filmed interviews annually. Prior to Proactive, Ian helped lead the business output at the Daily... Read more About the publisher Proactive financial news and online broadcast teams provide fast, accessible, informative and actionable business and finance news content to a global investment audience. All our content is produced independently by our experienced and qualified teams of news journalists. Proactive news team spans the world’s key finance and investing hubs with bureaus and studios in London, New York, Toronto, Vancouver, Sydney and Perth. We are experts in medium and small-cap markets, we also keep our community up to date with blue-chip companies, commodities and broader investment stories. This is content that excites and engages motivated private investors. The team delivers news and unique insights across the market including but not confined to: biotech and pharma, mining and natural resources, battery metals, oil and gas, crypto and emerging digital and EV technologies. Use of technology Proactive has always been a forward looking and enthusiastic technology adopter. Our human content creators are equipped with many decades of valuable expertise and experience. The team also has access to and use technologies to assist and enhance workflows. Proactive will on occasion use automation and software tools, including generative AI. Nevertheless, all content published by Proactive is edited and authored by humans, in line with best practice in regard to content production and search engine optimisation. Novo Nordisk ( NYSE:NVO ) View Price & Profile GLP-1 maker Novo Nordisk's big reveal leaves the City cold Published: 07:29 22 Sep 2026 EDT Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) pulled back the curtain on its future at an investor day in London, and the audience filed out distinctly underwhelmed. The Danish drugs giant, best known for the weight-loss sensation Wegovy, used its biennial capital markets day to explain how it will thrive once its blockbuster obesity drugs lose patent protection. The trouble was, analysts turned up wanting fireworks and got a rerun of the greatest hits. Deutsche Bank was blunt, keeping its "sell" tag and nudging its target down to DKK245 from DKK265, with the shares last at DKK260. Analyst Emmanuel Papadakis described a "punishing" response, with the day falling short of the loftier hopes investors had brought along. Familiar strategy, thin medium-term guidance, no headline-grabbing trial data and little on the acquisitions everyone knows are coming: not the stuff of a rally. Citi was no more excited, holding at "neutral". It pointed out that Novo's target for mid-single-digit sales growth to 2030 merely matched what the market already expected, while the margin outlook looked light. Much of the pitch centred on life after semaglutide, the wonder molecule inside Wegovy and Ozempic, once the patents lapse. Novo is lining up more than five potential blockbusters by 2030 and dangling over DKK150 billion of risk-adjusted pipeline sales by 2035. There were some crowd-pleasers, including plans to treat ten times as many patients with pill-form obesity drugs and a shove into heart and liver disease. Citi reckons the 2027 launch of CagriSema, Novo's next big obesity hope, could yet spring a surprise, though the Street is not holding its breath. Management also declined to rule out a large acquisition, which cuts both ways. Either way, the message from the City was simple: enough talk, show us. Continue reading