GLP-1 Giants Surge: Novo Nordisk’s Semaglutide Trio Generates Over RMB 40 Billion in Q1 Amid Fierce Market Competition

May 13, 2024 14:30 CST Updated 14:30

Novo Nordisk

Insulin Developer and Manufacturer

Source of the article: Xinkangjie

The performance of the two "old brothers" in the GLP-1 field has also come to light as the financial results for the first quarter of 2024 are released.

#01 Novo Nordisk Semaglutide

Three Pillar Products Sold Over 40 Billion in the First Quarter

Recently, the Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk announced its first-quarter performance for 2024, reporting revenue of 65.349 billion Danish kroner during the reporting period, a year-on-year increase of 22%. As the original research company for semaglutide injection, Novo Nordisk has three semaglutide drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA): Ozempic (injectable antidiabetic), Wegovy (injectable weight-loss medication), and Rybelsus (oral antidiabetic).

In the first quarter, the three pillar products of Novo Nordisk mentioned above generated over 40 billion yuan in sales within three months, all maintaining double-digit growth rates or higher, accounting for approximately two-thirds of Novo Nordisk's revenue.

Novo Nordisk Q1 Financial Data

Source: Public information

In the Chinese market, Novo Nordisk's semaglutide has been approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes under the brand name Ozempic. According to the Sino Health KSYS system, Ozempic’s sales revenue in tiered hospitals in 2023 reached 3.8 billion yuan, marking a year-on-year increase of 123.6%. Financial reports show that in the first quarter of this year, Novo Nordisk's total revenue in China amounted to 4.506 billion Danish kroner (approximately 6.50 billion US dollars at the current exchange rate), representing a year-on-year growth of 7%.

Although it has made a fortune, Novo Nordisk still faces fierce competition in the weight-loss market. According to the financial report data of another giant in the GLP-1 field, Eli Lilly and Company, in order to seize market share, Eli Lilly has been putting pressure on Novo Nordisk since the launch of its tirzepatide.

In May 2022, the hypoglycemic version of tirzepatide, Mounjaro, was approved for marketing in the U.S., with sales continuing to soar. Financial reports show that in the first quarter of this year, the sales of the hypoglycemic version of Mounjaro surged 217% year-on-year, reaching $1.807 billion. However, the product has not yet been approved in China, so there is no relevant information on the Chinese market.

Currently, in the GLP-1 field, Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly dominate the majority of the market. As of early May, fourteen GLP-1 drugs have been approved for marketing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). According to a "GLP-1 Industry Blue Paper," taking Novo Nordisk's semaglutide as an example, if the three brands of semaglutide under Novo Nordisk are combined, the sales revenue in 2024 is expected to exceed 28 billion USD, surpassing Merck's PD-1 inhibitor Keytruda (commonly known as "K drug") to become the new top-selling drug globally.

#02 Competition in the Chinese Market Heats Up Rapidly

Latecomers are catching up.

Currently, Novo Nordisk's semaglutide and Eli Lilly's tirzepatide occupy the prime positions in the GLP-1赛道. Notably, the patent for Wegovy will expire in China in 2026, after which Novo Nordisk will face competition from domestically produced generic drugs as well as a range of innovative weight-loss medications.

Media reports suggest that, under competitive pressure, Novo Nordisk has opted for a price-cutting strategy. On May 2 local time, Novo Nordisk held an earnings call, during which the company's Chief Financial Officer, Karsten Munk Knudsen, stated that due to high sales volume and intense competition, Novo Nordisk plans to lower the price of its weight-loss drug Wegovy in the United States.

In April this year, the official website of the Center for Drug Evaluation of China's National Medical Products Administration showed that the marketing application for JY29-2, a biosimilar of semaglutide injection developed by Jiuyuan Gene, has been accepted. Additionally, Livzon Group, Hanmi Pharmaceutical, and other pharmaceutical companies previously announced that their semaglutide injections have been approved to conduct clinical trials for weight management-related indications.

According to the information on the clinicaltrials website, Hengrui Medicine has just initiated a multicenter, randomized, double-blind Phase III clinical study of GLP-1R/GIPR dual agonist HRS9531 for the treatment of obesity. It is expected to begin on May 20 and end on July 30, 2025.

In the investor relations activity record form disclosed by Huadong Medicine on April 30, it was also pointed out that the diabetes indication of its Semaglutide Injection has now completed the enrollment of all subjects in the Phase III clinical study, with primary endpoint data expected to be obtained in Q4 2024.

On April 3, earlier this year, information on the official website of the Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE) under the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) showed that the marketing application for Jiyoutai, a semaglutide injection submitted by Jiuyuan Gene, had been accepted. This is also the first biosimilar of semaglutide to be submitted for marketing in China.

In February this year, the CDE website showed that Innovent Biologics, as one of the earliest companies to enter the GLP-1 field, had its marketing application for Masmidotide accepted for long-term weight control in adult patients with obesity or overweight. Masmidotide has become the world's first GLP-1R/GCGR dual agonist to be submitted for marketing approval.

Currently, there are numerous GLP-1类产品 under development globally, and companies that have entered the late clinical stage may already see a glimmer of hope for a breakthrough., but whether it can really take off and sell well after being approved is still uncertain.