Novo Nordisk Slashes Ozempic and Wegovy Prices by Up to 50%
Novo Nordisk dropped a bombshell on Tuesday, announcing it will slash the U.S. list prices of its blockbuster weight-loss and diabetes drugs — Wegovy, Ozempic, and Rybelsus — by up to 50% starting January 1, 2027. All three treatments will carry a new list price of $675 per month, down from approximately $1,350 for Wegovy and $1,027 for the diabetes drugs. The move is specifically designed to relieve the cost burden on insured patients with high-deductible health plans or coinsurance benefit structures. The announcement lands at perhaps the worst possible moment for the Danish pharmaceutical giant. Just one day earlier, shares cratered 16% after Novo's next-generation obesity drug CagriSema failed to demonstrate non-inferiority against Eli Lilly's Zepbound in the pivotal REDEFINE-4 phase III trial. The double blow has sent NVO shares tumbling to $38.58 — a new 52-week low — erasing more than half its market capitalization from last year's peak of $93.80. The stock is now down nearly 59% from its highs, and trading at its lowest P/E ratio in years at just 10.5x earnings. For investors, the twin developments crystallize a question that has been building for months: Is Novo Nordisk ceding the GLP-1 weight-loss throne to Eli Lilly, or is this a generational buying opportunity for one of pharma's most profitable franchises?