Novo Nordisk accelerates $4.2B buyback as stock trades near half 52-week high, while Trump administration expands TrumpRx with 600+ generics, threatening Wegovy revenue.
The Danish drugmaker is pouring billions into share repurchases even as its stock trades near half its 52-week high and a US government pricing push threatens to erode revenue from its blockbuster weight-loss drug. In the same week Novo Nordisk stepped up the second phase of a record buyback programme, the Trump administration announced a major expansion of its direct-to-consumer pharmacy platform TrumpRx — adding more than 600 generic drugs and new price-comparison tools. The timing lays bare the twin pressures on the company: a need to support its battered share price while defending its most valuable product against unprecedented price transparency.
Shares in Novo Nordisk have lost roughly 14% since the start of 2026 and more than 35% over the past twelve months, closing at €38.23 on the latest trading day. That compares with a 52-week peak of €70.13. Yet in the past 30 days the stock has clawed back nearly 12%, helped by a stronger-than-expected first-quarter earnings report and a slight upgrade to full-year guidance.
The TrumpRx expansion is especially sensitive for Novo Nordisk, which has been a participant on the platform since its launch in February. Wegovy is already offered there for $350 a month — a steep discount from original list prices of up to $1,350, with starter doses at $199. Adding more than 600 generics and enlisting partners such as Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drug Co., Amazon Pharmacy and GoodRx signals that the administration intends to deepen its intervention in drug pricing. For Novo Nordisk, that raises the risk that the pricing squeeze on its core obesity franchise intensifies.
Meanwhile, the company is pressing ahead with a share buyback programme totalling 15 billion Danish kroner. The second tranche, worth up to 11.2 billion kroner, runs from 6 May 2026 to 1 February 2027. In the first week of this phase, Novo Nordisk purchased roughly 200,000 B-shares daily at average prices between 290.45 and 302.39 kroner per share, totalling around 1.24 million B-shares for about 369.7 million kroner. Net of shares issued under compensation programmes, the company shed 204,498 shares from its treasury inventory during that period.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Novo Nordisk?
Since the programme began in February, Novo Nordisk has acquired nearly 16 million B-shares for roughly 4.17 billion kroner at an average price of 260.62 kroner. The company now holds about 33.2 million B-shares in treasury, equivalent to 0.7% of its share capital. The buybacks adhere to the European safe-harbour rules, and the lower the share price, the more stock the company can retire for the same cash outlay — a dynamic that makes the timing of the programme a focal point for investors.
Not all news is negative. Citi raised its price target on Novo Nordisk to 290 kroner from 275 kroner, while maintaining a neutral rating and leaving its 2026 earnings forecast unchanged. The bank cited the upcoming launch of an oral version of Wegovy as a key catalyst. Citi projects 2026 sales of the Wegovy tablet at $2.7 billion, well above the consensus estimate of $1.7 billion. That gap represents a potential upside lever: if the pill gains traction faster than expected, it could materially reshape the profit base in the obesity segment. Citi also noted that volumes for injectable Wegovy continue to rise and that the competitive impact from Eli Lilly’s oral GLP-1 drug Foundayo remains limited for now.
On the pipeline front, the US Food and Drug Administration has approved an oral formulation of Ozempic for type 2 diabetes, with the commercial rollout imminent. Novo Nordisk has also filed for a higher 25-milligram dose, with a decision expected by the end of 2026. In the second half of the year, the company intends to submit paediatric applications in both the US and Europe. The oral Wegovy product maintains a first-mover advantage over Lilly’s Foundayo, though the latter does not require fasting before administration — a practical differentiator whose significance may become clearer when Novo Nordisk reports half-year results on 5 August.
Novo Nordisk at a turning point? This analysis reveals what investors need to know now.
Operationally, management has marginally improved the outlook for 2026. The company now expects currency-adjusted revenue and operating profit to decline by 4% to 12%, compared with the prior forecast of a 5% to 13% contraction. The improvement reflects sustained demand for GLP-1 therapies, particularly in obesity, and new market launches for Wegovy. The next key milestones are an R&D update at the ADA conference on 7 June 2026 and the half-year numbers on 5 August. By then, investors will have a clearer view of whether the buyback firepower, the Wegovy pill trajectory and the upgraded guidance can converge into a genuine operational turnround.
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