CVS Caremark ends Wegovy’s exclusivity; Brazil approves Ozempic copycat. Novo faces mounting competition in US and emerging markets, but EU recommends oral Wegovy pill.<\/p>\n
The Danish drugmaker entered June with headwinds on both sides of the Atlantic \u2014 and beyond. CVS Caremark, the largest US pharmacy benefit manager, ended Novo Nordisk\u2019s year-long exclusivity for Wegovy on Monday, while Brazil\u2019s health regulator simultaneously cleared the first domestic copycat of Ozempic. Together, the two moves underscore mounting competitive pressure on the blockbuster GLP-1 franchise.<\/p>\n
CVS Caremark has revamped its formulary to place Eli Lilly\u2019s oral Foundayo and injectable Zepbound on equal footing with Wegovy. The change, effective today, strips Wegovy of the privileged status it held under a deal struck a year ago, when Zepbound was excluded from standard plans. Wegovy remains a preferred option, but the sole-source advantage is gone across formularies covering an estimated 25 million to 30 million Americans. CVS expects the broader lineup to shave 10 per cent to 15 per cent off its spending on weight-loss drugs.<\/p>\n
Novo Nordisk downplayed the impact. \u201cWegovy continues to maintain preferred access on CVS Caremark formularies, and nothing changes for existing patients,\u201d said Tom Scales, vice president of market access. He added that both Wegovy and its oral version have strong formulary access across the US market. Still, the shift means Lilly\u2019s products are now listed at all three largest pharmacy benefit managers in the country, a significant win for the Indianapolis-based rival.<\/p>\n
The erosion of Novo\u2019s US position comes as a longer-term patent threat materialises in emerging markets. Brazil\u2019s Anvisa has approved Ozivy, a semaglutide analogue from local manufacturer EMS, priced roughly 30 per cent below Ozempic. The drug is the first injectable generic-style competitor for Novo\u2019s diabetes blockbuster in Brazil, where patent protection expired in March. EMS plans to launch within 30 days, beginning production of 350,000 pre-filled pens across three dosages and targeting 1.2 million units sold and more than 500 million reais in revenue in the first year.<\/p>\n
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Novo Nordisk?<\/a><\/p>\n Brazil is not an isolated case. India saw semaglutide generics hit the market in March, prompting Novo to cut prices. Canada has also approved copies. The patent cliff now extends across India, China, Brazil, Turkey, South Africa and Canada \u2014 markets that represent a huge swath of the world\u2019s population and future demand for obesity and diabetes treatments. While the US and Europe remain better protected for several more years, the widening gap between premium markets and faster-opening ones threatens the global pricing architecture around semaglutide.<\/p>\n There is a bright spot for Novo in Europe. On 22 May, the European Medicines Agency\u2019s CHMP recommended approval of the Wegovy pill \u2014 the first oral GLP-1 therapy for weight management in the EU. The final decision rests with the European Commission, and Novo expects to launch the once-daily 25 mg oral semaglutide in initial markets outside the US during the second half of 2026. In the US, the oral version has already racked up more than 2 million total prescriptions since launch, with 1.3 million written in the first quarter alone, contributing 2.3 billion Danish kroner ($360 million) in quarterly sales.<\/p>\n The financial picture is mixed. Novo\u2019s first-quarter revenue rose 32 per cent at constant currencies, but an adjustment for a one-off benefit from the US 340B pricing programme leaves top-line growth at a contraction of 4 per cent. Higher volumes failed to fully compensate for lower prices, though the obesity franchise still managed a 22 per cent adjusted gain. Adjusted operating profit came in at 32.86 billion kroner, well above the consensus estimate of 28.74 billion kroner. Despite the beat, management\u2019s full-year guidance remains cautious: revenue and adjusted operating profit are now expected to decline 4 per cent to 12 per cent at constant currencies, excluding the 340B effect.<\/p>\n Analysts remain on the fence. Deutsche Bank\u2019s Emmanuel Papadakis rates the stock Neutral with a 290 Danish kroner target, while Jefferies\u2019 Michael Leuchten also holds at Neutral with a 270 kroner target. Of 19 houses covering the stock, 13 carry a Hold or Neutral rating. The seven US-based banks \u2014 including Bernstein, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley \u2014 average a price target of just 247 kroner and are uniformly cautious, citing pricing pressure in the US and limited visibility beyond CagriSema, whose FDA decision for weight management is expected in the second half of 2026. A phase 3 trial for a higher-dose version is still pending.<\/p>\n