Novo Nordisk sees share price rise after winning patent cases

Danish healthcare group Novo Nordisk is celebrating after the US patent office declined to review patents awarded to Novo Nordisk for its weight loss drug Wegovy.

The drug, dubbed an obesity injection, has been a huge commercial success to the point where its stock market value exceeds Denmark’s entire economic output.

And in May, Novo Nordisk overtook French luxury brand LVMH as Europe’s most valuable company based on market capitalisation, which at the time reached US$428bn.

In fact, Wegovy’s international sales have been so strong that it has pushed up the value of the Danish krone, forcing the central bank to keep interest rates low as a result.

Now the company’s share price has risen further, by 1%, after the US Patent and Trademark Office denied a request from rival drugmaker Viatris to review the validity of three semaglutide patents.

“We are pleased with the ruling of the USPTO from earlier today, which denied institution on all challenges against Novo Nordisk’s US Patent Nos. 8,129,343, and 8,536,122,” stated Novo Nordisk while adding that a decision is still pending on the third patent.

Novo Nordisk may also face greater scrutiny after the European Medicines Agency announced that it was investigating claims that users of weight loss drugs like Wegovy experienced suicidal thoughts.

Meanwhile, the US Food and Drug Administration has stated it will undergo a thorough review before deciding whether to launch a formal investigation into the same issue.