Novo Nordisk Spends on Science and Trims at Home as Shares Sit 25% Lower

Novo Nordisk licensed HRS-1596 from Hengrui in a deal worth up to $2.6B, published Ro real-world data, cut 108 US jobs and saw its FDA review of Denecimig extended.

Novo Nordisk has packed the final days of September with pipeline spending, real-world data and a housecleaning of its US operations — a combination that leaves the Danish drugmaker betting on tomorrow's portfolio while investors keep their distance.

The stock changed hands at 32.95 euros during the latest session, a dip of 0.4%, after closing at 33.06 euros on Friday. Since the start of the year, the shares have shed a quarter of their value, a decline of 25%.

A $2.6 Billion Bet on a Once-Weekly Pill

At the center of the company's expansion push is HRS-1596, an oral drug candidate licensed from Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals under an exclusive worldwide agreement signed on 29 September. The deal hands Novo Nordisk development, manufacturing and commercialization rights everywhere except mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

HRS-1596 is a dual GLP-1/GIP receptor agonist designed for once-weekly oral dosing and has not yet entered Phase 1 trials. Novo Nordisk will pay $300 million upfront, with milestone payments that could lift the total transaction value to as much as $2.6 billion, plus tiered royalties on future sales.

The licensing move slots into a broader roadmap laid out at the company's capital markets day on 21 September. Management is targeting more than five launches with blockbuster potential by 2030 and aims to treat over 60 million patients worldwide. A key plank of that plan is manufacturing: Novo Nordisk intends to expand capacity for supplying obesity patients with oral GLP-1 treatments tenfold. The company was careful to note that these targets do not constitute formal financial guidance, and press reports linked a muted reception to the long-range goals to earlier pressure on the share price.

Real-World Data Arrives From the Ro Partnership

Evidence to support the oral strategy came on 30 September, when Novo Nordisk published results from the OCTANE study. The research draws on anonymized treatment data from Ro, the telemedicine platform, offering a view of how these medicines perform in everyday practice rather than in controlled trial settings. The findings round out the company's clinical program with observational insight.

108 Jobs Cut at Plainsboro Headquarters

Running alongside the pipeline investments is a tightening of the North American organization. Novo Nordisk plans to eliminate 108 positions at its US headquarters in Plainsboro, New Jersey, according to a filing with the state's Department of Labor & Workforce Development. The cuts are scheduled to be completed by 31 December. The company frames the move as a response to shifting demands in regional administration as it reshapes its US commercial operations — selective cost control that sits alongside the targeted spending on external candidates.

FDA Review of Denecimig Pushed Back

On the regulatory front, the US Food and Drug Administration has extended its review of the marketing application for Denecimig, a treatment for hemophilia A. The agency cited the need for remediation work at a production facility. It did not raise concerns about clinical efficacy or safety data. Novo Nordisk said the longer review timeline will not affect its financial outlook for 2026 and continues to target a US launch in the first half of 2027, subject to approval.

Buyback Keeps Returning Capital

Shareholder returns have continued unabated. Under its current repurchase program, Novo Nordisk bought back 35,379,179 shares between the start of February and 25 September, spending 9,939,842,031 DKK. The transactions underscore a commitment to returning capital even as development outlays stay heavy.

Market watchers are now focused on two things: resolving the manufacturing deficiencies flagged by the FDA and tracking how the Hengrui collaboration progresses.