Novo Nordisk’s new CEO faces investor heat as Pfizer lawsuit deepens amid board overhaul

Novo Nordisk’s new chief executive, Mike Doustdar, faces a tough first earnings week as the Danish drugmaker grapples with investor pressure, a major board shake-up, and a legal fight with US rival Pfizer,

Reuters

reported.

The Wegovy-maker will release its third-quarter results on Wednesday, Doustdar’s first since taking charge in August with the mandate to turn around the company’s fortunes. Novo Nordisk’s shares have fallen nearly 50% this year, a reversal from 2024 when it was Europe’s most valuable listed firm.

The company last week launched a $9 billion surprise bid for US biotech firm Metsera, triggering a fresh round of competition with Pfizer, which had previously agreed to acquire Metsera for up to $7.3 billion in September. The move has since escalated into a legal battle between the two pharmaceutical giants.

According to Reuters, Pfizer filed a second lawsuit on Monday, accusing Novo Nordisk of structuring its Metsera bid to delay the biotech firm’s entry into the obesity drug market rather than to close a genuine acquisition. Novo and Metsera rejected Pfizer’s claims, calling them baseless. A judge is expected to hear the case in Delaware on Tuesday.

Pfizer has alleged that Novo’s offer, which includes a 30-month "outside date" before either party can terminate the merger, was designed to stall Metsera’s progress and preserve the market dominance of Novo’s "Wegovy" and "Ozempic". Pfizer said its own deal with Metsera had a shorter nine-month timeline and had already received early antitrust clearance on October 31.

Novo denied the allegations, saying it had "closely adhered to all restrictions under the Pfizer merger agreement" and that Pfizer’s claims were "absurd and not based on facts, common sense, or market realities." Metsera also dismissed Pfizer’s accusations as "nonsense."

The legal tussle comes as Novo’s internal leadership undergoes upheaval. The Novo Nordisk Foundation, which controls the company, recently took charge of the board, accusing the management of moving too slowly in the weight-loss drug race. The outgoing chair and all six independent directors are set to step down at an extraordinary shareholder meeting on November 14, with former CEO Lars Rebien Sørensen expected to return as chairman, Reuters reported.

Analysts told Reuters that investors will be closely watching how Doustdar and the incoming board chart the company’s path forward amid stiff competition from Eli Lilly and Pfizer in the lucrative obesity drug market. Novo has already cut its guidance three times this year, with the high end of its 8%–14% sales growth outlook appearing increasingly difficult to meet.

Reuters cited analysts who said Novo’s growth remains heavily reliant on semaglutide, the active ingredient in its diabetes and obesity drugs, which underpins about 60% of its future revenues. Some analysts believe the US obesity drug market may be slowing, with new patient starts and prescription volumes showing weaker momentum.

Pfizer is banking on Metsera’s next-generation obesity therapies — which could generate around $5 billion in sales and feature monthly injections instead of weekly doses — to help it compete in a market analysts expect could reach $150 billion annually, Reuters reported.