(Corrects sales growth in first paragraph to 11%, not 15%, and corrects headline and first paragraph to say that was in line with forecasts, not exceeding)
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) -Wegovy-maker Novo Nordisk on Wednesday reported third-quarter sales growth of 11%, in line with forecasts, as the Danish drugmaker’s new CEO pushes a deep restructuring drive to claw back lost ground in a fierce obesity drug market battle.
The Danish company said it lowered its full-year profit forecast, while also lowering the top end of its full-year sales forecast range.
The rise in sales in local currency terms, which has slowed sharply in the last year as competition has risen from rival Eli Lilly and copycat treatments, compared with 11.4% growth expected by analysts in a company-compiled consensus.
Novo shot to become Europe’s most valuable firm on the back of rapid sales growth of its blockbuster obesity drug Wegovy, but has seen sales growth slow, sparking a management overhaul and dragging down its share price.
(Reporting by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen, editing by Terje Solsvik)
