After a late-stage study fails to show any improvement in its primary endpoints, Merck (MRK) decides to stop evaluating the Keytruda-Lynparza combination in metastatic squamous NSCLC.
On Dec. 1, Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) reported some less-than-great news to investors. In short, its latest attempt at developing a drug to compete with Novo Nordisk's blockbuster medicine Ozempic will not be advancing into late-stage clinical trials. Now, the company's bid to capture portions of the extremely lucrative type 2 diabetes and obesity drug markets looks like it's in trouble.
Novo Nordisk (NYSE: NVO) is a leader in the billion-dollar weight loss market, with two drugs that have helped its earnings soar. The company sells semaglutide under the name Wegovy for weight loss and as Ozempic for type 2 diabetes. Doctors also have prescribed rival Eli Lilly's (NYSE: LLY) diabetes drug, Mounjaro, for weight management, causing sales at this big pharma to take off, too.