The craze for weight-loss drugs has led to slim supply and big earnings

Suppressing appetites… and fattening profits. The weight-loss-drug frenzy has gone into overdrive, leading to ballooning earnings for the pharma giants that manufacture the injectable meds. Novo Nordisk last week reported that sales of its weight-loss drug Wegovy more than doubled last quarter, fueling a 28% profit jump. The Danish drugmaker is Europe’s most valuable company (and its market cap is bigger than Denmark’s GDP). American pharma rival Eli Lilly reported a 67% profit surge and hiked its annual sales forecast by $2B thanks to its new blockbuster weight-loss drug Zepbound.

• Racing to meet demand: Novo Nordisk is investing $6B to boost production of Wegovy and its diabetes drug Ozempic, also used for weight loss.

• Doing the literal most: After doubling production capacity for Zepbound and its related diabetes drug, Mounjaro, Eli Lilly is still racing to ramp up. Its CFO said: “We have sites working 24/7. We're doing construction overnight.”

Prescription friction… The clamor for drugs associated with weight loss has made it harder for people with type 2 diabetes to fill their prescriptions for meds like Ozempic, which is often prescribed off-label. Eli Lilly and Weight Watchers both rolled out telehealth prescription services for weight-loss drugs to make it easier for folks to get the shots. Drugs that’ve been FDA-approved for weight loss (like Zepbound and Mounjaro) are expected to be in shortage through at least June.

• Cash injection: Novo Nordisk said that each week last quarter 25K+ people started taking Wegovy (which was recently approved for cardiovascular-risk reduction in those with obesity).

• Massive market: 42% of US adults fall into the obese category (usually a BMI of 30+). Worldwide, analysts estimate these weight-loss drugs could soon be worth $100B/year.