Novo Nordisk Drug Prices to Fall to $675 Starting in January 2027
Key Facts
Novo Nordisk will cut the U.S. list prices of Wegovy, Ozempic and Rybelsus to $675 per month, with the new price taking effect on January 1, 2027, according to the company’s announcement issued on February 24, 2026. The move represents a cut of about 50% for Wegovy and 35% for Ozempic compared with their current list prices. The announcement date places the decision in the context of a pricing plan disclosed in February, rather than as a new measure on November 4. The company said the change applies to the list prices of the medicines specified in its announcement. It is due to take effect at the start of 2027.
The announcement specified the products and doses covered: Wegovy injections at 2.4 mg and its 25 mg tablets, Ozempic injections at 0.5, 1 and 2 mg, and Rybelsus tablets at 7 and 14 mg. The company said the new price applies to all the doses and forms listed. The list-price cut does not change direct-to-patient cash prices, according to Novo Nordisk’s statement. The announcement therefore remains limited to the list prices of these products, while the company kept direct-to-patient prices separate from the change. That distinction is relevant when assessing the decision’s potential impact across different purchasing channels.
The pricing announcement came as results for the first nine months of 2026 showed varied growth depending on how sales were calculated. Reported sales were 254,506 million Danish kroner, up 11% in Danish kroner and 13% at constant exchange rates, according to the company. Adjusted sales were 227,746 million kroner, up 2% at constant exchange rates. The company attributed third-quarter sales growth to higher volumes of GLP-1 medicines in the United States and international markets, particularly obesity treatments. The figures place the pricing decision within a broader effort by the company to expand sales volumes alongside intensifying price competition.
Reported sales for the nine-month period included an accounting effect from the reversal of a Danish kroner 26.8 billion rebate provision related to the U.S. 340B drug-pricing program, the company said. It said the reversal had no cash impact. This means reported sales growth for the period was affected by this item as well as by operating sales trends. In the third quarter, the company recorded sales of 79,195 million kroner, up 4% at constant exchange rates. Adjusted sales for the quarter were the same amount, according to its published results.
At the profitability level, adjusted operating profit in the third quarter rose 27% at constant exchange rates to 31,720 million Danish kroner. Novo Nordisk attributed the increase to sales growth for GLP-1 medicines and a favorable comparison base after recording company-wide transformation costs of 9 billion kroner in the third quarter of 2025. The company also raised its adjusted 2026 outlook, putting sales growth and adjusted operating profit growth in a range of -2% to +2% at constant exchange rates. It attributed the improved outlook to higher estimates for GLP-1 medicine sales. The outlook points to a mix of volume momentum and pricing pressure in the company’s expected results.
In the United States, Wegovy pill sales reached 5,394 million Danish kroner in the third quarter, following its launch by the end of the period in the United States, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and Germany. The company said the launch later expanded to four additional countries, bringing the total number of markets where the pill had been launched to eight. The oral product adds a new growth avenue for the obesity-treatment portfolio, alongside the injections covered by the announced price cuts. Novo Nordisk is also preparing to launch CagriSema in the United States in early 2027, subject to regulatory approval. The anticipated launch is one of the upcoming developments in the company’s portfolio during the period when the new prices begin to take effect.
Novo shares fell 17% on February 4, 2026, after the company warned that revenue and profit could decline by as much as 13% during the year, amid pricing pressure and competition in the obesity-drug market, according to a Reuters report published by Investing.com. Chief Executive Mike Doustdar said the company was accepting short-term pain to increase volumes, adding that "price cuts impact our financial results." An investor warned, according to the report, that a price war could hurt both competing companies. In the latest trading data available in this story, Novo’s U.S.-listed shares closed at $40.19 on November 3, 2026, according to EL7 data. The price cuts scheduled for January 2027 remain part of the company’s response to pricing pressure that has emerged in market results during the year.