Novo Nordisk NYSE:NVO shares rose about 2% on Wednesday after new prescription data indicated its oral weight-loss drug Wegovy continued to lead the U.S. market over Eli Lilly's Foundayo.
The report, based on IQVIA data for the week ended July 3, showed the Wegovy pill generated about 153,050 U.S. prescriptions, compared with roughly 19,550 for Foundayo. That gave Novo Nordisk an estimated 89% share of prescriptions for the two once-daily oral obesity medicines, while Eli Lilly accounted for about 11%.
Novo Nordisk introduced the oral version of Wegovy earlier this year, while Eli Lilly launched Foundayo in April. Even after accounting for Novo's earlier market entry, JPMorgan said Wegovy has maintained a sizable lead. During Week 13 of its U.S. rollout, the Wegovy pill recorded about 105,000 prescriptions, more than five times Foundayo's tally at a comparable stage.
The prescription trends have also prompted analysts to revise forecasts. Deutsche Bank lowered its 2026 sales estimate for Foundayo to $1.3 billion from about $3 billion, while FactSet consensus projections for the Wegovy pill have more than doubled to about $2.2 billion for 2026.