06:36 AM EST, 02/23/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) US-listed shares fell early Monday after the latest trial results of the Danish pharmaceutical giant's investigational weight-loss drug showed it was less effective than Eli Lilly's ( LLY ) product.

Patients treated with 2.4 milligrams of Novo Nordisk's ( NVO ) therapeutic candidate, CagriSema, achieved a weight loss of 23% after 84 weeks, based on results from a phase 3 trial, according to the company. In comparison, 15 mg of Eli Lilly's ( LLY ) tirzepatide produced a weight loss of 25.5%, the Danish firm said.

When applying the treatment-regimen estimand, CagriSema achieved a weight loss of 20.2%, compared with 23.6% achieved by tirzepatide at 84 weeks, according to Novo Nordisk ( NVO ).

CagriSema is a fixed-dose combination of semaglutide and cagrilintide.

Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) said the trial didn't meet its primary endpoint of demonstrating that CagriSema wasn't inferior to tirzepatide in helping patients lose weight after 84 weeks. Shares of Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) on the New York Stock Exchange tumbled 13% in the most recent premarket activity, while Eli Lilly ( LLY ) gained 4%.

"We are pleased with the weight loss of 23% for CagriSema in this open-label trial," Martin Holst Lange, executive vice president for research and development at Novo Nordisk ( NVO ), said in a statement. "Based on the learnings from completed studies we look forward to the Redefine 11 readout, and the initiation of the higher-dose CagriSema trial, which are both designed to assess the full weight-loss potential of CagriSema."

Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) submitted a new drug application for CagriSema to the US Food and Drug Administration in December, based on results from two studies, with the company expecting a decision from the regulator later this year. A study evaluating full weight-loss potential in obesity from the investigational drug is anticipated to report data in the first half of 2027, while the launch of a phase 3 higher-dose trial is planned for the second half of this year, the firm said.