Competition is brewing for Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, two of the world's leading pharmaceutical weight loss companies, according to analysts.
Investment research company Morningstar and its subsidiary PitchBook, which analyzes global capital markets, published a report on GLP-1 competition in September.
Sixteen new obesity drugs are expected to launch between 2026 and 2029, accounting for about $70 billion of the GLP-1 market by 2031, according to the report. The market is also projected to reach $200 billion by 2031.
Three things to know:
1. In three to four years, experimental weight loss medications from several drugmakers could pressure drug pricing — a contentious topic in the healthcare industry. Morningstar and PitchBook expect price declines to accelerate more than 10% annually by 2027. Wegovy is also expected to undergo CMS drug price negotiations in 2027.
2. The potential business rivals are Roche, Amgen, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and Boehringer, as well as acquisition targets including Viking Therapeutics and Structure Therapeutics.
3. The market says Novo Nordisk (Wegovy) and Eli Lilly (Zepbound) set a high bar, but the report disagrees, arguing that the up-and-coming obesity drugs will have better efficacy, convenience and tolerability.
Learn more about the future of the pharmaceutical weight loss market here.