Class Action Targets Novo Nordisk’s $5B Victoza Reverse Payment Scheme
Novo Nordisk is facing a US class action accusing it of paying Teva to delay generic Victoza launch until June 2024, preserving over $5 billion in sales and exposing it to hundreds of millions in damages. Meanwhile, oral Wegovy secured over 26,000 US prescriptions in its second week, underpinning demand.
1. Oral Wegovy Launch Drives Early Prescription Surge
Novo Nordisk’s newly approved oral GLP-1 weight-loss pill generated more than 18,000 U.S. prescriptions in its first week on the market and over 26,000 in the second full week, according to IQVIA data shared by analysts. The rapid uptake underscores strong pent-up demand for an oral alternative to injectables, with direct-to-consumer advertising campaigns already underway. Novo Nordisk plans to leverage cash-pay channels to broaden access amid uneven insurance coverage, positioning the pill as a growth engine in 2026 and beyond.
2. Stock Valuation Signals Potential Upside
After a 41% decline in 2025, Novo Nordisk shares have rebounded by roughly 26% in early 2026, reflecting renewed investor confidence in GLP-1 growth drivers. With a forward price-earnings ratio of approximately 17—well below Eli Lilly’s ratio north of 50—analysts argue that Novo Nordisk remains undervalued relative to its peers. Consensus revenue estimates for the full year may prove conservative, given the double-digit growth history in obesity and diabetes franchises and the potential for margin accretion from higher-margin oral formulations.
3. Aggressive U.S. Advertising Bolsters Market Position
Between January and September 2025, Novo Nordisk spent an estimated $316 million promoting Wegovy and $169 million on Ozempic in the U.S., a 54% and 44% year-over-year increase, respectively. Combined outlays of $487 million more than doubled rival Eli Lilly’s $214 million investment behind Zepbound and Mounjaro. While Lilly has captured roughly 60% of the U.S. obesity drug market—driven in part by trial data showing Zepbound users lost 47% more weight than Wegovy users—the resumption of Novo Nordisk’s marketing after supply constraints is set to reinforce its leadership in both obesity and diabetes segments.
4. Class Action Alleges Anticompetitive Delay of Victoza Generics
Novo Nordisk faces a U.S. class action lawsuit alleging it orchestrated a reverse-payment scheme with Teva to delay generic Victoza until June 2024, preserving its monopoly pricing and steering patients to Ozempic. Victoza generated over $5 billion in U.S. sales in 2018, and plaintiffs claim the alleged 16-month delay forced purchasers to overpay for both branded and generic versions as well as Ozempic. The complaint, filed in the Eastern District of New York, seeks hundreds of millions in damages tied to supracompetitive pricing during the affected period.