AP's Morning BriefPre-market brief · Sun–Fri · 7:30am ET
Subscribe free
Market quotes Loading delayed quotes from TradingView… If they don't appear, closing levels are in each brief.

Quotes may be delayed. SPY, QQQ and DIA are delayed exchange quotes; TSX is delayed; 10-yr yield is the daily FRED rate; gold and WTI are TVC feeds. Quote data and widget by TradingView.

Next brief

Earnings

Novo Nordisk rises 5.35% premarket as Wegovy pill sales beat and outlook rises again

The Danish drugmaker topped third-quarter profit forecasts, lifted its 2026 sales and profit outlook, and named a new finance chief.

· AP's Morning Brief

Related NVO
Image: Arild Vågen, NYSE Broad Street facade, CC BY-SA 4.0

Novo Nordisk's U.S.-listed shares were up $2.15, or 5.35%, at $42.34 in premarket trading as of 9:19 a.m. ET on Wednesday, compared with Tuesday's regular-session price of $40.19. The move followed a stronger-than-expected third quarter and another lift to the company's 2026 outlook.

Follow live markets on X @therealapdult.

Third-quarter sales came in at 79.2 billion Danish kroner, about $11.9 billion, up 4% at constant exchange rates and ahead of the FactSet estimate of 73.6 billion kroner cited by CNBC. Adjusted operating profit rose 27% at constant exchange rates to 31.7 billion kroner, against an expected 28.6 billion. Reported operating profit fell 9% at constant exchange rates, reflecting 8.7 billion kroner of non-cash impairment charges.

The newer products did much of the work. Sales of the Wegovy pill reached 5.4 billion kroner, compared with roughly 4.5 billion kroner analysts expected, and obesity care sales rose 22% at constant exchange rates to 26.15 billion kroner.

Novo now expects 2026 adjusted sales and adjusted operating profit growth of -2% to +2% at constant exchange rates, up from a prior range of -6% to flat, and raised its free cash flow forecast to 60 billion to 70 billion kroner from 45 billion to 55 billion. The company also said Chief Financial Officer Karsten Munk Knudsen will leave at the end of 2026, with Luigi La Corte, currently finance chief at Galderma, succeeding him.

Chief executive Mike Doustdar struck a measured tone, telling reporters a turnaround "is not done based on one data point, on one quarterly good result." Analysts at Jefferies noted that about 2 billion kroner of pricing tailwinds flattered the sales beat.

The report landed on a busy morning, with U.S. stock futures higher as investors weighed the Democrats' midterm sweep.

Sources

  1. Nasdaq.com quote (NVO) — NVO premarket $42.34, net change +2.15, +5.35% as of Nov 4, 2026 9:19 AM ET; prior regular-session price $40.19 at 4:00 PM ET Nov 3 (-0.26, -0.64%).
  2. Yahoo Finance chart data (NVO) — NVO regular-market price Nov 3, 2026 $40.19; Nov 2 $40.45.
  3. CNBC — Q3 sales 79.2 billion kroner ($11.9 billion), up 4% at CER vs FactSet 73.6 billion; adjusted operating profit 31.7 billion vs expected 28.6 billion; outlook -2% to 2% (prior -6% to flat); Wegovy pill 5.4 billion vs roughly 4.5 billion expected; CFO Karsten Munk Knudsen leaving end of 2026, Luigi La Corte of Galderma to succeed; Doustdar: 'Turnaround and recovery is not done based on one data point, on one quarterly good result.'
  4. Novo Nordisk company announcement (GlobeNewswire) — Q3 2026 adjusted sales +4% at CER; adjusted operating profit +27% at CER to DKK 31,720 million; reported operating profit -9% at CER with DKK 8.7 billion non-cash impairments; Wegovy pill DKK 5,394 million; 2026 outlook -2% to +2% at CER.
  5. Investing.com (with Reuters) — Obesity care sales +22% at CER to 26.15 billion crowns; 8.7 billion impairments; free cash flow 60 billion to 70 billion crowns vs previous 45 billion to 55 billion; Jefferies: beat flattered by about 2 billion crowns of gross-to-net pricing tailwinds.
  6. Yahoo Finance live — US stock futures moved after Democrats won control of both chambers in the midterm elections; Dow futures +2.2%, S&P 500 futures +1.2%.