Before the bell: Novo Nordisk halves prices, shares jump

After two weeks of strong gains, European equities started the week with small losses, averaging a few tenths of a percent. Wind energy companies rallied after favorable final subsidy rules in the US: Vestas Wind gained 15% and DEME 6.7%. The Bel20 was one of the few European indices to close higher, lifted by Argenx (+3.5%), UCB (+1.5%) and Montea (+1.6%), the latter catching attention as an undervalued REIT. On Wall Street, trading was mostly flat. Online pharmacy GoodRx soared 37% after news from Novo Nordisk. Investors are already looking ahead to Friday’s central bankers’ meeting in Jackson Hole, while also following peace talks on Ukraine, though few expect a breakthrough soon. Meanwhile, European natural gas prices have dropped to their lowest level in a year, and crude oil has fallen from 75 dollars two months ago to just 63 dollars now—helping to keep inflation subdued.

In Asia this morning, movements were muted: the Topix (+0.1%) and Hang Seng (+0.1%) barely budged, though Geely Automobile gained 3%. Tonight, investors will watch earnings from EVS in Belgium and Home Depot (pre-market) and Toll Brothers (after-market) in the US.

Novo Nordisk tired of being just a weight-loss story

After a 47% drop earlier this year, Novo Nordisk rebounded 6.7% on Monday. The FDA granted accelerated approval for Wegovy to treat MASH (metabolic-associated steatohepatitis), marking the first GLP-1 therapy for liver disease. The company also announced it would halve the list price of Wegovy and Ozempic in the US, from 1,000 dollars to 499 dollars per month—again, only for patients without insurance coverage. This move aims to discourage counterfeit use and counter competition from Eli Lilly’s products. Novo Nordisk has struggled in the US, but its new CEO seems to be taking a stronger approach. At 14 times trailing earnings, the stock is priced as if there is no growth left—something investors may want to reconsider.

Cybersecurity giant meets expectations

Palo Alto Networks dipped 0.5% on Monday but gained 5% after hours following better-than-expected earnings. Quarterly revenue rose 16% to 2.5 billion dollars, while profit climbed 27%. For fiscal year 2025, recurring revenues increased 32% to 5.6 billion dollars. The company expects continued strong growth, though investors remain cautious about the 25 billion dollar CyberArk acquisition, set to close in 2026. Palo Alto shares currently trade at 47 times expected earnings for the new fiscal year.

Did you know…

Despite signs of weakness in the US economy, consumer spending rose 3.5% in the first week of August, following a 1.8% gain in July, according to credit card data.

This article was translated from Dutch and was originally published on Spaarvarkens.be.