, are working on weight-loss therapies similar to Wegovy, viewing them as important future growth drivers.
Would-be rivals see room for treatments that are more convenient or provide additional health benefits. Even a small share of the market could be worth billions. Over 650 million adults worldwide are obese, more than triple the rate in 1975, and roughly another 1.3 billion are overweight, exacerbating conditions such as heart disease and diabetes, according to the World Health Organization.
Morningstar analyst Damien Conover believes the weight loss market will be similar to lucrative categories like cholesterol-lowering statins and blood pressure drugs "where the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth to market were blockbuster drugs," with annual sales topping $1 billion.Pfizer believes an oral therapy will appeal to people who want to avoid injections.
"And you never know who will respond better to one versus the other, so having a variety of similar but not identical products will probably be helpful," Kane said. "There's interest from multiple parties who want to play in the space," said Altimmune Chief Executive Vipin Garg.