Novo Nordisk shares rise after dropping Metsera bid

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) -Shares in Novo Nordisk rose in early trade on Monday, after the Wegovy-maker on Saturday dropped its bid for U.S. weight loss drug company Metsera, ending a bidding war with rival Pfizer.

Novo’s shares traded 2.9% higher at 0801 GMT.

U.S. drugmaker Pfizer said late on Friday it had clinched a $10 billion deal for Metsera, in a blow to Novo as the Danish group tries to claw back lost ground against U.S. rival Eli Lilly.

Metsera accepted a sweetened offer from Pfizer late on Friday, citing U.S. antitrust risks in Novo’s bid that it had previously called superior. The Danish obesity drug behemoth said on Saturday it would exit the race.

The bidding war win hands Pfizer a way into the lucrative obesity drug market, even if Metsera’s treatments remain years from hitting the market.

(Reporting by Stine Jacobsen, editing by Terje Solsvik)