After losing out to Pfizer on the $10 billion bidding war for weight-loss drug startup Metsera, Novo Nordisk’s CFO says the company is hunting for even bigger deals.
“There are a lot of frogs to be kissed before we find the prince or the princess,” Karsten Munk Knudsen told Semafor. “We have the balance sheet to go at bigger deals [than Metsera], should that be an option, but it’s really the availability of quality assets that fit our strategy and are for sale.” Pfizer outbid Novo Nordisk for Metsera in a messy M&A fight last year that involved dueling lawsuits and anticompetitive claims.
Briefly Europe’s most valuable company, Novo Nordisk’s shares have slid sharply as Eli Lilly has put up a tough fight. Novo replaced its CEO last summer and has seen success lately with its GLP-1 pill, where it was first to market. Both companies are trying to win that race while using its windfall to hedge their bets: Eli Lilly has spent billions over the last two years acquiring companies in genetics medicines, sleep disorders, and cancer.
