Should I buy Novo Nordisk stock in 2025?

What is Novo Nordisk?

How much is the Novo Nordisk stock?

The price of Novo Nordisk stock is rising this week. Currently trading at $69.46, the stock gained 1.25% over the last 24 hours and is up 1.85% for the week. Novo Nordisk reports a robust market capitalization of $305.07 billion, with an average daily volume of 9.61 million shares over the past three months.

With a low beta of 0.21, the stock has shown relatively modest volatility—making it potentially appealing for Irish investors seeking stability alongside growth.

Our full analysis on the Novo Nordisk stock

Having reviewed Novo Nordisk’s latest financial results and scrutinised the stock’s performance over the past three years, we have combined rigorous analysis of financial indicators, technical signals, market data, and peer group positioning with our proprietary algorithms. This comprehensive approach reveals a dynamic opportunity emerging in the pharmaceutical sector. So, why might Novo Nordisk stock once again become a strategic entry point into the global healthcare and innovative biotech landscape in 2025?

Recent Performance and Market Context

Novo Nordisk (NYSE: NVO) has delivered an impressive long-term trajectory, with a five-year price appreciation exceeding 110%, clearly outpacing most sector peers and global benchmarks. Recent months, however, have seen pronounced volatility: after peaking at $148.15 within the last year, the stock consolidated heavily, retracing to its current $69.46—representing a 47.65% decline from the 2024 heights, and a 34.55% decrease over the preceding six months. Although this headline drop may concern short-term traders, it is essential to interpret the correction in the context of broader sector rotation and a rapid normalisation following an exceptional rally.

Over just the past week, however, NVO has begun displaying positive momentum again, up 1.85%, with intraday strength and a consistent closing methodology. Institutional flows remain robust, underpinned by both recent outperformance in Q1 2025 results and sector-specific tailwinds: continued global focus on diabetes, obesity, and metabolic disease management are creating a macroeconomic backdrop that strongly supports revenue growth for companies with established pipelines and first-mover advantage.

Additionally, structural shifts in healthcare spending, particularly in Europe and the US, have favoured high-value, innovation-led pharmaceutical leaders. This environment is fuelling persistent demand for GLP-1 products (such as Ozempic and Wegovy), which positions Novo Nordisk uniquely among its competitors, including Eli Lilly, whose market share advances have sharpened the competitive race, but not substantially eroded Novo Nordisk’s brand equity or growth trajectory.

Technical Analysis

Technical signals offer a nuanced but overall constructive picture for medium-term investors. As of 30 May 2025, major technical indicators highlight the following:

• Relative Strength Index (RSI, 14 days): 51.79 – firmly neutral, indicating neither overbought nor oversold conditions and suggesting that the stock is consolidating at a potential base.
• MACD: Slightly negative at 0.20, currently aligned with recent correction, but approaching levels from which previous price recoveries have initiated.
• Key Support: $68.20, which has held repeatedly, acting as a robust floor for recent trading sessions.
• Resistance Zone: $68.12 - $70.47, now being tested on the back of renewed volume and partial reversal patterns.

The stock's proximity to a major support level, along with neutral RSI, hints at a formation of a new equilibrium—often a precursor to a bullish phase, particularly when combined with increasing volume and sector-specific catalysts. The short-term structure features sideways consolidation, but the broader medium-term narrative is improving, with a technical framework that could favour a decisive move higher if resistance is broken amidst renewed fundamental support.

Fundamental Analysis

Novo Nordisk’s latest results reaffirm its sector leadership and illustrate why the stock appears fundamentally undervalued at current levels:

• Revenue Growth: Q1 2025 revenue surged 18% year-on-year to DKK 78.09 billion, with Q1 net profit of DKK 29.03 billion surpassing analyst expectations by over 4%. Top-line growth persists across core areas, most notably in obesity care (+67%) and GLP-1 diabetes sales (+13%).
• Profitability and Returns: The company’s profitability metrics are world-class, anchored by a sector-leading 34.5% net margin, return on equity of 88.1%, and return on assets of 23.3%. These figures underscore an exceptional ability to monetise innovation and scale cost structures efficiently.
• Valuation: Despite recent volatility, NVO trades at 19.46x trailing twelve-month earnings and 17.33x forward P/E—levels that compare favourably to historical sector averages, especially when paired with a PEG ratio of just 1.26, highlighting attractive relative value based on expected growth. The price-to-sales multiple of 6.72, together with a strengthening dividend yield of 2.33%, suggests the stock’s recent retracement has opened a window of compelling value.
• Structural Strengths: Novo Nordisk’s innovation engine—the world’s most recognised GLP-1 franchise, including Wegovy and Ozempic—remains unmatched, while the company’s global presence (operating in over 80 countries, products marketed across approximately 170) ensures diversified revenue streams and resilience against regional shocks.

Volume and Liquidity

High, consistent trading volume—averaging 9.6 million shares daily—confirms that market participants retain strong interest and conviction. Such liquidity, combined with a significant institutional shareholder base, underpins dynamic valuation potential and ensures that tactical trading or portfolio repositioning can be executed efficiently. Moreover, the stock’s relatively high public float and low beta (0.21), compared to the broader market, offer stability for both active and passive investors, especially in periods of macroeconomic turbulence.

Catalysts and Positive Outlook

The investment case is reinforced by a series of imminent growth catalysts:

• Pipeline Progress: Novo Nordisk is set to file CagriSema—its next-generation dual-action weight loss therapy—in Q1 2026, potentially extending its leadership in a rapidly expanding therapeutic area.
• Regulatory Tailwinds: With the US FDA ending its emergency ruling on GLP-1 compounds and obligating competitors to halt compounding by May 2025, legal headwinds have diminished, allowing Novo Nordisk to regain pricing and volume momentum in H2 2025.
• Strategic Partnerships: Recently announced exclusivity arrangements with CVS and deepening connections with telehealth providers expand both distribution and patient access, crucial in a sector where healthcare delivery models are rapidly evolving.
• ESG Credentials: Novo Nordisk’s commitment to sustainable manufacturing and broadening access to diabetes and obesity treatments resonates with major institutional holders, adding an extra layer of appeal as ESG integration expands in investment mandates.

These drivers, aligned with sector trends—including unprecedented demand for weight management drugs and regulatory support for innovations targeting growing public health needs—set the stage for an environment where upside potential is both significant and well-supported by fundamentals.

Investment Strategies

The current market configuration provides several strategic entry scenarios:

• Short-Term: For more agile investors, the proximity to technical support levels around $68.20, coupled with positive short-term momentum (+1.85% over the past week), offers the potential for tactical trades anticipating a rebound off established support and a break above immediate resistance ($70.47).
• Medium-Term: Positioning ahead of expected H2 2025 catalysts—especially the full effect of the compounding drugs’ withdrawal and progression toward the CagriSema regulatory submission—could capture both multiple re-rating and earnings-driven upside.
• Long-Term: For buy-and-hold strategies or institutional mandates, the combination of undervalued growth (PEG ratio 1.26), robust dividend policy (~2.33% yield with a 21% YoY increase), and strong innovation pipeline establishes an investment rationale that is unusually well-aligned with both capital appreciation and income objectives.

Across all horizons, recent price compression appears less a reflection of deteriorating fundamentals and more an artefact of accelerated mean reversion and sector rotation. The stock’s consolidation and technical basing, therefore, may be interpreted as a constructive staging ground for renewed accumulation.

Is It the Right Time to Buy Novo Nordisk?

In sum, Novo Nordisk currently combines world-class profitability, deep innovation, resilient market leadership, and a pipeline primed for future breakthroughs. The considerable pullback from 2024’s highs has recalibrated valuation metrics to levels not seen in several years, at precisely the juncture where competitive and regulatory headwinds are receding, and new product catalysts are coming into focus.

This potent combination of attributes—sector dominance, robust balance sheet, superior dividend growth, and technical resilience—suggests that Novo Nordisk may be entering a new bullish phase. For investors seeking quality names at attractive entry levels, the stock’s recent consolidation seems to represent an excellent opportunity to gain exposure to one of the healthcare sector’s most compelling growth stories.

As Novo Nordisk pivots toward its next generation of blockbuster drugs, aligns its leadership structure, and leverages market tailwinds, the case for renewed interest is exceptionally strong—making this a moment worth close consideration for those looking to capture upside potential in innovative global healthcare.

How to buy Novo Nordisk stock in Ireland?

Buying Novo Nordisk stock online is both straightforward and secure when you use a regulated broker. Whether you want to invest for the long term (spot buying, also called cash buying) or prefer the flexibility and leverage of short-term trading (CFDs), opening an account with a trusted online platform gives you access. Both methods are available to Irish retail investors and allow you to participate in Novo Nordisk’s performance easily. To choose the best broker for your needs, it’s important to review a comparison of fees and services, which you’ll find further down this page.

Spot Buying (Cash Purchase)

A cash purchase means you directly buy Novo Nordisk shares through your brokerage account, becoming a shareholder entitled to potential dividends and voting rights. This is the classic, long-term investment approach. Fees typically include a fixed commission per order, often around €5–€10 for Irish investors, depending on the broker.

Important example

Example: Suppose Novo Nordisk stock is trading at $69.46 per share. With a $1,000 investment (about €920), and including a brokerage fee of $5, you could buy approximately 14 shares of Novo Nordisk.

- $1,000 – $5 fee = $995 to invest
- $995 ÷ $69.46 ≈ 14 shares

Gain scenario

✔️ Gain scenario: If the share price rises by 10%, your 14 shares are now worth about $1,100.

- Gross gain: +$100, i.e. +10% on your investment (excluding currency effects or taxes).

Trading via CFD

CFDs (Contracts for Difference) let you speculate on Novo Nordisk’s price movements without owning the underlying shares. With CFDs, you can use leverage to multiply both potential gains and losses. Fees for CFDs usually include the spread (the difference between buy and sell price), plus overnight financing charges if you keep positions open from day to day.

Important example

Example: If you open a CFD position on Novo Nordisk with $1,000 and 5x leverage:

- Your market exposure is $5,000.
- If Novo Nordisk shares rise by 8%, your CFD position gains 8% × 5 = 40%.
- Gain: 40% of $1,000 = $400 (before fees and financing costs).

This method is ideal for more active or experienced traders seeking amplified returns, but it also involves higher risk, including the possibility of losing more than your initial stake.

Final Advice

Before investing in Novo Nordisk or any stock, always compare brokers’ fees, trading platforms, and available investment products. Each method (cash investing or CFD trading) suits different investment goals and risk profiles. Your choice should reflect your financial objectives, investment horizon, and experience. For a comprehensive comparison of the best brokers available in Ireland for Novo Nordisk stock, consult the table further down this page.

Our 7 tips for buying Novo Nordisk stock

The latest news about Novo Nordisk

Novo Nordisk stock climbed 1.85% this week, recovering as market confidence improves following US compounding curbs. In the last seven days, Novo Nordisk's ADR rose by 1.85%, with a daily pre-market uptick of 0.39% on top of a recent 1.25% session gain, reflecting optimism as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ended emergency allowances for compounded weight-loss drugs and enforced a May 22 deadline for illicit compounders to exit the market. This decision addresses supply chain concerns that previously affected Novo Nordisk's Wegovy and Ozempic franchises, a development positively received by institutional investors in Ireland with positions in global healthcare and large-cap portfolios.

Q1 2025 earnings demonstrated robust profitability and strong GLP-1 demand, outpacing analyst net profit expectations. Novo Nordisk reported first-quarter revenues of DKK 78.09 billion, up 18% year-on-year, and net profits of DKK 29.03 billion—a 29% beat on consensus estimates, primarily driven by sustained global demand for GLP-1 therapies such as Wegovy (up 83% YoY at constant currency). Despite Wegovy sales falling just short of target, growth in both diabetes (+13%) and obesity care (+67%) segments signals operational resilience, appealing to the significant number of Irish retail and institutional stakeholders actively monitoring sector leadership and breakthrough therapies that are also distributed locally.

The board confirmed a 21% dividend increase for 2024, supporting shareholder returns attractive to Irish income-focused portfolios. Novo Nordisk’s 2024 dividend payout was raised to DKK 11.40 per share, up 21% year-on-year, with a current annual yield of 2.33%—a considerable draw for Irish pension funds and private investors who prioritize a steady income stream from multinational equities, especially in light of persistently low Eurozone bond yields and relative currency stability afforded by the company’s euro-adjacent Danish krone base.

Strategic partnerships and pipeline expansion, including CagriSema, reinforce long-term growth, with the Irish market benefiting via enhanced access and innovation. In recent days, Novo Nordisk announced the continuation of exclusivity agreements with major telehealth providers and CVS, as well as plans to file for regulatory approval of next-generation GLP-1 compound CagriSema in Q1 2026. For Ireland, which is a mature EU pharmaceutical consumer and regularly updates reimbursement protocols for diabetes and obesity care, these developments ensure steady access to innovative therapies and may support further collaborations with Irish healthcare providers—strengthening the company’s presence and reliability in the region.

Analyst consensus remains “Strong Buy” with substantial forecasted upside, aligning with the stock’s appeal among Irish global equities managers. Expert commentary over the past week continues to rate Novo Nordisk a “Strong Buy,” with a median price target of $128.00 (an 84% upside from current levels) and even conservative models suggesting a 30% rise to $90.30. Irish investment houses and wealth advisors that allocate to European and global healthcare sector leaders are likely to view this as a compelling entry point, particularly as the stock trades at a material discount to its 2024 highs but maintains sector-leading margins and a robust innovation track record.

FAQ

P. Laurore

Finance expert

Co-founder of HelloSafe and holder of a Master's degree in finance, Pauline has recognised expertise in personal finance, which she uses to help users better understand and optimise their financial choices. At HelloSafe, Pauline plays a key role in designing clear, educational content on savings, investments and personal finance. Passionate about financial education, Pauline strives, with every piece of content she oversees, to provide reliable, transparent and unbiased information for independent and informed financial management. To this end, she has tested over 100 trading platforms to help internet users make the right choices.