Pfizer said Thursday that it plans to advance a new, once-a-day formulation of its experimental obesity drug danuglipron, meant to be a pill version in the same class as popular injections like Wegovy and Zepbound.
But analysts said that the move represented a hedged bet, as Pfizer is adding yet another preliminary study before beginning larger clinical trials that could eventually result in the medicine’s approval.
The medicine had at one point been a key focus for many investors, with Pfizer talking up the potential of the obesity market and saying it had two potential experimental obesity medicines in development. But development of one of these pills was stopped because it caused elevations in liver enzymes. Then, in December, a twice-daily version of danuglipron was not taken forward after a trial showed the weight reductions were smaller than those seen with rival drugs and there was a high rate of side effects like nausea.
