$NOVO B (-0,39%) It's a good thing I listened to my gut feeling. I will continue not to invest. @Propheteus 🔮
Following the open dispute with the Novo Nordisk Foundation, Supervisory Board Chairman Helge Lund and several independent members are stepping down. An extraordinary general meeting should now bring clarity.
The Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has called an extraordinary general meeting for November 14 after a power struggle with its majority shareholder, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, over the composition of the Supervisory Board escalated. The company stated that the meeting was "in the best interests of the company and its shareholders" after an agreement with the Foundation could not be reached.
The current Chairman of the Supervisory Board Helge Lund, his deputy Henrik Poulsen and the independent members Laurence Debroux, Andreas Fibig, Sylvie Grégoire, Christina Law and Martin Mackay will not be standing for re-election. The representatives elected by the employees and Kasim Kutay, who is not considered independent of the Foundation, will remain in office.
"Following discussions with the Novo Nordisk Foundation about the future composition of the Supervisory Board, it was not possible to reach a joint agreement," explained Lund. "The Supervisory Board proposed a renewal with a focus on bringing in selected new competencies while maintaining continuity, while the Foundation Board wanted a more comprehensive restructuring."
The Foundation then nominated Lars Rebien Sørensen, former CEO of Novo Nordisk and current Chairman of the Foundation, as the new Chairman of the Board for a period of two to three years. Cees de Jong is to be the deputy chairman. Sørensen explained the urgency of the new appointment with the current challenges: "Given the rapidly changing environment in which Novo Nordisk operates, we believe it is in the best interests of the company and its shareholders to renew the Board as soon as possible."
The reshuffle comes at a time of profound restructuring. Following the dismissal of CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen in May, his successor initiated massive job cuts and a realignment in the market for obesity drugs. Novo Nordisk is thus under pressure to defend its leading role in the global weight loss segment with products such as Ozempic and Wegovy.
The Novo Nordisk share, which is listed in Copenhagen, initially reacted to the news with losses of more than 2.3 percent. This brings the total share price loss since the beginning of the year to over 43 percent.
