WEBVTT - Novo Nordisk CEO Mike Doustdar Talks Drug Sales 

0:00:02.520 --> 0:00:07.720
<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news. It is one of

0:00:07.760 --> 0:00:10.200
<v Speaker 1>the big stories of the morning. What is happening with

0:00:10.240 --> 0:00:13.319
<v Speaker 1>Novo is fascinating, as you say, company coming out this morning,

0:00:13.320 --> 0:00:15.640
<v Speaker 1>cutting revenue, missing on a number of metrics. But look

0:00:15.680 --> 0:00:17.880
<v Speaker 1>at the share price last time I checked, and it

0:00:17.920 --> 0:00:19.320
<v Speaker 1>was just up on the screen, just a moment ago,

0:00:19.480 --> 0:00:22.079
<v Speaker 1>up by what one one on a bit percent? Does

0:00:22.120 --> 0:00:24.759
<v Speaker 1>that signal maybe that the market believes that this causer,

0:00:24.920 --> 0:00:27.720
<v Speaker 1>this Q three is the bottom. Let's ask Mike Dusta,

0:00:27.800 --> 0:00:30.600
<v Speaker 1>he is the CEO of this business. Now, great to

0:00:30.600 --> 0:00:32.559
<v Speaker 1>see you, Mike. Thanks you spending some time with us

0:00:32.560 --> 0:00:35.240
<v Speaker 1>this morning. Is that the right interpretation? Is this the

0:00:35.320 --> 0:00:38.519
<v Speaker 1>kind of the bottom? Is the glass half full from here?

0:00:38.600 --> 0:00:41.000
<v Speaker 1>After being half empty for so long? Do things get

0:00:41.040 --> 0:00:41.919
<v Speaker 1>better from here?

0:00:41.960 --> 0:00:43.920
<v Speaker 2>What I can tell you is that the first nine

0:00:43.920 --> 0:00:47.839
<v Speaker 2>months of the year fifteen percent profit a sales girl

0:00:47.880 --> 0:00:50.600
<v Speaker 2>time ten percent profit growth is not so bad at

0:00:50.600 --> 0:00:54.040
<v Speaker 2>all compared to our peers. But I think that when

0:00:54.080 --> 0:00:57.280
<v Speaker 2>you look at it quarter by quarter has been a

0:00:57.320 --> 0:01:01.680
<v Speaker 2>headwind and bringing the quarterly growth rates lower. If you

0:01:01.760 --> 0:01:05.320
<v Speaker 2>project our numbers for the full year, actually you see

0:01:05.360 --> 0:01:08.480
<v Speaker 2>that quarter four should be in negative territory so that

0:01:08.600 --> 0:01:09.120
<v Speaker 2>you see.

0:01:08.959 --> 0:01:11.320
<v Speaker 1>Mathematically the low point. The low point is still to come,

0:01:11.319 --> 0:01:12.480
<v Speaker 1>but things get better from there.

0:01:12.520 --> 0:01:14.479
<v Speaker 3>There's for sure a headwind against us.

0:01:15.200 --> 0:01:19.720
<v Speaker 2>Having said this, we are in the business of marathons

0:01:19.840 --> 0:01:24.240
<v Speaker 2>and not sprints. So there is huge amount of unmet need,

0:01:24.440 --> 0:01:27.600
<v Speaker 2>with many patients still not on our medications or not

0:01:27.640 --> 0:01:28.760
<v Speaker 2>on any medications.

0:01:28.920 --> 0:01:30.640
<v Speaker 3>And I look incredibly.

0:01:30.080 --> 0:01:33.160
<v Speaker 2>Forward, of course, as we go forward taking over this

0:01:33.240 --> 0:01:36.200
<v Speaker 2>new job, making sure that the expand the market and

0:01:36.240 --> 0:01:36.959
<v Speaker 2>get to those people.

0:01:37.160 --> 0:01:39.400
<v Speaker 1>You've been in the job for ninety one days. You

0:01:39.480 --> 0:01:41.920
<v Speaker 1>haven't let the grass grow under your feet. You're already

0:01:41.920 --> 0:01:44.360
<v Speaker 1>talking about cost cuts you will talk about in a minute.

0:01:44.440 --> 0:01:46.760
<v Speaker 1>You've launched a big M and a deal. Is this

0:01:46.840 --> 0:01:51.000
<v Speaker 1>the new Novo? Is this a more dynamic, aggressive Nova? Notice?

0:01:51.080 --> 0:01:54.880
<v Speaker 2>Under your tenure, the success we have had with obesity

0:01:55.280 --> 0:01:58.040
<v Speaker 2>has meant that a lot of companies, pretty much all

0:01:58.080 --> 0:02:00.880
<v Speaker 2>pharma companies out there, has gone excite about what we do.

0:02:01.480 --> 0:02:04.840
<v Speaker 2>So that is good from a patients perspective. Okay, more

0:02:04.880 --> 0:02:08.680
<v Speaker 2>players will come in, but at the same time we

0:02:08.800 --> 0:02:11.959
<v Speaker 2>have to make sure we can outperform the competition from

0:02:11.960 --> 0:02:13.080
<v Speaker 2>a shareholder perspective.

0:02:13.440 --> 0:02:15.200
<v Speaker 3>So my job is to really.

0:02:14.960 --> 0:02:18.400
<v Speaker 2>Make sure that we are ready for the headwind that

0:02:18.440 --> 0:02:20.560
<v Speaker 2>we clearly are seeing coming towards us.

0:02:20.600 --> 0:02:22.520
<v Speaker 1>When are you going to match Eli Lilly in terms

0:02:22.560 --> 0:02:24.080
<v Speaker 1>of performance? They head results a few days ago, they

0:02:24.080 --> 0:02:25.679
<v Speaker 1>will knock out. When are you going to be able

0:02:25.720 --> 0:02:27.600
<v Speaker 1>to match that kind of performance? You talk about a

0:02:27.639 --> 0:02:29.120
<v Speaker 1>kind of performance culture here.

0:02:29.040 --> 0:02:31.200
<v Speaker 2>Again, my job is to put the patient in the

0:02:31.240 --> 0:02:34.040
<v Speaker 2>center of what I do, and not necessarily just my competitor.

0:02:34.120 --> 0:02:36.520
<v Speaker 2>We watch them, We take all of our competitors seriously,

0:02:37.080 --> 0:02:40.480
<v Speaker 2>but there are hundreds of millions of people out there

0:02:40.960 --> 0:02:43.880
<v Speaker 2>that are suffering from diabetes and obesity that no one

0:02:44.360 --> 0:02:48.560
<v Speaker 2>is right now addressing. My job is to sustainably lead

0:02:48.720 --> 0:02:50.760
<v Speaker 2>our self thoughts that aim.

0:02:50.880 --> 0:02:53.640
<v Speaker 1>How does Matt Sarah help you do that MATTERA.

0:02:53.320 --> 0:02:57.919
<v Speaker 2>Has some of the best complimentary assets to our own

0:02:58.080 --> 0:02:59.920
<v Speaker 2>phenomenal pipeline.

0:03:00.600 --> 0:03:02.720
<v Speaker 3>So when the ambition is.

0:03:02.639 --> 0:03:06.560
<v Speaker 2>In billions and not millions, you need basically all the

0:03:06.560 --> 0:03:08.359
<v Speaker 2>great assets to get great.

0:03:08.160 --> 0:03:11.640
<v Speaker 1>Assets, but complementary Okay, So why do you need complementary

0:03:11.639 --> 0:03:14.799
<v Speaker 1>assets because you've got you've got all these products. Why

0:03:14.800 --> 0:03:16.120
<v Speaker 1>do you need to go and buy this business?

0:03:16.120 --> 0:03:19.400
<v Speaker 2>Because obesity and diabetes is not a single disease, It's

0:03:19.400 --> 0:03:23.440
<v Speaker 2>an individual disease. You basically have different preferences. Take a

0:03:23.480 --> 0:03:26.280
<v Speaker 2>look at the great vigor VI pill we're about to

0:03:26.400 --> 0:03:29.680
<v Speaker 2>launch in US. Well, that's for people that don't like injection.

0:03:30.000 --> 0:03:32.480
<v Speaker 2>Sure they would like to lose weight, but they don't

0:03:32.520 --> 0:03:35.680
<v Speaker 2>have a viable offering from.

0:03:35.600 --> 0:03:38.760
<v Speaker 1>Us or the competitors very similar products. And the question

0:03:38.880 --> 0:03:41.160
<v Speaker 1>that I've listened to a lot of analysts, talk to

0:03:41.200 --> 0:03:42.600
<v Speaker 1>a lot of analysts, and the question they keep coming

0:03:42.680 --> 0:03:45.080
<v Speaker 1>up with is does this seem to signal maybe that

0:03:45.160 --> 0:03:47.680
<v Speaker 1>you don't believe in the current Novo portfolio?

0:03:47.760 --> 0:03:49.960
<v Speaker 3>Absolutely not, Absolutely not.

0:03:50.440 --> 0:03:53.880
<v Speaker 2>We are in a situation where every single patient has

0:03:53.960 --> 0:03:57.360
<v Speaker 2>a different preference and we need to have the product

0:03:57.480 --> 0:03:59.440
<v Speaker 2>offering that matches that they.

0:03:59.320 --> 0:04:01.640
<v Speaker 1>Got a monthly weekly. Is that really the big difference?

0:04:01.840 --> 0:04:03.640
<v Speaker 2>Well, we saw that the weekly was a big difference

0:04:03.640 --> 0:04:05.560
<v Speaker 2>to the daily one. So I would say for montly

0:04:05.560 --> 0:04:07.840
<v Speaker 2>it does make a difference. For some probably yes, for

0:04:07.920 --> 0:04:11.240
<v Speaker 2>some probably yes. Others will prefer to have a weekly product.

0:04:11.280 --> 0:04:12.920
<v Speaker 1>Is it more important to find AS it doesn't buy

0:04:12.920 --> 0:04:15.360
<v Speaker 1>its than Novo does buyas Because that's another thing I.

0:04:15.400 --> 0:04:19.320
<v Speaker 3>Hear is my focus is on Nova orders. I am am.

0:04:19.360 --> 0:04:19.640
<v Speaker 3>You know.

0:04:19.760 --> 0:04:22.159
<v Speaker 2>The way I see this is there's a company for

0:04:22.279 --> 0:04:25.760
<v Speaker 2>seller's a buyer and a seller, and basically one of

0:04:25.760 --> 0:04:28.760
<v Speaker 2>the buyers doesn't like the price and the other one does.

0:04:29.600 --> 0:04:31.480
<v Speaker 3>My job is to make sure I look at.

0:04:31.400 --> 0:04:34.040
<v Speaker 2>What we did and we would very much benefit from

0:04:34.040 --> 0:04:37.200
<v Speaker 2>Matzera's assets, and we'll put the right price up there.

0:04:37.240 --> 0:04:39.120
<v Speaker 1>For our what's the right price could you get?

0:04:39.720 --> 0:04:42.120
<v Speaker 2>The current price in the market has been you know,

0:04:42.560 --> 0:04:45.839
<v Speaker 2>addressed by Matsell's shareholders, and then we'll see.

0:04:45.720 --> 0:04:46.240
<v Speaker 3>Where this goes.

0:04:46.320 --> 0:04:48.320
<v Speaker 1>Do you think fights it comes back? I have no idea,

0:04:48.360 --> 0:04:49.800
<v Speaker 1>You have no idea, But if they do, will you

0:04:49.839 --> 0:04:50.880
<v Speaker 1>go high how important this is.

0:04:51.440 --> 0:04:54.360
<v Speaker 2>And make an announcement today on how I'm going to

0:04:54.480 --> 0:04:55.159
<v Speaker 2>treat how do you.

0:04:55.160 --> 0:04:57.120
<v Speaker 1>Make sure you don't overpay for this asset.

0:04:57.279 --> 0:04:59.880
<v Speaker 2>By having actually looked very deeply into the data. As

0:04:59.880 --> 0:05:02.640
<v Speaker 2>I mention, we know this company very well. We have

0:05:02.839 --> 0:05:05.440
<v Speaker 2>seen this company for a long time and we like

0:05:05.520 --> 0:05:06.200
<v Speaker 2>what we have seen.

0:05:06.360 --> 0:05:08.400
<v Speaker 1>Okay, you're going to London, I think tomorrow? Right?

0:05:08.720 --> 0:05:09.200
<v Speaker 3>Possibly?

0:05:09.320 --> 0:05:11.320
<v Speaker 1>Okay, are you going to the States after that?

0:05:12.600 --> 0:05:16.000
<v Speaker 2>I'm looking at the whole world, so I'm going to

0:05:16.080 --> 0:05:16.800
<v Speaker 2>go everywhere.

0:05:16.800 --> 0:05:18.320
<v Speaker 1>So the rumor is the basically you're going to be

0:05:18.360 --> 0:05:20.000
<v Speaker 1>in the White House on Thursday and You're going to

0:05:20.000 --> 0:05:21.560
<v Speaker 1>tell me that the deal's not done with the Trump

0:05:21.560 --> 0:05:25.159
<v Speaker 1>administration on pricing, and I'm going to ask you how

0:05:25.200 --> 0:05:26.960
<v Speaker 1>close are you there for to a deal.

0:05:27.000 --> 0:05:29.680
<v Speaker 2>I'm going to say that we are very much aligned

0:05:30.080 --> 0:05:33.040
<v Speaker 2>with the purpose of the negotiations and the discussions we're

0:05:33.080 --> 0:05:36.600
<v Speaker 2>having with the administration. We both would like to provide

0:05:36.760 --> 0:05:40.680
<v Speaker 2>access to many more patients out there, affordable access.

0:05:40.680 --> 0:05:41.279
<v Speaker 1>Are you close?

0:05:41.400 --> 0:05:43.840
<v Speaker 3>So we are discussing very closely.

0:05:44.120 --> 0:05:48.000
<v Speaker 1>Okay, okay, closely. One of the parts of the discussion

0:05:48.839 --> 0:05:51.599
<v Speaker 1>I'm assuming has to be about what is happening with copycats,

0:05:52.000 --> 0:05:56.440
<v Speaker 1>about the companies that are producing drugs that were allowed

0:05:56.560 --> 0:05:59.160
<v Speaker 1>when there were shortages but now using loopholes to maybe

0:05:59.200 --> 0:06:01.880
<v Speaker 1>continue to produce products. And I'm wondering whether or not

0:06:01.920 --> 0:06:03.760
<v Speaker 1>a deal with the White House would include maybe closing

0:06:03.760 --> 0:06:06.440
<v Speaker 1>some of those loopholes. What are the compounders doing in

0:06:06.520 --> 0:06:07.240
<v Speaker 1>terms of your business?

0:06:07.320 --> 0:06:08.880
<v Speaker 2>I can tell you is that we have not been

0:06:09.200 --> 0:06:12.600
<v Speaker 2>We have been quite surprised on how the compounding has

0:06:12.600 --> 0:06:17.359
<v Speaker 2>gotten started. Taking an API, there are ingredients of a

0:06:17.440 --> 0:06:21.960
<v Speaker 2>medication that has not been approved by FDA, and injecting

0:06:22.000 --> 0:06:26.280
<v Speaker 2>that into human beings is something very far from what

0:06:26.320 --> 0:06:29.039
<v Speaker 2>we have been educated in this industry, so we will

0:06:29.080 --> 0:06:36.360
<v Speaker 2>continue to lobby for you that this is simply not right.

0:06:37.120 --> 0:06:39.360
<v Speaker 2>Just I will not get into the details of the deal,

0:06:39.520 --> 0:06:41.080
<v Speaker 2>as you could imagine.

0:06:40.680 --> 0:06:41.920
<v Speaker 1>We will wait and see what the deal looks like

0:06:42.000 --> 0:06:44.560
<v Speaker 1>later this week. Thank you very much for stoping by

0:06:44.600 --> 0:06:46.680
<v Speaker 1>to see us. We really appreciate it. And thank you

0:06:46.720 --> 0:06:48.760
<v Speaker 1>for inviting us to the headquarters. We really appreciate that

0:06:48.800 --> 0:06:52.279
<v Speaker 1>as well. Mike Dister, the CEO of Novo Nordice,