Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk (NVO) is buying privately held Cardior Pharmaceuticals for 1.03 billion euros ($1.1 billion U.S.).
The acquisition will strengthen Novo Nordisk’s pipeline of cardiovascular medications, said the company in a news release.
Novo Nordisk is expanding its current focus on diabetes and weight-loss drugs to also include new cardiovascular disease treatments.
The Denmark-based company has become the most valuable publicly traded company in Europe as sales of its popular weight-loss treatments Wegovy and Ozempic skyrocket.
The latest acquisition includes Cardior Pharmaceuticals' lead compound CDR132L, currently in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of heart failure.
Novo Nordisk said it plans to start a second Phase II trial investigating CDR132L in people with cardiac hypertrophy, a condition that causes the walls of the heart muscle to thicken, reducing the ability to pump blood.
The purchase of Cardior, which is expected to close in this year’s second quarter, will not impact Novo Nordisk's 2024 operating profit, said the company.
The stock of Novo Nordisk has risen 67% over the last 12 months and currently trades at $128.76 U.S. per share.
