Novo Nordisk vs. Amgen: Which Healthcare Stock Is the Smarter Choice?

Core Insights - Novo Nordisk (NVO) and Amgen (AMGN) are both large-cap healthcare leaders with strong balance sheets and a history of successful drug development, making them attractive investments in the healthcare sector [2] - NVO leads in the GLP-1 market with its semaglutide products, while AMGN has a diversified portfolio across multiple therapeutic areas [3][4] - NVO's focus on diabetes and obesity treatments offers concentrated growth potential, whereas AMGN's diversification supports consistent cash flow [4] Novo Nordisk (NVO) Overview - NVO holds a 59% global market share in the GLP-1 space as of September 2025, driven by its semaglutide products [6] - The company is expanding its manufacturing capacity to strengthen its market leadership in diabetes and obesity care [7] - NVO is pursuing new indications for its semaglutide drugs, including cardiovascular (CV) and other conditions, with recent FDA approvals enhancing its growth prospects [8][9] - NVO is advancing its next-generation obesity pipeline, including CagriSema and amycretin, which are expected to enter later stages of development [10] - The company is also building its Rare Disease franchise with approvals for treatments in hemophilia A and B [11] - NVO has faced challenges, including weaker-than-expected sales and increased competition, leading to downward revisions in its 2025 guidance [13] Amgen (AMGN) Overview - AMGN's diverse portfolio includes key medicines like Evenity, Repatha, and newer drugs such as Tavneos, which are driving sales growth [14] - The acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics has expanded AMGN's rare disease business significantly [15] - AMGN's key pipeline candidate, MariTide, is being evaluated for obesity with a focus on less frequent dosing to improve patient adherence [16][17] - The company has a strong biosimilars portfolio and is developing biosimilars for major oncology drugs [19] - Despite facing pricing pressures and competition, AMGN's fundamentals are improving, with upward trends in earnings estimates for 2025 and 2026 [20][21] Comparative Analysis - NVO's shares have declined by 32% over the past six months, while AMGN's shares have increased by 19.6%, reflecting differing investor sentiments [26] - NVO currently holds a Zacks Rank 5 (Strong Sell), while AMGN has a Zacks Rank 3 (Hold), indicating a preference for AMGN among investors [28] - From a valuation perspective, NVO trades at a lower price/earnings ratio of 13.53 compared to AMGN's 15.33, suggesting that AMGN may be viewed as a more stable investment option [29]