BNPP starts Zealand Pharma at 'outperform' on 'difficult to ignore' obesity drugs upside

Zealand Pharma A/S

01/07/2025 08:45

Corrects typographical error in brokerage name in headline, no changes to text

** Exane BNP Paribas initiates coverage of Zealand Pharma ZELA.CO with "outperform" on "difficult to ignore" risk-reward upside

** The shares were up around 3% at GMT 0730, on top of STOXX 600 index .STOXX

** The broker says Zealand 's experimental obesity drug petrelintide, an amylin analog as an alternative to GLP-1, could match rivals in upcoming Phase 2 data and compete commercially with Roche ROG.S as partner

** Shares could face pressure in H2 with multiple competitor datasets but petrelintide's unique molecular profile may allow it to differentiate clinically amongst the class, the broker says

** It also points to Zealand's other obesity agonists survodutide and dapiglutide as overlooked drivers of share price appreciation in 2026

** "Our scenario analysis fully discounting petrelintide leaves upside at current levels," it adds

** Out of 14 analysts covering the stock, 11 rate it "strong buy" or "buy" and three rate it "hold", as per LSEG data

 (Reporting by Vera Dvorakova)

 ((vera.dvorakova@thomsonreuters.com))