New Delhi, May 16 -- Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk A/S, maker of blockbuster weight loss drug Wegovy, said Friday its CEO was stepping down by "mutual agreement" with the company's board of directors, citing "recent market challenges" and a steep decline in the company's share price.

Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen's departure comes a week after the company downgraded its sales and profits forecast, and follows a more than 50% decline in the company's shares since mid-2024. Shares had skyrocketed after the introduction of Wegovy and diabetes medicine Ozempic, which are both based on the same basic ingredient, semaglutide.

At the peak, the company's market capitalization - or the combined price of all its shares - exceeded Denmark...