Zealand $ZLDPF sinks 24% as survodutide GI dropouts hit 19%

Zealand Pharma $ZLDPF traded down more than 24% on June 8 after investors focused on a 19% gastrointestinal-event discontinuation rate in the Phase III survodutide data. CNBC reported that the Danish drugmaker's shares fell as much as 26%, while Zealand's June 7 company announcement distributed by GlobeNewswire said GI-related discontinuations were 19% for survodutide compared with 2.9% for placebo in SYNCHRONIZE-1.

The trial data were not one-sided. SYNCHRONIZE-1 met its primary endpoints and showed up to 16.6% weight loss versus 3.2% for placebo over 76 weeks. A pre-specified MRI sub-study showed up to 34.0% visceral-fat reduction, no more than 10.8% lean-mass share of total tissue change at the highest dose, and up to 63.1% liver-fat reduction. Those numbers explain why the data still matter for obesity and metabolic-disease investors.

The market reaction came from tolerability. Zealand said the most common adverse events were gastrointestinal and included nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and constipation. CNBC cited Barclays' view that safety and tolerability remained the key issue. Investing.com reported more granular discontinuation data: adverse-event discontinuations of 23.7% and 24.8% at the 3.6mg and 6mg doses, compared with 5.4% on placebo, with GI-driven discontinuations of 17.8% and 20.2% versus 2.9% on placebo.

The economics are also specific. Survodutide is licensed to Boehringer Ingelheim, which is responsible for global development and commercialization. Zealand said it is eligible for high single-digit to low double-digit royalties and EUR 315M in potential outstanding milestone payments.

The next checks are SYNCHRONIZE-2 in obesity with Type 2 diabetes, SYNCHRONIZE-CVOT in cardiovascular-risk populations, and the planned Phase IIIb studies focused on dosing and real-world titration. The June 8 equity move shows that investors are weighting dropout rates against metabolic benefits before assigning value to future royalties.

Not investment advice. Verify all figures with primary sources before acting.