Zealand Pharma is stepping up its challenge in the fast-moving obesity drug market, advancing its lead amylin candidate petrelintide toward Phase 3 while reporting major clinical progress across its metabolic health pipeline.

 

The Danish biotech said it will move petrelintide into registrational Phase 3 trials in the second half of 2026 after Phase 2 results showed double-digit weight loss and a tolerability profile largely comparable to placebo.

 

The company’s progress comes as competition intensifies in obesity treatment, with drugmakers increasingly focused not only on weight loss but also on tolerability, treatment persistence and the overall patient experience.

 

“In 2026 to date, we have executed with pace and precision across our pipeline,” Adam Steensberg, President and Chief Executive Officer at Zealand Pharma said. 

 

“We delivered on the key commitments we set out at the start of the year, while maintaining our sharp focus on the next wave of metabolic health innovation. What stands out this half is not just the depth and breadth of progress, but what it signals about where the field is heading. 

 

"At ADA 2026, the consensus among key opinion leaders on unmet needs in chronic weight management was clear: tolerability, treatment persistence, and patient experience now define the conversation, and we believe amylin is emerging as the answer. The opportunity in front of us has never been clearer.”

 

Petrelintide, an amylin analogue, emerged as the key focus of Zealand Pharma’s first-half update.

 

At the American Diabetes Association’s 2026 Scientific Sessions, the company presented Phase 2 ZUPREME-1 results showing double-digit weight reduction in people living with overweight or obesity. Zealand said the candidate’s tolerability profile was largely comparable to placebo.

 

The company now plans to begin Phase 3 registrational trials of petrelintide monotherapy later this year.

 

It also expects to report topline results from the Phase 2 ZUPREME-2 trial in people with overweight or obesity and type 2 diabetes during the second half.

 

Separately, Zealand and Roche are preparing to launch the Phase 2 ZYNERGY trial of petrelintide combined with enicepatide (CT-388), an amylin and GLP-1/GIP fixed-dose combination.

 

Zealand’s other major obesity asset, survodutide, also generated positive developments.

 

Partner Boehringer Ingelheim reported that the Phase 3 SYNCHRONIZE-1 trial met its primary endpoints in people living with overweight or obesity, with survodutide delivering up to 16.6% weight loss.

 

The company also highlighted results from the SYNCHRONIZE-MASLD Phase 3 trial, which met its primary endpoints in people with overweight or obesity and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) with evidence of inflammation and/or fibrosis.

 

Six out of 10 survodutide-treated participants achieving liver fat normalization, Zealand said.

 

Boehringer Ingelheim is also expanding the survodutide development programme, with four Phase 3b trials expected to start in 2026 to address additional unmet needs in obesity and real-world care.

 

Results from the SYNCHRONIZE-2 trial are due to be presented at the 62nd Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes, while results from the SYNCHRONIZE-CVOT trial are expected later this year.

 

Despite the pipeline advances, Zealand’s financial results weakened sharply year-on-year.

 

Revenue for the first half of 2026 fell to DKK 4.525 billion from DKK 9.096 billion a year earlier. Operating profit dropped to DKK 3.321 billion from DKK 7.931 billion, while profit for the period fell to DKK 3.524 billion from DKK 7.238 billion.

 

Net financial items, however, swung to a positive DKK 292 million, compared with a loss of DKK 157 million in the first half of 2025.

 

Zealand ended June with a cash position of DKK 14.457 billion, compared with DKK 15.109 billion at the end of 2025.

 

The company maintained its full-year guidance, expecting collaboration revenue of DKK 4.5 billion and operating expenses excluding other operating items of DKK 2.7-3.3 billion.

 

Zealand is also using its balance sheet to support its strategy and return capital to shareholders.

 

The company launched a USD 200 million share buyback programme in May. As of August 7, accumulated transactions under the programme had reached DKK 742 million.

 

It has also agreed a USD 100 million royalty purchase and sale transaction with Royalty Pharma involving rusfertide, monetising a non-core asset.

 

Beyond obesity, Zealand has expanded its early-stage pipeline in chronic inflammation. The company initiated a Phase 1b trial of ZP9830, a novel Kv1.3 ion channel blocker, in people with psoriasis, following positive results from the single ascending dose portion of its Phase 1a study.

 

The candidate is being developed with potential applications across autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

 

Zealand also initiated a first-in-human trial of ZP6590, a GIP receptor agonist.

 

The second half of 2026 could prove decisive for Zealand.

 

The company expects to initiate Phase 3 trials of petrelintide monotherapy with Roche, launch the ZYNERGY Phase 2 combination study and report additional data from its obesity programme.

 

In rare diseases, Zealand expects to complete the European marketing authorization review for glepaglutide in short bowel syndrome and plans to resubmit its US New Drug Application for dasiglucagon in congenital hyperinsulinism.

 

The company also expects to report topline data from the multiple ascending dose portion of the Phase 1a ZP9830 trial.

 

For Zealand, the message from the first half is clear: the company is moving aggressively to turn its expanding metabolic pipeline into late-stage programmes, with petrelintide increasingly positioned at the centre of its obesity strategy.