RD Saúde expects to expand its share of Brazil’s weight-loss drug market by 2027, CEO Renato Raduan said. The company aims to make up for lower prices, driven by the growing availability of these medicines, through increased sales volumes.
Medicines in the GLP-1 category, used to treat diabetes and support weight loss, accounted for about 12% of RD Saúde’s sales in the third quarter. Tirzepatide, sold as Mounjaro, represented around two-thirds of the company’s weight-loss drug sales, with semaglutide making up the rest.
Raduan said semaglutide prices had fallen faster than expected after its patent expired in March and other pharmaceutical companies began producing it. He expects price declines to ease and said stronger competition could benefit RD Saúde, with the company projecting that margins in the category will hold steady.
The CEO also pointed to the arrival of oral medicines as a potential boost to demand among customers who are reluctant to use injections. Brazil’s health regulator approved the oral version of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy on Wednesday. The manufacturer expects the tablet to reach pharmacies in Brazil in the coming quarters; its price has not been announced.
RD Saúde reported net income of R$439 million in the third quarter, up 9.2% from a year earlier. The company, which operates the Droga Raia and Drogasil pharmacy chains, added 92 stores during the quarter, bringing its total in Brazil to 3,770. Raduan said he expects the group to finish 2026 near the upper end of its target of 330 to 350 new stores.
Sources: Folha Mercado.