The CEO of pharmaceuticals giant Roche said authorities should block the takeover of contract drug manufacturer Catalent by Novo Nordisk's controlling shareholder, as it could hit competition in the booming weight-loss drug industry.

The groups behind the letter alleged that Novo Nordisk’s plant purchases could hinder not only the Danish drugmaker’s chief commercial rival, Eli Lilly, but also companies like Viking Therapeutics, Pfizer, Roche and AstraZeneca, who are working on their own metabolic offerings.

Jefferies analyst Peter Welford noted that Roche’s pharma group came just slightly ahead of consensus expectations, driven by strong performance of its multiple sclerosis therapy Ocrevus and eye injection Vabysmo.

Roche reported a 9% increase in third-quarter sales, driven by strong performance from Ocrevus and Vabysmo. Roche also raised concerns over the Catalent acquisition.

Roche CEO Urges FTC to Block Novo Nordisks Acquisition of Catalent Roches CEO, Thomas Schinecker, has called on authorities to prevent Novo Nordisks controlling shareholder, Novo Holdings, from acquiring contract

The CEO of pharmaceuticals giant Roche has urged authorities to block the takeover of contract drug manufacturer Catalent by Novo Nordisk's controlling shareholder, citing harm to industry peers.

The CEO of Swiss pharmaceuticals behemoth Roche (OTCQX:RHHBY) said he believes antitrust regulators should not allow Novo Nordisk Foundation's to purchase Catalent (NYSE:CTLT). "It's not a problem for us,