Anti-obesity drugs rose in popularity last year, helping the leaders in this market -- notably Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk -- crush the market. However, some medical device specialists got the wrong end of the stick. That was the case with Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT), whose diabetes care segment is perceived as its most important growth driver. Some investors thought GLP-1 medicines such as Ozempic could decrease demand for some of Abbott's key products.

But that's not the case. Anti-obesity medicines won't harm Abbott Laboratories' business. In fact, the opposite could be true. Let's find out why.

Last year, Abbott's sales of $40.1 billion fell 8.1% year over year. The decline was due to a drop in demand for COVID-19 diagnostic products. Putting that segment aside, Abbott's top line increased by 11.6%. But even that pales in comparison to the company's continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) franchise, the FreeStyle Libre. In 2023, FreeStyle Libre sales jumped by 23.2% year over year to $5.3 billion.

Continue reading

Source Fool.com