Over the past few days, as the rest of the stock market melted down, a revolution has been quietly brewing in the market for GLP-1 weight-loss drugs. Current runners-up Viking Therapeutics ( VKTX 10.22%) and Roche Holdings ( RHHBY 3.62%), up 11.3% and 4%, respectively, through 10:05 a.m. ET today, are behind it.

Novo Nordisk’s vision of 25%-plus weight loss is looking further and further away. | Novo Nordisk’s vision of 25%-plus weight loss is looking further and further away. Three months after missing that target in its first phase 3 CagriSema trial,

Swiss drugmaker Roche on Wednesday announced a major deal in the weight-loss category, agreeing to pay up to $5.3 billion to Zealand Pharma in a licensing and development deal.