Pfizer Races to Salvage Obesity Drugmaker Deal After Novo’s Bid

Pfizer Inc. has four days.

Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk A/S upended the US pharma giant’s deal to acquire obesity upstart Metsera Inc. Thursday morning with a rival bid that caused Metsera’s shares to surge more than 25%. Now Pfizer — which was one of seven bidders for the company before striking a deal in September for about $5 billion — has a very short window to trump Novo’s bid or walk away.

“They need to be very strategic in the next move,” BMO Capital Markets Evan Seigerman said. “The margin for error is increasingly shrinking. This is like a chess ...