If you can’t beat them then join them. In a bid to combat weakening financial performance, Allurion has revealed plans to initiate a clinical study evaluating its weight loss programme in combination with glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs).
Shares in the NYSE-listed company rose 77% at market open on 24 January 2025, compared to a market close, which occurred shortly after Allurion made the announcement. It is the highest price the shares for the company, which has a market cap of $38.5m, have been since November 2024.
Allurion is targeting the loss in lean mass seen in patients taking GLP-1RAs. Although its programme, which consists of an intragastric balloon and virtual care platform, does not lead to as much weight loss as popular medications like Wegovy (semaglutide) and Mounjaro (tirzepatide), it does conserve more muscle mass.
The company points to one study in which 167 patients who had an average weight loss of 14.7% whilst maintaining muscle mass. Wegovy, for example, leads to weight loss of 17.5%, and a higher investigational dose of 7.2mg recently showed weight loss of 20.7%.
Allurion’s CEO Dr. Shantanu Gaur said the company “may have a powerful tool in achieving more metabolically healthy weight loss.”
“The goal of our study would be to prove that, by combining the Allurion Balloon and Allurion Virtual Care Suite with GLP-1 therapy, patients can lose significant weight while increasing muscle mass and improving overall body composition.
Allurion’s gastric balloon has been available in Europe since it received CE marking in 2015. It is swallowed as a capsule and then filled with liquid. From there, it acts like a traditional gastric balloon that promotes weight loss by mimicking a full stomach. Unlike other approaches, Allurion’s balloon does not require surgery, endoscopy, or anaesthesia. After around four months, the balloon releases the liquid on its own and it passes out of the body naturally.
Despite positive efficacy and safety, Allurion has struggled to cope with the popularity of Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro. Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy generated $2.5bn in sales in Q3 2024 alone, whilst Mounjaro is forecast to bring in sales of $32.4bn by 2030, according to analysis by GlobalData.
In a bid to gain from the market boom, Allurion launched an AI-powered GLP-1 programme that offers virtual insights to muscle and bone mass.
Just over a year after going public on the New York Stock Exchange, the company received a delisting warning for falling short of share price compliance standards in August 2024.
In Q3 earnings released in November 2024, the company revealed it anticipated restructuring changes in Q4. Its revenue decreased from $18.2m in Q3 2023 to $5.4m in Q3 2024, with Allurion citing “macroeconomic headwinds” and sales issues in France.
