LONDON, Nov 13 Reuters Novo Nordisk shares rose 3 on Monday as the market reacted to data the drugmaker presented over the weekend showing that the heart protective benefits of its popular obesity drug Wegovy are not solely due to weight loss.

The data presented on Saturday at a major medical meeting in the United States gave investors and analysts even more confidence in the cardiac benefits of Wegovy after Novo released preliminary data in August from its large study, sending its shares soaring 17 on the day to record highs.

The data released in August from the Danish drugmaker39;s Select trial demonstrated that Wegovy, which has been shown to help patients lose an average of 15 of their weight, also reduced incidence of heart attack, stroke or death from heart disease by 20.

Full results from the study showed that the heart risk difference between patients who received Wegovy, known chemically as semaglutide, and those on placebo began to appear almost immediately after starting treatment.

Markus Manns, a portfolio manager at Union Investment in Germany and Novo shareholder, told Reuters that the early cardiovascular benefit was a positive surprise that could be an important differentiator against competing drugs being developed by companies including Amgen and Pfizer.

Analysts from Jefferies said in a note that while Wegovy39;s medical benefit for obese people with cardiovascular disease is clear from the data, cardiologists in the U.S. have told them they are…