Novartis Investor Seeks Board Changes After Drug Trial Setbacks

08:02 AM EDT, 09/10/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Novartis (NOVN.SW) shareholder Artisan Partners' Managing Director David Samra called for a revamp of the Swiss drugmaker's board following successive failures in its clinical trial pipeline, Reuters reported Thursday. Samra criticized former chairmen for failing to oversee Novartis' acquisitions, arguing that management should face consequences after the lead drug in its $12 billion Avidity Biosciences deal failed a late-stage trial, which sent the company's stock tumbling. He added that the changes need to be implemented at board level. Recently, Novartis' cardiovascular disease therapy pelacarsen and myotonic dystrophy type 1 treatment del-desiran both failed to meet their late-stage trial endpoints. Novartis told MT Newswires that it maintains its five-year sales compound annual growth rate target of 5% to 6% for the 2025 to 2030 period, as well as its guidance of mid-single-digit sales compound annual growth rate beyond 2030. "We consistently deliver a total shareholder return among the top of our peer group," the company added.