By Adria Calatayud and Helena Smolak
Bayer shares fell sharply after the company was ordered to pay $2.1 billion by a jury in a Georgia state court, the latest legal defeat for the company in a case about its Roundup weedkiller.
The German agricultural and pharmaceutical group said the jury in a trial in the State Court of Cobb County, Georgia, on Friday reached a verdict in favor of the plaintiff. The verdict includes $2 billion in punitive damages and $65 million in compensatory damages, the company said.
Shares in Bayer were down 6.6% at 22.48 euros in European morning trade Monday, having fallen as much as 8.8% earlier. The stock is up about 16% since the start of the year, amid a rally in German shares.
"We disagree with the jury's verdict, as it conflicts with the overwhelming weight of scientific evidence and the consensus of regulatory bodies and their scientific assessments worldwide," Bayer said. "We believe that we have strong arguments on appeal to get this verdict overturned and the excessive and unconstitutional damage awards eliminated or reduced."
The company said damages in cases that reached final judgments were reduced by 90% overall compared with the original jury awards.
The decision marks the latest legal setback for a company that has been fighting for years lawsuits stemming from its $63 billion acquisition of U.S. agrochemical firm Monsanto, which developed Roundup, closed in 2018. Critics have argued that glyphosate, the active ingredient found in Roundup, causes cancer though Bayer has long maintained that glyphosate is safe to use.
Bayer said it is currently evaluating the cases that would present the best opportunity to file a petition for review by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The company has so far paid around $10 billion to settle disputed claims, a spokesman said. Around 67,000 cases were still pending at the end of January and the company set aside $5.9 billion to cover glyphosate litigations, according to its annual report.
Bayer's chief executive, Bill Anderson, previously said that significantly containing litigation by the end of 2026 was one of his priorities.
Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayud@wsj.com and to Helena Smolak
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 24, 2025 05:22 ET (09:22 GMT)
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