Bayer Shares Fall on Renewed Uncertainty Over $7 Billion U.S. Settlement

By Adria Calatayud

Bayer shares fell after plaintiffs sought to transfer a proposed $7.25 billion U.S. settlement over Roundup weedkiller to a federal court in California, stoking renewed uncertainty around the company's attempt to contain litigation risk this year.

Shares in the German agricultural-and-pharmaceutical group were down 5% in European midday trading, taking their year-to-date loss to nearly 10%.

Bayer said it plans to oppose a conditional order from the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation regarding the proper venue for the settlement. The company in February proposed the settlement to resolve current and future claims alleging its Roundup product causes cancer, with payments made over two decades but front-loaded to this year.

"We are confident in our arguments that the class settlement case should be remanded to Missouri State Court," a Bayer spokesman said.

The move comes two days before a deadline for plaintiffs to opt out of the settlement, which the company considers still valid.

The decision might raise questions among investors about whether the settlement still holds given the potential involvement of a California federal judge who was cautious on this class action in a recent hearing, analysts at Bank of America wrote in a note to clients.

Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayud@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 02, 2026 07:21 ET (11:21 GMT)