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Bayer Share Price Plunges: 125k Lawsuits Result in $11.2 Billion Loss

Nigel Firth
Nigel Frith trader
Updated 18 Mar 2021

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Shares of Bayer AG (ETR: BAYN) plunged 4% after the company reported a net loss of just more than $11.2 billion. A year ago, the German pharma behemoth earned €404 million.

The COVID-19 outbreak dragged sales lower by 2.5%. However, the real problem for Bayer is that it had to pay over $10 billion to settle over 125,000 lawsuits in the United States, relating to its Roundup weedkiller that allegedly causes cancer. 

A good performance of its agriculture business was able to partially offset a plunge in sales and help Bayer to report a 5.6% rise in EBITDA to €2.8 billion

A huge loss prompted Bayer to lower its full-year guidance to a €43 billion –  €44 billion range. The German giant received $5.17 billion in cash from Elanco for its “Bayer Animal Health” business. The total transaction is valued at nearly $6.9 billion. 

Bayer stock price plunges on a net loss of just more than $11.2 billion August 2020

Bayer share price fell 4% to trade in the low €56s. This is the lowest that Bayer shares traded since May as the stock price struggles to recover from the Roundup lawsuits. 

Nigel Firth
Nigel has been in the regulated financial services industry for nearly a decade, has previously owned a financial brokerage and has written many times for sites relating to personal finance and trading.