Bayer shares rose after the company received a favorable ruling in the first U.S. trial over its Roundup weedkiller since it won a U.S. Supreme Court challenge in June.
Shares in the German agricultural and pharmaceutical conglomerate climbed as much as 5.2% in European morning trading Friday, adding to gains earlier in the year that have led the stock's value to rise by more than a third.
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A Missouri Circuit Court sided with Bayer's Monsanto business in a Roundup case on Thursday, handing the company a win in the first trial since the Supreme Court ruling.
In June, a majority of Supreme Court justices sided with the company, saying it can't be held liable for failing to warn consumers that Roundup causes cancer when a federal regulator didn't require the product to carry a warning label. That decision eliminated a key argument for plaintiffs about the alleged failure to warn.
Bayer said the court jury ruled for Monsanto on the design defect, fraud and negligence claims that each of the three plaintiffs pursued.
The ruling suggests it will be difficult for future plaintiffs to pursue design defect and negligence claims and marks another step in Bayer's strategy to contain litigation risk, analysts at J.P. Morgan wrote in a note to clients.
The Missouri verdict came as the company awaits another court decision on its proposed $7.25 billion Roundup settlement, with which Bayer aims to move past legal battles that have plagued it for years.
The company said it would continue to back the safety of its glyphosate-based herbicides and defend its products in any remaining litigation.
Write to Adrià Calatayud at adria.calatayud@wsj.com
