Germany's financial markets watchdog has started an initial probe to examine whether Bayer fairly disclosed plans to get shareholder approval for a potential capital increase, a regulatory source told Reuters on Tuesday.
Bayer told several brokerages about plans to seek shareholder permission to issue shares one day before formally announcing the news on Friday, which weighed heavily on the stock, analysts' notes seen by Reuters showed.
Here is how Bayer Aktiengesellschaft (BAYRY) and AbbVie (ABBV) have performed compared to their sector so far this year.
Bayer AG (ETR:BAYN, OTC:BAYZF) has told US lawmakers it may halt sales of its popular Roundup weedkiller in the United States unless stronger legal protections are implemented to protect the company from ongoing product liability lawsuits, according to a Reuters report citing a source with knowledge of the matter. The German company has already paid about $10 billion to settle claims alleging that the herbicide glyphosate featured in Roundup causes cancer.
Bayer said on Friday it would seek shareholder approval to raise fresh equity capital worth close to 35% of its currently outstanding shares over the next three years to be ready for any U.S. litigation settlement.
Bayer has warned U.S. lawmakers it could stop selling the popular Roundup weedkiller if they cannot provide better legal protection against product liability litigation, according to a financial analyst and a person familiar with the matter.
BAYRY's fourth-quarter earnings match expectations. Revenues top estimates, driven by the strong performance of its pharmaceutical business.
On Wednesday, Bayer AG BAYRY reported fourth-quarter 2024 adjusted EPS of $0.28, missing the consensus of $1.00.
Bayer on Wednesday raised the prospect of a return to earnings growth next year after reiterating that a decline was expected for this year.
Bayer's CEO is facing increasing investor pressure to deliver on turnaround efforts and reverse a forecast earnings decline this year, as the group prepares to release quarterly results on Wednesday.
Bayer's diversified portfolio and robust late-stage pharmaceutical pipeline are expected to stabilize revenues despite LoE concerns, particularly with Xarelto facing generic competition. The Crop Sciences division, despite ongoing glyphosate litigation, holds significant upside potential due to its expansive R&D pipeline and market undervaluation. High leverage ratio constrains capital allocation optionality.
IQ-AI Ltd (LSE:IQAI, OTCQB:IQAIF) subsidiary Imaging Biometrics has expanded its distribution agreement with artificial intelligence imaging platform provider Blackford Analysis, which is an arm of German giant Bayer AG. Imagine Biometrics's IB Nimble, IB ASL, IB FTB and IB FTB Express have all been added to the existing distribution agreement, allowing Blackford to also sell these products to its global client base of healthcare providers.