Shareholders in Germany are suing Bayer in a court in Cologne, claiming they should have been warned of the risk of lawsuits when the company acquired Roundup with its $63 billion purchase of St. Louis-based Monsanto Co. in 2018.
Roundup lawsuits have resulted in a drop in Bayer stock value and a settlement offer of $11 billion. The shares are down about 45% since Bayer lost the first Roundup court case in August 2018, Reuters reported. Bayer lost three U.S. trials related to the product and watched as the ranks of plaintiffs filing charges multiplied. The company insists the product is safe.
“Bayer conducted appropriate due diligence regarding the acquisition process. This has also been confirmed by the studies of independent experts,” a Bayer spokesman said.