Abbott Settles NEC Litigation for $670M, Resolving Gill Case and 2,000 Claims
ABT sits 39% above its 52-week low of $81.97.
Summary
Abbott reached agreements to resolve the Gill case and claims involving approximately 2,000 other individuals for an aggregate of about $670 million. The company had faced a $495 million jury verdict in the Gill case, which with accrued interest would have cost roughly $600 million; instead of continuing appeals, Abbott settled a broader group of NEC claims. This removes a significant legal overhang and provides clarity on a portion of the litigation, though roughly 1,700 lawsuits involving about 12,700 individual infants remain pending. The settlement is a compromise of disputed claims and not an admission of liability, and Abbott continues to defend the safety of its preterm formulas. The resolution follows favorable rulings in federal MDL bellwether cases and state appellate decisions, strengthening Abbott's litigation position for remaining claims.
At the time of this announcement, ABT was trading at $114.00 on NYSE in the Life Sciences sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $197.5B. The 52-week trading range was $81.97 to $137.49. This news item was assessed with neutral market sentiment and an importance score of 8 out of 10. Source: PR Newswire.