Merck & Co. Inc. shares dipped 1.6% in morning trade Tuesday after the company lost a patent case to Gilead Sciences Inc. . Gilead shares rose 0.4% in morning trade. The case, which involves alleged patent infringement by Gilead’s hepatitis C therapy Sovaldi on a patent held by Merck’s Idenix Pharmaceuticals unit, was decided against Merck late Friday. Previously, a jury ruled in favor of Merck and granted the company $2.5 billion. However, the judge reversed the decision late Friday in a surprise decision and “determined the Idenix patent to be invalid for lack of enablement,” said RBC Capital Markets analyst Brian Abrahams. Without the damages charge and associated royalties, there is an about $2 upside to Gilead’s price target, Abrahams said, increasing the company’s price target to $94. Gilead shares have surged 12.4% over the last three months, compared with a 2.4% rise in Merck shares and a 5.5% rise in the S&P 500 .
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