Amgen Wins Patent Case, Shares Move Sharply Higher After Hours

A federal judge ruled today that Transkaryotic Therapies(TKTX Quote - Cramer on TKTX - Stock Picks) infringed on Amgen's(AMGN Quote - Cramer on AMGN - Stock Picks) patents for Epogen, the company's anemia-fighting drug.

The judge found that Amgen's patent "is valid, enforceable and literally infringed" in his ruling issued today. Transkaryotic had developed the drug using an alternative method than the one used by Amgen, a biopharmaceutical company based in Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Representatives of Transkaryotic couldn't be reached for comment.

Shares of Amgen closed down $2.06, or 3.3%, to $60 in regular session Nasdaq trading, but shot up to $72.38 in recent after-hours Island activity. Drug developer Transkaryotic, Cambridge, Mass., was halted after the market closed at $34.