Bristol-Myers Wins Plavix Ruling

Updated from 9:34 a.m. EDT

Bristol-Myers Squibb's (BMY Quote) shares rose Tuesday after a judge in New York upheld the patent on Plavix, the anticoagulant that serves as its biggest-selling drug.

Plavix is licensed in the U.S. to Bristol-Myers by France's Sanofi-Aventis (SNY Quote). The ruling, which protects the Plavix patent until November 2011, is a major win for both companies.

Canada's Apotex, a generic-drug maker, was attempting to invalidate the patent, but the court sided with the Plavix sellers. Bristol-Myers climbed $1.55, or 5.1%, to $31.85 in heavy trading. Sanofi-Aventis rose 32 cents to $41.67 on greater-than-average volume. ...