UPDATE 2-Teva wins a round in court in Protonix fight
* Altana, Wyeth sued Teva over Protonix
* Appeals court says no to preliminary injunction
* Teva shares slightly higher in New York (Adds reaction from analysts)
WASHINGTON, May 14 (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court refused on Thursday to give drugmakers Altana AG (ALTG.DE) and Wyeth WYE.N a preliminary injunction in a patent fight with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (TEVA.TA) (TEVA.O) over the ulcer drug Protonix.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that a lower court -- the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey -- did not abuse its discretion in declining to order Teva and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (SUN.BO) to stop producing generic versions of the drug, widely used to prevent acid reflux and ulcers.
The patent in the suit is for the compound pantoprazole, the active ingredient in Protonix.
Wyeth said Protonix had 2008 sales of $806 million, which was down 58 percent due to competition from cheap generic versions of the medicine. The patent expires on July 19, 2010.
Shares of Israel-based Teva were up 14 cents to $44.98 in afternoon trading on the Nasdaq.
David Windley of Jeffries & Co said in a research note that the win was important for Teva since its generic version of Protonix has about 30 percent of the market for the drug.
"This removes one risk to near-term earnings (the risk that the courts would have forced Teva to cease selling the product)," Windley wrote.
Ronny Gal, an analyst at Sanford Bernstein, said Protonix contributed about $250 million in revenue last year.
"Today's decision gives Teva the flexibility to continue with Protonix sales," Gal said in a research note. "We also note that the decision may be a trigger point for potential settlement between the two sides." (Reporting by Diane Bartz; Additional reporting by Bill Berkrot in New York; Editing by Brian Moss and John Wallace)
