UPDATE 2-Poniard shares tank after cancer drug misses study goal

* Says late-stage study data misses primary endpoint

* Says current cash sufficient for ops in Q1 2010

* Shares close down 75 pct (Recasts; adds background, analysts' comments, updates shares movement)

By Vidya L Nathan

BANGALORE, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Poniard Pharmaceuticals Inc's PARD.O stock lost three-fourths of its value after the company said its small-cell lung cancer drug failed a late-stage study.

The results also put a big dent in the price that the company could command for the drug picoplatin, which is also under development for two further cancer indications.

The company said picoplatin did not meet the primary endpoint of showing significant overall survival benefit in the late-stage study.

Lazard Capital Markets analysts Joel Sendek now sees a partnership on the drug getting an upfront payment in the range of about $10 million, down from $50 million to $100 million if the trial had succeeded.

The company, which sees its cash lasting through the first quarter of 2010, is looking for a partner to commercialize the lung cancer indication and also develop the drug as a treatment for colorectal and prostate cancer.

"(Though) the late-stage study did not succeed in lung cancer, they could still partner based on the promise in the colorectal cancer data, but obviously not on good terms," Rodman & Renshaw analyst Simos Simeonidis said.

While Simeonidis sees results from all three clinical trials being independent of each other, Lazard's Sendek sees the negative results reflecting on the other indications.

Also hurting the stock is the fact that the failed study pushes back the launch of the drug as a cancer treatment by a couple of years, analysts said.

"The lung-cancer story is over. If the lung cancer trial had worked, then this drug would be on the market next year," Canaccord Adams analyst George Farmer said.

"Now this drug does not get to the market until 2014 or 2015.

"The second risk is financing. They don't have any money. They have a very narrow cash runway and they gave a potential drug in colorectal cancer," he added.

Poniard shares closed down about $5.75 at $1.83, Monday on Nasdaq. (Reporting by Vidya L Nathan in Bangalore; Editing by Vikram S Subhedar, Anthony Kurian)