STOCKS NEWS EUROPE-Astra goes ex div, cancer drug a worry

AstraZeneca (AZN.L) shares fall 3.5 percent as the stock trades ex-dividend and sentiment is also knocked by concerns it may soon release negative clinical trials results for its experimental bowel cancer drug Recentin.

Morgan Stanley analysts say Recentin is likely to fail in a head-to-head trial against Roche's (ROG.VX) Avastin, although the broker adds removing $500 million peak Recentin forecasts would have only a modest 2-3 percent impact on 2016 earnings.

A spokesman for AstraZeneca declines to comment on the likely outcome of the trial but says Recentin data are expected in the first half of 2010.

Reuters Messaging rm://ben.hirschler.reuters.com@reuters.net