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STOCKHOLM, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Swedish drug maker Swedish Orphan Biovitrum's (Sobi) SOBIV.ST U.S.-based chief executive will step down in July, the firm said on Monday, saying its European business required increased focus and management attention.
* Says CEO Geoffrey McDonough to leave Sobi on 1 July 2017
* "Given the increasing demand and focus of our business in Europe, the Board has decided that Sobi needs more continuous presence in Stockholm than Geoffrey can sustain given his current location in Boston," Sobi Chairman Hakan Bjorklund said in a statement
* Sobi shares are up more than 400 percent since McDonough took the helm in August 2011
* "The company is entering a period of unprecedented growth and opportunity that will benefit from local leadership," McDonough said
* Sobi shares down 0.7 percent at 0849 GMT vs the OMXS All Share Index .OMXSPI in Stockholm, down 0.2 percent
* Sobi says search for a new CEO has been initiated to identify McDonough's successor
* Swedbank analyst Johan Unnerus says move not surprising and not dramatic, but may create some uncertainty short term
* Unnerus says McDonough's sale of shares in Sobi last year made the move less surprising. Also says timing not a surprise as Sobi is setting out the strategic course for the coming years
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