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| XM Satellite loss widens, but car subs grow - 13, May 2008 |
NEW YORK (Reuters) - XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc (XMSR.O) on Monday posted solid gains in automotive subscribers, driving sales up 17 percent, and reiterated optimism that its purchase by Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI.O) will soon be cleared.
The subscriber gains overshadowed a wider first-quarter net loss at XM, which is waiting for the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to approve the deal with Sirius.
Shares of Washington D.C.-based XM, whose program lineup includes Major League Baseball and Oprah Winfrey, were up over percent after it said it added 303,000 net new subscribers and ended the quarter on March 31 with 9.33 million subscribers. That is up from 7.91 million in the first quarter of 2007.
Specifically, analysts took note of the number of subscribers gained from the sales of cars with the radios built-in -- also know as OEMs -- and the increased rate with which subscribers with free introductory subscriptions converted to full users.
"XM reported a decent first quarter with most metrics just shy of estimates," said Cowen and Co analyst Tom Watts in a note to clients. "OEM results continued to impress, and were in-line with our thesis of an increasing OEM focus and an expected 2008 ramp."
XM said its net loss was $129 million, or 42 cents per share. That compared with $122 million, or 40 cents per share, a year earlier.
Its loss, excluding merger-related expenses, appeared to be in line with the average analyst forecast of 41 cents, according to Reuters Estimates, but it was not immediately clear if the numbers were directly comparable.
Revenue rose to $308 million, which was lower than the average analyst forecast of $313 million.
XM said the average cost of adding each subscriber, a measure known as subscriber acquisition cost (SAC), rose to $73 in the first quarter from $65 a year earlier. Cost per gross addition, which includes SAC as well as marketing costs, declined to $99 from $103.
(c) 2008 Reuters
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