Archive for Friday, November, 7, 2008

Double Trouble For Sirius XM…

Friday, November, 7, 2008 by Mel Phillips.

(Weekend Edition) 

Radio has to deal with a bum economy.  Sirius XM not only has that bum economy to deal with, they also need car sales to turn around.  The last thing car manufacturers are concerned about are radios.  When last seen, your favorite American car manufacturer was looking for a hand-out.  With Sirius XM worried about replacing 2.5% convertible notes and $1 billion in loan repayments due next year, CEO Mel Karmazin lowered his forecast for subscriber growth.  In July, Sirius XM had 18.5 million subscribers.  The new projection by years-end has gone from 19.5 million to 19.1 million.  The adjusted projection is a result of Sirius XM’s biggest single source of customers - drivers.  Car sales have now been down for 12 straight months…

Sirius XM stock has traded below $1 since September 10th as investors lose confidence in Karmazin’s ability to manage debt and meet growth projections.  I think the biggest problem they face is being a one-trick pony.  Sirius XM has peaked with subscribers that don’t have cars or car owners that already subscribe.  That leaves new car owners as its only source.  Given this economy, that’s a real problem.  Just call me Jim Cramer…

Don’t put this mess all on the Mel-Man, analyst Fred Moran doesn’t.  The Boca Raton based analyst says “Mel Karmazin is making the best of a bad situation that seems to have gotten worse because of economic conditions which are beyond his control.”  Moran recommends holding your Sirius XM shares.  At 26 cents a share, we would sell???   

10 Timeline Memories:

  1. 1938] Kristallnacht: Nazi troops and sympathizers destroy and loot Jewish buinesses, burn synagogues and kill 91 Jews. They also round up 25,000 in an event known as ‘Kristallnacht‘ or ‘Night of Broken Glass’ (11/9)…
  2. 1944] FDR IV: Franklin D. Roosevelt wins an unprecedented 4th term as president (11/7)…
  3. 1953] Supes Rule: Somehow the Supreme Court upholds a 1922 ruling that major league baseball does not come within the scope of federal antitrust laws (11/9). Were there 9 justices named Ito???
  4. 1960] Election daze: Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy defeats Richard M. Nixon for the presidency. The age of ‘Camelot’ dawns (11/8)…1962] Nixon who fails in his bid to become Governor of California, tells reporters, “You won’t have me to kick around anymore.” (11/7)…1967] Carl Stokes becomes the first black mayor of a major city (Cleveland) (11/7)…2000] Hillary Rodham Clinton becomes the first first lady to win public office by winning a Senate seat from NY (11/7)…
  5. 1962] “Happy Trails“: Former ‘first lady’ Eleanor Roosevelt dies of bone marrow tuberculosis at 78 (11/7)…1980] Steve McQueen dies at 50 from a heart attack following cancer surgery (11/7)…2003] Veteran actor Art Carney passes away from natural causes at 85 (11/9)…2006] “60 Minutes” reporter Ed Bradley is a victim of leukemia at 65 (11/9)…
  6. 1965] Premiered on this date: The Pillsbury Dough Boy (11/7)…1965] “Days Of Our Lives” debuts on NBC-TV (11/8)…
  7. 1965] Lights out: The great northeast blackout turns the lights out in 9 states and two provinces of Canada. It affects 25 million people for more than 13 hours.  Dan Ingram was on WABC when it happened (11/9)…
  8. 1968] ‘D-I-V-O-R-C-E’: Cynthia Powell Lennon is granted a divorce from John Lennon after 6 years of marriage (11/8)…1982] Liz Taylor chalks up divorce number 7. John Warner is the latest victim (11/7)…
  9. 1970] Record breaker: New Orleans placekicker Tom Dempsey, born without toes on his kicking foot, kicks a record setting 63-yard field goal (11/8). In 1998 Jason Elam of the Denver Broncos ties Dempsey with his 63-yard boot, no doubt aided by Denver’s mile-high altitude…
  10. 1989] Wall? What wall?: Happy Germans dance on top of the Berlin Wall as Communist East Germany opens its borders, allowing citizens to travel freely to the west (11/9)…

Music Memories:

“Happy Birthday…happy birthday“:

(11/7) Keith Lockhart (49), David Petraeus (56), Joni Mitchell (65), Johnny Rivers (66), Joan Sutherland (82) and Reverend Billy Graham (90)…(11/8) Jack Osbourne (23), Chef Gordon Ramsay (42), Leif Garrett (47), Rickie Lee Jones (54), Alfre Woodard (55), Jerry Remy (56), Mary Hart (58), Bonnie Raitt (59), Angel Cordero Jr. (66), Morley Safer (77), Bobby Bowden (79), Patti Page (81), Norman Lloyd (94) and June Havoc (95)…(11/9) Nikki Blonsky (20), Uncle Kracker (34), Nick Lachey (35), Lou Ferrigno (57), Mary Travers (72), Bob Gibson (73) and Whitey (the White Rat) Herzog (77)…

Timeline Countdown: 4 days until Veteran’s Day, 20 days until Thanksgiving and 44 days until winter…

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