Satellite radio.
SOURCE: Wall Street Transcript
The Wall Street Transcript Publishes Radio Stocks Report in Broadcasting Issue
NEW YORK, Dec. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Seven leading analysts and five Broadcasting CEOs examine the Broadcasting sector in the latest issue of The Wall Street Transcript (212-952-7433) or twst.com.
In a vital review of this sector for investors and industry professionals, this valuable 70-page report features:
1) Radio Stocks -- In an in-depth Analyst Roundtable (7,600 words), Frank Bodenchak of Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, P. Gordon Hodge of Thomas Weisel and James M. Marsh, Jr., of Prudential Securities examine the Spanish-language market, satellite radio prospects, out-of-home media and advertising, management quality, advertising rates, market share gains, Internet/radio competition, consolidation, IPO outlook, the outlook for the sector and specific stock recommendations.
Hodges declares, ''An area that we believe has long-term growth potential is the Spanish language format, where there are strong demographic trends driving increased listenership as the Hispanic population in the U.S. grows from about 11% to 25% of the U.S. population over the next 50 years. There are other targeted formats that seem to do quite well. AMFM (NYSE: AFM - news) has been rolling out a 'jammin' oldies' format, which seems to have been a success in some markets. There are other broadcasters out there that are very adept at addressing certain niches that have been very successful, like Radio One (Nasdaq: ROIA - news) in the urban format.''
Radio specifically targeting more groups, Bodenchak states, ''is more likely through CD Radio (Nasdaq: CDRD - news), where we have less constrained capacity on the number of stations in the market. In a radio market where you have 12 to 25 strong viable signals, operators are far more likely to use that valuable spectrum to target larger audiences, where a targeted demographic represents a significant percentage of the population.''
Hodge forecasts, ''I don't see satellite radio being that big an issue for local radio. Some smart companies are hedged. Clear Channel actually invested $75 million or so in XM Satellite (Nasdaq: XMSR - news), which essentially means they are hedged to some extent, so they may benefit either way.''
Content and reach are required to drive Internet traffic, Bodenchak states, ''You're seeing radio companies use their ability to drive traffic toward the Web and drive those links. Recently, MSDW served as a liaison between Entercom (NYSE: ETM - news) -- the fourth largest radio company and a stock that had been one of our top picks this summer -- and Tickets.com (Nasdaq: TIXX - news), which we brought public last month. Cox Enterprises, with Cox Radio (NYSE: CXR - news) and MP3 (Nasdaq: MPPP - news), has made a similar investment. CBS (NYSE: CBS - news) has now made over 15 Web investments -- too numerous to detail. So I think the ability to merge content with the ability to generate traffic is going to wed Internet and radio somewhat.''
The panel goes on to offer recommendations about which sector stocks are most likely to reward investors.
Hodge explains, ''We're focusing on what we think are some of the faster growing companies and some of the highest quality management teams. We're recommending Infinity Broadcasting, Clear Channel Communications, Citadel Communications (Nasdaq: CITC - news) and Hispanic Broadcasting (Nasdaq: HBCCA - news). Our focus is on these companies' growth rates and where they trade relative to those growth rates.''
For a free interview excerpt in which Bodenchak explains why he names Cumulus Media (Nasdaq: CMLS - news) a 'top pick' see archive.twst.com.
If an investor can only buy one stock in this group, Hodge says, ''I would pick Infinity right now. The reason is that I think the Outdoor Systems (NYSE: OSI - news) acquisition, which should close in the next week or two, is going to prove to be a very, very bright move on Infinity's part. I think Outdoor Systems' business is poised to grow rapidly next year. It could even outpace the growth of radio next year, which I think would be unexpected by the market, and therefore present a very pleasant surprise for shareholders.''
This 70-page Broadcasting Issue also includes:
2) Broadcasting Industry -- In an in-depth Analyst Roundtable (21,000 words), James Boyle of First Union Securities, Christopher Ensley of Lazard Freres, Niraj Gupta of Schroder & Company and Victor B. Miller IV of Bear Stearns examine the transition from analog to digital, multipurposing content, consolidation, new TV duopoly rules, advertising revenues, radio, billboards, Internet advertising, valuations, the outlook for the sector and specific stock recommendations.
For a free interview excerpt in which Boyle explains why he has a $97 price target for Clear Channel Communications see archive.twst.com
For a free interview excerpt in which Miller explains why he likes Barry Diller's vision see archive.twst.com
3) The TWST confidential Off-The-Record survey of management performance at 15 Broadcasting firms asked market insiders about the ability of management teams to create shareholder value. In a sector where many management teams are praised for their vision, some CEOs receive top marks for their efforts.
Firms reviewed in Off-The-Record include:
CBS, Citadel Communications, Clear Channel Communications, Cox Radio, Cumulus Media, Emmis Communications, Hispanic Broadcasting Corp., Infinity Broadcasting, News Corp., Paxson, Saga Communications, Tribune Company, Univision Communications, Disney and Westwood One.
4) Five extensive (average 2,500 words) CEO Interviews with top management from the following sector firms discussing their future plans and outlook for their firm and the Broadcasting sector:
CanWest Global Communications, Chyron, Granite Broadcasting, Hispanic Broadcasting and Sinclair Broadcast Group.
To obtain a copy of this insightful 70-page report, see twst.com or call 212-952-7433. This special section is also included in the CONSUMER Sector of TWST Online at twst.com
The Wall Street Transcript is a premier weekly investment publication interviewing market professionals for serious investors for over 35 years. Available at twst.com, TWST Online provides free interview excerpts. For highlights, recent recommendations by analysts and money managers and business news, visit twst.com.
Do a free search of the extensive TWST Archives at archive.twst.com.
The Wall Street Transcript does not endorse the views of any interviewee nor does it make stock recommendations.
SOURCE: Wall Street Transcript
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More Quotes
and News: AMFM INC (NYSE:AFM - news)
CBS Corp (NYSE:CBS - news)
Citadel Communications Corp (NasdaqNM:CITC - news)
Cox Radio Inc (NYSE:CXR - news)
Cumulus Media Inc (NasdaqNM:CMLS - news)
Entercom Communications Corp (NYSE:ETM - news)
Hispanic Broadcasting Corp (NasdaqNM:HBCCA - news)
MP3.com Inc (NasdaqNM:MPPP - news)
Outdoor Systems Inc (NYSE:OSI - news)
Radio One Inc (NasdaqNM:ROIA - news)
Sirius Satellite Radio Inc (NasdaqNM:CDRD - news)
Tickets.com Inc (NasdaqNM:TIXX - news)
XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc (NasdaqNM:XMSR - news)
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