Do you see any sad irony in this press release?
siliconinvestor.com
(excerpts)
FBR SAYS DEMAND FOR BROADBAND
AND INTERACTIVE SERVICES
WILL DRIVE CABLE INDUSTRY GROWTH
FBR Issues Industry Report and Initiates Coverage of Comcast, Cox, and CHARTER
ARLINGTON, Va., Jul 10, 2001 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ --
Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co., Inc., a subsidiary of Friedman, Billings, Ramsey Group, Inc. (NYSE: FBR chart, msgs), today issued a report identifying growth trends in the cable industry, including the demand for broadband connectivity and emerging interactive services.
In a 132-page report, Senior Technology Analyst Rob Martin describes the cable industry as moving from "laggard to leader" over the past five years. Martin said that nearly 80 percent of homes in the U.S. have been successfully enabled with access to multiple new services, including high-speed data, digital video programming, and, in some cases, telephony.
"Early adoption of these new services has been better than expected, providing the industry with a hit," Mr. Martin said. "In turn, valuations have risen to historical highs, pricing in continued growth of new services and corresponding cash flow," he said.
The report identifies trends key to the industry's future, including consumer demand for broadband connectivity for faster Internet connections and interactive services; a favorable regulatory environment under the Bush Administration; and an increasing emphasis by the industry in adopting open standards in order to deliver the next generation services.
FBR also initiated coverage of three of the cable industry's largest companies. They are Charter Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: CHTR) with a "Buy" rating and a 12-to-18-month price target of $38 per share; |
