By Tom Taylor
The following article comes from Tom Taylor’s newsletter, Taylor on Radio-Info.
You could’ve made money in the first half of 2011, if you owned the right stocks in the radio sector.
CBS grew nearly 50%, from the year’s first day of trading on January 3 to last Thursday, June 30. Fisher posted a nice six-month gain of 27%, despite a shareholder vote that placed two reps of a dissident group on the board. Radio One was up 42%. Saga was another stock that, like CBS, gained nearly 50% in the first six months. But for many stocks, there was a June jinx, as you’re about to see – many companies in the group fell to their year-to-date lows in June. As we begin the second half of 2011 with a sluggish economy and some pullbacks in predictions for advertising, let’s take a Janus-like glance back at the first half of 2011 for the radio-connected stocks tracked by TRI –
Arbitron (NYSE:ARB) – Started the year at $42.72, hit $44.44 on February 8, dropped to $35.28 on April 19, and closed on June 30 at $41.33. Still, if you peek back a full 12 months, you see that Arbitron’s ahead significantly from the $25.59 level of mid-year 2010. It’s got a filing cabinet-full of long-term deals with its radio customers (historically about 90% of total revenue), and Nielsen’s no longer even a potential competitor.
Beasley (NASDAQ:BBGI) – Began 2011 at $6.03 a share, set a year-to-date high of $8.53 on April 4, a low of $3.64 on June 15 – the June jinx – and closed on June 30 at $4.21.
CBS (NYSE:CBS) – Chugged very steadily from $19.28 on January 3 to $28.49. Result – a roughly 50% gain, so far this year. Les Moonves and his boss Sumner Redstone should be beaming. The TV business is very healthy and CBS Radio throws off abundant cash flow. Les should be in for another rich paycheck at year-end, including bonuses. Read More
With a new research report issued today, Maxim Group Senior Media Analyst John Tinker reiterates his BUY rating on Sirius XM Radio (NASDAQ:SIRI) and raises his price target on the equity from $3.20 to $3.35.
