The Satellite News Financial Ticker
Week of April 2 – 8, 2004
|
Percentage Change
|
|||||
Operators
|
Symbol
|
April 8 Price
|
One Week
|
One Month
|
Three Month
|
Year to Date
|
APT SATELLITE HLDGS | ATS |
1.96
|
(1.5)
|
(19.7)
|
(31.0)
|
(17.6)
|
ASIASAT TELECOM | SAT |
18.00
|
0.6
|
(11.1)
|
(16.5)
|
(5.2)
|
BRITISH SKY BROADCASTING | BSY |
50.53
|
(0.9)
|
(6.4)
|
(7.3)
|
(0.8)
|
ECHOSTAR COMM -CL A | DISH |
33.08
|
1.0
|
(4.3)
|
(7.6)
|
(2.7)
|
THE DIRECTV GROUP | DTV |
16.27
|
5.8
|
(1.7)
|
0.4
|
(1.7)
|
LORAL SPACE & COMM | LOR |
0.56
|
(5.1)
|
(30.0)
|
80.6
|
77.8
|
NEWS CORP | NWS |
38.10
|
5.9
|
1.2
|
4.7
|
5.5
|
NEW SKIES SATELLITES | NSK |
7.00
|
4.8
|
5.6
|
(5.3)
|
(2.2)
|
PANAMSAT | SPOT |
24.51
|
0.1
|
3.0
|
17.6
|
13.7
|
PASIFIK SATELIT NUSANTARA | PSNRY |
0.15
|
7.1
|
(40.0)
|
(21.1)
|
200.0
|
PEGASUS COMMUNICATIONS | PGTV |
34.89
|
(8.9)
|
(14.9)
|
13.9
|
24.3
|
SES GLOBAL | SESF.LU |
7.00
|
(4.1)
|
(4.6)
|
(10.3)
|
(12.5)
|
SIRIUS SATELLITE RADIO | SIRI |
3.84
|
12.9
|
25.9
|
21.1
|
21.5
|
XM SATELLITE RADIO | XMSR |
29.60
|
6.0
|
13.1
|
9.2
|
12.6
|
Operators’ Average |
100.00
|
1.7
|
(6.0)
|
3.5
|
22.3
|
|
Manufacturers
|
||||||
ANDREW | ANDW |
20.77
|
18.7
|
11.4
|
57.3
|
79.2
|
BALL | BLL |
69.92
|
3.2
|
5.7
|
20.6
|
17.4
|
BOEING | BA |
41.35
|
0.7
|
(3.2)
|
(2.2)
|
(1.9)
|
COM DEV INTL | *CDV |
2.75
|
3.8
|
1.9
|
(9.2)
|
(4.5)
|
EMS TECHNOLOGIES | ELMG |
21.75
|
13.5
|
0.4
|
(4.6)
|
5.9
|
GARMIN | GRMN |
42.57
|
(0.3)
|
(7.5)
|
(25.8)
|
(21.9)
|
GILAT SAT NETWORKS | GILTF |
8.85
|
(0.2)
|
14.2
|
56.1
|
81.0
|
GLOBECOM | GCOM |
5.44
|
(2.9)
|
(15.0)
|
13.6
|
14.5
|
HARRIS | HRS |
50.20
|
3.7
|
6.2
|
29.7
|
32.3
|
HONEYWELL | HON |
34.66
|
2.4
|
(0.9)
|
2.8
|
3.7
|
KVH | KVHI |
14.33
|
(0.6)
|
(10.9)
|
(33.3)
|
(48.0)
|
LOCKHEED MARTIN | LMT |
47.54
|
4.2
|
5.5
|
(5.1)
|
(7.5)
|
LUCENT TECHNOLOGIES | LU |
4.45
|
8.3
|
8.5
|
26.8
|
56.7
|
MOTOROLA | MOT |
18.15
|
3.1
|
0.4
|
20.5
|
29.6
|
ORBITAL SCIENCES | ORB |
12.88
|
2.8
|
2.0
|
3.2
|
7.2
|
QUALCOMM | QCOM |
67.38
|
1.6
|
5.5
|
20.8
|
24.9
|
RAYTHEON | RTN |
31.88
|
1.7
|
1.1
|
5.7
|
6.1
|
ROCKWELL COLLINS | COL |
32.24
|
2.0
|
(0.4)
|
8.2
|
7.4
|
SCIENTIFIC-ATLANTA | SFA |
34.15
|
5.6
|
0.1
|
13.9
|
25.1
|
SKY FRAMES | SKYU |
0.10
|
–
|
–
|
9,900.0
|
–
|
TITAN | TTN |
19.55
|
(3.2)
|
(6.6)
|
(10.2)
|
(10.4)
|
TRIMBLE NAVIGATION | TRMB |
24.17
|
5.2
|
3.1
|
(7.0)
|
(2.6)
|
VIASAT | VSAT |
25.74
|
3.5
|
(10.3)
|
17.7
|
34.5
|
Manufacturers’ Average |
100.00
|
3.3
|
0.5
|
439.1
|
14.3
|
|
Nasdaq Composite Index
|
||||||
Nasdaq | comp |
2,052.88
|
2.9
|
0.3
|
(1.2)
|
2.5
|
SP 500 | sp50 |
1,139.33
|
1.2
|
(1.5)
|
1.2
|
2.5
|
SN Stock Price Average |
100.00
|
2.7
|
(2.0)
|
274.3
|
17.3
|
Wall Street Analysis
By Paul Dykewicz, PBI Media LLC
EchoStar Communications [DISH] has been a favorite stock pick of Wall Street satellite analysts for a number of years but the love-fest is starting to cool.
Rival DirecTV [DTV], now owned by News Corp [NWS], has been showing renewed strength in generating new subscribers and boosting the revenue that each one provides to the company. During the past year, EchoStar has hurt its own sales with hardware- distribution issues, it has run afoul of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) due to an accounting glitch, and it turned off Viacom-owned [VIA] CBS affiliates and cable programming for two days as part of a dispute involving programming-rights fees.
Thomas Eagan, a satellite and cable analyst at Oppenheimer, has a “neutral” rating on EchoStar. Last Thursday, he reiterated his position despite a nearly 20-percent drop in the U.S. satellite TV company’s stock price during the past six weeks. Eagan expects “lackluster” EchoStar first quarter results. Further trouble is ahead if Congress approves language in the Satellite Home Viewer Improvement Act (SHVIA) reauthorization that hurts EchoStar but not DirecTV, he added.
In addition, EchoStar’s recent battle over programming-rights fees with Viacom may recur with Time Warner’s [TWX] Turner networks, including CNN, Headline News, TCM and other popular channels, Eagan explained. A turnoff of Turner channels would hurt EchoStar’s second-quarter results. One reason is that subscribers may drop the EchoStar service altogether, Eagan explained in a research note. He estimated EchoStar likely lost 10,000 subscribers more than usual during the first quarter due to its inability to offer Viacom channels for two days during a programming-rights conflict. EchoStar’s decision to give its customers a $1 credit for the month when the Viacom fight occurred hurts the subscription service’s average revenue per user (ARPU) for the first quarter, Eagan added.
EchoStar’s battles with programmers may be the company’s attempt to disrupt current trends that favor DirecTV, Eagan said. If EchoStar persists in shutting down channels in tiffs about programming fees, the company’s prospects will dim further.
Paul Dykewicz is senior editor and senior analyst of Satellite News. He can be reached at 301/354-1769 or at [email protected].