Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI)

[SeriousMoney]

New Deals Could Nearly Triple Sirius' OEM Base
Forbes.com, Kate DuBose Tomassi, 03.20.06, 8:32 AM ET

Shares of Sirius Satellite Radio were up late last week after the company announced a factory-install deal with Audi and Volkswagen for model years 2007 through 2012.

"While Sirius has non-exclusive arrangements with both manufacturers, we think the new pacts could help close some of the gap in key channel versus bigger rival XM Satellite Radio," wrote Standard & Poor's Equity Research analyst Tuna Amobi in a report Friday.

Amobi said this is good news for the expected acceleration at the automotive distribution channel anchored by partnerships with BMW, DaimlerChrysler and Ford Motor. He said he expects Sirius' original equipment manufacturer base of approximately 824,000 at the end of 2005 to almost triple by the end of 2007.

The analyst reiterated a "strong buy" opinion on Sirius shares.

http://www.forbes.com/markets/2006/03/20/sirius-audi-volkswagen-0320markets02.html