The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Sirius XM Holdings, Ford Motor, Gray Television, Nexstar Broadcasting Group and Public Storage

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – July 10, 2014 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include the Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (SIRI-Free Report), Ford Motor Co. (F-Free Report), Gray Television Inc. (GTN-Free Report), Nexstar Broadcasting Group, Inc. (NXST-Free Report) and Public Storage (PSA-Free Report).

Today, Zacks is promoting its ''Buy'' stock recommendations. Get #1Stock of the Day pick for free.

Here are highlights from Wednesday’s Analyst Blog:

SIRIUS XM Upped to Buy on Ford, Chrysler Deals

On July 8, Zacks Investment Research upgraded Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (SIRI-Free Report) by a notch to a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) based on the company’s back-to-back deals with automobile manufacturers, Ford Motor Co. (F-Free Report) and Chrysler Group.

Why the Upgrade?

Last month, Sirius XM sealed deals with Ford Motor and Chrysler Group, on June 19 and 25, respectively. Per the deals, the company will provide Ford's and Chrysler's customers with a complimentary five-year subscription to its navigation packages, SiriusXM Traffic and SiriusXM Travel Link.

Once implemented, customers of both the companies will be able to receive vital information like traffic conditions, fuel price, movie listings, sports scores and weather information through satellite from SiriusXM. We believe Sirius XM’s decision to tie up with Ford and Chrysler Group will boost the company’s top line considerably and serve as a long-term growth driver.

Over the past one year, Sirius XM’s radio penetration has increased only 3% due to lower-than-expected auto sales numbers. Thus, the company is making serious efforts to increase its radio penetration in new automobile models.

Notably, the company holds strong telematics partnerships with almost all major car manufacturers including Acura, BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Infiniti, Lexus, Nissan and Toyota.

With the market for new cars having already reached a saturation point, Sirius XM now foresees untapped potential in the second hand car market. Sirius XM has more than 12,000 dealers who have provided the company with vehicles sales information. The company is expecting to cover more than 4 million second hand cars in 2014 backed by a rising number of dealers.

Other Stocks Worth Considering

Other stocks which warrant a look in the Broadcasting Radio and TV Industry are Gray Television Inc. (GTN-Free Report) and Nexstar Broadcasting Group, Inc. (NXST-Free Report). Both these stocks hold a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Can Public Storage Bounce Back?

Self-storage real estate investment trust (:REIT) Public Storage (PSA-Free Report) rode on the growth trajectory for a number of quarters. However, its first-quarter 2014 core FFO (funds from operations) of $1.80 per share missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.86 per share on higher expenses tied to snow removal and utilities in the cold weather as well as increased property tax expense.

In the company’s European business, though the pricing strategy helped it to enhance occupancy levels in the quarter, realized annual rent per occupied square foot moved south. Also, the company operates under significant competition and its substantial construction pipeline increases operational risks.

Nevertheless, aided by an increase in revenue, core FFO per share registered a 9.1% rise from the prior-year quarter. While the FFO estimate miss due to weather associated expenses is not encouraging, we believe that Public Storage has one of the strongest balance sheets in the sector with adequate liquidity and virtually all of the book value of its real estate facilities are unencumbered. Public Storage as a brand is widely recognized in the self-storage industry and backed by its fundamentals, we believe the company can bounce back over the long term.

To gain deeper insight into Public Storage, you can refer to our updated research report, which was issued on Jul 8, 2014.

Over the last 7 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2014 and 2015 FFO per share remained stable at $7.97 and $8.49 per share. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

Today, Zacks is promoting its ''Buy'' stock recommendations. Get #1Stock of the Day pick for free.

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