John Malone's Liberty Media Mulls Increasing Its Stake in Sirius XM (Report)

7:55 AM PST 11/21/2011 by Georg Szalai

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Matthew Staver/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Wall Street observers have suggested that the company could also spin off its stake in the satellite radio firm, but Liberty management has kept its options open.

By Georg Szalai
NEW YORK - John Malone’s Liberty Media is considering increasing its stake in satellite radio firm Sirius XM Radio in the spring, the New York Post reported.

After saving the company from the brink of bankruptcy about two years ago, Liberty is having early-stage discussions about adding to its 40 percent stake in Sirius, the paper said citing a source close to the situation.

Representatives for both companies didn’t return messages seeking comment, it said.

Last week, Liberty CEO Greg Maffei and chairman John Malone kept their options on Sirius open. Ahead of an investor day on Thursday, they announced a combination of tracking stocks Liberty Starz and Liberty Capital. Analysts said this could allow the company to spin off its stake in Sirius and possibly merge it into Sirius.

Maffei also highlighted the strong performance and possible upside in Sirius, signaling that Liberty could alternatively increase its investment in Sirius.

The Post highlighted that Liberty could increase its Sirius stake to 49.9 percent, but there are tax implications and other disadvantages. After March though, these issues go away.

Email: Georg.Szalai@thr.com

Twitter: @georgszalai