XM losses narrowed in the fourth quarter.
Executives said financials were helped by a subscriber increase. Both XM and Sirius hope regulators will approve their year-old proposed $4.3 billion merger.
The company “looks forward to regulatory approval in the near future,” stated XM Chief Executive Nate Davis.
Sirius President/CEO Mel Karmazin told analysts the company is prepared to continue on its own if the deal is not approved.
XM posted a fourth-quarter net loss of $238.8 million, compared with a year-earlier net loss of $255.5 million. Revenue rose 20% to $307.7 million from $257.1 million for the quarter.
Sirius posted a net loss of $166.2 million in the quarter, comparing with a year-earlier net loss of $245.6 million. Fourth quarter 2007 total revenue increased 29% to $249.8 million from fourth quarter 2006 revenue of $193.4 million.
XM added 460,000 subscribers in the recent quarter, to end the year at just over 9 million paying customers. That compares to 8.3 million for Sirius, who reported subscriber growth slowed 38% in the quarter.
XM churn fell to 1.72% from 1.79%.
