SiriusXM Radio has announced second quarter 2012 financial results, including revenue of $838 million, up 13 percent over Q2 2011 revenue of $744 million. Net income for the second quarter 2012 and 2011 was $3.1 billion and $173 million, respectively. Adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter of 2012 was $237 million, up 28 percent from $185 million in the second quarter of 2011.

SiriusXM also reported record subscriber growth, as self-pay net subscriber additions were up 28 percent to 463,000, giving the satcaster a new record of 18.7 million self-paying subscribers. Free cash flow was $230 million in the second quarter, an improvement of 39 percent from the $165 million recorded in Q2 '11. Included in the Q2 2012 net income was an income tax benefit of approximately $3 billion related to a reversal of substantially all of the company's deferred income tax valuation allowance. On a comparative basis, the second quarter 2011 net income included a gain of $84 million associated with the Canadian merger of Sirius and XM.

"SiriusXM continued its exceptional performance in the second quarter, adding over 600,000 subscribers, which represents a post-merger record, despite the mixed macroeconomic trends. We also attained a record-level free cash flow of $230 million - the highest single quarterly free cash flow figure in SiriusXM's history. We are very pleased with the strong operating results we have delivered since the merger, especially our performance in 2012, as we have grown revenue, tightly controlled expenses, and produced substantial growth in adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow," remarked CEO Mel Karmazin.

"We've also raised our subscriber, revenue, and adjusted EBITDA guidance as the Company exceeds its targets and as subscribers demonstrate how much they love our great content. We are excited to deliver our new SiriusXM On-Demand service to our subscribers via the internet and smartphones, and our program to launch a personalized music feature via these same channels by the end of the year is on track. We intend to provide more innovative ways for our subscribers to access our best-in-class content, and we believe this focus on satisfying subscribers will also satisfy our shareholders," added Karmazin. 

"We ended the second quarter with $868 million of cash, after the repurchase of approximately $101 million in aggregate principal amount of our debt during the quarter. Our leverage at the end of the second quarter of 2012 improved to 3.6x our adjusted EBITDA," said SiriusXM EVP/CFO David Frear. "We called the remaining $186 million of our 9.75 percent Senior Secured Notes due 2015 for redemption on September 1, 2012. Following the repayment of these notes, our gross debt will stand at approximately $2.7 billion and our leverage, based upon our 2012 adjusted EBITDA guidance, will be at our 3.0x target, a significant improvement from 4.4x one year ago."

Karmazin also said on the company's earnings conference call this morning that he might be open to working for Liberty Media's John Malone after all. Forbes reports that Karmazin said, "I was asked a question two years ago about working for somebody, and I told them that my experience at Viacom was such that I didn’t enjoy [it], and I like working for a board as opposed to working for a controlling shareholder — that was something I said. And every time the discussion of Liberty comes up, somebody is coupling my name into that." He added that he is prepared to do whatever Liberty requires of him, “as long as it’s in the best interests of all shareholders."