The dish on DISH

Citigroup this morning is touting Echostar (DISH 49.04) as a takeover target. Two weeks ago, DISH split its business into satellites and set-top boxes. If DISH has a tax-free spinoff of the new company, SpinCo, then AT&T can't buy it for two years. And if they're interested, they better move before the end of the year. The price touted is 65, meaning it would probably trade to 61-62 on a deal.