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The call contained a mix of positive operational and financial developments — reiteration of full-year guidance, solid organic growth (3.1%–3.6% depending on exclusions), a $65 million annualized cost savings from restructuring, planned $1B buybacks and $7B debt paydown from the anticipated sale, and a clear strategic focus on land ownership and systems investment to drive margins. Offsetting these positives are significant near-term headwinds tied to the DISH contract default ($49M revenue impact in the quarter) and related legal uncertainty that could take a year or more to resolve, additional one-time revenue offsets (Sprint cancellations and $26M straight-line revenue decrease), and transition risks from separating the small cell and fiber businesses. On balance, the company maintained its guidance, has defined capital allocation to deleverage and return capital, and announced tangible cost savings — while the DISH dispute and transition timing present meaningful risks. Overall the highlights moderately outweigh the lowlights given maintained guidance, solid organic growth, and concrete deleveraging and cost-saving plans, though investors should continue to monitor DISH litigation outcomes and near-term seasonality of costs.
Crown Castle reiterated its full‑year 2026 outlook (excluding the small‑cell/fiber businesses as discontinued and assuming the sale closes June 30) with site rental revenues of about $3.9 billion, adjusted EBITDA of about $2.7 billion and AFFO of about $1.9 billion at the midpoint; the company expects ~3.5% organic growth for the year when excluding DISH prior‑year site rental billing and (like Q1) excluding Sprint cancellations and DISH terminations. In Q1 organic growth was 3.1% ($30 million) excluding Sprint/DISH impacts (3.3% if DISH is excluded from prior year), while Q1 site rental revenue was reduced by ~$5 million of Sprint cancellations, ~$49 million of DISH terminations and a ~$26 million decrease in non‑cash straight‑line revenue/amortization of prepaid rent. Management implemented a restructuring expected to cut annualized run‑rate costs by ~$65 million, guided discretionary CapEx at $200 million ($160 million net of $40 million prepaid rent received), noted timing‑driven lower R&M/sustaining CapEx and modestly lower interest expense in the quarter, and said it ended Q1 with significant liquidity. Assuming the transaction close, the company plans to allocate roughly $1 billion to share repurchases and $7 billion to debt repayment to target leverage of 6.0–6.5x, and it reiterated AFFO guidance for the 12 months following close of about $2.1 billion at the midpoint.
Management reiterated full-year 2026 guidance and kept the outlook unchanged despite portfolio separations and DISH issues. At the midpoint they expect site rental revenues of ~ $3.9 billion, adjusted EBITDA of ~ $2.7 billion and AFFO of ~ $1.9 billion.
First-quarter organic growth (excluding Sprint cancellations and DISH terminations) was 3.1% (~$30 million). Organic growth rises to 3.3% if prior-year DISH revenues are excluded and to 3.6% when excluding decreases in other billings.
Completed a tower and corporate restructuring that is expected to reduce annualized run-rate costs by $65 million. Management also referenced a ~20% staffing reduction that contributed to near-term cost savings.
Assuming the small cell and fiber sale closes on June 30, management plans to allocate approximately $1 billion to share repurchases and approximately $7 billion to repay debt, with a target leverage range of 6.0x–6.5x post-close.
Ended the quarter with significant liquidity and flexibility; management expects to preserve investment-grade rating after the disposal and deleveraging actions.
Management is increasing capital spending to buy land under towers and to invest in systems/automation. They target growing owned-land percentage (currently ~30%) toward 30%–40% over several years and expect meaningful margin improvement from land ownership and platform automation (management cited potential well over 200 basis points of additional margin improvement beyond recent reductions over the multi-year horizon).
Management reiterated a 12-month AFFO outlook following the anticipated sale with a midpoint of $2.1 billion, indicating expected cash generation improvement once the transaction closes and deleveraging occurs.
First-quarter results benefitted from a modest decrease in interest expense due to lower-than-anticipated short-term borrowing rates and timing-related reductions in repair & maintenance, sustaining CapEx and other non-labor costs (management expects these costs to re-occur later in the year).
Good day, and welcome to the Crown Castle First Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] Please note this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Kris Hinson, Vice President of Corporate Finance and Treasurer. Please go ahead.
Thank you, Chloe, and good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining us today as we discuss our first quarter 2026 results. With me on the call this afternoon are Chris Hillabrant, Crown Castle's President and Chief Executive Officer; and Sunit Patel, Crown Castle's Chief Financial Officer. To aid the discussion, we have posted supplemental materials in the Investors section of our website at crowncastle.com that will be referenced throughout the call. This conference call will contain forward-looking statements, which are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, and actual results may vary materially from those expected. Information about potential factors which could affect our results is available in the press release and the Risk Factors sections of the company's SEC filings. Our statements are made as of today, April 22, 2026, and we assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements. In addition, today's call includes discussions of certain non-GAAP financial measures.
Tables reconciling these non-GAAP financial measures are available in the supplemental information package in the Investors section of the company's website at crowncastle.com. I would like to remind everyone that having an agreement to sell our fiber segment means that the fiber segment results are...