- Company name
- Crown Castle
- Sector
- Wireless tower real estate investment trust (REIT)
- About
- Crown Castle Inc. owns, operates and leases about 40,000 towers in the United States, with the land under many of them, and rents space on them to wireless carriers. It is a real estate investment trust (REIT). About 93% of site rental revenue in the first nine months of 2026 came from T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon Wireless. On May 1, 2026, Crown Castle completed the sale of its Fiber and Small Cell businesses, for net cash proceeds of $8.4 billion, and now describes itself as a pure-play US tower company. It used the money to repay debt and to buy back $1.0 billion of its shares. Site rental revenues were $966 million in Q3 2026. Chris Hillabrant is President and Chief Executive Officer. A REIT pays out most of its taxable income, so this profile uses adjusted funds from operations (AFFO), the company's own measure of recurring cash earnings, and AFFO per share. The pick is the common stock on the NYSE (CCI), in US dollars.
- Thesis
- The market prices Crown Castle as a tower owner with slow growth after the loss of DISH, and with a large debt load. DISH terminated its lease in January 2026, and Crown Castle no longer counts DISH revenue, so site rental revenues fell 4.5% to $966 million in Q3 2026. Organic growth in site rental billings was 3.5% in the quarter, and the company expects core leasing at the bottom of its $60 million to $70 million range for 2026. But the Fiber sale cut interest costs, and AFFO per share rose 11% to $1.24 in Q3. For the price to rise, Crown Castle must show that organic growth of about 3% to 4% holds as carriers add equipment, that non-renewals stay below 1% of billings, and that its claim against DISH for more than $3.5 billion brings cash. The Q4 report in February 2027 and its 2027 outlook are the next test. If AFFO per share keeps growing, the gap can close within about two years.
- Risks
- Three carriers pay about 93% of site rental revenue. A merger, a cut in spending or a dispute with one of them would hit revenue. DISH already ended its lease in 2026.
Debt is large. Net debt was $17,599 million at September 30, 2026, about 6.5 times the 2026 adjusted EBITDA outlook midpoint of $2,715 million. Interest expense was $177 million in Q3.
The DISH claim may bring little cash. Crown Castle asserts that DISH owes more than $3.5 billion, but the amount it can recover and the timing are not known.
Refinancing and interest rates. Current maturities of debt and other obligations were $2,238 million at September 30, 2026. About 97% of debt is at fixed rates, with a weighted average maturity of about 7 years, so higher rates affect only new borrowing.
Land costs. About 90% of tower gross margin comes from towers on land that Crown Castle owns or controls for more than 10 years. Buying out ground leases raises capital spending, and the 2026 outlook for discretionary capex rose by $40 million.
- Balance sheet
- At September 30, 2026, Crown Castle had total debt and other obligations of $17,796 million. Its net debt, which subtracts cash and restricted cash and excludes unamortized adjustments, was $17,599 million. Current maturities were $2,238 million. About 97% of the debt had fixed rates, and the weighted average maturity was about 7 years. About $3.9 billion was available under the revolving credit facility. In Q3, Crown Castle paid dividends of about $452 million, or $1.0625 per share. Interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs were $177 million in Q3, and the 2026 outlook is $787 million to $832 million. It had 425,481,189 shares outstanding at November 2, 2026. All amounts are in US dollars.
As of Sep 30, 2026.
- Checkpoints
- Feb 3, 2027 (estimate): Q4 2026 results and 2027 outlook: AFFO per share. Pending. Watch: A 2027 outlook for AFFO per share with a midpoint above $4.60 passes; a lower midpoint fails.
2027 (estimate): DISH claim: cash from the terminated lease. Pending. Watch: A payment or settlement of the remaining DISH lease payments passes; no payment by the end of 2027 fails.
- Recent events
- Oct 21, 2026: Crown Castle reported Q3 2026 results and raised its 2026 outlook. AFFO was $530 million ($1.24 per share), up 8% (11% per share). The 2026 midpoint for AFFO is $1,980 million ($4.60 per share) and for adjusted EBITDA $2,715 million, up $25 million. The company bought a residual economic interest in some tower sites and extended the term of a large customer on those sites.
May 1, 2026: Crown Castle completed the sale of its Fiber and Small Cell businesses and received net cash proceeds of $8.4 billion. Its board authorized up to $7.2 billion of debt repayment and a $1.0 billion stock buy-back. Crown Castle bought back about 11 million shares at an average price of $88.65 in Q2.
Jan 12, 2026: Crown Castle delivered notice that it terminated its master lease with DISH after DISH failed to make payments. It says DISH owes all remaining payments, more than $3.5 billion, and no longer records revenue from the lease from January 1, 2026.