Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE: CCI) yesterday reported steady results for the third quarter ending September 30, 2024. The company maintained its full year 2024 outlook with the exception of a reduction to net income. For the quarter, site rental revenues increased one percent year-over-year to $1.59 billion, Adjusted EBITDA was up 3 percent YoY to $1.08 billion while AFFO of $801 million represented a 4 percent YoY growth.
The company did not mention any new developments in its strategic review of the fiber and small cells business, as Inside Towers reported. Rather the company is portraying a positive spin on its overall established business.
“In the third quarter, we achieved solid operating and financial performance across our businesses and reaffirmed our full year 2024 outlook for Adjusted EBITDA and AFFO,” stated Steven Moskowitz, Crown Castle CEO. “Looking ahead, we continue to be optimistic about the long-term value creation opportunities in our tower, small cell, and fiber solutions offerings.”
Moskowitz stated that the company believes it is well positioned to benefit from positive trends in demand for data consumption and subsequent demand for its diverse digital infrastructure portfolio of towers, small cells and fiber. He said that Crown Castle is also actively developing initiatives that prioritize customer service, revenue generation, capital discipline, and operational excellence.
Moskowitz also explained that as part of the company’s previously announced plans to enhance returns by improving profitability and capital efficiency in its Fiber segment, it has completed discussions with its customers in the fourth quarter and jointly identified approximately 7,000 greenfield small cell nodes in the contracted backlog that the companies mutually agreed to cancel. He added that these agreed upon cancellations increase the overall return of Crown Castle’s remaining contracted backlog of approximately 40,000 nodes and improve its capital efficiency going forward.
“These changes to our operating plan and capital expenditure profile are consistent with our previously provided expectations and position us to increase the value of our fiber and small cell assets, while we remain focused on the ongoing Fiber segment strategic review,” Moskowitz emphasized.
Crown Castle anticipates 5 percent consolidated organic growth for FY2024, excluding the impact of Sprint cancellations, which includes: 4.5 percent tower organic growth, 10 percent small cell organic growth and higher than-anticipated non-recurring revenues, and 2 percent fiber solutions organic growth.
The company maintained its previously-stated full-year guidance for total site rental revenues of $6.34 billion, down 3 percent from $6.53 billion in 2023, Adjusted EBITDA of $4.17 billion, down 6 percent YoY and AFFO down 8 percent YoY to $3.03 billion.
Crown Castle did indicate that its net income would decline another 12 percent to $1.02 billion for full-year 2024, down from the previous guidance of $1.16 billion, and down 32 percent from $1.5 billion in 2023.
By John Celentano, Inside Towers Business Editor
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