American Tower Corporation (NYSE: AMT) yesterday reported financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2021.
American Tower’s Chief Executive Officer, Tom Bartlett, said, “We began 2021 by entering into the Telxius Towers transaction, which we expect to be transformational for our European business. Our global teams followed that by delivering a strong quarter, highlighted by elevated demand for our sites, the construction of nearly 2,000 new towers and highly attractive growth in Consolidated AFFO per Share.”
(see Inside Towers “Studying Abroad” article from Tuesday by Martha DeGrasse)
Highlights included
- Total revenue increased 8.3 percent to $2,159 million
- Property revenue increased 7.9 percent to $2,130 million
- Net income increased 55.8 percent to $652 million
- Adjusted EBITDA increased 13.3 percent to $1,440 million
- Consolidated AFFO increased 23.8 percent to $1,123 million
“Looking forward, in the U.S.,” Bartlett said, “we expect that the gathering 5G momentum will enable us to leverage our extensive site portfolio and mutually beneficial relationships with key tenants to drive sustainable, predictable, recurring long-term growth in cash flows. Internationally, large multinational carriers are aggressively investing in their wireless networks to keep pace with rapidly growing mobile data usage as smartphone penetration accelerates and network technologies advance. On a global basis, we believe we are optimally positioned to drive strong growth and compelling total returns for years to come while helping connect billions of people.”
Specific areas of activity included:
Capital Expenditures – During the first quarter of 2021, total capital expenditures were approximately $335 million, of which $19 million was for non-discretionary capital improvements and corporate capital expenditures.
Acquisitions – During the first quarter of 2021, the company spent approximately $115 million to acquire 116 communications sites, including 48 sites in the U.S. and 68 sites in Latin America.
On January 13, 2021, the company entered into definitive agreements with Telxius Telecom, S.A., a subsidiary of Telefónica, S.A., pursuant to which the company expects to acquire Telxius’ European and Latin American tower divisions, comprising approximately 31,000 communications sites in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Germany, Peru and Spain, for approximately €7.7 billion (approximately $9.4 billion), subject to certain adjustments.
As of April 28, 2021, the company has received all required government and regulatory approvals in Germany and Spain and expects to close on the majority of the European sites in the second quarter of 2021, with approximately 4,000 sites in Germany expected to close in the third quarter of 2021. The Latin American sites are expected to close either late in the second quarter or in the third quarter of 2021, subject to customary closing conditions, including government and regulatory approval.
Other Events – In February 2021, the company entered into an agreement with Macquarie SBI Infrastructure Investments Pte Limited and SBI Macquarie Infrastructure Trust to redeem 100 percent of their combined holdings in ATC Telecom Infrastructure Private Limited. Accordingly, the company expects to pay an amount equivalent to INR 12.9 billion (approximately $176.5 million) to redeem the shares in 2021, subject to regulatory approval. After the completion of the redemption, the company will hold a 100 percent ownership interest in ATC TIPL.
Additionally, during the first quarter of 2021, the company entered into a master lease agreement with DISH Network Corporation. Cash lease payments from DISH under the MLA will commence in 2022, and grow over time as DISH’s network deployment progresses.
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