Operator network investments translate to increased tower and site revenues
As operators in the U.S. and around the world continue to invest in network infrastructure and densification, major tower companies American Tower, Crown Castle and SBAC this month all reported year-over-year increases in tower and site revenues during Q2 financial reporting.
American reported $1.8 billion in property-based revenue, up 6.8% since the same quarter last year. For the same period, Crown Castle reported site rental revenues increased 35% to $1.2 billion and SBAC saw site leasing revenue increase by 6.7% to $430 million compared to Q2 2017.
American Tower CEO Jim Taiclet said mobile data usage increased some 40% in the last year, which creates “record levels” of new business for the company. “Given this robust data growth, deployment of new spectrum and the introduction of advanced technology across our U.S. tenant base,” the company is upping its 2018 expectation for organic billing growth. “We also anticipate a multi-year period of elevated demand in the U.S. as our tenants invest in 4G capacity and quality while launching mobile 5G networks, enhanced internet of things services and other initiatives.” Total revenue increased 6.8% year-over-year to approximately $1.8 billion.
Crown Castle CEO Jay Brown highlighted how the company’s holdings in towers, small cell systems and fiber, all crucial to the continued enhancement of LTE and deployment of 5G, “is the best strategy to pursue this significant growth opportunity while generating high returns for our shareholders by sharing our assets across multiple tenants.” Crown owns around 40,000 towers and 60,000 route miles of fiber in the U.S.
“Based on our experience,” Brown said, “we believe that the U.S. represents the best market in the world for communications infrastructure ownership and we have a differentiated strategy to pursue that compelling opportunity.” Crown’s reported net income in Q2 of $180 million up from $112 million in the same quarter last year.
SBAC reported site leasing operating profit at $336.2 million, up 7.2% from the same period in 2017. Leasing revenue made up more than 98% of total operating profit in the quarter. Total revenues were $456.3 million, up from $427.3 million year-over-year.
CEO Jeffrey Stoops said: “In the U.S., the four major wireless service providers are all active investing in their networks, and our leasing and services backlogs continue to grow. Against this favorable demand environment, we continue to execute very well and continue to post the highest tower cash flow and adjusted EBITDA margins in our industry.”
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