Crown Castle Inc. CCI is scheduled to release its third-quarter 2026 results on Oct. 21, after the closing bell. In anticipation of the announcement, industry analysts and investors are eager to assess the company's performance and prospects in the current economic climate.
In the last reported quarter, this Houston, TX-based real estate investment trust’s (REIT) adjusted funds from operations (AFFO) per share outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 13%. Results reflected a decline in interest expense and an increase in interest income.
Over the preceding four quarters, CCI’s AFFO per share surpassed estimates on all occasions, with the average surprise being 6.59%. This is depicted in the graph below:
Crown Castle Inc. Price and EPS Surprise
Crown Castle Inc. price-eps-surprise | Crown Castle Inc. Quote
Let’s see how things have shaped up before this announcement.
Factors to Consider Ahead of CCI’s Results
Crown Castle has an unmatched portfolio of wireless communication infrastructure assets in the United States. As wireless data consumption is expected to increase significantly over the next few years, service providers are likely to have continued their network expansion and densification efforts to meet this incremental demand.
However, customer concentration remains a concern. Any loss of its customers or consolidation among them is likely to have impacted the company’s top line. Rapid technological advancements and fluctuations in wireless carriers’ network deployment schedules are expected to have influenced leasing activity and contributed to variability in services revenues.
CCI’s Projections for Q3
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter revenues is pegged at $1.01 billion, indicating a decrease of 5.9% from the year-ago reported number.
Our estimate for quarterly site rental revenues is pinned at $969.6 million, implying a 4.2% decrease year over year. However, we estimate services and other revenues to decrease 29.5% year over year to $42.3 million.
Crown Castle’s activities in the to-be-reported quarter were inadequate to garner analysts’ confidence. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for quarterly AFFO per share remained unchanged at $1.20 over the past three months. The estimate indicates a 7.1% increase from the prior-year quarter’s reported figure.
What Our Quantitative Model Predicts for CCI
Our proven model does not conclusively predict a surprise in terms of AFFO per share for Crown Castle this season. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an AFFO beat, which is not the case here.
Crown Castle currently has an Earnings ESP of 0.00% and a Zacks Rank of 3. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
Stocks That Warrant a Look
Here are two stocks from the broader REIT industry — Extra Space Storage EXR and SBA Communications SBAC — that you may want to consider, as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to report a surprise this quarter.
Extra Space Storage is slated to report quarterly results on Oct. 27. EXR has an Earnings ESP of +0.16% and carries a Zacks Rank of 3 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
SBAC is scheduled to report quarterly results on Nov. 2. The company has an Earnings ESP of +0.48% and a Zacks Rank of 3.
Note: Anything related to earnings presented in this write-up represents funds from operations (FFO), a widely used metric to gauge the performance of REITs.
Beyond Nvidia: AI's Second Wave Is Here
The AI revolution has already minted millionaires. But the stocks everyone knows about aren't likely to keep delivering the biggest profits. AI’s second wave is moving from infrastructure to implementation and these companies are at the forefront of this transition, positioned to become what Amazon and Google were to the internet era.
See Stocks Now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Crown Castle Inc. (CCI): Free Stock Analysis Report
SBA Communications Corporation (SBAC): Free Stock Analysis Report
Extra Space Storage Inc (EXR): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).