Crown Castle Inc (CCI.N): CCI Has Returned to Be a Domestic Tower Pure Play; C2Q26 Preview

Research evidence excerpt

Crown Castle Inc (CCI.N): CCI Has Returned to Be a Domestic Tower Pure Play; C2Q26 Preview

Viewpoint |

08 Jul 2026 23:16:54 ET │ 22 pages

Crown Castle Inc (CCI.N)

CCI Has Returned to Be a Domestic Tower Pure Play; C2Q26 Preview

CITI'S TAKE

We expect Crown Castle to deliver slightly better 2Q26 results, while

remaining on track to meet its 2026 outlook targets. We forecast AFFOPS

of $1.08 versus VA consensus of $1.03 and revenue of approximately $1.0 Buy

billion, which is in line with consensus. We forecast normalized organic Price (08 Jul 26 16:00) US$76.90

growth of +3.4% is on track with its annual guidance target, although

Target price US$106.00reported organic leasing declines of -2.6% yoy is showing wider than

consensus, which could be influenced by the EchoStar-related churn. We Expected share price return 37.8%

remain a Buyer of CCI shares and have been surprised by recent weakness. Expected dividend yield 5.5%

We still view the potential entry of Starlink and/or other Satellite LEOs as

Expected total return 43.4%neutral to positive for the longer-term Tower fundamentals, rather than as

a net risk. Meanwhile, we like valuation and the total return opportunities Market Cap US$33,563M

for CCI as well as its competitors – SBAC, AMT.

Earnings Focus — At a high level, we expect the market to focus on the implications

of operating as a domestic pure play with respect to future efficiencies and earnings Price Performance

power, while evaluating whether or not LEO satellites pose a net-opportunity or net- (RIC: CCI.N, BB: CCI US)

risk for the Tower stocks. For 2Q26, we expect investors to focus on normalized

organic leasing growth, overall site leasing revenue, EBITDA, AFFOPS growth, and

share repurchases. We forecast normalized organic leasing revenue growth of 3.4%