Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI) Issues FY 2026 Earnings Guidance
by Amy Steele · The Cerbat GemCrown Castle (NYSE:CCI – Get Free Report) issued an update on its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 4.380-4.490 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 3.150. The company issued revenue guidance of -.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
CCI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. HSBC lowered their price target on Crown Castle from $107.00 to $88.40 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. New Street Research cut Crown Castle from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $93.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Crown Castle from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Crown Castle from $91.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research decreased their price objective on shares of Crown Castle from $114.00 to $94.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $98.97.
Crown Castle Stock Performance
Shares of CCI traded up $2.02 on Thursday, reaching $88.03. The stock had a trading volume of 484,195 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,299,664. Crown Castle has a 12-month low of $75.96 and a 12-month high of $115.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 87.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $86.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.62.
Crown Castle (NYSE:CCI – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $995.42 million. Crown Castle had a negative return on equity of 76.56% and a net margin of 10.41%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. Crown Castle has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.380-4.490 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Crown Castle will post 4.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Crown Castle Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $1.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $4.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. Crown Castle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 420.79%.
Insider Transactions at Crown Castle
In related news, EVP Edward B. Adams, Jr. sold 4,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.34, for a total transaction of $401,481.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,174,300.22. The trade was a 15.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Robert Sean Collins sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.49, for a total transaction of $262,470.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 5,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $507,442. This trade represents a 34.09% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.
Key Headlines Impacting Crown Castle
Here are the key news stories impacting Crown Castle this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and upbeat guidance — Q1 FFO/EPS and revenue modestly topped estimates, and management maintained its FY‑2026 outlook while issuing EPS guidance (4.38–4.49) that sits well above consensus, a key catalyst for multiple expansion. Crown Castle Reports First Quarter 2026 Results and Maintains Outlook for Full Year 2026
- Positive Sentiment: Capital returns and cost saves — Company announced an approximately $1B buyback plan and ~ $65M in annualized cost reductions, which should support EPS and cash‑return expectations and is being priced positively by investors. Crown Castle reiterates 2026 outlook with ~$1B buyback plan and $65m annualized cost reduction
- Neutral Sentiment: Strategic reset toward towers — Management reiterated a strategy to focus on the tower business and progress the separation/sale of fiber/small‑cell assets; this could unlock value long‑term but timing and proceeds remain uncertain. Crown Castle Inc (CCI) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Strategic Moves and Financial Outlook
- Neutral Sentiment: FFO/revenue beats were modest and FFO is down vs. prior year — Q1 FFO beat consensus by a small margin but declined year‑over‑year, so upside is present but not dramatic. Crown Castle (CCI) Q1 FFO and Revenues Surpass Estimates
- Negative Sentiment: Tower growth concerns & DISH exposure — Analysts remain cautious about underlying tower growth, and management discussed challenges tied to DISH Network, a material tenant/partner that creates execution and demand risk for tower cash flow. Crown Castle earnings on deck as tower growth concerns linger
- Negative Sentiment: Top‑line pressure and governance/returns metrics — Site rental revenue was down year‑over‑year and the company shows a negative ROE, metrics investors watch for sustainable growth; these weaknesses cap the stock’s upside if growth doesn’t recover. Crown Castle Q1 earnings fall less than feared
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Crown Castle
A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Crown Castle by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,444 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,714,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Crown Castle by 6.9% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 87,611 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,000,000 after buying an additional 5,630 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Crown Castle by 3.7% in the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,655 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $786,000 after buying an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Crown Castle by 49.3% during the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 10,913 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,121,000 after buying an additional 3,603 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Crown Castle by 5.6% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 4,955 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $509,000 after buying an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. 90.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About Crown Castle
Crown Castle is a U.S.-focused communications infrastructure company organized as a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns, operates and leases shared wireless infrastructure. Its primary business consists of providing tower-based site leases, small cell networks and fiber solutions that support mobile voice and data transmission for wireless carriers, cable companies and other enterprise customers. The company’s assets are positioned to enable network coverage and capacity, including the densification projects associated with 4G LTE and 5G deployments.
Its product and service offerings include ground-based tower sites that host multiple wireless operators, distributed small cell nodes and associated fiber backhaul used to connect sites into carrier networks, and site development and maintenance services.