American Tower Revenue Rises, but Earnings Slip Amid Expansion

   By Ezequiel Minaya 
 

Cellular-tower company American Tower Corp (AMT) said Wednesday revenue climbed 14% in its latest quarter in the wake of its aggressive expansion, though profit fell.

The Boston-based company, which leases or owns some 96,000 towers in the U.S. and 12 other countries, has said it plans to acquire 100,000 towers in 2015.

During the latest quarter, the company spent roughly $649 million in acquiring over 4,000 towers, mostly overseas. In the current quarter, the spending spree has picked up pace, with the company closing on nearly 5,000 towers in Nigeria with plans to purchase 2,300 towers in Brazil next.

Earlier this year, American Tower struck a deal to lease some 11,300 towers from Verizon and buy 165 outright. In April, the company also acquired 4,200 towers in Brazil and earlier this month it acquired 4,700 towers in Nigeria from Bharti Airtel Limited.

For the quarter ended in June, American Tower Corp reported a profit of $156.1 million, or 30 cents a share, down from $234.4 million, or 58 cents a share, a year earlier. Earnings fell because of a $75 million charge linked to retirement costs as well as expenses tied to expansion.

Revenue rose to $1.17 billion, with U.S. rental and management revenue climbing 28% to $803 million.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected earnings on a per-share basis to land at 50 cents per share on revenue of $1.18 billion.

The business of cellphone towers, a crucial piece of infrastructure used to transmit wireless calls and data, is dominated by three large public companies, including American Tower, and dozens of smaller competitors.

Write to Ezequiel Minaya at [e-mail]

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