HOUSTON-Crown Castle International Corp. was the latest public tower company to release its second-quarter 2003 financial results.
The company reported revenue of $224.2 million, down slightly from $225.5 million for the second quarter 2002. Site rental and broadcast transmission revenue accounted for $189.5 million of that revenue, up 10 percent from the year-ago quarter. Crown said U.S. site rental revenue increased 6.9 percent from last year to $110.5 million, and U.K. site rental and broadcast transmission revenue was up 16.7 percent to $72.8 million.
Net loss, however, was up at $100.9 million, or 47 cents per share, compared with $89.5 million or 41 cents per share last year. Crown drastically reduced capital expenditures, recording $20.7 million for the second quarter 2003 compared with $126.3 million last year. Free cash flow was $73.3 million, well up from a use of $72.3 million cash last year.
“While our outlook suggests that leasing activity will remain constant at current levels, we see some indications that U.S. leasing activity may improve during the second half of 2003 and into 2004,” said John Kelly, president and chief executive officer of Crown. “A combination of several factors appears to be positively influencing U.S. wireless carriers’ desire to deploy additional cell sites to improve network quality.”
Crown also announced the quarterly dividend on its 6.25-percent convertible preferred stock will be paid Aug. 15 to holders of record Aug. 1 at a rate of 82.214 shares of common stock per 1,000 shares of preferred stock.
Shares of Crown were trading at $9.90 following the earnings release.
In other tower news, Moody’s Investors Service confirmed ratings of SBA Communications Corp., concluding its review for possible downgrade that initiated last fall. Moody’s said SBA’s sale of 801 towers and the refinancing of its secured credit facility have removed the company from immediate financial distress. However, the ratings service warned “even if SBA can continue to generate cash from operations at the $30 million level, free cash flow would be approximately $15 to $20 million, a level insufficient to support so large a debt burden.”
