SBA Communications (SBAC)

Real Estate · $19.9B market cap · SEC CIK 0001034054

Next reports on Feb 24, 2027, after the close, with analysts expecting $2.06 in earnings per share.

52-week range $156.60 to $224.46. 15% below its 52-week high and 22% above its low.

The case for SBAC

• 35% of revenue drops through to net profit.
• Gross margin of 75% absorbs cost shocks.
• Pays a modest 1.5% dividend.

The case against

• Long-term debt of $11.0B would take 8 years of operating cash flow to repay.
• Priced at 6.9× sales with revenue growing only 5.4%.
• Owes more than it owns: shareholder equity is −$4.9B, usually the result of buybacks funded with debt. ROE and price-to-book mean little here.
• Only 0% of FY2025's $1.1B profit arrived as free cash.
• Current liabilities exceed current assets (ratio 0.17).
• Free cash flow is only a sliver of its market value, a thin cash return for the price.

What the score is made of

Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Real Estate companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. The score is where that blend places it in the S&P 500. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.

• Shareholder equity is negative, so return on equity, price-to-book and debt-to-equity are left out.
• Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 30 Real Estate companies.

The financials

The financials, five years deep

Pulled from SBA Communications's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are worked out from the others.

What SBA Communications says it does

We are a leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure, including tower structures, rooftops, and other structures that support antennas used for wireless communications, which we collectively refer to as “towers” or “sites.” Our principal operations are in the United States and its territories. In addition, we own and operate towers in South America, Central America, and Africa. During the year ended December 31, 2025, we sold all of our towers and ended our operations in both the Philippines and Colombia and sold substantially all of our operations in Canada. Our primary business line is our site leasing business, which contributed 97.9% of our total segment operating profit for the year ended December 31, 2025. In our site leasing business, we (1) lease space to wireless service providers and other customers on assets that we own or operate and (2) manage rooftop and tower sites for property owners…

Risk factors SBAC lists in its 10-K

• depend on a relatively small number of customers for most of our revenue, and the loss or financial instability of any of our significant customers may materially decrease our revenue and adversely affect our financial condition
• Percentage of Domestic Site Leasing Revenue
• Percentage of International Site Leasing Revenue
• Percentage of Site Development Revenue
• The wireless industry in our international markets has come under competition in recent years which has, and may continue to, adversely affect our international site leasing activities in the near term
• If our wireless service provider customers combine their operations to a significant degree, our future operating results could be adversely affected
• Our variable rate indebtedness and refinancing obligations subject us to interest rate risk, which could cause our debt service obligations to increase significantly
• We have a substantial level of indebtedness which may have an adverse effect on our business or limit our ability to take advantage of business, strategic or financing opportunities
• Our business depends, in part, on the ability of customers to perform under their contractual and financial obligations
• Increasing competition in the tower industry may create pricing pressures or result in non-renewals that may materially and adversely affect us
• A slowdown in demand for wireless services could materially and adversely affect our future growth and revenues
• Increasing competition may negatively impact our ability to grow our communication site portfolio long-term
• Our international operations are subject to economic, political, and other risks that could materially and adversely affect our revenues or financial position
• Delays in the roll-out of new spectrum or deployment of new technologies could materially and adversely affect our future growth and revenues
• New technologies or network architecture or changes in a customer’s business model may reduce demand for our wireless infrastructure or negatively impact our revenues
• If we are unable to protect our rights to the land under our towers, it could adversely affect our business and operating results
• We may not be able to fully recognize the anticipated benefits of towers that we acquire
• The documents governing our indebtedness contain restrictive covenants that could adversely affect our business by limiting our flexibility
• Our dependence on our subsidiaries for cash flow may negatively affect our business
• The loss of the services of key personnel or a significant number of our employees may negatively affect our business
• Our business is subject to government regulations and changes in current or future regulations could harm our business
• Information technology disruptions, including as a result of cybersecurity breaches, could compromise our information, which would cause our business and reputation to suffer
• Data privacy and protection laws are evolving globally and present risks related to our handling of sensitive data that could result in regulatory penalties or litigation
• Damage from natural disasters and other unforeseen events could adversely affect us
• We could have liability under environmental laws that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations
• could suffer adverse tax and other financial consequences if taxing authorities do not agree with our tax positions
• Our issuance of equity securities and other associated transactions may trigger a future ownership change which may negatively impact our ability to utilize NOLs in the future
• Our costs could increase and our revenues could decrease due to perceived health risks from RF energy
• Covenants specified in our current and future debt instruments may limit our ability to make required REIT distributions
• Our payment of cash distributions in the future is not guaranteed and the amount of any future cash distributions may fluctuate, which could adversely affect the value of our Class A common stock
• Certain of our business activities may be subject to corporate level income tax and foreign taxes, which would reduce our cash flows, and would have potential deferred and contingent tax liabilities
• The REIT-related ownership and transfer restrictions may restrict or prevent our shareholders from engaging in certain transfers of our common stock
• Our articles of incorporation, our bylaws and Florida law provide for anti-takeover provisions that could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us

Filings

Other Real Estate companies