Network capacity will be required to double in the next few years in order to cope with 5G adoption and AI demand, reckons American Tower – as its revenues rise on new 5G infrastructure investments
In sum – what to know:
Data to double – American Tower chief Steven Vondran reckons growth in 5G, FWA and AI will require a doubling of wireless network capacity this decade.
New markets – Europe is seeing strong newbuild activity, while emerging markets remain 4G-led but are accelerating 5G rollouts in key metros.
2026 outlook – The company guides property revenues of $10.44–$10.59 billion and net profits of $2.94–$3.02 billion for 2026.
American Tower Corporation expects sustained revenue growth as rising mobile data consumption, 5G expansion, and future 6G deployments drive additional network investment, the firm’s president and chief exceutive, Steven Vondran, told investors during the company’s earnings call. “The backbone of our revenue growth is mobile data consumption, which continues to grow rapidly alongside growth in mobile customers, 5G adoption, and fixed wireless access,” he said.
He added: “This secular demand growth is expected to require a doubling in wireless network capacity between now and 2030.” Vondran also pointed to the potential impact of AI on network demand. “On top of this, with trillions of dollars being deployed into AI, it’s likely that new AI applications will propel mobile data consumption even higher and require greater bandwidth, lower latency, and more uplink capacity than today’s typical usage,” the executive said.
In the U.S., American Tower sees carriers moving deeper into the 5G investment cycle. “In our largest tower market, the U.S., carriers are in the middle stages of the 5G cycle, where they broadly completed their initial 5G coverage-oriented activity and are shifting toward capacity-oriented activity,” Vondran said. “We anticipate carriers will densify their networks not only to meet the capacity demands of 5G, but also to plan ahead for the 6G cycle.”
Outside the U.S., Vondran described similar demand patterns. “Internationally, we see parallel trends of rising data consumption driving durable network investment,” he said. “In our European market, 5G progress lagged slightly behind the U.S. and strong demand for new sites is prompting exciting levels of newbuild activity with top-tier carriers,” he added.
“In our emerging markets, 4G-related activity continues to dominate, but we see increasing levels of 5G rollouts in key metros with significant runway for growth,” Vondran said. “We continue to expect our international tower portfolio to deliver faster organic growth in the U.S. as our less mature portfolios lease up over time.”
American Tower ended the fourth quarter of 2025 with a portfolio of approximately 150,000 communications sites. The company reported overall revenues of $2.73 billion for the last quarter of 2025, surging 7.5% year-on-year. American Tower’s profits for the period amounted to $837 million, down 32% compared to the fourth quarter of 2025.
For the full year, American Tower recorded revenues of $10.64 billion, up 5.1% year-on-year. Annual profits reached $2.63 billion, surging 15.3% year-on-year. During the fourth quarter of 2025, total capital expenditures were approximately $592 million. For the full year 2025, total capital expenditures were approximately $1.7 billion
For full 2026, the company said it expected its property revenues to reach $10.44-10.59 billion. American Tower Corporation also expects its net profits for the year to be in the range of $2.94-3.02 billion.
