Crown Castle Inc. Files 2023 Annual Report on Form 10-K

TL;DR

<b>Crown Castle Inc. has officially submitted its comprehensive 2023 annual report (10-K) detailing its financial performance and operational status for the year ending December 31, 2023.</b>

AI Summary

CROWN CASTLE INC. (CCI) filed a Annual Report (10-K) with the SEC on February 23, 2024. Crown Castle Inc. filed its 10-K report for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2023. The filing covers the period from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023. The company's principal executive offices are located at 8020 Katy Freeway, Houston, TX 77024. Crown Castle Inc. is classified under Real Estate Investment Trusts (SIC code 6798). The filing was submitted on February 23, 2024.

Why It Matters

For investors and stakeholders tracking CROWN CASTLE INC., this filing contains several important signals. This 10-K filing provides a detailed overview of Crown Castle's financial health, operational strategies, and risk factors for the fiscal year 2023, which is crucial for investors to assess the company's performance and future outlook. As a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) focused on communications infrastructure, the information within this filing is vital for understanding the company's asset base, revenue streams, and its position within the telecommunications sector.

Risk Assessment

Risk Level: medium — CROWN CASTLE INC. shows moderate risk based on this filing. The filing is a standard 10-K, which is a routine disclosure for public companies. However, the nature of the telecommunications infrastructure business involves significant capital investment and regulatory oversight, contributing to a medium risk profile.

Analyst Insight

Investors should review the detailed financial statements and risk factors within the 10-K to understand Crown Castle's performance and strategic direction for 2024.

Key Numbers

• 2023-12-31 — Fiscal Year End (Conformed period of report)
• 2024-02-23 — Filing Date (Filed as of date)
• 6798 — SIC Code (Standard Industrial Classification)
• 001-16441 — SEC File Number (SEC file number)

Key Players & Entities

• CROWN CASTLE INC. (company) — Filer name
• 8020 KATY FREEWAY (company) — Business address street 1
• HOUSTON (company) — Business address city
• TX (company) — Business address state
• 77024 (company) — Business address zip
• 7135703000 (company) — Business phone
• CROWN CASTLE INTERNATIONAL CORP (company) — Former company name
• DE (company) — State of incorporation

FAQ

Key Dates

• 2023-12-31: Fiscal Year End — Marks the end of the reporting period for the 10-K.
• 2024-02-23: Filing Date — Date the 10-K was officially filed with the SEC.

Glossary

10-K

An annual report required by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which gives a comprehensive summary of a company's financial performance. (This is the primary document filed by Crown Castle Inc. to disclose its financial and operational status for the fiscal year 2023.)

REIT

Real Estate Investment Trust. A company that owns, operates, or finances income-generating real estate. (Crown Castle Inc. operates as a REIT, indicating its business model is focused on real estate assets, specifically communications infrastructure.)

SIC Code

Standard Industrial Classification. A system for classifying business establishments. (The SIC code 6798 for Real Estate Investment Trusts categorizes Crown Castle Inc. within the financial sector, specifically related to real estate.)

Key Financial Figures

• $0.01 — ange on Which Registered Common Stock, $0.01 par value CCI New York Stock Exchange
• $113.94 — k Exchange closing price on that day of $113.94 per share. Applicable Only to Corporat
• $39 billion — approximately six years and represented $39 billion of expected future cash inflows. As pa

Filing Documents

• cci-20231231.htm (10-K) — 2416KB
• exhibit437123123_descripti.htm (EX-4.37) — 55KB
• exhibit102letteragreementb.htm (EX-10.2) — 15KB
• exhibit108letteragreementb.htm (EX-10.8) — 22KB
• exhibit1017essp.htm (EX-10.17) — 37KB
• exhibit21123123q4.htm (EX-21) — 19KB
• exhibit231123123q4.htm (EX-23.1) — 3KB
• exhibit311123123.htm (EX-31.1) — 10KB
• exhibit312123123.htm (EX-31.2) — 10KB
• exhibit321123123.htm (EX-32.1) — 6KB
• exhibit97crowncastleincinc.htm (EX-97) — 31KB
• cci-20231231_g1.jpg (GRAPHIC) — 2KB
• cci-20231231_g2.jpg (GRAPHIC) — 42KB
• cci-20231231_g3.jpg (GRAPHIC) — 87KB
• cci-20231231_g4.jpg (GRAPHIC) — 80KB
• cci-20231231_g5.jpg (GRAPHIC) — 75KB
• 0001051470-24-000062.txt (&nbsp;) — 13533KB
• cci-20231231.xsd (EX-101.SCH) — 85KB
• cci-20231231_cal.xml (EX-101.CAL) — 87KB
• cci-20231231_def.xml (EX-101.DEF) — 478KB
• cci-20231231_lab.xml (EX-101.LAB) — 1034KB
• cci-20231231_pre.xml (EX-101.PRE) — 701KB
• cci-20231231_htm.xml (XML) — 2134KB

Risk Factors

Item 1A. Risk Factors 12

Unresolved Staff Comments

Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments 26 Item 1C. Cybersecurity 26

Properties

Item 2. Properties 26

Legal Proceedings

Item 3. Legal Proceedings 27

Mine Safety Disclosures

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures 27 PART II

Market for Registrant's Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

Item 5. Market for Registrant's Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities 28

[Reserved]

Item 6. [Reserved] 30

Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations 30

Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 48

Financial Statements and Supplementary Data

Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data 50

Changes in and Disagreements With Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure

Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements With Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure 85

Controls and Procedures

Item 9A. Controls and Procedures 85

Other Information

Item 9B. Other Information 86

Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections

Item 9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections 86 PART III

Directors and Executive Officers of the Registrant

Item 10. Directors and Executive Officers of the Registrant 87

Executive Compensation

Item 11. Executive Compensation 87

Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management

Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management 87

Certain Relationships and Related Transactions

Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions 87

Principal Accounting Fees and Services

Item 14. Principal Accounting Fees and Services 87 PART IV

Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules

Item 15. Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules 88

Form 10-K Summary

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary 97

Signatures

Signatures 100 Cautionary Language Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This Annual Report on Form 10-K ("2023 Form 10-K") contains forward-looking statements that are based on our management's expectations as of the filing date of this report with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Statements that are not historical facts are hereby identified as forward-looking statements. In addition, words such as "estimate," "anticipate," "project," "plan," "intend," "believe," "expect," "likely," "predicted," "positioned," "continue," "target," "seek," "focus" and any variations of these words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements include our full year 2024 outlook and our plans, projections, expectations and estimates regarding (1) the value of our business model and the demand for our communications infrastructure, (2) the growth potential of the U.S. market for shared communications infrastructure, (3) growth in the communications infrastructure industry, (4) demand for data and factors driving such demand, (5) the duration of our construction projects, (6) tenants' investment in wireless networks, (7) use of high-bandwidth applications, (8) our ability to service our debt and comply with debt covenants, (9) the level of commitment under our debt instruments, (10) our ability to remain qualified as a real estate investment trust ("REIT"), (11) site rental revenues, including the growth thereof, (12) sources and uses of liquidity, (13) impact from the T-Mobile and Sprint network consolidation, (14) drivers of cash flow growth, (15) our competitive advantage, (16) our dividends, including timing, amount, payment or tax characterization, (17) the timing of small cell deployments, (18) discretionary and sustaining capital expenditures and expansion of our business, (19) impact of elevated 2 interest rates, (20) the growth in our business and its driving factors, (21) our ESG (as d

Business

Item 1. Business Overview We own, operate and lease shared communications infrastructure that is geographically dispersed throughout the U.S., including (1) more than 40,000 towers and other structures, such as rooftops (collectively, "towers"), (2) approximately 115,000 small cells on air or under contract and (3) approximately 90,000 route miles of fiber primarily supporting small cells and fiber solutions. We refer to our towers, small cells and fiber assets collectively as "communications infrastructure," and to our customers on our communications infrastructure as "tenants." Our operating segments consist of (1) Towers and (2) Fiber, which includes both small cells and fiber solutions. Our core business is providing access, including space or capacity, to our shared communications infrastructure via long-term contracts in various forms, including lease, license, sublease and service agreements (collectively, "tenant contracts"). We seek to increase our site rental revenues by adding more tenants on our shared communications infrastructure, which we expect to result in significant incremental cash flows due to our low incremental operating costs. We operate as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. See "Item 1. Business—REIT Status" and notes 2 and 9 to our consolidated financial statements. Over nearly three decades, we have assembled a leading portfolio of towers predominately through acquisitions from large wireless carriers or their predecessors. More recently, we have extended our communications infrastructure presence by investing significantly in our Fiber segment. Through our product offerings of towers and small cells, we seek to provide a comprehensive solution to enable our wireless tenants to expand coverage and capacity for their wireless networks. Furthermore, within our Fiber segment, we seek to generate cash flow growth and stockholder return by deploying our fiber for both small cells' and fiber solutions' tenants. Approximately 56% an

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View this 10-K filing on SEC EDGAR