Crown Castle (CCI) 10-Q2023 Q1 Quarterly report

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q ("Form 10-Q") 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 2023 outlook and plans, projections and estimates regarding (1) the value of our business model and demand for our communications infrastructure, (2) the growth 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) sources and uses of liquidity, (12) impact to our financial results from the Sprint Cancellations (as defined below), (13) drivers of cash flow growth, (14) our competitive advantage, (15) our dividends, including timing, amount, growth, targets, payment or tax characterization, (16) the timing of small cell deployments, (17) discretionary capital expenditures and expansion of our business and (18) impact of interest rate increases. All future dividends are subject to declaration by our board of directors.

As used herein, the term "including," and any variation thereof, means "including without limitation." The use of the word "or" herein is not exclusive. Unless this Form 10-Q indicates otherwise or the context otherwise requires, the terms "we," "our," "our company," "the company" or "us" as used in this Form 10-Q refer to Crown Castle Inc. ("CCI") and its predecessor (organized in 1995), as applicable, each a Delaware corporation, and their subsidiaries. Additionally, unless the context suggests otherwise, references to "U.S." are to the United States of America and Puerto Rico, collectively. Capitalized terms used but not defined in this Form 10-Q have the same meaning given to them in the 2022 Form 10-K.

The information contained in the following notes to the condensed consolidated financial statements is condensed from that which would appear in the annual consolidated financial statements; accordingly, the condensed consolidated financial statements included herein should be reviewed in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, and related notes thereto, included in the 2022 Form 10-K filed by Crown Castle Inc. ("CCI") with the SEC. Capitalized terms used but not defined in these notes to the condensed consolidated financial statements have the same meaning given to them in the 2022 Form 10-K. References to the "Company" refer to CCI and its predecessor, as applicable, and their subsidiaries, unless otherwise indicated or the context indicates otherwise. As used herein, the term "including," and any variation thereof means "including without limitation." The use of the word "or" herein is not exclusive. Unless the context suggests otherwise, references to "U.S." are to the United States of America and Puerto Rico, collectively.

The Company owns, operates and leases shared communications infrastructure that is geographically dispersed throughout the U.S., including (1) towers and other structures, such as rooftops (collectively, "towers"), and (2) fiber primarily supporting small cell networks ("small cells") and fiber solutions. The Company's towers, small cells and fiber assets are collectively referred to herein as "communications infrastructure," and the Company's customers on its communications infrastructure are referred to herein as "tenants."

The Company's core business is providing access, including space or capacity, to its shared communications infrastructure via long-term contracts in various forms, including lease, license, sublease and service agreements (collectively, "tenant contracts").

The Company's operating segments consist of (1) Towers and (2) Fiber. See note 10.

As part of the Company's effort to provide comprehensive communications infrastructure solutions, as an ancillary business, the Company also offers certain services primarily relating to its Towers segment, predominately consisting of (1) site development services relating to existing or new tenant equipment installations, including: site acquisition, architectural and engineering, or zoning and permitting (collectively, "site development services") and (2) tenant equipment installation or subsequent augmentations (collectively, "installation services").

The Company operates as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. In addition, the Company has certain taxable REIT subsidiaries ("TRSs"). See note 6.

Approximately 53% of the Company's towers are leased or subleased or operated and managed under master leases, subleases, and other agreements with AT&T and T-Mobile (including those which T-Mobile assumed in its merger with Sprint). The Company has the option to purchase these towers at the end of their respective lease terms. The Company has no obligation to exercise such purchase options.

The condensed consolidated financial statements included herein are unaudited; however, they include all adjustments (consisting only of normal recurring adjustments) which, in the opinion of management, are necessary to state fairly the condensed consolidated financial position of the Company as of March 31, 2023, the condensed consolidated results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, and the condensed consolidated cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022. The year-end condensed consolidated balance sheet data was derived from audited financial statements, but does not include all disclosures required by GAAP. The results of operations for the interim periods presented are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the full year.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

No accounting pronouncements adopted during the three months ended March 31, 2023 had a material impact on the Company's condensed consolidated financial statements.

No new accounting pronouncements issued but not yet adopted are expected to have a material impact on the Company's condensed consolidated financial statements.

The Company generates site rental revenues from its core business by providing tenants with access, including space or capacity, to its shared communications infrastructure via long-term tenant contracts in various forms, including lease, license, sublease and service agreements. Typically, providing such access over the length of the tenant contract term represents the Company’s sole performance obligation under its tenant contracts.

Site rental revenues from the Company's tenant contracts are recognized on a straight-line, ratable basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the relevant tenant contract, which generally ranges from five to 15 years for wireless tenants and three to 20 years for fiber solutions tenants (including from organizations with high-bandwidth and multi-location demands), regardless of whether the payments from the tenant are received in equal monthly amounts during the life of the tenant contract. Certain of the Company's tenant contracts contain (1) fixed escalation clauses (such as fixed dollar or fixed percentage increases) or inflation-based escalation clauses (such as those tied to the CPI), (2) multiple renewal periods exercisable at the tenant's option and (3) only limited termination rights at the applicable tenant's option through the current term. If the payment terms call for fixed escalators, upfront payments, or rent-free periods, the revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the tenant contract. When calculating straight-line rental revenues, the Company considers all fixed elements of tenant contractual escalation provisions, even if such escalation provisions contain a variable element in addition to a minimum. The Company's assets related to straight-line site rental revenues are recorded within "Current portion of deferred site rental receivables" and "Deferred site rental receivables" on the Company's condensed consolidated balance sheet. Amounts billed or received prior to being earned are deferred and reflected in "Deferred revenues" and "Other long-term liabilities" on the Company's condensed consolidated balance sheet. Amounts to which the Company has an unconditional right to payment, which are related to both satisfied or partially satisfied performance obligations, are recorded within "Receivables, net" on the Company's condensed consolidated balance sheet.

As part of the Company’s effort to provide comprehensive communications infrastructure solutions, as an ancillary business, the Company offers certain services primarily relating to its Towers segment, predominately consisting of (1) site development services and (2) installation services. Upon contract commencement, the Company assesses its services to tenants and identifies performance obligations for each promise to provide a distinct service.

The Company may have multiple performance obligations for site development services, which primarily include: structural analysis, zoning, permitting and construction drawings. For each of these performance obligations, services revenues are recognized at completion of the applicable performance obligation, which represents the point at which the Company believes it has transferred goods or services to the tenant. The services revenue recognized is based on an allocation of the transaction price among the performance obligations in a respective tenant contract based on estimated standalone selling price. The volume and mix of site development services may vary among tenant contracts and may include a combination of some or all of the above performance obligations. Amounts are billed per contractual milestones, with payments generally due within 45 to 60 days, and generally do not contain variable-consideration provisions. The transaction price for the Company's tower installation services consists of amounts for (1) permanent improvements to the Company's towers that represent a lease component and (2) the performance of the service. Amounts under the Company's tower installation service agreements that represent a lease component are recognized as site rental revenues on a straight-line basis over the length of the associated estimated lease term. For the performance of the installation service, the Company has one performance obligation, which is satisfied at the time of the applicable installation or augmentation and recognized as services and other revenues on the Company's condensed consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive income (loss). Since performance obligations are typically satisfied prior to receiving payment from tenants, the unconditional right to payment is recorded within "Receivables, net" on the Company’s condensed consolidated balance sheet. Generally, the services the Company provides to its tenants have a duration of one year or less.

As of both January 1, 2023 and March 31, 2023, $2.3 billion of unrecognized revenues were reported in "Deferred revenues" and "Other long-term liabilities" on the Company's condensed consolidated balance sheet. During the three months ended March 31, 2023, approximately $166 million of the January 1, 2023 unrecognized revenues balance was recognized as revenues. As of January 1, 2022, $2.6 billion of unrecognized revenues were reported in "Deferred revenues" and "Other long-term liabilities" on the Company's condensed consolidated balance sheet. During the three months ended March 31, 2022, approximately $190 million of the January 1, 2022 unrecognized revenues balance was recognized as revenues.

The following table is a summary of the contracted amounts owed to the Company by tenants pursuant to tenant contracts in effect as of March 31, 2023.

See note 10 for further information regarding the Company's operating segments.

See note 12 for a discussion of the Company's issuance of the April 2023 Senior Notes (as defined in note 12) and the use of the net proceeds therefrom.

The table below sets forth the Company's debt and other obligations as of March 31, 2023.

The following are the scheduled principal payments and final maturities of the total debt and other long-term obligations of the Company outstanding as of March 31, 2023, which do not consider the principal payments that will commence following the anticipated repayment dates on the Tower Revenue Notes.

There were no purchases and redemptions of long-term debt during the three months ended March 31, 2023.

The fair values of cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash approximate the carrying values. The Company determines the fair value of its debt securities based on indicative, non-binding quotes from brokers. Quotes from brokers require judgment and are based on the brokers' interpretation of market information, including implied credit spreads for similar borrowings on recent trades or bid/ask prices or quotes from active markets if available. Since December 31, 2022, there have been no changes in the Company's valuation techniques used to measure fair values.

The Company operates as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. As a REIT, the Company is generally entitled to a deduction for dividends that it pays and, therefore, is not subject to U.S. federal corporate income tax on its net taxable income that is currently distributed to its stockholders. The Company may be subject to certain federal, state, local and foreign taxes on its income, including (1) taxes on any undistributed income and (2) taxes related to the TRSs. In addition, the Company could, under certain circumstances, be required to pay an excise or penalty tax, which could be significant in amount, in order to utilize one or more relief provisions under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, to maintain qualification for taxation as a REIT.

The Company's TRS assets and operations will continue to be subject, as applicable, to federal and state corporate income taxes or to foreign taxes in the jurisdictions in which such assets and operations are located. The Company's foreign assets and operations (including its tower operations in Puerto Rico) are subject to foreign income taxes in the jurisdictions in which such assets and operations are located, regardless of whether they are included in a TRS or not.

For the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company's effective tax rate differed from the federal statutory rate predominately due to the Company's REIT status, including the dividends paid deduction.

Basic net income (loss), per common share, excludes dilution and is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period. For the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, diluted net income (loss), per common share, is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period, plus any potential dilutive common share equivalents, including shares issuable upon the vesting of restricted stock units ("RSUs") as determined under the treasury stock method.

During the three months ended March 31, 2023, the Company granted one million RSUs to the Company's executives and certain other employees.

The Company has received notices of claims and has been named as one of several defendants in lawsuits stemming from an April 2019 gas leak explosion in Durham, North Carolina, which occurred near an area where the Company's subcontractors were installing fiber. The explosion resulted in two fatalities, physical injuries (some of which were serious), and property damage to surrounding buildings and businesses. All of the claims have been resolved without any material payment by the Company.

The Company is involved in various other claims, assessments, lawsuits or proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business. While there are uncertainties inherent in the ultimate outcome of such other matters and it is impossible to presently determine the ultimate costs or losses that may be incurred, if any, management believes the adverse resolution of such uncertainties and the incurrence of such costs should not have a material adverse effect on the Company's condensed consolidated financial position or results of operations. The Company and certain of its subsidiaries are also contingently liable for commitments or performance guarantees arising in the ordinary course of business, including certain letters of credit or surety bonds. In addition, as mentioned in note 1, the Company has the option to purchase approximately 53% of its towers at the end of their respective lease terms. The Company has no obligation to exercise such purchase options.

During the three months ended March 31, 2023, the following dividends/distributions were declared or paid:

See also note 12 for a discussion of the Company's common stock dividend declared in May 2023.

For the three months ended March 31, 2023, the Company purchased 0.2 million shares of its common stock utilizing $28 million in cash. The shares of common stock purchased relate to shares withheld in connection with the payment of withholding taxes upon vesting of RSUs.

In March 2021, the Company established an "at-the-market" stock offering program through which it may issue and sell shares of its common stock having an aggregate gross sales price of up to $750 million ("2021 ATM Program"). Sales under the 2021 ATM Program may be made by means of ordinary brokers' transactions on the NYSE or otherwise at market prices prevailing at the time of sale, at prices related to prevailing market prices or, subject to the Company's specific instructions, at negotiated prices. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from any sales under the 2021 ATM Program for general corporate purposes, which may include (1) the funding of future acquisitions or investments or (2) the repayment or repurchase of any outstanding indebtedness. The Company has not sold any shares of common stock under the 2021 ATM Program.

The Company's operating segments consist of (1) Towers and (2) Fiber. The Towers segment provides access, including space or capacity, to the Company's more than 40,000 towers geographically dispersed throughout the U.S. The Towers segment also reflects certain ancillary services relating to the Company's towers, predominately consisting of site development services and installation services. The Fiber segment provides access, including space or capacity, to the Company's approximately (1) 120,000 small cells on air or under contract and (2) 85,000 route miles of fiber primarily supporting small cells and fiber solutions geographically dispersed throughout the U.S.

The measurements of profit or loss used by the Company's chief operating decision maker ("CODM") to evaluate the performance of its operating segments are (1) segment site rental gross margin, (2) segment services and other gross margin and (3) segment operating profit (loss). The Company defines segment site rental gross margin as segment site rental revenues less segment site rental costs of operations, excluding stock-based compensation expense, net and amortization of prepaid lease purchase price adjustments recorded in consolidated site rental costs of operations. The Company defines segment services and other gross margin as segment services and other revenues less segment services and other costs of operations, excluding stock-based compensation expense, net recorded in consolidated services and other costs of operations. The Company defines segment operating profit (loss) as segment site rental gross margin plus segment services and other gross margin, and segment other operating (income) expense, less segment selling, general and administrative expenses. All of these measurements of profit or loss are exclusive of depreciation, amortization and accretion, which are shown separately.

The following tables set forth the Company's segment operating results for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022. Costs that are directly attributable to Towers and Fiber are assigned to those respective segments. Additionally, certain costs are shared across segments and are reflected in the Company's segment measures through allocations that management believes to be reasonable. The "Other" column (1) represents amounts excluded from specific segments, such as certain selling, general and administrative expenses, asset write-down charges, acquisition and integration costs, depreciation, amortization and accretion, amortization of prepaid lease purchase price adjustments, interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs, net, gains (losses) on retirement of long-term obligations, interest income, other income (expense), and stock-based compensation expense, net and (2) reconciles segment operating profit (loss) to income (loss) before income taxes, as the amounts are not utilized in assessing each segment’s performance. The "Other" total assets balance includes corporate assets such as cash and cash equivalents which have not been allocated to specific segments. There are no significant revenues resulting from transactions between the Company's operating segments.

The following table is a summary of the Company's supplemental cash flow information for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022:

The reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash reported within various lines on the condensed consolidated balance sheet to amounts reported in the condensed consolidated statement of cash flows is shown below.

On May 1, 2023, the Company's board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.565 per common share. The quarterly dividend will be payable on June 30, 2023 to common stockholders of record as of June 15, 2023.

On April 26, 2023, the Company issued $600 million aggregate principal amount of 4.800% senior unsecured notes due 2028 and $750 million aggregate principal amount of 5.100% senior unsecured notes due 2033 (collectively, "April 2023 Senior Notes"). The Company used the net proceeds from the April 2023 Senior Notes offering to repay a portion of the outstanding indebtedness under the 2016 Revolver and pay related fees and expenses.

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 120,000 small cells on air or under contract and (3) approximately 85,000 route miles of fiber primarily supporting small cells and fiber solutions.

As a leading provider of shared communications infrastructure in the U.S., our strategy is to create long-term stockholder value via a combination of (1) growing cash flows generated from our existing portfolio of communications infrastructure, (2) returning a meaningful portion of our cash generated by operating activities to our common stockholders in the form of dividends and (3) investing capital efficiently to grow cash flows and long-term dividends per share. Our strategy is based, in part, on our belief that the U.S. is the most attractive market for shared communications infrastructure investment with the greatest long-term growth potential. We measure our efforts to create "long-term stockholder value" by the combined payment of dividends to stockholders and growth in our per-share results. The key elements of our strategy are to:

Our strategy to create long-term stockholder value is based on our belief that there will be considerable future demand for our communications infrastructure based on the location of our assets and the rapid and continuing growth in the demand for data. We believe that such demand for our communications infrastructure will continue, will result in growth of our cash flows due to tenant additions on our existing communications infrastructure, and will create other growth opportunities for us, such as demand for newly constructed or acquired communications infrastructure, as described above. Further, we seek to augment the long-term value creation associated with growing our recurring site rental cash flows by offering certain ancillary site development and installation services within our Towers segment.

The following are certain highlights of our full year 2023 outlook that impact our business fundamentals described above.

The following discussion of our results of operations should be read in conjunction with our condensed consolidated financial statements and the 2022 Form 10-K.

Our operating segments consist of (1) Towers and (2) Fiber. See note 10 to our condensed consolidated financial statements for further discussion of our operating segments.

Highlights of our results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 are depicted below.

Site rental revenues grew $48 million, or 3%, for the three months ended March 31, 2023 compared to the three months ended March 31, 2022. This growth was predominately comprised of the factors depicted in the chart below:

Towers site rental revenues for the first quarter of 2023 were $1.1 billion and increased by $6 million, or 1%, from $1.1 billion during the same period in the prior year. Towers site rental revenues were impacted by the following items, inclusive of straight-line accounting: tenant additions across our entire portfolio, renewals or extensions of tenant contracts, escalations and non-renewals of tenant contracts. Tenant additions were influenced by our tenants' ongoing efforts to improve network quality and capacity.

Fiber site rental revenues for the first quarter of 2023 were $543 million and increased by $42 million, or 8%, from $501 million during the same period in the prior year. Fiber site rental revenues were predominately impacted by $48 million of payments related to the Sprint Cancellations.

Towers site rental gross margin was $847 million in the first quarter of 2023 compared to $850 million in the first quarter of 2022. The decrease was related to the previously-mentioned 1% increase in Towers site rental revenues being fully offset by the increase in site rental costs of operations. Fiber site rental gross margin was $371 million in the first quarter of 2023 compared to $339 million in the first quarter of 2022. The increase in Fiber site rental gross margin was predominately related to the previously-mentioned 8% increase in Fiber site rental revenues.

Towers services and other gross margin was $47 million for the first quarter of 2023 and decreased by $7 million from $54 million during the same period in the prior year, which is a reflection of the lower volume of activity from carriers' network enhancements and the volume and mix of services and other work. Our services and other offerings are of a variable nature as these revenues are not under long-term tenant contracts.

Selling, general and administrative expenses for the first quarter of 2023 were $195 million and increased by $14 million, or 8%, from $181 million during the same period in the prior year. This increase was primarily related to certain expenses, including travel and facilities, returning to their pre-pandemic levels following our return to the office in February 2022.

Towers operating profit (loss) for the first quarter of 2023 decreased by $13 million, or 1%, from the same period in the prior year. The decrease in Towers operating profit (loss) was primarily related to the previously-mentioned decreases in both Towers site rental gross margin and Towers services and other gross margin.

Fiber operating profit (loss) for the first quarter of 2023 increased by $30 million, or 10%, from the same period in the prior year. The increase in Fiber operating profit (loss) was primarily related to the previously-mentioned increase in Fiber site rental gross margin.

Depreciation, amortization and accretion was approximately $431 million for first quarter of 2023 and increased by $11 million, or 3% during the same period in the prior year. This increase predominately resulted from a corresponding increase in our gross property and equipment due to capital expenditures.

For the first quarter of 2023 and 2022, the effective tax rate differs from the federal statutory rate predominately due to our REIT status, including the dividends paid deduction. See note 6 to our condensed consolidated financial statements and also note 9 to our consolidated financial statements in the 2022 Form 10-K.

Net income (loss) was $418 million during the first quarter of 2023 compared to $421 million during the first quarter of 2022. The decrease was predominately related to an increase in expenses, including (1) selling, general and administrative expenses, and (2) depreciation, amortization and accretion and (3) interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs, net, partially offset by the previously-mentioned increase in Fiber operating profit (loss).

Adjusted EBITDA increased $9 million, or 1%, from the first quarter of 2022 to the first quarter of 2023, reflecting the previously-mentioned increase in Fiber operating profit (loss).

We have engaged, and expect to continue to engage, in discretionary investments that we believe will maximize long-term stockholder value. Our historical discretionary investments include (in no particular order): constructing communications infrastructure, acquiring communications infrastructure, acquiring land interests (which primarily relate to land assets under towers), improving and structurally enhancing our existing communications infrastructure, purchasing shares of our common stock, and purchasing, repaying, or redeeming our debt. We have recently spent, and expect to continue to spend, a significant percentage of our discretionary investments on the construction of small cells and fiber. We seek to fund our discretionary investments with both cash generated by operating activities and cash available from financing capacity, such as the use of our availability under our 2016 Revolver, issuances under our CP Program, debt financings and issuances of equity or equity-related securities, including under our 2021 ATM Program.

We seek to maintain a capital structure that we believe drives long-term stockholder value and optimizes our weighted-average cost of capital. We target a leverage ratio of approximately five times Adjusted EBITDA, subject to various factors, such as the availability and cost of capital and the potential long-term return on our discretionary investments. We may choose to increase or decrease our leverage from this target for various periods of time. Our contractual debt maturities over the next 12 months consist of (1) Commercial Paper Notes, of which we had $577 million outstanding as of May 1, 2023, (2) $750 million aggregate principal amount of 3.150% senior unsecured notes ("3.150% Senior Notes") and (3) principal payments on certain outstanding debt. Amounts available under our CP Program may be repaid and re-issued from time to time and we intend to maintain available commitments under our 2016 Revolver in an amount at least equal to the amount of Commercial Paper Notes outstanding.

We operate as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. We expect to continue to pay minimal cash income taxes as a result of our REIT status and our NOLs. See note 6 to our condensed consolidated financial statements and also the 2022 Form 10-K.

Over the next 12 months:

Net cash provided by operating activities of $606 million for the first three months of 2023 increased by $48 million, or 9%, compared to the first three months of 2022, due primarily to a net increase from changes in working capital and growth in our core business. Changes in working capital contribute to variability in net cash provided by operating activities, largely due to the timing of advanced payments by us and advanced receipts from tenants. We expect to grow our net cash provided by operating activities in the future (exclusive of changes in working capital) if we realize expected growth in our core business.

Net cash used for investing activities of $407 million for the first three months of 2023 increased by $118 million, or 41%, from the first three months of 2022 primarily as a result of payments for acquisitions in our Towers segment and increased discretionary capital expenditures in our Fiber segment.

Our capital expenditures are categorized as discretionary or sustaining as described below.

A summary of our capital expenditures for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 is as follows:

We seek to allocate cash generated by our operations in a manner that will enhance long-term stockholder value, which may include various financing activities such as (in no particular order): (1) paying dividends on our common stock (currently expected to total at least $6.26 per share over the next 12 months, or an aggregate amount of approximately $2.7 billion), (2) purchasing our common stock or (3) purchasing, repaying, or redeeming our debt. See notes 4, 9 and 12 to our condensed consolidated financial statements.

The net proceeds of the January 2023 Senior Notes were used to repay a portion of the outstanding indebtedness under the 2016 Revolver and pay related fees and expenses.

We use earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and accretion, as adjusted ("Adjusted EBITDA"), which is a non-GAAP financial measure, as an indicator of consolidated financial performance. Our measure of Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies, including companies in the communications infrastructure sector or other REITs, and is not a measure of performance calculated in accordance with GAAP. Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for operating income (loss), net income (loss), net cash provided by (used for) operating, investing and financing activities or other income statement or cash flow statement data prepared in accordance with GAAP and should be considered only as a supplement to net income (loss) computed in accordance with GAAP as a measure of our performance. There are material limitations to using a measure such as Adjusted EBITDA, including the difficulty associated with comparing results among more than one company, including our competitors, and the inability to analyze certain significant items, including depreciation and interest expense, that directly affect our net income (loss). Management compensates for these limitations by considering the economic effect of the excluded expense items independently as well as in connection with their analysis of net income (loss).

We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income (loss) plus restructuring charges (credits), asset write-down charges, acquisition and integration costs, depreciation, amortization and accretion, amortization of prepaid lease purchase price adjustments, interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs, net, (gains) losses on retirement of long-term obligations, net (gain) loss on interest rate swaps, (gains) losses on foreign currency swaps, impairment of available-for-sale securities, interest income, other (income) expense, (benefit) provision for income taxes, cumulative effect of a change in accounting principle, stock-based compensation expense, net and net (gain) loss from disposal of discontinued operations, net of tax. The reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to our net income (loss) is set forth below:

We believe Adjusted EBITDA is useful to investors or other interested parties in evaluating our financial performance because:

Our management uses Adjusted EBITDA:

In addition to the non-GAAP measures used herein and as discussed in note 10 to our condensed consolidated financial statements, we also provide (1) segment site rental gross margin, (2) segment services and other gross margin, and (3) segment operating profit (loss), which are key measures used by management to evaluate the performance of our operating segments. These segment measures are provided pursuant to GAAP requirements related to segment reporting.

We define segment site rental gross margin as segment site rental revenues less segment site rental costs of operations, excluding stock-based compensation expense, net and amortization of prepaid lease purchase price adjustments recorded in consolidated site rental costs of operations. We define segment services and other gross margin as segment services and other revenues less segment services and other costs of operations, excluding stock-based compensation expense, net recorded in consolidated services and other costs of operations. We define segment operating profit (loss) as segment site rental gross margin plus segment services and other gross margin, and segment other operating (income) expense, less segment selling, general and administrative expenses. All of these measurements of profit or loss are exclusive of depreciation, amortization and accretion, which are shown separately. Additionally, certain costs are shared across segments and are reflected in our segment measures through allocations that management believes to be reasonable.

Our interest rate risk as of March 31, 2023 relates primarily to the impact of interest rate movements on the following, after giving effect to our April 2023 Senior Notes offering and the use of the net proceeds therefrom:

We currently have no interest rate swaps.

The Company conducted an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of the Company's management, including the Company's Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") and Chief Financial Officer ("CFO"), of the effectiveness of the Company's disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the period covered by this report. Based upon their evaluation, the CEO and CFO concluded that as of March 31, 2023, the Company's disclosure controls and procedures were effective in alerting them in a timely manner to material information relating to the Company required to be included in the Company's periodic reports under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

There have been no changes in the Company's internal control over financial reporting during the fiscal quarter covered by this Form 10-Q that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company's internal control over financial reporting.

See the disclosure in note 8 to our condensed consolidated financial statements.