Lumen Technologies(DE:CYTH)
€4.25+0.33 (+8.56%)
DE:CYTH
Lumen Technologies earnings date
€4.25
At close:+0.33 (+8.56%)
Lumen Technologies (CYTH) Q3 2026 Earnings Report
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DE:CYTH Q3 2026 EPS Results
- Actual EPS
- -EUR 0.12
- Consensus EPS
- -EUR 0.21
- Beat/Miss
- Beat by +EUR 0.08
- One Year Ago EPS
- -EUR 0.18
DE:CYTH Q3 2026 Revenue Results
- Actual Revenue
- EUR 2.42B
- Expected Revenue
- EUR 2.44B
- Beat/Miss
- Missed by -EUR 16.11M
- YoY Revenue Growth
- -12.05%
Earnings Announcement Details
- Quarter
- Q3 2026
- Date
- 11/04/2026
- Time
- After Close
- Conference Call
- Wednesday, November 4, 2026
DE:CYTH Upcoming Earnings
Lumen Technologies's next earnings date is estimated for February 9, 2027, based on past reporting schedules.
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Audio
DE:CYTH Q3 2026 Earnings Call
0:00 / 0:00
Q3 2026 Earnings Slide Deck
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Sentiment|Positive
The call was predominantly positive. Management reported strong strategic and digital growth, accelerating AI-related demand, significant PCF bookings, improving margins, customer adoption, balance-sheet flexibility and reaffirmed full-year guidance. Offsetting issues included declines in total and North American enterprise revenue, negative free cash flow, lumpy PCF revenue recognition and execution timing related to copper decommissioning.
Company Guidance
For the full year, Lumen expects adjusted EBITDA of $3.1 billion to $3.3 billion, capital expenditures of $3.2 billion to $3.4 billion and free cash flow, excluding special items and cash tax payments related to its mass markets fiber-to-the-home divestiture, of $1.9 billion to $2.1 billion; the total business revenue inflection is still 2028, modernization and simplification savings are expected to reach $1 billion for next year, and at current copper prices Lumen expects to generate between $1 billion and $1.5 billion in pretax net copper proceeds across its footprint over the next 5 years, with this building over time and depending on customer migration, regulatory approvals, recovery costs and market conditions.
- Accelerating Network Traffic and AI DemandOverall traffic on Lumen's global public internet backbone has grown 20% since the beginning of the year. AI traffic on that network has grown more than 1,000% since April, indicating increasing enterprise AI inferencing activity.
- Strong Strategic Sales and Revenue GrowthTotal strategic sales surged 30% year-over-year in the third quarter. Strategic Waves sales increased 22% sequentially, while strategic revenue grew 10% year-over-year to $1.28 billion and represented 55% of total business revenue, up from 48% a year ago and 53% last quarter.
- PCF Bookings and Fiber Deployment Ahead of ScheduleLumen signed an additional $700 million of PCF business, bringing cumulative signed PCF deals to more than $13.5 billion. The company exceeded its 2026 target to deploy 5 million new fiber miles funded by signed PCF deals more than 2 months ahead of schedule, with no slowdown reported.
- Rapid Growth in Digital RevenueDigital revenue increased 86.7% year-over-year to $56 million, driven by strength in NaaS and Alkira. Excluding Alkira, the company reported healthy double-digit digital growth, and management said it had exceeded internal targets for the year earlier than expected.
- NaaS Customer and Service Adoption MomentumNaaS customers exceeded 4,000. Active customers increased 24% quarter-over-quarter, active ports rose 38%, and active services grew 35%. Additionally, 20% of NaaS Internet on Demand ports carry more than one service.
- Lumen Intelligent Internet Scaled OfferingLumen converged Dedicated Internet Access and NaaS Internet on Demand into Lumen Intelligent Internet. The combined business has more than $1 billion of revenue, over 100,000 installed ports and more than 25,000 customers, with connectivity available at more than 10 million U.S. locations.
- Strong Wavelength and Neocloud DemandDemand for 400-gig rapid waves from Neocloud customers is increasing. New wavelength installs from AI companies over the last 12 months grew more than fivefold compared with the prior 12-month period and drove more than one-third of new 400-gig wave installs.
- Operating Leverage and Attractive Strategic MarginsManagement stated that digital services added to installed ports generate revenue at nearly 100% direct margin. Year-to-date average direct margin across the strategic portfolio was over 80%, compared with approximately 65% for legacy services.
- Third-Quarter EBITDA Beat and Full-Year InflectionThird-quarter adjusted EBITDA, excluding special items, was $715 million and was higher than originally anticipated, primarily due to lower-than-expected operating expenses. Management said the result keeps Lumen on track for the full-year adjusted EBITDA inflection previously outlined.
- Revenue Ahead of ExpectationsTotal revenue was $2.72 billion, ahead of company expectations and in line with consensus. Revenue included a positive $27 million impact from support payments under the FCC's Connect America Fund and Phase II program, although the payment did not affect adjusted EBITDA.
- Balance Sheet Strength and Debt Reduction CapacityMore than 80% of Lumen's debt is fixed rate, with approximately $2.4 billion tied to SOFR. A 25-basis-point rate change affects annual interest expense by approximately $6 million. Only approximately $1.2 billion of debt matures over the next five years, and refinancing and capital-structure actions have reduced annual interest expense by nearly $0.5 billion.
- Copper Monetization OpportunityLumen plans to accelerate copper decommissioning in Iowa, Florida, Nevada and Utah, representing approximately 25% of its copper network. At current copper prices, the company expects between $1 billion and $1.5 billion in pretax net copper proceeds across its footprint over the next five years, with proceeds supporting debt reduction and strategic investment.
- Full-Year Guidance ReaffirmedLumen reaffirmed full-year guidance for adjusted EBITDA of $3.1 billion to $3.3 billion, capital expenditures of $3.2 billion to $3.4 billion, and free cash flow, excluding special items and cash tax payments related to the mass markets fiber-to-the-home divestiture, of $1.9 billion to $2.1 billion.
- Industry Recognition and Strategic PartnershipsLumen won four Mplify 2026 NaaS Excellence Awards, was named Frost & Sullivan's 2026 Global NaaS Company of the Year and received a Frost Radar Visionary Leader Award. The company also expanded its Microsoft partnership, including a joint enterprise selling motion, and is working with Emerald AI and Ohio State University on power-aware networking and quantum-resistant connectivity initiatives.
- Customer Wins and Platform ExpansionVUMI Group selected Lumen to replace its legacy VPN with zero-trust cloud networking, maintain secure always-on global access and enable a data center exit without adding headcount. Lumen also cited continued customer adoption from Nasdaq and Volvo.
DE:CYTH Earnings History
| Report Date | Fiscal Quarter | Forecast / EPS | Last Year's EPS | EPS YoY Change | Press Release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 09, 2027 | 2026 (Q4) | -0.13- | 0.21 | ― | ― |
| Nov 04, 2026 | 2026 (Q3) | -0.21-0.12 | -0.18 | 30.00% (+0.05) | |
| Aug 04, 2026 | 2026 (Q2) | -0.12-0.06 | -0.03 | -133.33% (-0.04) | |
| May 05, 2026 | 2026 (Q1) | -0.12-0.42 | -0.12 | -261.54% (-0.30) | |
| Feb 03, 2026 | 2025 (Q4) | -0.230.21 | 0.08 | 155.56% (+0.12) | |
| Oct 30, 2025 | 2025 (Q3) | -0.23-0.18 | -0.12 | -53.85% (-0.06) | |
| Jul 31, 2025 | 2025 (Q2) | -0.23-0.03 | -0.12 | 76.92% (+0.09) | |
| May 01, 2025 | 2025 (Q1) | -0.23-0.12 | -0.04 | -225.00% (-0.08) | |
| Feb 04, 2025 | 2024 (Q4) | -0.040.08 | 0.07 | 12.50% (+0.01) | |
| Nov 05, 2024 | 2024 (Q3) | -0.08-0.12 | -0.08 | -44.44% (-0.04) |
The table shows recent earnings report dates and whether the forecast was beat or missed. See the change in forecast and EPS from the previous year.
Beat Missed
