Helios Towers Raises 2026 Guidance After Record Tenancy Additions Across Africa and Middle East

November 6th 2026

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Helios Towers has reported a 13% increase in revenue to US$718.8 million for the nine months ended 30 September 2026, supported by growth in tenancies across its markets in Africa and the Middle East.

The independent mobile telecommunications tower company recorded 3,435 tenancy additions during the period, its highest year-to-date total, including 942 tenancies at new sites. Total tenancies increased 12% year-on-year to 35,379, while its tenancy ratio rose to 2.26x from 2.16x a year earlier.

Helios Towers operates 15,688 sites across nine countries in Africa and the Middle East. It attributed revenue growth mainly to tenancy additions, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Tanzania and Malawi, alongside power price escalations.

Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased 13% to US$392.2 million, with the EBITDA margin improving to 55% from 54%. The company attributed the margin improvement partly to its higher tenancy ratio, which was offset by increased fuel costs. Operating profit rose 23% to US$259.1 million, while return on invested capital improved by 0.4 percentage points to 14.2%.

Recurring free cash flow grew 10% to US$133.7 million. However, overall free cash flow recorded an outflow of US$5.2 million, compared with an inflow of US$48.7 million in the corresponding period of 2025, reflecting higher capital expenditure. Discretionary capital expenditure increased to US$172.8 million from US$72 million a year earlier.

The company’s net leverage stood at 3.4x, down 0.2x year-on-year but unchanged from the end of 2025.

Following the performance, Helios Towers raised its full-year 2026 expectations. It now expects approximately 4,000 tenancy additions, compared with its previous guidance of 3,500 to 4,000. Adjusted EBITDA is projected at around US$535 million, up from the previous range of US$520 million to US$535 million, while recurring free cash flow is expected to exceed US$235 million, compared with the earlier range of US$220 million to US$235 million.

The company expects discretionary capital expenditure of US$230 million to US$245 million for the year, compared with its previous guidance of US$215 million to US$245 million.

Helios Towers also increased shareholder returns through its share buyback programme. The company repurchased US$48 million worth of shares during the year to date, bringing cumulative repurchases to US$72 million since the programme began in November 2025. In September, its board increased the buyback authorisation by US$100 million to US$175 million and extended the programme to 31 December 2027. The company also paid its first interim dividend of 0.604 pence per share on 14 September 2026.

Its contracted revenue reached a record US$6.2 billion, providing visibility over future income. Approximately 98% of the contracted revenue comes from large multinational mobile network operators, while about 70% is attributable to investment-grade customers. The average remaining contract term stood at 6.4 years, and 69% of revenue generated during the period was in hard currency.

“We continue to deliver strong operational and financial performance, underpinned by exceptional and accelerating customer demand across our markets. With record tenancy additions, sustained double-digit earnings growth and strong cash flow generation, we have tightened our full-year guidance upwards, reinforcing our confidence in the outlook for 2026. This momentum is expected to continue into 2027, and we expect to deliver over 3,000 tenancies next year, supporting continued double-digit Adj. EBITDA growth. We are firmly in the cash compounding sweet spot, growing recurring free cash flow and improving ROIC on our established platform, which supports investing in all highly attractive organic growth opportunities while increasing shareholder distributions and improving financial flexibility. Our recent decision to increase the share buyback programme by US$100 million to US$175 million through to the end of 2027 demonstrates our confidence in the business and commitment to delivering sustainable value for shareholders. The opportunity across Africa and the Middle East is very compelling. Rapid population growth, increasing mobile penetration and accelerating data consumption continue to drive ever more demand for our infrastructure. As our customers invest behind these long-term structural trends, our leading market positions and robust and resilient business model mean we are exceptionally well positioned to capitalise on this multi-decade opportunity and deliver against our IMPACT 2030 ambitions.”

– Tom Greenwood, Chief Executive Officer, Helios Towers 

Helios Towers said management hosted a conference call for analysts and institutional investors at 09:30 GMT on the day of the announcement.

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