Helios Towers H1 2026: Guidance Upgraded as EBITDA Rises 14%

Helios Towers PLC has upgraded its full-year guidance after record tenancy additions helped lift revenue, Adjusted EBITDA and recurring free cash flow during the first half of 2026.

The independent mobile tower operator also announced its inaugural interim dividend, alongside further progress with its share buyback programme. These shareholder returns are being funded while the group continues investing heavily in new sites and reducing leverage.

There is plenty for investors to like here. Customer demand remains robust, operating margins have improved and contracted revenue has reached a record US$5.9 billion. The main blemish is that statutory profit fell as foreign exchange movements pushed finance costs sharply higher.

Helios Towers' H1 2026 key figures

Metric	H1 2026	H1 2025	Change
Revenue	US$466.3 million	US$418.3 million	11%
Adjusted EBITDA	US$257.0 million	US$225.5 million	14%
Adjusted EBITDA margin	55%	54%	1 percentage point
Operating profit	US$162.9 million	US$133.1 million	22%
Profit for the period	US$21.7 million	US$30.9 million	-30%
Recurring free cash flow	US$105.8 million	US$69.5 million	52%
Net leverage	3.4 times	3.8 times	0.4 times lower
Tenancies	34,455	30,617	13%

The original company announcement contains the complete unaudited interim accounts.

Record tenancy growth drives the business forward

Helios Towers added a record 2,511 tenancies during the year to date, including 524 new sites. Total sites reached 15,270, while tenancies climbed to 34,455.

A tenancy is an agreement under which a mobile network operator uses space and related services at a tower site. The company can improve returns by placing multiple customers on the same infrastructure, as the extra revenue does not require the cost of building an entirely new tower.

That operating efficiency is captured by the tenancy ratio, which rose from 2.11 times to 2.26 times year on year. Put simply, Helios Towers now has an average of 2.26 tenants or tenancy arrangements for every tower site.

The expanding ratio helped Adjusted EBITDA margin rise from 54% to 55%. Adjusted EBITDA is the company's preferred measure of operating profitability before interest, tax and several accounting or exceptional items.

This is encouraging because revenue increased by 11%, while Adjusted EBITDA grew faster at 14%. It suggests that additional tenancies are improving the economics of the existing tower portfolio rather than merely making the business larger.

Return on invested capital, or ROIC, also increased from 13.6% to 14.4%. This measures the cash return generated from the money invested in the tower estate and supports management's argument that organic expansion remains attractive.

Cash generation improved, but investment absorbed the surplus

Recurring free cash flow increased by 52% to US$105.8 million, with the basic per-share figure rising 55% to 10.2 cents.

That is a meaningful improvement and gives Helios Towers more flexibility to balance expansion, debt reduction and shareholder distributions. However, it is worth distinguishing recurring free cash flow from the cash left after growth investment.

Discretionary capital additions increased from US$38.4 million to US$101.7 million as the company accelerated its site and tenancy roll-out. As a result, free cash flow after discretionary investment was only US$2.4 million, down from US$29.9 million.

Cash generated from operations also fell 16% to US$182.2 million, predominantly because of working-capital movements. Trade receivables increased due to the timing of customer invoices and collections, although receivable days remained unchanged at 49.

The cash picture is therefore not weak, but it is investment-heavy. Management is choosing to deploy much of the stronger recurring cash generation into additional infrastructure that is expected to support future earnings.

Guidance upgraded again for 2026

Management raised its full-year targets following the strong first half and customer pipeline.

2026 guidance	New guidance	Previous guidance
Tenancy additions	3,500-4,000	3,000-3,500
Adjusted EBITDA	US$520 million-US$535 million	US$515 million-US$530 million
Recurring free cash flow	US$220 million-US$235 million	US$215 million-US$230 million
Discretionary capital expenditure	US$215 million-US$245 million	US$180 million-US$210 million

The extra 500 expected tenancies include around 250 sites. Management expects the timing of the roll-out to add US$5 million to Adjusted EBITDA in 2026, with the incremental tenancies contributing more than US$10 million of annualised Adjusted EBITDA from 2027.

The guidance upgrade comes with an important trade-off. Discretionary capital expenditure has increased by US$35 million to fund the additional growth. Investors are being asked to accept higher spending now in return for contracted income and improved earnings potential later.

This follows the strategy outlined alongside Helios Towers' FY 2025 results, with the latest figures providing early evidence of progress under IMPACT 2030.

First interim dividend joins the share buyback

The board has approved Helios Towers' first interim dividend at 0.604p per share. It is payable on 14 September 2026 to shareholders on the register on 7 August, with an ex-dividend date of 6 August.

The company retains its US$25 million target for the full-year 2026 dividend, expected to be paid one-third during 2026 and two-thirds in the first half of 2027 through the final dividend.

Helios Towers completed US$27 million of share buybacks during H1 and another US$7 million by 24 July. Cumulative repurchases have reached US$58 million since the programme began in November 2025.

Management continues to target US$51 million of buybacks during 2026, alongside the US$25 million dividend. This combination signals growing confidence in the company's cash-generating ability, although future returns still depend on operational performance and capital requirements.

Why reported profit moved backwards

Despite stronger trading, profit for the period fell from US$30.9 million to US$21.7 million. Basic earnings per share declined from 2.9 cents to 1.9 cents.

Finance costs increased by 71% to US$125.8 million, largely because the company recorded US$21.8 million of non-cash foreign exchange losses. The comparable period included US$18.9 million of foreign exchange gains.

This explains the gap between operational progress and lower statutory earnings. Adjusted basic earnings per share, which removes certain foreign exchange movements and non-recurring items, increased from 0.5 cents to 5.2 cents.

Currency movements are still a genuine risk rather than something investors should ignore. Helios Towers operates across nine countries in Africa and the Middle East, while reporting in US dollars. Although 69% of revenue was denominated in hard currency, exchange-rate volatility can still cause substantial movements in reported finance costs and profit.

Balance-sheet progress remains important

Net leverage fell from 3.8 times to 3.4 times year on year, driven by Adjusted EBITDA growth. Leverage measures net debt relative to annualised Adjusted EBITDA, so a lower figure indicates an improving ability to support borrowings from operating earnings.

The company also refinanced its 2028 term loan through US$500 million of 6.750% senior notes due in 2031. This reduced its cost of debt by around 40 basis points to 6.7% and extended average maturities by one year.

Helios Towers had US$206.6 million of cash at the period end and says it now has more than US$500 million of cash and available debt facilities. However, net debt remained substantial at US$1.77 billion, meaning continued deleveraging should remain an important part of the investment case.

What investors should watch next

Helios Towers has produced a strong operating half-year, with record tenancy additions, improving margins and upgraded guidance. The inaugural dividend and ongoing buyback add a new shareholder-return element without halting investment in the estate.

The key question is whether the current capital expenditure can keep producing attractive tenancy growth and higher recurring cash flow. Investors should also monitor statutory earnings, foreign exchange exposure and the pace of leverage reduction.

For now, the upgraded outlook and stronger contracted revenue base provide good visibility. The challenge is converting that operational momentum into consistently higher cash available after growth spending, finance costs and shareholder distributions.