VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ WIDE MOAT STOCKS & COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES ★

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Wednesday, December 31, 2025

American Tower Corporation

AMT · New York Stock Exchange

Market cap (USD)
SectorReal Estate
CountryUS
Data as of
Moat score
76/ 100

Weighted average of segment moat scores, combining moat strength, durability, confidence, market structure, pricing power, and market share.

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Overview

American Tower Corporation is a U.S. REIT that owns and operates multitenant communications sites (towers and related infrastructure) and a U.S. data center platform. Its tower business is supported by long-dated, generally non-cancellable carrier leases with built-in rent escalators and by the scarcity of permitted, well-located sites inside a large portfolio. Low churn and multi-tenant colocation economics provide operating leverage as additional tenants and equipment are added. In data centers, interconnection offerings and a highly interconnected footprint across major U.S. markets provide some ecosystem benefits, though competition is intense. Key risks include carrier consolidation and churn, regulatory/policy shifts affecting siting or lease economics, and competitive/technology shifts (e.g., small cells or hyperscaler self-build).

Primary segment

U.S. & Canada Communications Sites

Market structure

Oligopoly

Market share

HHI:

Coverage

3 segments · 5 tags

Updated 2025-12-31

Segments

U.S. & Canada Communications Sites

Wireless communications site leasing (macro towers, rooftops and DAS)

Revenue

Structure

Oligopoly

Pricing

moderate

Share

Peers

CCISBAC

International Communications Sites

Wireless communications site leasing (macro towers and related communications infrastructure)

Revenue

Structure

Oligopoly

Pricing

moderate

Share

Peers

CLNX.MCINW.MITOWR.JK

Data Centers

Colocation data centers and interconnection services

Revenue

Structure

Competitive

Pricing

moderate

Share

Peers

EQIXDLRIRM

Moat Claims

U.S. & Canada Communications Sites

Wireless communications site leasing (macro towers, rooftops and DAS)

Segment definition aligns with the company's U.S. & Canada property operations (excluding data centers).

Oligopoly

Long Term Contracts

Demand

Strength

Durability

Confidence

Evidence

Carrier leases are typically long-dated and non-cancellable during the initial term, creating a recurring revenue base with contractual escalators.

Erosion risks

  • Carrier consolidation and bargaining power
  • Contractual cancellations / non-renewals (e.g., integration-driven churn)
  • Regulatory or legislative changes affecting tower leasing economics

Leading indicators

  • Tenant billings growth (U.S. & Canada)
  • Churn rate and renewal outcomes
  • Carrier radio access network capex trends

Counterarguments

  • Large tenants can renegotiate pricing at renewal or exercise termination rights where available
  • Alternative architectures (small cells, network sharing) can reduce incremental macro-tower demand

Permits Rights Of Way

Legal

Strength

Durability

Confidence

Evidence

Siting work (applications, zoning and permitting) is complex and time-consuming, which benefits incumbents with existing permitted locations.

Erosion risks

  • Policy changes that streamline tower approvals
  • Greater use of collocation on competitor sites
  • Shift of spending from macro towers to small cells in dense urban areas

Leading indicators

  • Average time-to-permit for new builds
  • Percentage of growth from amendments vs new sites
  • Local regulation changes affecting tower siting

Counterarguments

  • Incumbents and new entrants alike can navigate permitting with experienced contractors
  • In many cases, carriers can add capacity via amendments rather than new tower construction

Physical Network Density

Supply

Strength

Durability

Confidence

Evidence

A large, well-located tower footprint increases the probability of having the right site for a carrier's network needs and supports multi-tenant colocation economics.

Erosion risks

  • Technology shifts reducing reliance on macro towers (e.g., satellite-to-device, small cells)
  • Natural disasters or localized site decommissions
  • Competitive overbuild in select markets

Leading indicators

  • Tenants per tower / colocations per site
  • Amendment activity and new tenant additions
  • Macro tower utilization vs small cell deployments

Counterarguments

  • Portfolio scale is shared with other large U.S. tower REITs; differentiation can be market-by-market
  • If carriers shift spend to alternative infrastructure, location density becomes less valuable

Switching Costs General

Demand

Strength

Durability

Confidence

Evidence

Low historical churn suggests moving off established sites is uncommon; relocation risks service quality and requires engineering/permitting work.

Erosion risks

  • Carrier network consolidation (e.g., decommissioning duplicate sites)
  • Increased use of network sharing and carrier-neutral host models
  • Aggressive pricing competition leading to targeted relocations

Leading indicators

  • U.S. & Canada churn trend
  • Non-renewal / cancellation notices from top tenants
  • Carrier spectrum and network rationalization activity

Counterarguments

  • Major integrations (like Sprint/T-Mobile) can drive elevated churn for years
  • Some sites are substitutable if multiple towers cover the same area

International Communications Sites

Wireless communications site leasing (macro towers and related communications infrastructure)

Includes Africa & APAC, Europe and Latin America property operations (as defined by the company's reporting).

Oligopoly

Long Term Contracts

Demand

Strength

Durability

Confidence

Evidence

International tower leases are generally long-dated and non-cancellable during the initial term, with escalators often tied to local inflation indices.

Erosion risks

  • Regulatory intervention in telecom or tower pricing
  • Mobile operator consolidation and tenant renegotiations
  • Currency volatility reducing USD-reported growth

Leading indicators

  • International organic tenant billings growth
  • FX movements vs major operating currencies
  • Regulatory actions affecting tower companies

Counterarguments

  • Tenants can push for pricing resets during renewals or through disputes/arbitration
  • Some countries can shift to sharing agreements that reduce incremental site leasing

Permits Rights Of Way

Legal

Strength

Durability

Confidence

Evidence

Local siting processes and permitting create barriers and delay for new entrants, reinforcing the value of existing site portfolios.

Erosion risks

  • Government policy speeding approvals or promoting municipal networks
  • Overbuild by competing towercos in select markets
  • Landlord cost inflation and ground lease pressure

Leading indicators

  • Time-to-build and approval cycle times by country
  • Competitive tender activity for new build-to-suit programs
  • Ground lease / land cost inflation

Counterarguments

  • In some markets, new build programs can still proceed quickly with the right relationships
  • Carriers may prefer shared/neutral-host models that reduce dependence on any single towerco

Physical Network Density

Supply

Strength

Durability

Confidence

Evidence

Large, multi-country tower portfolios provide coverage options for tenants and enable colocation economics in markets where high-quality sites are scarce.

Erosion risks

  • Political instability or expropriation risk in select markets
  • Power reliability issues increasing operating costs
  • Technology shifts reducing need for macro sites

Leading indicators

  • International tenancy ratio / colocation rate
  • Power/fuel cost trends in off-grid markets
  • Tenant investment cycles (spectrum auctions, 4G/5G rollouts)

Counterarguments

  • Scale does not always translate to pricing power if tenant concentration is high
  • Local competitors can have stronger relationships and faster build execution

Data Centers

Colocation data centers and interconnection services

Defined as U.S. data center facilities and related assets; includes interconnection offerings as a non-lease revenue stream.

Competitive

Interoperability Hub

Network

Strength

Durability

Confidence

Evidence

Interconnection offerings and a highly interconnected facility portfolio create some ecosystem pull (networks and customers colocate to reduce latency and increase connectivity options).

Erosion risks

  • Scale/network effects at larger peers (EQIX/DLR) attract more ecosystems
  • Customers multi-home across data centers, reducing lock-in
  • Pricing pressure as colocation supply expands

Leading indicators

  • Interconnection revenue growth vs space/power leasing growth
  • Leasing velocity in key metros
  • New capacity additions and power availability constraints

Counterarguments

  • Interconnection offerings are typically month-to-month and cancellable, limiting durability of the advantage
  • Larger colocation platforms may offer denser network ecosystems and broader global reach

Capacity Moat

Supply

Strength

Durability

Confidence

Evidence

Operating footprint across major U.S. markets provides available space/power and a platform for incremental leasing; new builds require time, capital and power procurement.

Erosion risks

  • Power constraints delay expansions and raise costs
  • Hyperscalers self-build, reducing third-party demand
  • Rapid new supply from competitors in core metros

Leading indicators

  • Net rentable square feet leased/sold and backlog
  • Power capacity contracted vs available
  • Capex spend on data center expansion

Counterarguments

  • Portfolio scale is materially smaller than the largest peers, limiting bargaining power and ecosystem density
  • Customer requirements may favor hyperscale or specialized operators rather than mid-sized platforms

Evidence

sec_filing
American Tower Form 10-Q (quarter ended Sep 30, 2025) - Lease terms

tenant leases for our communications sites with wireless carriers generally have initial non-cancellable terms of five to ten years

Direct support for recurring, contract-backed revenue in the tower leasing model.

sec_filing
American Tower Form 10-Q (quarter ended Sep 30, 2025) - Rent escalators

annual fixed escalation (averaging approximately 3% in the United States)

Supports embedded pricing uplift in U.S. leases.

sec_filing
American Tower Form 10-Q (quarter ended Sep 30, 2025) - Site application / permitting

including site application, zoning and permitting

Signals permitting/zoning as a core operational activity supporting new tenants and equipment additions.

sec_filing
American Tower Form 10-Q (quarter ended Sep 30, 2025) - U.S. tower footprint

United States 26,736 14,860 431

From the disclosed table of communications sites: owned towers, operated towers, and owned DAS sites for the United States.

news
American Tower Q4/FY2024 results press release (Business Wire) - Business description

leading independent owner, operator and developer of multitenant communications real estate

Reinforces the multi-tenant portfolio positioning that underpins density/colocation economics.

Showing 5 of 15 sources.

Risks & Indicators

Erosion risks

  • Carrier consolidation and bargaining power
  • Contractual cancellations / non-renewals (e.g., integration-driven churn)
  • Regulatory or legislative changes affecting tower leasing economics
  • Policy changes that streamline tower approvals
  • Greater use of collocation on competitor sites
  • Shift of spending from macro towers to small cells in dense urban areas

Leading indicators

  • Tenant billings growth (U.S. & Canada)
  • Churn rate and renewal outcomes
  • Carrier radio access network capex trends
  • Average time-to-permit for new builds
  • Percentage of growth from amendments vs new sites
  • Local regulation changes affecting tower siting
Created 2025-12-31
Updated 2025-12-31

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