AMERICAN TOWER CORP /MA/ (AMT)

ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (this “Quarterly Report”) contains statements about future events and expectations, or “forward-looking statements,” which relate to our goals, beliefs, strategies, plans or current expectations and other statements that are not of historical facts. For example, when we use words such as “project,” “plan,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “estimate,” “intend,” “should,” “would,” “could,” “may” or other words that convey uncertainty of future events or outcomes, we are making forward-looking statements. Certain important factors may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by our forward-looking statements, including those factors set forth under the caption “Risk Factors” in Part I, Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025 (the “2025 Form 10-K”). Forward-looking statements represent management’s current expectations, beliefs and assumptions, and are inherently uncertain. We do not undertake any obligation to update our forward-looking statements.

The discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations that follow are based upon our consolidated and condensed consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”). The preparation of our financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, revenues and expenses, and the related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of our financial statements. Actual results may differ from these estimates and such differences could be material to the financial statements. This discussion should be read in conjunction with our consolidated and condensed consolidated financial statements herein and the accompanying notes, information set forth under the caption “Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates” in the 2025 Form 10-K, and in particular, the information set forth therein under Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”

Overview

We are one of the largest global real estate investment trusts and a leading independent owner, operator and developer of multitenant communications real estate. Our primary business is the leasing of space on communications sites to wireless service providers, radio and television broadcast companies, wireless data providers, government agencies and municipalities and tenants in a number of other industries. In addition to the communications sites in our portfolio, we manage rooftop and tower sites for property owners under various contractual arrangements. We also hold other telecommunications infrastructure and property interests that we lease primarily to communications service providers and third-party tower operators, and, as discussed further below, we hold a portfolio of highly interconnected data center facilities and related assets in the United States. Our customers include our tenants, licensees and other payers. We refer to the business encompassing the above as our property operations, which accounted for 98% and 98% of our total revenues for the three and six months ended June 30, 2026, respectively, and includes our U.S. & Canada property, Africa & Asia-Pacific (“APAC”) property, Europe property and Latin America property segments and Data Centers segment.

We also offer tower-related services in the United States, including site application, zoning and permitting, structural and mount analyses, and construction management, which primarily support our site leasing business, including the addition of new tenants and equipment on our sites.

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The following table details the number of communications sites, excluding managed sites, that we owned or operated as of June 30, 2026:

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(1)Approximately 98% of the operated towers are held pursuant to long-term finance leases, including those subject to purchase options.

(2)During the three months ended June 30, 2026, we completed the sales of our subsidiary in the Philippines (“ATC Philippines”) and our controlling interest in Kirtonkhola Tower Bangladesh Limited (“KTBL”).

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As of June 30, 2026, our property portfolio included 30 operating data center facilities across 11 markets in the United States that collectively comprise approximately 3.8 million net rentable square feet (“NRSF”) of data center space, as follows:

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(1)Excludes approximately 0.4 million of office and light industrial NRSF.

Sale of Philippines Subsidiary—On June 15, 2026, we completed the sale of ATC Philippines. Prior to the divestiture, ATC Philippines’s operating results were included within the Africa & APAC property segment.

Sale of Bangladesh Partnership—On June 29, 2026, we completed the sale of our controlling interest in KTBL. Prior to the divestiture, KTBL’s operating results were included within the Africa & APAC property segment.

The 2025 Form 10-K contains information regarding management’s expectations of long-term drivers of demand for our communications sites, as well as key trends, which management believes provide valuable insight into our operating and financial resource allocation decisions. The discussion below should be read in conjunction with the 2025 Form 10-K and, in particular, the information set forth therein under Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Executive Overview.”

In most of our markets, our tenant leases for our communications sites with wireless carriers generally have initial non-cancellable terms of five to ten years with multiple renewal terms. Accordingly, the vast majority of the revenue generated by our property operations during the six months ended June 30, 2026 was recurring revenue that we should continue to receive in future periods. Most of our tenant leases for our communications sites have provisions that periodically increase or “escalate” the rent due under the lease, typically based on (a) an annual fixed escalation (averaging approximately 3% in the United States), (b) an inflationary index in most of our international markets, or (c) a combination of both. In addition, certain of our tenant leases provide for additional revenue primarily to cover costs (pass-through revenue), such as ground rent or power and fuel costs.

Based upon existing customer leases and foreign currency exchange rates as of June 30, 2026, we expect to generate nearly $50 billion of non-cancellable customer lease revenue over future periods, before the impact of straight-line lease accounting.

The revenues generated by our property operations may be affected by cancellations of existing tenant leases. As discussed above, most of our tenant leases with wireless carriers and broadcasters are multiyear contracts, which typically are non-cancellable; however, in some instances, a lease may be cancelled upon the payment of a termination fee. Revenue lost from either tenant lease cancellations or the non-renewal of leases or rent renegotiations, which we refer to as churn, has historically not had a material adverse effect on the revenues generated by our consolidated property operations. During the six months ended June 30, 2026, churn was approximately 5% of our tenant billings, primarily driven by churn due to one of our U.S. customers, DISH Wireless L.L.C., a subsidiary of DISH Network Corporation (“DISH”) in our U.S. & Canada property segment, as discussed below. Beginning on January 1, 2026, 100% of DISH revenue will be reflected in churn.

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AT&T Mexico Dispute. We are currently engaged in a legal dispute (the “Arbitration”) with one of our customers in Mexico, AT&T Comunicaciones Digitales, S. de R.L. de C.V. and related entities (collectively, “AT&T Mexico”). AT&T Mexico, which represented approximately $300 million of tenant revenue in 2025, is challenging the calculation of the monthly lease amount established under our Master Lease Agreement with AT&T Mexico (the “MLA”), as well as certain other provisions of the MLA, seeking rent abatement both retroactively and prospectively, and had been withholding tower rents since the start of 2025. We incurred approximately $30 million of reserves during the year ended December 31, 2025, and an additional approximately $20 million of reserves during the six months ended June 30, 2026, related to this customer. We expect to record future reserves until the Arbitration is settled. We believe we have meritorious defenses to the claims raised in this Arbitration, are vigorously defending the full enforceability of the MLA and remain confident in the terms and conditions of the MLA. The Arbitration is scheduled for a hearing in August 2026.

On September 23, 2025, we and AT&T Mexico reached an agreement pursuant to which AT&T Mexico will remit payment of the majority of the withheld tower rents and will resume monthly payments of the majority of its owed tower rents. The remainder of the outstanding receivables and the future monthly tower rent amounts not remitted directly to us will be deposited into an irrevocable escrow account, overseen by an independent trustee, to be released in accordance with a final ruling in the Arbitration or by mutual consent of us and AT&T Mexico.

DISH Dispute. On September 24, 2025, DISH delivered a notice purporting to be excused from its contractual obligations under our Strategic Collocation Agreement entered into in March 2021 (the “SCA”). On October 20, 2025, we filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado seeking a declaratory judgment that DISH had not been excused from its obligations under the SCA, that the SCA remained in full force and effect, and that DISH remained re

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Management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations are based upon our consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with GAAP. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses, as well as related disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities. We evaluate our policies and estimates on an ongoing basis. Management bases its estimates on historical experience and various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

We have reviewed our policies and estimates to determine our critical accounting policies for the year ended December 31, 2025. We have identified the following policies as critical to an understanding of our results of operations and financial condition. This is not a comprehensive list of our accounting policies. See note 1 to our consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report for a summary of our significant accounting policies. In many cases, the accounting treatment of a particular transaction is specifically dictated by GAAP, with no need for management’s judgment in its application. There are also areas in which management’s judgment in selecting any available alternative would not produce a materially different result.

•Impairment of Assets—Assets Subject to Depreciation and Amortization: We review long-lived assets for impairment at least annually or whenever events, changes in circumstances or other indicators or evidence indicate that the carrying amount of our assets may not be recoverable.

We review our tower and data center portfolios, network location intangible and right-of-use assets for indicators of impairment at the lowest level of identifiable cash flows, typically at an individual tower or data center basis. Possible indicators include a site not having current tenant leases or having expenses in excess of revenues. A cash flow modeling approach is utilized to assess recoverability and incorporates, among other items, the location, the location demographics, the timing of additions of new tenants, lease rates and estimated length of tenancy and ongoing cash requirements.

We review our tenant-related intangible assets on a tenant by tenant basis for indicators of impairment, such as high levels of turnover or attrition, non-renewal of a significant number of contracts or the cancellation or termination of a relationship. We assess recoverability by determining whether the carrying amount of the tenant-related intangible assets will be recovered primarily through projected undiscounted future cash flows.

If the sum of the estimated undiscounted future cash flows of our long-lived assets is less than the carrying amount of the assets, an impairment loss may be recognized. Key assumptions included in the undiscounted cash flows are future revenue projections, estimates of ongoing tenancies and operating margins. An impairment loss would be based on the fair value of the asset, which is based on an estimate of discounted future cash flows to be provided from the asset. We record any related impairment charge in the period in which we identify such impairment.

•Impairment of Assets—Goodwill: We review goodwill for impairment at least annually (as of December 31) or whenever events or circumstances indicate the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. Goodwill is recorded in the applicable segment and assessed for impairment at the reporting unit level. We employ a discounted cash flow analysis when testing goodwill for impairment. The key assumptions utilized in the discounted cash flow analysis include current operating performance, terminal revenue growth rate, management’s expectations of future operating results and cash requirements, the current weighted average cost of capital and an expected tax rate. We compare the fair value of the reporting unit, as calculated under an income approach using future discounted cash flows, to the carrying amount of the applicable reporting unit. If the carrying amount exceeds the fair value, an impairment loss would be recognized for the amount of the excess. The loss recognized is limited to the total amount of goodwill allocated to that reporting unit.

During the year ended December 31, 2023, the results of our annual goodwill impairment test indicated that the carrying amount of our Spain reporting unit exceeded its estimated fair value, as calculated under an income approach using future discounted cash flows. As a result, we recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $80.0 million. The key assumptions utilized in the discounted cash flow analysis include current operating performance, terminal revenue growth rate, management’s expectations of future operating results and cash requirements, the current weighted average cost of capital and an expected tax rate. The reduction in the fair value of the Spain reporting unit was due to an increase in the weighted average cost of capital. The goodwill impairment charge in Spain was recorded in Goodwill impairment in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.

During the year ended December 31, 2025, we estimated the fair value of the Bangladesh reporting unit using, among other things, indications of value received from third parties in connection with the review of various strategic alternatives for our Bangladesh operations. As a result, we recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $6.5 million. The

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goodwill impairment charge is recorded in Other operating expense in the consolidated statements of operations for the year ended December 31, 2025.

During the year ended December 31, 2025, no other potential goodwill impairment was identified as the fair value of each of our reporting units was in excess of its carrying amount.

•Revenue Recognition: Our revenue is derived from leasing the right to use our communications sites, the land on which the sites are located, the land underlying our customers’ sites and the space in our data center facilities (the “lease component”) and from the reimbursement of costs incurred in operating the communications sites and data center facilities and supporting the customers’ equipment as well as other services and contractual rights (the “non-lease component”). Most of our revenue is derived from leasing arrangements and is accounted for as lease revenue unless the timing and pattern of revenue recognition of the non-lease component differs from the lease component. If the timing and pattern of the non-lease component revenue recognition differs from that of the lease component, we separately determine the stand-alone selling prices and pattern of revenue recognition for each performance obligation.

Our revenue from leasing arrangements, including fixed escalation clauses present in non-cancellable lease arrangements, is reported on a straight-line basis over the term of the respective leases when collectibility is probable. Escalation clauses tied to a consumer price index or other inflation-based indices, and other variable incentives present in lease agreements with our tenants, are excluded from the straight-line calculation. Total property straight-line revenues for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023 were $101.0 million, $277.6 million and $465.4 million, respectively. Amounts billed upfront in connection with the execution of lease agreements are initially deferred and reflected in Unearned revenue in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets and recognized as revenue over the terms of the applicable lease arrangements. Amounts billed or received for services prior to being earned are deferred and reflected in Unearned revenue in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets until the criteria for recognition have been met. Periodically, we provide lease incentives to our tenants. If incentives are present in our leases, they are evaluated to determine proper treatment and, to the extent present, are recorded in Other current assets and Other non-current assets in the consolidated balance sheets and amortized on a straight line basis over the corresponding lease term as a non-cash reduction to revenue.

We derive the largest portion of our revenues, corresponding trade receivables and the related deferred rent asset from a small number of customers in the telecommunications industry, with 59% of our revenues derived from four customers. In addition, we have concentrations of credit risk in certain geographic areas. We mitigate the concentrations of credit risk with respect to trade receivables and the related deferred rent assets by actively monitoring the creditworthiness of our customers. In recognizing customer revenue we assess the collectibility of both the amounts billed and the portion recognized on a straight-line basis. This assessment takes customer credit risk and business and industry conditions into consideration to ultimately determine the collectibility of the amounts billed. To the extent the amounts, based on management’s estimates, may not be collectible, recognition is deferred until such point as the uncertainty is resolved. Any amounts that were previously recognized as revenue and are subsequently determined to present a risk of collection are reserved as bad debt expense. Accounts receivable are reported net of allowances for doubtful accounts related to estimated losses resulting from a customer’s inability to make required payments and allowances for amounts invoiced whose collectibility is not reasonably assured.

•Rent Expense and Lease Accounting: Many of the leases underlying our tower sites and data centers have fixed rent escalations, which provide for periodic increases in the amount of ground rent payable over time. In addition, certain of our tenant leases require us to exercise available renewal options pursuant to the underlying ground lease if the tenant exercises its renewal option. Our calculation of the lease liability includes the term of the underlying ground lease plus all periods, if any, for which failure to renew the lease imposes an economic penalty to us such that renewal appears to be reasonably assured.

We recognize a right-of-use lease asset and lease liability for operating and finance leases. The right-of-use asset is measured as the sum of the lease liability, prepaid or accrued lease payments, any initial direct costs incurred and any other applicable amounts.

The calculation of the lease liability requires us to make certain assumptions for each lease, including lease term and discount rate implicit in each lease, which could significantly impact the gross lease obligation, the duration and the present value of the lease liability. When calculating the lease term, we consider the renewal, cancellation and termination rights available to us and the lessor. We determine the discount rate by calculating the incremental borrowing rate on a collateralized basis at the commencement of a lease or upon a change in the lease term.

•Income Taxes: Accounting for income taxes requires us to estimate the timing and impact of amounts recorded in our financial statements that may be recognized differently for tax purposes. To the extent that the timing of amounts

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recognized for financial reporting purposes differs from the timing of recognition for tax reporting purposes, deferred tax assets or liabilities are required to be recorded. We measure deferred tax assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences and carryforwa

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