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Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc.: Q3 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q3 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 5 November 2026: press release. Guidance figures: 1 new. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Service revenue declined sequentially: Service revenue was $231.2 million, down 1.8% from Q2 2026 and down 4.4% from Q3 2025; constant currency sequential decline was 1.7%. Source
  • EBITDA, as adjusted, rose sequentially: EBITDA, as adjusted for cash payments under the IP Transit Services Agreement, was $73.9 million, up 3.9% from Q2 2026; margin was 32.0% versus 30.2% in Q2 2026. Source
  • Wavelength revenue grew: Wavelength revenue was $16.0 million, up 7.8% from Q2 2026 and up 57.0% from Q3 2025; wavelength services were offered in 1,151 locations. Source
  • Debt repurchased at a discount: Cogent bought $118.4 million par of 2032 secured notes for $106.7 million, gaining $11.3 million, and $50.0 million par of 2027 unsecured notes for $49.6 million, gaining $0.1 million. Source
  • Cash balance and operating cash flow: Total cash including restricted cash was $181.3 million at quarter end; net cash from operating activities was $3.8 million. Source
  • Dividend program suspended: The Board suspended the dividend program on November 4, 2026; dividends paid in Q3 2026 were $1.3 million. Source
  • Data center sales in progress: Two non-binding letters of intent cover sale of four repurposed Sprint data centers for about $100.0 million in cash; the company sold ten owned data centers in Q2 2026 for net proceeds of $224.2 million. Source

Guidance

AreaPeriodFigureAgainst last quarter
Data center sales SourceSubsequent to Q3 2026approximately $100.0 million in cashNew

What changed from last quarter

  • Guidance lowered: The quarterly dividend was suspended on November 4, 2026, after a $0.02 per share dividend was approved for Q2 2026. Source
  • New: Two non-binding letters of intent were entered into to sell four data centers for approximately $100.0 million in cash. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Service revenue declined sequentially: Service revenue was $231.2 million, down 1.8% from Q2 2026 and down 4.4% from Q3 2025; constant currency sequential decline was 1.7%. Source
  • EBITDA, as adjusted, rose sequentially: EBITDA, as adjusted for cash payments under the IP Transit Services Agreement, was $73.9 million, up 3.9% from Q2 2026; margin was 32.0% versus 30.2% in Q2 2026. Source
  • Net loss per share in Q3: Basic and diluted net loss per share were $(0.62) for Q3 2026, compared with diluted earnings of $1.38 in Q2 2026, which included a $130.7 million data center sale gain. Source

Segments and regions

  • On-net revenue grew sequentially: On-net revenue including wavelengths was $153.9 million, up 2.4% from Q2 2026 and up 5.8% from Q3 2025; on-net buildings reached 3,665. Source
  • Off-net revenue fell sharply: Off-net revenue was $76.6 million, down 9.3% from Q2 2026 and down 19.5% from Q3 2025. Source
  • Wavelength revenue grew: Wavelength revenue was $16.0 million, up 7.8% from Q2 2026 and up 57.0% from Q3 2025; wavelength services were offered in 1,151 locations. Source
  • Enterprise revenue declined: Enterprise revenue was $26.9 million, down 8.7% from Q2 2026; corporate revenue was $97.1 million, down 1.6%; net-centric revenue was $107.2 million, down 0.3%. Source

Products and customers

  • Total customer connections declined: Total customer connections were 114,678, down 1.0% from Q2 2026 and down 3.0% from Q3 2025; off-net connections fell 2.5% sequentially. Source
  • Wavelength connections rose: Wavelength customer connections were 2,722, up 11.3% from Q2 2026 and up 55.5% from Q3 2025. Source
  • IP traffic and IPv4 revenue: IP Network traffic rose 4% sequentially and 14% year over year; IPv4 revenue was $18.4 million, up 1.8% sequentially. Source

Costs, margins and pricing

  • Network operations expense fell: Network operations expense, excluding equity-based compensation, was $121.0 million, down 3.1% from Q2 2026. Source
  • Non-GAAP gross margin improved: Non-GAAP gross margin was 47.6%, up from 47.0% in Q2 2026 and 45.8% in Q3 2025; GAAP gross margin was 24.5%, flat sequentially. Source
  • SG&A expense fell: SG&A expense, excluding equity-based compensation, was $61.3 million, down 5.1% from Q2 2026. Source

Demand and the order book

  • Sales productivity and headcount: Sales rep productivity was 4.6 units per FTE per month, up from 4.5 in Q2 2026; quota-bearing sales force fell to 471 from 506. Source

Capital, cash and returns to shareholders

  • Capital expenditures declined: Capital expenditures were $36.3 million, down 5.8% from Q2 2026. Source
  • Debt repurchased at a discount: Cogent bought $118.4 million par of 2032 secured notes for $106.7 million, gaining $11.3 million, and $50.0 million par of 2027 unsecured notes for $49.6 million, gaining $0.1 million. Source
  • Cash balance and operating cash flow: Total cash including restricted cash was $181.3 million at quarter end; net cash from operating activities was $3.8 million. Source
  • Dividend program suspended: The Board suspended the dividend program on November 4, 2026; dividends paid in Q3 2026 were $1.3 million. Source
  • Leverage ratios reported: Gross leverage ratio was 7.41 and net leverage ratio was 6.79; leverage adjusted for amounts due from T-Mobile was 6.94 gross and 6.32 net. Source

Strategy and investment

  • Data center sales in progress: Two non-binding letters of intent cover sale of four repurposed Sprint data centers for about $100.0 million in cash; the company sold ten owned data centers in Q2 2026 for net proceeds of $224.2 million. Source
  • Wavelength network expansion: Optical wavelength services were offered in 1,151 locations across the United States, Mexico and Canada, up from 1,137 at June 30, 2026. Source

People and leadership

  • Wireline employees declined: Employees remaining from the original Wireline Business fell to 472 at September 30, 2026, from 506 at June 30, 2026; total employees were 1,603. Source

Debt and financial covenants

  • Consolidated leverage ratio under indentures: Consolidated leverage ratio under the indentures was 5.35 and the secured leverage ratio was 3.25 as of September 30, 2026; interest coverage was 2.32. Source

Coming up, as management said on 5 November 2026

  • Next data center sale step: The two letters of intent are non-binding; no closing date was given in the documents. Source

Risks management discussed

  • Demand: Enterprise and off-net revenue declined, and total customer connections fell year over year, with off-net connections down 12.0%. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • Not stated: The June 2026 indenture amendment included this commitment; Q3 2026 note repurchases totaled $106.7 million in cash.

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.