Cogent Communications (NasdaqGS:CCOI) FY Conference Transcript

Cogent Communications FY Conference Summary Company Overview - Company: Cogent Communications (NasdaqGS:CCOI) - Event: FY Conference held on November 19, 2025 Key Points Financial Strategy and Capital Allocation - Cogent reduced its dividend by 98% to $0.02 per share to save approximately $200 million annually, indicating a shift towards deleveraging and capital allocation strategies [3][6][7] - The company has returned about $1.9 billion to shareholders over 52 consecutive quarters, but historically paid out more cash than generated, leveraging incremental EBITDA growth [4] - Following the acquisition of Sprint, Cogent's EBITDA dropped significantly, leading to a net leverage increase to 6.6 times, prompting the need for a deleveraging strategy with a target of 4.0 times [5][6] Business Performance and Growth - The legacy Cogent business has shown organic growth at a compounded rate of 10.2% per year over 17 years, but growth decelerated to 5% during the pandemic [9] - The Sprint acquisition has resulted in a decline of 24.2% in revenue from the acquired business, while the underlying Cogent business has accelerated its growth rate [10][11] - The wavelength business, a new segment for Cogent, is expected to reach a $500 million run rate by 2028, currently representing 4% of revenues and growing rapidly [12][17] Market Dynamics and Competitive Position - The market for wavelengths is growing at about 5% annually, driven by AI training and hyperscale content distribution applications [22][23] - Cogent's competitive advantages include a larger number of endpoints, faster installation times, diverse routes, and a reliable network with fewer disruptions compared to competitors [14][17] - The company is currently undercutting market prices by about 20% for wavelength services, with plans to adjust pricing if necessary [16] Sales and Customer Engagement - Cogent has a sales force of approximately 850 employees focused on various market segments, with high turnover in corporate sales but low turnover in wholesale sales [18][19] - The company is winning over 50% of bids for wave business, indicating strong customer engagement and market penetration [20] IPv4 Address Monetization - Cogent has about 23 million unleased IPv4 addresses, with a leasing business that has grown from a $10 million annual run rate to nearly $70 million [29] - The company is cautious about selling addresses due to market liquidity issues but is open to leasing arrangements to monetize these assets [30][31] Data Center Asset Management - Cogent has converted 186 data centers from Sprint, with plans to sell or lease 24 non-core facilities, expecting most to transact [32][34] - The facilities are well-suited for edge computing applications, making them attractive in the current market [37] Dark Fiber Opportunities - Cogent is considering limited dark fiber IRU deals with hyperscalers, having completed three such deals to date [38][39] Conclusion Cogent Communications is navigating a complex landscape post-Sprint acquisition, focusing on deleveraging, optimizing its core business, and expanding into new markets like wavelengths. The company is strategically managing its assets, including IPv4 addresses and data centers, while leveraging its competitive advantages to drive growth in a challenging environment.