Helios Towers plc
🔔 Watch stock
Assessment
Our Rating
A journalistic assessment by our editorial team at the time of the deep dive — it rates the company, not the entry point. Not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell.
The business works in principle, but one material question is open. As long as it stays open, our findings do not carry a quality verdict.
Why this colour
Whoever holds or buys is betting on three things at once: that the cash turnaround becomes routine (recurring free cash flow of $215–230 million per the May 7, 2026 guidance), that the eastern Congo and the Tanzanian shilling stay quiet — and that leverage moves from the top of the corridor (3.5x) toward the middle, so that buyback targets can become buyback reality. Free checkpoints: the half-year results on July 30, 2026 (including the first interim dividend), the leverage and currency disclosures in them, and the next TR-1 filing around the first Helikon swap expiry on November 12, 2026. No $149 report is needed for any of this — every source in this analysis is free. The decision is yours.
What the thesis turns on
Assessment: Opportunities & Risks
Helios Towers is the rare case where the promotional story and the regulatory filings carry the same base numbers — and still tell two different stories. On the record: ten years of EBITDA growth, market leadership in seven of nine countries, $5.3 billion of contracted revenue, a genuine cash turnaround (free cash flow from -$721 million to +$66.4 million) and the start of buybacks plus a dividend. Equally on the record: 3.5x leverage at the top of the corridor with coupons up to 7.5 percent, nearly depleted book equity, two thirds of revenue from the DRC and Tanzania, 29 percent of EBITDA in soft currency — and a 12 percent investor who owns not a single share and whose stake only crossed the threshold because the company keeps cancelling stock. At 8.7 times expected EBITDA, the market as of mid-2026 pays neither fire-sale nor Wall Street prices. Not investment advice.
Market position & contracts
#1 by market share in 7 of 9 markets, 14,992 towers with 33,350 tenancies (March 31, 2026); 10–15-year contracts with CPI and power-price escalators secure $5.3 billion of future revenue over 6.7 years — about 70 percent of it from investment-grade customers (RNS of March 12 and May 7, 2026).
Growth & cash turnaround
Tenth consecutive year of Adjusted EBITDA growth ($471.1 million, +12 percent, 55 percent margin); free cash flow from -$721 million (2022) to +$66.4 million (2025), recurring free cash flow up 40 percent; first annual profit in 2024; guidance raised on May 7, 2026 (RNS; investor deck).
Balance sheet & interest burden
Net debt of $1,786.6 million = 3.5x EBITDA (March 31, 2026) at the top of the self-imposed corridor; coupons up to 7.5 percent, average cost of debt 6.7 percent, ratings BB-/Ba3 = non-investment grade; equity ratio of only ~1.6 percent — the reported ~70 percent return on equity is a product of the minimal equity base, not proof of quality (fundamental data, July 23, 2026).
Currency & country risk
The DRC ($308.0 million) and Tanzania ($254.9 million) together carried 66 percent of 2025 revenue; 29 percent of EBITDA arises in soft currency, and only ~40 percent is protected in Tanzania; the company's own 2025 annual report lists Eastern-DRC instability as an "emerging risk" — operationally without visible drag so far (Q1 2026: DRC was the biggest growth driver).
Customers & concentration
Nearly 100 percent of revenue from multinational operators, ~70 percent investment grade — but the top four (Airtel, Vodafone/Vodacom, Orange, Axian) account for 72.3 percent of 2025 revenue; network consolidation or one stumbling major customer would hit many towers at once (RNS of March 12, 2026, customer note).
Ownership & capital returns
The first buyback ($75 million through end-2026, shares cancelled) and first dividend ($25 million for 2026) mark a culture change; the prominent 12 percent investor Helikon, however, holds only cash-settled swaps — zero votes, silent unwinding between thresholds possible, first swap expiry on November 12, 2026 (TR-1 of May 19, 2026; buyback announcement of November 6, 2025).
Worth Noting
HTWSF did not surface through a scanner hit but through the TR-1 major-holdings filing of May 19, 2026 (Helikon Investments, 12.0004 percent via swaps) and its marketing by an English-language stock newsletter from July 23, 2026; the stock was added to the in-house scanner universe on July 23, 2026.
Helios Towers is a UK plc with no SEC reporting obligation (EDGAR negative finding documented on July 23, 2026): the evidence base consists of RNS regulatory announcements, the audited Annual Report 2025 and investor presentations. The US OTC ticker HTWSF tracks the London original (HTWS) in US dollars but trades thinly.
Price and market-value references (about 200 pence, ~£2.0 billion) are dated July 22/23, 2026 and serve only as a dated valuation anchor; analyses are evergreen, daily prices are not a buy argument. The half-year 2026 results appear on July 30, 2026 — after this analysis' editorial deadline.
Stock Watch
This analysis is as of August 26, 2026. Stock Watch will tell you what's changed at HTWSF since then.
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Price history
Chart
Interactive price chart (TradingView).
52-week range: 1.90 $ to 3.30 $ · Last price: 2.80 $ (As of: September 17, 2026)
Key figures
Key figures at a glance
Every figure we hold for this stock, grouped by topic. The question mark next to a label explains what the number means.
Basics
Performance
Technical Indicators
Calculated from the price history · as of 09/18/2026
Valuation
Profitability
Balance Sheet & Safety
Growth
Dividend
Quality & Screener
Highlighted are things our editorial team noticed: green = stands out as strong, red = deserves a closer look. No single metric is a verdict on its own — always read it in context.
Comparison
Industry comparison
The stock alongside the largest companies in the same group. The median row is the middle value of the companies shown above — not of the whole industry.
Industry: Telecom Services
| Company | Market cap ($B) | P/E | EV/EBITDA | Gross Margin % | EBIT Margin % | Sales Growth (Year) % | Perf. 1Y % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Helios Towers plc HTWSF | 2.9 | 96.1 | 9.9 | 53.9 | 37.8 | 10.2 | 44.1 |
| Verizon Communications Inc VZ | 199.1 | 12.3 | 8.3 | 59.5 | 25.2 | 2.5 | 16.8 |
| AT&T Inc. T | 178.8 | 9.0 | 6.0 | 59.7 | 22.7 | 2.7 | -10.0 |
| T-Mobile US Inc TMUS | 175.8 | 18.0 | 9.7 | 63.1 | 24.0 | 8.5 | -29.0 |
| Comcast Corp CMCSA | 81.2 | 4.8 | 5.0 | 69.4 | 13.2 | 0.0 | -21.0 |
| EchoStar Corporation SATS | 28.2 | – | 20.1 | 27.1 | 8.9 | -5.2 | 313.2 |
| EchoStar Corporation ECHO | 27.3 | – | 20.1 | 29.5 | 14.3 | -5.2 | 33.9 |
| Charter Communications Inc CHTR | 19.9 | 3.9 | 5.3 | 55.2 | 23.9 | -0.6 | -50.2 |
| Millicom International Cellular SA TIGO | 16.2 | 13.7 | 8.0 | 76.6 | 21.8 | 0.3 | 116.7 |
| Median of companies shown | 28.2 | 12.3 | 8.3 | 59.5 | 22.7 | 0.3 | 16.8 |
Based on the most recently reported figures. Only stocks from the same trading venue are lined up, so the market caps are counted in one currency. Compare in a chart →
Fiscal years
Annual Figures
Fiscal years from the audited annual reports, oldest first. EBIT is the operating profit before interest and taxes; total assets are everything the company owns.
Revenue, operating income and net income per fiscal year $M
Revenue Operating income Net income
| Fiscal Year | Revenue ($M) | EBIT ($M) | Net Income ($M) | EPS ($) | Operating Cash Flow ($M) | Equity ($M) | Total Assets ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 283 | -35 | -98 | -0.11 | 25 | 398 | 1,095 |
| 2017 | 345 | -24 | -93 | -0.10 | 58 | 252 | 1,114 |
| 2018 | 356 | 3 | -124 | -0.14 | 61 | 122 | 1,018 |
| 2019 | 388 | -5 | -136 | -0.15 | 38 | 176 | 1,221 |
| 2020 | 414 | 56 | -37 | -0.04 | 60 | 130 | 1,431 |
| 2021 | 449 | 59 | -156 | -0.15 | 36 | 168 | 1,934 |
| 2022 | 561 | 80 | -172 | -0.16 | 51 | 8 | 2,144 |
| 2023 | 721 | 146 | -100 | -0.10 | 147 | -68 | 2,198 |
| 2024 | 792 | 242 | 34 | 0.03 | 198 | 5 | 2,328 |
| 2025 | 873 | 298 | 40 | 0.03 | 277 | 40 | 2,529 |
Quarters
Quarterly Figures
Each bar is one quarter, the last one is the most recent. Use the switch to step through the individual figures.
Revenue & Profit
Cash Flow
Balance Sheet
Margins
Per Share
Click the chart or tab into it, then use ← and → to step through the periods.
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· Total · per year
These companies report in different currencies — switch on “Indexed” or pick a margin for a fair comparison.
The figures could not be loaded right now.
Source: fundamental data
| Quarter | EPS (Earnings Per Share) | EPS YoY (%) | Sales ($M) | Sales YoY (%) | Net Margin (%) | OCF ($M) | FCF ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024: Q1 | – | – | 195 | 11.30 | -5.30 | 40 | 6 |
| 2024: Q2 | – | – | 195 | 11.30 | -5.30 | 40 | 6 |
| 2024: Q3 | – | – | 201 | 8.40 | 13.50 | 59 | 21 |
| 2024: Q4 | – | – | 201 | 8.40 | 13.50 | 59 | 21 |
| 2025: Q1 | – | – | 209 | 7.30 | 7.30 | 59 | 20 |
| 2025: Q2 | – | – | 209 | 7.30 | 7.30 | 59 | 20 |
| 2025: Q3 | – | – | 218 | 8.40 | 2.00 | 76 | 25 |
| 2025: Q4 | – | – | 218 | 8.40 | 2.00 | 76 | 25 |
What Do These Terms Mean?
- EPS (Earnings Per Share):
- Quarterly profit divided by the total share count — how much of the profit works out to a single share.
- YoY (Year over Year):
- Change versus the same quarter a year ago — this is how you compare without seasonal distortion (e.g. the holiday shopping season).
- Sales:
- All revenue for the quarter, before any costs are deducted — the top line of the income statement.
- Net Margin:
- What percentage of sales is left over as profit in the end. Negative means the company is posting a loss.
- OCF (Operating Cash Flow):
- The cash that actually flows into the till from the core business during the quarter — harder to dress up than book profit.
- FCF (Free Cash Flow):
- Operating cash flow minus capital expenditures — the money that's genuinely free to use, say for paying down debt, buybacks, or dividends.
Screening
Appears in These Scanners
This stock currently matches 1 of our scanner strategies — each hit links to the scanner.
Research
Only genuine hits from verified scanners count; pure ranking metrics (P/E, P/S, and similar, which just sort the whole universe) don't count as a hit. View all scanners
Outlook
Analysts & Price Target
Combined picture of the price targets and recommendations of every analyst covering the stock. Price targets are expectations for the next 12 months, not promises — and they often follow the price rather than predict it.
Estimates by Fiscal Year
| Fiscal Year | EPS Estimate ($) | EPS Range ($) | Revenue Estimate ($M) | Expected Growth | Analysts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12/31/2026 | – | – | 955 | – | 5 |
| 12/31/2027 | – | – | 1,052 | – | 7 |
Average of the analyst estimates for the coming fiscal years. The range shows how far the most optimistic and the most cautious estimate sit apart — the wider it is, the less certain the expectation.
Valuation
What is priced in?
Instead of guessing what the stock is worth, we turn the question around: what free cash flow growth has to happen for today’s market value to add up? The assumptions behind it can be moved.
Today’s market value implies roughly 18.9% growth in free cash flow per year over ten years (assumptions: discount rate 10.0%, terminal growth 2.5%).
| Free cash flow (last twelve months) | $64.7M |
|---|---|
| Market cap | $2.94B |
| Free cash flow in year ten | $364.3M |
| Terminal value as a share of market value | 65.4% |
It shows which assumption is built into today’s price, not whether that assumption will hold. Every assumption can be changed with the sliders; the figures move with them.
A simplified model calculation — not a forecast and not a recommendation.
AI classification
AI Rating
Sonderfall britische plc ohne SEC-Filings — Grundlage sind die Jahresergebnis-Mitteilung 2025 (RNS, 12.03.2026), der testierte Geschäftsbericht 2025 (veröffentlicht 30.03.2026) und die Q1-2026-Mitteilung (07.05.2026): Die Berichte belegen einen operativen KI-Einsatz, aber keine KI-Umsatzquelle. Kern ist das Programm „Digital by Design“ der Fünfjahresstrategie IMPACT 2030 — KI- und Digital-Lösungen sollen in rund 60 identifizierte Unternehmensbereiche integriert werden, vom Turmbetrieb bis zum Back-Office; über 20 Prozent der Belegschaft entwickelten 2025 in Coding-Camps und Hackathons KI-gestützte Anwendungen. Der Geschäftsbericht beschreibt zudem ein im Aufbau befindliches „Smart Operations Centre“ auf Basis digitaler Zwillinge mit KI-gestützten Analysen sowie KI-gestützte Sicherheitstechnik (inkl. geplanter Prüfung der KI-Governance-Norm ISO/IEC 42001). KI als Produkt oder Umsatzquelle wird nirgends beschrieben; „advances in AI“ erscheinen lediglich als beobachtetes Umfeldrisiko ohne konkreten Geschäftsmodell-Bezug — nach dem Kriterienkatalog bleibt es bei „nutzt“.
View the full file — quotes, sources, reviewed filings
„This is a transformative initiative to integrate AI and digital solutions across approximately 60 identified areas – from site operations to back-office processes and everything in between."
Dies ist eine transformative Initiative, um KI- und Digital-Lösungen in rund 60 identifizierten Bereichen zu integrieren — vom Betrieb der Standorte über Back-Office-Prozesse bis zu allem dazwischen.
Jahresergebnis-Mitteilung 2025 (RNS, Full Year Results) · 2026-03-12 · View SEC filing
„Through digital twins – data-driven virtual replicas of our physical sites and power systems – advanced data analytics and AI-driven insights, we are developing a Smart Operations Centre that enables real-time monitoring of our sites, improved decision-making."
Über digitale Zwillinge — datengetriebene virtuelle Abbilder unserer physischen Standorte und Stromsysteme —, fortgeschrittene Datenanalysen und KI-gestützte Erkenntnisse entwickeln wir ein Smart Operations Centre, das Echtzeit-Überwachung unserer Standorte und bessere Entscheidungen ermöglicht.
Geschäftsbericht 2025 (Annual Report) · 2026-03-30 · View SEC filing
„More than 20% of colleagues participated in coding camps and hackathons in 2025, each developing AI-enabled applications to solve everyday business inefficiencies."
Mehr als 20 Prozent der Beschäftigten nahmen 2025 an Coding-Camps und Hackathons teil und entwickelten dabei jeweils KI-gestützte Anwendungen, um alltägliche Ineffizienzen im Geschäft zu lösen.
Jahresergebnis-Mitteilung 2025 (RNS, Full Year Results) · 2026-03-12 · View SEC filing
Filings Reviewed: Jahresergebnis-Mitteilung 2025 (RNS, Full Year Results) 2026-03-12 · Geschäftsbericht 2025 (Annual Report and Notice of AGM) 2026-03-30 · Q1-2026-Mitteilung (RNS, Trading Update) 2026-05-07
Rated on July 23, 2026 · How the Rating Is Built
Growth
Growth Score
Ten checks against the annual reports — each one passed counts a point.
- Revenue grows by more than 15% a year over three years 15.9%
- More than 10% revenue growth is expected for the coming year 7.8%
- Share count grows by less than 3% a year 4.1%
- Revenue growth plus cash-flow margin add up to at least 40 ("Rule of 40") 20.9%
- Gross margin at 40% or higher and without meaningful erosion 47.1%
- Goodwill from acquisitions does not grow faster than revenue 1.9%
- Net debt below twice EBITDA 3.8 x EBITDA
- Operating cash flow covers the profits of the last three years 649 m
- Return on capital at 15% or higher, or up versus two years ago 14.5%
- Insiders hold at least 10% or are net buyers 3.8%
A criterion without figures counts neither as passed nor as failed; a score is only produced from 7 judgeable criteria upwards. Source: fundamental data. All ten criteria in detail
Quality check
AAQS
4/10The AAQS (AlleAktien Quality Score) checks 10 quality criteria on growth, profitability, and balance-sheet strength — per the methodology developed and published by AlleAktien, calculated by us from our own fundamental data. A stock counts as a quality stock from 9 out of 10 points. Where a company has a shorter listing history, we calculate over the fiscal years available (at least five).
- Sales growth 10Y > 5% 13.4%
- Exp. sales growth 3Y > 5% 9.8%
- EBIT growth 10Y > 5% –
- Exp. EBIT growth 3Y > 5% 9.8%
- Net debt < 4x EBIT 6.0x
- EBIT positive, 10Y straight 7
- Max. EBIT decline < 50% 100.0%
- Return on equity > 15% –
- ROCE > 15% 14.5%
- Expected return > 10% 13.2%
View stocks with the full AAQS score · Read the methodology at AlleAktien
Source: fundamental data
The company
About the Company
Helios Towers plc, an independent tower company, acquires, builds, and operates telecommunications towers. It offers colocation lease-up, build-to-suit, sale and leaseback, in-building, small cells/outdoor distributed antenna systems, and other managed services. The company also provides passive infrastructure solutions, including site selection and preparation, maintenance, security, and power management; and engages in hosting active equipment, such as antennae. It operates a network of sites and tenancies in Tanzania, Senegal, Malawi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo Brazzaville, South Africa, Ghana, Madagascar, and Oman. Helios Towers plc was founded in 2009 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.
- Employees
- 735
- Headquarters
- London, United Kingdom
- Address
- 8 Bishopsgate, EC2N 4BQ London, United Kingdom
- Phone
- 44 207 871 3670
- Website
- heliostowers.com
Management
| Name | Title | Birth Year |
|---|---|---|
| Thomas Francis Greenwood | Group Chief Executive Officer & Director | 1981 |
| Manjit Singh Dhillon | Group CFO & Executive Chair of Helios Towers Oman | 1986 |
| Lara Coady | Director of Operations & Engineering | – |
| Allan Fairbairn | Chief Technology & Digital Officer and Executive Director of DRC | – |
| Chris Baker-Sams | Head of Strategic Finance & Investor Relations | – |
| Paul James Barrett | General Counsel & Company Secretary | 1968 |
| Beki Muinde | Group Regulatory & Public Affairs Director | – |
| Fatima Coninx | Interim Group Director, People, Organisation and Development | – |
| Sainesh Vallabh | Group Chief Commercial Officer | – |
| Fritz Dzeklo | Regional CEO of West, Central & Southern Africa | – |
Executives per the latest required filings; titles kept in their original language. Source: fundamental data.
Data as of: September 17, 2026 · Source: fundamental data & SEC filings (annual and quarterly reports, 10-K/10-Q)
Note: pure fact-based analysis, not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell. All figures without guarantee.