SBA Communications 10-K 2019-12-31

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

xANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31**,** 2019

OR

¨TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from to

Commission file number: 001-16853

SBA COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code (561) 995-7670

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes x No ¨

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act. Yes ¨ No x

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes x No ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by checkmark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act) Yes ¨ No x

The aggregate market value of the voting stock held by non-affiliates of the Registrant was approximately $25.2 billion as of June 30, 2019.

The number of shares outstanding of the Registrant’s common stock (as of February 18, 2020): Class A common stock — 111,929,411.

Documents Incorporated By Reference

Portions of the Registrant’s definitive proxy statement for its 2020 annual meeting of shareholders, which proxy statement will be filed no later than 120 days after the close of the Registrant’s fiscal year ended December 31, 2019, are hereby incorporated by reference in Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Table of Contents

General

We are a leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure, including tower structures, rooftops, and other structures that support antennas used for wireless communications, which we collectively refer to as “towers” or “sites.” Our principal operations are in the United States and its territories. In addition, we own and operate towers in South America, Central America, Canada, and South Africa. Our primary business line is our site leasing business, which contributed 97.7% of our total segment operating profit for the year ended December 31, 2019. In our site leasing business, we (1) lease antenna space to wireless service providers on towers that we own or operate and (2) manage rooftop and tower sites for property owners under various contractual arrangements. As of December 31, 2019, we owned 32,403 towers, a substantial portion of which have been built by us or built by other tower owners or operators who, like us, have built such towers to lease space to multiple wireless service providers. Our other business line is our site development business, through which we assist wireless service providers in developing and maintaining their own wireless service networks.

Business Strategy

Our primary strategy is to continue to focus on expanding our site leasing business through organic growth and expansion of our tower portfolio to create shareholder value. We believe that the long-term and repetitive nature of our site leasing business will permit us to maintain a stable, recurring cash flow stream and reduce our exposure to cyclical changes in customer spending which arises in our site development business. Key elements of our strategy include:

Organic Growth.

Maximizing our Tower Capacity. We generally have constructed or acquired towers that accommodate multiple tenants and a majority of our towers are high capacity tower structures. Most of our towers have significant capacity available for additional antennas, and we believe that increased use of our towers’ structural capacity can generate additional lease revenue and be achieved at a low incremental cost. We measure the available capacity of our existing sites to support additional tenants by assessing several factors, including tower height, tower type, wind loading, environmental conditions, existing equipment on the tower and zoning and permitting regulations in effect in the jurisdiction where the tower is located. We actively market space on our towers through our internal sales force. As of December 31, 2019, we had an average of 1.8 tenants per tower structure.

Capitalizing on our Scale and Management Experience. We are a large owner, operator and developer of towers, with substantial capital, human, and operating resources. We have been developing towers for wireless service providers in the U.S. since 1989 and owned and operated towers for ourselves since 1997. We believe our size, experience, capabilities, and resources make us a preferred partner for wireless service providers both in the U.S. and internationally. Our management team has extensive experience in site leasing and site development, with some of the longest tenures in the tower and site development industries. We believe that our industry expertise and strong relationships with wireless service providers will permit us to continue to organically grow our site leasing and site development services.

Systematic Tower Portfolio Growth. We believe that our tower operations are highly scalable. Consequently, we believe that we are able to materially increase our domestic and international tower portfolio without proportionately increasing selling, general, and administrative expenses. We intend to continue to grow our tower portfolio, domestically and internationally, through tower acquisitions and the construction of new tower structures. We believe that one of the best uses of our liquidity, including cash from operating activities and borrowings, is to acquire and/or build new towers at prices that we believe will be accretive to our shareholders both in the short and long term and which allow us to maintain our long-term target leverage ratios.

Disciplined Tower Acquisitions – In our tower acquisition program, we pursue towers from third parties that meet or exceed our internal guidelines regarding current and future potential returns. For each acquisition, we prepare various analyses that include projections of several different investment return metrics, review of available capacity, future lease up projections, and a summary of current and future tenant/technology mix.

International Tower Growth – The majority of our international markets typically have less mature wireless networks with limited wireline infrastructure and lower wireless data penetration rates than those in the United States. Accordingly, our tower growth in these markets is primarily driven by (1) wireless service providers seeking to increase the quality and coverage of their networks, (2) increased consumer mobile data traffic, such as media streaming, mobile apps and games, web browsing, and email, and (3) incremental spectrum auctions, which have resulted in new market entrants, as well as incremental voice and data network deployments.

International Market Expansion – We believe that we can create substantial value by expanding our site leasing services into select international markets which we believe have a high-growth wireless industry and relatively stable political and regulatory environments. We consider various factors when identifying a market for our international expansion, including:

oCountry analysis – We consider the country’s economic and political stability, and whether the country’s general business, legal and regulatory environment is conducive to the sustainability and growth of our business.

oMarket potential – We analyze the expected demand for wireless services, and whether a country has multiple wireless service providers who are actively seeking to invest in deploying voice and data networks, as well as spectrum auctions that have occurred or that are anticipated to occur.

oRisk adjusted return criteria – We consider whether buying or building towers in a country, and providing our management and leasing services, will meet our return criteria. As part of this analysis, we consider the risk of entering into an international market (for example, the impact of foreign currency exchange rates and inflation, real estate, permitting, and taxation risks), and how our expansion meets our long-term strategic objectives for the region and our business generally.

New Build Program – We build new towers domestically and internationally. In our new build program, we construct tower structures (1) under build-to-suit arrangements or (2) in locations that are strategically chosen by us. Under build-to-suit arrangements, we build tower structures for wireless service providers at locations that they have identified. Under these arrangements, we retain ownership of the tower structure and the exclusive right to co-locate additional tenants. When we construct tower structures in locations chosen by us, we utilize our knowledge of our customers’ network requirements to identify locations where we believe multiple wireless service providers need, or will need to locate antennas to meet capacity or service demands. We seek to identify attractive locations for new tower structures and complete pre-construction procedures necessary to secure the site concurrently with our leasing efforts. We generally will have at least one signed tenant lease for each new build tower structure on the day that it is completed and expect that some will have multiple tenants.

Using our Local Presence to Build Strong Relationships with Major Wireless Service Providers. Given the nature of towers as location-specific communications facilities, we believe that substantially all of what we do is done best locally. Consequently, we have a broad field organization that allows us to develop and capitalize on our experience, expertise and relationships in each of our local markets which in turn enhances our customer relationships. We seek to replicate this operating model internationally. Due to our presence in local markets, we believe we are well positioned to organically grow our site leasing business and to capture new tower build opportunities in our markets and identify and participate in site development projects across our markets.

Controlling our Underlying Land Positions. We believe that a primary component of a strong site leasing business is the ability to control the underlying land positions. Consequently, we have purchased and/or entered into perpetual easements, long-term leases, or other property interests for the land that underlies our tower structures and intend to continue to do so, to the extent available at commercially reasonable prices. We believe that these purchases, perpetual easements, and/or long-term leases will increase our margins, improve our cash flow from operations, and minimize our exposure to increases in rents for property interests in the future. As of December 31, 2019, approximately 71% of our tower structures were located on land that we own or control for more than 20 years and the average remaining life under our ground leases and other property interests, including renewal options under our control, was 35 years. As of December 31, 2019, approximately 8.6% of our tower structures had ground leases or other property interests maturing in the next 10 years.

Exploring Opportunities in Evolving Technologies and Ancillary Services. In addition to our traditional tower-related services, we are currently exploring ancillary services and evolving technologies that we believe will allow us to create value by leveraging our current assets and relationships with wireless service providers. For example, we are exploring opportunities to participate in mobile edge computing opportunities and, in connection, have recently invested in a data center.

Industry Developments

We believe that growing wireless data traffic will require wireless service providers to continue to increase the capacity of their networks, and we believe that the continued capacity increases will require our customers to install equipment at new sites and add new equipment at existing sites. We expect that the wireless communications industry will continue to experience growth as a result of the following trends:

Consumers are increasing their demand for wireless connectivity due to the adoption of bandwidth-intensive wireless data applications, such as video, social networking and enhanced web browsing, and the growth in machine-to-machine applications (such as connected cars). Global mobile data traffic is forecast to reach 160 exabytes per month by 2025, an increase of 321% over the end of 2019.

The velocity of spectrum development is expected to remain dynamic as carriers continue to deploy new bands and optimize bands that are currently in service, both of which activities we expect will require carriers to install equipment at new sites and add new equipment at existing sites. For example, recent and future spectrum auctions, such as the future CBRS and C-Band auctions, and a new network for first responders that is being developed by AT&T for the First Responder Network Authority (“FirstNet”), an independent authority within the Department of Commerce, are expected to contribute to growth in the upcoming years. In addition, the deployment of 5G wireless technologies is expected to increase equipment installation at existing sites.

Consumers list network quality as a key contributor when terminating or changing service. To remain competitive and to decrease subscriber churn rates, wireless carriers have made substantial capital investments into their wireless networks to improve service quality and expand coverage. We expect wireless carriers to continue to expend capital to differentiate their product offerings. For example, if the proposed Sprint/T-Mobile merger is consummated, to meet future consumer demand, the new combined Sprint/T-Mobile is expected to need to invest in its network by deploying its 2.5Ghz spectrum holdings, and Dish Network is expected to need to expend significant funds to develop a new nationwide network.

We believe that the world-wide wireless industry will continue to grow and is reasonably well-capitalized, highly competitive and focused on quality and advanced services. Therefore, we expect that we will see a multi-year trend of additional demand for tower space from our customers, which we believe will translate into steady leasing growth for us.

Our Businesses

Site Leasing Services

Our primary focus is the leasing of antenna space on our multi-tenant towers to a variety of wireless service providers under long-term lease contracts in the United States, South America, Central America, Canada, and South Africa. We derive site leasing revenues primarily from wireless service provider tenants. Wireless service providers enter into tenant leases with us, each of which relates to the lease or use of space at an individual site. Our site leasing business generates substantially all of our total segment operating profit, representing 97.7% or more of our total segment operating profit for the past three fiscal years. Our site leasing business is classified into two reportable segments, domestic site leasing and international site leasing.

Domestic Site Leasing

As of December 31, 2019, we owned 16,401 sites in the United States and its territories. For the year ended December 31, 2019, we generated 80.5% of our total site leasing revenue from these sites. We derive domestic site leasing revenues primarily from AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless. In the United States, our tenant leases are generally for an initial term of five years to 10 years with multiple five year renewal periods at the option of the tenant. These tenant leases typically contain specific rent escalators, which average 3-4% per year, including renewal option periods. Our ground leases in the United States are generally for an initial term of five years or more with multiple five year renewal periods, at our option, and provide for rent escalators which typically average 2-3% annually. As of December 31, 2019, (1) no U.S. state or territory included more than 10% of our total tower portfolio by tower count, and (2) no U.S. state or territory accounted for more than 10% of our total revenues for the year ended December 31, 2019.

International Site Leasing

We currently operate in 13 international markets throughout South America, Central America, Canada, and South Africa. Our largest international market is Brazil. As of December 31, 2019, we owned 16,002 sites in our international markets, of which 30.5% of our global sites are located in Brazil and less than 3% of our global sites are located in each of our other international markets (each country is considered a market). Our operations in our international markets are solely in the site leasing business, and we continue to focus on growing our international site leasing business through the acquisition and development of towers and organic growth.

We derive international site leasing revenues primarily from Oi S.A., Telefonica, Claro, and TIM. In Canada, our tenant leases are generally for an initial term of five years to 10 years with multiple five year renewal periods at the option of the tenant. These tenant leases typically contain specific rent escalators, which average 3-4% per year, including the renewal option periods. Tenant leases in South Africa and our Central and South American markets typically have an initial term of 10 years with multiple five year renewal periods. In Central America, we have similar fixed rent escalators to that of leases in the United States and Canada while our leases in South America and South Africa escalate in accordance with a standard cost of living index. In certain international markets such as Brazil, tenant leases are typically governed by master lease agreements, which provide for the material terms and

conditions that will govern the terms of the use of the site. Tenant leases in South America typically provide a pass-through charge for the underlying rent for property interests in addition to the base tenant rent.

In our international markets, ground leases and other property interests are generally for an initial term of five to ten years with multiple renewal periods, which are at our option. In Central America and Canada, ground leases and other property interests provide for rent escalators which typically average 2-3% annually, or in South American markets and South Africa, adjust in accordance with a standard cost of living index.

In our Central American markets and Ecuador, significantly all of our revenue, expenses, and capital expenditures arising from our new build activities are denominated in U.S. dollars. Specifically, most of our ground leases and other property interests, tenant leases, and tower-related expenses are paid in U.S. dollars. In our Central American markets, our local currency obligations are primarily limited to (1) permitting and other local fees, (2) utilities, and (3) taxes. In Brazil, Canada, Chile, and South Africa, significantly all of our revenue, expenses, and capital expenditures, including tenant leases, ground leases and other property interests, and other tower-related expenses are denominated in local currency. In Colombia, Argentina, and Peru, our revenue, expenses, and capital expenditures, including tenant leases, ground leases and other property interests, and other tower-related expenses are denominated in a mix of local currency and U.S. dollars.

Site Development Services

Our site development business, which is conducted in the United States only, is complementary to our site leasing business and provides us the ability to keep in close contact with the wireless service providers that generate substantially all of our site leasing revenue and to capture ancillary revenues that are generated by our site leasing activities, such as antenna and equipment installation at our tower locations. Site development services revenues are earned primarily from providing a full range of end to end services to wireless service providers or companies providing development or project management services to wireless service providers. Our services include: (1) network pre-design; (2) site audits; (3) identification of potential locations for towers and antennas on existing infrastructure; (4) support in leasing of the location; (5) assistance in obtaining zoning approvals and permits; (6) tower and related site construction; (7) antenna installation; and (8) radio equipment installation, commissioning, and maintenance. We provide site development services at our towers and at towers owned by others on a local basis, through regional, market, and project offices. These market offices are responsible for all site development operations.

Customers

We lease tower space to and perform site development services for all of the large U.S. wireless service providers. In both our site leasing and site development businesses, we work with large national providers and smaller regional, local, or private operators. Internationally, we lease tower space to all the major service providers in South America, Central America, Canada, and South Africa.

We depend on a relatively small number of customers for our site leasing and site development revenues. The following customers represented at least 10% of our total revenues during the last three years:

In addition to the Big 4 wireless carriers (AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Verizon Wireless), we have also provided services or leased space to a number of customers including:

Sales and Marketing

Our sales and marketing goals are to:

use existing relationships and develop new relationships with wireless service providers to lease antenna space on and sell related services with respect to our owned towers or managed properties, enabling us to grow our site leasing business; and

successfully bid and win those site development services contracts that will contribute to our operating margins and/or provide a financial or strategic benefit to our site leasing business.

We approach sales on a company-wide basis, involving many of our employees. We have a dedicated sales force that is supplemented by members of our executive management team. Our dedicated salespeople are based regionally as well as in our corporate office. We also rely on our vice presidents, directors, and other operations personnel to sell our services and cultivate customer relationships. Our strategy is to delegate sales efforts by geographic region or to those employees of ours who have the best relationships with our customers. Most wireless service providers have national corporate headquarters with regional and local offices. We believe that wireless service providers make most decisions for site development and site leasing services at the regional and local levels with input from their corporate headquarters. Our sales representatives work with wireless service provider representatives at the regional and local levels and at the national level when appropriate. Our sales staff’s compensation is heavily weighted to incentive-based goals and measurements.

Competition

Domestic Site Leasing – In the U.S., our primary competitors for our site leasing activities are (1) large independent tower companies including American Tower Corporation and Crown Castle International, (2) a number of regional independent tower owners, (3) wireless service providers that own and operate their own towers and lease, or may in the future decide to lease, antenna space to other providers, and (4) owners and operators of alternative facilities such as rooftops, outdoor and indoor distributed antenna system (“DAS”) networks, billboards, utility poles, and electric transmission towers.

International Site Leasing – Internationally, our competition consists of wireless service providers that own and operate their own tower networks, large multinational, national and regional independent tower companies, and alternative facilities such as rooftop, outdoor and indoor DAS networks, billboards, utility poles, and electric transmission towers. We believe that tower location and capacity, quality of service, density within a geographic market and, to a lesser extent, price historically have been and will continue to be the most significant competitive factors affecting the domestic and international site leasing business.

Site Development – The site development business is competitive and price sensitive. We believe that the majority of our competitors in the U.S. site development business operate within local region and market areas, while some firms offer their services nationally. The market includes participants from a variety of market segments offering individual, or combinations of, competing services. The field of competitors includes site development companies, zoning consultants, real estate firms, wireless construction companies, tower owners, telecommunications equipment vendors, which provide end-to-end site development services through multiple subcontractors, and wireless service providers’ internal staff. We believe that providers base their decisions for site development services on a number of criteria, including company experience, price, track record, local reputation, geographic reach, and time for completion of a project.

Employees

Our corporate offices are located in our headquarters in Boca Raton, Florida. We also have employees located in our international, regional, and local offices. As of December 31, 2019, we had 1,475 employees of which 435 were based outside of the U.S. and its territories. We consider our employee relations to be good.

Regulatory and Environmental Matters

Federal Regulations. In the U.S., which accounted for 80.5% of our total site leasing revenue for the year ended December 31, 2019, both the Federal Communications Commission (the “FCC”) and the Federal Aviation Administration (the “FAA”) regulate towers. Many FAA requirements are implemented in FCC regulations. These regulations govern the construction, lighting, and painting or other marking of towers, as well as the maintenance, inspection, and record keeping related to towers, and may, depending on the characteristics of particular towers, require prior approval and registration of towers before they may be constructed, altered or used. Wireless communications equipment and radio or television stations operating on towers are separately regulated and may require independent customer licensing depending upon the particular frequency or frequency band used. In addition, any applicant for an FCC tower structure registration (through the FCC’s Antenna Structure Registration System) must certify that, consistent with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, neither the applicant nor its principals are subject to a denial of federal benefits because of a conviction

for the possession or distribution of a controlled substance. New tower construction also requires approval from the state or local governing authority for the proposed site; compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”); compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act (“NHPA”); compliance with the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”); and may require notification to the FAA.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, the FCC, in conjunction with the FAA, has developed standards to consider proposals involving new or modified towers. These standards mandate that the FCC and the FAA consider the height of the proposed tower, the relationship of the tower to existing natural or man-made obstructions, and the proximity of the tower to runways and airports. Proposals to construct or to modify existing towers above certain heights must be reviewed by the FAA to ensure the structure will not present a hazard to air navigation. The FAA may condition its issuance of a no-hazard determination upon compliance with specified lighting and/or painting requirements. Towers that meet certain height and location criteria must also be registered with the FCC. A tower that requires FAA clearance will not be registered by the FCC until it is cleared by the FAA. Upon registration, the FCC may also require special lighting and/or painting. Owners of wireless communications towers may have an obligation to maintain painting and lighting or other marking in conformance with FAA and FCC regulations. Tower owners and licensees that operate on those towers also bear the responsibility of monitoring any lighting systems and notifying the FAA of any lighting outage or malfunction.

Owners and operators of towers may be subject to, and therefore must comply with, environmental laws, including NEPA, NHPA and ESA. Any licensed radio facility on a tower is subject to environmental review pursuant to the NEPA, among other statutes, which requires federal agencies to evaluate the environmental impact of their decisions under certain circumstances. The FCC has issued regulations implementing the NEPA. These regulations place responsibility on applicants to investigate potential environmental effects of their operations and to disclose any potential significant effects on the environment in an environmental assessment prior to constructing or modifying a tower and prior to commencing certain operations of wireless communications or radio or television stations from the tower. In the event the FCC determines the proposed structure or operation would have a significant environmental impact based on the standards the FCC has developed, the FCC would be required to prepare an environmental impact statement, which will be subject to public comment. This process could significantly delay the registration of a particular tower.

We generally indemnify our customers against any failure to comply with applicable regulatory standards relating to the construction, modification, or placement of towers. Failure to comply with the applicable requirements may lead to civil penalties.

The Telecommunications Act of 1996 amended the Communications Act of 1934 by preserving state and local zoning authorities’ jurisdiction over the construction, modification, and placement of towers. The law, however, limits local zoning authority by prohibiting any action that would discriminate among different providers of personal wireless services or ban altogether the construction, modification or placement of radio communication towers. Finally, the Telecommunications Act of 1996 requires the federal government to help licensees for wireless communications services gain access to preferred sites for their facilities. This may require that federal agencies and departments work directly with licensees to make federal property available for tower facilities.

As an owner and operator of real property, we are subject to certain environmental laws that impose strict, joint and several liability for the cleanup of on-site or off-site contamination and related personal injury or property damage. We are also subject to certain environmental laws that govern tower placement and may require pre-construction environmental studies. Operators of towers must also take into consideration certain radio frequency (“RF”) emissions regulations that impose a variety of procedural and operating requirements. Certain proposals to operate wireless communications and radio or television stations from tower structures are also reviewed by the FCC to ensure compliance with requirements relating to human exposure to RF emissions. Exposure to high levels of RF energy can produce negative health effects. The potential connection between low-level RF energy and certain negative health effects, including some forms of cancer, has been the subject of substantial study by the scientific community in recent years. We believe that we are in substantial compliance with and we have no material liability under any applicable environmental laws. These costs of compliance with existing or future environmental laws and liability related thereto may have a material adverse effect on our prospects, financial condition or results of operations.

State and Local Regulations. Most states regulate certain aspects of real estate acquisition, leasing activities, and construction activities. Where required, we conduct the site acquisition portions of our site development services business through licensed real estate brokers’ agents, who may be our employees or hired as independent contractors, and conduct the construction portions of our site development services through licensed contractors, who may be our employees or independent contractors. Local regulations include city and other local ordinances, zoning restrictions and restrictive covenants imposed by community developers. These regulations vary greatly from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, but typically require tower owners to obtain approval from local officials or community standards organizations, or certain other entities prior to tower construction and establish regulations regarding maintenance and removal of towers. FCC rules establish presumptively reasonable time periods for state and local authorities to act on

applications to collocate a facility or deploy a facility, such as a tower. In addition, many local zoning authorities require tower owners to post bonds or cash collateral to secure their removal obligations. Local zoning authorities generally have been unreceptive to construction of new towers in their communities because of the height and visibility of the towers, and have, in some instances, instituted moratoria. However, in August 2018, the FCC issued a declaratory ruling stating that express and de facto moratoria on deployment of telecommunications facilities violate the Communications Act. Although this FCC ruling is currently the subject of petitions for reconsideration before the FCC and petitions for review before a federal appellate court, it remains in effect.

International Regulations. Regulatory regimes outside of the U.S. and its territories vary by country and locality; however, these regulations typically require tower owners and/or licensees to obtain approval from local officials or government agencies prior to tower construction or modification or the addition of a new antenna to an existing tower. Additionally, some regulations include ongoing obligations regarding painting, lighting, and maintenance. Our international operations may also be subject to limitations on foreign ownership of land in certain areas. Based on our experience to date, these regimes have been similar to, but not more rigorous, burdensome or comprehensive than, those in the U.S. Non-compliance with such regulations may lead to monetary penalties or deconstruction orders. Our international operations are also subject to various regulations and guidelines regarding employee relations and other occupational health and safety matters. As we expand our operations into additional international geographic areas, we will be subject to regulations in these jurisdictions.

Backlog

Backlog related to our site leasing business consists of lease agreements and amendments, which have been signed, but have not yet commenced. As of December 31, 2019, we had 643 new leases and amendments which had been executed with customers but which had not begun generating revenue. These leases and amendments will contractually provide for approximately $21.8 million of annual revenue. By comparison, as of December 31, 2018, we had 820 new leases and amendments which had been executed with customers but which had not begun generating revenue. These leases and amendments contractually provided for approximately $15.7 million of annual revenue.

Our backlog for site development services consists of the value of work that has not yet been completed under executed contracts. As of December 31, 2019, we had approximately $54.8 million of contractually committed revenue as compared to approximately $76.1 million as of December 31, 2018.

Availability of Reports and Other Information

SBA Communications Corporation was incorporated in the State of Florida in March 1997 and is a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) for federal income tax purposes. Our corporate website is www.sbasite.com. We make available, free of charge, access to our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A and amendments to those materials filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), on our website under “Investor Relations – Reports and Results – SEC Filings,” as soon as reasonably practicable after we file electronically such material with, or furnish it to, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”).

Risks Related to Our Business

If our wireless service provider customers combine their operations to a significant degree, our future operating results, ability to service our indebtedness, and stock price could be adversely affected.

Significant consolidation among our wireless service provider customers may result in our customers failing to renew existing leases for tower space or reducing future capital expenditures in the aggregate because their existing networks and expansion plans may overlap or be very similar, or acquired technologies may be discontinued. AT&T, Verizon and Sprint have grown through acquisitions of other wireless service providers. As a result, the combined companies have rationalized duplicative parts of their networks, and, in the case of Sprint, the Nextel iDEN network was discontinued. These consolidations have led and may continue to lead to non-renewal of certain of our tower leases. In April 2018, T-Mobile and Sprint entered into a definitive agreement to merge, subject to regulatory approval and other closing conditions. Both the FCC and the Department of Justice have approved the merger and it is currently expected to close during 2020. If this potential transaction closes, it may lead to the non-renewal of certain leases as a result of the rationalization of duplicative or overlapping parts of their networks. For the year ended December 31, 2019, T-Mobile and Sprint represented approximately 17.2% and 15.2% of our total site leasing revenue, respectively. The revenue generated from Sprint where both T-Mobile and Sprint overlap on sites where both companies leased space represented 6.0% of our total site leasing

revenue for the year ended December 31, 2019, excluding, and incremental to, the impact from previously disclosed expected consolidation churn from T-Mobile’s MetroPCS and Sprint’s Clearwire networks. In addition, these overlapping sites have an average remaining current term of approximately 4.4 years and 4.6 years with Sprint and T-Mobile, respectively.

If our wireless service provider customers continue to consolidate as a result of, among other factors, limited wireless spectrum for commercial use in the U.S., these consolidations could significantly impact the number of tower leases that are not renewed or the number of new leases that our wireless service provider customers require to expand their networks, which could materially and adversely affect our future operating results and our ability to service our indebtedness. These risks could be exacerbated due to changes in governmental policy that may favor industry consolidation. In addition, our customers may decide not to renew certain tower leases on towers that do not have duplicative or overlapping antennas, which could further impact our operating results.

Consolidation may also occur among wireless service provider customers in our international markets. For example, in January 2019, Claro acquired Telefonica’s assets in Guatemala and El Salvador, two markets in which we own towers. Consolidations in our international markets may also lead to non-renewal of certain of our tower leases, which could adversely affect our operating results.

In addition, the market price of our Class A common stock may be affected by the economic and market perception of the announcement or consummation of wireless service provider customer consolidations and their impact on our future operating results.

We depend on a relatively small number of customers for most of our revenue, and the loss, consolidation or financial instability of any of our significant customers may materially decrease our revenue and adversely affect our financial condition.

We derive a significant portion of our revenue from a small number of customers. Consequently, a reduction in demand for site leasing, reduced future capital expenditures on the networks, or the loss, as a result of bankruptcy, merger with other customers of ours or otherwise, of any of our largest customers could materially decrease our revenue and have an adverse effect on our growth.

The following is a list of significant customers (representing at least 10% of revenue in any of the last three years) and the percentage of our total revenues for the specified time periods derived from these customers:

We also have client concentrations with respect to revenues in each of our financial reporting segments:

‎

We derive revenue through numerous site leasing contracts and site development contracts. In the United States and Canada, each site leasing contract relates to the lease of space at an individual tower and is generally for an initial term of five years to 10 years with multiple five year renewal periods at the option of the tenant. Tenant leases in South Africa and our Central and South American markets typically have an initial term of 10 years with multiple five year renewal periods. However, if any of our significant site leasing customers were to experience financial difficulty, substantially reduce their capital expenditures or reduce their dependence on leased tower space and fail to renew their leases with us, our revenues, future revenue growth and results of operations would be adversely affected. For example, in January 2018, Oi, S.A. (“Oi”), our largest customer in Brazil, emerged from bankruptcy with a reorganization plan and is expected to resolve all of its pre-petition obligations. However, if Oi is unable to successfully fulfill its reorganization obligations or cannot operate its business on a go-forward basis, it could adversely affect our future results of operations. In addition, many of our tenants in our international markets are subsidiaries of global telecommunications companies. These subsidiaries may not have the explicit or implied financial support of their parent entities, which may impact their creditworthiness.

Our site development customers engage us on a project-by-project basis, and a customer can generally terminate an assignment at any time without penalty. I

Showing the first 8K of 75K characters. Open the full section

We own our headquarters in Boca Raton, Florida where we currently have approximately 160,000 square feet of office space. We also own or have entered into long-term leases for international and regional locations convenient for the management and operation of our site leasing activities, and in certain site development office locations where we expect our activities to be longer-term. We believe our existing facilities are adequate for our current and planned levels of operations and that additional office space suited for our needs is reasonably available in the markets within which we operate.

Our interests in towers and the land beneath them are comprised of a variety of fee interests, leasehold interests created by long-term lease agreements, perpetual easements, easements, licenses, rights-of-way, and other similar interests. As of December 31, 2019, approximately 71% of our tower structures were located on parcels of land that we own, land subject to perpetual easements, or parcels of land that have an interest that extends beyond 20 years. The average remaining life under our ground leases and other property interests, including renewal options under our control, is 35 years. In rural areas, support for our towers, equipment shelters, and related equipment requires a tract of land typically up to 10,000 square feet. Less than 2,500 square feet is required for a monopole or self-supporting tower of the kind typically used in metropolitan areas for wireless communications towers. Ground leases and other property interests are generally for an initial term of five years or more with multiple five year renewal periods, for a total of 30 years or more.

Most of our towers have significant capacity available for additional antennas. We measure the available capacity of our existing facilities to support additional tenants and generate additional lease revenue by assessing several factors, including tower height, tower type, wind loading, environmental conditions, existing equipment on the tower and zoning and permitting regulations in effect in the jurisdiction where the tower is located. As of December 31, 2019, we had an average of 1.8 tenants per tower structure.

We are involved in various legal proceedings relating to claims arising in the ordinary course of business. We do not believe that the ultimate resolution of these matters will have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations or liquidity.

Not Applicable.

PART II

Market for our Class A Common Stock

Our Class A common stock commenced trading under the symbol “SBAC” on The NASDAQ National Market System on June 16, 1999. We now trade on the NASDAQ Global Select Market, a segment of the NASDAQ Global Market, formally known as the NASDAQ National Market System.

As of February 18, 2020, there were 120 record holders of our Class A common stock.

Dividends

As a REIT, we are required to distribute annually at least 90% of our REIT taxable income after the utilization of any available NOLs (determined before the deduction for dividends paid and excluding any net capital gain). As of December 31, 2019, $652.9 million of the federal NOLs are attributes of the REIT. We may use these NOLs to offset our REIT taxable income, and thus any required distributions to shareholders may be reduced or eliminated until such time as our NOLs have been fully utilized. The amount of future distributions will be determined, from time to time, by the board of directors to balance our goal of increasing long-term shareholder value and retaining sufficient cash to implement our current capital allocation policy, which prioritizes investment in

quality assets that meet our return criteria, and then stock repurchases when we believe our stock price is below its intrinsic value. The actual amount, timing and frequency of future dividends, will be at the sole discretion of the board of directors and will be declared based upon various factors, many of which are beyond our control.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

The following table presents information related to our repurchases of Class A common stock during the fourth quarter of 2019:

(1)On July 29, 2019, our Board of Directors authorized a stock repurchase plan, replacing the plan authorized on February 16, 2018 which had a remaining authorization of $110.0 million. This new plan authorizes us to purchase, from time to time, up to $1.0 billion of our outstanding Class A common stock through open market repurchases in compliance with Rule 10b-18 under the Exchange Act, and/or in privately negotiated transactions at management’s discretion based on market and business conditions, applicable legal requirements, and other factors. Shares repurchased will be retired. This plan has no time deadline and will continue until otherwise modified or terminated by our Board of Directors at any time in its sole discretion.

‎

The following table sets forth selected historical financial data as of and for each of the five years in the period ended December 31, 2019. The financial data for the fiscal years ended 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, and 2015 have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements. You should read the information set forth below in conjunction with our “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and our consolidated financial statements and the related notes to those consolidated financial statements included in this Form 10-K.

‎

(1)On January 1, 2019, the Company adopted ASU 2016-02 which requires lessees to recognize a right-of-use asset and a lease liability. Upon adoption, certain assets and liabilities were reclassified to Right-of-use assets, net and lease liabilities in accordance with provisions of ASU 2016-02.

The following discussion of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with the information contained in our consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto. The following discussion includes forward-looking statements that involve certain risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, those described in Item 1A. Risk Factors. Our actual results may differ materially from those discussed below. See “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and Item 1A. Risk Factors.

We are a leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure, including tower structures, rooftops and other structures that support antennas used for wireless communications, which we collectively refer to as “towers” or “sites.” Our principal operations are in the United States and its territories. In addition, we own and operate towers in South America, Central America, Canada, and South Africa. Our primary business line is our site leasing business, which contributed 97.7% of our total segment operating profit for the year ended December 31, 2019. In our site leasing business, we (1) lease antenna space to wireless service providers on towers that we own or operate and (2) manage rooftop and tower sites for property owners under various contractual arrangements. As of December 31, 2019, we owned 32,403 towers, a substantial portion of which have been built by us or built by other tower owners or operators who, like us, have built such towers to lease space to multiple wireless service providers. Our other business line is our site development business, through which we assist wireless service providers in developing and maintaining their own wireless service networks.

Site Leasing

Our primary focus is the leasing of antenna space on our multi-tenant towers to a variety of wireless service providers under long-term lease contracts in the United States, South America, Central America, Canada, and South Africa. As of December 31, 2019, (1) no U.S. state or territory accounted for more than 10% of our total tower portfolio by tower count, and (2) no U.S. state or territory accounted for more than 10% of our total revenues for the year ended December 31, 2019. In addition, as of December 31, 2019, approximately 30.5% of our total towers are located in Brazil and less than 3% of our total towers are located in any of our other international markets (each country is considered a market). We derive site leasing revenues primarily from wireless service provider

tenants, including AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon Wireless, Oi S.A., Telefonica, Claro, and TIM. Wireless service providers enter into tenant leases with us, each of which relates to the lease or use of space at an individual site. In the United States and Canada, our tenant leases are generally for an initial term of five years to 10 years with multiple five year renewal periods at the option of the tenant. These tenant leases typically contain specific rent escalators, which average 3-4% per year, including the renewal option periods. Tenant leases in South Africa and our Central and South American markets typically have an initial term of 10 years with multiple five year renewal periods. In Central America, we have similar rent escalators to that of leases in the United States and Canada while our leases in South America and South Africa escalate in accordance with a standard cost of living index. Site leases in South America typically provide for a fixed rental amount and a pass through charge for the underlying rent related to ground leases and other property interests.

Cost of site leasing revenue primarily consists of:

• Cash and non-cash rental expense on ground leases and other underlying property interests;

• Property taxes;

• Site maintenance and monitoring costs (exclusive of employee related costs);

• Utilities;

• Property insurance; and

• Lease initial direct cost amortization.

In the United States and our international markets, ground leases and other property interests are generally for an initial term of five to ten years with multiple renewal periods, which are at our option. Ground leases and other property interests provide for rent escalators which typically average 2-3% annually, or in our South American markets and South Africa, adjust in accordance with a standard cost of living index. As of December 31, 2019, approximately 71% of our tower structures were located on parcels of land that we own, land subject to perpetual easements, or parcels of land in which we have a leasehold interest that extends beyond 20 years. For any given tower, costs are relatively fixed over a monthly or an annual time period. As such, operating costs for owned towers do not generally increase as a result of adding additional customers to the tower. The amount of property taxes varies from site to site depending on the taxing jurisdiction and the height and age of the tower. The ongoing maintenance requirements are typically minimal and include replacing lighting systems, painting a tower, or upgrading or repairing an access road or fencing.

In our Central American markets and Ecuador, significantly all of our revenue, expenses, and capital expenditures arising from our new build activities are denominated in U.S. dollars. Specifically, most of our ground leases and other property interests, tenant leases, and tower-related expenses are paid in U.S. dollars. In our Central American markets, our local currency obligations are principally limited to (1) permitting and other local fees, (2) utilities, and (3) taxes. In Brazil, Canada, Chile, and South Africa significantly all of our revenue, expenses, and capital expenditures, including tenant leases, ground leases and other property interests, and other tower-related expenses are denominated in local currency. In Colombia, Argentina, and Peru, our revenue, expenses, and capital expenditures, including tenant leases, ground leases and other property interests, and other tower-related expenses are denominated in a mix of local currency and U.S. dollars.

As indicated in the table below, our site leasing business generates substantially all of our total segment operating profit. For information regarding our operating segments, see Note 15 of our Consolidated Financial Statements included in this annual report.

We believe that the site leasing business continues to be attractive due to its long-term contracts, built-in rent escalators, high operating margins, and low customer churn (which refers to when a customer does not renew its lease or cancels its lease prior to the end of its term) other than in connection with customer consolidation or cessation of a particular technology. We believe that over the long-term, site leasing revenues will continue to grow as wireless service providers lease additional antenna space on our towers due to increasing minutes of network use and data transfer, network expansion and network coverage requirements. During 2020, we expect organic site leasing revenue in both our domestic and international segments to increase over 2019 levels due in part to wireless carriers deploying unused spectrum. We believe our site leasing business is characterized by stable and long-term recurring revenues, predictable operating costs and minimal non-discretionar

Showing the first 8K of 90K characters. Open the full section

We are exposed to certain market risks that are inherent in our financial instruments. These instruments arise from transactions entered into in the normal course of business.

The following table presents the future principal payment obligations and fair values associated with our long-term debt instruments assuming our actual level of long-term indebtedness as of December 31, 2019:

(1)Proceeds from the February 4, 2020 issuance of the 2020 Senior Notes were used to redeem all of the outstanding principal amount of the 2014 Senior Notes and repay a portion of the amount outstanding under the Revolving Credit Facility.

(2)The anticipated repayment date and the final maturity date for the 2013-2C Tower Securities is April 11, 2023 and April 9, 2048, respectively.

The anticipated repayment date and the final maturity date for the 2014-2C Tower Securities is October 8, 2024 and October 8, 2049, respectively.

The anticipated repayment date and the final maturity date for the 2015-1C Tower Securities is October 8, 2020 and October 10, 2045, respectively.

The anticipated repayment date and the final maturity date for the 2016-1C Tower Securities is July 9, 2021 and July 10, 2046, respectively.

The anticipated repayment date and the final maturity date for the 2017-1C Tower Securities is April 11, 2022 and April 9, 2047, respectively.

The anticipated repayment date and the final maturity date for the 2018-1C Tower Securities is March 9, 2023 and March 9, 2048, respectively.

The anticipated repayment date and the final maturity date for the 2019-1C Tower Securities is January 12, 2025 and January 12, 2050, respectively.

Our current primary market risk exposure is (1) interest rate risk relating to our ability to refinance our debt at commercially reasonable rates, if at all, and (2) interest rate risk relating to the impact of interest rate movements on the variable portion of our 2018 Term Loan and any borrowings that we may incur under our Revolving Credit Facility, which are at floating rates. We manage the interest rate risk on our outstanding debt through our large percentage of fixed rate debt, including interest rate swaps. During 2019, we, through our wholly owned subsidiary, SBA Senior Finance II, LLC, entered into interest rate swaps on a portion of our 2018 Term Loan, which as of December 31, 2019, swapped $1.95 billion of notional value accruing interest at one month LIBOR plus 175 basis points for a fixed rate of 3.78% per annum through the maturity date of the 2018 Term Loan. While we cannot predict our ability to refinance existing debt or the impact interest rate movements will have on our existing debt, we continue to evaluate our financial position on an ongoing basis. In addition, there is currently uncertainty about whether LIBOR will continue to exist after 2021. The discontinuation of LIBOR after 2021 and the replacement with an alternative reference rate may adversely impact interest rates and our interest expense could increase.

We are exposed to market risk from changes in foreign currency exchange rates in connection with our operations in Brazil, Canada, Chile, Peru, Argentina, Colombia, South Africa, and to a lesser extent, our markets in Central America. In each of these countries, we pay most of our selling, general, and administrative expenses and a portion of our operating expenses, such as taxes and utilities incurred in the country in local currency. In addition, in Brazil, Canada, Chile, and South Africa, we receive significantly all of our revenue and pay significantly all of our operating expenses in local currency. In Colombia, Argentina, and Peru, we receive our revenue and pay our operating expenses in a mix of local currency and U.S. dollars. All transactions denominated in currencies other than the U.S. Dollar are reported in U.S. Dollars at the applicable exchange rate. All assets and liabilities are translated into U.S. Dollars at exchange rates in effect at the end of the applicable fiscal reporting period, and all revenues and expenses are translated at average rates for the period. The cumulative translation effect is included in equity as a component of Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss). For the year ended December 31, 2019, approximately 13.2% of our revenues and approximately 16.2% of our total operating expenses were denominated in foreign currencies.

We have performed a sensitivity analysis assuming a hypothetical 10% adverse movement in the Brazilian Real from the quoted foreign currency exchange rates at December 31, 2019. As of December 31, 2019, the analysis indicated that such an adverse movement would have caused our revenues and operating income to decline by approximately 1.0% and 0.6%, respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2019.

As of December 31, 2019, we had intercompany debt, which is denominated in a currency other than the functional currency of the subsidiary in which it is recorded. As settlement of this debt is anticipated or planned in the foreseeable future, any changes in the foreign currency exchange rates will result in unrealized gains or losses, which will be included in our determination of net income. A change of 10% in the underlying exchange rates of our unsettled intercompany debt at December 31, 2019 would have resulted in approximately $76.2 million of unrealized gains or losses that would have been included in Other income (expense), net in our Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended December 31, 2019.

Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This annual report contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements concern expectations, beliefs, projections, plans and strategies, anticipated events or trends and similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. Specifically, this annual report contains forward-looking statements regarding:

• our expectations on the future growth and financial health of the wireless industry and the industry participants, the drivers of such growth, the demand for our towers, the future capital investments of our customers, future spectrum auctions, the trends developing in our industry, and competitive factors;

• our expectations regarding the impact of the proposed Sprint/T-Mobile merger, if consummated;

• our ability to capture and capitalize on industry growth and the impact of such growth on our financial and operational results;

• our intent to grow our tower portfolio domestically and internationally and expand through acquisitions, new builds and organic lease up on existing towers;

• our belief that over the long-term, site leasing revenues will continue to grow as wireless service providers increase their use of our towers due to increasing minutes of network use and data transfer, network expansion and network coverage requirements;

• our expectation regarding site leasing revenue growth, on an organic basis, in our domestic and international segments, and the drivers of such growth;

• our focus on our site leasing business and belief that our site leasing business is characterized by stable and long-term recurring revenues, reduced exposure to changes in customer spending, predictable operating costs, and minimal non-discretionary capital expenditures;

• our expectation that, due to the relatively young age and mix of our tower portfolio, future expenditures required to maintain these towers will be minimal;

• our expectation that we will grow our cash flows by adding tenants to our towers at minimal incremental costs and executing monetary amendments;

• our expectations regarding churn rates;

• our election to be subject to tax as a REIT and our intent to continue to operate as a REIT;

• our belief that our business is currently operated in a manner that complies with the REIT rules and our intent to continue to do so;

• our plans regarding our distribution policy, and the amount and timing of, and source of funds for, any such distributions;

• our expectations regarding the use of NOLs to reduce REIT taxable income;

• our expectations regarding our capital allocation strategy, including future allocation decisions among portfolio growth, stock repurchases, and dividends, the impact of our election to be taxed as a REIT on that strategy, and our goal of increasing our Adjusted Funds From Operations per share;

• our expectations regarding dividends and our ability to grow our dividend in the future and the drivers of such growth;

• our expectations regarding our future cash capital expenditures, both discretionary and non-discretionary, including expenditures required for new builds and to maintain, improve, and modify our towers, ground lease purchases, and general corporate expenditures, and the source of funds for these expenditures;

• our expectations regarding our business strategies, including our strategy for securing rights to the land underlying our towers, and the impact of such strategies on our financial and operational results;

• our intended use of our liquidity;

• our intent to maintain our target leverage levels, including in light of our dividend;

• our expectations regarding our debt service in 2020 and our belief that our cash on hand, capacity under our Revolving Credit Facility, and our cash flows from operations for the next twelve months will be sufficient to service our outstanding debt during the next twelve months; and

• our expectations and estimates regarding certain tax and accounting matters, including the impact on our financial statements.

These forward-looking statements reflect our current views about future events and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. We wish to caution readers that certain important factors may have affected and could in the future affect our actual results and could cause actual results to differ significantly from those expressed in any forward-looking statement. The most important factors that could prevent us from achieving our goals, and cause the assumptions underlying forward-looking statements and the actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by those forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the following:

• the impact of consolidation among wireless service providers, including the potential impact of the proposed merger between Sprint and T-Mobile if consummated, on our leasing revenue;

• the ability of Dish Network to become and compete as a nationwide carrier;

• our ability to continue to comply with covenants and the terms of our credit instruments and our ability to obtain additional financing to fund our capital expenditures;

• our ability to successfully manage the risks associated with international operations, including risks relating to political or economic conditions, inflation, tax laws, currency restrictions and exchange rate fluctuations, legal or judicial systems, and land ownership;

• our ability to successfully manage the risks associated with our acquisition initiatives, including our ability to satisfactorily complete due diligence on acquired towers, the amount and quality of due diligence that we are able to complete prior to closing of any acquisition, our ability to accurately anticipate the future performance of the acquired towers, our ability to receive required regulatory approval, the ability and willingness of each party to fulfill their respective closing conditions and their contractual obligations, and, once acquired, our ability to effectively integrate acquired towers into our business and to achieve the financial results projected in our valuation models for the acquired towers;

• the health of the South Africa economy and wireless communications market, and the willingness of carriers to invest in their networks in that market;

• developments in the wireless communications industry in general, and for wireless communications infrastructure providers in particular, that may slow growth or affect the willingness or ability of the wireless service providers to expend capital to fund network expansion or enhancements;

• our ability to secure as many site leasing tenants as anticipated, recognize our expected economies of scale with respect to new tenants on our towers, and retain current leases on towers;

• our ability to secure and deliver anticipated services business at contemplated margins;

• our ability to build new towers, including our ability to identify and acquire land that would be attractive for our customers and to successfully and timely address zoning, permitting, weather, availability of labor and supplies and other issues that arise in connection with the building of new towers;

• competition for the acquisition of towers and other factors that may adversely affect our ability to purchase towers that meet our investment criteria and are available at prices which we believe will be accretive to our shareholders and allow us to maintain our long-term target leverage ratios while achieving our expected portfolio growth levels;

• our capital allocation decisions and the impact on our ability to achieve our expected tower portfolio growth levels;

• our ability to protect our rights to the land under our towers, and our ability to acquire land underneath our towers on terms that are accretive;

• our ability to sufficiently increase our revenues and maintain expenses and cash capital expenditures at appropriate levels to permit us to meet our anticipated uses of liquidity for operations, debt service and estimated portfolio growth;

• the impact of rising interest rates on our results of operations and our ability to refinance our existing indebtedness at commercially reasonable rates or at all;

• our ability to successfully estimate the impact of regulatory and litigation matters;

• natural disasters and other unforeseen damage for which our insurance may not provide adequate coverage;

• a decrease in demand for our towers;

• the introduction of new technologies or changes in a tenant’s business model that may make our tower leasing business less desirable to existing or potential tenants;

• our ability to qualify for treatment as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes and to comply with and conduct our business in accordance with such rules;

• our ability to utilize available NOLs to reduce REIT taxable income; and

• our ability to successfully estimate the impact of certain accounting and tax matters, including the effect on our company of adopting certain accounting pronouncements and the availability of sufficient NOLs to offset future REIT taxable income.

Financial statements and supplementary data are on pages F-1 through F-43.

None.

Disclosure Controls and Procedures – We maintain disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to management, including our Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”), as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. In designing and evaluating the disclosure controls and procedures, management recognized that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives, as ours are designed to do, and management necessarily was required to apply its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures.

In connection with the preparation of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, as of December 31, 2019, an evaluation was performed under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including the CEO and CFO, of the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) under the Exchange Act). Based on such evaluation, our CEO and CFO concluded that, as of December 31, 2019, our disclosure controls and procedures were effective.

There has been no change in our internal control over financial reporting during the quarter ended December 31, 2019 that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting – Management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, and for performing an assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019. Internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Our system of internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of SBAC; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of SBAC are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of SBAC; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of SBAC’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Management performed an assessment of the effectiveness of SBAC’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019 based upon criteria in Internal Control – Integrated Framework (2013 Framework) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). Based on our assessment, management determined that SBAC’s internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2019 based on the criteria in Internal Control – Integrated Framework (2013 Framework) issued by COSO.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

Ernst & Young LLP, the independent registered public accounting firm that audited the financial statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, has issued an attestation report on SBAC’s internal control over financial reporting. ‎

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

To the Shareholders and the Board of Directors of SBA Communications Corporation and Subsidiaries

Opinion on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

We have audited SBA Communications Corporation and Subsidiaries’ internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019, based on criteria established in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework) (the COSO criteria). In our opinion, SBA Communications Corporation and Subsidiaries (the Company) maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019, based on the COSO criteria.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the consolidated balance sheets of the Company as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 and the related consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive income (loss), shareholders’ deficit, and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2019, and the related notes and financial statement schedule listed in the Index at Item 15(a) of the Company and our report dated February 24, 2020 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

Basis for Opinion

The Company’s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting, and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting included in the accompanying Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects.

Our audit included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk, and performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Definition and Limitations of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

/s/ Ernst & Young LLP

Boca Raton, Florida

February 24, 2020 ‎

PART III

We have adopted a Code of Ethics that applies to our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer. The Code of Ethics is located on our internet web site at www.sbasite.com under “Investors – Governance – Governance Documents.” We intend to provide disclosure of any amendments or waivers of our Code of Ethics on our website within 4 business days following the date of the amendment or waiver.

The remaining items required by Part III, Item 10 are incorporated herein by reference from the Registrant’s Proxy Statement for its 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be filed on or before April 30, 2020.

The items required by Part III, Item 11 are incorporated herein by reference from the Registrant’s Proxy Statement for its 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be filed on or before April 30, 2020.

The items required by Part III, Item 12 are incorporated herein by reference from the Registrant’s Proxy Statement for its 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be filed on or before April 30, 2020.

The items required by Part III, Item 13 are incorporated herein by reference from the Registrant’s Proxy Statement for its 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be filed on or before April 30, 2020.

The items required by Part III, Item 14 are incorporated herein by reference from the Registrant’s Proxy Statement for its 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be filed on or before April 30, 2020.

PART IV

(a) Documents filed as part of this report:

(1) Financial Statements

See Item 8 for Financial Statements included with this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

(2)Financial Statement Schedules

Schedule III—Schedule of Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation (see below)

All other schedules are omitted because they are not applicable or because the required information is contained in the financial statements or notes thereto included in this Form 10-K.

‎

Schedule III—Schedule of Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation

(1)No single site exceeds 5% of the aggregate gross amounts at which the assets were carried at the close of the period set forth in the table above.

(2)As of December 31, 2019, certain assets secure debt of $7.8 billion.

(3)The Company has omitted this information, as it would be impracticable to compile such information on a site-by-site basis.

(4)Does not include those sites under construction.

(1)Inclusive of changes between the final purchase price allocation and the preliminary purchase price allocations.

(2)Primarily represents cumulative translation adjustments related to changes in foreign currency exchange rates.

(1)Primarily represents cumulative translation adjustments related to changes in foreign currency exchange rates.

(3) Exhibits

† Management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.

• Filed herewith.

** Furnished herewith.

None. ‎

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

SBA COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Table of Contents

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

To the Shareholders and the Board of Directors of SBA Communications Corporation and Subsidiaries

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of SBA Communications Corporation and Subsidiaries (the Company) as of December 31, 2019 and 2018, and the related consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive income (loss), shareholders’ deficit, and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2019, and the related notes and financial statement schedule listed in the Index at Item 15(a) (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company at December 31, 2019 and 2018, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2019, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2019, based on criteria established in Internal Control-Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework) and our report dated February 24, 2020 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

Adoption of ASU No. 2016-02

As discussed in Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company changed its method of accounting for leases in 2019 due to the adoption of Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), and the related amendments. See discussion of our related critical audit matter.

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Critical Audit Matter

The critical audit matter communicated below is a matter arising from the current period audit of the financial statements that was communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that: (1) relates to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial statements and (2) involved our especially challenging, subjective or complex judgments. The communication of the critical audit matter does not alter in any way our opinion on the consolidated financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit matter below, providing a separate opinion on the critical audit matter or on the accounts or disclosures to which it relates.

‎

F-1

Showing the first 8K of 186K characters. Open the full section