Liberty Latin America (LILA) Q1 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q1 2026 performance exceeded internal expectations, with strong postpaid subscriber growth across all segments and accelerated recovery in Jamaica following Hurricane Melissa.

• Adjusted OIBDA was $405 million, essentially flat year-over-year, despite hurricane and project phasing headwinds.

• Announced intent to distribute $500 million in preferred stock with a 9% dividend rate and resumed share repurchases, with $185 million remaining under authorization.

• GCI Liberty acquired a 6% stake, increasing John Malone's influence and signaling key shareholder support.

• Net loss attributable to shareholders improved to $(22.7) million from $(136.4) million year-over-year, driven by higher operating income and lower non-operating losses.

Financial highlights

• Q1 2026 revenue was $1,083 million, flat year-over-year on a reported basis and down 1% rebased, with hurricane impacts and business model changes affecting results.

• Adjusted OIBDA margin was 37.4%, with segment margins ranging from 30.8% to 52.4%.

• Adjusted free cash flow before distributions improved to negative $64 million from negative $103 million year-over-year.

• Operating income rose to $145 million, a 13% increase year-over-year.

• Consolidated net leverage stood at 4.5x, with $8.4 billion in total debt and $1.5 billion in liquidity.

Outlook and guidance

• Expect diminishing year-over-year headwinds and revenue growth for the remainder of 2026, with cost initiatives underway across most operating businesses.

• Jamaica's recovery is ahead of plan, with reconnections expected to accelerate and free cash flow impact likely better than previously guided.

• Adjusted FCF is expected to be highly weighted to the latter part of the year.

• Plans to complete the preferred stock distribution before the end of Q2 2026.