10-KPeriod: FY2025

CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS, INC. /MO/ Annual Report, Year Ended Dec 31, 2025

Filed January 30, 2026For Securities:CHTR

Summary

Charter Communications, Inc. (CHTR) reported a slight decrease in total revenues to $54.77 billion for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025, down 0.6% from the prior year. This was primarily driven by a decline in video subscribers and advertising sales, partially offset by robust growth in mobile lines and steady performance in internet services. The company's strategic focus on its converged broadband, WiFi, and mobile offerings, along with network upgrades to multi-gigabit speeds, continues to be a core tenet of its growth strategy. Despite competitive pressures, Charter demonstrated resilience with a slight increase in Adjusted EBITDA to $22.71 billion, indicating effective cost management and operational efficiencies. The company is actively pursuing significant strategic initiatives, including the pending acquisitions of Liberty Broadband and Cox Communications' businesses. These transactions, expected to close in stages, aim to consolidate market position and enhance service offerings. Charter's substantial debt load remains a key consideration for investors, with total debt standing at $94.6 billion as of December 31, 2025. However, the company's continued generation of strong free cash flow, projected to be $5.0 billion for 2025, provides a cushion for debt servicing, capital expenditures, and strategic investments. Management remains focused on long-term network evolution and customer value to drive future growth.

Financial Highlights

48 data points
Beta

Revenue

$54.77B

Net Income

$4.99B

9.1% Net Margin

EPS (Diluted)

$36.21

Total Assets

$154.21B

Cash & Equivalents

$477.00M

Free Cash Flow

$4.42B

Financial Statements
Beta
Revenue$54.77B
Operating Expenses$41.87B
Operating Income$12.91B
Net Income$4.99B
EPS (Basic)$36.90
EPS (Diluted)$36.21
Shares Outstanding (Basic)135.16M
Shares Outstanding (Diluted)137.74M

Key Highlights

  • 1Total revenues slightly decreased by 0.6% to $54.77 billion in 2025, primarily due to a decline in video customers and advertising sales, partially offset by mobile line growth and higher average revenue per customer.
  • 2Adjusted EBITDA saw a modest increase of 0.6% to $22.71 billion in 2025, indicating effective cost management and operational efficiencies.
  • 3The company continues to expand its mobile subscriber base, adding 1.9 million mobile lines in 2025, contributing to a 22.0% increase in mobile service revenues.
  • 4Charter is undertaking significant strategic growth initiatives, including the pending Liberty Broadband Combination and Cox Transactions, aimed at enhancing its market position and service capabilities.
  • 5Total debt stands at $94.6 billion as of December 31, 2025, reflecting significant leverage, though the company maintains access to capital markets.
  • 6Free cash flow generation remains strong, increasing by 16.7% to $5.0 billion in 2025, supporting debt servicing, capital expenditures, and strategic investments.
  • 7Significant capital expenditures of $11.7 billion were made in 2025, primarily focused on network evolution, rural expansion, and infrastructure upgrades.

Frequently Asked Questions

Charter's strategy centers on leveraging its fiber-powered network to deliver high-quality, competitively priced products with exceptional service. Key elements include increasing customer penetration within its footprint, selling more products per customer (bundling), enhancing customer satisfaction to reduce churn, and optimizing operations through technology and a focus on its U.S.-based workforce. Network evolution to multi-gigabit speeds and expansion into rural areas are also critical components.

Charter is involved in two major pending transactions: the Liberty Broadband Combination and the Cox Transactions. The Liberty Broadband Combination involves Charter acquiring Liberty Broadband, while the Cox Transactions involve Charter acquiring certain businesses from Cox Communications. These deals are expected to significantly expand Charter's scale and capabilities, though they also introduce integration complexities and impact the company's capital structure.

Charter faces intense competition across all its service lines, including from fiber-to-the-home providers, mobile network operators, virtual MVPDs, and streaming services. The company counters this through network upgrades for faster speeds, bundled service offerings to provide value, and a focus on customer experience and service quality. It is also integrating programmer streaming applications into its video packages and enhancing its mobile and WiFi offerings.

Charter maintains a significant level of debt, approximately $94.6 billion as of December 31, 2025, and aims to manage its leverage ratio within a target range of 3.5-3.75 times Adjusted EBITDA post-transactions. The company generates substantial free cash flow, which is utilized for debt servicing, capital expenditures (including network upgrades and rural expansion), stock repurchases, and strategic investments. Charter also actively explores refinancing opportunities to manage its debt obligations.