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Data last updated: Oct 19, 2026
Snapshot (as of Oct 19, 2026): Crown Castle Inc. (CCI) pays a $4.25 annual dividend ($1.06 quarterly), yielding 5.17% at $82.26/share. Next ex-dividend date 2026-09-15. Source: Yahoo Finance, aggregated by MerryDiv.
Dividend Yield: 5.17%
Annual Dividend: $4.25 per share
Payout Ratio: 172.8% (based on depressed trailing earnings — see safety analysis below)
Ex-Dividend Date: 2026-09-15
Dividend Frequency: quarterly
Sector: Real Estate
Years of Dividend History: 13
Crown Castle Inc. dividend income comes from one of the largest cell tower portfolios in the United States, spanning roughly 40,000 towers that underpin wireless connectivity nationwide. CCI currently yields 5.34%, with a trailing annual dividend rate of $4.25 per share paid quarterly. The next ex-dividend date is September 15, 2026. With a beta of 0.961, CCI stock moves close to the broader market, which appeals to income investors who want meaningful yield without extreme price swings.
Crown Castle Inc. pays out 172.8% of earnings as dividends, a payout ratio classified as high (above 75%). That figure sits well above 100%, meaning the dividend is not covered by reported earnings alone. Crown Castle Inc. dividend safety rests on the demand for its approximately 40,000 cell towers, which serve as essential infrastructure for wireless carriers, but a payout ratio this elevated leaves little room for earnings pressure. Consecutive dividend increases currently stand at zero, which is the most direct data point signaling that the current payout level is under strain.
Over the past 10 years, Crown Castle Inc. dividend history shows a CAGR of 12.8% per year from 2014 to 2024. The per-share annual dividend grew from $1.87 in 2014 to $6.26 in 2024 (2025 and 2026 figures are partial years and excluded from the growth calculation). The largest single-year increase in the window was 78.9% in 2015, though growth moderated considerably in later years, with 2023 and 2024 both landing at $6.26 per share.
| Period | CAGR | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3-Year | -7.3% | $5.97 (2022) | $4.75 (2025) |
| 5-Year | -0.7% | $4.93 (2020) | $4.75 (2025) |
| 10-Year | +3.6% | $3.35 (2015) | $4.75 (2025) |
CCI stock fits dividend investors who prioritize a high current yield from essential infrastructure over dividend growth momentum. At 5.34%, the yield is classified as high (above 4%) and sits above the 5-year average of 4.79%, which reflects the pressure the payout has faced in recent years. The 172.8% payout ratio is the central trade-off: income investors get an above-average yield backed by a nationwide cell tower network, but zero consecutive years of dividend increases and a payout that exceeds earnings mean the income stream carries real sustainability risk.
| Payment Date | Amount per Share |
|---|---|
| 2026-09-15 | $1.0625 |
| 2026-06-15 | $1.0625 |
| 2026-03-13 | $1.0625 |
| 2025-12-15 | $1.0625 |
| 2025-09-15 | $1.0625 |
| 2025-06-13 | $1.0625 |
| 2025-03-14 | $1.5650 |
| 2024-12-13 | $1.5650 |
| 2024-09-13 | $1.5650 |
| 2024-06-14 | $1.5650 |
| Year | Total Dividends |
|---|---|
| 2026 | $3.1875 |
| 2025 | $4.7525 |
| 2024 | $6.2600 |
| 2023 | $6.2600 |
| 2022 | $5.9750 |
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