SpaceX正在为其Starlink Mobile服务大量收购频谱，而通信塔类股票对此反应热烈。周五上午，美国通信塔公司（American Tower Corporation）、皇冠城堡公司（Crown Castle Inc.）和SBA通信公司（SBA Communications）的股价均上涨至少6%，其中皇冠城堡公司领涨，在上午盘中涨幅约达12%。这些公司的股价上涨与AT&T、Verizon Communications和T-Mobile形成鲜明对比，后三者因SpaceX可能成为移动宽带领域强劲竞争对手的前景而大幅下跌；其中T-Mobile跌幅最大，约为10%。
SpaceX is buying up spectrum for its Starlink Mobile service and tower stocks are loving it. American Tower Corporation , Crown Castle Inc. , and SBA Communications were all trading at least 6% higher Friday morning with Crown Castle leading the way, up around 12% in mid-morning trading. Their gains are in stark contrast to AT & T , Verizon Communications , and T-Mobile , all down sharply on prospects of SpaceX becoming a formidable rival in mobile broadband; of the three, T-Mobile was down the most with a roughly 10% decline. SpaceX's mobile broadband ambitions are well known. But its purchase of Grain Management's nationwide 800 MHz spectrum portfolio for an undisclosed amount indicates that SpaceX's is getting closer to providing robust terrestrial coverage, which still need cell-towers for dense urban areas and penetration in buildings. The new spectrum "will provide a coverage layer that ensures Starlink Mobile's signal penetrates through obstacles, such as walls, and can provide service to customers' devices even when they are in buildings," SpaceX said in a release .
SpaceX在移动宽带领域的雄心众所周知。但该公司以未披露金额收购Grain Management公司覆盖全国的800 MHz频谱组合，表明其正逐步接近提供稳定的地面网络覆盖——尽管在人口密集的城市区域和建筑物内部，仍需依赖通信塔。SpaceX在一份声明中表示，这批新频谱“将提供一个覆盖层，确保Starlink Mobile的信号能够穿透墙壁等障碍物，即使在建筑物内也能为用户设备提供服务”。
That's a double whammy of good news for tower stocks, analysts say. "It chips away at the 'towers are obsolete in a [direct to device] world' narrative, with which we have long vehemently disagreed," Madison Rezaei at Bernstein wrote in a Thursday note. "And it lends credibility to a potential new buyer of tower capacity, whether the eventual build is large scale or more selective." A sagging sector Tower stocks, whose assets are often structured as REITs, have sagged amid higher interest rates and increased prospects for satellite connectivity. American Tower is down more than 30% over the past five years; SBA Communications is down about 45%, and Crown Castle is down about 55%.
分析师称，这对通信塔类股票而言是双重利好。“这削弱了‘在[设备直连]时代，通信塔将变得过时’这一我们长期强烈反对的说法，”Bernstein公司的Madison Rezaei在周四的一份报告中写道。“同时，这也为通信塔容量可能迎来新的买家增添了可信度，无论最终建设是大规模还是更具选择性的模式。”通信塔行业持续低迷。
AMT 5Y mountain American Tower, 5 years Some analysts think that SpaceX's push into spectrum may be a pump-and-fake designed to secure a cheap network capacity deal with a traditional wireless carrier. "SPCX may be bluffing to keep wireless down and get an [mobile virtual network operator agreement], but needs to be taken seriously," Gregory Williams at TD wrote on Thursday. "We believe the spectrum news takes a back seat to the press release that intentionally used words like 'an advanced terrestrial deployment'; 'to become a major mobile carrier'; penetrate 'through walls, and…in buildings.'" Starlink tower expansion?
由于这些公司的资产通常以房地产投资信托基金（REITs）形式存在，在利率上升和卫星连接前景增强的背景下，其股价持续下跌。过去五年间，美国通信塔公司的股价下跌超过30%；SBA通信公司下跌约45%；皇冠城堡公司则下跌约55%。AMT 5Y mountain American Tower，5年 一些分析师认为，SpaceX对频谱的布局可能是一场“虚假拉升”策略，旨在与传统无线运营商达成低价的网络容量协议。
However, most analysts see the spectrum move as a sign that SpaceX is getting closer to providing robust service in cities and other urban areas, opening up new markets for Starlink. While that would be a negative for traditional wireless carriers, it could help make tower assets more valuable. Some analysts say SpaceX may snap up more spectrum to fulfill that ambition. "We would not be surprised to see SpaceX pursue additional low-band assets over time, with Anterix's 900 MHz spectrum, which we value at $2.6 billion, uniquely positioned to fit this need," Petti at JPMorgan wrote. Analysts also see SpaceX potentially amassing its own network of ground-based towers, which could push up the value of the sector's assets.
“SPCX 可能是在虚张声势，试图压低无线通信板块股价，以达成一份[移动虚拟网络运营商协议]，但这一举动仍需认真对待，”TD 证券的格雷戈里·威廉姆斯周四写道。“我们认为，频谱消息的重要性被那篇新闻稿所掩盖，该稿刻意使用了诸如‘先进的地面部署’‘成为主要移动运营商’‘穿透墙壁以及……建筑物内部’等措辞。星链塔台扩张？然而，大多数分析师认为，此次频谱动作表明 SpaceX 正逐步接近在各大城市及其他城区提供稳定服务，从而为星链开辟新的市场。尽管这对传统无线运营商而言是个利空，但可能有助于提升塔台资产的价值。一些分析师表示，SpaceX 可能会收购更多频谱以实现这一目标。‘我们不会惊讶于 SpaceX 未来会寻求更多低频段资产，而 Anterix 持有的 900 MHz 频谱价值 26 亿美元，恰好能满足这一需求，’摩根士丹利的佩蒂写道。分析师还认为，SpaceX 可能正在构建自己的地面塔台网络，这或将推高该行业资产的价值。‘此次交易与我们此前的观点一致，即……SpaceX 很可能需要利用宏基站构建地面网络，以提供与传统无线运营商相当的用户体验，’摩根士丹利的塞巴斯蒂亚诺·佩蒂在周四的一份报告中写道。伯恩斯坦的雷扎伊也持相同看法，她表示，初步判断是“SPCX 仍保留着构建地面网络的可能性”。股息投资者也应为 SpaceX 的这一举动感到欣喜。塔台 REIT 的股息收益率高于平均水平，其中 Crown Castle 的收益率处于较高水平，在近期约 77 美元的价格下，股息收益率为 5.5%。假设 SpaceX 最终能签订塔台合同，这些股息也将更加有保障。
"The transaction is consistent with our view that … SpaceX would likely need to build a terrestrial network using macro towers to deliver a user experience on par with traditional wireless carriers," Sebastiano Petti at JPMorgan wrote in a Thursday note. Bernstein's Rezaei concurred, saying her preliminary read was that "SPCX is keeping the terrestrial network build option very much alive." Dividend investors should applaud the SpaceX move too. Tower REITs pay above average yields with Crown Castle at the higher end, offering a 5.5% yield at recent prices around $77. Assuming SpaceX comes through with tower contracts, those dividends should be more secure.