Lumen Technologies (NYSE:LUMN) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.44 EPS

Lumen Technologies (NYSE:LUMN) posted its earnings results on Tuesday. The technology company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.21) by $0.44, FiscalAI reports. Lumen Technologies had a negative return on equity of 158.40% and a negative net margin of 13.02%.The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.09 earnings per share. Lumen Technologies’s quarterly revenue was down 8.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Here are the key takeaways from Lumen Technologies’ conference call:

• Closed the sale of the fiber-to-the-home business to AT&T (gross $5.75B), used net proceeds to retire $4.8B of super-priority bonds and other debt, leaving total debt under $13B and net leverage around 3.8x, while cutting annual interest expense by ~<$500M and reducing annual CapEx by >$1B.
• Signed nearly $13 billion of pre-funded PCF deals (including ~$2.5B in Q4) that will expand Lumen’s network to ~58M fiber miles by 2031, with ~ $116M of PCF-related revenue recognized in 2025 and management saying most PCF cash is received upfront (expect ~90% upfront).
• Digital/NaaS adoption accelerated in Q4 — active customers +29% QoQ, NaaS ports +31%, services sold +26% — and management expects these trends (including >900 Off?Net ports sold) to help inflect Adjusted EBITDA to growth in 2026 and drive meaningful margin and free-cash-flow improvement.
• Q4 2025 results showed challenges: total revenue declined 8.7% YoY to $3.041B, Adjusted EBITDA was $767M (down from $1.052B a year ago), and Q4 free cash flow was negative $765M, partly due to a delayed $400M tax refund and $280M of special items.

Lumen Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE LUMN opened at $8.47 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $8.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.13 and a beta of 1.51. Lumen Technologies has a fifty-two week low of $3.01 and a fifty-two week high of $11.95. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $8.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.03.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on LUMN shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Lumen Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Lumen Technologies from $4.25 to $8.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Wall Street Zen raised Lumen Technologies from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Lumen Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $11.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Lumen Technologies in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.72.

Lumen Technologies News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Lumen Technologies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lumen reported a surprise adjusted profit and beat EPS expectations ($0.23 vs. street losses), which supports near?term sentiment and helped rally the stock earlier. Lumen (LUMN) Beats Q4 Earnings Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management is forecasting annual free cash flow above Wall Street estimates and said digital product adoption is rising — a key fundamental driver that can support valuation multiple expansion. Lumen forecasts upbeat free cash flow, sees rising adoption of its digital products
• Positive Sentiment: Lumen closed the $5.75B sale of its mass?market fiber business to AT&T, reducing total debt by ~ $4.8B, cutting annual interest expense ~45% and lowering capex — materially improving leverage and free?cash?flow flexibility. Lumen Technologies Reports Solid Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results; Completes AT&T Transaction
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors can review the full Q4 call/transcript and slide deck for color on margin recovery, enterprise strategy and FCF cadence; these details will determine whether the upbeat FCF guide is sustainable. Lumen Technologies, Inc. (LUMN) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Partnerships and product moves (e.g., SeenThis/Lumen Research attention?measurement product) add to commercial momentum but are unlikely to move the stock materially in the near term. SeenThis and Lumen Research Launch Attention Measurement Model
• Negative Sentiment: AIGH Capital sold 2.55M Lumen shares (~$15.6M trade size), which likely increased intraday selling pressure and contributed to today’s pullback. AIGH Capital Dumps 2.6 Million Lumen Technologies Shares In $15.6 Million Exit
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the EPS beat, revenue fell ~8.7% YoY and margins/ROE remain negative — fundamentals that keep some investors cautious and cap upside until growth stabilizes. Lumen 4Q25 Press Release / Slide Deck

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lumen Technologies

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Polymer Capital Management US LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lumen Technologies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $115,000. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Lumen Technologies by 15,417.2% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 18,000 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $110,000 after acquiring an additional 17,884 shares in the last quarter. Prelude Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lumen Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $130,000. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Lumen Technologies in the 2nd quarter worth $125,000. Finally, Sender Co & Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lumen Technologies during the second quarter worth about $76,000. 66.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Lumen Technologies

Lumen Technologies is a multinational technology company specializing in integrated network, edge cloud, security and collaboration services for enterprise and public sector clients. The company’s core offerings include high-capacity fiber and IP-based connectivity, managed edge computing solutions designed to accelerate applications and data processing closer to end users, and cybersecurity services ranging from DDoS protection to unified threat management. Through its unified portfolio, Lumen enables organizations to support digital transformation initiatives, modernize infrastructure and enhance operational resilience.

Leveraging one of the largest fiber footprints in North America, as well as infrastructure in Latin America and parts of Europe, Lumen connects customers across more than 60 countries.