Shares of Charter Communications cratered 10.7% to $113.02 Friday morning after second-quarter results revealed a worsening trend at the heart of the cable giant's business. Spectrum Internet customers declined by 172,000 in the quarter — a sharp acceleration from the 120,000 lost in Q1 2026 and far worse than the 117,000 lost in Q2 2025 . For a company carrying $93.8 billion in debt, the trajectory matters enormously.
The Subscriber Drain Is Getting Worse, Not Better
Revenue fell 1.7% to $13.5 billion as lower residential video and Internet revenue outweighed growth in mobile, commercial, and advertising . Adjusted EBITDA — a measure of core operating profit — dropped 4.3% to $5,449 million . Each lost broadband customer takes roughly $55–60 in monthly revenue with it, and the losses are compounding: Charter has now shed nearly 300,000 internet subscribers in the first half of 2026 alone. CEO Chris Winfrey has acknowledged that "cable industry internet growth has been pressured for several years now, given new competition, a challenging housing environment and other factors."
Mobile Is Growing, but It Can't Fill the Hole
Spectrum Mobile lines grew by 406,000 in Q2, bringing the total to 12.5 million . That's real momentum. But mobile revenue per user is a fraction of broadband's, and investors on the Q1 call already pushed back on whether wireless bundling can truly offset fiber and satellite competition. The stock's 57% decline from its April pre-earnings level near $250 suggests the market has answered that question — for now — with a resounding no.
A $94 Billion Debt Load Leaves Zero Room for Error
Total debt stood at $93,845 million, with net leverage at 4.18 times operating earnings . Charter is simultaneously executing a $34.5 billion Cox Communications acquisition expected to close this summer and an $11.4 billion capital spending cycle peaking in 2026 . Management has raised projected cost savings from the Cox deal to $800 million annually , but those synergies take years to materialize while the debt is immediate.
The Bull Case Rests on a Future That Keeps Receding
Charter expects to complete its network upgrade to symmetrical, multi-gigabit internet speeds by 2027 , which could help stem losses to fiber rivals. But each quarter of worsening subscriber declines erodes the base that upgrade is meant to protect. EPS of $10.66 beat estimates of $10.37 , yet the market clearly decided that a modest earnings beat means nothing when the core product is losing customers at an accelerating pace.