Two Hundred Thirty-Three Thousand Internet Losses on a Pro Forma Tape
Charter's investor relations release presents both actual results (Charter plus Cox from August 20 through September 30) and pro forma results that treat the Cox Transactions as if they closed on January 1, 2024. On a pro forma basis, Internet customers declined by 233,000 in the third quarter, versus a decline of 171,000 a year earlier, including a 156,000 drop at legacy Charter and 77,000 at legacy Cox. As of September 30, 2026, Charter served 34.3 million Internet customers and 36.7 million customer relationships across about 70.7 million passings.
Mobile was the offset on the connectivity side. Pro forma Spectrum Mobile lines rose by 508,000 in the quarter, to 13.5 million lines, while video customers declined by 77,000, an improvement versus a 121,000 decline in the year-ago quarter. On September 16, 2026, Charter launched Spectrum products, pricing, and packaging across the legacy Cox footprint.
Actual Revenue Up on Cox; Pro Forma EBITDA Still Soft
Actual third-quarter revenue was $14.922 billion, up 9.1% year over year, primarily on the Cox Transactions. Pro forma revenue was $16.505 billion, down 1.5%, with residential revenue down 4.1% and Internet revenue down 3.7% to $7.097 billion. Actual Adjusted EBITDA was $5.943 billion, up 6.9%. Pro forma Adjusted EBITDA was $6.587 billion, down 4.0%, or down 3.0% excluding $76 million of transition expenses. Actual free cash flow was $674 million, down $947 million from a year earlier, and the company said it expects about $13.0 billion of pro forma full-year 2026 capital expenditures excluding transition capex.
A Six-Point-Three Billion Franchise Charge and a Two-Billion Savings Plan
The GAAP print was dominated by a $6.326 billion impairment of franchises. Actual net loss attributable to Charter shareholders was $2.397 billion, or $20.50 per basic share, versus net income of $1.137 billion, or $8.50, a year earlier. Investing.com put the Street estimate near $9.54 of earnings per share, so the loss is a wide miss against that bar even though the impairment is non-cash. Pro forma net loss was $2.079 billion, partly offset by a $1.391 billion gain on extinguishment of debt from note exchanges.
Alongside the quarter, Charter announced a new operating model aimed at returning to Internet customer growth and said it is targeting $2 billion in annualized run-rate operating expense savings over the next 18 months, on top of more than $1 billion of anticipated Cox Transactions synergies. CEO Chris Winfrey framed the plan as simplifying the organization and competing harder on Internet, mobile, and video. As of September 30, 2026, total principal debt was $108.6 billion against $573 million of cash.
Five Percent Premarket Inside a Twelve-Percent Weekly Band
OptionSlam tracked a roughly 12.35% implied move on the November 6 weekly straddle and about 14.54% on the November 20 monthly into the report, with the weekly ATM straddle marked near $15.55 against an about $125.86 reference and the monthly near $18.30 (weekly history). Measured from Thursday's close, a 12.4% weekly band puts the break-evens near about $110 and $141. A premarket print near $119.49 is about 5.1% below the cash close and sits inside that weekly band; even the earlier ~6.3% Public.com snapshot stays well inside the prepaid weekly range and the roughly 14.5% November monthly band.
Delayed Cboe quotes are a reference for Friday's open rather than fills: equity options do not trade until 9:30 AM ET, premarket stock prints can fade or extend, and CHTR has been a high-beta cable name after this week's broader risk-off session. When a soft subscriber print and a large GAAP impairment gap the stock lower but leave it inside the weekly prepaid move, short weekly premium is so far holding on the stock leg alone, while long straddles that needed a clean break of the band remain underwater before any IV crush. Our implied volatility guide covers how post-earnings IV usually compresses after the uncertainty resolves, and the OCC options disclosure document explains the risks of standardized options, including assignment.
Sources
*By the OptionsPilot Editorial Team. Published November 6, 2026, 6:00 AM PT. This article is for education only and is not investment advice. Options involve risk and are not suitable for all investors.*
