:Fiber optic cable provider Lumen Technologies on Tuesday raised its annual free cash flow forecast thanks to AI deals with major cloud computing companies, even as weakness in its legacy business weighed on its quarterly results.

The company’s shares rose more than 6 percent in extended trading.

The company has closed deals worth a total of more than $8 billion with cloud and technology companies such as Alphabet’s Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Meta Platforms for its networking solutions, said CFO Chris Stansbury.

“AI needs data centers and data centers need to be connected and that’s what we do,” Stansbury told Reuters in an interview.

The AI ​​deal set has helped Lumen capitalize on big tech’s efforts to build data centers capable of supporting applications like ChatGPT, which require enormous amounts of computing power.

The company’s shares have quadrupled this year, after concerns about Lumen’s high debt levels and the decline of its businesses, which include voice, broadband and Ethernet services, sent its shares soaring in price. of the last two years.

Lumen’s agreements with a group of lenders also gave it access to more than $2 billion in fresh capital, while extending its debt maturity until at least 2029.

However, revenue fell nearly 12 percent to $3.22 billion for the third quarter, in line with expectations, according to analyst estimates compiled by LSEG.

“We are humbled by the weight of historic activity and the past and we are doing what we can to manage that,” Stansbury said, referring to the company’s efforts to expand its digital fiber connectivity solutions.

Lumen now expects annual free cash flow to be between $1.2 billion and $1.4 billion, up from its previous guidance of between $1 billion and $1.2 billion.

It reported an adjusted loss of 13 cents per share in the third quarter, which was better than expectations of 9 cents.