Shares of fiber network provider Lumen jump on collaboration with AWS

Shares of mid-cap company Lumen Technologies, which builds fiber-optic infrastructure, jumped more than 10% on Wednesday after the company said it had become the first network provider to work with Amazon Web Services on the AWS Interconnect project.

Lumen shares rose more than 10% on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday to $8.60 apiece, the highest closing price since early February. In premarket trading on Thursday, the stock is up another 3% as of this writing.

Markets were reacting to the company’s announcement of a collaboration with AWS as part of the AWS Interconnect project. The service, launched by Amazon’s cloud unit in 2025, was initially designed to enable fast and secure connections between AWS and other cloud platforms or remote offices. The first partner in the project was Google Cloud, with Microsoft Azure expected to join later this year. Lumen became the first network provider in the AWS Interconnect project, the company said in a press release.

“Cloud and network infrastructure can no longer operate separately; modern applications demand they work as one,” said Jim Fowler, chief technology and product officer at Lumen.

Previously, companies had to rely on multiple providers and build and deploy multicloud architectures themselves, a process that could take weeks. AWS Interconnect was launched to address this issue, initially as a service to connect clouds from different providers.

“Enterprises are looking for network infrastructure that delivers the same agility and simplicity they experience in the cloud,” said Peter Chahal, Research Director for IDC's Worldwide Telecommunications Services and Strategies practice. “The collaboration between Lumen and AWS brings these capabilities together by streamlining connectivity, reducing operational complexity, and enabling organizations to deploy faster, improve performance, and realize greater value from their cloud investments.”

Companies that rely on moving large volumes of data quickly and securely stand to benefit most from this approach, including those supporting generative AI and machine learning.

The collaboration with AWS is part of Lumen’s broader strategy shift, CNBC writes. Historically, the company, which traces its roots to 1930, provided voice services, traditional VPN and Ethernet, and DSL services over copper lines in rural areas. In the era of AI, this nearly pushed the company toward bankruptcy, CNBC noted. To avoid this, Lumen has been selling parts of its business. The most recent example is the February deal in which AT&T acquired nearly all of Lumen’s mass markets fiber business.

As a result, the mid-cap company has shifted its focus to new digital services. CNBC describes these as software tools and features that run on top of Lumen’s network, providing customers with an easier way to manage and adjust their connections. By placing computing power closer to customers and providing a high-capacity fiber backbone, Lumen can offer ultra-low latency, CNBC wrote. This is critical because latency determines how quickly data can be transmitted and processed, enabling real-time AI applications to respond quickly and function effectively.

Over the last 12 months, Lumen shares have gained 153%. Wall Street is cautious on the stock’s further prospects: the stock has 11 “hold” ratings versus two “buy” and two “sell” recommendations. The average target price is $7.33 per share, about 15% off the latest close.