Bruna Alves
Research lead covering environment and sustainability
Waste Management Inc. - statistics & facts
It is a good period for Waste Management, Inc. In the early months of 2024, the largest waste services company in the U.S. saw its market capitalization soar, to a record-high of 85 billion U.S. dollars. Despite being shy on acquisitions since its multi-billion-dollar acquisition of Advanced Disposal in 2020, the rebranded WM has seen its revenue and profits continuously grow in recent years. The company has no plans to stop this trend.
WM’s revenue growth was mainly attributed to its waste collection services, which is also its largest revenue-generating segment; in 2023, it accounted for a share of over 70 percent. Landfill operations, which accounted for the second-largest share that year, generated revenue of some 3.2 billion U.S. dollars. The company operates almost 260 landfill sites, with a processing capacity of 450 metric tons per day. Meanwhile, the recycling services and renewable energy segments combined for less than 10 percent of WM’s revenue in 2023. The company intends on growing these two segments, with plans to invest nearly one billion U.S. dollars in high-return projects in 2024.
Despite the strong competition, WM has many reasons to be optimistic about the future. Between its market capitalization, which has seen a steep rise for seven consecutive months, and its strong annual results, WM expects revenue growth of six to seven percent in 2024.
Waste Management, Inc. financials
Waste Management, Inc, headquartered in Houston, Texas, provides some 20 million municipal, commercial, industrial, and residential customers with environmental services such as waste collection, landfill disposal, and recycling. In 2023, WM's operating revenue increased by roughly four percent year-on-year, to 20.4 billion U.S. dollars. Despite experiencing growth in operating expenses, TEXTWM’s net income surpassed 2.3 billion U.S. dollars in 2023, an increase of roughly three percent in comparison to the previous year.WM’s revenue growth was mainly attributed to its waste collection services, which is also its largest revenue-generating segment; in 2023, it accounted for a share of over 70 percent. Landfill operations, which accounted for the second-largest share that year, generated revenue of some 3.2 billion U.S. dollars. The company operates almost 260 landfill sites, with a processing capacity of 450 metric tons per day. Meanwhile, the recycling services and renewable energy segments combined for less than 10 percent of WM’s revenue in 2023. The company intends on growing these two segments, with plans to invest nearly one billion U.S. dollars in high-return projects in 2024.
WM’s competition landscape
WM has established itself as one of the largest waste management companies in the world. In terms of revenue, it was second only to French-based Veolia, which recorded revenue of some 50 billion U.S. dollars in 2023. In North America, it remains the largest company in the waste segment. One of its biggest competitors in the region is Republic Services, whose revenue neared 15 billion U.S. dollars in 2023. That same year, the Arizona-based company had the largest acquisition spending among public waste companies in North America, with a whopping 1.8 billion U.S. dollars spent, against WM’s 173 million dollars.Despite the strong competition, WM has many reasons to be optimistic about the future. Between its market capitalization, which has seen a steep rise for seven consecutive months, and its strong annual results, WM expects revenue growth of six to seven percent in 2024.
