Detailed financial statements for Waste Management, Inc. (WM): income statement, balance sheet and cash-flow summary. Track margins, debt, liquidity and profitability trends year over year: ten fiscal years free and up to 20 with Premium.
Waste Management, Inc. (WM) functions as a premier provider of environmental waste solutions across North America, serving a diverse client base that includes residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers.
Analysis Summary
Waste Management, Inc. reported revenue of $25.20B in the most recent fiscal year, growing at a 5-year CAGR of 10.6%. Net income reached $2.71B, with a 12.6% 5-year CAGR.
Trailing-twelve-month margins: gross margin 32.2%, operating margin 18.5%, net margin 11.8%. Free cash flow grew at 9.7% CAGR over 5 years.
At $234.67 (closing price, November 3, 2026), WM trades at a P/E of 30.80 and an ROE of 30.85%. Market capitalisation stands at $93.3B, placing it among large-cap names.
Balance sheet quality for WM: debt-to-equity ratio of 2.37, current ratio of 0.82 over the last 12 months, net debt of $22.71B at the end of the last fiscal year. A debt-to-equity below 1.0 typically signals conservative capital structure, while a current ratio above 1.5 indicates comfortable short-term liquidity.
Cash flow quality is strong: free cash flow of $2.82B represents 104% conversion of reported net income. High conversion (above 90%) suggests earnings translate cleanly into cash; lower conversion may indicate working capital tightness or accounting timing differences.
Income Statement (10y)
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $13.61B | $14.48B | $14.91B | $15.46B | $15.22B | $17.93B | $19.70B | $20.43B | $22.06B | $25.20B |
| Cost of Revenue | $9.79B | $10.40B | $10.73B | $11.07B | $11.01B | $13.11B | $14.33B | $14.68B | $15.65B | $17.88B |
| Gross Profit | $3.82B | $4.09B | $4.19B | $4.38B | $4.21B | $4.82B | $5.37B | $5.75B | $6.41B | $7.33B |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Selling, General & Admin | $1.41B | $1.47B | $1.45B | $1.63B | $1.73B | $1.81B | $1.93B | $1.93B | $2.26B | $2.72B |
| Operating Expenses | $1.41B | $1.47B | $1.45B | $1.63B | $1.73B | $1.81B | $1.93B | $1.93B | $2.26B | $2.72B |
| Operating Income | $2.41B | $2.62B | $2.73B | $2.75B | $2.48B | $3.01B | $3.44B | $3.82B | $4.15B | $4.61B |
| EBITDA | $3.49B | $3.92B | $4.22B | $4.09B | $4.09B | $4.82B | $5.45B | $5.72B | $6.46B | $5.07B |
| Interest Expense | $365.0M | $351.0M | $363.0M | $411.0M | $425.0M | $365.0M | $378.0M | $500.0M | $598.0M | $912.0M |
| Pre-tax Income | $1.82B | $2.19B | $2.38B | $2.10B | $1.89B | $2.35B | $2.92B | $3.02B | $3.46B | $3.43B |
| Income Tax | $642.0M | $242.0M | $453.0M | $434.0M | $397.0M | $532.0M | $678.0M | $745.0M | $713.0M | $717.0M |
| Net Income | $1.18B | $1.95B | $1.93B | $1.67B | $1.50B | $1.82B | $2.24B | $2.30B | $2.75B | $2.71B |
| EPS | $2.66 | $4.44 | $4.49 | $3.93 | $3.54 | $4.32 | $5.42 | $5.69 | $6.84 | $6.72 |
| EPS (Diluted) | $2.65 | $4.41 | $4.45 | $3.91 | $3.52 | $4.29 | $5.39 | $5.66 | $6.81 | $6.70 |
| Shares Outstanding (Diluted) | 446.5 M | 441.9 M | 432.2 M | 427.5 M | 425.1 M | 422.9 M | 415.0 M | 406.9 M | 403.4 M | 404.2 M |
Income Statement (Quarterly)
| Year | 2025-Q4 | 2026-Q1 | 2026-Q2 | 2026-Q3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $6.31B | $6.23B | $6.68B | $6.85B |
| Gross Profit | $1.85B | $2.53B | $2.73B | $1.28B |
| Operating Income | $1.18B | $1.11B | $1.25B | $1.28B |
| EBITDA | $1.96B | $1.84B | $2.03B | $2.07B |
| Net Income | $742.0M | $723.0M | $785.0M | $820.0M |
| EPS | $1.84 | $1.79 | $1.96 | $2.06 |
| EPS (Diluted) | $1.83 | $1.79 | $1.95 | $2.05 |
Balance Sheet (10y)
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash & Equivalents | $32.0M | $22.0M | $61.0M | $3.56B | $553.0M | $118.0M | $351.0M | $458.0M | $414.0M | $201.0M |
| Short-term Investments | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Receivables | $2.13B | $2.37B | $2.27B | $2.32B | $2.62B | $2.55B | $2.75B | $2.87B | $3.69B | $4.05B |
| Inventory | $90.0M | $96.0M | $102.0M | $106.0M | $124.0M | $135.0M | $164.0M | $173.0M | $206.0M | $225.0M |
| Total Current Assets | $2.38B | $2.62B | $2.65B | $6.21B | $3.54B | $3.07B | $3.55B | $3.80B | $4.77B | $4.91B |
| Property, Plant & Equipment | $10.95B | $11.56B | $11.94B | $12.89B | $14.15B | $14.42B | $15.72B | $16.97B | $19.34B | $20.38B |
| Goodwill | $6.21B | $6.25B | $6.43B | $6.53B | $8.99B | $9.03B | $9.32B | $9.25B | $13.44B | $13.88B |
| Intangible Assets | $591.0M | $547.0M | $572.0M | $521.0M | $1.02B | $898.0M | $827.0M | $759.0M | $4.19B | $3.77B |
| Total Assets | $20.86B | $21.83B | $22.65B | $27.74B | $29.34B | $29.10B | $31.37B | $32.82B | $44.57B | $45.84B |
| Accounts Payable | $799.0M | $1.04B | $1.04B | $1.06B | $1.12B | $1.38B | $1.77B | $1.71B | $2.05B | $1.87B |
| Short-term Debt | $417.0M | $739.0M | $432.0M | $218.0M | $551.0M | $708.0M | $414.0M | $334.0M | $1.36B | $711.0M |
| Total Current Liabilities | $2.79B | $3.26B | $3.11B | $3.14B | $3.55B | $4.08B | $4.39B | $4.23B | $6.26B | $5.52B |
| Long-term Debt | $8.89B | $8.75B | $9.59B | $13.28B | $13.26B | $12.70B | $14.57B | $15.89B | $22.54B | $22.20B |
| Total Liabilities | $15.54B | $15.79B | $16.37B | $20.67B | $21.89B | $21.97B | $24.50B | $25.93B | $36.31B | $35.84B |
| Retained Earnings | $7.39B | $8.59B | $9.80B | $10.59B | $11.16B | $12.00B | $13.17B | $14.33B | $15.86B | $17.23B |
| Total Equity | $5.30B | $6.02B | $6.28B | $7.07B | $7.45B | $7.12B | $6.85B | $6.90B | $8.25B | $9.99B |
| Total Debt | $9.31B | $9.49B | $10.03B | $13.50B | $13.81B | $13.40B | $14.98B | $16.23B | $23.90B | $22.91B |
| Net Debt | $9.28B | $9.47B | $9.96B | $9.94B | $13.26B | $13.29B | $14.63B | $15.77B | $23.49B | $22.71B |
| Working Capital | -$418.0M | -$638.0M | -$463.0M | $3.06B | -$13.0M | -$1.01B | -$843.0M | -$422.0M | -$1.48B | -$614.0M |
Balance Sheet (Quarterly)
| Year | 2025-Q4 | 2026-Q1 | 2026-Q2 | 2026-Q3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash & Equivalents | $201.0M | $158.0M | $557.0M | $247.0M |
| Total Assets | $45.84B | $45.70B | $46.44B | $46.52B |
| Total Liabilities | $35.84B | $35.68B | $36.52B | $36.65B |
| Total Equity | $9.99B | $10.02B | $9.93B | $9.87B |
| Total Debt | $22.91B | $22.89B | $23.36B | $23.37B |
Cash Flow (10y)
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net Income | $1.18B | $1.95B | $1.92B | $1.67B | $1.50B | $1.82B | $2.24B | $2.28B | $2.75B | $2.71B |
| Depreciation & Amortization | $1.30B | $1.38B | $1.48B | $1.57B | $1.77B | $2.11B | $2.15B | $2.20B | $2.40B | $735.0M |
| Stock-based Compensation | $90.0M | $101.0M | $89.0M | $86.0M | $94.0M | $108.0M | $84.0M | $93.0M | $118.0M | 0 |
| Change in Working Capital | $77.0M | -$201.0M | -$29.0M | $80.0M | -$327.0M | $126.0M | -$145.0M | -$251.0M | -$31.0M | -$513.0M |
| Operating Cash Flow | $2.96B | $3.18B | $3.57B | $3.87B | $3.40B | $4.34B | $4.54B | $4.72B | $5.39B | $6.04B |
| Capital Expenditure | -$1.34B | -$1.51B | -$1.69B | -$1.82B | -$1.63B | -$1.90B | -$2.59B | -$2.90B | -$3.23B | -$3.23B |
| Acquisitions | -$568.0M | -$198.0M | -$252.0M | -$472.0M | -$3.20B | $21.0M | -$350.0M | -$92.0M | -$7.49B | -$395.0M |
| Stock Repurchased | -$725.0M | -$750.0M | -$1.00B | -$248.0M | -$402.0M | -$1.35B | -$1.50B | -$1.30B | -$262.0M | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | -$726.0M | -$750.0M | -$802.0M | -$876.0M | -$927.0M | -$970.0M | -$1.08B | -$1.14B | -$1.21B | -$1.33B |
| Free Cash Flow | $1.62B | $1.67B | $1.88B | $2.06B | $1.77B | $2.43B | $1.95B | $1.82B | $2.16B | $2.82B |
Cash Flow (Quarterly)
| Year | 2025-Q4 | 2026-Q1 | 2026-Q2 | 2026-Q3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash Flow | $1.70B | $1.50B | $1.73B | $1.64B |
| Capital Expenditure | -$888.0M | -$650.0M | -$630.0M | -$657.0M |
| Free Cash Flow | $810.0M | $851.0M | $1.10B | $983.0M |
| Dividends Paid | -$333.0M | -$385.0M | -$379.0M | -$377.0M |
| Stock-based Compensation | 0 | $52.0M | -$52.0M | $41.0M |
Growth & Margins (10y)
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue Growth (YoY) | +6.4% | +3.0% | +3.6% | -1.5% | +17.8% | +9.9% | +3.7% | +8.0% | +14.2% | |
| Net Income Growth (YoY) | +64.9% | -1.2% | -13.2% | -10.4% | +21.4% | +23.2% | +2.9% | +19.2% | -1.4% | |
| EPS Growth (YoY) | +66.9% | +1.1% | -12.5% | -9.9% | +22.0% | +25.5% | +5.0% | +20.2% | -1.8% | |
| Shares Change (YoY) | -1.0% | -2.2% | -1.1% | -0.6% | -0.5% | -1.9% | -2.0% | -0.9% | +0.2% | |
| FCF Growth (YoY) | +3.1% | +12.3% | +9.6% | -13.9% | +37.4% | -19.9% | -6.4% | +18.4% | +30.4% | |
| Gross Margin | 28.1% | 28.2% | 28.1% | 28.4% | 27.6% | 26.9% | 27.2% | 28.1% | 29.1% | 29.1% |
| Operating Margin | 17.7% | 18.1% | 18.3% | 17.8% | 16.3% | 16.8% | 17.5% | 18.7% | 18.8% | 18.3% |
| EBITDA Margin | 25.6% | 27.0% | 28.3% | 26.5% | 26.9% | 26.9% | 27.6% | 28.0% | 29.3% | 20.1% |
| Net Margin | 8.7% | 13.5% | 12.9% | 10.8% | 9.8% | 10.1% | 11.4% | 11.3% | 12.4% | 10.7% |
| FCF Margin | 11.9% | 11.5% | 12.6% | 13.3% | 11.6% | 13.6% | 9.9% | 8.9% | 9.8% | 11.2% |
| Effective Tax Rate | 35.2% | 11.0% | 19.1% | 20.6% | 21.0% | 22.6% | 23.2% | 24.7% | 20.6% | 20.9% |
Per-Share Data (10y)
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FCF Per Share | $3.63 | $3.78 | $4.34 | $4.81 | $4.17 | $5.76 | $4.70 | $4.48 | $5.35 | $6.97 |
| Dividends Per Share | $1.63 | $1.70 | $1.86 | $2.05 | $2.18 | $2.29 | $2.60 | $2.79 | $3.00 | $3.30 |
| Shares Outstanding (Basic) | 443.5 M | 438.8 M | 429.1 M | 424.6 M | 423.0 M | 420.4 M | 412.8 M | 404.9 M | 401.5 M | 402.7 M |
What to look at in Industrials
Aerospace, defence, machinery, transport. Semi-cyclical. Key: backlog, operating margins, and FCF conversion.
- 5y revenue growth — Without growth, there is no long-term value creation
- Operating margin — The best indicator of operational discipline in industrials
- ROIC — Quality industrials have ROIC >15% — the rest destroy capital
- FCF conversion — FCF / Net Income — in industrials good >85%
- Net debt / EBITDA — Cyclical industrials with high debt suffer hard in recessions
- Capex / Revenue — Maintaining the machinery. <4% = possible underinvestment (future decline)
- Altman Z-Score — Bankruptcy model (NYU 1968) — combines liquidity, leverage and profitability. Key in cyclicals
Profitability
| Return on Equity | 30.85% |
| Return on Invested Capital | 9.13% |
| Return on Assets | 6.60% |
| Gross Margin | 32.19% |
| Operating Margin | 18.49% |
| Net Margin | 11.78% |
Financial Health
| Debt / Equity | 2.37 |
| Current Ratio | 0.82 |
| Piotroski F-Score | 7 |
| Altman Z-Score | 2.87 |
Key Ratios (10y)
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P/E | 26.66 | 19.44 | 19.82 | 29.00 | 33.31 | 38.63 | 28.94 | 31.48 | 29.50 | 32.69 |
| P/B | 5.94 | 6.29 | 6.09 | 6.85 | 6.69 | 9.85 | 9.46 | 10.51 | 9.82 | 8.86 |
| P/S | 2.31 | 2.61 | 2.56 | 3.13 | 3.28 | 3.91 | 3.29 | 3.55 | 3.67 | 3.51 |
| Gross Margin | 28.1% | 28.2% | 28.1% | 28.4% | 27.6% | 26.9% | 27.2% | 28.1% | 29.1% | 29.1% |
| Operating Margin | 17.7% | 18.1% | 18.3% | 17.8% | 16.3% | 16.8% | 17.5% | 18.7% | 18.8% | 18.3% |
| Net Margin | 8.7% | 13.5% | 12.9% | 10.8% | 9.8% | 10.1% | 11.4% | 11.3% | 12.4% | 10.7% |
Related companies: CWST · RSG · WCN · CLH · GFL
Explore sector: Industrials · Waste Management
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