Waste Management, Inc. (WM) - Company Profile - 2026-04-15

Company Overview

• Waste Management, Inc. is a U.S.-based environmental solutions company headquartered in Houston, Texas.
• Through its subsidiaries, it serves residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States, Canada, Western Europe, and other international markets.
• The company provides a broad suite of services including waste collection, transfer stations, landfill gas-to-energy facilities, and energy recovery operations; materials processing and recycling services; recycling marketing and brokerage; and ancillary services such as remediation, construction and industrial waste services, fly ash management, Regulated Waste and Compliance Services (RWCS), and Secure Information Destruction (SID).
• It operates across multiple stages of the waste lifecycle—from generation to disposal and recycling—and engages in renewable energy production from landfill gas and related activities.
• Waste Management was formerly known as USA Waste Services, Inc., renamed in 1998. It was founded in 1968 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Business and Operations

• The company offers end-to-end environmental solutions, including collection, transfer, and disposal of waste, as well as recycling and materials processing for multiple streams (cardboard, paper, glass, metals, plastics, construction and demolition materials, among others).
• It markets and resells recycled commodities and provides recycling brokerage services to manage marketing of recyclables for third parties.
• In addition to traditional waste services, Waste Management markets mulch, compost, soil amendments, and renewable energy products, and provides remediation, construction, and industrial waste services.
• The organization owns and operates landfill gas-to-energy facilities that produce renewable electricity and renewable natural gas, contributing to its energy-related operations.
• RWCS supports compliance programs for regulated and specialized waste, including medical, pharmaceutical, and hazardous waste, while SID handles secure destruction and recycling of confidential information.
• The company maintains a geographic footprint spanning the United States, Canada, Western Europe, and other international markets, underscoring a diversified service and geographic mix.

Fundamental Metrics

• Market capitalization: $90.72B
• Enterprise value: $115.31B
• P/E (trailing): 33.57
• P/E (forward): 24.09
• P/B: 9.07
• P/S: 3.60
• PEG: not available
• Profit margin: 10.74%
• Operating margin: 20.04%
• ROE: 29.70%
• ROA: 6.49%
• Debt/Equity: 239.38
• Current ratio: 0.89
• Revenue (TTM): $25.20B
• Revenue growth (YoY): 7.10%
• Earnings growth (YoY): 23.60%
• Free cash flow: $1.73B
• Dividend yield: 151.00%
• Payout ratio: 49.25%
• Beta: 0.55

Share Structure and Ownership

• Shares outstanding: 402,913,509
• Float: 402,182,241
• Insider held: 0.25%
• Institutional held: 83.80%
• Short ratio (days to cover): 2.66
• Short % of float: 1.45%
• Top institutional holders:

- Vanguard Group Inc: 9.68% of shares

- BlackRock Inc.: 7.38% of shares

- Gates Foundation Trust: 7.18% of shares

- State Street Corporation: 4.32% of shares

- Geode Capital Management, LLC: 2.23% of shares

Trading Activity

• Last close: $224.93 (as of 2026-04-15)
• 30-day average volume: 2,069,993
• 90-day average volume: 2,107,737
• 52-week high: $248.13
• 52-week low: $194.11
• [Drawdown](https://aksoycapital.com/glossary/drawdown.html) from 52-week high: -9.35%

Recent Price Action

• 1-month change: -5.08%
• 3-month change: +1.82%
• Year-to-date change: +2.99%
• 1-year change: -2.02%

Strengths

• Large market capitalization and substantial TTM revenue base (Market cap $90.72B; Revenue $25.20B).
• Diversified suite of environmental solutions across collection, recycling, energy recovery, and regulated waste services.
• Strong profitability metrics (Operating margin 20.04%; Profit margin 10.74%; ROE 29.70%).
• Cash flow generation with Free cash flow of $1.73B and a payout ratio of 49.25%.
• Substantial institutional ownership (83.80%), with leading holders including Vanguard Group and BlackRock.
• Global and diversified geographic footprint (U.S., Canada, Western Europe, and other regions).
• Strategic asset base in landfill gas-to-energy facilities that produce renewable energy and related revenues.
• Longstanding market presence since 1968, with headquarters in Houston, Texas.

Considerations

• High debt load relative to equity (Debt/Equity 239.38) and a current ratio below 1.0 (0.89) indicating liquidity considerations.
• Valuation metrics imply relatively high earnings multiple (P/E trailing 33.57; P/E forward 24.09) and a high price-to-book ratio (P/B 9.07).
• Exposure to regulated industries and environmental policies may affect operating conditions and compliance costs.
• International exposure (including Western Europe) could introduce currency and regulatory risk factors.
• Dependence on waste volume and recycling commodity markets, which can be cyclical and subject to economic fluctuations.
• Interest rate and energy price dynamics can influence the economics of landfill gas-to-energy facilities and related projects.
• Moderate liquidity signals from price retests and average trading volumes, with a 52-week high/low range indicating notable price variation (52-week high $248.13; 52-week low $194.11).

Summary

Waste Management, Inc. operates a diversified environmental solutions platform spanning waste collection, recycling, energy recovery, and regulated waste services across the United States, Canada, Western Europe, and other regions. It reports TTM revenue of $25.20B, operating margin of 20.04%, and ROE of 29.70%, with a market capitalization of about $90.72B and free cash flow of $1.73B. The stock last closed at $224.93 on 2026-04-15, with institutional ownership around 83.80% and a 52-week trading range of $194.11 to $248.13.