Waste Management, Inc 8-K
PositiveEarningsGuidance reaffirmed
Pricing and Healthcare Solutions synergies drive growth; revenue and free cash flow expected at high ends of 2026 guidance.
Filed 2026-10-27 16:38 ET
- 2.02 Results of Operations
- 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits
Summary
Q3 2026 results with 2026 guidance reaffirmed. Revenue grew 6.3%, while adjusted operating EBITDA increased 5.8%; management attributed growth to pricing and stronger contributions from Healthcare Solutions and sustainability businesses. WM expects full-year revenue and free cash flow at the high ends of their guidance ranges.
Key Figures
| Metric | Q3 2026 | 9M 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $6.85B, +6.3% Y/Y | $19.8B, +4.6% Y/Y |
| Income from operations | $1.28B, +29.3% Y/Y | $3.65B, +15.6% Y/Y |
| Adjusted income from operations, non-GAAP | $1.33B, +7.1% Y/Y | — |
| Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc. | $820M, +36.0% Y/Y | $2.33B, +18.4% Y/Y |
| Adjusted net income, non-GAAP | $858M, +7.1% Y/Y | — |
| Diluted EPS | $2.05, +37.6% Y/Y | $5.79, +18.9% Y/Y |
| Adjusted diluted EPS, non-GAAP | $2.15, +8.6% Y/Y | — |
| Net cash provided by operating activities | $1.64B, +3.0% Y/Y | $4.87B, +12.0% Y/Y |
| Free cash flow, non-GAAP | $985M, +20.0% Y/Y | $3.01B, +42.3% Y/Y |
- Pricing drove revenue growth: core price was 5.8% and Collection and Disposal yield was 3.4%; higher energy surcharges and recycling and renewable energy volumes from completed growth projects also contributed. Collection and Disposal volume fell 0.5% on a workday-adjusted basis, partly reflecting WM’s shedding of lower-margin residential business and commercial declines tied to earlier national-account broker losses.
- Healthcare Solutions revenue grew 3.7% to $651M, and adjusted operating EBITDA rose more than 30% to $146M, supported by cost management, synergies and pricing. Companywide adjusted operating EBITDA margin was 31.0%, down 10 bp Y/Y as fuel and risk-management costs offset margin gains from Collection and Disposal and Healthcare Solutions.
- WM returned $957M to shareholders in Q3: $580M in repurchases and $377M in dividends. YTD repurchases were $1.58B, and the company continued to expect $2B in share repurchases for 2026; weighted-average diluted shares were 399.8M, vs 404.3M a year earlier.
Guidance
| Metric | Period | Guidance | Prior | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue, GAAP | FY2026 | $26.275B-$26.475B; expected at the high end | — | Reaffirmed |
| Adjusted operating EBITDA, non-GAAP | FY2026 | $8.15B-$8.25B; expected within the range | — | Reaffirmed |
| Free cash flow, non-GAAP | FY2026 | $3.75B-$3.85B; expected at the high end | — | Reaffirmed |
Guidance changes, derived from earlier filings
| Metric | Period | Earlier guidance | Guidance now | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue, GAAP | FY2026 | $26.275B-$26.475B | $26.275B-$26.475B; expected at the high end | reaffirmed |
| Adjusted operating EBITDA, non-GAAP | FY2026 | $8.15B-$8.25B | $8.15B-$8.25B; expected within the range | reaffirmed |
| Free cash flow, non-GAAP | FY2026 | $3.75B-$3.85B | $3.75B-$3.85B; expected at the high end | reaffirmed |
Investor Takeaways
- FY2026 revenue and free cash flow are expected at the high ends of their ranges; year-end results against those ranges will test the outlook.
- Watch whether Collection and Disposal pricing continues to offset workday-adjusted volume declines, and whether Healthcare Solutions sustains its revenue growth and adjusted operating EBITDA gains.
The summary is written by an AI model reading the filing.
Model 005 · prompt v111 · 2026-10-27 22:40:24Z