Revenue growth decelerated to 6.3% in 2026Q3 from 19.0% in 2025Q2 while operating margin held at 18.7% on $1.3B of operating income, with the 40.8% gross margin step-change in 2026Q2 suggesting a structural shift that investors should monitor closely.
Waste Management, Inc. (WM) annual income statement — 30-year revenue, gross profit & net income history
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 | Dec'17 | Dec'16 | Dec'15 | Dec'14 | Dec'13 | Dec'12 | Dec'11 | Dec'10 | Dec'09 | Dec'08 | Dec'07 | Dec'06 | Dec'05 | Dec'04 | Dec'03 | Dec'02 | Dec'01 | Dec'00 | Dec'99 | Dec'98 | Dec'97 | Dec'96 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 26.07B | 25.2B | 22.06B | 20.43B | 19.7B | 17.93B | 15.22B | 15.46B | 14.91B | 14.48B | 13.61B | 12.96B | 14B | 13.98B | 13.65B | 13.38B | 12.52B | 11.79B | 13.39B | 13.31B | 13.36B | 13.07B | 12.52B | 11.57B | 11.14B | 11.32B | 12.49B | 13.13B | 12.7B | 2.61B | 1.31B |
| Revenue Growth % | 5.19% | 14.24% | 8.01% | 3.7% | 9.85% | 17.83% | -1.53% | 3.63% | 2.96% | 6.44% | 5% | -7.4% | 0.09% | 2.45% | 2.03% | 6.9% | 6.14% | -11.93% | 0.59% | -0.4% | 2.21% | 4.46% | 8.14% | 3.88% | -1.59% | -9.37% | -4.84% | 3.33% | 386.02% | 99.01% | 187.33% |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 17.68B | 17.88B | 15.65B | 14.68B | 14.33B | 13.11B | 11.01B | 11.07B | 10.73B | 10.4B | 9.79B | 9.48B | 10.29B | 10.45B | 10.18B | 9.77B | 9.02B | 8.41B | 9.7B | 9.64B | 9.92B | 9.99B | 9.56B | 7.52B | 6.74B | 6.67B | 7.54B | 8.27B | 7.38B | 1.35B | 704.9M |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 70.92% | 70.93% | 71.85% | 72.76% | 73.11% | 72.36% | 71.63% | 71.92% | 71.78% | 71.92% | 73.11% | 73.55% | 74.7% | 74.55% | 73.03% | 72.06% | 71.3% | 72.48% | 72.43% | 74.24% | 76.43% | 76.41% | 64.95% | 60.52% | 58.88% | 60.34% | 62.99% | 58.12% | 51.49% | 53.67% |
| Gross Profit | 8.39B | 7.33B | 6.41B | 5.75B | 5.37B | 4.82B | 4.21B | 4.38B | 4.19B | 4.09B | 3.82B | 3.48B | 3.71B | 3.55B | 3.46B | 3.61B | 3.5B | 3.38B | 3.68B | 3.67B | 3.44B | 3.08B | 2.95B | 4.06B | 4.4B | 4.66B | 4.95B | 4.86B | 5.32B | 1.27B | 608.5M |
| Gross Margin % | 32.19% | 29.08% | 29.07% | 28.15% | 27.24% | 26.89% | 27.64% | 28.37% | 28.08% | 28.22% | 28.08% | 26.89% | 26.51% | 25.37% | 25.37% | 26.97% | 27.94% | 28.7% | 27.52% | 27.57% | 25.76% | 23.57% | 23.59% | 35.05% | 39.48% | 41.12% | 39.66% | 37.01% | 41.88% | 48.51% | 46.33% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | 14.28% | 11.55% | 7.14% | 11.3% | 14.62% | -4.08% | 4.7% | 2.45% | 6.96% | 9.67% | -6.06% | 4.6% | 2.43% | -4.02% | 3.17% | 3.34% | -8.14% | 0.38% | 6.62% | 11.68% | 4.4% | -27.24% | -7.77% | -5.52% | -6.02% | 1.98% | -8.68% | 319.53% | 108.38% | 199.46% |
| Operating Expenses | 3.57B | 2.72B | 2.26B | 1.93B | 1.93B | 1.81B | 1.73B | 1.63B | 1.45B | 1.47B | 1.41B | 1.34B | 1.45B | 1.47B | 1.47B | 1.55B | 1.46B | 1.36B | 1.48B | 1.43B | 1.39B | 1.28B | 1.27B | 2.47B | 2.72B | 3.37B | 3.17B | 3.53B | 2.81B | 588.1M | 313.7M |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 10.8% | 10.26% | 9.43% | 9.79% | 10.11% | 11.36% | 10.55% | 9.74% | 10.13% | 10.36% | 10.36% | 10.36% | 10.5% | 10.78% | 11.59% | 11.67% | 11.57% | 11.03% | 10.76% | 10.39% | 9.76% | 10.12% | 21.37% | 24.39% | 29.79% | 25.35% | 26.93% | 22.11% | 22.5% | 23.88% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 2.06B | 2.72B | 2.26B | 1.93B | 1.93B | 1.81B | 1.73B | 1.63B | 1.45B | 1.47B | 1.41B | 1.34B | 1.45B | 1.47B | 1.47B | 1.55B | 1.46B | 1.36B | 1.48B | 1.43B | 1.39B | 1.28B | 1.44B | 1.22B | 1.53B | 1.62B | 1.74B | 1.92B | 1.31B | 284.9M | 160.5M |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 10.8% | 10.26% | 9.43% | 9.79% | 10.11% | 11.36% | 10.55% | 9.74% | 10.13% | 10.36% | 10.36% | 10.36% | 10.5% | 10.78% | 11.59% | 11.67% | 11.57% | 11.03% | 10.76% | 10.39% | 9.76% | 11.52% | 10.51% | 13.72% | 14.33% | 13.91% | 14.63% | 10.31% | 10.9% | 12.22% |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | 2M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -175M | 1.26B | 1.19B | 1.75B | 1.43B | 1.61B | 1.5B | 303.2M | 153.2M |
| Operating Income | 4.82B | 4.61B | 4.15B | 3.82B | 3.44B | 3.01B | 2.48B | 2.75B | 2.73B | 2.62B | 2.41B | 2.14B | 2.26B | 2.08B | 1.99B | 2.06B | 2.04B | 2.02B | 2.21B | 2.24B | 2.05B | 1.81B | 1.69B | 1.54B | 1.64B | 1.28B | 1.79B | 1.32B | 2.51B | 679.9M | 294.8M |
| Operating Margin % | 18.49% | 18.28% | 18.81% | 18.72% | 17.45% | 16.78% | 16.28% | 17.82% | 18.34% | 18.09% | 17.72% | 16.53% | 16.15% | 14.87% | 14.59% | 15.38% | 16.27% | 17.13% | 16.48% | 16.81% | 15.37% | 13.81% | 13.46% | 13.31% | 14.75% | 11.33% | 14.31% | 10.08% | 19.77% | 26.01% | 22.45% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | 11.04% | 8.53% | 11.2% | 14.3% | 21.39% | -10.02% | 0.69% | 4.39% | 8.62% | 12.61% | -5.22% | 8.71% | 4.42% | -3.26% | 1.08% | 0.79% | -8.47% | -1.39% | 8.96% | 13.73% | 7.18% | 9.42% | -6.33% | 28.14% | -28.2% | 35.03% | -47.3% | 269.33% | 130.63% | 248.46% |
| EBITDA | 7.93B | 5.34B | 6.55B | 6.02B | 5.59B | 5.12B | 4.25B | 4.33B | 4.21B | 4B | 3.71B | 3.48B | 3.65B | 3.49B | 3.38B | 3.39B | 3.32B | 3.24B | 3.56B | 3.58B | 3.47B | 3.24B | 3.02B | 2.81B | 2.87B | 2.65B | 3.22B | 2.94B | 4.01B | 983.1M | 448M |
| EBITDA Margin % | 30.42% | 21.2% | 29.68% | 29.49% | 28.37% | 28.54% | 27.94% | 28% | 28.24% | 27.59% | 27.28% | 26.83% | 26.11% | 24.95% | 24.75% | 25.37% | 26.53% | 27.44% | 26.61% | 26.9% | 25.94% | 24.8% | 24.14% | 24.24% | 25.72% | 23.44% | 25.74% | 22.38% | 31.56% | 37.61% | 34.11% |
| EBITDA Growth % | 9.29% | -18.43% | 8.72% | 7.8% | 9.18% | 20.37% | -1.76% | 2.75% | 5.41% | 7.62% | 6.79% | -4.84% | 4.73% | 3.29% | -0.47% | 2.23% | 2.6% | -9.18% | -0.47% | 3.26% | 6.91% | 7.35% | 7.7% | -2.13% | 7.99% | -17.48% | 9.48% | -26.74% | 307.87% | 119.44% | 217.73% |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 3.11B | 735M | 2.4B | 2.2B | 2.15B | 2.11B | 1.77B | 1.57B | 1.48B | 1.38B | 1.3B | 1.33B | 1.39B | 1.41B | 1.39B | 1.34B | 1.28B | 1.22B | 1.36B | 1.34B | 1.41B | 1.44B | 1.34B | 1.26B | 1.22B | 1.37B | 1.43B | 1.61B | 1.5B | 303.2M | 153.2M |
| EBIT | 4.81B | 4.34B | 4.06B | 3.52B | 3.3B | 2.71B | 2.32B | 2.52B | 2.74B | 2.54B | 2.19B | 1.43B | 2.21B | 966M | 1.79B | 2.02B | 2.13B | 1.95B | 2.16B | 2.34B | 2.18B | 1.77B | 1.67B | 1.58B | 1.68B | 1.28B | 1.79B | 1.32B | 2.51B | 1.66B | 1.85B |
| Net Interest Income | -918M | -912M | -598M | -500M | -378M | -365M | -425M | -411M | -363M | -351M | -365M | -369M | -455M | -468M | -482M | -496M | -498M | -459M | -344M | -546M | -594M | -596M | -385M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Income | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4M | 4M | 8M | 4M | 13M | 48M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Expense | 918M | 912M | 598M | 500M | 378M | 365M | 425M | 411M | 363M | 351M | 365M | 369M | 455M | 472M | 486M | 504M | 502M | 472M | 363M | 593M | 663M | 627M | 455M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Income/Expense | -927M | -1.18B | -691M | -802M | -520M | -659M | -585M | -649M | -359M | -429M | -590M | -1.08B | -509M | -1.58B | -688M | -538M | -405M | -547M | -410M | -489M | -536M | -666M | -471M | -417M | -397M | -496M | -1.47B | -1.49B | -3.21B | -1.34B | -1.08B |
| Pretax Income | 3.89B | 3.43B | 3.46B | 3.02B | 2.92B | 2.35B | 1.89B | 2.1B | 2.38B | 2.19B | 1.82B | 1.06B | 1.75B | 494M | 1.3B | 1.52B | 1.63B | 1.47B | 1.76B | 1.7B | 1.47B | 1.09B | 1.18B | 1.12B | 1.25B | 787M | 321M | -162.8M | -699.9M | 463.2M | 78M |
| Pretax Margin % | 14.94% | 13.59% | 15.67% | 14.79% | 14.81% | 13.1% | 12.44% | 13.62% | 15.93% | 15.13% | 13.39% | 8.18% | 12.51% | 3.53% | 9.55% | 11.36% | 13.03% | 12.49% | 13.12% | 12.79% | 11.03% | 8.35% | 9.41% | 9.7% | 11.19% | 6.95% | 2.57% | -1.24% | -5.51% | 17.72% | 5.94% |
| Income Tax | 823M | 717M | 713M | 745M | 678M | 532M | 397M | 434M | 453M | 242M | 642M | 308M | 413M | 364M | 443M | 511M | 629M | 413M | 669M | 540M | 325M | -90M | 247M | 404M | 424M | 284M | 418M | 232.3M | 66.9M | 189.9M | 45.1M |
| Effective Tax Rate % | 21.14% | 20.93% | 20.62% | 24.66% | 23.24% | 22.65% | 20.97% | 20.62% | 19.07% | 11.05% | 35.24% | 29.06% | 23.59% | 73.68% | 34% | 33.62% | 38.57% | 28.04% | 38.1% | 31.71% | 22.05% | -8.24% | 20.97% | 35.98% | 34% | 36.09% | 130.22% | -142.69% | -9.56% | 41% | 57.82% |
| Net Income | 3.07B | 2.71B | 2.75B | 2.3B | 2.24B | 1.82B | 1.5B | 1.67B | 1.93B | 1.95B | 1.18B | 753M | 1.3B | 98M | 817M | 961M | 953M | 994M | 1.09B | 1.16B | 1.15B | 1.18B | 939M | 630M | 822M | 503M | -97M | -397.6M | -770.7M | 267M | 32.9M |
| Net Margin % | 11.78% | 10.74% | 12.45% | 11.28% | 11.36% | 10.13% | 9.83% | 10.81% | 12.91% | 13.46% | 8.69% | 5.81% | 9.27% | 0.7% | 5.99% | 7.18% | 7.61% | 8.43% | 8.12% | 8.74% | 8.6% | 9.04% | 7.5% | 5.44% | 7.38% | 4.44% | -0.78% | -3.03% | -6.07% | 10.21% | 2.5% |
| Net Income Growth % | 19.73% | -1.38% | 19.18% | 2.95% | 23.24% | 21.39% | -10.42% | -13.25% | -1.23% | 64.89% | 56.97% | -41.99% | 1224.49% | -88% | -14.98% | 0.84% | -4.12% | -8.56% | -6.53% | 1.22% | -2.79% | 25.88% | 49.05% | -23.36% | 63.42% | 618.56% | 75.6% | 48.41% | -388.65% | 711.55% | 8.58% |
| Net Income (Continuing) | 3.07B | 2.71B | 2.75B | 2.28B | 2.24B | 1.82B | 1.5B | 1.67B | 1.92B | 1.95B | 1.18B | 752M | 1.34B | 130M | 860M | 1.01B | 1B | 1.06B | 1.13B | 1.21B | 1.19B | 1.18B | 931M | 719M | 820M | 501M | -97M | -395M | -767M | -1.03B | 287.5M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 1M | 1M | 2M | -7M | 15M | 2M | 2M | 2M | 1M | 23M | 23M | 22M | 23M | 295M | 321M | 320M | 331M | 306M | 283M | 310M | 275M | 281M | 282M | 250M | 19M | 13M | 15M | 7.7M | 112.1M | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | 7.68 | 6.70 | 6.81 | 5.66 | 5.39 | 4.29 | 3.52 | 3.91 | 4.45 | 4.41 | 2.65 | 1.65 | 2.79 | 0.21 | 1.76 | 2.04 | 1.98 | 2.01 | 2.19 | 2.23 | 2.10 | 2.09 | 1.61 | 1.06 | 1.33 | 0.80 | -0.16 | -0.65 | -1.32 | -1.68 | 0.04 |
| EPS Growth % | 20% | -1.62% | 20.32% | 5.01% | 25.64% | 21.88% | -9.97% | -12.13% | 0.91% | 66.42% | 60.61% | -40.86% | 1228.57% | -88.07% | -13.73% | 3.03% | -1.49% | -8.22% | -1.79% | 6.19% | 0.48% | 29.81% | 51.89% | -20.3% | 66.25% | 600% | 75.38% | 50.76% | 21.43% | -4300% | -92.59% |
| EPS (Basic) | - | 6.72 | 6.84 | 5.69 | 5.42 | 4.32 | 3.54 | 3.93 | 4.49 | 4.44 | 2.66 | 1.66 | 2.80 | 0.21 | 1.76 | 2.05 | 1.98 | 2.02 | 2.21 | 2.25 | 2.13 | 2.11 | 1.63 | 1.07 | 1.34 | 0.80 | -0.16 | -0.65 | -1.32 | -1.68 | 0.05 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 399.8M | 404.2M | 403.4M | 406.9M | 415M | 422.9M | 425.1M | 427.5M | 432.2M | 441.9M | 446.5M | 455.9M | 465.6M | 469.8M | 464.4M | 471.4M | 482.2M | 493.6M | 495.4M | 521.8M | 546.1M | 565.1M | 581.1M | 594.34M | 618.05M | 628.75M | 606.25M | 612.31M | 584.3M | 218.93M | 139.59M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 398.9M | 402.7M | 401.5M | 404.9M | 412.8M | 420.4M | 423M | 424.6M | 429.1M | 438.8M | 443.5M | 452.7M | 462.6M | 467.7M | 463.6M | 469.7M | 480.2M | 491.2M | 492.1M | 517.3M | 540.4M | 561.5M | 576.3M | 588.79M | 613.43M | 628.75M | 606.25M | 612.31M | 584.3M | 207.85M | 139.59M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | 49.26% | 44.06% | 49.31% | 48.12% | 53.41% | 61.97% | 52.46% | 41.66% | 38.48% | 61.42% | 92.3% | 53.39% | 696.94% | 80.54% | 66.29% | 63.38% | 57.24% | 48.85% | 42.56% | 41.43% | 37.99% | 46.01% | 0.95% | 0.73% | 1.19% | - | - | - | - | 937.08% |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying WM stock.
For fiscal year 2025, Waste Management, Inc. (WM) reported total revenue of $25.20B. This represents a 1819.0% increase compared to $1.31B in 1996.
Waste Management, Inc. (WM) is profitable, generating $2.71B in net income for the fiscal year ending 2025 with a net profit margin of 10.7%.
Waste Management, Inc. (WM) reported an operating income of $4.61B, resulting in an operating profit margin of 18.3%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
Waste Management, Inc. (WM) generated $7.33B in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 29.1%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Stericycle integration margin risk
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Revenue Growth Losing Altitude
Based on WM's quarterly results, revenue growth decelerated from 19.0% in 2025Q2 to 6.3% in 2026Q3, with absolute revenue rising only about $100M sequentially to $6.8B despite the added Stericycle base, suggesting organic volume and pricing momentum may be normalizing off an elevated comparative period.
Sequential growth from 2026Q2's $6.7B to 2026Q3's $6.8B implies roughly 1.5% quarter-over-quarter, a marked step down from the double-digit year-over-year prints logged through mid-2025. For a business where an estimated 75-80% of contracts carry CPI-linked escalators, this deceleration suggests the growth mix is shifting toward lower-volume commercial and industrial activity rather than price realization. Investors should monitor whether core yield continues to offset softness in construction-linked roll-off volumes, since the reported trajectory no longer supports an accelerating top line.
Gross Margin Step-Change Demands Verification
According to WM's income statement, gross margin rose from 29.3% in 2025Q4 to 40.8% in 2026Q2, lifting gross profit to $2.7B even as revenue grew only 4.0% year over year, a step-change that appears too large to attribute solely to pricing power or business mix.
The improvement was driven by COGS falling from $4.5B to $4.0B and then $3.7B on rising revenue, which is an unusual pattern for a business with heavy fixed-cost landfill and fleet depreciation. Read against Republic Services' 42.0% and Waste Connections' 39.0%, WM has moved from a clear discount to in-line, but 2026Q3 gross margin is undisclosed, so durability cannot be confirmed. If the shift reflects a genuine structural change in cost absorption or internalization, it is material to the equity story; if it reflects presentation changes, historical comparability is broken and multiple-based analysis should be treated with caution.
Overhead Discipline Rebuilds Operating Margin
Based on WM's reported figures, SG&A held near $655-707M while revenue climbed from $6.0B to $6.8B, allowing operating income to reach $1.3B and the operating margin to hold at 18.7%, indicating meaningful overhead leverage across the last four reported quarters.
However, the 18.7% operating margin still sits below the 20.1% WM achieved in 2024Q3, when SG&A was only $525M, so the leverage story is one of recovery rather than expansion. SG&A has been notably lumpy, swinging between $501M and $747M over the ten-quarter window, which suggests expense control is inconsistent quarter to quarter rather than structurally improved. Relative to Republic Services' 20.0% operating margin, WM's current profile implies it has not yet converted its scale advantage into peer-beating operating profitability.
EPS Volatility Outpaces Operating Results
As disclosed in WM's quarterly filings, diluted EPS swung from $1.49 in 2025Q3 to $1.83 in 2025Q4 and $2.05 in 2026Q3, while net margin ranged between 9.4% and 13.5%, volatility that appears disconnected from the steadier operating income trajectory of $1.0-1.3B.
Net income moved from $603M in 2025Q3 to $742M in 2025Q4 on essentially flat operating income, implying that non-operating items, tax, and below-the-line factors are driving a meaningful share of reported EPS variation. Stock-based compensation is also erratic, printing -$100M in 2025Q2 and -$52M in 2026Q2 but +$52M in 2026Q1, an unusual sign pattern for an equity-compensation line that warrants closer review of the underlying disclosure. With reported net margin of 11.7% in 2026Q2 trailing Republic Services' 12.9%, investors should treat headline EPS as a noisier signal than operating income for this name.
2026 Cost Base Inflection Reshapes Earnings
WM's income statement inflected most sharply in 2026Q1, when COGS fell to $3.7B from $4.5B a year earlier and gross margin jumped to 40.7%, a shift that coincides with the Stericycle integration period and may reflect changed cost classification rather than pure operational improvement.
The lasting impact depends entirely on the source: if the lower cost base is structural, WM's earnings power has been permanently reset higher and forward margin estimates warrant upward revision; if it is a reclassification of brokerage or pass-through recycling costs, the apparent margin expansion is presentational. Operating income did not experience a proportional inflection, rising from $1.0B in 2025Q1 to $1.1B in 2026Q1, which suggests the gross-line benefit did not fully translate to the bottom line in the first year. Analysts should reconcile this against the filed cost-of-operations presentation before embedding the new margin profile into long-range models.
Short Case: Growth, Margins, and Misses
A short-seller would highlight that WM's 2026Q3 revenue growth of 6.3% trails the 19.0% logged in 2025Q2, that Q2 2026 EPS of $2.02 missed estimates by $0.16, and that gross margin is undisclosed for the latest reported period.
The strongest challenge is that the two most favorable trends in the file, the 11-percentage-point gross margin step-up and the re-acceleration of EPS to $2.05, are simultaneously the least verifiable, with one margin line missing and the other showing a discontinuity that coincides with a large acquisition. Should Stericycle synergies underdeliver while PFAS remediation or landfill closure obligations prove larger than reserved, the combination of decelerating revenue and an unproven cost base could compress both operating margin and the premium multiple WM commands over Republic Services. The counter-case does not require the moat to fail; it only requires the margin shift to be non-recurring while growth settles toward the low single digits.