Large waste companies spent nearly $2B on acquisitions through Q2 (2024)

The industry’s top publicly traded companies spent an estimated $1.98 billion on transactions in the U.S. and Canada through the first half of 2023, continuing a multiyear trend of big spending on solid waste and recycling acquisitions.

This figure includes spending reported by WM, Republic Services, Waste Connections, GFL Environmental and Casella Waste Systems. Much of the spending in the first half of the year was driven by other companies purchasing divested assets from GFL.Catch up on the details for each company as well as what executives said about further 2023 activity during recent quarterly earnings calls.

Q2 2023 Spend*H1 SpendH1 Annualized Revenue Acquired
WM$84M$118M$111M
Republic Services$703.2M$927.3MNot officially reported
Waste Connections$68.5M$213.2MNot officially reported
GFL Environmental**$16M$178.4M$35.9M
Casella Waste Systems$547.3M$547.6M$195M

*Spending totals are net of cash acquired.

**GFL figures converted from Canadian to U.S. dollars for comparison purposes, based on Aug. 10 exchange rate.

Current outlooks

WM

WM continues to take a targeted approach to acquisitions, with no notable deals announced for Q2 aside from its purchase of GFL Environmental’s hauling assets in Nashville, Tennessee.

CEO Jim Fish said multiples remain too high in his view, citing an example of 15x, noting that "anything in double digits seems to not make sense” compared to the expected return on investment for recycling and renewable natural gas projects.

Fish said there has been an uptick in businesses looking to sell for multiple reasons.“I think for us, it's a double-edged sword. We want to make sure we do have a nice pipeline of M&A opportunities, but we don't want to fall into the trap of paying way up for these. And so we'll be patient when it comes to those,” he said.

Republic Services

Republic’s spending has focused on solid waste and recycling deals so far in the year, including the June purchase of GFL’s assets in Colorado and New Mexico. CEO Jon Vander Ark said he anticipates surpassing $1 billion in spending for the year.

Aside from certain geographic considerations, Vander Ark said there’s no limitations to possible acquisitions going forward. “We're mindful of not loading up a specific geography, right, if they've done a big deal. We want to make sure that they can digest that and get that operational. But we've got a good pipeline of deals of all sizes, and we look forward to a strong second half and then into 2024 as well.”

Waste Connections

The company purchased seven unspecified solid waste and recycling businesses, along with one E&P landfill, during the first half of this year. Following Q2, Waste Connections also purchased Arrowhead Environmental Partners for an undisclosed amount. As of last week, including that deal, the company said it had acquired an estimated $160 million in annualized revenue year to date.

CEO Ron Mittelstaedt said “dialogue remains very active with a robust pipeline” of solid waste deals, some of which could close later this year. The Arrowhead purchase, which includes a rail-served landfill in Alabama and multiple rail transfer stations, is also expected to create new expansion opportunities. Previously volumes in states such as Massachusetts and Rhode Island largely weren’t being internalized, but that will change following this deal.Citing that example, Mittelstaedt said that within those states and surrounding ones,including some areas the company isn’t currently in, “there's more M&A opportunity today than there was a few days ago.”

GFL Environmental

The Canada-based company completed the acquisition of 16 small businesses through the end of Q2, 13 of which are focused on solid waste. This included four acquisitions during Q2. While GFL had primarily been focused on streamlining its portfolio through divestitures, following a period of rapid growth through acquisitions, that process is now complete.

“...Given the enhanced strength of our balance sheet and free cash flow profile, we will again focus on our M&A strategy of densifying our existing footprint in North America,” said CEO Patrick Dovigi, adding later that “we have some wonderful acquisition opportunities that will be very compelling for us to execute on in the back half of this year.”

Casella Waste Systems

The Vermont-based company reported an active period for spending, including the sizable purchase of GFL’s assets in Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, as well as a smaller tuck-in purchase of Triple T Trucking in Vermont. It also recently announced the pending acquisition of , which could contribute another $70 million in annualized revenue.

CEO John Casella said the company sees a pipeline worth approximately $500 million in annualized revenues in the Northeast, and another $400 million in potential revenue in its new Mid-Atlantic region. President and CFO Ned Coletta said that after the Twin Bridges deal closes “we will still have significant liquidity to support our M&A pipeline.”

Large waste companies spent nearly $2B on acquisitions through Q2 (2024)

FAQs

Large waste companies spent nearly $2B on acquisitions through Q2? ›

Which is the largest waste company in the United States? A number of the world's leading waste management companies are based in the United States, the largest of which is Waste Management Inc, headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Who is the largest waste company in the United States? ›

Which is the largest waste company in the United States? A number of the world's leading waste management companies are based in the United States, the largest of which is Waste Management Inc, headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Did waste industries get bought out? ›

GFL Completes Merger with Waste Industries GFL Completes Merger with Waste Industries. The merger more than doubles GFL's current footprint of operations in North America. Last month, GFL Environmental Inc.

How much does the US spend on waste management each year? ›

The US spends around $200 billion in a year over solid waste management.

Who is the richest waste management? ›

The leading waste management company in the United States is Waste Management Inc. As of May 2024, the Texas-based company reported a revenue of 20.7 billion U.S. dollars. This was followed by Republic Services – headquartered in Arizona – with a revenue amounting to 15.3 billion U.S. dollars.

What are the top 5 waste management companies? ›

Top Waste and Recycling Companies
  1. Waste Management. Annual revenue: $14.5 Billion. ...
  2. Republic Services. Annual revenue: $9.4 Billion. ...
  3. Waste Connections. Annual revenue: $4.9 Billion. ...
  4. Stericycle. Annual revenue: $3.6 Billion. ...
  5. Clean Harbors. Annual revenue: $3.4 Billion. ...
  6. GFL Environmental. ...
  7. Covanta Holdings Corporation. ...
  8. Recology.
Mar 28, 2022

Who is the largest shareholder of waste management? ›

Vanguard Group Inc

What is the largest source of waste generation in the United States? ›

The 268 million tons of landfill and recycling waste generated in the United States each year is primarily paper and paperboard waste, both of which can be recycled. For perspective, Amazon ships an average of 608 million packages per year, most of which are in paperboard boxes.

How big is the waste management market in the US? ›

U.S. Waste Management Market Trends

The U.S. waste management market size was estimated at USD 342.7 million in 2023 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.2% from 2024 to 2030. The growth of the US waste management market is driven by several factors.

What is the yearly profit of waste management? ›

Waste Management annual net income for 2023 was $2.304B, a 2.95% increase from 2022. Waste Management annual net income for 2022 was $2.238B, a 23.24% increase from 2021. Waste Management annual net income for 2021 was $1.816B, a 21.39% increase from 2020.

Who is waste management's biggest competitor? ›

Top 10 Waste Management competitors
  • Stericycle.
  • Biffa.
  • CompostNow.
  • Solenis.
  • SUEZ.
  • Wheelabrator Technologies.
  • Advanced Disposal Services.
  • Waste Industries.

Who is the largest contributor to waste? ›

Largest waste producers worldwide

The U.S. is amongst the largest generators of MSW per capita, with the average American producing more than 800 kilograms of waste per year. However, among OECD countries, Denmark ranks as the top waste producer per capita, with 845 kilograms generated in 2022.

Who was the CEO of waste management scandal? ›

The company began the fraud during 1992, and continued through 1996. In June 1996, Dean Buntrock retired and appointed Waste Management president and Chief Operating Officer Phillip B. Rooney to be his successor as CEO. Rooney resigned under pressure from the board just eight months later, in February, 1997.

Who is the biggest producer of waste? ›

Largest waste producers worldwide

The U.S. is amongst the largest generators of MSW per capita, with the average American producing more than 800 kilograms of waste per year. However, among OECD countries, Denmark ranks as the top waste producer per capita, with 845 kilograms generated in 2022.

Where is the biggest garbage dump in the United States? ›

The Puente Hills Landfill is the largest landfill in America. Over 150 m (490 ft) of garbage has risen from the ground since the area became a designated landfill site in 1957. In 1986, there were 7,683 landfills in the United States.

Does Bill Gates own waste management? ›

In addition to being one of the world's most famous philanthropic organizations, the foundation is also a massive financial entity with a large stock portfolio. Surprisingly, one of the largest holdings Gates keeps in his foundation's portfolio is trash disposal company Waste Management (NYSE:WM).

Is GFL bigger than waste management? ›

GFL Environmental's brand is ranked #- in the list of Global Top 1000 Brands, as rated by customers of GFL Environmental. Their current market cap is $11.10B. Waste Management's brand is ranked #- in the list of Global Top 1000 Brands, as rated by customers of Waste Management. Their current market cap is $54.71B.

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