WCNWaste Connections, Inc.
Is the business good?
The checks split: nothing decisive, though earnings fully cash-backed (1.8×).
Operating profit is fully backed by cash. Conversion is worsening vs a year ago.
Positive operating leverage, operating profit is growing faster than sales, so margins widen as the business scales.
A balanced mix of margins, efficiency, and leverage. ROE 13% = margin × turnover × leverage.
Unless marked, from derived.
Where this answer is blind. The F-score rewards improvement, so an already-elite company can score mid-pack.
How good a business is WCN?
Waste Connections, Inc. earns 8.1% on the capital it employs against a 9.0% cost of capital, so growth costs more than it returns.
Return on invested capital · cost of capital 9.0% · 0.91 points below what the capital costs: growth destroys value
- Operating margin
- 18%
Operating margin · Waste Management median 12% · 12 months to Q3 2026
- Cash conversion
- 1.84×
Cash conversion · 2.85× a year ago · operating cash flow covers the operating profit after tax
- Share count, year on year
- −2.2%
Share count, year on year · bought back, each share owns more of the company
| Year | Operating margin |
|---|---|
| FY2020 | 7.6% |
| FY2021 | 17% |
| FY2022 | 17% |
| FY2023 | 15% |
| FY2024 | 12% |
| FY2025 | 18% |
Details›
- Gross margin12 months to Q3 2026
- 43%
- Operating margin12 months to Q3 2026
- 18%
- Net margin12 months to Q3 2026
- 11%
- Free cash flow margin
- 13%
- Revenue, trailing twelve months
- $9.94B
- Free cash flow, trailing twelve months
- $1.25B
- Net income, trailing twelve months
- $1.13B
- Return on invested capitaloperating profit after tax ÷ debt + equity − cash
- 8.1%
Margins, capital and share counts from the statements as filed with the SEC; cash conversion is operating cash flow over operating profit after tax.
Waste Management
Ranks #2 of 5 by RyuScore