WCN vs WM
Waste Connections, Inc. and Waste Management Inc., side by side — 10 fiscal years reported in USD, drawn from SEC filings.
Most recent reported year
| Metric | WCN | WM |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $9.5B | $25.2B |
| Net income | $1.1B | $2.7B |
| Gross margin | 42.4% | 40.4% |
| Net margin | 11.4% | 10.7% |
| Return on equity | 13.4% | 29.7% |
| Diluted EPS | $4.17 | $6.70 |
| Dividend / share | $1.29 | $3.30 |
| Payout ratio | 31.0% | 49.3% |
| Free cash flow | $1.2B | $2.8B |
| Equity | $8.2B | $10.0B |
| Net debt / equity | 1.06× | 2.27× |
| Current ratio | 0.62× | 0.89× |
| Revenue CAGR 5y | 11.7% | 10.6% |
| Profit CAGR 5y | 39.4% | 12.6% |
WM bills 2.7× the revenue of WCN, and WCN keeps more of each dollar of revenue as profit (11.4% against 10.7%).
The stronger figure of the pair is set in bold. That is arithmetic, not a recommendation — this page does not pick a winner. "·" marks a figure not available in our data.
10 years side by side
| Fiscal year | WCN | WM |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $9.5B | $25.2B |
| FY2024 | $8.9B | $22.1B |
| FY2023 | $8.0B | $20.4B |
| FY2022 | $7.2B | $19.7B |
| FY2021 | $6.2B | $17.9B |
| FY2020 | $5.4B | $15.2B |
| FY2019 | $5.4B | $15.5B |
| FY2018 | $4.9B | $14.9B |
| FY2017 | $4.6B | $14.5B |
| FY2016 | $3.4B | $13.6B |
Bottom line
| Fiscal year | WCN | WM |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $1.1B | $2.7B |
| FY2024 | $617.6M | $2.7B |
| FY2023 | $762.8M | $2.3B |
| FY2022 | $835.7M | $2.2B |
| FY2021 | $618.0M | $1.8B |
| FY2020 | $204.7M | $1.5B |
| FY2019 | $566.8M | $1.7B |
| FY2018 | $546.9M | $1.9B |
| FY2017 | $576.8M | $1.9B |
| FY2016 | $246.5M | $1.2B |
16 fiscal years
| Fiscal year | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | −$15,737,085,000 | WM |
| FY2024 | −$13,143,409,000 | WM |
| FY2023 | −$12,404,049,000 | WM |
| FY2022 | −$12,486,141,000 | WM |
| FY2021 | −$11,779,639,000 | WM |
| FY2020 | −$9,772,010,000 | WM |
| FY2019 | −$10,066,321,000 | WM |
| FY2018 | −$9,991,059,000 | WM |
| FY2017 | −$9,854,512,000 | WM |
| FY2016 | −$10,233,137,000 | WM |
| FY2015 | −$10,843,713,000 | WM |
| FY2014 | −$11,916,834,000 | WM |
| FY2013 | −$11,956,961,000 | WM |
| FY2012 | −$11,752,259,000 | WM |
| FY2011 | −$11,537,904,000 | WM |
| FY2010 | −$11,085,235,000 | WM |
WM has reported the higher revenue in every one of these 16 fiscal years. The gap has widened since the earliest year compared.
16 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
16 fiscal years
| Fiscal year | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | +0.6 pp | WCN |
| FY2024 | −5.5 pp | WM |
| FY2023 | −1.6 pp | WM |
| FY2022 | +0.2 pp | WCN |
| FY2021 | −0.1 pp | WM |
| FY2020 | −6.1 pp | WM |
| FY2019 | −0.3 pp | WM |
| FY2018 | −1.8 pp | WM |
| FY2017 | −1.0 pp | WM |
| FY2016 | −1.3 pp | WM |
| FY2015 | −10.3 pp | WM |
| FY2014 | +1.7 pp | WCN |
| FY2013 | +4.9 pp | WCN |
| FY2012 | −1.3 pp | WM |
| FY2011 | −18.2 pp | WM |
| FY2010 | −2.3 pp | WM |
The higher net margin has changed hands between WCN and WM over this period.
16 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Standard deviation, each side
WCN's net margin has been more volatile than WM's over the 16 comparable fiscal years — 6.1 percentage points of standard deviation against 3.1.
16 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Year by year
The lead in net margin changed hands between WCN and WM over these 16 fiscal years — WCN led in 4 and WM in 12.
16 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Standard deviation, each side
WM's return on equity has been more volatile than WCN's over the 16 comparable fiscal years — 9.3 percentage points of standard deviation against 7.2.
16 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Year by year
The lead in return on equity changed hands between WCN and WM over these 16 fiscal years — WCN led in 1 and WM in 15.
16 of 19 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.