Waste Connections
WCN · NYSERefuse Systems · Fiscal year ends Dec 31
Waste Connections reported revenue of $9.5B in the fiscal year ended Dec 2025, up 6.1% from the year before. Operating income was $1.7B, an operating margin of 18.1%, and net income was $1.1B. Operating cash flow of $2.4B less capital expenditure of $1.2B left free cash flow of $1.2B. Net debt was $8.8B.
Last 5 fiscal years
Revenue and net income
Income statement
| Fiscal year | Dec 2021 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $6.2B | $7.2B | $8B | $8.9B | $9.5B |
| Cost of revenue | $3.7B | $4.3B | $4.7B | $5.2B | $5.5B |
| Gross profit | $2.5B | $2.9B | $3.3B | $3.7B | $4B |
| Selling, general & admin | $612M | $696M | $799M | $883M | $960M |
| Operating income | $1B | $1.2B | $1.2B | $1.1B | $1.7B |
| Interest expense | $163M | $202M | $275M | $327M | $335M |
| Pre-tax income | $771M | $1B | $984M | $763M | $1.4B |
| Income tax | $152M | $213M | $221M | $146M | $341M |
| Net income | $618M | $836M | $763M | $618M | $1.1B |
| Diluted EPS | 2.36 | 3.24 | 2.95 | 2.39 | 4.17 |
| Diluted shares | 262M | 258M | 258M | 259M | 258M |
Balance sheet
| Fiscal year | Dec 2021 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash & equivalents | $147M | $79M | $78M | $62M | $46M |
| Receivables | $710M | $834M | $857M | $935M | $1B |
| Current assets | $1B | $1.1B | $1.1B | $1.2B | $1.3B |
| Net PP&E | $5.7B | $7B | $7.2B | $8B | $8.7B |
| Goodwill | $6.2B | $6.9B | $7.4B | $8B | $8.4B |
| Total assets | $14.7B | $17.1B | $17.9B | $19.8B | $21.1B |
| Payables | $393M | $639M | $642M | $637M | $765M |
| Deferred revenue | $274M | $325M | $355M | $383M | $416M |
| Current liabilities | $1.2B | $1.5B | $1.7B | $1.9B | $2.1B |
| Short-term debt | $6M | $7M | – | – | – |
| Long-term debt | $5B | $6.9B | $6.7B | $8.1B | $8.8B |
| Total liabilities | $7.7B | $10B | $10.2B | $12B | $12.9B |
| Shareholders' equity | $7B | $7.1B | $7.7B | $7.9B | $8.2B |
Cash flow
| Fiscal year | Dec 2021 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating cash flow | $1.7B | $2B | $2.1B | $2.2B | $2.4B |
| Capital expenditure | $744M | $913M | $934M | $1.1B | $1.2B |
| Free cash flow | $954M | $1.1B | $1.2B | $1.2B | $1.2B |
| Depreciation & amortisation | $813M | $919M | $1B | $1.2B | $1.2B |
| Stock-based compensation | $58M | $63M | $70M | $78M | $79M |
| Acquisitions | $960M | $2.2B | $677M | $2.1B | $818M |
| Share buybacks | $339M | $425M | $0 | $0 | $506M |
| Dividends paid | $220M | $243M | $271M | $302M | $334M |
| Dividend per share | 0.84 | 0.94 | 1.05 | 1.17 | 1.29 |
Key ratios
| Fiscal year | Dec 2021 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth (YoY) | – | 17.2% | 11.2% | 11.2% | 6.1% |
| Operating income growth (YoY) | – | 19.5% | −0.5% | −13.6% | 60.2% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | – | 37.3% | −9.0% | −19.0% | 74.5% |
| Gross margin | 40.6% | 39.9% | 40.9% | 41.8% | 42.4% |
| Operating margin | 16.9% | 17.2% | 15.4% | 12.0% | 18.1% |
| Net margin | 10.0% | 11.6% | 9.5% | 6.9% | 11.4% |
| Return on equityBlank when equity is negative | 8.8% | 11.8% | 9.9% | 7.9% | 13.1% |
| ROCEEBIT ÷ (assets − current liabilities) | 7.7% | 8.0% | 7.6% | 6.0% | 9.0% |
| Free cash flow margin | 15.5% | 15.4% | 14.9% | 13.2% | 13.0% |
| Cash conversion (CFO ÷ net income) | 2.75x | 2.42x | 2.79x | 3.61x | 2.24x |
| Receivable days | 42 | 42 | 39 | 38 | 40 |
| Payable days | 39 | 54 | 49 | 45 | 51 |
| Interest cover | 6.39x | 6.14x | 4.50x | 3.27x | 5.11x |
| Debt ÷ equity | 0.72x | 0.97x | 0.87x | 1.03x | 1.07x |
| Net debtDebt − cash & equivalents; excludes investments; negative = net cash | $4.9B | $6.8B | $6.6B | $8B | $8.8B |
| Current ratio | 0.84x | 0.74x | 0.68x | 0.65x | 0.62x |
Recent filings
More in Refuse Systems
Standardised figures from the company's XBRL filings with the SEC (10-K, 10-Q). Line items follow US GAAP tags, so a company's own statement layout may differ and some lines show “–” where the company does not report that item. Ratios are calculated from these figures. For education only; not investment advice or a recommendation.