Executive Summary
美国废弃物管理公司
NYSE:WM Against NYSE Composite Index
Key Financial Information
Company Overview
Waste Management, Inc. (WM) is a leading provider of environmental solutions headquartered in Houston, Texas. Established in 1971, the company operates a comprehensive suite of services, including collection, transfer, recycling, and disposal services to millions of residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers throughout the U.S. and Canada.
WM maintains the most extensive disposal network and collection fleet in North America. It is also the largest recycler of post-consumer materials and is the leader in beneficial use of landfill gas, with a growing network of renewable natural gas plants and the most landfill gas-to-electricity plants in North America. WM's fleet encompasses more than 12,000 natural gas trucks, making it the largest heavy-duty natural gas truck fleet of its kind in North America.
Business Segment
WM operates through 4 major business segments: (a) Collection and Disposal (b) Recycling Processing and Sales, (c) WM Renewable Energy and (d) Corporate & Others.
Collection and Disposal
The Company evaluates its Collection and Disposal businesses primarily through two geographic segments: East Tier and West Tier. Its East Tier primarily consists of geographic areas located in the Eastern U.S., the Great Lakes region and substantially all of Canada. The West Tier includes geographic areas located in the Western U.S., including the upper Midwest region, and British Columbia, Canada. It also provides ancillary services. These 2 geographical segments offer integrated environmental services, including:
Collection Services
Collection encompasses picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from the source where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (“MRF”) or disposal site. WM offers collection services for residential, commercial, industrial, and other collections.
Transfer & Disposal Services
WM operates transfer stations where collected waste is consolidated and compacted (to reduce the volume and increase the density of the waste) before being transported by transfer trucks or by rail to disposal facilities such as landfills or waste-to-energy plants. These services ensure efficient and environmentally responsible disposal of waste materials. As of December 31, 2022, the company owned or operated 332 transfer stations in the U.S. and Canada.
Landfill Operation
Landfills serve as the main depositories for solid waste in North America. As of December 31, 2022, WM owned or operated 263 solid waste landfills and five secure hazardous waste landfills, which represents the largest network of landfills throughout the U.S. and Canada. These facilities are designed and managed to meet strict regulatory standards for waste disposal while maximising the recovery of energy and resources from waste streams.
Recycling Processing and Sales
WM’s Recycling Processing and Sales segment encompasses the extraction of reusable materials from the waste stream for processing and resale or other disposition. As North America’s leading recycler of post-consumer materials, the company operates recycling facilities where collected recyclables are sorted, processed and sold for reuse to manufacturers. Some of its recycling operations include:
Materials processing
Through its collection operations and third-party customer base, WM collects recyclable materials from residential, commercial and industrial waste materials and transfers these materials to one of our MRFs for processing. As of December 31, 2022, the Company maintains 97 MRFs, of which 46 are single stream, where cardboard, paper, glass, metals, plastics, construction and demolition materials and other recycling commodities are recovered for resale or rechanneled for other purposes.
Recycling commodities
WM also engages in global marketing and resale of recycling commodities. The Company oversees the marketing of these recycling commodities, which are processed in their facilities, by maintaining comprehensive service centres that continuously analyse market prices, logistics, market demands and product quality.
Recycling brokerage services
The Company also offers recycling brokerage services, which entails managing the marketing of recyclable materials for external parties. WM’s proficiency in processing recycling commodities for its own operations imparts it with the necessary expertise to efficiently manage volumes for third parties. Leveraging the resources and expertise of its recycling operations' service centres, Waste Management can support its customers in marketing and selling their recycling commodities with minimal capital requirements.
WM Renewable Energy
Through its WM Renewable Energy segment, WM develops, operates and promotes projects for the beneficial use of landfill gas. The methane component of landfill gas is a readily available, renewable energy source that can be gathered and used beneficially as an alternative to fossil fuel. Through its methane gas capture systems for energy generation, WM is able to produce commercial quantities of methane gas at owned or operated landfills via 135 landfill gas beneficial use projects.
Corporate & Others
Other than traditional waste management services, WM offers environmental consulting and remediation services that focus on assisting clients in managing environmental risks, complying with regulations, and implementing sustainable practices. This includes:
Sustainability and Environmental Solutions (“SES”)
Waste Management's Sustainable Environmental Solutions (SES) business provides a suite of services to customers through collaboration with its Areas and strategic accounts programs. These services include construction and remediation services, assistance with the disposal of fly ash and other fuel residues, and in-plant services where WM employees work within customers' facilities to offer comprehensive waste management solutions and consulting. WM's vertically integrated waste management operations enables it to provide customers with comprehensive environmental solutions. With its extensive service offerings, expertise in waste management practices, and utilisation of technology, WM is equipped to support its customers in minimising waste generation, identifying recycling opportunities, and establishing efficient and environmentally friendly waste collection and disposal methods. Through these services, Waste Management aims to support customers in increasing circularity and advancing their decarbonization objectives.
Strategic Business Solutions (“WMSBS”)
While many waste management services typically operate on a local scale, WM's Waste Management Services for Business (WMSBS) business caters to customers with operations across the United States and Canada. Through its strategic accounts program, the business provides customers with streamlined services, improved reporting capabilities, measurement tools focused on achieving sustainability goals, and centralised billing and account management.
Expanded Service Offerings and Solutions
In addition, WM offers a range of extended service options and solutions beyond the scope of its Solid Waste business. This includes the collection of project waste, such as construction debris and household or yard waste, facilitated through its Bagster business.
Detailed Revenue Breakdown - Line of Business
In Fiscal Year 2023, WM generated a total revenue of $20,426 million. A detailed breakdown of WM’s net operating revenue in FY2023 is shown on the left.
70.28% of its FY2023 revenue was derived from WM’s Collection Services, 15.92% from Landfill Operations, 6.15% from Transfer & Disposal Services, 6.19% from Recycling Processing and Sales, 1.34% from WM Renewable Energy and 0.12% from Corporate and Other.
Cost Drivers
WM’s operating expense in 2023 is reported at 12,606 million or 61.7% of revenue, compared to 12,294 million in 2022 or 62.4% of revenue in 2022. The increase in operating expense is mainly attributed to:
Maintenance, Repairs and Subcontractor Cost
Maintenance and repair expenses for vehicles, machinery, and processing equipment are key factors of WM’s overall expenditures. Inflationary cost pressure for these operational assets is expected to drive cost for WM in the future.
Furthermore, costs associated with landfill operations, including fees for waste disposal, maintenance, and environmental monitoring, are also significant drivers of WM’s expenses. These expenses are integral to maintaining compliance with regulatory standards, ensuring environmental sustainability, and managing waste effectively. With increasingly stringent regulatory standards globally, regulatory costs are expected to increase for WM.
Fuel Prices
Given the extensive fleet of vehicles used for waste collection and transportation, fluctuations in fuel prices can have a substantial effect on the company's operational costs, particularly for its commodity-driven business.
Labour Cost
The wages and benefits paid to employees involved in waste collection, sorting, disposal, recycling and administrative functions represent a substantial portion of WM’s operational expenditures. As labour unions are expected to continue in organising employees for collective bargaining agreements, adjustments in wages for WM employees are anticipated to impact the Company's labour costs.
*Do note that all of this is for information only and should not be taken as investment advice. If you should choose to invest in any of the stocks, you do so at your own risk.
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