Finding the company…Gathering the key numbers…Turning it into plain words…
WMRefuse systems
Explained from its latest yearly and quarterly reports to the SEC, filed October 28, 2026.
What the stock market pays for one share of Waste Management today. Below is what the business behind it actually sells, earns, owes and keeps, from its own reports.
Live price from TradingView, shown for context. It changes every trading day, unlike the filed figures below. candor never says whether the price is right.
How its main figures link up, worked out with its own numbers.
Point at a box to see how it links. Click a box to keep it in place.
From its latest yearly report. Point at a term to see exactly what it means.
In the year to December 31, 2025, Waste Management sold $25.2 billion of goods and services, up 14.2% on the year before. It kept about $11 of every $100 of sales as profit. Its business brought in $6 billion of cash, leaving $2.8 billion after paying for buildings and equipment. It owed $21.6 billion more in long-term debt than it held in cash, about $2.21 borrowed for every $1 of owners' money.
Waste Management sold $25.2 billion of goods and services in the year to December 31, 2025.
Sales were up 14.2% on the year before.
After every cost, including interest and tax, about $11 of every $100 of sales was left as profit.
After paying for buildings and equipment, $2.8 billion of cash was left over.
It had borrowed about $2.21 long-term for every $1 of owners' money in the business.
It made about $30 of profit for every $100 of owners' money in the business.
US dollars, as the company reported them under US accounting rules (US GAAP). candor only combines figures that cover exactly the same period or date, and shows "Not reported" rather than a zero when one is missing.
Part 1 of 4 · Growth and profit
Whether it sells more each year, and how much of each sale it keeps as profit.
The short answer
In the year to December 2025, it kept $2.7 billion as profit after paying all its costs and taxes: about $11 of every $100 it made in sales, its profit margin.
more in sales than the year before
Part 2 of 4 · Financial health
Whether it can pay its bills and how much it owes: its cushion for bad times.
The short answer
ready for every $1 of bills due within a year
borrowed for longer than a year
Part 3 of 4 · Cash
Whether profit turns into real cash, and how much is left after investing.
The short answer
spare cash after investing in itself
Part 4 of 4 · How it's run
How its leaders use the money: reinvesting, paying owners or buying other firms.
The short answer
on buildings and equipment, its biggest use
No change of auditor and no corrected accounts since November 9, 2023.
Each of its SEC filings, turned into plain English with pictures.
The figures behind everything above, side by side, with the original reports to check them.
Ratios compare two numbers so companies of different sizes can be compared. Each one only combines figures from the same period or date.
Year ended December 31, 2025
After also paying to run the business (staff, offices, research, marketing), about $17 of every $100 was left.
What it is: Operating income as a share of sales: of each $100 of sales, what's left after paying for what was sold and for running the business, before interest and tax.
Year ended December 31, 2025
After every cost, including interest and tax, about $11 of every $100 of sales was profit.
What it is: Net income as a share of sales: what's left after every cost, including interest and tax. A 10% net profit margin means $10 of final profit for every $100 of sales.
Year ended December 31, 2025
If the year's profit were split equally across all its shares, each share would get $6.70, down 1.6% on the year before.
What it is: Net income divided by the average number of shares during the period. "Diluted" EPS also counts shares that could still be created, for example from staff stock awards, so it's usually slightly lower.
Year ended December 31, 2025
For every $100 that belongs to shareholders on paper, it made about $30 of profit in a year.
What it is: Net income for a year divided by the average shareholders' equity over that year. A 20% ROE means $20 of profit for every $100 of owners' money in the business.
Year ended December 31, 2025
The cash left after running the business and paying for new buildings and equipment: money it could use for dividends, buybacks, paying debt or growing.
What it is: Operating cash flow minus capital expenditure: the cash left after the business pays for the buildings and equipment it needs. It's what the company can use to pay dividends, buy back shares, repay debt or save.
On September 30, 2026
It had about $0.82 of cash and other short-term assets for every $1 of bills due within a year, less than enough, so it relies on money still to come in.
What it is: Current assets (cash, money customers owe it, stock and anything else it expects to turn into cash within a year) divided by current liabilities (bills it must pay within a year). 1.5 means $1.50 coming in for every $1 due.
On September 30, 2026
It owed about $2.21 in long-term loans and bonds for every $1 that belongs to shareholders. Higher means it relies more on borrowed money.
What it is: Long-term borrowing divided by shareholders' equity (what the accounts say belongs to the owners). 0.5 means $0.50 borrowed for every $1 of owners' money; higher means it relies more on borrowed money.
On September 30, 2026
Everything it owns (buildings, cash, stock, money owed to it) is worth about $1.27 for every $1 it owes in total.
What it is: Everything the company owes: loans, bonds, bills to suppliers, taxes due, and other obligations.
Each figure next to the same figure a year earlier. Quarters are compared with the same quarter a year before, because many businesses are busier in some seasons.
$25.2 billion vs $22.1 billion a year earlier
Year ended December 31, 2025, vs the year before
It sold more than the year before.
What it is: All the money a company takes in from selling its products and services, before paying any costs. Also called sales.
$6.8 billion vs $6.4 billion a year earlier
Quarter ended September 30, 2026, vs the same quarter a year earlier
Its latest three months brought in more sales than the same three months a year earlier.
What it is: A three-month period. US public companies report their results every quarter.
$2.7 billion vs $2.7 billion a year earlier
Year ended December 31, 2025, vs the year before
It kept less profit after all costs and taxes than the year before.
Left out on purpose: gross profit. The company either doesn't report this in SEC's standard data, or the latest figure isn't available yet. candor leaves a number out rather than guess.
What it is: The profit left over a period (such as a year or a quarter) after paying every cost, including wages, interest and taxes. Often called the bottom line.
$820 million vs $603 million a year earlier
Quarter ended September 30, 2026, vs the same quarter a year earlier
Profit in the latest three months was higher than a year earlier.
What it is: The profit left over a period (such as a year or a quarter) after paying every cost, including wages, interest and taxes. Often called the bottom line.
$6 billion vs $5.4 billion a year earlier
Year ended December 31, 2025, vs the year before
Its everyday business brought in more actual cash than the year before.
What it is: The cash that came in from customers minus the cash paid out to suppliers, staff, landlords, lenders (interest) and the tax office during the period. It differs from profit because of timing, such as customers paying later, and because some costs in profit, like wear and tear on equipment, aren't paid in cash.
$247 million vs $175 million a year earlier
On September 30, 2026, vs a year earlier
It had more cash on hand than a year earlier.
What it is: Money in the bank plus very safe investments that can be turned into cash almost immediately.
$21.8 billion vs $22.5 billion a year earlier
On September 30, 2026, vs a year earlier
It owed less in long-term loans and bonds than a year earlier.
What it is: Money the company has borrowed and must pay back over more than a year, such as bonds and bank loans.
$9.9 billion vs $9.5 billion a year earlier
On September 30, 2026, vs a year earlier
What would be left for shareholders, if it sold everything and paid every debt, grew over the year.
What it is: Total assets minus total liabilities, as valued in the company's accounts (also called book value): what the accounts say belongs to the shareholders. It isn't the same as what the stock market says the company is worth.
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