EarningsQ2 2026 Earnings Report
MX:WMI Q2 2026 EPS Results
Actual EPS$36.69
Consensus EPS$35.90
Beat/MissBeat by +$0.78
One Year Ago EPS$34.87
MX:WMI Q2 2026 Revenue Results
Actual Revenue$121.39B
Expected Revenue$121.85B
Beat/MissMissed by -$458.14M
YoY Revenue Growth+3.95%
Earnings Announcement Details
QuarterQ2 2026
Date07/28/2026
TimeAfter Close
Conference CallTuesday, July 28, 2026
MX:WMI Upcoming Earnings
Waste Management's next earnings date is estimated for October 27, 2026, based on past reporting schedules.
Q2 2026 Earnings Call Audio
MX:WMI Q2 2026 Earnings Call
0:00 / 0:00
Q2 2026 Earnings Slide Deck
No slide deck is available for this earnings event.
Q2 2026 Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Sentiment|Positive
The call highlighted strong execution across margins, cash generation and cost discipline, including notable free cash flow growth (+56% YTD), operating EBITDA expansion (5.5% / 9.1% excl. wildfire), recycling and Healthcare Solutions momentum, and continued technology-driven productivity gains. The primary near-term negatives were softer-than-expected volumes (commercial and residential), timing delays in RNG pipeline interconnects and some recycling operating disruptions, which together led to a modest revenue guide narrowing. Overall, management communicated confidence in maintaining EBITDA and free cash flow targets and returning leverage to target ranges, suggesting the positives (earnings quality, margins, cash flow, integration successes) meaningfully outweigh the temporary volume and timing headwinds.Company Guidance
Operating EBITDA Growth and Margin Expansion
Operating EBITDA grew 5.5% year-over-year in the quarter (9.1% excluding prior-year wildfire cleanup contributions) and operating EBITDA margin expanded by 40 basis points in Q2 to 30.9%, driven by price-to-cost spread, technology and automation gains.
Robust Free Cash Flow and Operating Cash Flow
Free cash flow for the quarter grew ~35%; free cash flow for the first six months was $2.02 billion, up more than 56% year-over-year. Operating cash flow for the first six months was $3.23 billion, up over 17% year-over-year, with operating EBITDA conversion approaching 52%.
Strong Cost Discipline and SG&A Improvements
SG&A improved by 60 basis points to 9.9% of revenue (below 10% for the first time since the Healthcare acquisition). Collection operating costs rose less than 1.7% year-over-year despite labor inflation of approximately 4%, demonstrating productivity and pricing effectiveness.
Healthcare Solutions Integration and Margin Expansion
Healthcare Solutions operating EBITDA margin expanded 200 basis points in the quarter to 19%; SG&A in the Healthcare business declined 15% and improved ~290 basis points as a percent of revenue. Cross-selling has generated $32 million of annual operating EBITDA to date with a synergy target of >$300 million by end of 2027.
Recycling & Renewable Energy Progress
Recycling and renewable energy operating EBITDA grew nearly 33% year-over-year and contributed a ~30 basis point uplift to total company margin. The company processed 12% more recyclables year-over-year and produced an additional 1.6 million MMBtu of RNG in the quarter.
Technology & SmartTruck Impact
Technology investments (AI, automation, SmartTruck) continue to pay off: SmartTruck now generates more than $300 million of annual run-rate EBITDA through service upgrades, optimized routing and lower operating costs; recycling automation projects show ~30% improvement in labor cost per ton versus legacy facilities.
Disciplined Capital Allocation and Balance Sheet
Capital spending was >18% lower year-over-year (normalized collection vehicle and sustainability spend). The company completed $235 million of solid-waste tuck-in acquisitions in the quarter, repurchased $1.0 billion of shares and paid $764 million in dividends in H1; leverage finished the quarter at 2.96x within the 2.5x–3.0x target range.
Operational Wins in Special Waste and Industrial Volumes
Special waste volumes increased 4.5% year-over-year (excluding wildfire impacts) and industrial (roll-off) volumes show modest growth with recent 4-week trends up roughly 50 basis points versus the prior year, indicating pockets of demand resilience.
MX:WMI Earnings History
The table shows recent earnings report dates and whether the forecast was beat or missed. See the change in forecast and EPS from the previous year.
Beat
Missed