Waste Connections enjoys income, revenue boosts

Waste Connections Inc. has reported an 11.2 percent year-on-year rise in revenue and a 31.7 percent increase in net income in this year’s second quarter. The company also has increased its outlook for the full year.

The Toronto-based waste and recycling services provider has reported April through June revenue of nearly $2.25 billion and net income of $275.5 million. In the first half of the year, the company has recorded more than $4.32 billion in revenue and amassed net income of nearly $589 million.

“Solid operational execution supplemented by incremental acquisitions and increased commodity values drove an across the board beat in the second quarter, positioning us for an increase to our full year outlook,” Waste Connections President and CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt says.

He cites price-led organic solid waste growth and 100 basis points sequential improvement in volumes augmented by accretive acquisitions as contributing factors to the company's increased revenue.

“We are extremely pleased by the continued strength of operational execution during the quarter, including sequential improvement in employee retention, as we maintain the strategy that has served to differentiate our results and which positions us for continued outsized growth,” Mittelstaedt adds.

An emailed “flash note” from the waste industry securities analyzing staff at St. Louis-based Stifel Financial Corp. points to good news in the results, saying the firm is maintaining its “buy” rating for Waste Connections stock.

“Waste Connections beat consensus, our estimates and its own outlook on continuation of above average price/cost spread supplemented by outsized M&A activity with $500 million in annualized sales already acquired,” the Stifel note says.

For Waste Connections, the results are encouraging enough for the company to increase its internal forecasts.

“Given the strength of our performance in the first half of 2024, the momentum from continuing trends and contributions from recent acquisitions, we are raising our full year 2024 outlook to approximately $8.85 billion in revenue and approximately $2.9 billion in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), exceeding our initial outlook and up 130 basis points as compared to the prior year,” Mittelstaedt says.

He adds that Waste Connections remains on the acquisition trail.

“We are also positioned for a record year of private company acquisition activity in 2024,” Mittelstaedt says. “In addition to year-to-date completed acquisitions with over $500 million in annualized revenue, we have an additional $150 million under definitive agreement, expected to close later this year.  Continued balance sheet strength provides the flexibility to fund outsized acquisition activity along with an increasing return of capital to shareholders.”

Regarding its optimistic 2024 outlook, Waste Connections says it “assumes no change in the current economic environment or underlying economic trends.

In its current state, Waste Connections serves approximately 9 million residential, commercial and industrial customers in 46 states in the United States and six provinces in Canada. The company also provides specialty services including nonhazardous oilfield waste treatment, recovery and disposal services in several basins across the U.S. and Canada, as well as intermodal services for the movement of cargo and solid waste containers in the Pacific Northwest.