Waste Management Earnings: Firm Positioned Well for 2024 After Strong Fourth-Quarter Results

Wide-moat Waste Management reported robust fourth-quarter earnings as year-over-year revenue growth accelerated on a sequential basis from 2.4% to 5.7%. Additionally, continued rationalization of operating expenses drove record adjusted EBITDA margin of 29.9%. We expect WM's momentum to carry into 2024, resulting in sales and adjusted EBITDA above our prior expectations. As such, we increased our fair value estimate 5% to $159 per share due to our more optimistic near-term growth and profit margin assumptions.