WM · Earnings call · 2026Q3T · Full report

Competition and Pricing Pressure

WASTE MANAGEMENT INC · 2026-10-27 · Importance 25 · Surprise 24

Management identified landfill and transportation pricing as priorities, citing the strategic advantage of WM’s post-collection assets and increased landfill operating costs. California costs were expected to rise with enhanced monitoring requirements, while leachate-related expenses were also increasing in California and other locations. WM said it uses next-best-alternative analysis in pricing and expects to pass higher costs through to customers. Management characterized the cost issue as industry-wide and said disposal scarcity in some areas supported the company’s ability to recover costs through pricing.