One of the industries that remains stable and strong when economies are booming or contracting is the waste management industry. Similar to utilities, these firms provide a valuable service and necessary service. The US is the world’s largest producer of waste. This is not surprising since consumption drives most of the economy.
According to a research report, in 2019 the US generated 12 percent of the global municipal solid waste though it accounts for just 4 percent of the global population. On a per capita basis, Canada was ranked number one followed by Bulgaria and the USA.
From an investment point of view, a few of the top companies trade on the US equity market. The Top 5 Global Waste Management Companies are listed in the graphic below:
Click to enlarge
Source: Market Research Reports
The stock tickers of the above firms are listed below:
- Waste Management, Inc. (WM)
- Republic Services, Inc (RSG)
- Waste Connections (WCN)
- Veolia Environnement SA (VEOEY)
- GFL Environmental Inc (GFL)
The 5-year return of the three US companies are shown in the chart below:
Note: Data shown is as of July 29, 2022
Source: Yahoo Finance
Disclosure: No positions
