Nine Highlights from Waste Connections Latest Quarterly Results

Waste Connections’ net profits rose 2 percent to $61.3 million, or 50 cents per diluted share, compared with $60.1 million, or 48 cents per diluted share, in the 2014 period.

Revenue for the company climbed 0.2 percent in the third quarter to $547.9 million from $546.6 million a year earlier, according to a news release.

The preliminary results do not include an anticipated non-cash charge to earnings for impairment of a significant portion of the goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets associated with its exploration and production (E&P) segment. The company said that the significant and sustained decline in crude oil prices in recent months and the slow recovery make such a charge likely.

The company bought Shamrock Disposal, a solid and industrial waste collection and disposal firm in Duluth, Minn., as well as tuck-in acquisitions of collection operations in California, Oregon and Texas. The purchases add about $15 million in annualized revenue. Ron Mittelstaedt, Waste Connections chairman and CEO said those buys, along with other acquisitions that may close before the end of the year, could provide 5 percent additional revenue growth in 2016.

For the nine-month period, net income slipped 0.8 percent to $170.5 million, or $1.37 per diluted share, compared with $171.8 million, or $1.38 per share, a year earlier.

Revenue for the year-to-date period advanced 2.6 percent to $1.59 billion from $1.55 billion.

The take on the performance from Mittelstaedt, Waste Connections chairman and CEO: "Continuing momentum and strong margin expansion in solid waste drove better than expected performance in the period. Notable increases in collection activity and double-digit growth in special waste and C&D (construction and demolition) landfill tonnage resulted in over 2.5 percent organic volume growth.”  He also said E&P waste activity “was in line with our expectations." 

Waste Connections’ net earnings in the second quarter dropped 8.5 percent while revenue increased slightly. Mittelstaedt said then that the company had improved solid waste collection activity, disposal volumes and recycled commodity values, while E&P waste activity played out as expected.

Industry analyst Leone Young, in her Business Insights review of industry performance for the second quarter, noted that Waste Connections reported solid strength in both price and volume. She singled out the company’s West Coast operations as having as a strong performance.