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7 top waste management stocks to buy in 2024

Ready to invest in the garbage industry? Learn how to invest in waste management stocks in just a few steps.

The best waste management stocks depend on your portfolio and investment goals — while volatility can be ideal for day traders, long-term investors will want to look to stocks with steadier gains over time.

The top garbage stocks included on this page all trade on the S&P 500, have an analyst recommendation of "Buy" or better and are sorted by year-to-date performance.

  1. Waste Management (WM)
  2. Republic Services (RSG)
  3. Clean Harbors (CLH)
  4. Stericycle (SRCL)
  5. Casella Waste Systems (CWST)
  6. Montrose Environmental (MEG)
  7. US Ecology (ECOL)

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How to invest in waste management stocks

  1. Choose an online stock trading platform. Choose from our Top Picks above, use our comparison table below or jump straight to the best stock trading apps of 2024.
  2. Sign up for an account. Provide your personal information and sign up.
  3. Set up a funding method to pay for the transaction. Deposit funds into your account by linking your banking information.
  4. Choose the stocks you want to buy. Search for the stock by name or ticker symbol like WM or RSG.
  5. Place your order. Buy the stock. It's that simple.

Take a deeper dive into waste management stocks

If you're interested in investing in the garbage industry, take a closer look at what companies in this industry do and how the stocks have historically performed. Keep in mind that positive past performance doesn't guarantee that a stock will continue to rise in the future.

1. Waste Management (WM)

Waste Management, Inc. , through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services, including picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (MRF), or disposal site; and owns and operates transfer stations, as well as owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.

Waste Management stock opened the day at $208.50 after a previous close of $207.93. The latest price was $207.32 (25-minute delay). Waste Management is listed on the NYSE, has a trailing 12-month revenue of around USD21 billion and employs 48,000 staff.

  • Market capitalization: $82,474,246,144
  • P/E ratio: 32.6725
  • PEG ratio: 2.4815

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2. Republic Services (RSG)

Republic Services, Inc. , together with its subsidiaries, offers environmental services in the United States and Canada. It is involved in the collection and processing of recyclable, solid waste, and industrial waste materials; transportation and disposal of non-hazardous and hazardous waste streams; and other environmental solutions.

Republic Services stock opened the day at $200.61 after a previous close of $200.70. The latest price was $200.09 (25-minute delay). Republic Services is listed on the NYSE, has a trailing 12-month revenue of around USD$15.6 billion and employs 41,000 staff.

  • Market capitalization: $63,077,416,960
  • P/E ratio: 33.698
  • PEG ratio: 3.2992

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3. Clean Harbors (CLH)

Clean Harbors, Inc. provides environmental and industrial services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Environmental Services and Safety-Kleen Sustainability Solutions.

Clean Harbors stock opened the day at $239.57 after a previous close of $240.95. The latest price was $242.62 (25-minute delay). Clean Harbors is listed on the NYSE, has a trailing 12-month revenue of around USD$5.6 billion and employs 21,021 staff.

  • Market capitalization: $13,004,697,600
  • P/E ratio: 33.3264
  • PEG ratio: 188.43

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4. Stericycle (SRCL)

Stericycle, Inc. , together with its subsidiaries, provides regulated waste and compliance services in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company offers regulated waste and compliance services, including regulated medical waste, sharps waste management and disposal, pharmaceutical waste management and disposal, chemotherapy waste and disposal, controlled substance waste disposal, healthcare hazardous waste, and integrated waste stream solutions; specialty services, such as MedDrop medication collection kiosks, safe community solutions, SafeDrop sharps mailback solutions, and airport and maritime waste services; medical supply store services, that includes sharps and disposable biohazardous waste containers, infection control supplies, and seal&send medication mail back; and compliance solutions including Steri-Safe compliance solutions.

Stericycle stock opened the day at $60.96 after a previous close of $60.94. The latest price was $61.08 (25-minute delay). Stericycle is listed on the NASDAQ, has a trailing 12-month revenue of around USD$2.6 billion and employs 13,095 staff.

  • Market capitalization: $5,663,020,544
  • P/E ratio: 156.4103
  • PEG ratio: 1.5617

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5. Casella Waste Systems (CWST)

Casella Waste Systems, Inc. , together with its subsidiaries, operates as a vertically integrated solid waste services company in the United States. It offers resource management services primarily in the areas of solid waste collection and disposal, transfer, recycling, and organics services to residential, commercial, municipal, institutional, and industrial customers.

Casella Waste Systems stock opened the day at $98.37 after a previous close of $98.52. The latest price was $98.26 (25-minute delay). Casella Waste Systems is listed on the NASDAQ, has a trailing 12-month revenue of around USD$1.4 billion and employs 4,200 staff.

  • Market capitalization: $6,237,192,704
  • P/E ratio: 289.7647
  • PEG ratio: 7.52

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6. Montrose Environmental (MEG)

Montrose Environmental Group, Inc. operates as an environmental services company in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in three segments: Assessment, Permitting and Response; Measurement and Analysis; and Remediation and Reuse.

Montrose Environmental stock opened the day at $22.87 after a previous close of $22.99. The latest price was $21.72 (25-minute delay). Montrose Environmental is listed on the NYSE, has a trailing 12-month revenue of around USD$662.3 million and employs 3,380 staff.

  • Market capitalization: $786,945,408

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7. US Ecology (ECOL)

US Ecology, Inc. , through its subsidiaries, provides environmental services to commercial and government entities in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Mexico, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Waste Solutions, Field Services, and Energy Waste.

US Ecology is listed on the NASDAQ, has a trailing 12-month revenue of around USD$1 billion and employs 3,600 staff.

  • Market capitalization: $1,512,275,328
  • PEG ratio: 6.03

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Bottom line

While it’s possible to turn a profit investing in waste management stocks, keep in mind that — like any investment — waste management stocks are not immune to risk. These stocks are subject to fluctuating conditions — both in the market and in the garbage industry, so carefully vet your picks before you invest. And if you’re new to investing, or if it’s been awhile since you’ve taken a critical look at your investing accounts, compare brokers to make sure you’re getting the best features in your trading account.

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