Waste Connections (WCN) Cash Flow: Operating & Free Cash Flow

Waste Connections (WCN) Cash Flow Statement

In fiscal 2025 (fiscal year ended Dec 31, 2025), Waste Connections generated $2.41B of operating cash flow and spent $1.19B on capital expenditures. That left free cash flow of $1.22B, up 4.0% from $1.17B a year earlier, or 12.9% of revenue. It returned $839.32M to shareholders through $333.81M in dividends and $505.52M in share buybacks.

Waste Connections Cash Flow Statement Analysis

Values in billions USD

Income Statement Balance Sheet Cash Flow Ratios

Scale:

Scroll to see more

Cash flow statement showing operating, investing, and financing activities for Waste Connections, Inc. (WCN) - Annual data in billions USD
Breakdown	FY 2025	FY 2024	FY 2023	FY 2022	FY 2021	FY 2020	FY 2019	FY 2018	FY 2017
Period ending	Dec 2025	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020	Dec 2019	Dec 2018	Dec 2017
Operating Activities
Net Income	1.08	0.62	0.76	0.84	0.62	0.20	0.57	0.55	0.58
Depreciation & Amortization	1.23	1.16	1.00	0.92	0.81	0.75	0.74	0.68	0.63
Deferred Income Tax	0.12	-0.06	0.01	0.09	0.01	-0.05	0.05	0.08	-0.15
Stock Based Compensation	0.08	0.08	0.07	0.06	0.06	0.05	0.04	0.04	0.04
Change in Working Capital	-0.26	-0.21	0.01	0.07	0.02	-0.02	0.03	0.03	-0.07
Change in Accounts Receivable	-0.07	-0.01	-0.02	-0.10	-0.05	0.05	-0.02	-0.04	-0.04
Change in Inventory	0.00	0.00	0.03	0.00	0.00	0.07	-0.01	0.04	-0.07
Change in Accounts Payable	0.06	-0.03	0.03	0.19	0.07	-0.15	0.07	0.02	0.05
Change in Other Working Capital	0.05	-0.03	0.22	-0.02	-0.01	0.01	-0.01	0.01	-0.02
Other Operating Activities	0.05	0.33	0.22	0.04	0.17	0.48	0.11	0.03	0.16
Net Cash from Operating Activities	2.41	2.23	2.13	2.02	1.70	1.41	1.54	1.41	1.19
Investing Activities
Capital Expenditures	-1.19	-1.06	-0.93	-0.91	-0.74	-0.66	-0.67	-0.55	-0.48
Acquisitions	-0.82	-2.12	-0.68	-2.21	-0.99	-0.39	-0.76	-0.83	-0.41
Other Investing Activities	-0.01	0.01	0.03	0.03	-0.03	0.01	0.00	0.00	-0.08
Net Cash from Investing Activities	-2.02	-3.16	-1.58	-3.09	-1.69	-1.05	-1.43	-1.37	-0.97
Financing Activities
Debt Repayment	-2.13	-3.25	-2.05	1.74	-1.89	0.27	0.11	0.05	0.20
Common Stock Issued	0.00	0.01	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.01
Common Stock Repurchased	-0.51	-0.03	0.00	-0.42	-0.34	-0.11	0.00	-0.06	0.00
Dividends Paid	-0.33	-0.30	-0.27	-0.24	-0.22	-0.20	-0.18	-0.15	-0.13
Other Financing Activities	-0.07	-0.05	-0.05	-0.05	-0.14	-0.05	-0.03	-0.03	-0.03
Net Cash from Financing Activities	-0.36	0.94	-0.54	1.03	-0.50	-0.08	-0.10	-0.19	0.06
Summary
Effect of Forex Changes on Cash	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.01	0.00	0.00	0.00
Net Change in Cash	0.03	0.01	0.00	-0.04	-0.49	0.29	0.02	-0.15	0.28
Cash at Beginning of Period	0.20	0.18	0.18	0.22	0.71	0.42	0.40	0.55	0.15
Cash at End of Period	0.23	0.20	0.18	0.18	0.22	0.71	0.42	0.40	0.43
Free Cash Flow	1.22	1.17	1.19	1.11	0.95	0.74	0.87	0.87	0.71
Supplemental Disclosures
Interest Paid	0.31	0.30	0.26	0.18	0.16	-	-	-	-
Income Taxes Paid	0.22	0.22	0.21	0.10	0.15	-	-	-	-

Source: Company financial statements from annual and quarterly filings. Data as of Sep 30, 2026. Data sources and methodology

Frequently Asked Questions About Waste Connections Cash Flow

What is Waste Connections's free cash flow?

Waste Connections generated free cash flow of $1.22B in fiscal 2025 (fiscal year ended Dec 31, 2025), operating cash flow of $2.41B minus $1.19B of capital expenditures. That was up 4.0% from $1.17B a year earlier. Free cash flow equaled 12.9% of revenue.

How much does Waste Connections spend on capital expenditures?

Waste Connections spent $1.19B on capital expenditures in fiscal 2025, compared with $1.06B a year earlier. That equals 49.5% of operating cash flow.

Does Waste Connections pay dividends or buy back shares?

Yes. In fiscal 2025 Waste Connections returned $333.81M in dividends and $505.52M in share buybacks to shareholders, according to its cash flow statement.

What is free cash flow?

Free cash flow is operating cash flow minus capital expenditures. It is the cash a company has left for dividends, buybacks, debt repayment or acquisitions after funding its operations and investment. Full definition