WASTE MANAGEMENT INC

Previous wording

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q contains certain forward-looking statements that are made subject to the safe harbor protections provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are often identified by the words, “will,” “may,” “should,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “expect,” “target,” “plan,” “forecast,” “project,” “estimate,” “intend,” and words of a similar nature and include estimates or projections of financial and other data; comments on expectations relating to future periods; plans or objectives for the future; and statements of opinion, view or belief about current and future events, circumstances or performance. You should view these statements with caution. They are based on the facts and circumstances known to us as of the date the statements are made. These forward looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to be materially different from those set forth in such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to failure to implement our optimization, automation, growth, and cost savings initiatives and overall business strategy; failure to obtain the results anticipated from strategic initiatives, investments, acquisitions, including the pending Stericycle acquisition, or new lines of business; failure to identify acquisition targets, consummate and integrate acquisitions, including our planned integration of Stericycle; our ability to consummate and finance the Stericycle acquisition and achieve the anticipated benefits therefrom, including cost synergies; legal, regulatory and other matters that may affect the costs and timing of our ability to complete, integrate and deliver all of the expected benefits of the pending Stericycle acquisition; existing or new environmental and other regulations, including developments related to emerging contaminants, gas emissions, renewable energy, extended producer responsibility and our natural gas fleet; significant environmental, safety or other incidents resulting in liabilities or brand damage; failure to obtain and maintain necessary permits due to land scarcity, public opposition or otherwise; diminishing landfill capacity, resulting in increased costs and the need for disposal alternatives; failure to attract, hire and retain key team members and a high quality workforce; increases in labor costs due to union organizing activities or changes in wage and labor related regulations; disruption and costs resulting from severe weather and destructive climate events; failure to achieve our sustainability goals or execute on our sustainability-related strategy and initiatives, including within planned timelines or anticipated budgets due to disruptions, delays, cost increases or changes in environmental or tax regulations and incentives; focus on, and regulation of, environmental and sustainability-related disclosures, which could lead to increased costs, risk of non-compliance, brand dama…

Excerpt shortened here; the source contains the full paragraph.

Current wording

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q contains certain forward-looking statements that are made subject to the safe harbor protections provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are often identified by the words, “will,” “may,” “should,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “expect,” “plan,” “forecast,” “project,” “estimate,” “intend,” and words of a similar nature and include estimates or projections of financial and other data; comments on expectations relating to future periods; plans or objectives for the future; and statements of opinions, views or beliefs about current and future events, circumstances or performance. You should view these statements with caution. They are based on the facts and circumstances known to us as of the date the statements are made. These forward looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to be materially different from those set forth in such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to failure to implement our optimization, automation, growth and cost savings initiatives and overall business strategy; failure to obtain the results anticipated from strategic initiatives, investments, acquisitions or new lines of business; failure to identify acquisition targets, consummate and integrate acquisitions, including our ability to integrate the acquisition of Stericycle and achieve the anticipated benefits therefrom, including synergies; legal, regulatory and other matters that may affect the costs and timing of our ability to integrate and deliver all of the expected benefits of the Stericycle acquisition; failure to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting; existing or new environmental and other regulations, including developments related to emerging contaminants, gas emissions, renewable energy, extended producer responsibility and our natural gas fleet; significant environmental, safety or other incidents resulting in liabilities or brand damage; failure to obtain and maintain necessary permits due to land scarcity, public opposition or otherwise; diminishing landfill capacity, resulting in increased costs and the need for disposal alternatives; exposure to different regulatory, legal, financial and economic conditions in international jurisdictions; failure to attract, hire and retain key team members and a high quality workforce; increases in labor costs due to union organizing activities or changes in wage and labor related regulations; disruption and costs resulting from severe weather and destructive climate events; failure to achieve our sustainability goals or execute on our sustainability-related strategy and initiatives, including within planned timelines or anticipated budgets due to disruptions, delays, cost increases or changes in environmental or tax regulations and incentives; focus on and regulation of, environmental and sustainability-related disclosures, which …

Excerpt shortened here; the source contains the full paragraph.

Previous wording

We are North America’s leading provider of comprehensive environmental solutions, providing services throughout the United States (“U.S.”) and Canada. We partner with our customers and the communities we serve to manage and reduce waste at each stage from collection to disposal, while recovering valuable resources and creating clean, renewable energy. We own or operate the largest network of landfills throughout the U.S. and Canada. In order to make disposal

Current wording

We are North America’s leading provider of comprehensive environmental solutions, providing services throughout the United States (“U.S.”) and Canada. We partner with our customers and the communities we serve to manage and reduce waste at each stage from collection to disposal, while recovering valuable resources and creating clean, renewable energy. We own or operate the largest network of landfills throughout the U.S. and Canada. In order to make disposal more practical for larger urban markets, where the distance to landfills is typically farther, we manage transfer stations

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more practical for larger urban markets, where the distance to landfills is typically farther, we manage transfer stations that consolidate, compact and transport waste efficiently and economically. Our business is operated and managed locally by our subsidiaries that focus on distinct geographic areas and provide collection, transfer, disposal, recycling and resource recovery services. Through our subsidiaries, including our Waste Management Renewable Energy (“WM Renewable Energy”) business, we are also a leading developer, operator and owner of landfill gas-to-energy facilities in the U.S. and Canada that produce renewable electricity and renewable natural gas (“RNG”), which is a significant source of fuel that we allocate to our natural gas fleet. Additionally, we are a leading recycler in the U.S. and Canada, handling materials that include paper, cardboard, glass, plastic and metal.

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that consolidate, compact and transport waste efficiently and economically. Our solid waste business is operated and managed locally by our subsidiaries that focus on distinct geographic areas and provide collection, transfer, disposal, recycling and resource recovery services. Through our subsidiaries, including our Waste Management Renewable Energy (“WM Renewable Energy”) segment, we are also a leading developer, operator and owner of landfill gas-to-energy facilities in the U.S. and Canada that produce renewable electricity and renewable natural gas (“RNG”), which is a significant source of fuel that we allocate to our natural gas fleet. Additionally, we are a leading recycler in the U.S. and Canada, handling materials that include paper, cardboard, glass, plastic and metal.

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Our senior management evaluates, oversees and manages the financial performance of our business through four reportable segments, referred to as (i) Collection and Disposal - East Tier (“East Tier”); (ii) Collection and Disposal - West Tier (“West Tier”); (iii) Recycling Processing and Sales and (iv) WM Renewable Energy. Our East and West Tiers, along with certain ancillary services (“Other Ancillary”) not managed through our Tier segments, but that support our collection and disposal operations, form our “Collection and Disposal” businesses.

Current wording

Our senior management evaluates, oversees and manages the financial performance of our business through five reportable segments, referred to as (i) Collection and Disposal - East Tier (“East Tier”); (ii) Collection and Disposal - West Tier (“West Tier”); (iii) Recycling Processing and Sales; (iv) WM Renewable Energy and (v) WM Healthcare Solutions. Our East and West Tiers, along with certain ancillary services (“Other Ancillary”) that are not managed through our Tier segments, but that support our collection and disposal operations, form our “Collection and Disposal” businesses. We also provide additional services not managed through our five reportable segments, which are presented as Corporate and Other.

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Our fundamental strategy has not changed; we remain dedicated to providing long-term value to our stockholders by successfully executing our core strategy of focused differentiation and continuous improvement. We have enabled a people-first, technology-led focus to drive our mission to maximize resource value, while minimizing environmental impact, and sustainability and environmental stewardship is embedded in all that we do. Our strategy leverages and sustains the strongest asset network in the industry to drive best-in-class customer experience and growth. Our strategic planning processes appropriately consider that the future of our business and the industry can be influenced by changes in economic conditions, the competitive landscape, the regulatory environment, asset and resource availability and technology. We believe that focused differentiation, which is driven by capitalizing on our unique and extensive network of assets, will deliver profitable growth and position us to leverage competitive advantages. Simultaneously, we believe that investing in automation to improve processes and drive operational efficiency combined with a focus on the cost to serve our customer will yield an attractive profit margin and enhanced service quality. We are furthering our strategy of focused differentiation and continuous improvement beyond our traditional waste operations through our sustainability growth strategy that includes significant planned investments in our WM Renewable Energy and Recycling Processing and Sales segments, while increasing automation and reducing labor dependency. We are also evaluating and pursuing emerging diversion technologies that may generate additional value.

Current wording

Our fundamental strategy has not changed; we remain dedicated to providing long-term value to our stockholders by successfully executing our core strategy of focused differentiation and continuous improvement. We have enabled a people-first, technology-led focus to drive our mission to maximize resource value, while minimizing environmental impact, and sustainability and environmental stewardship is embedded in all that we do. Our strategy leverages and sustains the strongest asset network in the industry to drive best-in-class customer experience and growth. Our strategic planning processes appropriately consider that the future of our business and the industry can be influenced by changes in economic conditions, the competitive landscape, the regulatory environment, asset and resource availability and technology. We believe that focused differentiation, which is driven by capitalizing on our unique and extensive network of assets, will deliver profitable growth and position us to leverage competitive advantages. Simultaneously, we believe that investing in automation to improve processes and drive operational efficiency combined with a focus on the cost to serve our customers will yield an attractive profit margin and enhanced service quality. We are furthering our strategy of focused differentiation and continuous improvement beyond our traditional waste operations through our sustainability growth strategy that includes significant investments in our WM Renewable Energy and Recycling Processing and Sales segments, while increasing automation and reducing labor dependency. In addition, with our acquisition of Stericycle, we have advanced our growth strategy and built upon our sustainability initiatives. The acquisition provides a complementary business platform in regulated waste and compliance services involving medical waste, a sector with attractive near- and long-term growth dynamics and in secure information destruction services to further our leading suite of comprehensive waste and environmental solutions. Furthermore, we are also evaluating and pursuing emerging diversion technologies that may generate additional value.

Previous wording

The waste industry is a comparatively mature and stable industry. However, customers increasingly expect more of their waste materials to be recovered and those waste streams are becoming more complex. In addition, many state and local governments mandate diversion, recycling and waste reduction at the source and prohibit the disposal of certain types of waste at landfills. We monitor these developments to adapt our service offerings. As companies, individuals and communities look for ways to be more sustainable, we promote our comprehensive services that go beyond our core business of collecting and disposing of waste in order to meet their needs. This includes expanding traditional recycling services, increasing organics collection and processing, and expanding our renewable energy projects to meet the evolving needs of our diverse customer base. Consistent with our Company’s long-standing commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship, we have published our 2024 Sustainability Report providing details on our sustainability-

Current wording

of waste at landfills. We monitor these developments to adapt our service offerings. As companies, individuals and communities look for ways to be more sustainable, we promote our comprehensive services that go beyond our core business of collecting and disposing of waste in order to meet their needs. This includes expanding traditional recycling services, increasing organics collection and processing, providing regulated waste and compliance services and secure information destruction and expanding our renewable energy projects to meet the evolving needs of our diverse customer base. As North America’s leading provider of comprehensive environmental solutions, we are taking big, bold steps to catalyze positive change – change that will impact our Company as well as the communities we serve. Consistent with our Company’s long-standing commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship, we have published our 2024 Sustainability Report providing details on our sustainability-related performance and outlining progress towards our 2030 sustainability goals. The Sustainability Report conveys the strong linkage between the Company’s sustainability goals and our growth strategy, inclusive of the planned and ongoing expansion of the Company’s Recycling Processing and Sales and WM Renewable Energy segments. The information in this report can be found at sustainability.wm.com but it does not constitute a part of, and is not incorporated by reference into, this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

Previous wording

We believe the Company’s industry-leading asset network and strategic focus on investing in our people and our digital platform will give the Company the necessary tools to address the evolving challenges impacting the Company and our industry. In line with our commitment to continuous improvement and a differentiated customer experience, we remain focused on our automation and optimization investments to enhance our operational efficiency and change the way we interact with our customers. Advancements made through these initiatives are intended to seamlessly and digitally connect all enterprise functions required to service customers and provide the best experience.

Current wording

We believe the Company’s industry-leading asset network and strategic focus on investing in our people and our digital platform will give the Company the necessary tools to address the evolving challenges impacting the Company and our industry. In line with our commitment to continuous improvement and a differentiated customer experience, we remain focused on our automation and optimization investments to enhance our operational efficiency and change the way we interact with our customers. Advancements made through these initiatives are intended to seamlessly and digitally connect all enterprise functions required to service customers and provide the best experience. We have made significant progress in executing this technology enablement strategy to automate and optimize certain elements of our service delivery model. The key benefits are reduced labor dependency for certain high-turnover positions, particularly in customer experience, recycling and residential collection, while further elevating our customer self-service through digitalization and implementation of technologies to enhance the safety, reliability and efficiency within our collection operations.

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We sometimes experience margin pressures and variability in earnings and margins from our commodity-driven businesses, specifically within our Recycling Processing and Sales and WM Renewable Energy segments. While recycling commodity prices have recovered nicely in 2024 from the low levels experienced in 2023, commodity values are still below prices seen at the beginning of 2022. In our WM Renewable Energy segment, while the impacts of fluctuations are not currently material, the impact of fluctuations in the prices of electricity, Renewable Identification Numbers (“RINs”) and Renewable Energy Credits (“RECs”) could be significant as the segment continues to grow. We continue to take proactive steps to adjust our business models to protect against the down-side risk of changes in commodity prices.

Current wording

We sometimes experience margin pressures and variability in earnings and margins from our commodity-driven businesses, specifically within our Recycling Processing and Sales and WM Renewable Energy segments. During the first quarter, we experienced moderate decreases in the market price for recycled commodities when compared to the prior year period. The impacts of commodity price fluctuations are not currently material to our WM Renewable Energy segment; however, as we continue to make investments to grow that segment, we may experience more significant impacts from fluctuations in the prices of electricity, natural gas, RINs and RECs. We continue to take proactive steps to adjust our business models to protect against the downside risk of changes in commodity prices.

Previous wording

Variability in economic conditions, including inflation, interest rates, employment trends and supply chain reliability, can create risk and uncertainty in financial outlook. We take proactive steps to recover and mitigate inflationary cost pressures through our overall pricing efforts and by managing our costs through efficiency, labor productivity, and investments in technology to automate certain aspects of our business. We remain committed to putting our people first to ensure that they are well positioned to execute our daily operations diligently and safely. We remain focused on delivering outstanding customer service, managing our variable costs with changing volumes and investing in technology that will enhance our customers’ experience and provide operating efficiencies intended to reduce our cost to serve.

Current wording

Variability in economic conditions, including inflation, interest rates, employment trends and supply chain reliability, can create risk and uncertainty in financial outlook. We take proactive steps to recover and mitigate inflationary cost pressures through our overall pricing efforts and by managing our costs through efficiency, labor productivity and investments in technology to automate certain aspects of our business. We remain committed to putting our people first to ensure that they are well positioned to execute our daily operations diligently and safely. We remain focused on delivering outstanding customer service, managing our variable costs with changing volumes and investing in technology that will enhance our customers’ experience and provide operating efficiencies intended to reduce our cost to serve our customers.

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During the third quarter of 2024, we continued to focus on our priorities to advance our strategy—enhancing employee engagement, permanently reducing our cost to serve through the use of technology and automation, and investing in growth through our Recycling Processing and Sales and WM Renewable Energy segments. This strategic focus, combined with strong operational execution, resulted in increased revenue, income from operations and income from operations margin. We remain diligent in offering a competitively profitable service that meets the needs of our customers, and we are focused on driving operating efficiencies and reducing discretionary spend. We continue to invest in our people through paying a competitive market wage, investments in our digital platform and training for our team members. We also continue to make investments in automation and optimization to enhance our operational efficiency and improve labor productivity for all lines of business. During the third quarter of 2024, we allocated $781 million of available cash to capital expenditures and $301 million to our shareholders through dividends.

Current wording

During the first quarter of 2025, we continued to focus on our priorities to advance our strategy – enhancing employee engagement, permanently reducing our cost to serve our customers through the use of technology and automation, investing in growth through our Recycling Processing and Sales and WM Renewable Energy segments and integrating the Stericycle business. We continue to invest in our people through paying a competitive market wage, investing in our digital platform and providing training for our team members. We also continue to make investments in automation and optimization to enhance our operational efficiency and improve labor productivity for all lines of business. As part of the integration of Stericycle, which constitutes our new WM Healthcare Solutions segment, we achieved synergies by reducing costs of duplicative business processes, focused on service delivery for our customers and aligned team members and business processes with WM’s core values.

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Key elements of our financial results for the third quarter include:

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Key elements of our financial results for the first quarter include:

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The mix of operating revenues from our major lines of business are as follows (in millions):

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The mix of operating revenues for the three months ended March 31 are as follows (in millions):

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Collection and Disposal Average Yield — This measure reflects the effect on our revenue from the pricing activities of our collection, transfer and landfill operations, exclusive of volume changes. Revenue growth from Collection and Disposal average yield includes not only base rate changes and environmental and service fee fluctuations, but also (i) certain average price changes related to the overall mix of services, which are due to the types of services provided; (ii) changes in average price from new and lost business and (iii) price decreases to retain customers.

Current wording

Collection and Disposal Average Yield—* *This measure reflects the effect on our revenues from the pricing activities of our collection, transfer and landfill operations, exclusive of volume changes. Revenue growth from Collection and Disposal average yield includes not only base rate changes and environmental and service fee fluctuations, but also (i) certain average price changes related to the overall mix of services, which are due to the types of services provided; (ii) changes in average price from new and lost business and (iii) price decreases to retain customers.

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Recycling Processing and Sales and WM Renewable Energy — Recycling Processing and Sales revenues attributable to yield increased $102 million and $219 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared with prior year periods. Average market prices for single-stream recycled commodities increased approximately 75% and nearly 65% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, as compared with the prior year periods. Yield from the WM Renewable Energy segment increased $6 million and $17 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, as compared with the prior year periods, primarily driven by increases in RINs values. While there may be short-term fluctuations in our commodity-driven businesses as prices change, we believe that our business models and processes appropriately protect against the downside risk of changes in commodity prices.

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Recycling Processing and Sales and WM Renewable Energy— Recycling Processing and Sales revenues attributable to yield decreased $7 million in the first quarter of 2025 as compared with the prior year period. This decline was driven by 10% lower average market prices in our brokerage business compared with the prior year, partially offset by 5% higher average market prices for our single-stream recycled commodities. In addition, revenues attributable to yield in our WM Renewable Energy segment increased $8 million as compared with the prior year period, primarily driven by an increase in electricity and natural gas prices due in part to extreme winter weather in the current quarter, which was partially offset by lower RINs pricing. While there may be short-term fluctuations in our commodity-driven businesses as prices change, we continue to take proactive steps to adjust our business models to protect against the downside risk of changes in commodity prices.

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The following table summarizes the major components of our operating expenses (in millions of dollars and as a percentage of revenues):

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The following table summarizes the major components of our operating expenses for the three months ended March 31 (in millions of dollars and as a percentage of revenues):

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Transfer and Disposal Costs —** **The increase in transfer and disposal costs was primarily due to (i) inflationary cost increases, which includes increased disposal fees at third-party sites and higher rates from our third-party haulers and (ii) our recent acquisition of a solid waste and recycling company in New York. These cost increases were offset, in part, by decreases in industrial and residential collection volumes.

Current wording

Transfer and Disposal Costs— The increase in transfer and disposal costs was primarily due to additional disposal costs attributable to our recent acquisitions and inflationary cost pressures, which includes increased disposal fees at third-party sites and higher rates from our third-party haulers. These increases were offset, in part, by decreases in residential and industrial collection volumes.

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Maintenance and Repairs —** **The increase in maintenance and repairs costs was primarily driven by (i) inflationary and acquisition related cost increases for parts, supplies and third-party services, although the impact of inflationary cost increases has moderated from the high levels observed during the first half of 2023 and (ii) annual wage increases and higher technician headcount. These cost increases were offset, in part, by an improvement in new truck deliveries, which lowered average fleet age and reduced demand for third-party services, parts and supplies and has resulted in improvements in operational efficiencies.

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Maintenance and Repairs — The increase in maintenance and repairs costs was largely driven by (i) additional costs incurred as a part of our recent acquisitions; (ii) inflation in parts, supplies and third-party services and (iii) annual employee wage increases. These increases were offset, in part, by new truck deliveries, which lowered average fleet age and reduced demand for third-party services, parts and supplies.

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Subcontractor Costs —** **The increase in subcontractor costs was primarily due to (i) an increase in volumes in our WMSBS business, which relies more extensively on subcontracted hauling and services than our Collection and Disposal businesses and (ii) continued inflationary cost increases, particularly labor costs from third-party haulers although this impact has moderated from the high levels observed during the first half of 2023. These increases were offset, in part, by the impact of lower fuel prices on third-party subcontracted hauling and services.

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Subcontractor Costs — The increase in subcontractor costs was primarily due to (i) additional costs incurred as a part of our recent acquisitions and (ii) continued inflationary cost pressures, particularly labor costs from third-party haulers. These increases were offset, in part, by the impact of lower fuel prices on third-party subcontracted hauling and services as compared with the three months ended March 31, 2024.

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Disposal and Franchise Fees and Taxes —** **The increase in disposal and franchise fees and taxes was primarily driven by an increase in landfill volumes and an overall rate increase in fees and taxes paid to municipalities on our disposal volumes.

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Disposal and Franchise Fees and Taxes — The increase in disposal and franchise fees and taxes was primarily driven by increased landfill volumes in our West Tier.

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The following table summarizes the major components of our selling, general and administrative expenses (in millions of dollars and as a percentage of revenues):

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The following table summarizes the major components of our selling, general and administrative expenses for the three months ended March 31 (in millions of dollars and as a percentage of revenues):

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The following table summarizes the components of our depreciation, depletion and amortization expenses (in millions of dollars and as a percentage of revenues):

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The following table summarizes the components of our depreciation, depletion and amortization expenses for the three months ended March 31 (in millions of dollars and as a percentage of revenues):

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The following table summarizes income from operations for our reportable segments (dollars in millions):

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The following table summarizes income from operations for our reportable segments for the three months ended March 31 (dollars in millions):

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The significant items affecting income from operations for our segments during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared with the prior year periods, are summarized below:

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The significant items affecting income from operations for our segments during the first quarter of 2025, as compared with the prior year period, are summarized below:

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Our interest expense, net was $131 million and $397 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, compared to $127 million and $372 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, respectively. The increase is primarily related to an increase in our average debt balances to fund growth as well as an increase in our weighted average borrowing rate of approximately 20 basis points.

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Our interest expense, net was $232 million and $130 million during the three months ended March 31, 2025 and 2024, respectively. The increase is primarily related to an increase in our average debt balances to fund our November 2024 acquisition of Stericycle.

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Tax Legislation — The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”) was signed into law by President Biden on August 16, 2022 and contains several tax-related provisions, including with respect to (i) alternative fuel tax credits; (ii) tax incentives for investments in renewable energy production, carbon capture, and other climate actions and (iii) the overall measurement of corporate income taxes. Given the complexity and uncertainty around the applicability of the legislation to our specific facts and circumstances, we continue to analyze the IRA provisions to identify and quantify potential opportunities and applicable benefits included in the legislation. The provisions of the IRA related to alternative fuel tax credits secure approximately $60 million of annual pre-tax benefit (recorded as a reduction in our operating expense) for tax credits in 2023 and 2024.

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Tax Legislation —The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”) contains several tax-related provisions, including with respect to (i) alternative fuel tax credits; (ii) tax incentives for investments in renewable energy production, carbon capture and other climate actions and (iii) the overall measurement of corporate income taxes. Given the complexity and uncertainty around the applicability of the legislation to our specific facts and circumstances, we continue to analyze the IRA provisions to identify and quantify potential opportunities and applicable benefits included in the legislation. The provisions of the IRA concerning investment tax credits are expected to generate a cumulative benefit ranging from $300 million to $400 million, $145 million of which was recognized in 2023 and 2024 with the remainder anticipated to be realized in 2025 and 2026. The expected benefit from the investment tax credit for 2025 and 2026 is dependent on a number of estimates and assumptions, including the timing of project completion. Additionally, we expect that the production tax credit incentives for investments in renewable energy and carbon capture, as expanded by the IRA, could result in an incremental benefit to the Company, although at this time, the anticipated amount of such benefit has not been quantified due, in part, to the lack of regulatory guidance.

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The Company consistently generates cash flow from operations that meets and exceeds our working capital needs, allows for payment of our dividends, investment in the business through capital expenditures and tuck-in acquisitions, and funding of strategic sustainability growth investments. We continually monitor our actual and forecasted cash flows, our liquidity and our capital resources, enabling us to plan for our present needs and fund unbudgeted business requirements that may arise during the year. The Company believes that its investment grade credit ratings, diverse investor base, large value of unencumbered assets and modest leverage enable it to obtain adequate financing and refinance upcoming maturities as necessary to meet its ongoing capital, operating, strategic and other liquidity requirements. We also have the additional ability to manage liquidity during periods of significant financial market disruption through temporary modification of our capital expenditure and share repurchase plans.

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The Company consistently generates cash flow from operations that meets and exceeds our working capital needs, allows for payment of our dividends, investment in the business through capital expenditures and tuck-in acquisitions and funding of strategic sustainability growth investments. We continually monitor our actual and forecasted cash flows, our liquidity and our capital resources, enabling us to plan for our present needs and fund unbudgeted business requirements that may arise during the year. The Company believes that its investment grade credit ratings, diverse investor base, large value of unencumbered assets and modest leverage enable it to obtain adequate financing, and refinance upcoming

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Debt — As of September 30, 2024, we had approximately $1.9 billion of debt maturing within the next 12 months, including (i) $1.2 billion of tax exempt bonds with term interest rate periods that expire within the next 12 months, which is prior to their scheduled maturities; (ii) $422 million of 3.125% senior notes that mature in March 2025 and (iii) $254 million of other debt with scheduled maturities within the next 12 months, including $110 million of tax-exempt bonds. As of September 30, 2024, we have classified $1.2 billion of debt maturing in the next 12 months as long term because we have the intent and ability to refinance these borrowings on a long-term basis as supported by the forecasted available capacity under our $3.5 billion long-term U.S. and Canadian revolving credit facility (“$3.5 billion revolving credit facility”). The remaining $676 million of debt maturing in the next 12 months is classified as current obligations.

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Debt — As of March 31, 2025, we had approximately $3.8 billion of debt maturing within the next 12 months, including (i) $1.5 billion of short-term borrowings under our commercial paper program (net of related discount on issuance); (ii) $1.3 billion of tax-exempt bonds with term interest rate periods that expire within the next 12 months, which is prior to their scheduled maturities; (iii) $500 million of 0.75% senior notes that mature in November 2025 and (iv) $454 million of other debt with scheduled maturities within the next 12 months, including $298 million of tax exempt bonds. As of March 31, 2025, we have classified $2.8 billion of debt maturing in the next 12 months as long-term because we have the intent and ability to refinance these borrowings on a long-term basis as supported by the forecasted available capacity under our $3.5 billion long-term U.S. and Canadian revolving credit facility. The remaining $954 million of debt maturing in the next 12 months is classified as current obligations.

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The following is a summary of our cash flows for the nine months ended September 30 (in millions):

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The following is a summary of our cash flows for the three months ended March 31 (in millions):

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Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities —** Our operating cash flows **increased by $542 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared with the prior year period, driven by (i) higher earnings in our Collection and Disposal businesses; (ii) favorable changes in working capital and (iii) lower annual incentive compensation payments. This increase was partially offset by higher cash interest payments.

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Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities — Our operating cash flows decreased by $159 million for the three months ended March 31, 2025, as compared with the prior year period, driven by (i) higher cash interest due to additional debt incurred to fund our acquisition of Stericycle; (ii) unfavorable changes in working capital, net of effects of acquisitions and divestitures and (iii) higher annual incentive compensation payments. This decrease was partially offset by higher earnings in all of our segments, including the contributions from our recent acquisitions.

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Net Cash Used in Investing Activities — The most significant items included in our investing cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 are summarized below:

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Net Cash Used in Investing Activities — The most significant items included in our investing cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2025 and 2024 are summarized below:

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*Net Cash Used in Financing Activities —*The most significant items affecting the comparison of our financing cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 are summarized below:

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*Net Cash Used in Financing Activities —*The most significant items affecting the comparison of our financing cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2025 and 2024 are summarized below:

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Our calculation of free cash flow and reconciliation to net cash provided by operating activities is shown in the table below (in millions), and may not be calculated the same as similarly-titled measures presented by other companies:

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Our calculation of free cash flow and reconciliation to net cash provided by operating activities for the three months ended March 31, 2025 and 2024 is shown in the table below (in millions) and may not be calculated the same as similarly-titled measures presented by other companies:

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pressures through our overall pricing efforts and by managing our costs through efficiency, labor productivity, and investments in technology to automate certain aspects of our business. These efforts may not be successful for various reasons including the pace of inflation, operating cost inefficiencies, market responses, and contractual limitations, such as the timing lag in our ability to recover increased costs under certain contracts that are tied to a price escalation index with a lookback provision.

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Variability in economic conditions, including inflation, interest rates, employment trends and supply chain reliability, can create risk and uncertainty in financial outlook. We take proactive steps to recover and mitigate inflationary cost pressures through our overall pricing efforts and by managing our costs through efficiency, labor productivity and investments in technology to automate certain aspects of our business. These efforts may not be successful for various reasons including the pace of inflation, operating cost inefficiencies, market responses and contractual limitations, such