One of the Dirtiest Businesses in the Market Just Got Cheaper
Most investors can't help focusing on new technologies and innovations. They invest in companies that they believe could change the future.
I (Jeff Havenstein) experienced this firsthand when I was in Las Vegas last week for the Stansberry Conference & Alliance Meeting. Over the three days of amazing presentations, the most popular topic was AI.
And deservedly so...
AI is the future. It's going to impact our lives in ways we can't even imagine today.
But successful investing can be more than just picking the right AI winner. There's a place in every portfolio for companies that aren't focused on data centers or robotics.
You can make a lot of money by buying and holding simple, boring companies... ones that dominate their niches.
As legendary fund manager Peter Lynch once said...
The perfect company has to be engaged in a perfectly simple business, and the perfectly simple business ought to have a perfectly boring name. The more boring it is, the better.
Waste Management (WM) checks both boxes.
Simple business. Boring name.
Waste Management is America's largest player in waste removal. It's involved in everything from collection, transfer, and disposal services to recycling and even renewable energy. It owns 506 solid- and medical-waste transfer facilities... 262 active solid-waste landfills... and 105 recycling facilities.
The company has been a great investment over the years because it's so boring. No one's really itching to get out there and start hauling away trash. Harvard Business School grads and new AI specialists aren't lining up to disrupt the landfill business.
That means less competition. And great returns.
Since 2000, Waste Management has returned 12.6% a year with dividends reinvested. That beats the 8% a year you'd make with the S&P 500 Index. Check it out...
Waste Management is a big and profitable business.
It earns nearly $25 billion in annual revenue. That's about 50% more than its closest competitor, Republic Services (RSG).
And since 2022 alone, Waste Management's free cash flow ("FCF") has grown by nearly $500 million.
The company has been collecting waste for more than 50 years. It has strong relationships with its customers that date back decades. These relationships last a long time, because once you've got a waste-services provider that gets the job done, you tend not to think about it for years unless something goes wrong.
Waste Management fell 4.5% yesterday after it reported earnings...
Both sales and earnings came in lower than projected. Management is also predicting lighter revenue for the full year because of weaker recycled-commodity pricing and a dip in the small health care waste-removal segment.
Still, overall revenue for the quarter grew by 14.9% year over year. Plus, the company's core collection and disposal business posted record margins, and FCF grew significantly as well.
For a boring but dominant business like Waste Management, you really don't have to place too much importance on any given quarterly earnings report.
This is the type of stock you can buy and hold for decades with little concern. You can pass it down to your kids, and they'll be able to pass it down to their kids.
If one thing is certain... no matter what's going on with AI or what brand of clothing is popular 25 years from now, people are still going to throw things in the trash. And Waste Management is going to collect that trash.
Right now, Waste Management is making its way toward a 52-week low. If the stock continues to move lower, you should think about buying the dip.
Long-term investors can make a lot of money buying and holding great businesses like Waste Management when they're on sale.
I'm personally keeping a close eye on the stock. I recommend you do the same.
What We're Reading...
- Something different: United Parcel Service (UPS) deepens job cutting as part of turnaround plan, causing shares to surge.
Here's to our health, wealth, and a great retirement,
Jeff Havenstein
October 29, 2025