Are WM Stock Investors Happy, or Did They Miss Out?

Core Viewpoint - WM, North America's largest trash hauler, has faced a challenging year, leading to questions about its stock performance and long-term investment viability [1]. Performance Overview - Over the past year, WM's stock has declined by 10% in December 2024 and experienced another significant drop in late October, resulting in a total return of negative 3.2% when factoring in dividends [2][3]. - Compared to the S&P 500, which has grown by 13% (15% total return), WM's performance lags significantly, with an underperformance of 8.4 percentage points on an absolute basis and 11.8 percentage points on a total return basis [3][4]. Three-Year Performance - Despite the recent downturn, an investment in WM from December 1, 2022, has yielded a 29.6% increase, or 36.1% on a total return basis over the past three years [5]. - The S&P 500 has outperformed WM during this period, with a growth of 67.1% (75.3% total return), indicating that WM still trails behind the broader market [6]. Five-Year Performance - Over the last five years, WM shares have increased by 82.2% (98% total return), while the S&P 500 has risen by 88.4% (103.6% total return), showing that WM's performance is closer to the market, trailing by about six percentage points [7]. - For much of the five-year period, WM's returns outperformed the S&P 500, only recently slipping behind [8]. Investment Perspective - WM is characterized as a slow-growing dividend stock that requires patience from investors, but it has demonstrated reliable long-term outperformance [10].