Second Quarter 2026
Filed Aug 6, 2026Republic Services reported second-quarter diluted EPS of $1.84, adjusted diluted EPS of $1.85, total revenue growth of 4.6 percent, and increased full-year 2026 financial guidance.
Revenue, GAAP EPS, adjusted EPS and adjusted EBITDA were higher year over year, pricing exceeded cost inflation, and the company increased its full-year revenue, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted free cash flow guidance. Volume declines, lower recycled commodity pricing and a larger loss from unconsolidated equity method investments were offsets.
Key metrics
as reported| Metric | Value | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 4,430 million | – | 4.6 percent |
| Revenue, six months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 8,544 million | – | – |
| Cost of operations, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 2,563 million | – | – |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortization, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 488 million | – | – |
| Accretion, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 30 million | – | – |
| Selling, general and administrative expense, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 444 million | – | – |
| Restructuring charges, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 4 million | – | – |
| (Gain) loss on business divestitures and impairments, net, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | — | – | – |
| Operating income, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 901 million | – | – |
| Interest expense, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 151 million | – | – |
| Loss from unconsolidated equity method investments, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 58 million | – | – |
| Income before income taxes, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 699 million | – | – |
| Provision for income taxes, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 133 million | – | – |
| Net income, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $566 million | – | – |
| Net income margin, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | 12.8 percent | – | – |
| Diluted earnings per share, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $1.84 per diluted share | – | 5.1 percent |
| Basic earnings per share, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 1.84 | – | – |
| Adjusted net income, three months ended June 30, 2026non-GAAP | $569 million | – | – |
| Adjusted diluted earnings per share, three months ended June 30, 2026non-GAAP | $1.85 per diluted share | – | 4.5 percent |
| Adjusted EBITDA, three months ended June 30, 2026non-GAAP | $1.42 billion | – | – |
| Adjusted EBITDA margin, three months ended June 30, 2026non-GAAP | 32.1 percent of revenue | – | – |
| Net income, six months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 1,092 million | – | – |
| Operating income, six months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 1,731 million | – | – |
| Diluted earnings per share, six months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 3.54 | – | – |
| Cash provided by operating activities, six months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $2.38 billion | – | – |
| Adjusted free cash flow, six months ended June 30, 2026non-GAAP | $1.58 billion | – | – |
| Cash dividends per common share, three months ended June 30, 2026GAAP | $ 0.625 | – | – |
| Average recycled commodity price per ton sold at recycling centers, second quarterother | $136 | – | decrease of $13 per ton |
Segments
| Segment | Revenue | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collection: ResidentialNot provided in the document excerpt. | $ 767 million | – | – |
Full-Year 2026 outlook
- Revenue$17.200 billion to $17.300 billion
- NoteAdjusted EBITDA: $5.525 billion to $5.550 billion
- NoteAdjusted Diluted Earnings per Share: $7.23 to $7.28 per share
- NoteAdjusted Free Cash Flow: $2.540 billion to $2.575 billion
Capital returns
- Year-to-date cash returned to shareholders was $1.04 billion.
- Year-to-date share repurchases were $651 million.
- Year-to-date dividends paid were $385 million.
- Purchases of common stock for treasury were $659 million for the six months ended June 30, 2026.
- Cash dividends paid were $385 million for the six months ended June 30, 2026.
- The quarterly dividend of $0.670 per share for shareholders of record on October 2, 2026, will be paid on October 15, 2026.
- The Board of Directors approved a 4.5-cent increase in the quarterly dividend.
What drove it
- Total revenue growth of 4.6 percent included 3.7 percent organic growth from the recycling and waste business, a 0.2 percent decline from the environmental solutions business, and 1.1 percent growth from acquisitions.
- Core price on total revenue increased revenue by 5.3 percent.
- Core price on related business revenue increased revenue by 6.4 percent, consisting of 7.8 percent in the open market and 4.1 percent in the restricted portion of the business.
- Revenue growth from average yield on total revenue was 3.4 percent.
- The company completed and commenced operations on two renewable natural gas projects during the quarter.
- Year-to-date cash invested in acquisitions was $860 million.
Concerns
- Volume decreased revenue by 1.6 percent.
- Volume decreased related business revenue by 1.9 percent.
- Environmental solutions business contributed a 0.2 percent decline to total revenue growth.
- The average recycled commodity price per ton sold at recycling centers decreased by $13 per ton over the prior year.
- Loss from unconsolidated equity method investments was $ 58 million for the three months ended June 30, 2026, versus $ 2 million in the comparable 2025 period.
- Adjusted EBITDA margin overcame 50 basis points of margin headwind from event driven landfill volumes received in the prior year.
What to watch
- Delivery against increased full-year revenue guidance of $17.200 billion to $17.300 billion.
- Delivery against increased full-year adjusted EBITDA guidance of $5.525 billion to $5.550 billion.
- Volume trends after a 1.6 percent reduction to total revenue and a 1.9 percent reduction to related business revenue.
- Recycled commodity pricing following the $13 per ton year-over-year decrease in the second-quarter average price.
- Cash deployment following $860 million of year-to-date acquisition investment and $1.04 billion of year-to-date cash returned to shareholders.
Balance sheet and cash flow
- Cash and cash equivalents were $ 107 million at June 30, 2026, versus $ 76 million at December 31, 2025.
- Restricted cash and marketable securities were $ 285 million at June 30, 2026, versus $ 259 million at December 31, 2025.
- Notes payable and current maturities of long-term debt were $ 548 million at June 30, 2026, versus $ 596 million at December 31, 2025.
- Long-term debt, net of current maturities, was $ 13,521 million at June 30, 2026, versus $ 12,985 million at December 31, 2025.
- Total assets were $ 35,159 million at June 30, 2026, versus $ 34,366 million at December 31, 2025.
- Purchases of property and equipment were $ 868 million for the six months ended June 30, 2026, versus $ 866 million in the comparable 2025 period.
- Cash used in acquisitions and investments, net of cash and restricted cash acquired, was $ 865 million for the six months ended June 30, 2026, versus $ 963 million in the comparable 2025 period.
- Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents at end of period were $ 306 million, versus $ 263 million.
Analysis
Republic Services reported second-quarter revenue of $ 4,430 million, compared with $ 4,235 million in the comparable 2025 period. The company said total revenue growth was 4.6 percent, led by 3.7 percent organic growth in recycling and waste and 1.1 percent growth from acquisitions. Pricing was the principal reported driver, with core price adding 5.3 percent to total revenue and average yield adding 3.4 percent. These contributions were partly offset by volume, which reduced total revenue by 1.6 percent, while environmental solutions contributed a 0.2 percent decline.
Management, verbatim
Our second quarter results reflect the strength and resilience of our business model, as we continue to execute our strategy and deliver differentiated value for our customers. Pricing in excess of cost inflation and our disciplined cost management supported accelerated growth in revenue and EBITDA. Given our strong operating performance and momentum across the business, we are increasing our full-year financial guidance.
Jon Vander Ark, president and chief executive officer
Not in the filing
stated, not guessed- Complete revenue-by-line-of-business table and all segment revenue figures beyond the visible Q2 Collection: Residential row, because the filing excerpt is truncated.
- Q2 gross profit and gross margin.
- Q2 free cash flow under a GAAP definition.
- Prior-quarter comparisons for reported Q2 financial metrics.
- Prior-year adjusted EBITDA value and adjusted EBITDA dollar growth.
- Prior-year adjusted free cash flow value and adjusted free cash flow growth.
- Full-year 2026 guidance for gross margin, operating expenses and tax rate.
- Original full-year 2026 guidance values required to quantify changes to the updated guidance.
- Previous-release outlook required for vs_prior_guidance comparisons.
AlphaAI analysis generated from the company’s SEC earnings filing (Form 8-K Item 2.02, or Form 6-K for a foreign private issuer). Every figure was cross-checked against the filing text; consensus estimates, price targets and share-price reactions are not shown because they are not in the filing. AI-generated research, not investment advice.