GFL vs. WCN: GFL Environmental vs. Waste Connections Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN) are both classified in the Environmental & Facilities Services sub-industry within the broader Commercial Services & Supplies industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Waste Connections (WCN) has more than two decades of public-market history since May 22, 1998, whereas GFL Environmental (GFL) listed on March 3, 2020 and has a much shorter record to draw on.

Company profile comparison for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN)
Profile Item	GFL	WCN
Name	GFL Environmental Inc.	Waste Connections, Inc.
Country/Region	United States	Canada
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Commercial & Professional Services	Commercial & Professional Services
GICS Industry	Commercial Services & Supplies	Commercial Services & Supplies
GICS Sub-Industry	Environmental & Facilities Services	Environmental & Facilities Services
Market Capitalization	16.72 billion USD	47.31 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	March 3, 2020	May 22, 1998
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

GFL

WCN

GSPC

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN)
Metric	GFL	WCN
Total Return (1Y)	7.30%	15.20%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	17.51%	14.07%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	3.62%	7.98%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

GFL

WCN

GSPC

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN)
Metric	GFL	WCN
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	29.80%	25.62%
Beta (5Y)	0.66	0.41
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-42.75%	-24.90%
Avg. Volume (3M)	3.45M	1.56M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

GFL and WCN are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN)
Metric	GFL	WCN
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.10	0.43
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.15	0.69

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

GFL Environmental (GFL) reports a negative ROE of -2.97%; negative ROE can reflect losses or negative shareholders’ equity, so it is harder to read as capital efficiency. Meanwhile Waste Connections (WCN) reports 14.19%, ranking against industry peers normally.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

-2.97%

Max: 47.06%
Q3: 25.43%
Median: 14.11%
Q1: 3.92%
GFL: -2.97%
Min: -20.15%

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

14.19%

Max: 47.06%
Q3: 25.43%
WCN: 14.19%
Median: 14.11%
Q1: 3.92%
Min: -20.15%

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their ROE against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

GFL Environmental (GFL) reports a negative net margin of -4.28%, usually indicating a net loss over the period. Meanwhile Waste Connections (WCN) reports 11.40%, ranking against industry peers normally.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

-4.28%

Max: 23.28%
Q3: 11.35%
Median: 5.65%
Q1: 0.87%
GFL: -4.28%
Min: -8.60%

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

11.40%

Max: 23.28%
WCN: 11.40%
Q3: 11.35%
Median: 5.65%
Q1: 0.87%
Min: -8.60%

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their net margin against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Waste Connections (WCN) at 20.77% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of GFL Environmental (GFL) at 9.44%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

9.44%

Max: 38.50%
Q3: 18.84%
Median: 10.40%
GFL: 9.44%
Q1: 5.59%
Min: -12.00%

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

20.77%

Max: 38.50%
WCN: 20.77%
Q3: 18.84%
Median: 10.40%
Q1: 5.59%
Min: -12.00%

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their operating margin against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN)
Metric	GFL	WCN
ROE (TTM)	-2.97%	14.19%
ROA (TTM)	1.11%	5.68%
Net Margin (TTM)	-4.28%	11.40%
Operating Margin (TTM)	9.44%	20.77%
Gross Margin (TTM)	19.78%	42.62%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both GFL Environmental (GFL) at 7.77% and Waste Connections (WCN) at 6.14% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Waste Connections (WCN) reports EPS growth of 74.48%, ranked against its industry; GFL Environmental (GFL) has no EPS growth figure this period.

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN)
Metric	GFL	WCN
Revenue Growth (YoY)	7.77%	6.14%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	-0.72%	9.49%
EPS Growth (YoY)	--	74.48%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	8.78%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both GFL Environmental (GFL) at 0.93 and Waste Connections (WCN) at 0.67 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

0.93

Max: 3.63
Q3: 2.14
Median: 1.55
Q1: 1.09
GFL: 0.93
Min: 0.45

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

0.67

Max: 3.63
Q3: 2.14
Median: 1.55
Q1: 1.09
WCN: 0.67
Min: 0.45

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their current ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both GFL Environmental (GFL) at 1.04 and Waste Connections (WCN) at 1.24 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.04

Max: 2.37
Q3: 1.25
GFL: 1.04
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.35
Min: 0.00

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.24

Max: 2.37
Q3: 1.25
WCN: 1.24
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.35
Min: 0.00

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN)
Metric	GFL	WCN
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.93	0.67
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.04	1.24
Net Debt / EBITDA	6.75	3.01

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both GFL Environmental (GFL) at 0.14% and Waste Connections (WCN) at 0.73% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

0.14%

Max: 4.33%
Q3: 1.80%
Median: 0.60%
GFL: 0.14%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

0.73%

Max: 4.33%
Q3: 1.80%
WCN: 0.73%
Median: 0.60%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both GFL Environmental (GFL) at 19.07% and Waste Connections (WCN) at 31.39% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

19.07%

Max: 99.58%
Q3: 41.99%
GFL: 19.07%
Median: 17.27%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -17.94%

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

31.39%

Max: 99.58%
Q3: 41.99%
WCN: 31.39%
Median: 17.27%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -17.94%

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN)
Metric	GFL	WCN
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.14%	0.73%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	19.07%	31.39%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

An earnings multiple is available for just one side: Waste Connections (WCN) trades at 42.39 times trailing earnings, ranked against its peers, while GFL Environmental (GFL) has no P/E ratio this period.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

Max: 49.47
Q3: 33.76
Median: 24.16
Q1: 16.01
Min: 1.89
GFL: --

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

42.39

Max: 49.47
WCN: 42.39
Q3: 33.76
Median: 24.16
Q1: 16.01
Min: 1.89

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): GFL does not report P/E ratio, so it has no value marker; WCN is benchmarked against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

GFL Environmental (GFL) at 2.25 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Waste Connections (WCN) at 4.76 sits in the pricier quartile — WCN costs more per dollar of sales.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

2.25

Max: 7.17
Q3: 3.35
GFL: 2.25
Median: 1.33
Q1: 0.69
Min: 0.11

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

4.76

Max: 7.17
WCN: 4.76
Q3: 3.35
Median: 1.33
Q1: 0.69
Min: 0.11

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both GFL Environmental (GFL) at 2.42 and Waste Connections (WCN) at 6.00 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

GFL

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

2.42

Max: 11.25
Q3: 6.08
Median: 2.92
GFL: 2.42
Q1: 1.55
Min: -2.78

WCN

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

6.00

Max: 11.25
Q3: 6.08
WCN: 6.00
Median: 2.92
Q1: 1.55
Min: -2.78

GFL Environmental (GFL) vs. Waste Connections (WCN): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for GFL Environmental (GFL) and Waste Connections (WCN)
Metric	GFL	WCN
P/E Ratio (TTM)	--	42.39
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.25	4.76
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.42	6.00
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	1.55%	2.28%