Standard & Poor's Raises Waste Industry Investment Outlook to Positive
Standard & Poor's is bullish on the waste management industry having recently raised its investment outlook to positive from neutral. S&P Senior Analyst Stewart Scharf cited strong year to date growth of 12 percent, increasing solid waste volumes and especially pricing initiatives, particularly with new customer contracts, to drive continued growth. He expects that surcharges and hedging programs will offset higher fuel costs. Waste companies will enhance customer service rather than cut pricing to maintain share while the companies are becoming more sophisticated in controlling vehicle maintenance, medical and insurance costs. They will continue to focus on generating cash for debt reduction, share buybacks, dividends, and "tuck-in" acquisitions and asset swaps. Higher internalization rates (percentage of trash disposed of in company-owned landfills) and improved route density (volume collected along a localized route) should fatten (EBITDA) margins...Read More »
Robert P. Stearns, Co-Founder of SCS Engineers, Retires
Robert P. Stearns has officially retired as an employee of SCS Engineers, the company he founded in 1970. However, he will continue to serve as Chairman through 2008 and will consult to the company for the foreseeable future. Stearns is an industry pioneer having engineered many projects that have become the standard for environmental practices to this day, especially in the areas of landfill gas extraction and bioreactor systems. Over the years he has authored many articles and has been a frequent contributor to professional and trade association technical programs. In 2003, the Environmental Industry Associations inducted him into its prestigious Hall of Fame...Read More »
Waste Connections Expects Increased Second Quarter Insurance Cost
Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE: WCN) plans to accrue higher than expected insurance costs in the second fiscal quarter of 2006. Waste Connections, similar to some other companies in the industry, self-insures to control its costs. Therefore, it takes very seriously the increase that it attributes to unforeseen developments in certain open older claims resulting in higher projected payouts...Read More »
WCA Waste Corp. Will Announce 2nd Quarter Results on August 1, 2006
WCA Waste Corporation (NASDAQ: WCAA) will announce Second Quarter Results on August 1, 2006 after the close of the market that day. They will host a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET the following day to discuss those results. Those who wish to particpate can call 866.362.4666 and use pass code 64485480...Read More »
Former Vice President Al Gore to Address Wal-Mart Executives
Former Vice President Al Gore, who is increasingly staking his political fortunes on the climate, will be taking his campaign against global warming to Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Gore plans to address the quarterly conference of Wal-Mart managers in Bentonville. Chief Executive Lee Scott wants Gore's help to decrease Wal-Mart's environmental footprint. Wal-Mart is taking the environmental offensive at a time when it is under attack from organized labor and other groups for its business practices, including employee pay and health benefits...Read More »
Waste Management Names Patrick Gross To Board
Waste Management Inc. (WMI) has named Patrick W. Gross, chairman of the Lovell Group, to its board of directors. Gross is expected to serve on its audit and nominating and governance committees. The Lovell Group is a private business and technology advisory and investment firm. Gross sits on the boards of several other companies, including Capitol One Financial Corp...Read More »
Wastequip Acquires Pioneer Cover-All
Wastequip, Inc., has acquired Pioneer Cover-All, a leading manufacturer of tarping systems used in the solid waste and construction industries. Pioneer, located in North Oxford, MA, sells a variety of product systems, including the "Rack n Pinion" automated tarping system, the HR series, the Tuff Tarper and Hi Roller. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The acquisition capitalizes on economies-of-scale in servicing an increasingly national and even global solid waste business...Read More »
Fluor Ltd and British Nuclear Group Team to Win Key Foothold In Russian Nuclear Clean-Up
Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) and British Nuclear Group's specialist decommissioning business, Project Services, won a foothold in the market for Russia's nuclear cleanup by securing a contract with the Russian Foundation for Environmental Safety of Power Engineering. The companies will assist with the decommissioning of the retired Russian nuclear-powered naval fleet and associated spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste management near the Barents Sea ports of Murmansk and Archangelsk. The emerging total market for Russia's nuclear cleanup efforts is estimated to be worth billions...Read More »
Dell To Launch Free E-Waste Recycling Service
IT giant Dell Inc. plans to provide free recycling of any Dell-branded product for consumers around the world as part of its new global recycling policy. The company currently offers free recycling with the purchase of a new Dell system, but under its new policy, Dell will provide consumers no-charge recycling of any Dell-branded product, regardless of whether a replacement product is purchased...Read More »
EarthFirst Technologies, Inc. and Cast-Crete Corporation Provide Earnings Relative to the Merger
EarthFirst Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: EFTI) and Cast-Crete Corp. agreed to merger terms and announced pro-forma earnings. The newly merged enterprise will be known as Cast-Crete, and will execute a 60-1 reverse stock split that will increase to 15 million the total number of outstanding shares. A condition of the deal requires that all acquisition debt must be retired before the assets of Cast-Crete can be encumbered. Pro-forma sales for the 12 months ended June 30, 2006 are $150 million, net income was $24 million or $1.60 per share...Read More »
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