Waste Management: Junk or Gem?
But let’s face it, this economy is dire, and that’s being kind. So Cramer wanted to find out just real Waste Management’s recession resistance was. Turns out one part of the business is under pressure – one-sixth of it, actually – said CEO David Steiner. But that’s not to say WMI is overexposed to the downturn.





Waste Management’s business is about one-third residential, one-third commercial and one-third industrial. The first two hold up well during recessions, as does most of the industrial division. The part that’s under pressure is home and commercial construction, which is just one small segment of industrial. While Steiner did admit that volumes in that area have been affected “dramatically” over the past two years, he still thinks his company will hold up well.

“There are certainly parts of our business that are more subject to the economy than others,” the CEO said. “Overall we like to think that we’re a pretty good recession-resistant company.”

Cramer and Steiner discussed what would signal a positive change in WMI’s home and commercial construction business, as well as the impact of falling commodity prices, timing stock buybacks and whether or not that dividend is safe. Watch the video.











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