Dive Brief:

• Texas-based WCA Waste Corporation recently announced it has made three acquisitions during 2017 so far. In February, the company acquired Midwest Companies, Inc., a Marshall, MO collection and transfer station operation.
• In March, WCA acquired EnviroStar Waste Service, Inc., including its residential, commercial and roll-off collection accounts in the Kansas City, MO area.
• Last month, WCA also acquired commercial collection accounts from Community Waste Services in Gainesville, FL.

Dive Insight:

With vertically integrated operations across 10 states, WCA now services more than half a million customers using a fleet of nearly 900 trucks. These latest deals expand its footprint in two states where it already has a large presence, Missouri and Florida. Prior to this, WCA made a significant expansion in the Kansas City market with the acquisition of Town and Country Disposal in 2015.

Until this announcement, WCA had been maintaining a fairly low profile in the news this year. The company's large presence in Springfield, MO — bolstered by the recent acquisition of Hometown Disposal — was highlighted in a city study ahead of a potential switch to organized collection. WCA and Republic Services currently service more than 50% of residential customers and also hold disposal contracts with the city until 2019.

While these deals still don't put WCA in the league of the industry's largest companies, they provide an incremental expansion and follow the ongoing consolidation trend. Executives from other companies have predicted the pace of acquisitions could increase if any type of federal tax reform is passed this year.