Waste Management, Inc. WM reported mixed first-quarter 2018 results, wherein earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate but revenues missed the same.The company’s earnings per share of 91 cents topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 11% and improved 35.8% year over year. Total revenues came in at $3.5 billion missing the consensus mark by 1.2%. However, the top line increased 2.1% on a year-over-year basis.Strong yield and volume growth in the company’s collection as well as disposal business led to top-line growth year over year. The business contributed $160 million of incremental revenues. This was partially offset by a decrease in revenues from the recycling line of business, which declined by $77 million on a year-over-year basis.We observe that shares of Waste Management have rallied 13.4% over the past year, underperforming the industry’s gain of 17.6%.Let’s check out the numbers in detailRevenues by SegmentThe Collection segment recorded revenues of $2.3 billion, up 3.2% from the prior-year quarter. Landfill segment’s top-line increased to 8.9% to $805 million. While total revenues from the Transfer segment were up 2.5% to $375 million, the same from the Recycling segment was down 16.1% to $312 million. Other businesses’ revenues totaled $427 million, up 6.8% year over year.Waste Management, Inc. Revenue (TTM) Waste Management, Inc. Revenue (TTM) | Waste Management, Inc. QuoteOperating PerformanceOperating EBITDA was $955 million up 7.8% from the year-earlier quarter. As a percentage of revenues, operating expenses were 62.2% compared with 63.0% in the year-ago quarter. SG&A expenses, as a percentage of revenues, were 10.6% compared with 11.3% in the prior-year quarter.Balance Sheet and Cash FlowCash and cash equivalents balance at the end of the first quarter was $52 million compared with $22 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2017. Long-term debt was $8.9 billion compared with $8.8 billion in the prior quarter.In the reported quarter, net cash provided by operating activities was $809 million than $790 million in the fourth quarter. Free cash flow was $423 million compared with $342 million in the previous quarter. The company paid dividends worth $206 million and repurchased shares of $250 million in the quarter.Zacks Rank and Key PicksWaste Management has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.Some better-ranked stocks in the broader Business Services sector include WageWorks WAGE, FTI Consulting FCN and NV5 Global NVEE, each sporting a Zacks Rank #1. In the trailing four quarters, WageWorks, FTI Consulting and NV5 Global have delivered a positive earnings surprise of 8.8%, 6.1% and 5.8%, respectively.Wall Street’s Next AmazonZacks EVP Kevin Matras believes this familiar stock has only just begun its climb to become one of the greatest investments of all time. It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in pure genius.Click for details >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report WageWorks, Inc. (WAGE): Free Stock Analysis Report FTI Consulting, Inc. (FCN): Free Stock Analysis Report NV5 Global, Inc. (NVEE): Free Stock Analysis Report Waste Management, Inc. (WM): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research