Clean Harbors (NYSE:CLH) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.67 EPS

Clean Harbors (NYSE:CLH) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The business services provider reported $3.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.67, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.21 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Here are the key takeaways from Clean Harbors’ conference call:

• Record Q3 performance: Revenue rose 21% to $1.87 billion, adjusted EBITDA increased 42% to $456 million, and the consolidated margin reached a company-record 24.4%.
• Clean Harbors raised 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance to $1.44 billion–$1.48 billion and free cash flow guidance to $600 million–$660 million, supported by strong execution, collection volumes, PFAS demand, and acquisitions.
• Environmental Services benefited from a 70%-plus increase in field-services revenue, including a roughly $120 million emergency-response project, while reshoring, customer consolidation, PFAS, and data-center opportunities strengthened the longer-term pipeline.
• Safety-Kleen Sustainability Solutions delivered record adjusted EBITDA of $126 million as tight base-oil supply and spread management boosted results, but management cautioned that the commodity-driven market could normalize and remains difficult to forecast for 2027.
• Co-CEO Mike Battles will retire from his executive and board roles at year-end, with Eric Gerstenberg becoming sole CEO on January 1; management characterized the transition as planned and board-supported.

Clean Harbors Stock Performance

Clean Harbors stock traded up $3.92 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $316.84. 359,911 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 486,630. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $316.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $296.87. Clean Harbors has a 52-week low of $201.34 and a 52-week high of $335.94.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CLH. Barclays raised their target price on Clean Harbors from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Clean Harbors from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. UBS Group raised Clean Harbors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $325.00 to $375.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Clean Harbors from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Clean Harbors from $360.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $363.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Eric Gerstenberg sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $321.34, for a total transaction of $803,350.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 56,793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,249,862.62. The trade was a 4.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Andrea Robertson sold 789 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.01, for a total transaction of $247,753.89. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 8,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,819,495.79. This represents a 8.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 5.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

More Clean Harbors News

Here are the key news stories impacting Clean Harbors this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results significantly beat estimates: Clean Harbors reported earnings of $3.93 per share, up from $2.21 a year earlier and above analyst expectations of roughly $3.18–$3.26. Revenue rose 20.7% year over year to $1.87 billion, surpassing the $1.73 billion consensus estimate. Clean Harbors Q3 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Record performance and raised guidance support the stock: Management cited robust demand for environmental services and sustainable products, with quarterly revenue increasing 21%. The company also raised its outlook, signaling continued confidence in operating momentum and likely supporting investor expectations for future earnings. Clean Harbors Delivers Record Q3 Results, Raises Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support has improved: Recent broker rating upgrades point to expectations for strong 2026 earnings growth, reinforcing the bullish reaction to the quarterly results. Stocks With Broker Rating Upgrades
• Neutral Sentiment: Leadership transition announced: Co-CEO Mike Battles will retire from the board and executive role on December 31, 2026, while Eric Gerstenberg becomes sole CEO on January 1, 2027. The planned transition appears orderly, though investors may monitor execution under the new leadership structure. Clean Harbors Announces CEO Transition

About Clean Harbors

Clean Harbors, Inc provides environmental, energy and industrial services to customers across North America. The company serves a broad range of industries, including manufacturing, government, utilities, energy and transportation, helping customers manage hazardous and non-hazardous materials, maintain industrial facilities and respond to environmental emergencies.

Its services include hazardous waste collection, transportation, treatment and disposal; incineration; recycling and waste-to-fuel programs; wastewater treatment; and used-oil collection and re-refining.