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Clean HarborsCLH -1.85%87 Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is $264.18 as of Aug. 23, 2026, which is 25549% above its 10-year median of 1.03. GuruFocus rates CLH with a GF Score™ of 87/100 and a GF Value™ of $255.77 (Modestly Overvalued). The stock has 6 warning signs investors should review. Among 23 Waste Management companies, Clean Harbors ranks worse than 52.17% on this metric.
Note: Discounted Cash Flow model is only suitable for predictable companies (Business Predictability Rank higher than 1-Star). If the company's predictability rank is 1-Star or Not Rated, result may not be accurate due to the low predictability of business and the data will not be stored into our database.
1. The DCF model evaluates a company based on its future earnings power
2. Growth is taken into account; therefore a faster growth company is worth more if everything else is the same.
3. Since we are projecting future growth, it is assumed that the company will grow at the same rate as it did during the past 10 years. Therefore this model works better for the companies that have relatively consistent performance.
4. The DCF model works poorly for inconsistent performers such as cyclicals.
5. What discount rate should you use? Your expected return from the investment is a good discount rate assumption.
6. A larger margin of safety should be required for companies with less predictable businesses.
Clean Harbors Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) Related Terms
Clean Harbors Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) Historical Data
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The historical data trend for Clean Harbors's Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) can be seen below:
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
For the Waste Management subindustry, Clean Harbors's Price-to-DCF (FCF Based), along with its competitors' market caps and Price-to-DCF (FCF Based) data, can be viewed below:
* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.
Clean Harbors Price-to-DCF (FCF Based) vs Waste Management Industry
For the Waste Management industry and Industrials sector, Clean Harbors's Price-to-DCF (FCF Based) distribution charts can be found below:
* The bar in red indicates where Clean Harbors's Price-to-DCF (FCF Based) falls into.
This is the intrinsic value calculated from the Discounted Cash Flow model with default parameters. In a discounted cash flow model, the future cash flow is estimated based on a cash flow growth rate and a discount rate. The cash flow of the future is discounted to its current value at the discount rate. All of the discounted future cash flow is added together to get the current intrinsic value of the company.
Usually a two-stage model is used when calculating a stock's intrinsic value using a discounted cash flow model. The first stage is called the growth stage; the second is called the terminal stage. In the growth stage the company grows at a faster rate. Because it cannot grow at that rate forever, a lower rate is used for the terminal stage.
GuruFocus DCF calculator is a two-stage model. The default values are defined as:
1. Discount Rate: d = 11% A reasonable discount rate assumption should be at least the long term average return of the stock market, which can be estimated from risk free rate plus risk premium of stock market. GuruFocus uses 10-Year Treasury Constant Maturity Rate as the risk-free rate and rounded up to the nearest integer. It is updated daily. The current risk-free rate is 4.74%. Please go to Economic Indicators page for more information. Please note that we use the 10-Year Treasury Constant Maturity Rate of the country/region where the company is headquartered. If the data for that country/region is not available, then we will use the 10-Year Treasury Constant Maturity Rate of the United States as default. Then we added a risk premium of 6% to get the estimated discount rate. Some investors use their expected rate of return, which is also reasonable. A typical discount rate can be anywhere between 6% - 20%.
2. Growth Rate in the growth stage: g1 = 19.80%
The Growth Rate in the growth stage is initially set as the default 10-Year FCF Growth Rate (Per Share). In cases where the 10-year growth rate is unavailable, it defaults to using the 5-Year FCF Growth Rate (Per Share). If both the 10-year and 5-year growth rates are unavailable, the system defaults to the 3-Year FCF Growth Rate (Per Share).
However, it's important to note that there is a growth rate range. If the calculated growth rate exceeds 20%, it will be capped at 20%. Conversely, if the calculated growth rate falls below 5%, it will be adjusted to 5% to maintain a reasonable range.
=>
Clean Harbors's average Free Cash Flow Growth Rate in the past
10 years was 19.80%,
which is between 5% and 20%. => GuruFocus defaults => Growth Rate: 19.80%
3. Years of Growth Stage: y1 = 10
4. Terminal Growth Rate: g2 = 4%
5. Years of Terminal Growth: y2 = 10
6. Free Cash Flow per Share: fcf = $8.568. However, GuruFocus DCF calculator is actually a Discounted Earnings calculator, the EPS without NRI is used as the default. The reason we are doing this is we found that historically stock prices are more correlated with earnings than free cash flow.
All of the default settings can be changed and the results are calculated automatically.
Clean Harbors's Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) for today is calculated as
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
What does a Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) of $264.18 mean?
Clean Harbors (CLH) has a Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) of $264.18 as of Aug. 23, 2026. Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is the stock value based on a two-stage discounted free cash flow model. View historical data on Clean Harbors and its competitors. This is 25549% above median its historical median of 1.03. Over the past decade, Clean Harbors' Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) has ranged from 0.47 to 6.21. According to the industry distribution chart, Clean Harbors ranks #12 out of 23 companies in the Waste Management industry, placing it in the top 52.2%.
Is Clean Harbors' Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) too high?
Clean Harbors' current Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) of $264.18 is 25549% above median its 10-year median of 1.03. Over the past 10 years, this metric has ranged from a low of 0.47 to a high of 6.21. The Waste Management industry median Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is 1.20. Clean Harbors' value of $264.18 is 21915% above this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, Clean Harbors ranks #12 out of 23 companies in the Waste Management industry, which is below the industry midpoint. Overall, Clean Harbors has a GF Score™ of 87/100 and is considered Modestly Overvalued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Clean Harbors' Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) compare to GFL and CWST?
According to the Waste Management industry distribution chart, Clean Harbors ranks #12 out of 23 companies for Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based). This places Clean Harbors in the lower half of its industry. The industry median Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is 1.20. Clean Harbors' value of $264.18 is 21915% above this benchmark. Historically, Clean Harbors' own Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) has ranged from 0.47 to 6.21 over the past decade. While the company's 10-year median is 1.03 vs. the industry median of 1.20, Clean Harbors has consistently been above the industry average. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) for a Waste Management company?
The median Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) among Waste Management companies is 1.20, based on 23 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Clean Harbors's current Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) of $264.18 is 21915% above the industry median. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) mean?
A high Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is the stock value based on a two-stage discounted free cash flow model. View historical data on Clean Harbors and its competitors. For the Waste Management industry, the median Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is 1.20 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. Clean Harbors's current Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is $264.18, which is 25549% above median its own 10-year median of 1.03. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Clean Harbors stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Clean Harbors (CLH) is currently considered Modestly Overvalued. The stock's GF Value™ is $255.77, compared to a current price of $315.98 — trading 23.5% above its estimated fair value. The current Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is $264.18, which is 25549% above median its 10-year median of 1.03 and 21915% above the Waste Management industry median of 1.20. Clean Harbors' overall GF Score™ is 87/100 with 6 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) calculated?
Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Clean Harbors (CLH), the current Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is $264.18 as of Aug. 23, 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.
Is Clean Harbors (CLH) Overvalued in 2026?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Clean Harbors stock appears to be overvalued.
The current stock price of $315.98 is trading 23.5% above its estimated GF Value™ of $255.77.
GuruFocus considers Clean Harbors to be Modestly Overvalued.
Key valuation signals for CLH:
Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based): $264.18 (25549% above median its 10-year median of 1.03)
GF Value™: $255.77 vs. price of $315.98 (23.5% above fair value)
Industry Position: 21915% above the Waste Management median (#12 of 23)
No single metric tells the full story. See the CLH stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.
Clean Harbors Inc is an environmental and industrial services provider that provides parts cleaning and related environmental services to commercial, industrial, and automotive customers. Its business segments are Environmental Services and Safety-Kleen Sustainability Solutions. Environmental Services includes waste collection, transportation, treatment, recycling, and disposal, along with industrial maintenance services. Safety-Kleen Sustainability Solutions provides used oil collection and manufactures base oil, vacuum gas oil, and lubricants. The company generates the majority of its revenues from the Environmental Services segment and operates in the United States, with maximum revenue, and Canada.
87GF Score
Get the complete analysis for CLH
Intrinsic Value: DCF (FCF Based) is just one metric. See GF Value™, 30-year financials, guru trades, warning signs, and more.
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