CLH (Clean Harbors) Owner Earnings per Share (TTM): 9.02 (As of Mar. 2026) — 65% Below Median

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CLH Clean Harbors Inc CLH
87 GF Score
Price $306.27
GF Value $244.95
Valuation Modestly Overvalued
! 6 Warning Signs
View Full Analysis

What is Clean Harbors Owner Earnings per Share (TTM)?

Clean Harbors CLH +0.36% 87 Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 9.02 as of Mar. 2026, which is 65% below its 10-year median of 26.13. GuruFocus rates CLH with a GF Score™ of 87/100 and a GF Value™ of $244.95 (Modestly Overvalued). The stock has 6 warning signs investors should review. Among 91 Waste Management companies, Clean Harbors ranks worse than 68.13% on this metric.

In 1986 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letter, Warren Buffett defined owner earnings as follows:

"These represent (a) reported earnings plus (b) depreciation, depletion, amortization, and certain other non-cash charges...less (c) the average annual amount of capitalized expenditures for plant and equipment, etc. that the business requires to fully maintain its long-term competitive position and its unit volume (If the business requires additional working capital to maintain its competitive position and unit volume, the increment also should be included in (c))...Our owner-earnings equation does not yield the deceptively precise figures provided by GAAP, since (c) must be a guess - and one sometimes very difficult to make. Despite this problem, we consider the owner earnings figure, not the GAAP figure, to be the relevant item for valuation purposes - both for investors in buying stocks and for managers in buying entire businesses...All of this points up the absurdity of the 'cash flow' numbers that are often set forth in Wall Street reports. These numbers routinely include (a) plus (b) - but do not subtract (c)."

Clean Harbors's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $9.02. It's Price-to-Owner-Earnings ratio for today is 33.95.


The historical rank and industry rank for Clean Harbors's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) or its related term are showing as below:

CLH' s Price-to-Owner-Earnings Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: 11.44   Med: 26.13   Max: 319.33
Current: 33.97


During the past 13 years, the highest Price-to-Owner-Earnings ratio of Clean Harbors was 319.33. The lowest was 11.44. And the median was 26.13.


CLH's Price-to-Owner-Earnings is ranked worse than
68.13% of 91 companies
in the Waste Management industry
Industry Median: 17.3 vs CLH: 33.97

Clean Harbors's Earnings per Share (Diluted) for the three months ended in Mar. 2026 was $1.19. Its Earnings per Share (Diluted) for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $7.38. It's PE Ratio (TTM) ratio for today is 41.50.

Clean Harbors's EPS without NRI for the three months ended in Mar. 2026 was $1.19. Its EPS without NRI for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $7.38. It's PE Ratio without NRI ratio for today is 41.50.


Be Aware

Assumption: Companies usually do not report maintenance capital expenditures and growth capital expenditures separately. Here we use estimated numbers and average them over 5 years. The method to estimate maintenance capital expenditures can be found in above part 4.

Note: GuruFocus' Change In Working Capital is provided by Morningstar. It is calculated by adding the items under "Change in operating assets and liabilities" (may refer to a different name for different company) section in Cash Flow Statement from original financial report. And it includes non-current parts of assets and liabilities.


Clean Harbors Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Related Terms


Clean Harbors Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Historical Data

* Premium members only.

The historical data trend for Clean Harbors's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) 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.

Clean Harbors Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Chart

Clean Harbors Annual Data
Trend Dec16 Dec17 Dec18 Dec19 Dec20 Dec21 Dec22 Dec23 Dec24 Dec25
Owner Earnings per Share (TTM)
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 6.49 6.88 8.76 8.70 9.27

Clean Harbors Quarterly Data
Jun21 Sep21 Dec21 Mar22 Jun22 Sep22 Dec22 Mar23 Jun23 Sep23 Dec23 Mar24 Jun24 Sep24 Dec24 Mar25 Jun25 Sep25 Dec25 Mar26
Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 8.38 8.39 9.20 9.27 9.02

CLH vs GFL, CWST, ONT: Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Comparison

For the Waste Management subindustry, Clean Harbors's Price-to-Owner-Earnings, along with its competitors' market caps and Price-to-Owner-Earnings 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-Owner-Earnings vs Waste Management Industry

For the Waste Management industry and Industrials sector, Clean Harbors's Price-to-Owner-Earnings distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where Clean Harbors's Price-to-Owner-Earnings falls into.


CLH
87GF Score
Clean Harbors Inc CLH
Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is just one metric. See GF Score™, valuation, warning signs, and more.
View Full Analysis

Clean Harbors Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Calculation

In 1986 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letter, Warren Buffett defined owner earnings as follows:

"These represent (a) reported earnings plus (b) depreciation, depletion, amortization, and certain other non-cash charges...less (c) the average annual amount of capitalized expenditures for plant and equipment, etc. that the business requires to fully maintain its long-term competitive position and its unit volume. (If the business requires additional working capital to maintain its competitive position and unit volume, the increment also should be included in (c))...Our owner-earnings equation does not yield the deceptively precise figures provided by GAAP, since (c) must be a guess - and one sometimes very difficult to make. Despite this problem, we consider the owner earnings figure, not the GAAP figure, to be the relevant item for valuation purposes - both for investors in buying stocks and for managers in buying entire businesses...All of this points up the absurdity of the 'cash flow' numbers that are often set forth in Wall Street reports. These numbers routinely include (a) plus (b) - but do not subtract (c)."

To make it simple, then you will have:

Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) = (Net Income + Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization + Change In Deferred Tax - 5Y Average of Maintenance Capital Expenditure + Change In Working Capital) / Shares Outstanding (Diluted Average)

Clean Harbors's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Calculation:

TTM / Last Quarter Average of Last 20 Quarters
Net Income 395
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization 450
Change In Deferred Tax 0
5Y Average of Maintenance Capital Expenditure 322
Change In Working Capital -45
Shares Outstanding (Diluted Average) 53

1. Start with "Net Income" from income statement. Clean Harbors's Net Income for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $395 Mil.

2. "Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization" is from cashflow statement. Clean Harbors's Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $450 Mil. This needs to be added back because company does not actually need to pay cash for it. It is a non-cash item.

3. Other non-cash charges usually include "Stock Based Compensation" and "Change In Deferred Tax":
However, to be conservative, GuruFocus will not add Stock Based Compensation back to net income. Clean Harbors's Change In Deferred Tax for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $0 Mil.

4. Average maintenance capital expenditure over a business/industry cycle: 5-Year Average Maintenance Capital Expenditure = $322 Mil

It is usually best to take a long-term average of maintenance capital expenditure. Ideally this would be as long as 10 years and include at least one economic downturn. However, since many companies do not have as long as 10-year history, here GuruFocus uses the latest 5 years data to do the calculation. To smooth out unusual years but reflect recent developments, we take an average of the 5 year maintenance capital expenditure.

The following shows how to get maintenance capital expenditure.

First, calculate the revenue change regarding to the previous quarter. If the revenue decreased from the previous quarter, then the Maintenance Capital Expenditure = Capital Expenditure (positive).
Second, if the revenue increased from the previous quarter, then calculate the percentage of Net PPE as of corresponding Revenue.
Growth Capital Expenditure = Percentage of Property, Plant and Equipment as of corresponding Revenue * Revenue Increase
Third, calculate Capital Expenditure (positive) - Growth Capital Expenditure.
If [Capital Expenditure (positive) - Growth Capital Expenditure] was negative, then the Maintenance Capital Expenditure = Capital Expenditure (positive).
If [Capital Expenditure (positive) - Growth Capital Expenditure] was positive, then the Maintenance Capital Expenditure = Capital Expenditure (positive) - Growth Capital Expenditure.
Fourth, get the average of the 5 years maintenance capital expenditure.

Clean Harbors's 5-Year Average Maintenance Capital Expenditure = $322 Mil

5. "Change In Working Capital" is from cashflow statement. Clean Harbors's Change In Working Capital for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $-45 Mil.
Note: GuruFocus' Change in Working Capital is provided by Morningstar. It is calculated by adding the items under "Change in operating assets and liabilities" (may refer to a different name for different company) section in Cash Flow Statement from original financial report. And sometimes it includes non-current parts of assets and liabilities.

6. Clean Harbors's Shares Outstanding (Diluted Average) for the months ended in Mar. 2026 was 52.992 Mil.

Clean Harbors's Onwer Earnings Per Share for Mar. 2026 is calculated as:

Owner Earnings per Share (TTM)
=( Net Income+Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization+Change In Deferred Tax
=( 395.495 +449.825+0
-5Y Avg of Maintenance CAPEX+Change In Working Capital )/Shares Outstanding (Diluted Average)
-322.13279543052+-45.316)/52.992
=9.02

Price-to-Owner-Earnings=Current Price/Owner Earnings per Share (TTM)
=306.27/9.02
=33.95

* 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 Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) of 9.02 mean?
Clean Harbors (CLH) has a Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) of 9.02 as of Mar. 2026. Warren Buffett defined owner earnings as reported earnings plus depreciation less average maintenance capital expenditure. View historical data on Clean Harbors. This is 65% below median its historical median of 26.13. Over the past decade, Clean Harbors' Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) has ranged from 11.44 to 319.33. According to the industry distribution chart, Clean Harbors ranks #62 out of 91 companies in the Waste Management industry, placing it in the top 68.1%.
Is Clean Harbors' Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) too high?
Clean Harbors' current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) of 9.02 is 65% below median its 10-year median of 26.13. Over the past 10 years, this metric has ranged from a low of 11.44 to a high of 319.33. The Waste Management industry median Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 17.30. Clean Harbors' value of 9.02 is 47.9% below this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, Clean Harbors ranks #62 out of 91 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' Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) compare to GFL and CWST?
According to the Waste Management industry distribution chart, Clean Harbors ranks #62 out of 91 companies for Owner Earnings per Share (TTM). This places Clean Harbors in the lower half of its industry. The industry median Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 17.30. Clean Harbors' value of 9.02 is 47.9% below this benchmark. Historically, Clean Harbors' own Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) has ranged from 11.44 to 319.33 over the past decade. While the company's 10-year median is 26.13 vs. the industry median of 17.30, Clean Harbors has consistently been below 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 Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) for a Waste Management company?
The median Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) among Waste Management companies is 17.30, based on 91 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Clean Harbors's current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) of 9.02 is 47.9% below 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 Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) mean?
A high Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Warren Buffett defined owner earnings as reported earnings plus depreciation less average maintenance capital expenditure. View historical data on Clean Harbors. For the Waste Management industry, the median Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 17.30 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. Clean Harbors's current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 9.02, which is 65% below median its own 10-year median of 26.13. 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 $244.95, compared to a current price of $306.27 — trading 25% above its estimated fair value. The current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 9.02, which is 65% below median its 10-year median of 26.13 and 47.9% below the Waste Management industry median of 17.30. 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 Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) calculated?
Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Clean Harbors (CLH), the current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 9.02 as of Mar. 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 $306.27 is trading 25% above its estimated GF Value™ of $244.95. GuruFocus considers Clean Harbors to be Modestly Overvalued.

Key valuation signals for CLH:

  • Owner Earnings per Share (TTM): 9.02 (65% below median its 10-year median of 26.13)
  • GF Value™: $244.95 vs. price of $306.27 (25% above fair value)
  • GF Score™: 87/100 with 6 warning signs
  • Industry Position: 47.9% below the Waste Management median (#62 of 91)

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 Business Description

Other Exchanges CLH1:MexicoCH6:Germany
Address 42 Longwater Drive, Norwell, MA, USA, 02061-9149
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

Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is just one metric. See GF Value™, 30-year financials, guru trades, warning signs, and more.

$306.27
Price
$244.95
GF Value