Clean Harbors Raises 2026 EBITDA and Cash-Flow Midpoints

The Tip Desk · November 1, 2026 · 3 min read

Third-quarter revenue reached a record $1.87 billion as Adjusted EBITDA rose 42% to $456.1 million and the company lifted full-year guidance midpoints by $80 million.

Clean Harbors, Inc. (CLH), the North American environmental and industrial services provider, reported third-quarter revenue of $1.87 billion, up 21% from $1.55 billion a year earlier, as both operating segments contributed to a record top line.

Adjusted EBITDA rose 42% to $456.1 million from $320.2 million in the year-ago quarter, and the Adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 370 basis points to 24.4%. Net income increased 75% to $208.1 million, or $3.93 a share, from $118.8 million, or $2.21 a share. Income from operations rose 65% to $318.1 million.

The pace of growth accelerated from the second quarter, when revenue rose 12% to $1.74 billion and Adjusted EBITDA rose 22% to $409.0 million.

Environmental Services generated $1.55 billion of direct revenue and $425.4 million of Adjusted EBITDA. The segment’s Adjusted EBITDA margin was 27.4%, its 18th consecutive quarter of year-over-year margin expansion. Field Services was the largest contributor, with revenue growth of more than 70%, including one substantial emergency response event that generated approximately $120 million at emergency response rates. Technical Services revenue rose 3%, with incineration utilization of 87% and deferred revenue up 20% on a backlog of waste and a growing sales pipeline. Safety-Kleen Environmental Services revenue rose 11%. Industrial Services posted modest growth amid softness in refinery turnaround activity.

Safety-Kleen Sustainability Solutions direct revenue was $318.3 million, and segment Adjusted EBITDA was $126.5 million. Segment revenue increased 46% and Adjusted EBITDA was 209% higher, with segment margin more than doubling from the year-ago period. The company said global supply disruptions supported higher prices for refined products, including base oil and lubricants. Group III production increased by approximately 20% from a year ago. The company collected 62 million gallons of waste oil while maintaining an average charge-for-oil position.

Adjusted free cash flow was a record $323 million. Net cash from operating activities was $419.2 million in the quarter.

The company completed the ES&H and EnviroServe acquisitions, bringing the year’s total to five transactions, and said it is investing $55 million in a Los Angeles site to expand its Hub concept to the West Coast.

For the fourth quarter of 2026, Clean Harbors expects Adjusted EBITDA to grow 23% to 26% year over year. Based on year-to-date performance and current market conditions, it is raising the midpoint of both its 2026 Adjusted EBITDA guidance and adjusted free cash flow guidance by $80 million. Full-year Adjusted EBITDA is now expected in a range of $1.44 billion to $1.48 billion, with a midpoint of $1.46 billion, based on anticipated GAAP net income of $528 million to $563 million. Adjusted free cash flow is now expected in a range of $600 million to $660 million, with a midpoint of $630 million.

Co-Chief Executive Officer Mike Battles said the company expects to enter 2027 with momentum across both segments, citing collection volumes into the disposal and recycling network, a 10-year contract that commenced in the fourth quarter, a PFAS pipeline across water filtration and remediation, large-scale emergency response projects, acquisitions, and data center offerings in Industrial Services. For SKSS, he said market conditions remain supportive of re-refining spreads. The company said it sees a clear path to record results for 2026.

Gerstenberg will become sole chief executive officer on January 1, 2027. Mike Battles will retire as co-CEO and a board member on December 31, 2026, and will serve in a strategic advisory role in 2027.