Clean Harbors, Inc. provides environmental and industrial services in the United States and Canada. The company operates through two segments: Environmental Services and Safety-Kleen Sustainability Solutions. The Environmental Services segment collects, transports, treats, recycles, and disposes hazardous and non-hazardous waste, such as resource recovery, physical treatment, incineration, landfill disposal, wastewater treatment, lab chemicals disposal, and explosives management services; and offers …
Full CLH analysis →
Competitive advantage assessment
Key strengths
Margins Stable Across CyclesOperating margin volatility is low (stability score 0.88), demonstrating pricing resilience across cycles.
ROIC Sustainably Above PeersROIC at 87.5th percentile exceeds peers and WACC, demonstrating superior capital allocation.
The dashed ring is the peer median. Defense scores are percentile ranks
against peers, so 50 is roughly the typical company in this group.
Upgrade to unlock the signals and evidence behind each defense.
Premium access
Unlock full defense analysis
Get key signals, strengths, and risks for every moat dimension.
Clean Harbors, Inc. ranks #4 of 19
scored companies in Waste Management by moat score — the top 21%.
The widest moat in the group is Republic Services, Inc. (RSG)
at 88/100.
Moat scores for companies ranked near CLH in Waste Management
Pricing power is the ability to raise prices without losing volume.
Cost Advantage
Score 78
· 15% of the moat score
A cost advantage means delivering the same product for structurally less — better purchasing, denser distribution, a more automated process.
Customer Stickiness
Score 70
· 15% of the moat score
Stickiness is what makes revenue repeat without being re-won every year.
Capital Efficiency
Score 84
· 18% of the moat score
Capital efficiency asks what the company earns on the money tied up in the business.
Resilience
Score 81
· 17% of the moat score
Resilience is the capacity to get through a bad year on its own terms — enough liquidity, enough interest cover, and enough cash generation to avoid a rescue financing or a forced sale.
Scale & Market Position
Score 67
· 15% of the moat score
Scale matters only when it converts into economics.
Clean Harbors, Inc. (CLH) scores 76 out of 100 on the StatsAlpha Moat Map, which rates its competitive advantage as strong. It ranks #4 of 19 scored companies in Waste Management, the top 21%. The score is a weighted composite of 6 competitive defenses, each measured against industry peers of 18 companies in Waste Management. Its strongest defense is Capital Efficiency (84/100) and its weakest is Scale & Market Position (67/100).
How does Clean Harbors, Inc. compare with other Waste Management companies?
Clean Harbors, Inc. ranks #4 of 19 scored companies in Waste Management by moat score. The widest moat in Waste Management is Republic Services, Inc. (RSG) at 88/100. The companies ranked closest are Waste Connections, Inc. (WCN) at 79 just above it and Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (CWST) at 62 just below it.
How is the moat score calculated?
Each company is scored with an industry-specific template — Corporate Default in this case, chosen because the defenses that matter to a bank are not the ones that matter to a software company. Every defense combines several financial signals, and each signal is measured as a percentile against a peer group of 18 companies in Waste Management. The defenses are then weighted to produce the overall score out of 100.
Why is Clean Harbors, Inc. scored with the Corporate Default template?
Most public companies sell a product or a service at a margin, so the moat question is whether that margin survives contact with competitors. The Corporate template scores the six defenses that show up in a general operating company's financial signature: whether it can hold price, produce more cheaply than rivals, keep its customers, earn a return above its cost of capital, withstand a downturn, and turn size into economics.
Which competitive defenses are measured for Clean Harbors, Inc.?
The Corporate Default template measures 6 defenses, and CLH scores: Pricing Power (78), Cost Advantage (78), Customer Stickiness (70), Capital Efficiency (84), Resilience (81), Scale & Market Position (67). Each is scored independently as a percentile against peers, so a company can be strong on one and weak on another — the overall score reflects how those defenses are weighted for this industry.
We value your privacy
We use cookies to enhance your browsing experience, analyze site traffic, and personalize content. By clicking 'Accept All', you consent to our use of cookies.
Read our cookie policy
Cookie Preferences
Manage your cookie preferences. Essential cookies are always enabled.