Clean Harbors, Inc. (NYSE:CLH) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Clean Harbors, Inc. (NYSE:CLH) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the fifteen ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $299.2727.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CLH. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Clean Harbors from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. CJS Securities raised Clean Harbors to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Clean Harbors from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $320.00 price target on shares of Clean Harbors in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Clean Harbors from $283.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th.

Clean Harbors Price Performance

Shares of CLH opened at $282.71 on Friday. Clean Harbors has a fifty-two week low of $178.29 and a fifty-two week high of $298.12. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $276.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $247.66. The stock has a market cap of $14.96 billion, a PE ratio of 38.83 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 2.33.

Clean Harbors (NYSE:CLH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.03. Clean Harbors had a net margin of 6.48% and a return on equity of 14.47%. The firm had revenue of $1.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.55 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Clean Harbors will post 7.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Clean Harbors

In related news, EVP Brian P. Weber sold 4,683 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.39, for a total transaction of $1,373,945.37. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 48,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,296,307.92. This trade represents a 8.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Eric J. Dugas sold 2,788 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.31, for a total transaction of $784,292.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 15,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,482,112.23. The trade was a 14.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,597 shares of company stock valued at $3,895,286. 5.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Clean Harbors

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Candriam S.C.A. increased its holdings in Clean Harbors by 36.4% during the third quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 68,867 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $15,992,000 after buying an additional 18,367 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Clean Harbors by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 219,862 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $51,059,000 after acquiring an additional 15,872 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in shares of Clean Harbors by 715.0% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 7,262 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,686,000 after acquiring an additional 6,371 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Clean Harbors by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,097,702 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $254,908,000 after acquiring an additional 87,322 shares during the period. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of Clean Harbors by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 51,663 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $11,997,000 after purchasing an additional 6,338 shares in the last quarter. 90.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Clean Harbors

Clean Harbors, Inc is a leading provider of environmental, energy and industrial services in North America. The company specializes in the collection, transportation and disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes, emergency spill response and remediation, industrial cleaning and on-site field services. Its comprehensive service offering also includes chemical neutralization, drum crushing, high-pressure water blasting, tank cleaning and vacuum services designed to help customers meet stringent environmental regulations.

Founded in 1980 by Alan S.