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By the numbers: Q1 2026
Revenue: $1.46B
Up 1.9% year over year
Net income: $63.2M
Up 7.7% year over year
Adjusted EBITDA: $247.9M
Up 5.5% year over year
- Overview: Clean Harbors reported better-than-expected results in the first quarter, including a record-high revenue for Q1 and improved profitability in both its Environmental Services and Safety-Kleen Sustainability Solutions segments. As a result, the company raised its full-year guidance, which co-CEO Mike Battles said was unusual for Clean Harbors this early in the year. “The fact that we’re raising guidance on both segments ... should tell you about our view as we think about the rest of the year,” he said on the company’s earnings call Wednesday.
- M&A: Clean Harbors executives started the year bullish on M&A, noting the company had the cash on hand and a net debt-to-earnings ratio supportive of acquisition spending. In the first quarter, the company closed its previously announced acquisition of a portion of Depot Connect International. Battles noted the company continues to have a strong pipeline of opportunities consisting mostly of tuck-in deals in the environmental services sector.
- PFAS management: Clean Harbors continued to tout its growing PFAS remediation business. The company reported more than $120 million in revenue from PFAS activities in 2025, and continued to see that business pipeline increase by 20% at the start of the year, co-CEO Eric Gerstenberg said. The recent destruction guidelines released by the U.S. Department of Defense and EPA have provided further tailwinds to the company’s solutions, he said. “There definitely seems like there is more momentum going into this year than a year ago,” Gerstenberg added.
- Volumes and utilization: Clean Harbors’ landfill volumes increased 34% year over year, driven by project work including PFAS-related cleanups, according to Gerstenberg. Clean Harbors’ facilities are set to process record volumes this year, driven in part by macro conditions like manufacturing reshoring, growing PFAS-related activities and other project growth, CFO Eric Dugas said. The company’s incinerators, including its new Kimball incinerator, recorded an 80% utilization rate, down one percentage point year over year.
- Environmental services: The company’s environmental services segment saw revenue grow 4% to $1.25 billion driven by project services. Pricing, volume and productivity gains drove the segment’s adjusted earnings before income, taxes, depreciation and amortization up 6% year over year.
- SKSS: Clean Harbors’ fuel business saw a major boost toward the end of the quarter as base oil prices rose due to the war in Iran. Even so, prices started the quarter low, and SKSS revenue fell 7% to $207 million. Its adjusted EBITDA grew 17%, however, as the company’s charge-for-oil pricing increased and it gained efficiencies in areas like transportation.
- Field services: Revenue from the company’s expanding field services segment grew 7% year over year, and included a major $10 million event cleanup. Clean Harbors opened 18 new field services branches last year and plans to open 10 more this year, Gerstenberg said. Executives also noted continued cross-selling opportunities with those locations.
- Updated guidance: Clean Harbors raised its SKSS adjusted EBITDA guidance to $165 million for the year, which would be a 20% increase over 2025. Overall net income is now projected between $421 million and $472 million, while overall adjusted EBITDA is projected between $1.24 billion and $1.3 billion.
