WCN vs CLH vs GFL Stock Comparison

Waste Connections, Clean Harbors and GFL Environmental Prices as of Nov 4, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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WCN Waste Connections, Inc.
$191.94 +24.4% 1M +13.8% 1Y
Market cap
$48.02B
P/E
42.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$9.94B
Div. yield
0.01%
Solid Waste Industrials
2 wins
CLH Clean Harbors Inc
$288.43 -10.6% 1M +38.1% 1Y
Market cap
$14.73B
P/E
27.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.56B
Div. yield
–
Hazardous Waste Industrials
8 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Clean Harbors leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Clean Harbors 8, Waste Connections 2, GFL Environmental 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionWCNCLHGFLLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $48.02B $14.73B $17.02B WCN
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 42.4x 27.9x -75.9x CLH
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 35.5x 28.0x 73.0x CLH
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.3% +10.1% — CLH
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 11.4% 8.0% — WCN
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 7.9% 10.9% 9.7% CLH
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.9x 1.8x -0.1x GFL
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +13.8% +38.1% +3.7% CLH
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +7.4%/yr +22.2%/yr +2.7%/yr CLH
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 25.7% 25.1% 29.4% CLH
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 56/100 68/100 59/100 CLH

Percentile Scorecard

WCNCLHGFL

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisWCNCLHGFL
Valuation 27 #12 of 16 60 #7 of 16 87 #3 of 16
Growth 69 #5 of 14 77 #4 of 14 15 #12 of 14
Profitability 77 #4 of 14 85 #3 of 14 46 #8 of 14
Financial Health 20 #13 of 16 73 #5 of 16 87 #3 of 16
Shareholder Returns 86 #2 of 8 43 #5 of 8 –
Overall 56 68 59
  • WCN ranked among 16 companies in Waste Management
  • CLH ranked among 16 companies in Waste Management
  • GFL ranked among 16 companies in Waste Management

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodWCNCLHGFLSPY
1 month +24.4%-10.6%+7.1% -1.0%
3 months +16.7%-6.8%+9.9% -0.4%
6 months +25.1%+0.2%+24.4% +4.5%
Year to date +9.5%+23.0%+5.4% +12.4%
1 year +13.8%+38.1%+3.7% +13.6%
3 years +44.1%+86.6%+51.3% +76.4%
3 years, per year +13.0%+23.1%+14.8% +20.8%
5 years +42.8%+171.8%+14.4% +63.7%
5 years, per year +7.4%+22.2%+2.7% +10.4%
10 years +288.7%+555.2%— +267.7%
10 years, per year +14.5%+20.7%— +13.9%

Risk

MeasureWCNCLHGFLSPY
Volatility, 1Y 25.7%25.1%29.4% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 23.1%25.1%28.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.160.270.21 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.541.520.13 1.06
Max drawdown, 5Y -25.5%-30.9%-42.9% -25.4%
From 52-week high 0.0%-11.8%-2.7% -1.6%
52-week high $191.94$327.10$46.51 $779.14
52-week low $149.02$201.73$33.54 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleWCNCLHGFL
P/E now vs peer median 42.6xmedian 31.0x 28.8xmedian 31.0x -74.6xmedian 31.0x
P/S now vs peer median 4.8xmedian 3.4x 2.3xmedian 3.4x 2.3xmedian 3.4x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 17.6xmedian 15.2x 13.2xmedian 15.2x 5.1xmedian 15.2x
P/FCF now vs peer median 38.4xmedian 18.1x 30.4xmedian 18.1x 6.4xmedian 18.1x
P/B now vs peer median 6.1xmedian 2.9x 4.9xmedian 2.9x 1.4xmedian 2.9x
PEG now vs peer median 3.59median 2.82 1.98median 2.82 1.05median 2.82

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsWCNCLHGFL
Revenue $9.94B $6.56B –
Gross profit $4.24B $2.17B –
Operating income $1.76B $864.39M $1.72B
Net income $1.13B $528.36M -$385.60M
Free cash flow $1.25B $500.54M $2.64B
EPS (diluted) $4.50 $9.99 $-0.59
Cash & equivalents $95.69M $423.54M $296.50M
Total debt $9.45B $2.89B $14.20M
Shares (diluted) 251.87M 52.90M 378.69M
Enterprise value $47.67B $12.07B $15.03B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricWCNCLHGFL
P/E 42.6x 28.8x -74.6x
P/FCF 38.4x 30.4x 6.4x
P/Operating cash flow 19.0x 14.9x 11.3x
P/S 4.8x 2.3x 2.3x
P/B 6.1x 4.9x 1.4x
P/Tangible book 8.1x 6.8x 1.7x
EV/EBITDA 17.6x 13.2x 5.1x
EV/EBIT 32.5x 20.3x 9.6x
EV/Revenue 5.8x 2.7x –
EV/FCF 45.9x 35.1x 6.2x
EV/Operating cash flow 22.7x 17.2x 11.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 3.59 1.98 1.05

Growth

14 metrics
MetricWCNCLHGFL
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.3% 10.1% –
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 8.2% 7.1% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) 7.6% 17.2% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 10.2% 10.0% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 61.8% 32.6% -0.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 10.0% 13.4% –
Net income growth (1Y) 82.2% 36.0% -110.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 10.9% 13.4% -45.6%
EPS growth (1Y) 86.3% 38.1% -106.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 11.9% 14.5% -70.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 4.2% 25.0% 8.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 6.5% 12.1% -6.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 1.2% 11.2% 2.5%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 1.8% 17.1% -2.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricWCNCLHGFL
Gross margin 42.6% 33.1% –
EBITDA margin 32.9% 20.3% –
Operating margin 17.7% 13.2% –
Pretax margin 14.7% 10.9% –
Net margin 11.4% 8.0% –
FCF margin 12.6% 7.6% –
Operating cash flow margin 25.4% 15.5% –
Return on equity 14.3% 17.5% -4.0%
Return on assets 5.3% 6.6% -1.5%
Return on invested capital 7.9% 10.9% 9.7%
Return on capital employed 9.1% 12.8% 7.6%
Asset turnover 0.5x 0.8x –
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.2x 1.9x -3.8x
Stock comp / revenue 0.8% 0.7% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricWCNCLHGFL
Debt / assets 43.9% 34.9% 0.0%
Debt / equity 1.2x 0.9x 0.0x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.9x 1.8x -0.1x
Debt / FCF 7.6x 5.8x 0.0x
Liabilities / assets 63.3% 62.4% 59.0%
Equity / assets 36.7% 37.6% 41.0%
Interest coverage 4.9x – 2.8x
Current ratio 0.7x 1.9x 0.9x
Quick ratio 0.6x 1.6x 0.8x
Cash ratio 0.0x 0.4x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 3.19 3.62 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricWCNCLHGFL
Dividend yield 0.7% – 0.2%
Net buyback yield 2.1% 1.4% –
Shareholder yield 2.8% 1.4% 0.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) 31.4% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 28.4% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) 9.4% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 10.7% – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusWCNCLHGFL
Forward P/E 35.5xFY2026 28.0xFY2026 73.0xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $5.40FY2026 $10.29FY2026 $0.62FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +5.9%FY2026 +41.3%FY2026 +12.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +18.7% +5.3% +27.4%
Revenue, next fiscal year $10.30BFY2026 $6.28BFY2026 $6.10BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +10.0%FY2026 +4.1%FY2026 +26.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after 0.0% +15.7% +22.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersWCNCLHGFL
Held by institutions 85.2% 93.5% 74.8%
Institutions holding 832 660 323
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.3% 0.0% +10.3%
Institutions buying 413 308 185
Institutions selling 303 246 101
Buyers to sellers 1.36 1.25 1.83

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

WCNCLHGFL
WCN 1.00 0.36 0.48
CLH 0.36 1.00 0.29
GFL 0.48 0.29 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, WCN, CLH and GFL?

Waste Connections (WCN) is the largest by market capitalisation: Waste Connections (WCN) $48.02B, Clean Harbors (CLH) $14.73B, GFL Environmental (GFL) $17.02B.

Which stock is cheaper, WCN, CLH and GFL?

Clean Harbors (CLH) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Waste Connections (WCN) 42.4x, Clean Harbors (CLH) 27.9x, GFL Environmental (GFL) -75.9x). On next year's consensus earnings, Clean Harbors (CLH) is cheapest (Waste Connections (WCN) 35.5x, Clean Harbors (CLH) 28.0x, GFL Environmental (GFL) 73.0x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Clean Harbors (CLH) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Waste Connections (WCN) +6.3%, Clean Harbors (CLH) +10.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Waste Connections (WCN) has the highest net margin (Waste Connections (WCN) 11.4%, Clean Harbors (CLH) 8.0%). On return on invested capital, Clean Harbors (CLH) leads (Waste Connections (WCN) 7.9%, Clean Harbors (CLH) 10.9%, GFL Environmental (GFL) 9.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Clean Harbors (CLH) returned the most: Waste Connections (WCN) +13.8%, Clean Harbors (CLH) +38.1%, GFL Environmental (GFL) +3.7%. Over five years, Clean Harbors (CLH) compounded fastest (Waste Connections (WCN) +7.4%/yr, Clean Harbors (CLH) +22.2%/yr, GFL Environmental (GFL) +2.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Waste Connections (WCN) 0.01%, Clean Harbors (CLH) 0.00%, GFL Environmental (GFL) 0.00%. Clean Harbors (CLH) and GFL Environmental (GFL) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Clean Harbors (CLH) has been the steadiest (Waste Connections (WCN) 25.7%, Clean Harbors (CLH) 25.1%, GFL Environmental (GFL) 29.4%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, WCN, CLH and GFL?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Clean Harbors (CLH) leads on 8. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.