Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Buys Shares of 14,600 Clean Harbors, Inc. $CLH

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Clean Harbors, Inc. (NYSE:CLH) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 14,600 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,186,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CLH. Norges Bank bought a new position in Clean Harbors during the 4th quarter worth $152,195,000. Durable Capital Partners LP bought a new stake in Clean Harbors in the third quarter valued at $133,217,000. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Clean Harbors by 120.8% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,040,594 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $246,725,000 after acquiring an additional 569,388 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its holdings in shares of Clean Harbors by 148.3% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 384,494 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $89,287,000 after acquiring an additional 229,666 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Clean Harbors by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,376,088 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $557,146,000 after acquiring an additional 215,659 shares during the last quarter. 90.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Clean Harbors Stock Performance

CLH stock opened at $301.68 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.88 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $293.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $277.65. Clean Harbors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $201.34 and a fifty-two week high of $316.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Clean Harbors (NYSE:CLH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The business services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. Clean Harbors had a net margin of 6.53% and a return on equity of 14.37%. The firm had revenue of $1.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.09 EPS. Clean Harbors’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Clean Harbors, Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on CLH shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Clean Harbors from $309.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Clean Harbors from $280.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Clean Harbors from $308.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Clean Harbors from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Clean Harbors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $302.00 to $346.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Clean Harbors currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $323.23.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Lauren States sold 789 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.19, for a total value of $225,803.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,359 shares in the company, valued at $3,250,832.21. This trade represents a 6.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 5.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Clean Harbors Company Profile

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.