ADP vs. CLH: Automatic Data Processing vs. Clean Harbors Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH) both fall under the Commercial & Professional Services industry group, but ADP is classified in Professional Services while CLH is classified in Commercial Services & Supplies.

Company profile comparison for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH)
Profile Item	ADP	CLH
Name	Automatic Data Processing Inc.	Clean Harbors, Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Commercial & Professional Services	Commercial & Professional Services
GICS Industry	Professional Services	Commercial Services & Supplies
GICS Sub-Industry	Human Resource & Employment Services	Environmental & Facilities Services
Market Capitalization	119.75 billion USD	14.98 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	NYSE
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	November 24, 1987
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

ADP

CLH

GSPC

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH)
Metric	ADP	CLH
Total Return (1Y)	22.40%	38.70%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	12.77%	22.86%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	8.08%	21.84%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

ADP

CLH

GSPC

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH)
Metric	ADP	CLH
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	28.04%	25.31%
Beta (5Y)	0.76	0.87
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-40.78%	-30.86%
Avg. Volume (3M)	2.16M	465.54K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

ADP and CLH are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH)
Metric	ADP	CLH
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.65	1.36
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.02	2.09

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 78.94% clears its industry range for ROE, a sharper capital-efficiency signal than Clean Harbors (CLH) at 17.93%, which is closer to a typical peer reading.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

78.94%

ADP: 78.94%
Max: 47.06%
Q3: 25.43%
Median: 14.11%
Q1: 3.92%
Min: -20.15%

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

17.93%

Max: 47.06%
Q3: 25.43%
CLH: 17.93%
Median: 14.11%
Q1: 3.92%
Min: -20.15%

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their ROE against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 20.33% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Clean Harbors (CLH) at 8.05%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

20.33%

Max: 23.28%
ADP: 20.33%
Q3: 11.35%
Median: 5.65%
Q1: 0.87%
Min: -8.60%

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

8.05%

Max: 23.28%
Q3: 11.35%
CLH: 8.05%
Median: 5.65%
Q1: 0.87%
Min: -8.60%

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their net margin against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 26.73% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Clean Harbors (CLH) at 17.02%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

26.73%

Max: 38.50%
ADP: 26.73%
Q3: 18.84%
Median: 10.40%
Q1: 5.59%
Min: -12.00%

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

17.02%

Max: 38.50%
Q3: 18.84%
CLH: 17.02%
Median: 10.40%
Q1: 5.59%
Min: -12.00%

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their operating margin against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH)
Metric	ADP	CLH
ROE (TTM)	78.94%	17.93%
ROA (TTM)	6.32%	6.94%
Net Margin (TTM)	20.33%	8.05%
Operating Margin (TTM)	26.73%	17.02%
Gross Margin (TTM)	48.83%	33.13%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 6.74% and Clean Harbors (CLH) at 2.39% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 9.62% and Clean Harbors (CLH) at -1.89% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH)
Metric	ADP	CLH
Revenue Growth (YoY)	6.74%	2.39%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	6.81%	5.29%
EPS Growth (YoY)	9.62%	-1.89%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	10.04%	-1.25%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Clean Harbors (CLH) at 1.95 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 1.03 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for ADP.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.03

Max: 3.63
Q3: 2.14
Median: 1.55
Q1: 1.09
ADP: 1.03
Min: 0.45

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.95

Max: 3.63
Q3: 2.14
CLH: 1.95
Median: 1.55
Q1: 1.09
Min: 0.45

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their current ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 1.10 and Clean Harbors (CLH) at 1.08 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.10

Max: 2.37
Q3: 1.25
ADP: 1.10
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.35
Min: 0.00

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

1.08

Max: 2.37
Q3: 1.25
CLH: 1.08
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.35
Min: 0.00

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH)
Metric	ADP	CLH
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.03	1.95
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.10	1.08
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.35	2.12

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Clean Harbors (CLH) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Automatic Data Processing (ADP) reports a yield of 2.21%, ranking against industry peers normally.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

2.21%

Max: 4.33%
ADP: 2.21%
Q3: 1.80%
Median: 0.60%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

0.00%

Max: 4.33%
Q3: 1.80%
Median: 0.60%
CLH: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Clean Harbors (CLH) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Automatic Data Processing (ADP) reports a payout of 60.28%, ranking against industry peers normally.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

60.28%

Max: 99.58%
ADP: 60.28%
Q3: 41.99%
Median: 17.27%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -17.94%

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

0.00%

Max: 99.58%
Q3: 41.99%
Median: 17.27%
CLH: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -17.94%

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH)
Metric	ADP	CLH
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.21%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	60.28%	0.00%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 26.89 and Clean Harbors (CLH) at 28.50 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

26.89

Max: 49.47
Q3: 33.76
ADP: 26.89
Median: 24.16
Q1: 16.01
Min: 1.89

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

28.50

Max: 49.47
Q3: 33.76
CLH: 28.50
Median: 24.16
Q1: 16.01
Min: 1.89

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Clean Harbors (CLH) at 2.28 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 5.38 sits in the pricier quartile — ADP costs more per dollar of sales.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

5.38

Max: 7.17
ADP: 5.38
Q3: 3.35
Median: 1.33
Q1: 0.69
Min: 0.11

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

2.28

Max: 7.17
Q3: 3.35
CLH: 2.28
Median: 1.33
Q1: 0.69
Min: 0.11

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Clean Harbors (CLH) at 4.81 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while Automatic Data Processing (ADP) at 23.57 prices above its benchmark range — ADP looks rich relative to book.

ADP

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

23.57

ADP: 23.57
Max: 11.25
Q3: 6.08
Median: 2.92
Q1: 1.55
Min: -2.78

CLH

Commercial & Professional Services industry group

4.81

Max: 11.25
Q3: 6.08
CLH: 4.81
Median: 2.92
Q1: 1.55
Min: -2.78

Automatic Data Processing (ADP) vs. Clean Harbors (CLH): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Commercial & Professional Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and Clean Harbors (CLH)
Metric	ADP	CLH
P/E Ratio (TTM)	26.89	28.50
P/S Ratio (TTM)	5.38	2.28
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	23.57	4.81
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	5.40%	2.76%