Let’s dig into the relative performance of Vestis (NYSE: VSTS) and its peers as we unravel the now-completed Q3 industrial & environmental services earnings season.

Growing regulatory pressure on environmental compliance and increasing corporate ESG commitments should buoy the sector for years to come. On the other hand, environmental regulations continue to evolve, and this may require costly upgrades, volatility in commodity waste and recycling markets, and labor shortages in industrial services. As for digitization, a theme that is impacting nearly every industry, the increasing use of data, analytics, and automation will give rise to improved efficiency of operations. Conversely, though, the benefits of digitization also come with challenges of integrating new technologies into legacy systems.

The 8 industrial & environmental services stocks we track reported a mixed Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 2.7% on average since the latest earnings results.

Weakest Q3: Vestis (NYSE: VSTS)

Operating a network of more than 350 facilities with 3,300 delivery routes serving customers weekly, Vestis (NYSE: VSTS) provides uniform rentals, workplace supplies, and facility services to over 300,000 business locations across the United States and Canada.

Vestis reported revenues of $686.2 million, flat year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 2.1%. Despite the top-line beat, it was still a softer quarter for the company with a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

“We ended fiscal 2025 in a good position to advance our strategic priorities as we enter fiscal 2026,” said Jim Barber, President and CEO.

Interestingly, the stock is up 6.2% since reporting and currently trades at $7.14.

Read our full report on Vestis here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Best Q3: Tetra Tech (NASDAQ: TTEK)

With a 50-year legacy of "Leading with Science" and operations on all seven continents, Tetra Tech (NASDAQ: TTEK) provides high-end consulting and engineering services focused on water management, environmental solutions, and sustainable infrastructure for government and commercial clients worldwide.

Tetra Tech reported revenues of $1.16 billion, up 1.6% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 10.7%. The business had a strong quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and revenue estimates.

Tetra Tech pulled off the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 6.7% since reporting. It currently trades at $34.64.

Is now the time to buy Tetra Tech? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Cintas (NASDAQ: CTAS)

Starting as a family business collecting and cleaning shop rags in Cincinnati, Cintas (NASDAQ: CTAS) provides corporate identity uniforms, facility services, and safety products to over one million businesses across North America.

Cintas reported revenues of $2.72 billion, up 8.7% year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 0.9%. Still, it was a slower quarter as it posted full-year revenue guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly and a slight miss of analysts’ full-year EPS guidance estimates.

Cintas delivered the weakest full-year guidance update in the group. As expected, the stock is down 6.2% since the results and currently trades at $188.19.

Read our full analysis of Cintas’s results here.

Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI)

With a century-long history dating back to 1920 and processing over 15 billion pieces of mail annually, Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) provides shipping, mailing technology, logistics, and financial services to businesses of all sizes.

Pitney Bowes reported revenues of $459.7 million, down 8% year on year. This number missed analysts’ expectations by 1.7%. It was a slower quarter as it also logged a miss of analysts’ revenue estimates and EPS in line with analysts’ estimates.

Pitney Bowes had the slowest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is down 5% since reporting and currently trades at $10.65.

Read our full, actionable report on Pitney Bowes here, it’s free for active Edge members.

UniFirst (NYSE: UNF)

With a fleet of trucks making weekly deliveries to over 300,000 customer locations, UniFirst (NYSE: UNF) provides, rents, cleans, and maintains workplace uniforms and protective clothing for businesses across various industries.

UniFirst reported revenues of $614.4 million, down 4% year on year. This result beat analysts’ expectations by 1.1%. More broadly, it was a slower quarter as it recorded a significant miss of analysts’ full-year EPS guidance estimates and full-year revenue guidance slightly missing analysts’ expectations.

The stock is up 2% since reporting and currently trades at $176.84.

Read our full, actionable report on UniFirst here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Market Update

As a result of the Fed’s rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has come down from frothy levels post-pandemic. The general rise in the price of goods and services is trending towards the Fed’s 2% goal as of late, which is good news. The higher rates that fought inflation also didn't slow economic activity enough to catalyze a recession. So far, soft landing. This, combined with recent rate cuts (half a percent in September 2024 and a quarter percent in November 2024) have led to strong stock market performance in 2024. The icing on the cake for 2024 returns was Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. Presidential Election in early November, sending major indices to all-time highs in the week following the election. Still, debates around the health of the economy and the impact of potential tariffs and corporate tax cuts remain, leaving much uncertainty around 2025.

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