Waystar (NASDAQ:WAY) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.03 EPS

Waystar (NASDAQ:WAY) posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.03, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $325.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $323.43 million. Waystar had a return on equity of 7.03% and a net margin of 11.18%.

Here are the key takeaways from Waystar’s conference call:

• Strong third-quarter performance: Revenue grew 21% year over year to $326 million, adjusted EBITDA increased 24% with a 43% margin, and unlevered free cash flow reached $115 million.
• Commercial momentum remained robust, with year-to-date bookings up 25%, implementation backlog for larger opportunities up more than 50%, and the company securing its largest-ever client win—a health system representing approximately $7 billion in annual net patient revenue.
• Waystar reported growing traction for its AI and Iodine offerings. AltitudeAI-powered products represented about 43% of third-quarter bookings, while Iodine bookings exceeded plan by 74% and generated nearly $30 million year to date.
• The company reduced its full-year revenue outlook to $1.277 billion-$1.287 billion, implying approximately 6% fourth-quarter growth. Headwinds include faster-than-expected migration from printed to digital patient statements, longer implementation and revenue-conversion timelines for Iodine’s performance-based products, and difficult prior-year comparisons.
• Despite the near-term revenue pressure, Waystar raised its full-year adjusted EBITDA outlook to $543 million-$549 million, ended the quarter with 2.2x net leverage, and repurchased approximately $21 million of stock during the quarter.

Waystar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WAY traded up $0.14 during trading on Monday, reaching $28.14. 2,918,673 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,540,473. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.40 billion, a PE ratio of 40.20, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.11. Waystar has a 52 week low of $17.26 and a 52 week high of $37.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company’s 50 day moving average is $26.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.97.

Insider Activity at Waystar

In related news, CEO Matthew Hawkins sold 82,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.23, for a total value of $2,163,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,804,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,339,746.62. The trade was a 4.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 247,500 shares of company stock valued at $6,370,499 in the last quarter. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAY has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Waystar from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Barclays lowered shares of Waystar from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $27.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Waystar in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $33.00 price objective on shares of Waystar in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Waystar in a report on Monday, July 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waystar has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.90.

Waystar Company Profile

Waystar Holding Corp. is a healthcare technology company that provides cloud-based software designed to simplify administrative and financial processes across the healthcare industry. Its platform connects healthcare providers, health plans and patients, helping organizations manage revenue cycle operations and improve the flow of information and payments.

The company’s products and services include electronic claims management, eligibility and benefits verification, prior authorization, payment integrity, denial management, patient estimates and payments, billing automation, and healthcare analytics.