Waystar (NASDAQ:WAY) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Freedom Capital

Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Waystar (NASDAQ:WAY) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

WAY has been the subject of several other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $36.00 price target (down previously from $41.00) on shares of Waystar in a research report on Thursday. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on shares of Waystar in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen raised Waystar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Waystar from $51.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore set a $27.00 price objective on Waystar in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.19.

Waystar Price Performance

Shares of Waystar stock opened at $25.14 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $29.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.81 billion, a PE ratio of 41.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.75. Waystar has a 12 month low of $21.13 and a 12 month high of $45.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 3.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Waystar (NASDAQ:WAY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $303.54 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $294.72 million. Waystar had a return on equity of 6.86% and a net margin of 10.20%.The company’s revenue was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.29 earnings per share. Waystar has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.590-1.680 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Waystar will post 0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Eric L. (Ric) Sinclair III sold 40,225 shares of Waystar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.08, for a total transaction of $1,209,968.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 474,826 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,282,766.08. This trade represents a 7.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CTO Christopher L. Schremser sold 8,623 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.41, for a total value of $262,225.43. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 422,371 shares in the company, valued at $12,844,302.11. The trade was a 2.00% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 61,949 shares of company stock valued at $1,916,380 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waystar

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lifted its holdings in shares of Waystar by 188.2% during the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 54,465 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,784,000 after buying an additional 35,565 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Waystar in the fourth quarter valued at about $124,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Waystar by 373.8% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 671,733 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,999,000 after purchasing an additional 529,970 shares during the last quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Waystar during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,944,000. Finally, Symmetry Investments LP grew its stake in shares of Waystar by 77.1% during the 4th quarter. Symmetry Investments LP now owns 62,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,030,000 after purchasing an additional 27,000 shares during the period.

Key Headlines Impacting Waystar

Here are the key news stories impacting Waystar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue and guidance: Waystar topped revenue estimates for Q4 (reported ~$303.5M vs. ~294.7M est.) and set FY‑2026 guidance in line with consensus while targeting double‑digit/ ~17% revenue growth, which supports the company’s growth story. Waystar Q4 Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability momentum: Management highlighted a swing to profitability and a double‑digit growth outlook that previously drove an intraday rally, reinforcing operating leverage as revenue scales. Swing to profits coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Guidance relative to expectations: FY‑2026 EPS guidance (1.590–1.680) roughly matches consensus, so while guidance isn’t aggressive, it removes major uncertainty around next‑year targets. Earnings call summary
• Negative Sentiment: EPS miss: Q4 EPS came in at $0.36 vs. ~$0.39 consensus, and the miss has pressured sentiment despite the revenue beat. Zacks EPS coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts trimming targets: Several firms lowered price targets after the print — Needham to $33 (from $46), Citi to $35, Truist to $38 and Mizuho earlier to $42 — which increases near‑term downside pressure even where ratings were kept at Buy/Outperform. Needham PT cut Analyst PT cuts summary
• Negative Sentiment: Options activity and selling signals: Unusually large put buying (over 5,000 puts on one session, well above average) suggests short‑term bearish positioning by some traders. Options flow report
• Negative Sentiment: Risk flag — AI/legal/operational concerns: An analyst note highlighted growing AI‑related legal, operational and competitive risks tied to Waystar’s tech roadmap, which may weigh on sentiment for a software firm emphasizing AI automation. AI risk note

About Waystar

Waystar (NASDAQ:WAY) is a leading provider of cloud-based revenue cycle management and payment solutions for healthcare organizations. The company’s unified platform streamlines the entire financial continuum of patient care, from eligibility verification and claim submission to payment reconciliation and patient billing. By automating key processes and improving claim accuracy, Waystar helps providers reduce administrative overhead, accelerate cash flow and enhance overall revenue performance.

At the core of Waystar’s offering is a SaaS-based architecture that integrates seamlessly with existing electronic health record (EHR) systems and payer networks.