Waystar (NASDAQ:WAY) Downgraded to "Hold" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Waystar's stock rating has been downgraded from "buy" to "hold" by Wall Street Zen, following recent market evaluations.
• Despite the downgrade, the stock still has a majority of positive ratings, with three analysts rating it as Strong Buy and twelve as Buy, along with an average price target of $45.14.
• Waystar reported a net margin of 8.50% and a revenue increase of 15.4% year-over-year, with earnings per share surpassing analyst expectations in their latest earnings results.

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Waystar (NASDAQ:WAY - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

WAY has been the topic of several other reports. Citizens Jmp assumed coverage on shares of Waystar in a research report on Thursday. They set a "mkt outperform" rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Waystar to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Waystar in a research report on Friday, September 5th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $44.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Waystar in a research report on Monday, June 30th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Waystar to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twelve have issued a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $45.14.

Waystar Price Performance

NASDAQ:WAY traded down $0.19 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $37.62. 1,088,234 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,070,322. Waystar has a one year low of $26.56 and a one year high of $48.11. The company has a market capitalization of $6.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 78.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.78. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $36.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.73. The company has a current ratio of 3.43, a quick ratio of 3.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Waystar (NASDAQ:WAY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.03. Waystar had a return on equity of 5.65% and a net margin of 8.50%.The firm had revenue of $270.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $255.26 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.04 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Waystar has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.360-1.400 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Waystar will post 0.39 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Waystar

In related news, Director Paul G. Moskowitz sold 4,295,139 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.21, for a total value of $168,412,400.19. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 13,759,910 shares in the company, valued at $539,526,071.10. This represents a 23.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Matthew J. Hawkins sold 46,667 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.66, for a total transaction of $1,617,478.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 764,131 shares in the company, valued at $26,484,780.46. This represents a 5.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,652,918 shares of company stock valued at $182,012,322 in the last three months. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waystar

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WAY. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Waystar by 76.3% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 146,375 shares of the company's stock worth $5,372,000 after purchasing an additional 63,326 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in shares of Waystar by 64.9% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 34,847 shares of the company's stock worth $1,279,000 after acquiring an additional 13,715 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Waystar by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 24,547 shares of the company's stock worth $901,000 after acquiring an additional 960 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Waystar by 66.5% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 507,453 shares of the company's stock worth $18,624,000 after acquiring an additional 202,747 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of Waystar by 652.1% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 150,186 shares of the company's stock worth $5,512,000 after acquiring an additional 130,218 shares in the last quarter.

About Waystar

Waystar Holding Corp. is a software company which provide healthcare payments. Waystar Holding Corp. is based in LEHI, Utah.