CERT vs WAY vs HSTM Stock Comparison

Certara, Waystar Holding and Healthstream Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CERT Certara, Inc.
$10.95 +20.2% 1M -12.5% 1Y
Market cap
$1.76B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$408.45M
Div. yield
–
Healthcare IT Technology
1 win
WAY Waystar Holding Corp.
$28.02 +13.4% 1M -28.8% 1Y
Market cap
$5.50B
P/E
40.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.21B
Div. yield
–
Healthcare IT Technology
6 wins
HSTM Healthstream Inc
$34.18 +17.5% 1M +31.6% 1Y
Market cap
$982.71M
P/E
46.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$321.12M
Div. yield
0.00%
Healthcare IT Technology
4 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Waystar Holding leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Waystar Holding 6, Healthstream 4, Certara 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCERTWAYHSTMLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $1.76B $5.50B $982.71M WAY
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -25.7x 40.8x 46.4x WAY
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 30.4x 16.1x 48.1x WAY
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +3.8% +19.2% +8.8% WAY
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -16.7% 11.2% 6.6% WAY
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -0.1% 3.5% — WAY
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.4x 2.9x — CERT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -12.5% -28.8% +31.6% HSTM
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -23.3%/yr — +5.3%/yr HSTM
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 61.3% 54.6% 32.2% HSTM
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 49/100 59/100 59/100 HSTM

Percentile Scorecard

CERTWAYHSTM

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCERTWAYHSTM
Valuation 58 #38 of 89 73 #25 of 89 75 #23 of 89
Growth 8 #75 of 81 66 #28 of 81 48 #43 of 81
Profitability 45 #42 of 76 76 #19 of 76 81 #15 of 76
Financial Health 61 #37 of 94 55 #43 of 94 52 #46 of 94
Shareholder Returns 72 #15 of 51 24 #39 of 51 40 #31 of 51
Overall 49 59 59
  • CERT ranked among 98 companies in Vertical Software
  • WAY ranked among 98 companies in Vertical Software
  • HSTM ranked among 98 companies in Vertical Software

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCERTWAYHSTMSPY
1 month +20.2%+13.4%+17.5% -0.2%
3 months +38.4%+18.3%+18.5% +3.9%
6 months +78.3%+11.1%+57.9% +8.2%
Year to date +24.3%-14.4%+48.2% +12.9%
1 year -12.5%-28.8%+31.6% +12.3%
3 years -10.8%—+38.7% +87.4%
3 years, per year -3.7%—+11.5% +23.3%
5 years -73.4%—+29.2% +67.9%
5 years, per year -23.3%—+5.3% +10.9%
10 years ——+26.6% +261.1%
10 years, per year ——+2.4% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureCERTWAYHSTMSPY
Volatility, 1Y 61.3%54.6%32.2% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 69.6%57.8%28.3% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.730.520.20 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.20-0.530.98 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -90.1%-61.8%-41.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -12.5%-29.3%-2.8% -1.2%
52-week high $12.51$39.62$35.16 $779.14
52-week low $4.48$17.31$19.88 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCERTWAYHSTM
P/E now vs peer median -24.7xmedian 40.1x 39.9xmedian 40.1x 47.1xmedian 40.1x
P/S now vs peer median 4.1xmedian 2.5x 4.5xmedian 2.5x 3.1xmedian 2.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 23.4xmedian 18.5x 15.3xmedian 18.5x 11.1xmedian 18.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 20.8xmedian 20.1x 21.8xmedian 20.1x 14.3xmedian 20.1x
P/B now vs peer median 1.7xmedian 1.8x 1.3xmedian 1.8x 2.8xmedian 1.8x
PEG now vs peer median 0.31median 1.73 —median 1.73 2.35median 1.73

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCERTWAYHSTM
Revenue $408.45M $1.21B $321.12M
Gross profit $252.82M $833.24M $208.99M
Operating income -$658.00K $275.76M $25.80M
Net income -$68.40M $134.79M $21.20M
Free cash flow $80.39M $246.26M $69.83M
R&D $43.54M $67.01M $54.05M
EPS (diluted) $-0.44 $0.69 $0.72
Cash & equivalents $184.14M $12.65M $46.17M
Total debt $291.84M $5.39B –
Shares (diluted) 154.36M 194.51M 29.31M
Enterprise value $1.07B $4.64B $699.89M

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCERTWAYHSTM
P/E -24.7x 39.9x 47.1x
P/FCF 20.8x 21.8x 14.3x
P/Operating cash flow 20.2x 18.4x 13.9x
P/S 4.1x 4.5x 3.1x
P/B 1.7x 1.3x 2.8x
P/Tangible book 2.7x 1.9x 3.4x
EV/EBITDA 23.4x 15.3x 11.1x
EV/EBIT -2,701x 24.1x 36.1x
EV/Revenue 4.4x 5.5x 2.9x
EV/FCF 22.1x 27.0x 13.4x
EV/Operating cash flow 21.5x 22.7x 13.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.31 – 2.35

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCERTWAYHSTM
Revenue growth (1Y) 3.8% 19.2% 8.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.1% – 5.4%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 4.3% 22.4% 7.8%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 5.3% – 5.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) -102.8% 31.1% 20.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -26.3% – 27.8%
Net income growth (1Y) -957.1% 56.8% 4.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -77.2% – 18.1%
EPS growth (1Y) -993.5% 46.4% 8.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -78.6% – 20.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -18.4% -3.8% 15.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -1.8% – 13.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -20.0% -11.6% 19.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -2.4% – 14.3%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCERTWAYHSTM
Gross margin 61.9% 69.1% 65.1%
EBITDA margin 18.6% 36.1% 26.1%
Operating margin -0.2% 22.9% 8.0%
Pretax margin -4.3% 16.2% 8.6%
Net margin -16.7% 11.2% 6.6%
FCF margin 19.7% 20.4% 21.7%
Operating cash flow margin 20.3% 24.3% 22.4%
Return on equity -6.9% 3.4% 6.0%
Return on assets -4.7% 2.3% 4.0%
Return on invested capital -0.1% 3.5% –
Return on capital employed 0.0% 4.9% 6.4%
Asset turnover 0.3x 0.2x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -1.2x 2.2x 3.4x
Stock comp / revenue 7.6% 4.1% 2.7%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCERTWAYHSTM
Debt / assets 20.8% 25.0% –
Debt / equity 0.3x 0.4x –
Net debt / EBITDA 1.4x 2.9x –
Debt / FCF 3.6x 6.0x –
Liabilities / assets 31.0% 32.1% 31.6%
Equity / assets 69.0% 67.9% 68.4%
Interest coverage 0.0x 3.4x –
Current ratio 2.6x 1.8x 1.1x
Quick ratio 2.4x 1.6x 0.8x
Cash ratio 1.5x 0.8x 0.5x
Altman Z-score 2.57 2.11 4.79

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCERTWAYHSTM
Dividend yield – – 0.4%
Net buyback yield 4.5% -0.4% 2.1%
Shareholder yield 4.5% -0.4% 2.6%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 18.4%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 5.6%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 8.4%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 36.4%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCERTWAYHSTM
Forward P/E 30.4xFY2026 16.1xFY2026 48.1xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.36FY2026 $1.74FY2026 $0.71FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -18.2%FY2026 +22.5%FY2026 +16.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +5.6% +10.3% +25.4%
Revenue, next fiscal year $399.14MFY2026 $1.21BFY2026 $344.53MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -4.7%FY2026 +10.0%FY2026 +13.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +2.4% +12.9% +6.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCERTWAYHSTM
Held by institutions 87.1% 100.0% 75.8%
Institutions holding 238 302 219
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.4% +3.3% +3.0%
Institutions buying 148 187 125
Institutions selling 65 88 61
Buyers to sellers 2.28 2.13 2.05

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CERTWAYHSTM
CERT 1.00 0.30 0.26
WAY 0.30 1.00 0.40
HSTM 0.26 0.40 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CERT, WAY and HSTM?

Waystar Holding (WAY) is the largest by market capitalisation: Certara (CERT) $1.76B, Waystar Holding (WAY) $5.50B, Healthstream (HSTM) $982.71M.

Which stock is cheaper, CERT, WAY and HSTM?

Waystar Holding (WAY) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Certara (CERT) -25.7x, Waystar Holding (WAY) 40.8x, Healthstream (HSTM) 46.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Waystar Holding (WAY) is cheapest (Certara (CERT) 30.4x, Waystar Holding (WAY) 16.1x, Healthstream (HSTM) 48.1x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Waystar Holding (WAY) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Certara (CERT) +3.8%, Waystar Holding (WAY) +19.2%, Healthstream (HSTM) +8.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Waystar Holding (WAY) has the highest net margin (Certara (CERT) -16.7%, Waystar Holding (WAY) 11.2%, Healthstream (HSTM) 6.6%). On return on invested capital, Waystar Holding (WAY) leads (Certara (CERT) -0.1%, Waystar Holding (WAY) 3.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Healthstream (HSTM) returned the most: Certara (CERT) -12.5%, Waystar Holding (WAY) -28.8%, Healthstream (HSTM) +31.6%. Over five years, Healthstream (HSTM) compounded fastest (Certara (CERT) -23.3%/yr, Healthstream (HSTM) +5.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Certara (CERT) 0.00%, Waystar Holding (WAY) 0.00%, Healthstream (HSTM) 0.00%. Certara (CERT) and Waystar Holding (WAY) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Healthstream (HSTM) has been the steadiest (Certara (CERT) 61.3%, Waystar Holding (WAY) 54.6%, Healthstream (HSTM) 32.2%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CERT, WAY and HSTM?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Waystar Holding (WAY) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.