Waystar AI Delivers Industry-Leading Outcomes, Earns #1 Client Ranking

Rhea-AI Summary

Waystar (Nasdaq: WAY) announced it earned the top industry ranking for AI in revenue cycle management on Feb. 20, 2026. The Black Book survey of 750+ healthcare leaders rated Waystar 9.75/10 across 18 KPIs vs. the next competitor at 8.27.

Waystar highlighted Waystar AltitudeAI prevented $15 billion in denials, accelerated appeal package generation by 90%, and reports ~99% clean claim and first-pass acceptance rates.

Positive

• $15 billion in denials prevented by Waystar AltitudeAI in under a year
• Appeal package generation accelerated 90%, reducing days of work to minutes
• Composite client satisfaction score 9.75/10 across 18 KPIs (vs. 8.27 next)
• Platform achieves approximately 99% clean claim and first-pass acceptance rates

Negative

• None.

Key Figures

Survey respondents: more than 750 healthcare leaders Vendors evaluated: 49 RCM vendors Client satisfaction score: 9.75 out of 10 +5 more

8 metrics

Survey respondents more than 750 healthcare leaders Black Book AI survey sample size

Vendors evaluated 49 RCM vendors Black Book revenue cycle AI survey

Client satisfaction score 9.75 out of 10 Composite across 18 KPIs; top overall ranking

Next-best competitor 8.27 out of 10 Second-highest composite score in survey

AI operations score 9.56 Leading AI execution score in survey

Outcome KPI score 9.56 vs 7.75 benchmark Highest client-reported AI outcomes KPI score

Denied claims prevented $15 billion Denials prevented in less than a year by AltitudeAI

Appeal generation speedup 90% Acceleration of appeal package generation using AltitudeAI

Market Reality Check

Price: $25.79 Vol: Volume 4,012,081 is 1.22x...

normal vol

$25.79 Last Close

Volume Volume 4,012,081 is 1.22x the 20-day average of 3,281,748, indicating elevated interest ahead of/around this AI news. normal

Technical Shares at $25.79 are trading below the 200-day MA of $35.57 and 42.69% below the 52-week high of $45, though still 22.05% above the 52-week low of $21.13.

Peers on Argus

WAY is up 1.5% while peers show mixed moves: HQY recently screened in momentum d...

1 Down

WAY is up 1.5% while peers show mixed moves: HQY recently screened in momentum down 9.46%, PRVA up 0.88%, PINC up 0.07%, BTSG down 0.22%, DOCS down 0.32%. The pattern points to stock-specific factors around AI leadership recognition rather than a broad sector rotation.

Previous AI Reports

5 past events · Latest: Jan 12 (Positive)

Same Type Pattern 5 events

Date	Event	Sentiment	Move	Catalyst
Jan 12	Agentic AI rollout	Positive	-8.4%	Introduced agentic AI extensions to AltitudeAI with strong early denial-prevention gains.
Sep 16	AI innovation update	Positive	+0.6%	Unveiled new AI denial prevention and reimbursement recovery features with major efficiency gains.
Aug 25	AI awards & M&A	Positive	+3.5%	Won Healthcare Company of the Year and top AI platform; announced Iodine Software acquisition plans.
Jun 23	AI adoption study	Positive	+0.2%	Released study showing broad strategic AI adoption and performance gains in RCM workflows.
Apr 23	Gen AI platform launch	Positive	+3.8%	Launched new generative AI and automation through AltitudeAI targeting large admin waste pools.

Pattern Detected

AI-related announcements have generally seen modest positive or mixed price reactions, with one notable negative divergence on strong operational AI news.

Recent Company History

Over the past year, Waystar has repeatedly highlighted its AI and agentic AI capabilities across multiple announcements. Starting with generative AI and automation launches in April 2025, the company then showcased denial-prevention and reimbursement-recovery innovations, followed by awards recognizing its AI platform and a study underscoring AI’s rising importance in revenue cycle management. In January 2026, Waystar introduced agentic AI to advance toward an autonomous revenue cycle. Today’s client-satisfaction survey further reinforces this ongoing AI leadership narrative.

Historical Comparison

-0.1% avg move · Past AI-tagged releases for WAY averaged a -0.06% move, with mostly modest gains and one sharp sello...

AI

-0.1%

Average Historical Move AI

Past AI-tagged releases for WAY averaged a -0.06% move, with mostly modest gains and one sharp selloff, suggesting varied market reactions to otherwise consistently positive AI updates.

AI news has progressed from initial generative AI launches and broad automation, to targeted denial-prevention gains, external validation via awards and studies, and most recently agentic AI driving toward an autonomous revenue cycle.

Regulatory & Risk Context

Active S-3 Shelf

Shelf Active

Active S-3 Shelf Registration 2025-07-14

WAY has an effective S-3ASR shelf filed on 2025-07-14, expiring 2028-07-14, with at least one recorded usage via a 424B7 on 2025-09-11. The filing structure provides flexibility for future capital raises, but no specific capacity details are available here.

Market Pulse Summary

This announcement underscores Waystar’s positioning as an AI leader in healthcare payments, with a B...

Analysis

This announcement underscores Waystar’s positioning as an AI leader in healthcare payments, with a Black Book survey granting a 9.75/10 satisfaction score and highlighting $15 billion in prevented denials and 90% faster appeal generation. Historically, AI-tagged news has produced mixed but generally modest stock moves. Investors may watch how these third-party outcomes complement recent strong 2025 financial results, existing shelf flexibility, and the company’s push toward an autonomous revenue cycle.

Key Terms

revenue cycle management, denial prevention, workflow automation, first-pass acceptance, +1 more

5 terms

revenue cycle management technical

"agentic and generative AI in revenue cycle management."

Revenue cycle management is the set of processes a healthcare provider or medical business uses to turn patient care into cash, including registering patients, billing insurers, submitting claims, collecting payments and handling denials. Think of it as the organization’s checkout system and follow-up team; efficient management shortens the time to get paid, reduces lost revenue and lowers financial risk, which directly affects cash flow and profitability that investors watch closely.

denial prevention technical

"reflecting strong performance in denial prevention, workflow automation quality,"

Denial prevention is the set of practices, processes and technologies used by healthcare providers and medical suppliers to avoid having insurance claims rejected or payments delayed. It matters to investors because fewer denials mean steadier cash flow, lower administrative costs and better revenue visibility—similar to double‑checking an invoice before mailing it so you get paid on time rather than chasing unpaid bills.

workflow automation technical

"reflecting strong performance in denial prevention, workflow automation quality,"

Workflow automation is the use of technology to perform repetitive tasks automatically, reducing the need for manual effort. It is similar to setting a machine to handle routine chores so that people can focus on more important activities. For investors, it means faster, more efficient processes that can improve decision-making and reduce errors across various business functions.

first-pass acceptance technical

"approximately 99% clean claim and first-pass acceptance rates, driving faster"

First-pass acceptance is when a regulatory body, quality inspector, or reviewer approves a submission, product batch, or application on the initial review without asking for corrections or additional information. For investors it matters because passing on the first try shortens delay, reduces extra costs and uncertainty, and increases the likelihood a project or product will reach market on schedule—similar to getting through airport security on the first go.

agentic AI technical

"scaling agentic AI that acts continuously within workflows, learns from outcomes,"

Agentic AI refers to computer systems that can make their own decisions and take actions without needing someone to tell them what to do each time. It's like giving a robot a degree of independence to solve problems or achieve goals on its own, which matters because it could change how we work and interact with technology in everyday life.

AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.

Black Book survey of more than 750 healthcare leaders demonstrates that Waystar leads the industry in client satisfaction with AI execution and outcomes

LEHI, Utah, and LOUISVILLE, Ky., Feb. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Waystar (Nasdaq: WAY), a provider of leading healthcare payment software, today announced that its AI capabilities earned the top ranking in the revenue cycle management industry, according to an independent survey by Black Book Market Research™ focused on agentic and generative AI in revenue cycle management.

Waystar earned the top overall ranking across client-reported outcomes, execution, and satisfaction — outperforming all peers on core measures of AI value realization. The survey evaluated 49 RCM vendors and captured insights from more than 750 senior healthcare leaders across provider sizes and care settings.

Key survey findings include:

• Highest satisfaction and exceptional loyalty: Waystar earned a 9.75 out of 10 composite score across 18 key performance indicators — outpacing the next highest competitor at 8.27 — while nearly 100% of surveyed leaders said they were very likely to renew their AI engagements with Waystar, underscoring the platform's ability to deliver sustained value.
  
  
• Top AI execution: Waystar achieved the highest aggregate score for AI execution, including time-to-value, workflow quality, ROI clarity, and security and governance, earning the leading AI operations score of 9.56.
  
  
• Superior client-reported outcomes: Waystar exceeded all category benchmarks for client-reported AI operations outcomes, earning the highest KPI score in the study at 9.56, compared to the 7.75 benchmark, reflecting strong performance in denial prevention, workflow automation quality, and payer responsiveness.

"We are grateful for the industry recognition and trust in Waystar's AI-powered platform to deliver meaningful outcomes," said Matt Hawkins, Chief Executive Officer of Waystar. "Our strength comes from four interconnected pillars: mission-critical infrastructure, unmatched proprietary data, an extensively deployed network, and scaled distribution paired with deep domain expertise. As we advance toward a fully autonomous revenue cycle, we are focused on scaling agentic AI that acts continuously within workflows, learns from outcomes, and generates high ROI with minimal intervention."

The independent study highlights the operational impact of Waystar AltitudeAI™, embedded across Waystar's platform to achieve significant results at scale. In less than a year, Waystar AltitudeAI has prevented $15 billion in denials and accelerated appeal package generation by 90% — reducing work that once took days to minutes. The Waystar platform consistently achieves approximately 99% clean claim and first-pass acceptance rates, driving faster and more accurate reimbursement.

Piedmont Healthcare, a Georgia-based health system, leverages AI capabilities across Waystar's platform. "We've been automating and leveraging more and more AI to get authorizations done without any human touch. When you're talking about trying to speed up processes or when you don't have enough people to get the job done, that makes a big difference," said Sheila Granda, Executive Director of Financial and Operational Effectiveness at Piedmont Healthcare. "Leveraging Waystar, our accuracy rate is in the 90s, which is tremendous."

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical facts. The words "anticipate," "assume," "believe," "continue," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "plan," "potential," "predict," "project," "future," "will," "seek," "foreseeable," the negative version of these words, or similar terms and phrases are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on management's current expectations and are inherently subject to various risks, uncertainties, assumptions, or changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict or quantify. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties associated with the consummation of the offering and other risks described in Waystar's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 and any subsequent filings with the SEC. Except as required by law, Waystar has no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements to conform these statements to actual results or revised expectations.

About Waystar
Waystar's mission-critical software is purpose-built to simplify healthcare payments so providers can prioritize patient care and optimize their financial performance. Waystar serves over 30,000 clients, representing over 1 million distinct providers, including 16 of 20 institutions on the U.S. News Best Hospitals list. Waystar's enterprise-grade platform annually processes over 7.5 billion healthcare payment transactions, including over $2.4 trillion in annual gross claims and spanning approximately 60% of U.S. patients and one in three U.S. hospital discharges. Waystar strives to transform healthcare payments so providers can focus on what matters most: their patients and communities. Discover the way forward at waystar.com.

Media Contact 
Kristin Lee 
kristin.lee@waystar.com 

Investor Contact
investors@waystar.com

 

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SOURCE Waystar

FAQ

What did Waystar (WAY) report about denials prevention on Feb. 20, 2026?

Waystar reported that Waystar AltitudeAI has prevented $15 billion in denials in less than a year. According to Waystar, this reflects automated denial prevention at scale across its deployed revenue cycle workflows and client base.

How did Waystar score in the Black Book AI revenue cycle management survey?

Waystar earned a 9.75 out of 10 composite score across 18 KPIs, topping 49 vendors. According to Waystar, the survey captured responses from more than 750 senior healthcare leaders across provider sizes and care settings.

What operational improvements did Waystar claim for appeal processing and claims?

Waystar said appeal package generation is 90% faster, converting days of work into minutes. According to Waystar, its platform also achieves ~99% clean claim and first-pass acceptance rates, improving reimbursement speed and accuracy.

Does Waystar (WAY) claim strong client renewal intent for its AI offerings?

Yes — Waystar reports nearly 100% of surveyed leaders said they were very likely to renew AI engagements. According to Waystar, this underscores sustained value and high client loyalty for its AI platform.

Which AI capabilities did Waystar highlight as central to its results for WAY shareholders?

Waystar emphasized Waystar AltitudeAI plus mission-critical infrastructure, proprietary data, network scale, and distribution as core strengths. According to Waystar, these pillars enable continuous agentic AI that learns from outcomes and drives ROI with minimal intervention.