Sotera Health
Sotera Health's revenue rose 5.7% to $1.2 billion in fiscal 2025. Its net margin was 6.7%, up from 4.0% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $149 million, up 230.8%. The diluted share count rose 0.5%.
Net margin is net income as a share of revenue. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending. Return on capital is after-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash. Market cap is the last closing share price times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate. P/E is the last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters, or the latest fiscal year where the quarters aren't available; there is none when the company made a loss.
Charts show fiscal years, from the 10-K filings.
Revenue and margins
Net income and earnings per share
From fiscal 2021 to 2025, earnings per share fell 9.9% a year and net income 9.6% a year, as new shares raised the share count by 3% and diluted each share's earnings.
Returns on capital
Cash flow
Payouts and share count
Valuation
Two ways to value Sotera Health yourself, both starting from its filings: a discounted cash flow model and the price-to-earnings method.
Discounted cash flow (DCF)
A discounted cash flow (DCF) model values a business as the cash it may generate in future, discounted back to today. The starting figures come from Sotera Health's 10-K (or, for net cash and shares, its latest 10-Q) and the assumptions are yours: start from one of three example scenarios, then change any figure to see what it implies for a share, and how that compares with the last share price.
Value per share on three example scenarios, from Sotera Health's fiscal 2025 free cash flow of $149M, net cash of −$1.9B at December 31, 2025 and 286 million diluted shares, from its filings. The scenarios are fitted to Sotera Health: the base scenario's growth in years 1 to 5 is its revenue growth over the last 3 years, 5.1% a year; the cautious and optimistic ones are lower and higher, and growth in years 6 to 10 is halfway to the long-run rate. The base scenario's discount rate is 9%: 7% for a stable business (Health Care Services), plus 1 point as a smaller company, worth $5.3B, plus 1 point for unsteady results (a loss in fiscal 2022); the cautious and optimistic ones use a point more and a point less. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.
- Last close, October 26, 2026
- $18.39
- Value on these assumptions, against the last close
- —
- Cash flows in years 1 to 10, valued today
- —
- Everything after year 10, valued today
- —
- Plus net cash
- —
- Share of value from after year 10
How the value changes with two assumptions
Price-to-earnings (P/E) method
Another common way to value a company is to multiply its earnings per share by a price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple: the number of years of today's earnings an investor pays for a share. A higher multiple usually means investors expect earnings to grow. Choose a multiple, for example from similar companies, to see the value it gives.
Value per share on three example scenarios, from Sotera Health's earnings per share of $0.57 (over the last four quarters). Each grows earnings for a year at the cash flow scenarios' rates and applies a multiple to next year's earnings: 32.3×, the middle of Sotera Health's own P/E today, its peers' median and its sector's median (Sotera Health's own P/E today) for the base scenario, 20% less and more for the cautious and optimistic ones. The price is brought back a year at 10%, 9% and 8%. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.
- Last close, October 26, 2026
- $18.39
- Value at this multiple, against the last close
- —
- Sotera Health's P/E at the last close
- 32.3×
| Company | Last close | Earnings per share | P/E today |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lifestance HealthLFST | $13.06 | $0.13 | 100.5× |
| CorVelCRVL | $84.59 | $2.25 | 37.6× |
| Sotera HealthSHC | $18.39 | $0.57 | 32.3× |
| Addus HomeCareADUS | $121.17 | $5.71 | 21.2× |
Balance sheet
| Fiscal year end | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash and short-term investments | 107 | 395 | 296 | 277 | 345 |
| Debt incl. finance leases | 1,786 | 2,003 | 2,301 | 2,321 | 2,238 |
| Net debt (negative means net cash) | 1,679 | 1,608 | 2,005 | 2,044 | 1,893 |
| Net debt to EBITDA | — | — | — | — | — |
| Debt to equity | 3.0x | 5.7x | 5.2x | 5.7x | 3.7x |
| Interest coverage | 4.4x | 3.3x | 1.6x | 1.6x | 1.9x |
| Current ratio | 2.1x | 0.8x | 2.4x | 2.8x | 2.5x |
| Quick ratio | 1.8x | 0.8x | 2.2x | 2.5x | 2.2x |
Insider trades
Over the 12 months between October 27, 2025 and October 26, 2026, no insider bought Sotera Health shares on the open market, and 8 insiders sold $1.6 billion.
| Date | Insider | Trade | Shares | Price | Value | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 17, 2026 | Michael B. Petras Jr.Executive Chairman, Director | Sold | 1,144,515 | $18.50 | $21.2 million | Form 4 |
| Aug 7, 2026 | Michael P RutzPresident of Sterigenics | Sold | 150,000 | $18.84 | $2.8 million | Form 4 |
| May 13, 2026 | Warburg Pincus XI L.P.Director, 10% owner | Sold | 19,102,952 | $15.17 | $289.8 million | Form 4 |
| May 13, 2026 | Gtcr Fund Xi/c LpDirector, 10% owner | Sold | 12,735,301 | $15.17 | $193.2 million | Form 4 |
| Mar 6, 2026 | Warburg Pincus Partners II L.P.Director, 10% owner | Sold | 15,000,000 | $15.27 | $229.1 million | Form 4 |
| Mar 6, 2026 | Gtcr Co-Invest Xi LpDirector, 10% owner | Sold | 10,000,000 | $15.27 | $152.7 million | Form 4 |
| Dec 8, 2025 | Michael B. Petras Jr.Chairman & CEO, Director | Sold | 750,000 | $16.45 | $12.3 million | Form 4 |
| Dec 3, 2025 | Warburg Pincus Partners GP LLCDirector, 10% owner | Sold | 9,720,000 | $16.33 | $158.7 million | Form 4 |
| Dec 3, 2025 | Gtcr Fund Xi/a LpDirector, 10% owner | Sold | 6,480,000 | $16.33 | $105.8 million | Form 4 |
| Nov 10, 2025 | Warburg Pincus Partners II L.P.Director | Sold | 18,000,000 | $15.65 | $281.7 million | Form 4 |
| Nov 10, 2025 | Gtcr Fund Xi/a LpDirector, 10% owner | Sold | 12,000,000 | $15.65 | $187.8 million | Form 4 |
Piotroski F-score
The F-score counts how many of nine simple tests of profitability, funding and efficiency a company passed in a year (Piotroski, 2000). The more tests passed, the stronger the year: 8 or 9 is strong, 0 to 2 weak. Companies that report no gross profit are scored on the other eight.
| Test | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net income is positive | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Cash from operations is positive | Fail | Pass | Pass |
| Return on assets rose | Pass | Fail | Pass |
| Cash from operations exceeds net income | Fail | Pass | Pass |
| Debt fell relative to assets | Fail | Fail | Pass |
| Current ratio rose | Pass | Pass | Fail |
| Share count didn't rise | Fail | Fail | Fail |
| Gross margin rose | Fail | Fail | Pass |
| Revenue rose relative to assets | Fail | Pass | Pass |
| F-score | 3 of 9 | 5 of 9 | 7 of 9 |
| Accruals ratio | 6.4% | −5.8% | −6.6% |
Compare
Put Sotera Health side by side with any other company we cover: revenue, growth, margins, cash flow and returns, with ten years of charts.
Similar companies
| Company | Year | Revenue growth | Operating margin | Free cash flow margin | Return on capital | Net debt to EBITDA | F-score | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sotera Health | FY25 | 5.7% | — | 12.8% | 6.7% | — | 7 | |
| Tempus AI | FY25 | 83.4% | −19.9% | −18.8% | — | — | 5 | Compare |
| CorVel | FY26 | 7.0% | — | 11.5% | — | — | — | Compare |
| Addus HomeCare | FY25 | 23.2% | 9.7% | 7.3% | 9.4% | 0.2x | 5 | Compare |
| Lifestance Health | FY25 | 13.8% | 1.7% | 7.7% | 1.2% | 0.5x | 7 | Compare |
7 years of figures
| Fiscal year | FY19 | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Income statement | |||||||
| Revenue | 778 | 818 | 932 | 1,004 | 1,049 | 1,100 | 1,164 |
| Revenue growth | — | 5.1% | 13.8% | 7.8% | 4.5% | 4.9% | 5.7% |
| Gross profit | 395 | 444 | 519 | 557 | 577 | 602 | 646 |
| Research and development | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Operating income | 184 | 206 | 257 | 248 | 277 | 298 | — |
| Net income | −21 | −39 | 117 | −234 | 51 | 44 | 78 |
| Diluted EPS (US$) | −0.09 | −0.16 | 0.41 | −0.83 | 0.18 | 0.16 | 0.27 |
| Diluted shares (millions) | 232 | 238 | 279 | 280 | 283 | 285 | 286 |
| Cash flow | |||||||
| Cash from operations | 149 | 121 | 282 | 278 | −148 | 224 | 287 |
| Capital expenditure | 57 | 54 | 102 | 182 | 215 | 179 | 138 |
| Free cash flow | 92 | 67 | 179 | 96 | −363 | 45 | 149 |
| Dividends paid | 691 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share buybacks | 0 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Stock-based compensation | 7 | 11 | 14 | 21 | 32 | 37 | 31 |
| Balance sheet at fiscal year end | |||||||
| Cash and short-term investments | 63 | 102 | 107 | 395 | 296 | 277 | 345 |
| Debt incl. finance leases | — | 1,861 | 1,786 | 2,003 | 2,301 | 2,321 | 2,238 |
| Total assets | — | 2,761 | 2,790 | 3,118 | 3,130 | 3,072 | 3,263 |
| Total liabilities | — | 2,307 | 2,203 | 2,768 | 2,687 | 2,667 | 2,657 |
| Shareholders' equity | −641 | 452 | 586 | 350 | 444 | 405 | 606 |
| Margins and ratios | |||||||
| Gross margin | 50.8% | 54.2% | 55.7% | 55.5% | 55.0% | 54.7% | 55.5% |
| Operating margin | 23.6% | 25.2% | 27.6% | 24.7% | 26.4% | 27.1% | — |
| Net margin | −2.7% | −4.7% | 12.6% | −23.3% | 4.9% | 4.0% | 6.7% |
| Free cash flow margin | 11.8% | 8.2% | 19.3% | 9.5% | −34.6% | 4.1% | 12.8% |
| Return on capital | — | — | 7.6% | 9.3% | 6.3% | 6.1% | 6.7% |
| Return on equity | — | — | 22.5% | −49.9% | 12.9% | 10.5% | 15.4% |
| Return on assets | — | — | 4.2% | −7.9% | 1.6% | 1.4% | 2.5% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |