U.S. Hotel Stocks Jumped 10.5% in December, Ended Year Up 38.4%

The Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index jumped 10.5% in December to a level of 6,760. For 2023, the stock index was up 38.4%.

“Hotel stocks – like the broader market – finished 2023 on a high note as the ‘soft landing’ narrative and lower interest rate outlook continued to boost investor sentiment and valuation multiples,” said Michael Bellisario, senior hotel research analyst and director at Baird. “Both the hotel brands and hotel REITs were up more than 10% in December and outperformed their respective benchmarks. For the year, the hotel REITs’ 19% gain more than doubled the return of real estate stocks broadly, while the hotel brands’ 44% increase nearly doubled the performance of the S&P 500.”

“The U.S. hotel industry finished the year on solid footing,” said Amanda Hite, STR president. “RevPAR rose 5% from the previous year, with growth driven by the first quarter’s 10.4% increase due to a comparison against Omicron-impacted months in 2022. In the remaining quarters, RevPAR growth averaged 3.1%, which is above the long-term quarterly average of 2.9%. Occupancy continued to close the gap to 2019 levels, while absolute ADR and RevPAR remained well above that benchmark on a nominal basis and narrowed the gap on an inflation-adjusted basis. Overall, it was a solid and ‘normal’ year for the industry.”

In December, the Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index surpassed the performance of both the S&P 500 (+4.4%) and the MSCI US REIT Index (+9.0%).

The Hotel Brand sub-index increased 10.4% from November to 12,841, while the Hotel REIT sub-index jumped 10.6% to 1,236.

About the Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index and Sub-Indices

The Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index was set to equal 1,000 on 1 January 2000. Previously, the Index peaked at 3,178 on 5 July 2007, and the low occurred on 6 March 2009 at 573. The most recent all-time high occurred on 22 November 2023 at 6,229.

The Hotel Brand sub-index was set to equal 1,000 on 1 January 2000. Previously, the sub-index peaked at 3,407 on 5 July 2007, and the low occurred on 6 March 2009 at 722. The most recent all-time high occurred on 22 November 2023 at 11,932.

The Hotel REIT sub-index was set to equal 1,000 on 1 January 2000. The sub-index’s all-time high was 2,555 on 2 February 2007, and the low occurred on 5 March 2009 at dropped to 298. The most recent cycle highs were 2,036 at 26 January 2015 and 1,440 on 17 March 2021.

As of 31 December 2023, the companies that comprised the Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index included: Apple Hospitality REIT, Ashford Hospitality Trust, Chatham Lodging Trust, Choice Hotels International, DiamondRock Hospitality Company, Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Host Hotels & Resorts, Hyatt Hotels, InterContinental Hotels Group, Marriott International, Park Hotels & Resorts, Inc., Pebblebrook Hotel Trust, RLJ Lodging Trust, Ryman Hospitality Properties, Service Properties Trust, Summit Hotel Properties, Sunstone Hotel Investors, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, and Xenia Hotels & Resorts.