U.S. hotel stocks continued to slide in April.
The Baird Hotel Stock Index — which comprises 20 of the largest hotel brand companies and real estate investment trusts publicly traded on a U.S. stock exchange by market capitalization — decreased 2.1% in April, its third consecutive month of decline. After a 3% gain in January, the index fell by 2.3% in February and nosedived 13.8% in March.
The Hotel Stock Index hasn't decreased in three straight months since August to October of 2023. Year to date, the index is down 15.1%.
The S&P 500 — an indicator of the health of the broader economy — dipped 0.8% in April. Year to date, the S&P 500 is down 5.3%
“Hotel stocks fell further in April and underperformed their respective benchmarks amid continued uncertainties regarding tariffs and trade policies,” said Michael Bellisario, senior hotel research analyst and managing director at Baird. “Domestic travel demand already has begun to be impacted, particularly inbound international, and the booking window for both group and transient has shortened as customers are in a ‘wait and see’ mode currently. As a result, all hotel companies have reduced their outlooks for the remainder of the year.”
The RMZ, or MSCI U.S. REIT Index — which is a gauge of the overall real estate investment market — fell 2.7% in April.
The hotel brand sub-index declined 1.4% in the month, while the hotel REIT sub-index fell 5.8%.
Month over month, Marriott International's stock rose just 0.2% but was the only public hotel company on the Hotel Stock Index that avoided a decline. Braemar Hotels & Resorts reported a 24.9% month-over-month stock decline, just below Summit Hotel Properties' 24.8% decrease.
Year over year, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts led the way with its stock up 16%, followed by Hilton with its stock up 14.3%. Ashford Hospitality Trust's stock led the bottom performers, with its price down 48.9% year over year.
For more information about the Hotel Stock Index, email hotelstockindex@rwbaird.com.
The Baird Hotel Stock Index and sub-indices are available exclusively on Hotel News Now. The indices were created by Robert W. Baird & Co. (Baird). The market-cap-weighted, price-only indices comprise 20 of the largest market-capitalization hotel companies publicly traded on a U.S. exchange and attempt to characterize the performance of hotel stocks. The Index and sub-indices are maintained by Baird and hosted on Hotel News Now, are not actively managed, and no direct investment can be made in them. As of 30 June 2021, the companies that comprised the Baird Hotel Stock Index included: Apple Hospitality REIT, Ashford Hospitality Trust, Chatham Lodging Trust, Choice Hotels International, DiamondRock Hospitality Company, Hersha Hospitality Trust, Hilton Inc., 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.