Hotel stocks began 2025 strong, even pacing ahead of other economic indexes in the first month of the year.
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 — rose 3% in January from December.
The S&P 500 — which indicates the health of the broader economy — rose 2.7% month over month, slightly behind the Hotel Stock Index.
“Hotel stocks started the year off on a positive note with the Global Hotel Brands driving the gains and relative outperformance,” said Michael Bellisario, senior hotel research analyst and managing director at Baird. “The Hotel REITs underperformed as investors recalibrated their 2025 growth outlooks due to expectations for outsized expense growth to persist, while the Global Hotel Brands outperformed and announced favorable year-end unit growth and development pipeline updates.”
The RMZ, or MSCI U.S. REIT Index — which is a gauge of the overall real estate investment market — increased by 0.9% in January.
The hotel brand sub-index rose 4.1% in the month, while the hotel REIT sub-index declined by 2.4%.
Month over month, Ashford Hospitality Trust led the top performers of the month with its stock up 10.8% in January. Brands IHG Hotels & Resorts, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Marriott International and Choice Hotels International rounded out the top five performers. Braemar Hotels & Resorts, meanwhile, saw a 15% month-over-month drop in its stock price in January, which was the most for the bottom performers.
Year over year, the stock prices of IHG, Wyndham and Hilton were each up more than 30% in January. Ashford Hospitality Trust's stock was down 52% year over year.