Travel Stocks’ Wild Ride in 2023

Good morning from Skift. It’s Friday, November 3. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

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Episode Notes

2023 has been a wild ride for investors in travel companies, with those stocks on the edge of a bear market. How bumpy has the year been? Senior Research Analyst Seth Borko turns to the Skift Travel 200 (see below), an index tracking the stock market performance of the global travel industry. 

Borko writes that while travel has been a volatile industry this year, travel investors have made money in 2023. The Skift Travel 200 is up 6% from this point last year after being down 20% in 2022. In addition, Borko notes that stocks in cruises and tours, travel’s best performing sector so far in 2023, are up 26%. 

Next, Expedia Group rode a strong third quarter in its business-to-business and business-to-consumer segments to record revenue and profitability, reports Executive Editor Dennis Schaal. 

The company reported an adjusted net income of $778 million, the highest for any quarter in its history. Expedia Group also generated $3.9 billion worth of revenue during the third quarter, a 9% jump from last year and a quarterly record as well. Schaal adds the company also accomplished a couple of key goals, including launching its One Key loyalty program in July.

Finally, Hyatt remains optimistic that its large hotel pipeline in China will pay dividends despite the country’s economic difficulties, reports Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill. 

Although China is currently experiencing both a commercial property and municipal debt crisis, O’Neill reports Hyatt leaders are still confident in their strategy there. Hyatt has 40% of its hotel pipeline in China. CEO Mark Hoplamazian said during its third quarter earnings call he believes Hyatt will be able to maintain both net room and pipeline growth. 

Meanwhile, Hyatt said that overall hotel demand in the third quarter was down from 2019 levels by the mid-to-high teens, but that’s an improvement. At the start of the year, demand was down 60%. 

Skift Travel 200 by Sector

What am I looking at? Index levels for the five core travel sectors that make up the ST200. This helps us understand how each part of the travel industry is performing relative to one another.

The Skift Travel 200 (ST200) combines the financial performance of nearly 200 travel companies worth more than a trillion dollars into a single number. See more travel industry performance metrics.

Read the full methodology behind the Skift Travel 200.