Hospitality Stockwatch – December 2023

Authors
Arun Upneja, Ph.D. MBA, Dean, Boston University School of Hospitality Administration
Steve Kent, Ph.D., CFA, Assistant Professor, Molloy University-School of Business

Winners and Losers

Perfect Landing,” “Goldilocks not too hot, not too cold,” “the stars are aligned,” and every other catchphrase is being used for the give and take of the market and economic conditions. The broad market indicators (S&P500 and Russell 3000) had a great November with gains of 8% plus.   

Inflation seems to be stabilizing, and even drifting lower, as measured by both core consumer price index (CPI) and personal consumption expenditures (PCE) which may allow the Federal Reserve to slow, stabilize or even change the direction of interest rates.  The thoughts of higher interest rate-induced recessions seem to be fading while the economy seems to be chugging along.  Fears about the economy may have receded during the past month. Still, concerns about the geopolitical risks, the presidential election, and the possibility that interest rates may stay at these levels for longer may dampen enthusiasm as we go into the year-end. 

These positive trends for the whole market also created a pop in 120 stocks and 18 subsectors on the Boston University Hospitality Stockwatch. Only three subsectors (Entertainment, SPACs, and Timeshare) were down for the month. AMC led the Entertainment stock lower, down over 35% in the past 30 days, with potential dilution from an announced share offering as well as concerns over recent releases. 

In contrast, the best-performing subsectors over the past month were Online Sports Betting, Cruise, and Online Travel.  Draft Kings keeps beating the spread as both earnings, opportunities, and sentiment are surprising as the company reports more activity by sports bettors. Cruise stocks seem to be benefiting from a more benign oil outlook. 

If you would like to receive the Boston University Hospitality Stockwatch data weekly, please email us at skent@molloy.edu.  We are one of the few publications offering earnings, valuation, and performance data on virtually every US public company in the world of Hospitality.   

Click here to download Hospitality Stockwatch – Current as of December 1, 2023

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