Public hotel companies are off to a strong start in the first two months of 2026.

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 5.9% in February, its third consecutive month of increases.

The S&P 500 — an indicator of the health of the broader economy — dipped 0.9% during the month.

Year to date, the Baird Hotel Stock Index is up 7.6%, while the S&P 500 is up just 0.5%.

“Hotel stocks posted strong gains in February with both the global hotel brands and hotel REITs increasing nearly 6%,” said Michael Bellisario, senior research analyst and managing director at Baird.

“Better-than-expected industry-wide RevPAR growth in January and February — despite several weather impacts — has caused investor sentiment to improve. The global hotel brands outperformed the S&P 500 by 670 basis points following strong fourth-quarter earnings and solid initial 2026 outlooks, which investors view as somewhat conservative, while the hotel REITs underperformed their benchmark by 200 basis points as interest rates declined and more defensive real estate sub-sectors outperformed.”

Read the full story here