Going Home For The Holidays? 2 ETFs To Benefit From Thanksgiving Travel Spending

 | Nov 16, 2021 10:08

Travel stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are in the limelight as a large number of Americans gear up to travel in order to visit family and friends for Thanksgiving. Days leading up to the fourth Thursday of November (Nov. 25, 2021), and the days right after, are typically the most important travel season in the US.

The American Automobile Association (AAA) “predicts 53.4 million people (will) travel for the Thanksgiving holiday, up 13% from 2020. This brings travel volumes within 5% of pre-pandemic levels in 2019, with air travel almost completely recovering from its dramatic fall during the pandemic.”

Metrics on the state of the economy, as well as COVID-19 infection numbers, typically affect consumer sentiment. Despite ebbs and flows, most analysts concur that spending levels by Americans should stay healthy in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, travel stocks have been recovering steadily from extreme lows hit over a year ago. Understandably, for most of these companies, full year 2021 revenue expectations have improved significantly since the early days of the pandemic in 2020.

Among the various indices Wall Street follows, this is how three fared in 2021:

  • Dow Jones Transportation Index up 34.0% year-to-date;
  • {{20005|Dow Jones Airlines}} Index: up 8.9% YTD;
  • Dow Jones Hotels Index: up 25.2% YTD.

We previously covered three travel-related ETFs:

  • ETFMG Travel Tech ETF (NYSE:AWAY): up 8.5% YTD (here);
  • Invesco Dynamic Leisure and Entertainment ETF (NYSE:PEJ): up 27.4% YTD (here);
  • US Global Jets ETF (NYSE:JETS): up 4.6% (here).

Today we introduce two more ETFs that started trading in 2021. In other words, they are small funds with little trading history. However, they could still appeal to a range of readers.

h2 1. AdvisorShares Hotel ETF/h2
  • Current Price: $26.84
  • 52-Week Range: $21.61 - $27.80
  • Expense Ratio: 0.99% per year

The AdvisorShares Hotel ETF (NYSE:BEDZ) invests mainly in the hotel industry and related services, like resorts or casino operators. The fund started trading in April 2021.