(Bloomberg) -- The stock market is getting a push from a usually sleepy corner that’s suddenly come to life. 

Since equities hit a low on Oct. 27, shares of hotel and lodging landlords are up 29%, topping the 23% rise in the S&P 500 Index and the 19% gain in the broader real estate industry. The biggest gainer, Park Hotels & Resorts Inc., has soared 53% over that stretch, beating every one of the Magnificent Seven technology stocks except Nvidia Corp. 

The advance in lodging REITs has been spurred by a steady return of corporate travel and the prospects that the Federal Reserve will start lowering interest rates this year. That’s particularly important to the industry, which is so sensitive to the cost of borrowing.

What’s more, the rally can keep going, as future bookings look promising, according to Sylvia Jablonski, chief executive officer at Defiance ETFs and overseer of the firm’s Hotel Airline and Cruise exchange-traded fund.

“The economic landscape is improving, consumer travel rates are growing, and jobs and wages remain steady, which can continue to support the trend,” she said.

Real estate stocks have generally struggled to regain their post-pandemic footing as inflation has remained sticky, forcing the Fed to keep rates high. However, leisure travelers came flooding back as soon as resorts reopened, and pent-up demand combined with dynamic pricing allowed properties to list rooms at premium prices. 

“Hotels can capture the benefits of inflation more quickly than a lot of other sectors within real estate just given the fact that they price daily and have the shortest term leases,” BMO Capital Markets analyst Ari Klein said.

For example, Park Hotels — a $3.6 billion lodging operator based in McLean, Virginia, that has the hottest stock in the group — benefits from owning Hilton properties that often cater to business travelers. 

“We executed on our strategic objectives, exceeded our operational goals, and meaningfully strengthened our balance sheet,” said Thomas J. Baltimore, Jr., Park’s chairman and chief executive officer. “Fundamentals in our portfolio remain very healthy driven by an acceleration in group and business travel, while strong leisure trends are expected to continue, especially in Hawaii as Japanese travel returns.”

John Worth, executive vice president of research and investor outreach at Nareit, said individual leisure travel “is starting to flatline a bit, but the group and business travel is really returning.”

These latest stock-price gains are a step toward pre-pandemic levels for the group, which is often overlooked because it makes up just 3% of the broader sector index. Covid-19 forced many resorts to temporarily close. Hotel REITs are still well off their 2019 highs.

Despite the seeming opportunities, Wall Street is encouraging investors to remain on the sidelines, as over 70% of the stocks in Bloomberg’s hotel REIT index have an average analyst rating of hold. 

The skepticism is easy to understand since any downturn in consumer sentiment could put pressure on resort pricing. Plus, investors who want to buy into the hotel boom can get direct exposure through brands like Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc., Marriott International Inc. or Hyatt Hotels Corp., all of which are trading near record highs.

That said, for investors looking to own a swath of the lodging industry, the outlook for lodging REITs appears bright for now.

“There’s certainly more upside if we do have the scenario that so far has been playing out, which is a resilient economy, pretty good economic growth and consumers that are willing to keep traveling and prioritize that as part of their lives moving forward,” said CFRA analyst Michael Elliott.

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