Trivago And 3 Other Travel Stocks To Buy Ahead Of Summer

The summer travel season is almost here, and we have you covered with some travel-related stocks to watch ahead of what might be a scorching few months throughout the industry.

Busy Summer

Despite security related concerns due to recent terrorist attacks in major European cities, the travel market seems to be relatively unaffected. In fact, according to travel websites and agencies, scheduled U.S. travel to Europe is up as much as 30% from last summer in many regions.

Much of the increased European draw is based on the strong U.S. dollar and the availability of cheaper flights to more destinations.

So with this year’s vacation season set to be a busy one, let’s take a look at some travel sector stocks as the temperatures start to climb higher.

Trivago (TRVG)

Shares of Trivago (NASDAQ:TRVG) gained 15.65% to $20.62 per share in afternoon trading on Monday. The Dusseldorf, Germany-based company, which aggregates travel-related bookings for lodging and hotels in order to find the best prices, soared after it reported strong first quarter earnings on Monday morning.

Trivago's sales grew 68% year-over-year to roughly $293.9 million based on current exchange rates. The company saw a jump in the amount of people using its website and app, with qualified referrals up 60% sequentially.

The number of users on Trivago's paid subscription-based Hotel Manager Pro service also rose. More importantly, the company with a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) reaffirmed its updated full-year guidance, which calls for 50% sales growth.

Trivago went public in December 2016 at $11 per share. Since then, its stock price is up almost 100%. Shares of Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) , which owns 60% of Trivago, are up 2.05% to $142.68 per share on Monday—a new all-time high.

Priceline (PCLN)

Nevertheless, fellow discount travel website Priceline (NASDAQ:PCLN) has outperformed Expedia recently. According to its latest earnings report, the company’s room nights grew by 27.4% year-over-year, while Expedia’s rose just 12%. The jump in nights helped revenue grow to $2.4 billion, up 12.6% year-over-year.

This Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company also owns popular vacation-related websites Booking.com and KAYAK, as well as Rentalcars.com and the trendy dinning accommodation website OpenTable.

Shares of Priceline have jumped from $1,064.97 per share on Jan. 1, 2016 to a near all-time high of $1,814.53 on Monday.

Airlines

Despite the recent uptick in customer service related complaints for airlines, highlighted by United (NYSE:UAL) , airline stocks aren’t in that bad of a place. J.D. Power's North America Airline Satisfaction Study found that passenger-satisfaction levels are, in fact, up overall this year.

Delta (DAL)

Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc (NYSE:DAL) have climbed 12.9% since it reported its first-quarter earnings last month, outperforming the market over that stretch. The airliner projected its second-quarter cost per available seat mile will increase in a range of 6% to 8%.

Delta, which operates flights directly from Europe at a high rate, benefits from the big summer tourism season on the European continent.

Shares of Delta, which currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), are up 0.90% to $49.43 per share on Monday.

Ryanair (RYAAY)

Ryanair (NASDAQ:RYAAY) is Europe's largest airline by passenger numbers. The ultra-low cost airline makes a massive amount of flights throughout Europe. According to its website, Ryanair makes 1,800 flights a day, with a huge Boeing-based (NYSE:BA) fleet. Amid Brexit concerns, the Irish airline plans to shif its focus away from Britain over the next two years.

Shares of Ryanair are up 2.84% to $100.96 per share. This Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock now sits comfortably near its all-time high.

Other European Airline stocks on the rise

Shares of Germany-based Lufthansa LHA.SG have climbed since the start of the year, Air France (OTC:AFLYY) stock is up 37% this year, and shares of KLM gained 3.61% to start the week.

If you want to read more about airline stocks read here: 3 Airline Stocks to Buy Despite Ongoing Industry Turbulence

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