Yesterday the Australian Bureau of Statistics released its tourism data for the month of April. Pleasingly the data revealed that the tourism boom has continued unabated, with year-on-year short-term arrivals increasing 7.7% to 727,600 during the month.
Three shares which I expect to benefit from this trend are listed below. Here's why I think they could be worth taking a closer look at today:
Event Hospitality and Entertainment Ltd (ASX: EVT)
As well as its eponymous cinema chain, Event is also the company behind accommodation brands such as Rydges, QT, and Thredbo Alpine Village. As tourists flock to Australia in their droves, I expect demand for its rooms will increase strongly. This could allow the company to grow its earnings and dividend at a solid rate for the foreseeable future. At present Event's shares provide a trailing fully franked 4% dividend.
Mantra Group Ltd (ASX: MTR)
Much like Event, I expect Mantra to profit from rising demand for hotel rooms. Especially as its diverse portfolio of accommodation brands cover a whole range of price points. While Airbnb has been labelled as a threat to accommodation providers like Mantra, I believe that both the high level of demand and positioning of its rooms in key tourist hotspots will help it overcome the global travel behemoth.
Sealink Travel Group Ltd (ASX: SLK)
Although its half-year results were a touch disappointing, with its shares down 17% year-to-date I feel SeaLink has become attractive again. As a provider of ferry services in locations that are popular with tourists such as Sydney Harbour and Kangaroo Island, I believe SeaLink Travel is positioned perfectly to profit from the tourism boom. Its shares are now changing hands at under 14x trailing earnings, which could make it worth a closer look in my opinion.
