Restaurants, Travel and Leisure
Restaurants, Travel and Leisure
Five cash-flow engines on one page: franchise restaurants, company-operated restaurants, asset-light hotel brands, owner-operated cruise and casino resorts, and online travel platforms. Airline operations stay on Transport and Diversified Industrials. Hotel REITs stay on REITs. Airframers stay on Aerospace.
Data updated 2026-08-26
The Restaurants, Travel and Leisure sector on Sterling tracks 17 companies.
Restaurants, Travel and Leisure at a glance
Five cash-flow engines. The middle tabs keep restaurants, lodging, cruise and gaming, and OTAs separate. Airlines and hotel REITs are covered on other pages.
- •McDonald's 2025 systemwide sales were $139.4 billion against $26.9 billion of GAAP revenue. 43,317 of 45,356 restaurants were franchised.
- •Starbucks FY2025 net revenue was $37.18 billion, the largest GAAP line on this roster. Company-operated stores were 83% of revenue and 21,514 of 40,990 stores.
- •Marriott 2025 GAAP revenue was $26.19 billion. Cost reimbursement was $19.20 billion. Gross fee revenue was $5.44 billion. The system had 1.78 million rooms.
- •Booking Holdings 2025 revenue was $26.92 billion on $186.1 billion of gross bookings and 1,235 million room nights.
- •Carnival FY2025 revenue was $26.62 billion on 13.6 million passengers and 105% occupancy. Royal Caribbean occupancy was 109.7%. Norwegian occupancy was 103.5%.
- •Las Vegas Sands 2025 net revenue was $13.02 billion: $7.47 billion Macao and $5.59 billion Singapore. Macau market gaming revenue was $30.9 billion.
- •Chipotle 2025 revenue rose 5.4% to $11.93 billion while comparable sales fell 1.7%. Hilton system-wide comparable RevPAR rose 0.4%.
Headline numbers
Eight sourced snapshot figures. Fiscal years are not aligned. Marriott GAAP includes $19.2B of cost reimbursement.
McDonald's system sales
$139.4B
CY2025, +7% reported. GAAP revenue $26.89B. 45,356 restaurants, 43,317 franchised.
MCD 10-K
Starbucks FY2025 revenue
$37.18B
Year ended 28 September 2025, +2.8%. Company-operated stores 83% of revenue. 40,990 stores.
SBUX 10-K / PR
Marriott rooms
1.78M
Year-end 2025: 9,805 properties, 1,779,936 rooms. Worldwide RevPAR +2.0%. GAAP revenue $26.19B.
MAR 10-K / PR
Booking gross bookings
$186.1B
CY2025, +12%. Revenue $26.92B. 1,235 million room nights, +8%.
BKNG 10-K
Carnival occupancy
105%
FY2025 ended 30 November. 13.6 million passengers. 96.5 million ALBDs. Revenue $26.62B.
CCL 2025 AR
LVS 2025 net revenue
$13.02B
Macao $7.47B. Marina Bay Sands $5.59B. Macau market gaming revenue $30.9B (Wynn 10-K).
LVS PR / WYNN 10-K
Chipotle comps
-1.7%
CY2025. Transactions -2.9%, check +1.2%. Revenue $11.93B, +5.4%, on 334 company-owned openings.
CMG PR
Hilton RevPAR
+0.4%
CY2025 system-wide comparable, currency neutral. 9,158 properties, 1.35 million rooms. Net unit growth 6.7%.
HLT PR
How to read this page
System sales are not GAAP. Hotel RevPAR is not restaurant comps. Cruise occupancy is not hotel occupancy. OTA gross bookings are not revenue. Do not average Marriott with McDonald's.
| Term | What the filing means | Example on this page |
|---|---|---|
| System sales / systemwide sales / global retail sales | Sales at restaurants in the system, including franchisee sales the brand does not record as GAAP revenue. | McDonald's 2025 systemwide sales $139.4B versus GAAP $26.885B. |
| GAAP revenue | What the company books. For franchise brands this is mostly royalties, rent, and company-operated sales. For hotels it includes cost reimbursement. | Marriott 2025 GAAP $26.186B includes $19.204B of reimbursement. |
| Comparable / same-store / same-restaurant sales | Sales change at locations open long enough to compare. Each chain sets the window (often 13 months). Not RevPAR. | Chipotle 2025 comps -1.7%. Darden FY2026 blended same-restaurant sales +4.5% on a 52-week basis. |
| RevPAR | Hotel revenue per available room: occupancy times ADR on a comparable systemwide set. Brand-defined, not a restaurant metric. | Marriott 2025 worldwide RevPAR +2.0%. Hilton 2025 system-wide comparable RevPAR +0.4%. |
| Hotel occupancy | Occupied rooms divided by available rooms at comparable hotels. | Marriott Q2 2026 worldwide occupancy 71.6%. Hilton Q2 2026 system-wide occupancy 74.9%. |
| Cruise occupancy, ALBD / APCD / capacity days | Passenger cruise days divided by berth-days assuming two guests per cabin. A print above 100% means some cabins held more than two guests. Carnival says ALBD, Royal says APCD, Norwegian says capacity days. | Carnival FY2025 occupancy 105% on 96.5 million ALBDs. |
| Implied average length of cruise (ALC) | Passenger cruise days divided by passengers. This page computes it as occupancy times capacity divided by passengers from the printed year-end figures. | See the Cruise and Gaming ALC table. Carnival, Royal, and Norwegian each use their own capacity unit. |
| Gross bookings / GBV | The booking pool, inclusive of taxes and fees as each OTA defines it, net of cancellations. Not GAAP revenue. | Booking 2025 gross bookings $186.1B. Airbnb 2025 GBV $91.273B. |
| Take-rate | GAAP revenue divided by gross bookings or GBV. Derived from the two printed totals. Not a published OTA product price. | Booking 2025: $26.917B / $186.1B = 14.5%. |
Reported revenue by company, latest fiscal year
Starbucks is the largest GAAP line. McDonald's, Booking, Carnival, and Marriott cluster near $27B for different reasons. Domino's $4.94B is royalties plus supply chain, not $20.13B of global retail sales.
Scale that is not reported revenue
McDonald's systemwide sales $139.4B. Booking gross bookings $186.1B. Marriott 1.78 million rooms. Mixed units on purpose. Read the unit column.
| Company | Statistic | Value | Unit | Period | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| McDonald's | Systemwide sales | $139.4B | USD | CY2025 | GAAP revenue was $26.885B |
| Yum! | System sales | $68.295B | USD | CY2025 | GAAP revenue was $8.214B |
| Domino's | Global retail sales | $20.127B | USD | FY2025 | GAAP revenue was $4.940B |
| Booking | Gross bookings | $186.1B | USD | CY2025 | GAAP revenue was $26.917B |
| Expedia | Gross bookings | $119.590B | USD | CY2025 | GAAP revenue was $14.733B |
| Airbnb | Gross booking value | $91.273B | USD | CY2025 | GAAP revenue was $12.241B |
| Marriott | System rooms | 1,779,936 | rooms | YE 2025 | Not a dollar figure. 9,805 properties. |
| Hilton | System rooms | 1,351,351 | rooms | YE 2025 | Not a dollar figure. 9,158 properties. |
Revenue grouped by type of business
Restaurant GAAP is the largest pile because Starbucks and McDonald's are on it. Lodging looks smaller until you remember Marriott reimbursement. These are company sales added up, not an estimate of the whole market.
Who collects the cash
Royalties on system sales, menu sales inside the four walls, hotel fees, cruise ticket plus onboard, owned-resort revenue, and OTA take-rate. One example figure each.
| Thesis | How it gets paid | Example | Printed figure | Period |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franchise restaurants | Royalty and rent on system sales | McDonald's | GAAP $26.885B on $139.4B systemwide sales | CY2025 |
| Company-operated restaurants | Menu sales inside the four walls | Chipotle | GAAP $11.926B. Digital 36.7% of food and beverage. | CY2025 |
| Asset-light lodging brands | Franchise and management fees. Reimbursement inflates GAAP. | Marriott | Gross fees $5.438B. Reimbursement $19.204B. | CY2025 |
| Cruise owner-operator | Ticket plus onboard spend | Carnival | Ticket $17.419B. Onboard $9.202B. | FY2025 |
| Integrated resorts | Owned casino, hotel, and F&B revenue | MGM | Net revenues $17.538B. Strip $8.442B. | CY2025 |
| Online travel platforms | Take on the booking pool | Booking | Revenue $26.917B on $186.1B gross bookings | CY2025 |
Demand prints are not one cycle
Chipotle comps -1.7%. Hilton RevPAR +0.4%. Carnival occupancy 105%. Las Vegas visitors 38.5 million. Each row is that company's metric. Do not average the column.
| Company | Metric | Value | Period | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| McDonald's | Global comparable sales | +3.1% | CY2025 | Restaurants open at least 13 months |
| Starbucks | Global company-operated comps | -1% | FY2025 | Transactions -2%, ticket +1% |
| Chipotle | Comparable restaurant sales | -1.7% | CY2025 | Transactions -2.9%, check +1.2% |
| Darden | Blended same-restaurant sales | +4.5% | FY2026 | 52-week basis; excludes Chuy's and Bahama Breeze |
| Marriott | Worldwide comparable RevPAR | +2.0% | CY2025 | Constant dollar. Not a restaurant comp. |
| Hilton | System-wide comparable RevPAR | +0.4% | CY2025 | Currency neutral. Not a restaurant comp. |
| Carnival | Cruise occupancy | 105% | FY2025 | Passenger cruise days / ALBDs |
| Royal Caribbean | Cruise occupancy | 109.7% | CY2025 | Passenger cruise days / APCD |
| Norwegian | Cruise occupancy | 103.5% | CY2025 | Passenger cruise days / capacity days |
| Las Vegas (via Wynn 10-K) | Visitor volume | 38.5M | CY2025 | LVCVA figure. Down 7.5%. Strip gaming win $8.8B. |
Companies in this sector
Seventeen public companies. Airlines, airframers, Host Hotels, and Vici are covered on other pages.
| Company | Ticker | Archetype | HQ | Latest year | What to watch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| McDonald's | MCD | Franchise restaurants | Chicago, US | CY2025 | System sales vs GAAP; unit growth |
| Starbucks | SBUX | Company-operated restaurants | Seattle, US | FY2025 | Back to Starbucks closures; company-operated mix |
| Chipotle | CMG | Company-operated restaurants | Newport Beach, US | CY2025 | Traffic vs new units |
| Yum! | YUM | Franchise restaurants | Louisville, US | CY2025 | KFC vs Taco Bell vs Pizza Hut |
| Darden | DRI | Company-operated restaurants | Orlando, US | FY2026 | Olive Garden and LongHorn; 53-week year |
| Domino's | DPZ | Franchise restaurants | Ann Arbor, US | FY2025 | Global retail sales; US digital mix |
| Marriott | MAR | Lodging brand | Bethesda, US | CY2025 | Fees vs reimbursement; RevPAR |
| Hilton | HLT | Lodging brand | McLean, US | CY2025 | Net unit growth; RevPAR |
| Carnival | CCL | Cruise owner-operator | Miami, US | FY2025 | Occupancy and onboard mix |
| Royal Caribbean | RCL | Cruise owner-operator | Miami, US | CY2025 | Occupancy 109.7%; new ships |
| Norwegian | NCLH | Cruise owner-operator | Miami, US | CY2025 | Order book through 2037 |
| Las Vegas Sands | LVS | Integrated resorts | Las Vegas, US | CY2025 | Macao vs Singapore |
| MGM | MGM | Integrated resorts | Las Vegas, US | CY2025 | Strip rooms vs MGM China |
| Wynn | WYNN | Integrated resorts | Las Vegas, US | CY2025 | Macau vs Las Vegas; Al Marjan 2027 |
| Booking | BKNG | OTA | Norwalk, US | CY2025 | Merchant vs agency mix |
| Expedia | EXPE | OTA | Seattle, US | CY2025 | Room nights vs Booking |
| Airbnb | ABNB | OTA / marketplace | San Francisco, US | CY2025 | Nights and seats; take-rate |
Companies in the Restaurants, Travel and Leisure sector (17)
Frequently asked questions
What is the Restaurants, Travel and Leisure sector?
Five cash-flow engines on one page: franchise restaurants, company-operated restaurants, asset-light hotel brands, owner-operated cruise and casino resorts, and online travel platforms. Airline operations stay on Transport and Diversified Industrials. Hotel REITs stay on REITs. Airframers stay on Aerospace.
Which companies lead the Restaurants, Travel and Leisure sector?
Sterling tracks 17 companies in Restaurants, Travel and Leisure, led by Las Vegas Sands (LVS), MGM Resorts (MGM), Wynn Resorts (WYNN), Airbnb (ABNB), Booking Holdings (BKNG) and Expedia Group (EXPE).
How can I invest in the Restaurants, Travel and Leisure sector?
Publicly traded names in Restaurants, Travel and Leisure include Las Vegas Sands (LVS), MGM Resorts (MGM), Wynn Resorts (WYNN), Airbnb (ABNB) and Booking Holdings (BKNG). Compare them side by side on Sterling. Data last updated August 26, 2026.