Motilal Oswal sees TBO Tek and Ixigo as the top picks in India's travel recovery. The brokerage expects air traffic and hotel demand to sustain through FY27.
Alpha Score of 53 reflects moderate overall profile with weak momentum, strong value, moderate quality. Based on 3 of 4 signals – score is capped at 90 until remaining data ingests.
Motilal Oswal has named TBO Tek and Ixigo as the two stocks best positioned to ride India's travel recovery, the brokerage said in a client note. The call lands as domestic air traffic and hotel occupancy push past pre-pandemic highs, supported by rising incomes and government spending on airports and highways.
TBO Tek operates a B2B travel distribution platform that connects hotels, airlines, and tour operators with agents and corporate buyers. The company takes a fee on each booking and now lists over 900,000 hotels and 400 airlines globally. Motilal Oswal expects TBO Tek to grab a bigger slice of outbound travel, where Indian spending on international holidays has jumped sharply.
Ixigo targets a different slice of the market. The online travel aggregator focuses on budget and value-conscious travelers. Its rail and bus ticketing business gives it access to a huge, underpenetrated base of users. Flight booking is also gaining share as first-time flyers enter the market. The brokerage noted that Ixigo's asset-light model and high repeat usage protect margins better than traditional OTAs.
The read-through for the broader travel sector is straightforward. Hotel chains such as Indian Hotels and Lemon Tree, airlines like IndiGo, and intermediaries including MakeMyTrip all benefit if demand holds. Motilal Oswal's picks tilt toward companies with less direct exposure to fuel costs and tariff caps.
Valuation is a risk for both stocks. TBO Tek and Ixigo trade at multiples that already price in strong growth. A slowdown in travel demand – from a macro downturn, a spike in airfares, or a fresh COVID wave – could trigger sharp drawdowns. Competing platforms and direct-booking pushes by airlines also cap upside.
Motilal Oswal did not disclose specific price targets or earnings estimates. The brokerage expects travel volumes to sustain their upward path through FY26 and FY27, with the two companies as primary beneficiaries.
The next concrete data point is the quarterly air traffic report from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, due in mid-August. A sequential rise would confirm the trend. A stall would test the thesis.
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