Consumer staples are companies that make and sell essential goods that individuals and families can’t do without. Food, drinks, household cleaning products, personal care items and even tobacco and alcohol are all considered consumer staples. These products meet people’s basic needs. They are always in demand regardless of market and economic conditions, and the companies that produce them always have a dependable customer base.
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The consumer staples sector is considered a defensive sector, meaning it offers stability and generally lower sensitivity to economic and stock market cycles. In other words, consumer staples stocks can be a reliable investment in times like the ones we’re living through now.
Wall Street pros will tell you that consumer staples stocks have a lower beta than stocks in some other sectors. What they mean is that consumer staples are less sensitive and, as such, provide a welcome buffer against big market swings. Historically, this is true. The consumer staples sector fared better than most other sectors during the 2008 financial crisis and the 2020 market crash precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s because the sector’s focus on necessities rather than discretionary items makes it less prone to consumer cutbacks if and when individuals pull back on their spending.
Additionally, because they have reliable revenue streams, many consumer staples stocks pay regular dividends. Dividend income is a form of passive cash flow that can smooth out the ups and downs of the market and act as a hedge against inflation in turbulent times.
If you’re one of the many investors who appreciate the defensive nature and historical performance of consumer staples, today’s list will interest you. The seven companies below have performed admirably so far this year, while the broad stock market has struggled to edge higher:
| Stock | Forward Dividend Yield | Market Cap |
| Walmart Inc. (ticker: WMT) | 1.0% | $777 billion |
| Coca-Cola Co. (KO) | 2.9% | $306 billion |
| Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) | 0.5% | $448 billion |
| Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) | 3.0% | $283 billion |
| Dollar General Corp. (DG) | 2.1% | $25 billion |
| Unilever PLC (UL) | 3.3% | $154 billion |
| Kimberly-Clark Corp. (KMB) | 3.5% | $44 billion |
Walmart Inc. (WMT)
Until the fourth quarter of 2024, WMT was the world’s biggest retail stock in terms of revenue. The company’s sales have been eclipsed by Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN), but with over 10,500 stores and clubs worldwide, WMT is, by far, still the largest retailer in terms of brick-and-mortar locations.
WMT operates through three segments: Walmart USA, Walmart International and Sam’s Club. Each of those segments has a thriving online operation that perfectly complements its physical locations.
The company runs department stores, large supercenter outlets, Walmart Neighborhood Markets and a large network of almost 800 Sam’s Club warehouse stores that compete directly with Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) in most major markets in the U.S.
WMT has a market cap of $777 billion and has increased its dividend every year for 52 consecutive years. Today, the stock pays a forward annual dividend of 94 cents a share, which translates to a yield of 1%.
Coca-Cola Co. (KO)
The next stock on today’s list, KO, is also a consistent dividend payer. KO has been in business for over 140 years and has increased its dividend payment for the last 63 consecutive years. KO is considered a true American blue-chip stock.
KO has a market cap of over $300 billion; it is, by far, the most successful non-alcoholic beverage company in the world. The stock market as a whole has struggled, but KO is charging higher. As of June 5, KO had a year-to-date performance of 13.9% and appears to be still going strong. This stock is doing exactly what investors expect from a high-quality, large-cap name in the consumer staples sector.
The company’s ongoing success is a function of its powerful brands. KO owns Coke, Diet Coke, Powerade, Sprite, Minute Maid and many more household names. Based on the power of those brands, Wall Street estimates the company will generate more than $48 billion in revenue in fiscal 2025 and grow revenues by over 5% to $50.6 billion in 2026.
KO has a forward dividend yield of 2.9%.
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST)
Over many years, through many economic and market cycles, COST has demonstrated a unique ability to be resilient and succeed in good times and bad.
COST operates big-box, warehouse retail outlets throughout North America and internationally. The company’s business model is based on paid memberships. Customers must pay an annual fee of between $65 and $130 for the privilege of shopping at a Costco, yet business is booming and membership numbers are climbing.
The success COST has had with its unique business model in a very challenging retail environment shows how skillful and adaptable this company is at managing prices and delivering a rewarding shopping experience.
Additionally, the stock pays a forward annual dividend of $5.20 a share, which translates to a current yield of 0.5%.
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Philip Morris International Inc. (PM)
PM is a tobacco company that, while deriving most of its revenue and earnings from cigarettes and other tobacco products, is actively reshaping it’s product portfolio to prioritize smoke-free products like e-vapor and heat-not-burn devices and oral nicotine gums and pouches.
This commendable shift reflects the company’s commitment to reducing the negative health effects of tobacco use, changing consumer preferences and more stringent regulatory trends.
PM’s Q1 2025 financial reports showed strong performance that were the results of increasing pricing power, good volume growth and operational efficiency. It reported $9.3 billion in revenue, which was 5.8% higher than year-over-year results. On the earnings front, PM reported diluted EPS of $1.72, which was up 9.3% over the $1.38 it reported for the same period in 2024.
Another highlight of the report was the unexpected performance of its smoke-free business. Combined deliveries of heated tobacco and oral nicotine products exceeded 40 billion units in a single quarter for the first time in company history.
The stock’s market cap exceeds $283 billion, and its forward annual dividend yield is 3.0%.
Dollar General Corp. (DG)
DG is a $25 billion discount retailer that’s based in Goodlettsville, Tennessee and operates more than 20,500 brick-and-mortar stores in the lower 48 U.S. states, the District of Columbia and Mexico. The company is a powerhouse — a Fortune 500 company — in conveniently located, low-cost, no-frills retail.
DG’s mission is to provide affordable, high-quality consumer staples, including name-brand and private-label food, cleaning supplies, health and beauty products, home goods and inexpensive apparel. The company routinely produces more than $10 billion in revenue a quarter.
Goldman Sachs has a “buy” rating on the name, while Raymond James rates the stock “outperform”.
The stock features an annual forward dividend of $2.36. Based on its June 5 closing price of $113.84, that equates to a yield of 2.1%.
Unilever PLC (UL)
Most American consumers have heard of the brands Dove, Hellmann’s, Knorr, Lipton, Axe and Ben & Jerry’s. What they may not know is that all of those brands and many more household names are owned by Unilever.
UL has its headquarters in London, but sells food and consumer staples all over the world. The company can trace its history back 96 years to 1929 when Lever Brothers merged with Margarine Unie to become Unilever.
Approximately 3.4 billion shoppers buy Unilever products every day. The company’s five core product lines — Beauty & Wellbeing, Personal Care, Home Care, Nutrition and Ice Cream — are estimated to produce $60 billion in sales in fiscal 2025 and grow that figure by 1.6% to $61 billion in 2026.
The stock has a forward dividend yield of 3.3%, and a market cap of $154 billion.
Kimberly-Clark Corp. (KMB)
Dallas-based KMB is a $44 billion global leader in personal care and consumer paper products such as tissues, toilet paper and paper towels. KMB employs more than 41,000 people worldwide, and sells its consumer staple products in the U.S. and 174 other countries around the world.
Many of KMB’s brands can legitimately be called iconic. They include Huggies diapers and wipes, Pull-Ups toddler training pants, Cottonelle toilet paper, Scott paper towels and Kleenex, the world’s leading facial tissue brand. And these are only a sampling of KMB’s portfolio.
KMB is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and is a component stock of the S&P 500. Wall Street is looking for $19.5 billion in revenue from the company in 2025 and a modest increase of about 2% to $19.9 for 2026.
KMB is a reliable income stock with a current forward dividend yield of 3.5%.
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7 Best Consumer Staples Stocks to Buy Right Now originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 06/06/25: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
