Sunny days and summertime festivities are on the horizon for June. But there's no guarantee the clouds overhanging the broader market will dissipate.

Instead of trying to guess what the stock market will do in the short term, a better approach is to invest in companies with strong underlying investment theses that have the staying power to endure economic cycles.

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Here's why these Fool.com contributors see Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Shopify (NASDAQ: SHOP), Cava Group (NYSE: CAVA), ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM), and Energy Transfer (NYSE: ET) as five top stocks to buy in June.

Apple's pricing power will be put to the test

Daniel Foelber (Apple): There are 30 components in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI), and the worst-performing year to date is health insurance giant UnitedHealth (NYSE: UNH) -- which crashed due to cost pressures, regulatory scrutiny, suspended guidance, and another major leadership change. However, it's the second-worst performing Dow stock that is piquing my interest in June -- Apple.

Apple is down 22% year to date at the time of this writing -- making it the worst-performing "Magnificent Seven" stock. I think the sell-off is an excellent opportunity for long-term investors.

The simplest reason to buy Apple is if you think it can pass along a decent amount of tariff-related cost pressures. The latest update at the time of this writing is a 25% tariff on smartphones made outside the U.S. And since Apple assembles the vast majority of iPhones in China, the tariff could directly impact its bottom line.

Given higher labor costs and manufacturing challenges, moving production to the U.S. isn't a viable option. So, the million-dollar questions are how long tariffs will last and if Apple can pass along some of its higher costs to consumers.

A major catalyst that could drive iPhone demand even if prices go up is the upgrade cycle. Apple releases new iPhones every September. Most consumers aren't upgrading every year, but rather, waiting until they need to upgrade or the features appeal to them.

The upcoming iPhone 17 could have far more artificial intelligence (AI) features than the iPhone 16 -- which could attract buyers even with a higher price tag. Investors will learn more about Apple's technological advancements at its Worldwide Developers Conference from June 9 to 13.

Also, in Apple's favor, its pricing has stayed consistent for years. The base price of a new iPhone hasn't changed since 2017 as the company has preferred to keep prices low to get consumers involved in its ecosystem to support growth in its services segment. Apple's product growth has been weak in recent years, but the services segment has flourished, led by Apple TV+, Apple Music, Apple Pay, iCloud, and more.

Given tariff woes, it's easy to be sour on Apple stock right now. But the glass-half-full outlook on the company is that if tariffs do persist, at least they are coming during a time when Apple is expected to make by far its most innovative iPhone ever.

All told, long-term investors looking for an industry-leading company to buy in June should consider scooping up shares of Apple.

A growing e-commerce platform giant

Demitri Kalogeropoulos (Shopify): Shopify stock returns are roughly flat so far in 2025, but there are brighter days ahead for owners of this e-commerce services giant. The company just wrapped up a stellar Q1 period, as sales growth landed at 27%. Sure, that was a modest slowdown from the prior period's 31% increase, but it still marked the eighth consecutive quarter of growth of at least 25%.

Merchants are finding plenty of value in Shopify's expanding suite of services, even through the latest disruptive tariff-fueled trade disruptions. Merchant solutions revenue jumped 29%, helping lift sales growth above the company's 23% increase in gross sales volumes. "We built Shopify for times like these," company president Harvey Finklestien said in a press release. "We handle the complexity so merchants can focus on their customers."

Shopify is having no trouble converting those market share gains into rising profits, either. Operating income more than doubled to $203 million, and the company achieved a 15% free cash flow margin, up from 12% a year ago.

Concerns over more trade disruptions have likely kept a lid on the stock price following that positive Q1 earnings report in early May. But the company still expects 2025 growth to be in the mid-20s percentage range year over year. Shopify affirmed its initial aggressive outlook for free cash flow, too, although management sees a slightly slower profit increase (in the low-teens percentage rate) ahead for the year.

Investors can look past that minor profit downgrade and focus on Shopify's broader growth story that involves more merchants signing up for more services and booking more transactions on its platform. Success here should make the stock a great one to add to your portfolio in June, with the aim of holding it for the long term.

A Mediterranean feast for growth investors

Anders Bylund (Cava Group): Shares of Cava Group are down more than 40% in the last six months. That doesn't exactly make it a cheap stock, since Cava trades at 69 times earnings and 9.2 times sales even now.

But the Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant chain is growing quickly while reporting profits, and also widening its profit margins over time. That's a lucrative combo that deserves a premium stock price.

Cava's success hasn't gone unnoticed, despite the plunging stock chart. Two-thirds of analysts who follow this stock have issued a "buy" or "overweight" rating, and Wall Street's average target price is 44% above Thursday's closing price.

The company has a habit of absolutely crushing each quarter's analyst estimates across the board, including a huge surprise in May's first-quarter report. The average analyst expected earnings of just $0.02 per share on revenues in the neighborhood of $281 million. Instead, Cava reported earnings of $0.22 per share and $332 million in top-line sales.

A report like that would normally boost Cava's stock, but the market reaction was negative. Management noted that same-store sales growth could slow down in the second half of 2025, since the unpredictable economy is weighing down consumer spending. Cava's healthy salad bowls and pita wraps are on the pricey side, making the chain a vendor of everyday luxuries. This strategy could make Cava vulnerable to shifts in consumer confidence, especially when paired with the stock's lofty valuation.

So you won't find the stock in Wall Street's bargain basement today, but it did move down from the high-end valuation penthouse it inhabited a few months ago. If you like your investments fresh and flavorful, Cava's combination of healthy growth and expanding profits could be a recipe for long-term portfolio success.

42 dividend raises, with more coming up

Neha Chamaria (ExxonMobil): With renewables on the rise, people often believe the oil and gas industry isn't where to bet on anymore. While the global demand for energy overall is only expected to grow, driven by developing countries, ExxonMobil is in a sweet spot. It is working hard to bring down its break-even oil price significantly to stay relevant in the long run. At the same time, it is developing new low-carbon products and solutions.

It believes these new businesses could have potential addressable markets worth $400 billion by 2030 and over $2.3 trillion by 2050. Biofuels, carbon capture and storage, and low-carbon hydrogen are just some of the new products ExxonMobil is focused on.

Overall, ExxonMobil wants to produce "more profitable barrels and more profitable products" and is also cutting costs aggressively. The oil and gas giant believes a better product mix and its cost-reduction efforts combined could add nearly $20 billion in incremental earnings and $30 billion in operating cash flows by 2030.

In short, ExxonMobil is already charting a growth path to 2030 without compromising on capital discipline. It wants to generate big cash flows and maintain a strong balance sheet even through oil market down cycles, and ensure it can continue to reward shareholders with a sustainable and growing dividend on top of opportunistic share buybacks.

ExxonMobil has already proven its mettle when it comes to shareholder returns. It has increased its dividend each year for the past 42 consecutive years. Even without dividends, the stock has more than doubled shareholder returns in the past five years. With ExxonMobil stock now trading almost 20% off its all-time highs, it is one of the top S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) stocks to buy now and hold.

Ready to rebound

Keith Speights (Energy Transfer): I'm not worried in the least that Energy Transfer LP's unit price is down year to date. This pullback presents a great opportunity to buy the midstream energy stock in June.

Energy Transfer's business continues to rock along. The limited partnership (LP) set a new record for interstate natural gas transportation volume in the first quarter of 2025. Its crude oil transportation volume jumped 10% year over year in Q1. Natural gas liquid (NGL) transportation volumes rose 4%, with NGL exports increasing 5%.

The LP's growth prospects remain solid. Energy Transfer commissioned the first of eight natural gas-powered electric generation facilities in Texas earlier this year. It plans to partner with MidOcean Energy to build a new LNG facility in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Artificial intelligence (AI) is a new growth driver, with Energy Transfer agreeing to provide natural gas to Cloudburst Data Centers' AI data centers.

The Trump administration's tariffs shouldn't affect Energy Transfer much. All of the company's 130,000-plus miles of pipeline are in the U.S. Energy Transfer has already secured most of the steel to be used in phase 1 of its Hugh Brinson pipeline project. Co-CEO Marshall "Mackie" McCrea said in the Q1 earnings call that management doesn't "expect to see any major challenges, if any challenges at all, selling out our terminal every month, the rest of this year."

Even if Energy Transfer's unit price doesn't move much, investors will still make money thanks to the LP's generous distributions. The midstream leader's forward distribution yield currently tops 7.3%. Energy Transfer plans to increase its distribution by 3% to 5% each year.

Should you invest $1,000 in Apple right now?

Before you buy stock in Apple, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Apple wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $828,224!*

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*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

Anders Bylund has positions in UnitedHealth Group. Daniel Foelber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Demitri Kalogeropoulos has positions in Apple and Shopify. Keith Speights has positions in Apple, Energy Transfer, and ExxonMobil. Neha Chamaria has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple and Shopify. The Motley Fool recommends Cava Group and UnitedHealth Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The three major benchmarks struggled in the first months of the year as investors worried about the economic situation ahead. President Donald Trump set out a plan to impose tariffs on imports, a move analysts and economists said could weigh on growth. The concern is both businesses and consumers would face higher costs -- a scenario that might hurt corporate earnings.

Over the past few weeks, though, certain positive elements have helped the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC), the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI), and the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) to rebound. The U.S. reached initial trade deals with the U.K. and China, and the U.S. temporarily exempted the high-growth area of electronics from import tariffs.

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Of course, uncertainty still remains. A federal court ruling recently halted Trump's tariffs, but an appeals court then ruled the U.S. could continue collecting duties. And this legal battle may continue. Meanwhile, tensions between the U.S. and China just intensified again as the U.S. said China breached their trade agreement.

But these latest events could be temporary disturbances and might not hold indexes back for very long. And artificial intelligence (AI) stocks could be the first to benefit, considering the growth potential of that market -- analysts expect it to surpass $2 trillion by the early 2030s. So, if you're bullish on a 2025 rebound, consider these three AI stocks to buy.

1. Advanced Micro Devices

Nvidia dominates the AI chip market, but that doesn't mean there isn't room for other winners. And one that's showing potential is Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD). This chip designer is on the way up, offering an AI chip -- MI300X -- that may not beat Nvidia's top chip, but still offers customers quality performance.

Customers are realizing this, helping AMD's data center revenue to soar 57% in the recent quarter. Year-over-year growth accelerated for the fourth straight quarter, even against the backdrop of a complex economic environment, CEO Lisa Su said. This was done at increasing profitability on sales, with non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) gross margin expanding to 54% from 52% in the year-earlier period.

AMD also is a leader in the central processing unit (CPU) market -- these are the main processors found in standard computers -- and recently gained more than 16% in CPU market share, bringing it close to beating Intel in that market, according to Wccftech.

AMD trades for 27x forward earnings estimates, down from 54x less than a year ago, yet revenue has climbed significantly -- so now looks like a great time to buy.

AMD PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts

2. Broadcom

Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) is a networking expert, selling a wide range of products used anywhere from your smartphone to data centers. And speaking of data centers, they're driving growth for the company now as demand from AI customers soars.

In the most recent quarter, the company's AI revenue surged 77% to $4.1 billion, and consolidated revenue and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) reached record levels. Importantly, the momentum looks set to continue. Broadcom forecast $4.4 billion in AI semiconductor revenue for the second quarter, saying this will be driven by big cloud service providers as they pile into connectivity solutions.

Broadcom also predicted its three major cloud customers will result in a serviceable addressable market of $60 billion to $90 billion in fiscal 2027. And this doesn't even include four other big customers working with Broadcom to develop AI accelerators.

Broadcom stock is trading close to its all-time high, but considering the AI growth ahead and its valuation of 36x forward earnings estimates, there still is room for the stock to run -- and it may gather momentum as the indexes rebound.

3. Oracle

Oracle (NYSE: ORCL) once was mainly known for its database management platform, but in recent times, it's become a significant player in the AI story. This tech giant offers a broad and flexible range of cloud solutions and has seen AI cloud infrastructure revenue take off in recent quarters -- in the most recent period, it soared nearly 50%.

The company's record level of sales contracts in the quarter offer us visibility on what's ahead, and there's reason to be optimistic: This $48 billion in contracts helped remaining performance obligations, or revenue to expect from these deals, to climb 63% to $130 billion.

On top of this, Oracle is involved in the Stargate project to build out AI infrastructure in the U.S., and the company also is playing a key role in an international Stargate effort. Along with partners including AI chip giant Nvidia, Oracle will help build a Stargate campus in the United Arab Emirates.

As for valuation, Oracle looks reasonably priced, trading at 27x forward earnings estimates, considering these catalysts for growth that could push the stock higher in the months and quarters to come. So, if indexes rebound in 2025, Oracle may be one of the big winners.

Should you invest $1,000 in Advanced Micro Devices right now?

Before you buy stock in Advanced Micro Devices, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Advanced Micro Devices wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $828,224!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

Adria Cimino has positions in Oracle. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Intel, Nvidia, and Oracle. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom and recommends the following options: short August 2025 $24 calls on Intel. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) index, which includes the 30 most prominent companies in the U.S., is used by some as a benchmark of the American economy. Over the past 10 years, the Dow advanced about 135%, even as the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation, rising interest rates, and other macro headwinds rattled the markets.

Also, over that decade, some well-known companies, including General Electric, ExxonMobil, Pfizer, and Intel, were removed from the index and replaced by higher-growth companies, including Amazon, Salesforce, and Nvidia.

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But despite those occasional changes, the Dow remains a good starting point for seeking out some promising long-term investments. Today, I'll look at two of those stocks -- Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) -- and explain why they're set to soar in 2025 and beyond.

Apple

Apple's stock has slumped about 20% since the beginning of the year. The bulls shunned the tech titan for four main reasons. First, the Trump administration's unpredictable tariffs, especially against China, could cause its production costs to soar. Second, Apple's AI efforts failed to impress investors as much as OpenAI's ChatGPT and other generative AI platforms. Third, its closely watched mixed reality efforts fizzled out after it halted its production of the Vision Pro.

Lastly, Fortnite publisher Epic Games won a major legal victory against Apple after a U.S. court ruled that the company could bypass its App Store fees with other payment methods. That victory could allow other developers to bypass Apple's 30% fees with a similar payment measure. All of those challenges -- along with Warren Buffett's decision to trim Berkshire Hathaway's big stake in Apple over the past year -- weighed down its stock.

Yet investors are overlooking some of Apple's long-term strengths. It ended its latest quarter with $133 billion in cash and marketable securities, which gives it ample room for fresh investments and acquisitions. It has an installed device base of over 2.2 billion, and it's already locked in over a billion paid subscriptions across all of its services. It could leverage that massive audience to justify its App Store fees as it appeals the Epic Games ruling.

Apple's brand appeal, the stickiness of its ecosystem, and its high switching costs should continue to drive its future sales of iPhones, Macs, iPads, and other devices. Its rollout of new custom chips, its integration of new AI features, and a more affordable version of the Vision Pro -- which might arrive in 2026 or 2027 -- could keep it ahead of its Android-based rivals. As for the tariffs, it could mitigate those impacts by shifting its supply chains to lower-tariff countries like India or Vietnam.

From fiscal 2024, which ended last September, to fiscal 2027, analysts expect Apple's earnings per share (EPS) to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12%. Its stock still looks reasonably valued at 26 times next year's earnings, and it should head higher once it resolves its near-term issues.

Cisco Systems

Cisco's stock has risen about 6% this year. Investors warmed up to the world's top networking hardware and software company as its growth stabilized and fresh catalysts appeared on the horizon. It struggled in fiscal 2024, which ended last July, as its customers placed too many hardware orders after its previous supply constraints eased in fiscal 2023. A challenging macro environment then drove those customers to deploy those devices at a slower-than-expected rate -- so Cisco's shipments abruptly dried up.

But over the past year, Cisco's hardware sales stabilized as the market's demand finally caught up with its inventories again. It also expanded its observability segment by acquiring Splunk last March, and it's been expanding its cybersecurity business with new AI-powered services such as Hypershield and AI Defense. Moreover, its AI-related infrastructure business continued to expand and generated $1.35 billion in revenue in the first nine months of fiscal 2025. That accounted for 3% of its revenue during those three quarters and easily surpassed its prior goal for generating $1 billion in AI infrastructure revenue for the full fiscal year.

Cisco will probably never become a hypergrowth AI play like Nvidia, yet it provides the essential building blocks for the growing data center, cloud, and AI markets. With $15.6 billion in cash and marketable securities at the end of its latest quarter, it still has plenty of room to expand its higher-growth businesses and maintain its buybacks, which cancelled out over a fifth of its shares over the past decade, for years to come. From fiscal 2024 to fiscal 2027, analysts expect Cisco's EPS to grow at a CAGR of 9% -- and its stock still isn't expensive at 22 times next year's earnings. Simply put, it could head a lot higher over the next few years as its core markets expand.

Should you invest $1,000 in Apple right now?

Before you buy stock in Apple, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Apple wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $828,224!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Leo Sun has positions in Amazon, Apple, Berkshire Hathaway, and Pfizer. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Apple, Berkshire Hathaway, Cisco Systems, Intel, Nvidia, Pfizer, and Salesforce. The Motley Fool recommends GE Aerospace and recommends the following options: short August 2025 $24 calls on Intel. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

In recent days, investors have breathed a sigh of relief. After weeks of concerns about the impact of President Donald Trump's import tariffs, a reason for optimism emerged. The U.S. and China -- the country subject to the highest tariffs -- reached an initial agreement, and one that was better than expected. As a result, the three major benchmarks climbed, with the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) even returning to positive territory for the year.

However, amid this excitement about a better situation ahead, billionaire Jamie Dimon remains somewhat cautious. The chief executive officer of JPMorgan Chase in a Bloomberg interview said despite the tariff deal, a recession isn't "off the table at this point." Though the bank's economists lowered their U.S. recession risk forecast to below 50% from 60%, Dimon said current uncertainties such as large deficits and high interest rates could weigh on the economy -- and that market volatility probably isn't over.

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"I think it's a mistake to think we can go through all the things we're going through, and the volatility itself will come down," Dimon told Bloomberg during the bank's conference in Paris.

As CEO since 2005, Dimon has accompanied JPMorgan as its market value soared more than 400% to $743 billion, and he's often looked to for his comments on the general stock market environment to come.

Moving forward, if Dimon is right, the market still may face some challenges even after this week's landmark agreement between the U.S. and China. And that's why it's important to prepare your portfolio to handle any environment. Here are five ways to do just that.

1. Favor diversification

If your portfolio is heavily exposed to just one company or industry -- even if it's a winning one today -- now is a great time to adjust your strategy. We've seen in recent weeks that even the strongest companies -- such as artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant Nvidia -- saw their shares drop amid general tariff and economic concerns. So it's never a good idea to place narrow bets when investing in stocks.

Instead, include at least a few industries and eventually several stocks in your portfolio, so if one faces troubled times, the others may compensate. And if you're not as knowledgeable as you'd like to be about a certain industry that you'd like to invest in, don't worry: There's a simple solution. Try an exchange-traded fund (ETF) revolving around that particular industry. It will offer you immediate diversification and exposure to top companies in the field.

2. Invest in companies that have proven themselves

Well-established companies with a long track record of earnings growth over the years are your best friends during uncertain times. They've proven their ability to handle challenges -- so if their financial situations and strategies haven't significantly changed, there's reason to be confident they can do it again.

An example is Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN). The e-commerce and cloud computing giant struggled with higher inflation a few years ago and even shifted to an annual loss. But the company didn't sit still, and instead used this as an opportunity to revamp its cost structure -- a move that led it back to profitability a year later and continues to make this market giant more efficient.

So, it's worth looking at how a company has managed past difficulties, and those that have excelled may be great candidates for your buy list.

AMZN Net Income (Annual) data by YCharts

3. Buy dividend stocks

No matter what the market is doing in a given year, your portfolio still could deliver some gains if you invest in dividend stocks. These players offer you passive income just for owning the shares. This is something you'll particularly appreciate when the market is down.

How to choose a top dividend company? Look to the list of Dividend Kings, which includes companies such as Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson, and many others across sectors. These companies have boosted their dividend payments for at least the past 50 years, a sign that rewarding shareholders is important to them. So you can buy with confidence that these payments likely will continue well into the future.

4. Commit to an asset that's always won over time

It's impossible to predict the future with 100% accuracy. But one particular asset always has won over time, suggesting it could continue along this path. And this is the stock market as a whole -- from the S&P 500 to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) and the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC). After each past decline, the indexes have gone on to advance over time.

^SPX data by YCharts

To benefit from this, commit to an asset that tracks one of the three major benchmarks. An example is the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEMKT: VOO). The purchase will offer you instant diversification as well as a great chance of scoring a win -- as long as you hold on for the long term.

5. Focus on the long term

It may be very tempting to get in on the trendy stock of the moment and sell it a few weeks later for a profit. But it doesn't always work out that way. In many cases, a few weeks after your purchase, instead of gains, you may see losses -- at least on paper. That's all part of the short-term investing routine, and that puts the pressure on you to "time the market."

But I've got good news for you: You don't have to worry about all of that when you invest for the long term -- and through long-term investing, you may set yourself up for an even bigger win. How to do it? Buy quality stocks with bright future stories when they're trading for reasonable prices -- and hold on for at least five years.

You may experience ups and downs, but you won't have to worry about an economic downturn or recession wiping out your gains. By sticking with solid players throughout business and market cycles, you're likely to position yourself for a win over the long run.

Don’t miss this second chance at a potentially lucrative opportunity

Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you’ll want to hear this.

On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a “Double Down” stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you’re worried you’ve already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it’s too late. And the numbers speak for themselves:

• Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you’d have $349,648!*
• Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you’d have $40,142!*
• Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you’d have $635,275!*

Right now, we’re issuing “Double Down” alerts for three incredible companies, available when you join Stock Advisor, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of May 12, 2025

John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Adria Cimino has positions in Amazon. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, JPMorgan Chase, Nvidia, and Vanguard S&P 500 ETF. The Motley Fool recommends Johnson & Johnson. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Warren Buffett is stepping down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway but will remain chairman of the conglomerate's board of directors and its largest shareholder. He'll also still be the one and only "Oracle of Omaha." This nickname is well-deserved because of Buffett's staggeringly successful investing track record.

The "Oracle of Omaha" moniker seemed especially applicable at Berkshire's recent annual shareholder meeting. Why? The legendary investor commented on the stock market turmoil experienced this year. More importantly, Buffett made a dire stock market prediction.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More »

A "hair curler" is coming

Buffett was unfazed by the recent market volatility. He told Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, "What has happened in the last 30-45 days, 100 days, whatever this period has been, is really nothing." The 94-year-old added, "This is not a huge move."

Perspective is paramount. Buffett noted that the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) hit 381 in September 1929, nearly one year before he was born. It eventually plunged as low as 42, a decline of roughly 89%. With that as background, he stressed, "This [the recent downturn] has not been a dramatic bear market or anything of the sort."

However, Buffett also warned:

You will see a period in the next 20 years that will be a "hair curler" compared to anything you've seen before. The world makes big mistakes, and surprises happen in dramatic ways. The more sophisticated the system gets, the more the surprises can come out of left field.

Importantly, Buffett didn't predict a stock market crash in 2025. He didn't say that stocks would plummet next year but believes that a massive sell-off will occur at some point over the next two decades.

Why is the investing icon so confident about his dire prediction? Buffett explained, "That just happens periodically."

Buffett is right

He's right, by the way. The S&P 500 index (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) has experienced 20% or more declines from its previous peak nine times since 1950. That translates to a steep plunge, on average, once every eight years or so.

^SPX data by YCharts.

Simply based on history, I suspect Buffett's prediction will be proven right, too. There's never been a 20-year period when the S&P 500 didn't fall by at least 20% at some point. Believe the "Oracle of Omaha" when he prophesies that a "hair curler" market decline is coming in the future.

One of Buffett's most famous quotes is, "Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful." Once again, he was right. Stock market meltdowns present great buying opportunities for long-term investors.

How should investors prepare?

The main problem with Buffett's dire prediction, though, is that we don't know when it will be fulfilled. How should investors prepare?

Probably the most important thing to first do is adjust your mindset. Buffett told Berkshire shareholders at the annual meeting, "I know people have emotions, but you've got to check them at the door when you invest." He said that the stock market is "a good place to focus your efforts if you've got the proper temperament for it. However, Buffett added that it's "a terrible place to get involved if you get frightened by markets that decline and get excited when stock markets go up."

Another key move is to always have some cash ready to invest when the opportunity arises. Buffett practices this principle. When stock valuations are frothy, he builds up Berkshire's cash stockpile. When valuations are attractive, he puts the money to work.

In the meantime, though, don't be afraid to buy stocks that meet your investment criteria. While Buffett has been a net seller of stocks in recent quarters, he has still purchased some stocks for Berkshire's portfolio.

If and when the "hair curler" stock market predicted by Buffett comes, you can be ready for it. Making the right moves will ensure you'll be able to keep your portfolio straight, even when the market gets frizzy.

Should you invest $1,000 in S&P 500 Index right now?

Before you buy stock in S&P 500 Index, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and S&P 500 Index wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $635,275!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $826,385!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 967% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of May 12, 2025

Keith Speights has positions in Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Wall Street hasn't been hurting for catalysts of late. Following a nearly two-and-a-half-year climb in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI), S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC), and Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC), which was spurred by the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), investors have been hypnotized in 2025 by President Donald Trump's ever-changing tariff policies, wild swings in Treasury bond yields, and the return of stock-split euphoria.

But it's fair to question whether Wall Street and the investing community are missing the bigger picture: The U.S. economy.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue »

Although the economy and stock market aren't tied at the hip, corporate earnings often ebb and flow with the domestic economy. According to one recession forecasting tool, which hasn't been wrong in 59 years -- and has only been incorrect once when back-tested to 1959 -- things may not be as rosy for the U.S. economy and stock market as they appear on the surface.

It's been 59 years since this recession indicator wasn't accurate

There isn't any data point or forecasting tool on the planet that can guarantee what's going to happen next with the U.S. economy and/or Wall Street. But there are select metrics, forecasting tools, and events that have strongly correlated with directional moves in the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite throughout history. For instance, notable declines in M2 money supply have historically led to economic downturns and tough times for Wall Street.

Perhaps Wall Street's biggest concern at the moment has less to do with Trump's tariff policies, and everything to do with what the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's recession probability tool says comes next.

The New York Fed's recession predicting tool analyzes the spread (difference in yield) between the 10-year Treasury bond and three-month Treasury bill to calculate how likely it is that a recession will take shape over the next 12 months.

In a healthy economy, the Treasury yield curve slopes up and to the right. This is to say that longer-dated bonds maturing in 10 to 30 years sport higher yields than Treasury bills maturing in a year or less. The longer your money is tied up in an interest-bearing asset, the higher the yield should be.

When the yield curve inverts is where trouble starts brewing. This is where short-term Treasury bills have higher yields than long-term Treasury bonds. It's typically an indication that investors are worried about the outlook for the U.S. economy.

The only false positive for the New York Fed's recession probability tool occurred in 1966. U.S. Recession Probability data by YCharts. Gray areas denote U.S. recessions.

The New York Fed's recession probability forecast is updated on a monthly basis, with the May 2025 update pointing to a 30.45% chance of a U.S. recession taking shape by April 2026. While this is well off the 2023 high of a greater than 70% chance of a recession occurring -- this was the highest reading in four decades -- every probability reading above 32% since 1966 has eventually been followed by a U.S. recession.

But there's more to this correlation than simply looking at recession probability percentages. More often than not, previous recessions didn't materialize until the yield curve un-inverted and began moving sharply higher. You can see this dynamic in the 10-year and three-month Treasury spread comparison below.

10 Year-3 Month Treasury Yield Spread data by YCharts. Gray areas denote U.S. recessions.

Since we're coming off the steepest inversion of the 10-year/three-month yield curve in four decades, it's only natural that it's taken a bit longer for the yield curve to attempt to right itself. This un-inversion of the yield curve, coupled with the history behind the New York Fed's recession probability tool, strongly points to a U.S. recession taking shape.

It's worth noting that the initial read of U.S. first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) showed a 0.3% contraction in the economy. While this is notably better than what the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's GDPNow model had been forecasting, in terms of the U.S. economy shrinking, it still aligns with the New York Fed's recession indicator potentially being right.

Based on an analysis from Bank of America Global Research, around two-thirds of the S&P 500's peak-to-trough drawdowns between 1927 and March 2023 occurred during, not before, U.S. recessions.

Economic and stock market cycles aren't linear, which is actually fantastic news

Seeing a highly successful predictive indicator forecast a recession may not be what you, as an investor and/or working American, want to hear. But the pendulum for economic and stock market cycles swings in both directions -- and quite disproportionately.

Regardless of fiscal and monetary policy, recessions are normal, healthy, and inevitable aspects of the economic cycle. While higher unemployment and weaker wage growth often accompany recessions, economic downturns are perhaps best known for being short-lived.

In the nearly 80 years since World War II ended, the U.S. economy has navigated its way through a dozen official recessions. The average length of these 12 economic downturns is just 10 months, with none surpassing 18 months in length.

On the other hand, the typical period of growth for the U.S. economy is roughly five years over the same timeline. The economic boom-and-bust cycle is anything but a mirror image, and it explains why the U.S. economy has grown noticeably over the long run.

This wide disparity between optimism and pessimism can also be observed on Wall Street.

It's official. A new bull market is confirmed.

The S&P 500 is now up 20% from its 10/12/22 closing low. The prior bear market saw the index fall 25.4% over 282 days.

Read more at https://t.co/H4p1RcpfIn. pic.twitter.com/tnRz1wdonp

-- Bespoke (@bespokeinvest) June 8, 2023

In 2023, the analysts at Bespoke Investment Group published a data set to social media platform X that compared the length of every S&P 500 bull and bear market dating back to the start of the Great Depression in September 1929.

Bespoke found that the average bear market downturn in the benchmark S&P 500 lasted 286 calendar days, or approximately 9.5 months. The data set also shows that the lengthiest bear market on record was 630 calendar days during the oil embargo of the mid-1970s.

On the other hand, the average bull market has stuck around for 1,011 calendar days spanning nearly 94 years. What's more, if the current bull market for the S&P 500 were extrapolated to the present day, more than half of all bull markets since September 1929 (14 out of 27) would have lasted longer than the lengthiest bear market.

It simply doesn't make much sense for investors to become too preoccupied with short-lived downturns when historical data conclusively shows that the U.S. economy and stock market spend a disproportionate amount of their time in the proverbial sun.

Should you invest $1,000 in S&P 500 Index right now?

Before you buy stock in S&P 500 Index, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and S&P 500 Index wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $635,275!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $826,385!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 967% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of May 12, 2025

Bank of America is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Sean Williams has positions in Bank of America. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bank of America. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The stock market is down slightly for the day at noon ET as investors take the risk of the impact from tariffs more seriously. Earnings from Domino's (NASDAQ: DPZ) have also dampened the market's enthusiasm as consumers pull back on pizza spending.

*Stock prices used were end-of-day prices of April 28, 2025. The video was published on April 28, 2025.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More »

Should you invest $1,000 in S&P 500 Index right now?

Before you buy stock in S&P 500 Index, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and S&P 500 Index wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $594,046!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $680,390!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 872% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 160% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of April 28, 2025

Travis Hoium has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Domino's Pizza. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Travis Hoium is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through their link they will earn some extra money that supports their channel. Their opinions remain their own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool.

Special things can happen when sleepy stocks start to wake up. Looking back the past few years, there may not seem to be a lot that's interesting when it comes to Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), Disney (NYSE: DIS), and Verizon (NYSE: VZ). They're all names that most investors and consumers know, but they have a long history of slow growth.

The three stocks make up 10% of the names in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI). The iconic market gauge isn't typically a hotbed of big gainers, but I think Coca-Cola, Disney, and Verizon can beat the market for the balance of this year and beyond. Let's take a closer look.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue »

1. Coca-Cola

The story for the pop star isn't as sparkling as its namesake offering at first glance. Consumers have been cutting back on sugary beverages. Revenue has declined in more than half of the past dozen years. With the shares trading for 24 times forward earnings, it might not seem cheap given its sluggish fiscal performance.

Thankfully, there's a lot of fizz in the flatness. Coca-Cola is resonating with investors in the current climate. It's the biggest gainer among all 30 of the Dow stocks this year, the only one posting a double-digit rise in a challenging 2025 backdrop for investors. Despite being a global juggernaut, it's not as tariff-susceptible as most consumer-facing businesses. Most Coca-Cola beverages are bottled and distributed locally. It's also relatively recession-proof given the low price for refreshing escapism.

The story gets better if you zoom in a bit, a tall order for a company that's been around for 135 years. I pointed out that revenue has declined in seven of the past 12 years, but it has actually risen in the past four years. Two of those four years treated investors to rare double-digit top-line jumps.

The beverage stock reports its first-quarter results on Tuesday morning. The bulls have momentum. Coca-Cola has a knack for exceeding expectations. It has posted modest single-digit percentage beats through 2024. Can it keep the positive surprises going into 2025 and beyond?

Period	EPS Estimate	Actual EPS	Surprise
Q1 2024	$0.70	$0.72	3%
Q2 2024	$0.81	$0.84	4%
Q3 2024	$0.75	$0.77	3%
Q4 2024	$0.52	$0.55	6%

Data source: Yahoo! Finance. EPS = earnings per share (adjusted).

Now let's zoom out again. Despite the U.S. trend away from colas and even diet sodas, Coca-Cola has built up a portfolio of about 200 brands covering carbonated sodas, hydration, coffee, tea, juice, dairy, and, more recently, alcoholic offerings through low-risk partnerships. It boosted its dividend two months ago, something it has now done for a confidence-inspiring 63 consecutive years. Despite more than six decades of annual increases, its payout ratio remains under 70%. In short, the quarterly distributions should continue to move higher.

The business works. Its flagship soft drink business remains a lucrative money machine, selling its syrupy concentrate to a global network of largely independent distributors. Net margin has been 22% or better for six straight years. You may want to wait until its quarterly update this week to make sure that its outlook remains effervescent, but Coca-Cola is winning this year because it's positioned well for whatever is coming around the corner.

2. Disney

At the other end of the consumer spectrum, Disney isn't faring as well as the king of pop. The House of Mouse is among the 60% of Dow 30 stocks trading lower in 2025. Its realm of global premium-priced theme parks are naturally not sheltered from the current trade war or recessionary whispers.

However, there's still a lot to like when it comes to Disney. Content still matters, and Disney's studio remains the ultimate tastemaker. It had all three of the world's highest-grossing theatrical releases this year, and it has a strong slate of films coming out in the final eight months of 2025. With its popular Disney+ streaming platform turning profitable, the media giant is likely to see strong earnings growth that will outpace its modest revenue moves.

Analysts see revenue inching just 3% higher in the fiscal year that ends in five months, accelerating to a 5% increase in fiscal 2026. Those same pros see earnings per share rising 10% and 11%, respectively, in those fiscal periods. Disney stock is lagging the market for the fourth time in the past five years, but that makes the valuation even more compelling. The shares are trading for less than 15 times next year's earnings estimates, a historical bargain for a company that has earned its right to a market premium given decades of industry-leading content creation.

3. Verizon

Let's bring this home with Verizon. The wireless carrier is the highest yielding Dow stock with its juicy 6.5% yield. Growth for the telcos has been uninspiring. Verizon hasn't been able to top 6% growth in each of the past 15 years, and that includes slight dips in back-to-back years. Wall Street pros see revenue growth clocking in just shy of 2% in each of the next two years.

Reality hasn't lived up to the hype for Verizon and its peers. Major investments in 5G technology and other infrastructure updates haven't resulted in next-level growth. The upside is that folks aren't going to get rid of their wireless service anytime soon. Tariffs may make new smartphones more expensive, but providing connectivity is the moneymaker here. Despite the admittedly substantial debt, Verizon is still trading for less than nine times forward earnings. In other words, its streak of 18 years of dividend increases is likely to continue. It's a smart call.

Should you invest $1,000 in Coca-Cola right now?

Before you buy stock in Coca-Cola, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Coca-Cola wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $594,046!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $680,390!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 872% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 160% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of April 21, 2025

Rick Munarriz has positions in Verizon Communications and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Walt Disney. The Motley Fool recommends Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

For more than a century, the stock market has been the premier wealth creator for investors. But this doesn't mean stocks move higher in a straight line.

Over the last seven trading sessions, investors have witnessed historic levels of volatility in the iconic Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI), benchmark S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC), and growth-focused Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC).

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More »

For example, the 90-day pause on higher reciprocal tariffs for most countries, which was announced by President Donald Trump on April 9, led the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq to their largest single-session point increases in their respective histories. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq endured three of its five biggest single-day point declines from April 3 to April 10, with the S&P 500 navigating three of its six-largest single-session point drops during this same span.

Volatility is the price of admission investors pay for access to this proven wealth creator. Thankfully, stock market corrections, bear markets, and crashes tend to be short-lived. Putting your money to work during periods of historic volatility is usually a smart move.

But well before the stock market's bout of historic volatility, some of Wall Street's brightest money managers were purchasing safe stocks that can thrive in virtually any environment. What follows are five of the safest stocks billionaire investors have bought for their respective funds.

Philip Morris International

Lone Pine Capital's billionaire chief Stephen Mandel purchased four new stocks for his fund's portfolio during the December-ended quarter, as well as added to five existing positions. Arguably, none of these additions stands out more than the 1,987,716 shares purchased of tobacco giant Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM).

Tobacco stocks may not be 100% impervious to stock market volatility and short-term fear, but they're pretty close to it. Cigarette smokers have demonstrated a willingness to absorb substantial price hikes over time, and the addictive nature of the nicotine found in tobacco keeps most users loyal to the product.

Philip Morris also has the advantage of operating globally. With a presence in more than 180 countries, it's able to move the organic growth needle in emerging markets where tobacco is still a luxury, as well as rake in generally predictable operating cash flow in developed countries.

Lastly, Philip Morris International is benefiting from its ongoing but increasingly successful transition to a smokeless future. The introduction of Zyn nicotine pouches and its Iqos heated tobacco system have reignited sales and profit growth for the company. While Philip Morris stock is unlikely to move significantly higher during the current market tumult, its downside is, presumably, limited.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries

Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller of Duquesne Family Office closed out 2024 overseeing a 78-stock, $3.72 billion fund. Though turnover tends to be high in Druckenmiller's fund, he's been aggressively adding to an existing position in brand-name and generic-drug developer Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE: TEVA). Druckenmiller green-lit the purchase of 7,569,450 shares of Teva in the fourth quarter.

What's great about healthcare stocks is they're highly defensive. This is to say that people don't stop becoming ill or requiring prescription drugs just because Wall Street had a rough couple of weeks. With demand for brand-name and generic drugs constant and/or climbing, Teva's cash flow can be forecast well in advance.

Teva's recent return to sales growth is a function of the company shifting its strategy more toward novel-drug development. Whereas generic drugs offer low margins and pricing power can be weak at times, novel therapies sport juicy margins and strong pricing power. Tardive dyskinesia drug Austedo, which is Teva's top-selling brand-name therapy, may surpass $2 billion in sales this year after generating $1.23 billion in revenue in 2023.

Teva's turnaround has also featured a remarkable improvement in its financial flexibility. Following its August 2016 buyout of generic drugmaker Actavis, Teva's net debt clocked in around $35 billion. It ended last year at closer to $14.5 billion. With Teva's forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio now below 5, the risk-versus-reward profile strongly favors optimists.

Sirius XM Holdings

Despite Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffett being a persistent net seller of stocks for the last nine quarters, he's done a little bit of shopping recently. In particular, he's been scooping up shares of satellite-radio operator Sirius XM Holdings (NASDAQ: SIRI). Between Jan. 30 and Feb. 3, Berkshire's billionaire chief oversaw the purchase of 2,308,119 shares of Sirius XM.

One reason Sirius XM can be viewed as something of a safe stock amid historic market volatility is its legal monopoly status. It's the only licensed satellite-radio operator. Although it still fights for listeners with terrestrial and online radio companies, being the only licensed satellite-radio provider affords it a good degree of subscription pricing power.

Sirius XM's revenue diversification also helps it stand out from its peers. While most radio operators generate the bulk of their revenue from advertising, which is prone to significant weakness during periods of uncertainty for the U.S. economy and Wall Street, Sirius XM brought in just 20% of its net sales from ads last year. A majority of its revenue (76% of 2024 net sales) comes from self-pay subscriptions. These subscribers are less likely to cancel their service than businesses are to pare back their marketing budgets during periods of turbulence.

Sirius XM's valuation provides a solid floor, too. Valued at just 6.5 times forward-year earnings, there's reason to believe the company's downside is minimal at this point. A dividend yield north of 5% doesn't hurt, either.

Elevance Health

Billionaire Leon Cooperman closed out 2024 holding 45 securities valued at more than $2.6 billion. While there were more than a dozen stocks newly purchased and/or added to during the fourth quarter, the stand-out buy was the addition of 107,400 shares of health insurance juggernaut Elevance Health (NYSE: ELV).

Circling back to the discussion of Teva, demand for healthcare services tends to be highly predictable, regardless of what's happening with the U.S. economy or stock market. The advantage for health insurers is that it typically affords them relatively strong premium pricing power. In other words, they're often able to increase premiums to ensure they can cover rising treatment costs.

In addition to strong premium pricing power, Elevance has relied on acquisitions to expand the reach of its potentially higher-margin healthcare services subsidiary Carelon. This includes the buyouts of home health provider CareBridge, as well as BioPlus, which is a specialty pharmacy catered to patients with complex and chronic conditions. This healthcare services focus can increase margins and keep users within Elevance Health's ecosystem.

Shares of Elevance Health are currently valued at 11 times forecast earnings for 2026, which represents a 19% discount to its average forward earnings multiple over the last half-decade. This should provide ample downside protection amid heightened stock market volatility.

American Tower

The fifth billionaire money manager who was purchasing shares of an exceptionally safe stock in advance of Wall Street's historic volatility is Viking Global Investors' Ole Andreas Halvorsen. Among the 86 stocks Halvorsen holds stakes in, the brand-new acquisition of 897,340 shares of specialty real estate investment trust (REIT) American Tower (NYSE: AMT) is what stands out.

American Tower is best-known for its ownership of roughly 149,000 cellular communication towers in the U.S. and 21 other countries. Large telecom companies lease access to these towers for the antennas that make their 4G and 5G wireless networks tick. Approximately 45% of American Tower's fourth-quarter revenue came from America's big-three telecom companies, with another 28% in sales tracing back to international telecom tenants. More than half of these existing leases extend to 2030 or beyond, which leads to highly consistent funds from operations.

However, American Tower is also dipping its toes into the water to take advantage of the growing artificial intelligence (AI) and tech boom. As of the end of 2024, it was operating 29 data centers, many of which were in metropolitan U.S. cities. Though data center leasing represents only 10% of total sales at the moment, it's the company's fastest-growing segment.

The final puzzle piece that makes American Tower a safe stock to own is its dividend. In exchange for preferred tax treatment, REITs dole out most of their profits in the form of a dividend. American Tower stock is currently yielding in excess of 3%.

Should you invest $1,000 in Philip Morris International right now?

Before you buy stock in Philip Morris International, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Philip Morris International wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $495,226!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $679,900!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 796% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 155% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of April 10, 2025

Sean Williams has positions in Sirius XM and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends American Tower and Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool recommends Philip Morris International and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $180 calls on American Tower and short January 2026 $185 calls on American Tower. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.