The Best 3 Consumer Staples Stocks to Buy and Hold for Decades

Consumer staples stocks account for just 5.3% of the S&P 500, making it the seventh-largest sector weight in that index, but don't let that fool you. For what the sector lacks in glitz and glamour compared to, say, tech, it makes up for in familiarity. These companies make products consumers use every day, thereby creating brand loyalty.

Of course, investing isn't a popularity contest. Fortunately, household products and consumer packaged goods stocks offer credible reasons for investors to pay attention, including favorable volatility profiles, above-average dividend yields, and enviable track records of payout growth.

These three consumer staples stocks are worth considering as buy-and-hold investments. Image source: Getty Images.

Those are attractive traits, but not all staple names possess them. It's a reminder that stocks in this sector don't move in lockstep. Nor do they all sport comparable valuations. Believe it or not, some marquee staple stocks are more expensive than Nvidia.

Good news: There are still plenty of staple names for buy-and-hold investors to evaluate. Let's take a look at three of them.

Unheralded stock with plenty of carbonation

Earlier this month, I highlighted Coca-Cola Consolidated (NASDAQ: COKE) as the "other Coca-Cola stock" to consider.

Keeping with the theme of evaluating unheralded soft drink equities, meet Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (NASDAQ: CCEP). This company is the international counterpart to Coca-Cola Consolidated, meaning it produces and ships Coca-Cola products to more than 600 million consumers in 31 markets. Like its domestic peer, the international bottler operates independent of Coca-Cola, but "big Coke" owns 19% of this company.

This company and potentially its shares benefit from rising demand for Coca-Cola products. Plus, it's a shareholder rewards story. It's showing signs of dependable dividend growth, and it's also a dedicated buyer of its own shares.

The doctor is in

Changes are afoot at Keurig Dr Pepper (NASDAQ: KDP) as the company nears the closure of its $18 billion acquisition of JDE Peet's. From there, it will split into two entities, focusing on global coffee and North American soft drinks.

That deal will lift Keurig's debt ratio, but the company had ample liquidity, including $1 billion in cash on hand, at the end of 2025. The Peet's transaction isn't small, but as the buyer digests it and separates its two core businesses, the expectation is that it will generate an average of $4.2 billion in annual free cash flow from 2027 through 2030.

Dividend growth may be slow or even stall while the doctor pares debt following the Peet's acquisition. Still, it's expected to reaccelerate once the beverage giant's debt ratio returns to normal levels.

Betting on a downtrodden staples stock

Investors who follow this sector know that Clorox (NYSE: CLX) has been a dud. Over the past five years, the stock is down 37.6%, while the S&P 500 Consumer Staples index is up 32%. That wide gap understandably makes investors leery about approaching this stock.

Clorox has some things going for it that could facilitate a rebound. The company is innovative, and its research and development efforts help it fend off competition from cheaper generic products. Plus, Clorox is a dividend stalwart, as its payout increase streak is approaching five decades, confirming it offers the dependability equity income investors crave.

Todd Shriber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.