My 5 Top Stocks to Buy Right Now in This Highly Volatile Market

Source The Motley Fool

Getting dizzy from the stock market's gyrations? Join the club. The major market indexes are behaving like a frantic yo-yo, swinging up or down depending on the latest tariff- or Fed-related news from the White House.

Some investors might be tempted to throw in the towel on stocks altogether until things settle down. However, I don't think such an approach is necessary. You can still find attractive stocks despite all of the turbulence. Here are my five top stocks to buy right now in this highly volatile market.

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1. Berkshire Hathaway

Many stocks have been losers in 2025 amid the market chaos, but not Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) (NYSE: BRK.B). Shares of Warren Buffett's conglomerate have soared year to date.

I like the diversification that Berkshire offers with its 60-plus subsidiaries and 40-plus equity holdings. I like the investment discipline of Buffett and his team. And I love that Buffett has built a massive cash stockpile for Berkshire, the biggest in the company's history, that he can put to good use if stock valuations become even more appealing.

2. Dominion Energy

Utility stocks tend to be good picks when uncertainty reigns. They typically enjoy stable cash flows and are protected from competition. While there are plenty of great utility stocks you could buy, I view Dominion Energy (NYSE: D) as the cream of the crop.

Two things especially stand out to me with Dominion. First, it's based in Virginia, home to the world's largest hub of data centers, with more being built. These data centers use lots of electricity, which bodes well for the demand for Dominion's services. Second, the company pays a juicy dividend that yields 5%.

Dominion projects annual earnings-per-share growth of between 5% and 7%. That kind of growth, combined with a solid dividend, could enable the stock to deliver double-digit percentage total returns with lower risk than many stocks.

3. Enterprise Products Partners

Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD) isn't completely immune to the market's gyrations. However, this midstream energy leader is more resilient than most stocks. Even during the worst crises for the oil and gas industry over the past two decades, Enterprise was able to deliver solid cash flow per unit.

I predict that Enterprise Products Partners will benefit from increased demand for the natural gas and natural gas liquids that flow through its pipelines, thanks to a significant artificial intelligence (AI) tailwind. Natural gas fuels many of the facilities that provide electricity used in the data centers that host AI applications. I also think that Enterprise's ultrahigh forward distribution yield of 6.84% will help boost its total returns.

4. Pfizer

Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) is my contrarian pick on the list. The pharma stock has plunged in recent years as investors fretted over its declining COVID-19 product sales and looming patent cliff. However, this sell-off has created two positive side effects: (1) Pfizer's forward dividend yield now tops 7.5%, and (2) its valuation is dirt cheap, with shares trading at only 7.6 times forward earnings.

Those two factors are a big part of why I like Pfizer right now. The other key reason is that I believe the company's growth prospects are stronger than they might seem. Pfizer has several products with fast-rising sales. Nurtec ODT and Padcev especially stand out. Its pipeline is also promising: 115 programs in clinical development, 32 of which are in late-stage testing.

5. Vertex Pharmaceuticals

I could have put Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX) first on the list of my favorite stocks to buy right now if I didn't go with alphabetical sequencing. This big biotech stock is up more than 20% year to date and should keep the momentum going for two very good reasons.

First, Vertex's sales should hold up well regardless of what happens with the economy. That's a benefit of marketing the only drugs that treat the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis (CF), a functional cure for two rare blood disorders, and the most promising non-opioid pain medication to hit the market in over two decades.

Second, Vertex's growth should accelerate in the future. Its newest CF drug won U.S. approval in December 2024, while the aforementioned non-opioid pain drug won approval in January 2025. I expect both to become blockbusters for Vertex. The company also has four late-stage pipeline candidates that hold tremendous commercial potential.

Will the stock market volatility continue or wane? Will the economy deteriorate or improve? It doesn't matter for Vertex. This stock can deliver strong gains either way.

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Keith Speights has positions in Berkshire Hathaway, Dominion Energy, Enterprise Products Partners, Pfizer, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway, Pfizer, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool recommends Dominion Energy and Enterprise Products Partners. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Disclaimer: For information purposes only. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
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