If an investor has accumulated $10,000 to invest in stocks, a bear market can be a great time to put that money to work. The reasoning for this is straightforward: Most stocks tend to trade at a discount.

Admittedly, which stocks to choose (aside from ETFs) can depend on many factors, such as one's risk tolerance or desire for cash flows. However, for investors willing to accept a reasonable amount of extra risk to earn outsized returns, these four stocks could potentially form a relatively stable, market-beating portfolio.

1. Alphabet

Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL 0.35%) (GOOG 0.37%) has suffered in recent months with the emergence of OpenAI's ChatGPT. Since OpenAI partnered with Bing owner Microsoft, Google Search faces its most serious competitive threat in years. A slump in ad spending also contributed to Alphabet's woes.

Nonetheless, investors often overlook the company's other businesses, which include Google Cloud and autonomous vehicle company Waymo, among dozens of others. Some of these enterprises have and will play key roles in driving company growth.

Also, Alphabet's $114 billion cash hoard gives the company control of its destiny, and its current P/E ratio of around 23 could begin to look inexpensive if ad spending turns around. With all of these attributes, investors are likely wrong to assume it is too late to buy Alphabet stock.

2. Chipotle

Fast food giant Chipotle (CMG 0.17%) has driven and should continue to drive considerable investor returns. For one, its offering of fast, natural food at a reasonable price continues to draw consumers.

Moreover, despite growing to almost 3,200 restaurants within the U.S., its popularity is spreading into smaller towns. Because of its success in smaller markets, management believes it can eventually grow to 7,000 locations in the U.S. alone. This does not include the handful of restaurants that operate in Canada and three European countries, which could help that growth continue.

Furthermore, despite inflation and economic woes, profitability is surging, as its net income of $899 million represented growth of about 38%. That could make its P/E ratio of 51 more palatable, especially since that valuation is near multi-year lows.

3. MercadoLibre

Another company that prospers amid turmoil is MercadoLibre (MELI -1.98%). It provides e-commerce, fintech, fulfillment, and advertising services across Latin America.

MercadoLibre prospers as the synergies between its various segments bolster one another. Also, it leverages regional challenges to its advantage. As a hedge against inflation, accounts with its Mercado Pago segment can offer low-risk returns. Moreover, the lack of one- and two-day delivery services in the region has driven business to Mercado Envios.

Through its offerings, revenue grew 49% in 2022 to $10.5 billion. Also, net income surged nearly sixfold to $482 million. Considering investors can buy into this growth story for less than 6 times sales, MercadoLibre looks increasingly like an excellent bear market buy.

4. Realty Income

If they're looking for a consistent growth business that offers cash, investors might find it in Realty Income (O 1.46%). The real estate investment trust (REIT) specializes in triple-net leases. These are single-tenant properties where the tenant takes responsibility for the property's taxes, insurance, and maintenance. Through this approach, it owns more than 12,200 properties, over 99% of which have current tenants.

Realty Income, which also calls itself the "monthly dividend company," offers a payout of $3.06 per share annually, a 5% cash return. Since it reported $3.92 per diluted share in adjusted funds from operations, the payout and its increases, which have occurred for 102 consecutive quarters, appear sustainable. This stability and the high dividend return mean investors can likely win with this stock, even at the current valuation of about 42 times earnings.