Think about a movie you've watched where everything seemed to be going great for the main character. What happened next? The character encountered a major problem that he or she had to get through, right? In Hollywood, the good times can't keep rolling for too long.
It usually works that way in the stock market, too. Major market indexes are either at or near all-time highs. Investors applauded that the Federal Reserve just cut interest rates and signaled more to come. But don't be surprised if a plot twist is around the corner.
The reality is that the stock market valuation is at a historically high level. The Fed acknowledged, "Uncertainty about the economic outlook remains elevated." A significant correction, perhaps by early 2026, wouldn't be shocking.
Like in the movies, though, challenges create opportunities. Here are three unstoppable dividend stocks to buy if there's a stock market sell-off.
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1. AbbVie
At first glance, you might think that AbbVie (ABBV -0.52%) is priced absurdly high with its price-to-earnings ratio of 103. However, that valuation metric reflects the drugmaker's past. AbbVie looks more like a bargain based on projected growth. Its forward earnings multiple is around 15, while its price-to-earnings-to-growth (PEG) ratio (which is based on five-year earnings growth projections) is a super-low 0.39.
Optimism about AbbVie's prospects is warranted, in my opinion. Sales for the company's dynamic duo, autoimmune disease drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq, continue to skyrocket. It's a similar story for migraine therapies Qulipta and Ubrelvy. AbbVie's pipeline is loaded with potential winners, too, with around 50 programs in mid- or late-stage clinical development.
I think AbbVie's share price would hold up better than most during a stock market sell-off. Physicians won't stop prescribing the company's drugs. Patients won't stop taking them, either.
What if the big pharma stock does tumble? It would make AbbVie's dividend even more attractive. The company is a Dividend King, an exclusive group of stocks with 50+ consecutive years of dividend increases. A pullback would boost AbbVie's dividend yield of nearly 3%, making it more appealing to income investors.
2. Enterprise Products Partners
Perhaps the best way to gauge how resilient a company will be in the future is to check out its past. Enterprise Products Partners (EPD -0.94%) passes such a test with flying colors. The midstream energy leader has delivered strong and durable cash flow throughout its history, including during the financial crisis of 2007-2009, the oil price collapse of 2015-2017, and the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020-2022.
Enterprise's resilience is due to its business model. The limited partnership (LP) operates over 50,000 miles of pipeline that transport crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids (NGLs) throughout the U.S. This critical energy infrastructure is largely recession-resistant. Inflation isn't a concern for the LP, either, with roughly 90% of Enterprise's long-term contracts including escalation provisions based on inflation.
Data centers hosting artificial intelligence (AI) applications present a tremendous growth driver for Enterprise Products Partners. They require massive amounts of electricity. Natural gas is a leading fuel for power plants serving data centers.
Enterprise is a dividend lover's dream stock. Its distribution yield stands at 6.8%. Even better, the LP has increased its distribution for 27 consecutive years. I expect it will keep that streak going.
3. Pfizer
If you're seeking an exceptionally juicy dividend, Pfizer (PFE -0.53%) could be just the ticket. This big pharmaceutical company offers a dividend yield of 7.15%. And its management is committed to maintaining and growing the dividend.
Admittedly, Pfizer's stock has been an underperformer in recent years. The drugmaker faces a looming patent cliff as well, with several of its top-selling products losing exclusivity over the next three years.
However, I think this bad news is already baked into Pfizer's share price. The stock trades at only 7.7 times forward earnings. Its PEG ratio is 0.96, just under the 1.0 threshold that many investors view as a cutoff for determining if a stock is attractively valued. I don't see Pfizer getting much cheaper if there's a stock market correction.
Importantly, Pfizer has products in its lineup that should help largely offset the anticipated sales declines resulting from its losses of exclusivity. They include eczema drug Cibinqo, migraine drug Nurtec ODT, and cancer drug Padcev. Pfizer also has a robust pipeline featuring 108 candidates, 28 of which are in late-stage testing with another four awaiting regulatory approvals.
