It's hard not to love an industry that's both timeless and recession-proof, and that's exactly what you get with beverage stocks. Whether it's coffee, tea, soda, or beer, people have been paying to slake their thirst for centuries, and the industry's reliability has helped create some of the world's most valuable brands.
Even better, the industry tends to offer high profit margins thanks to high barriers to entry. In the beverage sector, large brands and global distribution networks dominate. Keep reading to learn more about the top beverage stocks in 2026.
Beverage stocks to watch in 2026
Beverage companies fall into the larger category of consumer staples or consumer packaged goods -- products that people keep buying regardless of the state of the broader economy. These companies sell bottled and canned drinks in a wide range of locations, including supermarkets, convenience stores, restaurants, and bars.
| Name and ticker | Market cap | Dividend yield | Industry |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) | $291.8 billion | 3.01% | Beverages |
| PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) | $190.0 billion | 4.05% | Beverages |
| Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) | $74.0 billion | 0.00% | Beverages |
| Celsius (NASDAQ:CELH) | $12.6 billion | 0.00% | Beverages |
| Boston Beer (NYSE:SAM) | $2.2 billion | 0.00% | Beverages |
| Vita Coco (NASDAQ:COCO) | $3.0 billion | 0.00% | Beverages |
| Diageo Plc (NYSE:DEO) | $49.2 billion | 4.68% | Beverages |
NYSE: KO
Key Data Points
In recent years, the company has stepped up its efforts to diversify, acquiring Costa Coffee for $5 billion in 2019. Following the COVID-19 pandemic-induced volatility, Coca-Cola has stabilized and continues to deliver steady growth, passing along price increases and benefiting from an unmatched distribution network and marketing power.
For 2024, it reported organic non-GAAP (adjusted) revenue growth of 12%, benefiting from high inflation in a number of markets. It also posted currency-neutral earnings-per-share (EPS) growth of 16%. Those are outstanding numbers for a mature business like Coca-Cola, but investors should expect them to moderate as inflation cools.
In December 2025, the company announced a new CEO, tapping Chief Operating Officer Henrique Braun to replace James Quincey, who had a successful run after taking the reins in 2017. Quincey added a number of billion-dollar brands to the portfolio, including Topo Chico and Fairlife. Braun looks like a good pick to continue the company's success under Quincey.
2. PepsiCo
Coca-Cola's chief rival, PepsiCo (PEP -1.27%), has the benefit of being diversified into food and snacks. In addition to its ownership of beverage brands such as Pepsi, Mountain Dew, and Gatorade, it also owns the Frito-Lay snack brand and Quaker Foods.
NASDAQ: PEP
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Snack food sales have historically outperformed soda, arguably giving Pepsi an advantage over pure-play beverage companies like Coke. However, that trend changed in 2025 due in part to concerns about inflation and an interest in healthier foods. Quaker has also given the company additional exposure to the supermarket channel.
Through the first three quarters of 2025, international growth delivered solid results for Pepsi, while volumes declined in North America. Management remains focused on accelerating growth and optimizing its cost structure, as the company seems to have reached a limit with raising prices to pass along inflation.
The company also plans to cut 20% of its product offering, lower some food prices, and invest in marketing to drive improvements in 2026 in response to concerns from activist investor Elliott Investment Management. There are also fears that weight loss drugs like Ozempic could hurt junk-food purveyors like PepsiCo, but CEO Ramon Laguarta has said they aren't having an effect so far.
3. Monster Beverage
Believe it or not, Monster Beverage (MNST +0.66%) has been one of the best-performing stocks on the market since its 1992 initial public offering (IPO) and is up more than 200,000% since then. What was once a tiny beverage company called Hansen Natural struck gold in the 1990s when it acquired the Monster brand, which followed in Red Bull's footsteps to become the No. 2 energy drink in the U.S.
NASDAQ: MNST
Key Data Points
Monster remains a high-margin winner today, having ridden the energy drink boom and spun that brand into multiple flavors and subtypes. While there are signs that growth in the energy drink market may be starting to slow, the company experienced an acceleration in sales growth in the third quarter, with strong international growth, double-digit increases in core brands like Monster and Monster Ultra, a zero-sugar energy drink, and affordable brands like Predator and Fury.
Monster should continue to enjoy leading market share thanks to its partnership with Coca-Cola, widespread distribution, and well-known brand.
NASDAQ: CELH
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NYSE: SAM
Key Data Points
The Truly Hard Seltzer brand looked promising when sales of hard seltzer were soaring during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the category has since faded. Other malt beverages, like Twisted Tea and Hard Mountain Dew, have been successful for the company more recently.
The company has also sought to expand through acquisitions, though its purchase of Dogfish Head, a craft beer brand, was a misstep that led to a write-down. Revenue was flat in 2024, but Boston Beer continues to see opportunities in the Beyond Beer category, which includes its more successful Twisted Tea and Hard Mountain Dew brands.
In 2025, founder Jim Koch returned as CEO on an interim basis after Michael Spillane stepped down for personal reasons. While beer sales are still challenged across the industry, the company raised its gross margin and EPS guidance in the third quarter, showing it's making operational improvements in a difficult market.
6. Vita Coco
Coconut water is one of the newest beverage categories, and Vita Coco (COCO +4.60%) has jumped on the trend as the only pure-play coconut water stock on the market. Coconut water is seeing strong growth as a category because it is healthy and natural, giving it an advantage over alternative beverages like energy drinks, sports drinks, and sodas.
NASDAQ: COCO
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NYSE: DEO
Key Data Points
Like other alcohol stocks, growth has been sluggish of late as it competes in a mature industry, and there has been a variety of headwinds in the alcohol industry. Organic net sales were up 1.7% in the year ended June 2025, showing the company still managed to deliver top-line growth in a difficult environment.
Diageo has long been a profit machine thanks to a strong portfolio of loyalty-inspiring brands in a difficult-to-enter industry. It reported an operating margin of 28% in fiscal 2025, and it should remain a cash-flow engine even if growth remains sluggish. It also offered a strong dividend yield of 4.8% in December 2025.
Factors to consider before investing in beverage stocks
The beverage business is considered a mature, defensive industry, but even though it's categorized as part of the consumer staples sector, there are some opportunities for investors looking for growth. Keep reading to see some of the factors investors should consider with beverage stocks.
- Decide whether you're looking for value, income, growth, or a combination. Beverage stocks include stalwarts like Coke and Pepsi, which are Dividend Kings, and faster-growing stocks like Celsius Holdings and Vita Coco, which operate in growth categories such as energy drinks and coconut water.
- Despite a reputation for safety and slow growth, some beverage stocks have been huge winners, like Monster Energy and Celsius Holdings (before a recent pullback), and the industry is capable of producing more of them. The scalability and level of demand in the beverage industry mean there's a lot of room for growth if a new product catches on.
- Beverage stocks are typically seen as recession-proof, but because companies like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo sell their products at restaurants, movie theaters, and other entertainment venues, they have some exposure to discretionary spending.
- Health concerns and GLP-1 drugs have led to questions about the long-term growth in soda. In the U.S., soda volumes are down from their peak in the early 2000s, but they seem to have stabilized in recent years. There are also health concerns about energy drinks, though that hasn't seemed to slow growth in the industry.
How to invest in beverage stocks
If you're looking to invest in beverage stocks, it's simple to do. Just follow the steps below.
- Open your brokerage app: Log in to your brokerage account where you handle your investments.
- Search for the stock: Enter the ticker or company name into the search bar to bring up the stock's trading page.
- Decide how many shares to buy: Consider your investment goals and how much of your portfolio you want to allocate to this stock.
- Select order type: Choose between a market order to buy at the current price or a limit order to specify the maximum price you're willing to pay.
- Submit your order: Confirm the details and submit your buy order.
- Review your purchase: Check your portfolio to ensure your order was filled as expected and adjust your investment strategy accordingly.
Trends in the beverage industry
The beverage industry is essentially separated into two categories: soft drinks and hard drinks.
Soft drinks
For over a decade, soft drink sales have been characterized by the broad decline of soda, especially diet drinks. Companies like Coca-Cola and Pepsi have looked to alternatives, such as energy drinks, sparkling water, and coconut water, to make up for declining soda sales while leveraging their marketing abilities and distribution networks.
The size of the largest companies, including Keurig Dr. Pepper (KDP -0.55%), and their acquisition strategies make it difficult for small brands to emerge since they are more likely to be acquired by an industry leader.
Hard drinks
Demand for alcoholic beverages in the beer industry has been shifting from macrobrews like Budweiser to microbrews and craft beers, encouraging the same kind of diversification in hard drinks that we've seen in soft drinks.
The sudden rise of hard seltzer has also disrupted the industry, leading a number of industry leaders to launch their own brands. However, that may have turned the product into a fad, as sales have faded. Boston Beer has found success with malt beverages, while giants such as Anheuser-Busch/InBev have begun acquiring smaller craft beer brands.
Hard liquor, meanwhile, has been taking market share from wine and beer over the past decade, with whiskey and tequila among the winners in the category. Craft brands are being pursued and acquired by liquor companies, too.
Are beverage stocks right for you?
Beverage stocks might not fit with every kind of portfolio, but there's a good chance that most investors can find a beverage stock that works for them. Here are a few reasons beverage stocks might be right for you:
- Most beverage stocks pay dividends. Some are even Dividend Kings, having raised their dividends for at least 50 years in a row.
- The industry tends to be recession-proof.
- Established beverage companies have substantial competitive advantages due to their distribution networks, marketing power, and their ability to make acquisitions. These companies tend to have wide operating margins as well.
- Because of new beverage categories like energy drinks and coconut water, the sector also offers a number of appealing growth stocks.
- The industry lends itself to brand advantages.
- Overall, the industry offers a rewarding combination of safety, income, and reliability.
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Future outlook
While health concerns have affected some companies like PepsiCo, the industry seems to be moving past those headwinds. Zero-sugar options in energy drinks are gaining popularity, and alternative, healthier drinks such as prebiotics sodas and coconut water are also gaining steam.
The beverage industry is known for timeless brands like Coke and Pepsi. Still, there will also always be room for innovation due to the nature of beverages, which are ubiquitous, low-priced, and both a need and a pleasure.
Interest in health can work toward the industry's advantage, as consumers have shown a willingness to pay up for healthy drinks or for nonalcoholic options such as mocktails. Demand for functional beverages, which include beneficial ingredients such as vitamins and probiotics, is expected to be a source of growth, with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.1% through 2029.
Low-sugar energy drinks have been another source of growth in recent years, with a CAGR of 18% from 2020 to 2024. Overall, there's still plenty of opportunity in a sector that some think of as a slow-growth industry.
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