Fears of a recession prevailed in Q2 2025 when the U.S. gross domestic product slipped 0.3% thanks to a rise in imports as the threat of tariffs loomed large.
Stocks also plummeted in early April 2025, with some indices losing close to 20% of their value before rebounding toward the end of the month. It was still a rough first quarter for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial average as these indices posted three straight months of losses.
The volatility of the stock market didn’t help alleviate fears of a looming recession, even though dips in stock prices don’t necessarily directly lead to a contraction in the American economy. By the time mid-May rolled around, fears of a recession eased as a trade deal between the United States and China was struck and tariffs were temporarily lowered.
Still, it might be prudent to look at five recession-proof stocks to invest in to protect your portfolios from volatility. Recession-proof stocks don’t necessarily add value during downtimes. Rather, they could perform better than the indices as a whole when the stock market dips.
Netflix
People often turn to streaming and entertainment when times are tough. The large volume of content on Netflix, coupled with the relatively low monthly price compared to cable TV, make it seem like a necessity to families looking to cut costs. As such, Netflix is seen as recession-proof.
Netflix (NFLX) is seen as a growth stock even as its price tops $1,100 per share. Shares are up 30% YTD, and the streamer’s all-time high occurred in Q2 also.
During the 2008 recession, Netflix stock started around $3.30 per share before topping out around $4 while the indices as a whole were in negative territory.
In 2020, Netflix rose from $330 to $520 per share because subscribers needed something to lift their spirits during scary times.
Operating income grew 27% in Q1 2025 compared with Q1 2024, both of which were ahead of the company’s guidance.
Netflix stock currently has a Buy rating. Its highest upside price price target plateaus at around $1,500 per share. The streamer has stopped reporting on its subscriber count, which was 302 million in Q4 2024. Analysts expect that number to top 330 million by the end of 2025 and reach 410 million by 2030.
Walmart
People flock to low-cost groceries in times of economic strife. Walmart’s entire business model relies on selling many items at lower prices than competing retailers. The S&P 500 tumbled 38% during the Great Recession, but Walmart (WMT) stock gained 1% from December 2007 to June 2009.
Aside from the share price, the retail giant’s revenue grew 9% in 2007 and 7% in 2008 to eclipse $400 billion in top line sales by Jan. 31, 2009. Fast forward to 2020, when Walmart stock started at around $40 per share and ended the year close to $48, bucking the trend of stocks dropping in that year.
Now, Walmart sits at $96.24, about $8 less than its current all-time high achieved on Feb. 14, 2025. Revenue from Q4 2025 (which ended on Jan. 31, 2025) was up 4.1% and operating income rose 8.3%.
Holding Walmart stock for a long time is seen as one of the safest bets. Walmart shares don’t have an exorbitantly high price compared to Amazon (AMZN) while the retail giant still keeps raising revenue and maintaining low prices for customers.
Currently, Walmart has a consensus rating of Buy from 27 out of 31 analysts, so it’s a strong bet when researching which stocks are recession-proof.
Accenture
Accenture (ACN) stock tumbled this year from around $350 at the beginning of 2025 and now sits at $322 per share after recovering from April’s selloff. It’s got a tremendous number of revenue streams and that diversification makes it attractive when tough times hit.
Accenture stock started at around $37 per share in 2008 and ended the year around $33. It did better in 2020, when the consulting firm stood at $210 per share to start the year before rising to $260 the following December.
Even though Accenture share price slid during the 2007-09 era, it still did better than the major market averages as a whole. When businesses were forced to adopt digital tools when employees worked from home in 2020, Accenture provided solutions.
Currently, Accenture has a slight Buy rating with a consensus price of nearly $355 per share. It pays a dividend yield of 1.86%, so investors receive steady payouts when holding onto this stock for an appreciable amount of time.
T-Mobile
Around 98% of the U.S. population uses a cellphone, which means these types of companies are good bets to help your stock portfolio through a recession.
T-Mobile (TMUS) is the second-largest mobile service provider in the United States with 131 million subscribers as of early 2025. It generally has strong financial performance from quarter to quarter, giving investors confidence in its growth even with a relatively high price right now.
T-Mobile has in the past when things got rocky offered lower-cost plans to help individuals save money when they switched carriers to T-Mobile.
T-Mobile began 2008 around $39 per share before ending that year at $10 lower. In 2020, the stock soared from $79 to start the year and finished at $135. As of mid-May 2025, the stock price was around $240, an increase of more than $100 per share from late 2020.
The consensus right now is that T-Mobile is a Buy rating with a target price of $269.57 and the dividend yield is 1.26%, so a predictable stream of payouts are on offer.
NextEra Energy
Everyone needs power, even during an economic downturn. Utilities are often shielded from recessions because of their steady customer base as well as being regulated monopolies with very little competition in their service areas.
NextEra Energy (NEE) is among the goliaths of utility firms and is based in Florida and has a customer base of nearly 6 million and serves around 12 million people. It kicked off 2008 at $17 per share and finished the year around $12. Fast forward to 2020, and the stock price began that year around $60 per share before gaining $15 per share by year’s end.
NextEra Energy offers a Buy rating from 8 out of 15 analysts. The price target of $81.57, up around 16% from its current price of $69.71. The dividend yield is higher than other stocks on this list at a solid 3%. So, this is a decent investment for the long term if you want to see regular and steady growth with good yields.
The author has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Financhill has a disclosure policy. This post may contain affiliate links or links from our sponsors.