Following a dip into bear market territory earlier this year, consumer stocks have rebounded and appear to have settled back in. While the potential impact of on-again, off-again tariffs is a risk, the consumer space is still one of the best places to find attractive investments over the long term.
Let's look at three stocks that have roared back that investors can look to buy for the long run.
Image source: Getty Images.
1. Amazon
Amazon(NASDAQ: AMZN) is a great combination of a consumer and technology stock rolled into one. It owns the largest e-commerce platform in the world, as well as the largest cloud computing business in Amazon Web Services (AWS). It's also become one of the largest digital advertising platforms, as brands and third-party merchants use its sponsored ads to promote their products on its platform.
One of the best things about the Amazon story is that it is using artificial intelligence (AI) across its businesses to help both drive growth and make it more efficient. Its biggest revenue growth driver is AWS customers using its solutions to create AI models and apps and then running their AI workloads on its platform. However, it's also using AI in its e-commerce business to make it easier for third-party merchants to create listings and target consumers with its sponsored ads.
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At the same time, Amazon is using AI in its logistics and warehousing units to help become more efficient and reduce costs. For example, it's using AI to help plan better routes, while it has AI-powered robots in its warehouses that can lift heavy objects, carry packages, and even recognize damaged goods, preventing shipments and reducing costly returns. This is leading the company to see strong operating leverage in its e-commerce business.
Best of all, even after the rally from its lows, Amazon is still at one of the most attractive valuations in its history.
2. Dutch Bros
Coffee shop operator Dutch Bros(NYSE: BROS) has one of the best growth stories in the consumer space. Above everything, the company is an expansion story. It operates small locations that are mainly served by drive-thrus, giving it strong unit economics and quick payback periods. With just over 1,000 stores in 18 states, the company sees the opportunity to reach 2,029 locations by the end of 2029 and a total market opportunity of 7,000 shops.
But that's not the end of the Dutch Bros growth story. The company also has a huge opportunity to grow its same-store sales through the introduction of food items.
Despite its solid same-store sales growth, the company has left some sales on the table, especially around breakfast time, by not having any strong breakfast offerings. That's about to change, as it has been testing out an expanded food menu at several locations, which it plans to grow over time.
Currently, food makes up less than 2% of Dutch Bros sales, while food made up 19% of Starbucks' sales last quarter. It's easy to see how this could be a big opportunity for the company moving forward. It's also been late to mobile ordering, which is another solid opportunity for the coffee shop operator.
3. Philip Morris International
A growth stock in a defensive industry, Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM) has distanced itself from its competitors in the tobacco industry. The company has an advantage of not selling cigarettes in the U.S., which has been a declining market due to health concerns and the popularity of vaping. Meanwhile, international demand has remained steady, while the company has solid pricing power.
Philip Morris' growth, however, is being powered by its smokeless portfolio, led by Zyn and Iqos.
Zyn is a flavored nicotine pouch that has seen soaring popularity in the U.S. due to its subtlety and social media buzz.
Meanwhile, Iqos is a premium heated tobacco product that has been gaining share in international markets. After buying back its rights from Altria in the U.S., Philip Morris plans to roll out Iqos nationally once it gets U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for its newer Iluma system.
Best of all for Philip Morris is that its two top-growing products come with much better unit economics than traditional cigarettes. The company has said that Zyn has 6 times better product contribution levels than cigarettes, while Iqos has around 2 to 2.5 times better unit economics.
Philip Morris is also pretty isolated from tariffs. It doesn't manufacture or sell cigarettes in the U.S., so it has no worries on that front. Meanwhile, it manufactures Zyn in the U.S. for its U.S. customers.
Despite its strong performance this year -- the stock is up nearly 50% as of this writing -- it still trades at a reasonable valuation, with a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 24 times based on the 2025 analyst estimates, and a PEG (price/earnings-to-growth) ratio of under 0.4. Stocks with PEG ratios below 1 are typically viewed as undervalued.
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John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Geoffrey Seiler has positions in Philip Morris International. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon and Starbucks. The Motley Fool recommends Dutch Bros and Philip Morris International. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
