When Inflation Is Sticky, 5 Dividend Aristocrats Are the Stocks to Own Now and Forever

The recent personal consumption expenditures (PCE) report confirmed what most of Wall Street already suspected. The core PCE was flat month-over-month, but the headline annual inflation rate edged higher to 3.7% from 3.6%. That may not be enough to tip the scales and force the Federal Reserve to raise rates in September, but if the August jobs report and the consumer and producer price index readings due early next month come in hot, that could be the final straw. One thing is for sure: in a world of economic reports and mind-numbing data, all you have to do is visit the grocery store and check the price of meat, where two T-bone steaks now cost $40.

With the prospect of continued “sticky inflation,” at the very least for the foreseeable future, we researched which sectors fare best during persistent inflation. Energy, consumer staples, real estate, and healthcare tend to perform well during periods of inflation. Five Dividend Aristocrats are exceptionally well-equipped to withstand persistent inflation. With decades of uninterrupted dividend growth, these companies have the pricing power and hard-asset backing to pass rising input costs on to consumers.

Investors seeking defensive companies that pay substantial dividends are drawn to the Dividend Aristocrats, and with good reason. The 69 companies that made the cut for the 2026 S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats list have increased their dividends (not just maintained the same level) for 25 consecutive years. But the requirements go even further, with the following attributes also mandatory for membership on the Dividend Aristocrats list:

• Companies must be worth at least $3 billion for each quarterly rebalancing.
• Their average daily volume must be at least $5 million in transactions for every trailing three-month period at every quarterly rebalancing date.
• They must be members of the S&P 500.

We reviewed the list and identified five companies that could perform well for investors during inflationary times, and they make sense for growth and income investors now. All are rated Buy at top Wall Street firms we cover.

Why Do We Cover the Dividend Aristocrats?

S&P 500 companies that have paid and raised dividends for 25 years or longer are the types of investments growth and income investors want to buy and hold in their portfolios for the long term. These stocks are mostly conservative, and if we see a dramatic market correction, they will likely hold up much better than volatile technology and momentum names.

AbbVie

AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV | ABBV Price Prediction) is ranked sixth among the largest biomedical companies by revenue. This stock is one of Wall Street’s top pharmaceutical picks and an excellent choice for long-term ownership, offering a reliable 2.58% dividend yield. Few dividend stories in the market match what AbbVie has delivered since spinning off from Abbott Laboratories in 2013. The dividend has grown from $1.60 per share to a projected $6.92 in 2026, more than a fourfold increase in roughly a decade, compounding at better than 15% annually. That kind of dividend growth doesn’t just keep pace with inflation; it outpaces it.

AbbVie discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells pharmaceuticals worldwide. It offers:

• Humira, an injection for autoimmune and intestinal Behçet’s diseases and pyoderma gangrenosum
• Skyrizi to treat moderate to severe plaque psoriasis, psoriatic disease, and Crohn’s disease
• Rinvoq to treat rheumatoid and psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, atopic dermatitis, axial spondyloarthropathy, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn’s disease
  Imbruvica for the treatment of adult patients with blood cancers; Epkinly to treat lymphoma
• Elahere to treat cancer
• Venclexta/Venclyxto to treat blood cancers

It also provides:

• Facial injectables, plastics and regenerative medicine, body contouring, and skin care products
• Duopa and Duodopa to treat advanced Parkinson’s disease
• Ubrelvy for the acute treatment of migraine in adults
• Qulipta for episodic and chronic migraine
• Botox is therapeutic for depressive disorder

The company also offers Ozurdex for eye diseases, as well as Lumigan/Ganfort and Alphagan/Combigan to reduce elevated intraocular pressure in patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension. AbbVie also offers Restasis to increase tear production, along with other eye care products.

Further, it provides:

• Mavyret/Maviret to treat chronic hepatitis C virus genotype 1-6 infection
• Creon, a pancreatic enzyme therapy
• Lupron to treat advanced prostate cancer, endometriosis, and central precocious puberty, and patients with anemia caused by uterine fibroids
• Linzess/Constella to treat irritable bowel syndrome with constipation and chronic idiopathic constipation
• Synthroid for hypothyroidism

Piper Sandler has an Overweight rating and a $303 price target.

Chevron

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) is an American multinational energy company primarily focused on oil and gas. This integrated giant is a safer option for investors looking to gain exposure to the energy sector and pays a substantial 3.44% dividend yield, which was raised by 5% earlier this year.

Chevron operates integrated energy and chemicals businesses worldwide through two segments. The Upstream segment is involved in the following:

• Exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas
• Processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas
• Transportation of crude oil through pipelines, and transportation and storage
• Marketing of natural gas, as well as operating a gas-to-liquids plant

The Downstream segment engages in:

• Refining crude oil into petroleum products
• Marketing crude oil, refined products, and lubricants
• Manufacturing and marketing renewable fuels
• Transporting crude oil and refined products by pipeline, marine vessel, motor equipment, and rail car
• Manufacturing and marketing of commodity petrochemicals, plastics for industrial uses, and fuel and lubricant additives

It also involves cash management, debt financing, insurance operations, real estate, and technology businesses.

Chevron completed its $53 billion acquisition of Hess in July 2025. The merger proceeded after a favorable arbitration ruling against Exxon over Hess’s lucrative offshore oil assets in Guyana. The purchase has strengthened an already solid balance sheet and earnings.

Bank of America has a Buy rating and a price target of $227.

PepsiCo

This top consumer staples stock reported surprisingly solid second-quarter earnings and will continue supplying goods for upcoming football tailgates and parties. PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) is a global food and beverage company that pays a notable 4.16% dividend yield. The company’s low volatility (beta of 0.375) makes it a steady, defensive holding perfect while waiting for a comeback.

Its Frito-Lay North America segment offers:

• Lays and Ruffles potato chips
• Doritos, Tostitos, and Santitas tortilla chips
• Cheetos cheese-flavored snacks, branded dips
• Fritos corn chips

The Quaker Foods North America segment provides:

• Quaker Oatmeal
• Grits
• Rice cakes
• Natural granola and oat squares
• Pearl Milling mixes and syrups
• Quaker Chewy granola bars
• Cap’n Crunch cereal
• Life cereal
• Rice-A-Roni side dishes

The North America Beverages segment offers beverage concentrates, fountain syrups, and finished goods under these brands:

• Pepsi
• Gatorade
• Mountain Dew
• Diet Pepsi
• Aquafina
• Diet Mountain Dew
• Tropicana Pure Premium
• Sierra Mist
• Mug

J.P. Morgan has an Overweight rating with a $170 target price.

Procter & Gamble

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) was founded more than 185 years ago as a soap and candle company. It has paid dividends to shareholders since 1891, raised them for 70 straight years, and currently pays a 2.98% dividend. The company is focused on providing branded consumer packaged goods to consumers worldwide and has operations in approximately 70 countries.

Procter & Gamble segments include:

• Beauty
• Grooming
• Health Care
• Fabric & Home Care
• Baby
• Feminine & Family Care

The company’s products are sold in approximately 180 countries and territories primarily through mass merchandisers, e-commerce, including social commerce channels, grocery stores, membership club stores, drug stores, department stores, distributors, wholesalers, specialty beauty stores, including airport duty-free stores, high-frequency stores, pharmacies, electronics stores, and professional channels. It also sells directly to individual consumers.

Procter & Gamble offers products under such brands as:

• Head & Shoulders
• Herbal Essences
• Pantene
• Rejoice
• Olay
• Old Spice
• Safeguard
• Secret
• SK-II
• Braun
• Gillette
• Venus
• Crest
• Oral-B
• Ariel
• Downy
• Gain
• Tide
• Always
• Always Discreet
• Tampax
• Bounty

Citigroup has a Buy rating and a $170 target price.

Target

This American retail corporation with a chain of discount department stores and hypermarkets has rebounded strongly this year after a difficult 2025. Target (NYSE:TGT) is a general merchandise retailer in the United States and pays a 2.68% dividend. It offers apparel for women, men, boys, girls, toddlers, infants, and newborns, as well as jewelry, accessories, and shoes. The company also offers beauty and personal care products, baby gear, cleaning supplies, paper products, and pet care products.

Target also provides:

• Dry grocery, dairy, frozen food, beverages, candy, snacks, deli, bakery, meat, and food service
• Electronics, which includes video game hardware and software
• Toys, entertainment, sporting goods, and luggage
• Furniture, lighting, storage, kitchenware, small appliances, home décor, bed, and bath
• Home Improvement
• School/office supplies
• Greeting cards, party supplies, and other seasonal merchandise

The company also sells merchandise through periodic design and creative partnerships, shop-in-shop experiences, and in-store amenities. It also sells its products through its stores and digital channels, including Target.com.

UBS has a Buy rating with a $185 price target.

 

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