3 Consumer Staples Stocks Built To Create Long-term Wealth

By Thomas Niel – Mar 17, 2026 at 12:30AM EST

Key Points

• Costco Wholesale may seem pricey on the surface, but as the “growth story” stays intact, s remain positioned for further gains.

• Altria Group’s high dividend stock status has been the secret behind the Marlboro maker’s continued strong market performance.

• Walmart’s AI and e-commerce pivots leave the retail giant poised to stay an outperformer.

Despite a rich valuation, Costco Wholesale remains primed for steady growth

Over time, Costco Wholesale has performed quite well. For instance, over the past five years, Costco s have generated total returns of around 220%, versus 82% for the S&P 500 index. Over the past decade, Costco s have generated total returns of 679%, while the S&P 500’s total return has been just over 291%.

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NASDAQ: COST

Costco Wholesale

Today’s Change

(-0.65%) $-6.59

Current Price

$1001.84

Key Data Points

Market Cap

$444B

Day’s Range

$995.50 – $1012.61

52wk Range

$844.06 – $1067.08

Volume

39K

Avg Vol

2.4M

Gross Margin

12.93%

Dividend Yield

0.52%

Nevertheless, ing Costco’s long stream of outperformance, at first glance, this stock may appear overvalued. Currently, Costco trades for 49.5 times forward earnings. This forward multiple exceeds those of other retailers, including Amazon and Walmart. Add in emerging headwinds, the brewing legal battle between the company and its customers over tariff refunds, and s may appear to be on the verge of a correction.

However, Costco is ly able to sustain this high forward multiple as long as Costco’s growth story persists. Based on the company’s latest financials, this arguably remains true. For the preceding quarter, revenue of $69.6 billion and earnings of $4.55 per came in ahead of estimates. On a year-over-year basis, sales and earnings increased by 8.1% and 10.9%, respectively.

Although further valuation expansion may prove tricky, if Costco’s earnings keep growing at a high single-digit to low double-digit pace, s could continue climbing in tandem with earnings. Over time, Costco’s 0.5% dividend could become a greater contribution to total returns in the coming years, given how management continues to raise payouts by 12% to 13% annually.

Don’t discount Altria Group’s wealth-building potential

Altria Group has historically been a wealth-generating machine among consumer staples stocks. However, even with the long-term decline in cigarette usage among Americans, s in the Philip Morris USA parent have once again started to outperform the S&P 500.

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NYSE: MO

Altria Group

Today’s Change

(-0.53%) $-0.36

Current Price

$67.53

Key Data Points

Market Cap

$113B

Day’s Range

$67.53 – $68.55

52wk Range

$52.82 – $70.51

Volume

7.3M

Avg Vol

10M

Gross Margin

75.86%

Dividend Yield

6.16%

A key reason behind this has been Altria’s status as one of the high-yield dividend stocks. Investors who reinvested Altria’s large quarterly cash payouts into additional s have experienced strong capital compounding — in the last year, Altria s are up 15%, but when including dividend reinvestment, the total return is 23%.

That said, with products nicotine pouches convincing smokers to switch rather than quit, concerns run high that Altria’s wealth-building days are behind it. That’s mostly because its competitors Philip Morris International have more successfully capitalized on this “smokefree” trend.

Yet while Altria’s “smokefree success” pales in comparison to that of its former corporate sibling, I wouldn’t write it off completely. Thanks to cigarette price increases and the company’s own modest success in the smoke-free arena (Altria Stock: Company Goes Smoke-Free, Supercharges Its Yield | Investor’s Business Daily), the company has managed to sustain positive, albeit modest, earnings growth.

On its own, Altria’s 6.2% dividend yield appears secure. So, too, does the company’s ability to continue raising payouts by at least single digits in the years ahead. Through acquisitions and/or new product launches, Altria could also further strengthen its position in smokeless and tobacco-free nicotine products. If this occurs, s could receive an additional long-term boost, as investors rerate the stock to a valuation on par with its pricier competitor.

Walmart’s digital transformation is still building significant wealth

Over the past decade, in terms of total returns, Walmart s have outperformed the S&P 500 by a wide margin. A big reason for this has been the big box retailer’s shift from being solely a brick-and-mortar retailer to a formidable force in e-commerce.

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NASDAQ: WMT

Walmart

Today’s Change

(-0.41%) $-0.52

Current Price

$126.00

Key Data Points

Market Cap

$1.0T

Day’s Range

$124.82 – $126.94

52wk Range

$79.81 – $134.69

Volume

816K

Avg Vol

31M

Gross Margin

23.41%

Dividend Yield

0.75%

This has led to steady, consistent earnings growth, and in turn, a richer valuation than that of Target. However, ing this big run-up, analysts and investors ahave started to question whether Walmart is worth its current valuation. Right now, its s trade for 42 times forward earnings. Despite concerns about a possible bubble in this stock, consider several catalysts that could sustain the long-term bull case.

There’s the prospect of further e-commerce growth, for one. During 2025, Walmart’s global e-commerce net sales grew 24%, making up 23% of global sales . The company is also accelerating its integration of artificial intelligence, both in its stores and online. This AI pivot could help to further boost revenue and earnings, and this could lead to further strong gains for s. Last year, Walmart increased its dividend by 9.2%, a rate much higher than in prior years.

Walmart’s dividend is relatively small, giving the stock a forward yield of 0.8%. However, in the years ahead, if high dividend growth continues, these payouts could make up a greater percentage of total returns.

Read Next

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Is It Too Late to Buy Costco?

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About the Author

Thomas Niel is a contributing Analyst at The Motley Fool, covering publicly traded companies in the consumer goods and technology sectors. Prior to the Motley Fool, Thomas was a contributing Analyst for several online investing publications, including InvestorPlace, Seeking Alpha, and TipRanks. He also has past career experience in the accounting and government contracting industries. He holds a B.B.A. in Accounting from Marymount University. Thomas won his school’s geography bee in the fifth grade, but retired from the professional geography bee circuit shortly thereafter.

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Stocks Mentioned

*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.