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5 Recession-Proof Stocks To Consider As Economic Fears Grow

Uncertainty has taken over the market. Business and consumer sentiment data are souring as markets tumble and tariff policy continues to lack rhyme or reason. The St Louis Fed's US Economic Policy Uncertainty Index has spiked to its highest level since December 2020. The University of Michigan Survey of Consumers dropped nearly 10% from January to February and is now down 17% year-over-year.

Business owners continue to mention tariff uncertainty in surveys. The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Small Business Optimism Index fell in February while the NFIB Uncertainty Index rose to its second-highest recorded level. Complicating matters are increasing inflation expectations for 2025, which could put the Federal Reserve in a tight spot between cutting rates to spur growth or keeping rates unchanged to limit higher prices. 

This precarious cocktail has investors on edge as U.S. stocks lag global markets. While it’s too soon to talk about a recession being imminent, it’s a good time to start thinking defensively.

Here are five stocks with solid fundamentals in sectors that tend to do well when the economy slows.

Republic Services Inc.

When investors think of waste management services, they usually conjure the aptly-named Waste Management Inc. (NYSE:WM). However, the lesser-known Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) also runs integrated commercial, residential and industrial solid waste services with over 200 landfills and an additional 246 transfer stations. Contrasted to its larger rival WM, RSG has a comparable P/E ratio, better margins and a significantly better Price to Free Cash Flow (P/FCF) per Share (35.05 vs 41.89). The stock has also increased over 27% in the last 12 months, compared to just 8.7% for WM shares.

RSG shares pulled back in the first week of March, but the Relative Strength Index (RSI) recently diverged upward, indicating that volume may be accumulating for the next leg higher. RSG also scores well in two crucial Benzinga Edge metrics: 86.20 in Momentum and 88.57 in Quality. On March 4, analysts at ...