PGProcter & Gamble Company (The)

Procter & Gamble makes everyday household goods, and its resilience rests on brand strength and the ability to raise prices.

The portfolio covers categories people buy regardless of the economy: laundry, personal care, hygiene, shaving, home products. Within each sit leading brands that command a premium over a retailer's private label. That premium is the company's principal asset.

The mechanics are straightforward: volume grows slowly with population and incomes, while revenue grows through price and through customers trading up within the same category. During inflation the company raises prices earlier and by more than costs rise — hence durable margins. The flip side is that in a prolonged downturn some shoppers move to private label.

Advertising and research spending here is strategic rather than residual: without it the brand stops justifying its premium. A large share of sales is international, so a strong dollar directly reduces reported revenue. P&G carries one of the longest dividend records on the US market.