As long as the stock is not overpriced, buying them could protect against inflation and offer a higher return than bonds or cash in the long run.
Four rules for the defensive investor.
- Adequate diversification (between 10 and 30 issues)
- Large, outstanding, conservative companies (top 30 percent of industry)
- Each company should have 20 years of continuous dividend payments.
- The price you pay should be limited to – 25 times average earnings over past 7 years. 20 times earnings over last 12 months.
Abandon growth stocks. Too expensive and risky.
Don’t try to beat the market. Concentrate on learning the difference between price and value with small investments. The investor’s rate of return in the long run will depend on their knowledge, discipline and skill in paying a reasonable price for their investments.,