2 Unstoppable Dividend Stocks to Buy if There's a Stock Market Sell-Off

By Lawrence Rothman, CFA – Feb 15, 2026 at 4:53PM ESTKey PointsDuring bear markets, it's comforting to buy stocks that have raised dividends for decades.Coca-Cola belongs to the elite Dividend Kings, having raised its payout for 63 years straight.Realty Income raises dividends multiple times a year, also proving itself a reliable dividend payer.We’re bullish on these 10 stocks ›NYSE: KOCoca-ColaMarket Cap$338BToday's Changeangle-down(-0.43%) $0.34Current Price$78.66Price as of February 13, 2026 at 3:58 PM ETA broad stock market sell-off presents long-term investors with a buying opportunity.Admittedly, a broad stock market sell-off can feel scary. It feels like the bad news will never end, and investors have something new to worry about each day. But these times will pass.

The Great Recession and the early days of the pandemic, while painful to many people for various reasons, have passed. And the stock market's bear market eventually recovered. For long-term investors, these down markets can present a buying opportunity. That's because broad-based sell-offs affect strong companies, too. These two dividend-paying stocks top my list for purchase when the next big sell-off occurs. Image source: Getty Images. 1. Coca-Cola Coca-Cola (KO 0.43%) sells beverages around the globe under highly recognized brands. These include its namesake brand, Sprite, and Fanta. Beyond soda, it also sells other beverages, like water, juice, and plant-based beverages. Coca-Cola has struggled to grow volume. For all of 2025, sales, after removing the effects of foreign-currency translations and acquisitions/divestitures, grew a solid 5%. But price/mix added 4 percentage points, while concentrate sales boosted sales by 1 percentage point. Still, this isn't concerning, given consumers' weariness following a sustained bout of inflation. As a sign of its brands' strength, Coca-Cola's products continued to gain market share. ExpandNYSE: KOCoca-ColaToday's Change(-0.43%) $-0.34Current Price$78.66Key Data PointsMarket Cap$338BDay's Range$78.10 - $79.3952wk Range$65.35 - $80.41Volume677KAvg Vol18MGross Margin63.34%Dividend Yield2.59% Meanwhile, Coca-Cola has built an impressive dividend history. In February of last year, the board of directors announced a more than 5% increase in the quarterly payout. That made it 63 straight years with a raise, and the company is a Dividend King. This is an elite group of companies that have increased dividends for at least 50 consecutive years. If history is any guide, investors can expect Coca-Cola to announce another increase shortly. The company's payout ratio, which compares dividends to earnings, of 67% indicates Coca-Cola has the profit to support dividends. The shares sport a 2.6% dividend yield, 1.5 percentage points higher than the S&P 500 index's 1.1%. 2.

Realty Income Realty Income (O +1.36%) is a real estate investment trust (REIT), which typically makes ideal investments for dividend-hungry investors. That's because REITs must pay out at least 90% of their taxable income as dividends. It gets about 80% of its rent from retail tenants, which may scare off investors, given the online threat and sensitivity to the economic cycle.

But Realty Income has been doing this for a long time, and occupancy rates remain high. In the third quarter, it had an almost 99% occupancy rate, and it received a 3.5% rental rate increase on expiring leases. ExpandNYSE: ORealty IncomeToday's Change(1.36%) $0.88Current Price$65.66Key Data PointsMarket Cap$60BDay's Range$64.75 - $66.0052wk Range$50.71 - $66.28Volume226KAvg Vol6.5MGross Margin48.14%Dividend Yield4.92% Paying dividends monthly, Realty Income has historically raised the payout multiple times a year. It did so most recently in December. That ran its streak to 113 straight quarters in which the company raised dividends. The company paid out about 75% of its third-quarter adjusted funds from operations (AFFO), a key metric for REITs since it measures cash flow available for distribution. Realty Income's shares have a 5% dividend yield.Read NextFeb 15, 2026 •By Keith Speights3 Dividend Stocks to Hold for the Next 20 YearsFeb 14, 2026 •By John BallardThe Best Dividend Stocks to Buy and Hold ForeverFeb 13, 2026 •By Leo Sun2 Consumer Staples Stocks to Buy in February 2026Feb 13, 2026 •By James BrumleyThe Best Dividend Stocks to Buy and Hold ForeverFeb 13, 2026 •By Reuben Gregg BrewerCoca-Cola Stock Is Interesting, But Here's What I'd Buy InsteadFeb 12, 2026 •By Matthew BenjaminBuffett's All-Time Favorite Stock Is Dropping. What's Going On?About the AuthorLawrence Rothman, CFA, has been a contributing Motley Fool stock market analyst since 2019, covering consumer goods and retail stocks. Previously, Lawrence worked on Wall Street and at independent research firms before devoting his attention to finding successful long-term investments for individual investors.TMFLarryrothmanStocks MentionedCoca-ColaNYSE: KO$78.66 (0.43%) $0.34Realty IncomeNYSE: O$65.66 (+1.36%) $+0.88*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.