Stock Market Sell-Off: The 3 Best Stocks to Buy Right Now

The stock market has crashed. In just the last five trading days, the Nasdaq-100 index is down more than 10% and has officially entered a bear market, meaning it is down at least 20% from its recent high. That has created some panic among a subset of investors. Panic can be infectious, but you have to stay rational when Wall Street is being irrational. Now is not the time to start trading manically. Extend your time horizon and keep laser-focused on your long-term goals.

But what should you buy during this market crash? If you have cash sitting around, here are three stocks to buy during this market dip and hold for the ultra-long term.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More »

Coupang's strong position in South Korea

If you're worried about tariffs, then Coupang (NYSE: CPNG) is a stock for you. Even though the company is listed in the United States, it does not operate in the country. The e-commerce marketplace is centered on South Korea, with some small exposure to Taiwan as well. South Korea just got hit with a tariff on exports to the United States, but that does not impact Coupang importing goods from other countries to South Korea. Sure, Coupang could be affected if the South Korean economy goes into a recession, but it is not directly hurt by tariffs.

The company looks strong enough to get through any economic volatility in South Korea that occurs, too. At the end of 2024, the company had close to $6 billion in cash on its balance sheet and minimal debt. It generated $1 billion of free cash flow last year. Gross profit -- a better top-line figure than revenue due to how Coupang does its accounting -- grew 29% year over year in the fourth quarter of 2024 when you exclude one-time gains and growth from acquisitions. This is much faster than the entire retail sector in South Korea, indicating that Coupang can grow simply through market share gains even if the broader economy slows down in Korea.

Coupang generated $30 billion in revenue last year. Over the long term, management believes it can achieve a 10% profit margin once the company stops reinvesting so aggressively for growth. That would be $3 billion in earnings at today's revenue level that can grow in the years to come. Today, Coupang stock trades at a market cap of around $36 billion, or just over 10 times these look-through earnings projections. That makes the stock dirt cheap for those who plan to hold for the long haul.

Take the long view with Amazon

A stock right in the line of fire with these tariffs is Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN). As the largest e-commerce marketplace in the United States, the company sources a lot of supply from Asian nations now getting large tariffs slapped on exports. While this could hurt Amazon's financials in 2025, the company is set up to do just fine over the long term.

Most of Amazon's business is not selling online goods itself, but facilitating transactions for third-party sellers. This will help it push back against tariff volatility (although it may hurt a lot of its existing sellers). If a lot of Amazon sellers go bankrupt or have to rapidly switch supply chains, that is not a cost Amazon has to shoulder. Most of its investment has been in the United States, as opposed to other technology companies like Apple, which has most of its fixed costs in China and other Asian nations.

Amazon also makes a lot of money from advertising, subscription services, and the cloud computing division Amazon Web Services (AWS). AWS should still grow this year due to the boom in demand for artificial intelligence (AI) services. Advertising may see a slowdown if the broad economy tumbles, but over the long term it should remain a highly profitable division for Amazon.

The stock has tumbled to a market cap of $1.87 trillion and now has a forward price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) under 28, one of its lowest figures ever. Even if the numbers look bad in 2025, now looks like a fine time to buy Amazon stock for your portfolio.

Data by YCharts.

American Express and a resilient customer base

Financials, banks, and lenders can be very procyclical with the economic cycle. This means that when the economy is doing well, loans perform well and earnings are high. But when a recession occurs, rising loss rates and bankruptcies send earnings down rapidly. American Express (NYSE: AXP) gets tossed in this group as one of the largest credit card issuers in the United States. However, it is much more equipped to handle a recession than its peers.

American Express caters to a more affluent customer base with high credit scores. Even going through the elevated-inflation period of 2022 and 2023, the company's loss rates remained around 2%, which is around or below its pre-pandemic figures. A recession will likely cause these loss rates to increase, but the company is well-capitalized to deal with these temporary issues. Using history as a guide, it will do much better than other banks and lenders during a recession.

As of this writing, American Express stock is down almost 30% from all-time highs. I believe this is an example of the baby getting thrown out with the bath water. With the stock at a forward P/E of 15, you can buy American Express with confidence that it will perform well for your portfolio over the long haul.

Don’t miss this second chance at a potentially lucrative opportunity

Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you’ll want to hear this.

On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a “Double Down” stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you’re worried you’ve already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it’s too late. And the numbers speak for themselves:

• Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you’d have $244,570!*
• Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you’d have $35,715!*
• Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you’d have $461,558!*

Right now, we’re issuing “Double Down” alerts for three incredible companies, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of April 5, 2025

John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. American Express is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Brett Schafer has positions in Amazon and Coupang. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon and Apple. The Motley Fool recommends Coupang. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.