3 USA-Based Stocks That Can Be Great Buys Amid Tariff Risks

Tariffs pose a big uncertainty for many businesses and investors for the foreseeable future. How big they will be and how long they will be imposed are two of the biggest unknowns, and that can make it difficult to predict how the stock market will perform. And with every week, the situation appears to be evolving.

There are, however, some businesses which may be better positioned to deal with tariff risks than others. While they aren't entirely immune to the effects of them, three stocks which can potentially be great buys even amid all this uncertainty include Walmart (NYSE: WMT), Home Depot (NYSE: HD), and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT). Let's take a look.

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1. Walmart

Big-box retailer Walmart, which is based in Bentonville, Arkansas, has a lot of power with vendors to influence prices. And if that fails to do enough, it can always pass on costs to consumers.

The retailer is a one-stop-shop for many consumers, allowing them to purchase groceries, other necessities, and discretionary items all in one place. And as a low-cost leader, consumers know that they'll find competitive prices at their local Walmart. That's why price increases at Walmart may not necessarily deter customers, but simply result in them buying fewer items.

The company was able to pass along rising costs amid inflation and it says it needs to do so again now. CFO John David Rainey says that although tariff levels have come down since April, they are still difficult to absorb, noting that, "the magnitude of these increases is more than any retailer can absorb."

For now, the business is still doing well. As of the period ending April 30, Walmart's sales rose by 2.5% year over year, to $165.6 billion. And its operating income also improved by 4.3%, to $7.1 billion.

The stock is a bit rich in valuation, trading at more than 40 times its trailing earnings, but under the current macroeconomic conditions that premium may be justifiable as this may be one of the safer retail stocks to own right now.

2. Home Depot

Home Depot is another retailer which may perform better than most this year. And unlike Walmart, it says it doesn't anticipate raising prices as a result of tariffs. The reason is that the company's suppliers can source goods from multiple countries, to minimize the impact of tariffs. As a result, the Atlanta-based retailer doesn't expect any country outside the U.S. to account for more than 10% of its purchases in the year ahead.

That's a great example of the versatility that the business needs to manage challenging macroeconomic conditions. For the current fiscal year (which typically ends in late January or early February), the company anticipates decent single-digit sales growth of 2.8% and for its comparable sales to rise by 1%.

The home improvement retailer's shares are down 7% this year but they could be due for a rally given the versatility the business is demonstrating right now. And with a price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple of 25, its valuation is modest and in line with the S&P 500 average.

3. Microsoft

Another solid stock you can buy and hold today is Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft. The tech giant generates around 22% of its top line from product sales, with the vast majority of its revenue coming from its service and other segment. This means its tariff risk is fairly low in comparison to other companies.

Many of Microsoft's products and services, including its office software, are also crucial for many businesses over the course of their day-to-day operations. In its April quarter, Microsoft's revenue rose by 15% (when excluding the impact of foreign exchange) to just over $70 billion. It posted double-digit growth in most categories, including Azure and other cloud services. Sales in that category rose by 35%.

At a P/E of 35, Microsoft isn't a terribly cheap stock to buy but given its diversification and financial strength (it has generated nearly $97 billion in profit over the past four quarters), it can be one of the better growth stocks to buy today, whether you're looking for a stock in response to tariff volatility or an investment you can hang on to for years.

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David Jagielski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Home Depot, Microsoft, and Walmart. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.