With bond yields rising, a company that has high debt has a significant earnings drag. Rising yields makes new borrowing expensive and kills growth, even when you are diligently releasing new products and retiring old unpopular ones. Also bond yields rising pushes us toward recession, whether we actually get to recession naturally I don't know, but consumer staples put you in a prepared spot for it.
The following is a list of low debt consumer staples names with competitive dividends. Throwing in PFE because it is recession friendly even if not a consumer staple name.
CAG, PFE, KHC, TSN, HRL
somewhat less competitive dividend 2% < Div < 3% but still low debt
JNJ, BG, MDLZ, ADM
Some good consumer staples names with good dividends that have more debt
K, GIS, CPB, REYN
Other stocks with high dividends but also higher debt but not amongst the highest I found
T, VZ
Stocks with astronomical debt and a dividend to fool you into thinking it is a good idea (clearly not an attempt to be a complete list, but amongst those I recently analyzed at a basic level:
WEN, WM, SO, ABBV, SYY, F, PEP, SO, most airline stocks that are not LUV
I have lost faith in USA bonds. I won't own them. This is where I go to invest next, especially the 1st and 2nd groups above
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