A resilient macroeconomic backdrop should help Visa 's stock continue to be a winner, according to EP Wealth Advisors director of portfolio strategy Adam Phillips. He joined CNBC's "Power Check" on Thursday to discuss the credit card behemoth and another pick he's bullish about for its defensive qualities. Visa Phillips said he has been a longtime advocate of Visa stock. Shares have advanced about 11% so far in 2025, just narrowly outpacing the S & P 500's roughly 10% gain. "Visa is actually one of the stocks that we've held the longest in our equity strategy going back 15 years now," Phillips said. "It certainly deserves a place because we know that consumption is such a big part of the economy, and Visa operates an effective duopoly along with Mastercard ." He lauded Visa's free cash flow, saying it tends to "print cash." V YTD mountain Visa stock in 2025. "If we believe the economic outlook is healthy, then this is certainly a company that is of high quality," Phillips said. Waste Management He's also partial toward Waste Management . Shares have advanced more than 11% year to date. "Artificial intelligence gets a lot of the attention these days, but trash doesn't have to be so boring," Phillips said. "Waste Management is not a cyclical company, so it does provide that downside protection." WM YTD mountain Waste Management stock in 2025. "For a trash company, they're still generating healthy revenue growth and earnings growth," he added. "This is a company that we think is very additive to portfolios right now."
