We recently published a list of Why These 15 Consumer Defensive Stocks Are Surging in 2025. In this article, we are going to take a look at where BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings Inc (NYSE:BJ) stands against other consumer defensive stocks that are surging in 2025.

The stock market has taken a sharp turn after two years of blockbuster gains, and many investors have felt uneasy. These investors are now turning to consumer defensive stocks due to growth stocks sputtering amid a new wave of tariffs rattling global trade.

Consumer defensive stocks provide essential goods and services that people rely on regardless of economic conditions and are more insulated during market downturns. Investors have piled into consumer defensive stocks for that reason, and it’s a good idea to look into the biggest winners in this sector.

Even during bear markets, there are pockets of the market that perform exceptionally well. For example, I identified Why These 15 Healthcare Stocks Are Surging in 2025 in another article.

Methodology

For this article, I screened the best-performing consumer defensive stocks year-to-date.

I will also mention the number of hedge fund investors in these stocks. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).

A customer happily filling up their tank at the Wholesale Club's gasoline station.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings Inc (NYSE:BJ)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q4 2024: 43

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings Inc (NYSE:BJ) is a leading operator of membership warehouse clubs that offers up to 25% savings on manufacturer-branded groceries compared to traditional supermarket competitors.

The company’s stock has seen significant growth in 2025 due to strong financial performance reported in their 10-K filing for the fiscal year ended February 1, 2025. Net sales increased to $20.0 billion from $19.5 billion in the previous year, while membership fee income rose by 8.5% to $456.5 million.

The company’s improved profitability, with net income increasing to $534.4 million from $523.7 million in the previous year, has been attributed to higher membership fees and improved sales in perishables and general merchandise.

The company’s expansion strategy has also boosted positive market sentiment with new locations opening in February 2025, including clubs in Brooksville, Florida, and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. These new locations feature member perks like low-priced fuel.

The consensus price target of $110.82 implies 3.66% downside.

BJ stock is up 28.75% year-to-date.

Overall, BJ ranks 15th on our list of consumer defensive stocks that are surging in 2025. While we acknowledge the potential of BJ, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than BJ but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.