The venerable Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled into a bear market this year, falling more than 20% from its recent peak. While bear markets are challenging for investors, they tend to be short lived -- averaging less than 10 months -- and eventually give way to a new bull market. Those upcycles usually last much longer (nearly three years on average) and feature significant gains (stocks have historically rallied an average of 114% in bull markets). 

All this means bear markets can be great opportunities for investors with a long-term mindset. With that in mind, three top-notch Dow stocks to consider buying amid the current bear market are Chevron (NYSE: CVX), 3M (NYSE: MMM), and Honeywell (NASDAQ: HON). They should deliver solid returns during the next bull run, making them no-brainer stocks to consider buying.

Chevron has bucked the current bear market. Shares of the oil giant have risen more than 37% this year, making it the best-performing Dow stock by a wide margin. Higher oil prices have helped fuel Chevron's rally. While crude has cooled off from its peak, oil is still up about 15% on the year. 

Continue reading

Source Fool.com