Caterpillar, Home Depot, and Walgreens Lift Dow Jones to Record Even as Visa Stock Falls

Another piece of positive economic data, and another record for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI). As of 2:01 p.m. EDT on Aug. 11, the index of 30 of the biggest U.S. companies is up 206 points to 35,470, putting it on track to close at another all-time high today. Today's move higher follows the release of the U.S. Department of Labor's Consumer Price Index Summary early this morning that showed a hot economy continues to drive prices higher.

This measure of higher inflation being driven by a continued economic recovery has investors especially interested in companies that can benefit from those trends. Heavy equipment maker Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT), retail pharmacy giant Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ: WBA), and home improvement giant Home Depot (NYSE: HD) shares are leading the way, up 3.4%, 2.5% and 2%, respectively, at this writing.

On the downside, shares of payments giant Visa (NYSE: V) are down more than 1% today, joined by many of the Dow's more tech-focused components including Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM), also down slightly, and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), with shares roughly flat today.

Source Fool.com