Stocks Closed at Record High as Financials Rallied

U.S.stocks closed at records on Thursday, spurred on by a rally in financial shares. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 118.06 points, or 0.59%, to 20,172.40. The S&P 500 rose 13.20 points, or 0.58%, to 2,307.87. The Nasdaq Composite added 32.73 points, or 0.58%, to 5,715.18.

Applications for unemployment benefits in the U.S. unexpectedly declined last week to an almost three-month low. Jobless claims fell by 12,000 to 234,000 in the week ended Feb. 4, a report from the Labor Department showed Thursday.

Yelp Inc. (YELP)’s outlook paled in comparison to Wall Street expectations. The company forecast first-quarter revenue between $195 million and $199 million, and full year revenue of $880 million to $900 million. For the fourth quarter, Yelp reported adjusted earnings of 27 cents a share on revenue of $194.8 million.

Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) on Thursday reported fiscal fourth-quarter earnings of $655 million.The results surpassed Wall Street expectations. For the year, the company reported profit of $1.67 billion, or $2.57 per share. Revenue was reported as $6.91 billion.