Stocks Run to New Records

Updated from 4:11 p.m. EDT

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 again reached new records Friday, as stocks rose following a flood of positive data on the U.S. economy.

At the close of trading, the Dow had a gain of 40.47 points, or 0.3%, at 13,668.11, marking its 26th record of the year. A 3.9% rise in Wal-Mart (WMT Quote) led the way.

The S&P hit a third consecutive all-time high, tacking on 5.72 points, or 0.37%, to 1536.34. The Nasdaq was better by 9.40 points, or 0.36%, at 2613.92.

For the holiday-shortened week, the Dow rose 1.2%, rebounding from a loss the previous week. The S&P 500 climbed 1.4% over the four sessions, and the Nasdaq ended higher by 2.2%.

About 2.95 billion shares changed hands on the New York Stock Exchange, with advancers beating decliners by a 2-to-1 margin. Volume on the Nasdaq reached 1.92 billion shares, and winners outpaced losers 3 to 2.

"The economy is doing better, so we have higher interest rates, but we're flush with liquidity, and equities keep going higher." said Jay Suskind, head of institutional equity trading with Ryan Beck & Co.

Enthusiasm sprang from the closely watched monthly jobs report, which showed that 157,000 workers were added to U.S. payrolls in May. Economists had expected 135,000 positions to have been created.

Additionally, the unemployment rate remained at 4.5%, and average hourly earnings, a key inflation metric, rose 0.3%. Both matched consensus estimates.

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