Closing Bell: NRG Energy Adds More Gains to Big Week; Dow at Another Record

The Dow Jones Industrial Average notched a fresh record close for its second day in a row and the rest of the markets clinched slight gains as a rally in retail boosted Wall Street. Target (TGT) - Get Report pulled other retailers higher after upbeat second-quarter guidance. Walmart (WMT) - Get Report led the Dow to records as the world's largest retailer joined in on a sector rally. The company climbed more than 1%, its best daily performance since June 1. NRG Energy (NRG) - Get Report added to the previous day's gains as investors continued to applaud plans to sell assets, lower its debt, and reduce costs. Shares have rocketed nearly 40% higher since the beginning of the week. Financials were on the rise ahead of the kickoff to the earnings season. Big banks Citigroup (C) - Get Report , JPMorgan (JPM) - Get Report and Wells Fargo (WFC) - Get Report ring in the second-quarter earnings period with their performance reports out Friday morning.