U.S. Stocks Inch Higher on ECB Stimulus Extension; Lululemon Shares Surge on Earnings

U.S. stocks gained steam after the European Central Bank decided to extend the timeline of its bond stimulus. The ECB will continue to purchase 80 billion euros of assets a month until March 2017. Starting in April, the purchases will drop to 60 billion euros a month until December 2017. ECB President Mario Draghi also said the central bank can buy bonds yielding lower than minus 0.4%, a restriction that was previously in place. Lululemon (LULU) - Get Report shares surging after reporting third quarter earnings of $0.47 a share, beating estimates of $0.43. Revenue rose 13% year over year to $544.4 million, topping estimates. Comparable store sales rose 7%. Sears (SHLD) reported an adjusted loss of $3.11 a share, deeper than the $2.86 a share loss in the same quarter a year ago. Revenue declined 14% to $5 billion. Costco (COST) - Get Report shares rose after reporting earnings of $1.24 a share, beating estimates of $1.19. Same store sales rose 1%. TheStreet's Scott Gamm reports from Wall Street.