S&P 500 ends higher, extending streak

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves inversely to its price, has risen as investors have put more cash into stocks. The yield rose 1 basis point to 2.01 percent, having started the year at 1.70 percent.

Among other stocks making big moves:

— MeadWestvaco, a packaging company, surged $3.97, or 12.5 percent, to $35.65 after Nelson Peltz's Trian Fund Management disclosed that it had taken a $51 million stake in the company.

— Xoom, an online money transfer company, surged $9.49, or 59 percent, to $25.49 on its first day as a publicly traded company. Xoom raised $101.2 million from selling 6.3 million shares at $16 each.

— Burger King gained 78 cents, or 4.7 percent, to $17.36. The company's fourth-quarter earnings nearly doubled after it revamped its menu.

— St. Jude Medical fell $1.48, or 3.4 percent, to $41.53 after a Cowen & Co. analyst downgraded the medical device maker's stock, saying he believes the company's Durata heart wire is not very different from older wires that have been taken off the market.