Stocks rose modestly Thursday, sending the Standard & Poor's 500 index to another record high. Investors rallied behind a bidding war in the food industry as well as a somewhat positive report on the U.S. labor market.

Among the biggest gainers was deli meat and hotdog maker Hillshire Brands, which jumped $7.95, or 18 percent, to $52.76. Only two days after Pilgrim's Pride made a $5.56 billion offer to buy the company, chicken company Tyson Foods stepped in to offer $6.2 billion.

On Thursday:

The Dow Jones industrial average added 65.56 points, or 0.4 percent, to 16,698.74.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 10.25 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,920.03.

The Nasdaq composite index rose 22.87 points, or 0.5 percent, to 4,247.95.

For the week:

The Dow is up 92.47 points, or 0.6 percent.

The S&P 500 index is up 19.50 points, or 1 percent.

The Nasdaq is up 62.14 points, or 1.5 percent

For the year:

The Dow is up 122.08 points, or 0.7 percent.

The S&P 500 index is up 71.67 points, or 3.9 percent.

The Nasdaq is up 71.36 points, or 1.7 percent.

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