Diversified financial-service company CIT Group Inc. was the biggest gainer on the Standard & Poor's 500 index as the Federal Reserve said it would increase the availability of short term loans to commercial banks to $150 billion in May.
The broader market was mixed after a government report showed U.S. employers cut far fewer jobs than expected in April.
The S&P 500 gained 3.32 points to 1,412.66.
Shares of CIT Group jumped 91 cents, or 7.8 percent, to $12.90.
Shares of Jones Apparel Group Inc. added $1.22, or 7.7 percent, to $17.15. Merrill Lynch upgraded the clothing wholesaler to "Buy" from "Neutral" on Friday.
Shares of student lender Sallie Mae, formally know as SLM Corp., climbed $1.30, or 6.5 percent, to $21.28. On Thursday, congress gave final approval to legislation that would lift limits on federally subsidized student loans.
Among the decliners, Sun Microsystems Inc. plunged $3.47, or 21.3 percent, to $12.86 after reaching a 52-week low of $12.80 earlier in the session. The server and software maker stunned analysts after posting a fiscal third-quarter loss. Wall Street was expecting a profit.
Shares of QLogic Corp. tumbled $1.39, or 8.3 percent, to $15.31. The network equipment maker said its adjusted fiscal fourth-quarter profit beat Wall Street estimates on Friday, but the results were driven largely by one-time gains.
And shares of Allergan Inc. shed $2.69, or 4.7 percent, to $54.87 after a Jefferies analyst downgraded the drug maker to "Hold" from "Buy" Friday morning.
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