After The Bell: Stocks Trade Higher As Nasdaq Sets Record

(CBS) -- Stocks traded higher on Thursday, sending the NASDAQ into record territory, as investors eyed solid quarterly earnings and progress in the ongoing Greek debt crisis.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 70 points; the S&P 500 gained 17, and the NASDAQ closed up 64 points, settling to an all-time closing high of 5,163.18.

"Earnings season has certainly been positive so far, we've had the important banking sector come out with solid results, and now you are starting to see some of the bull market stocks like Netflix come out and hit the cover of the ball," Chuck Carlson, CEO of Horizon Investment Services, says. "I think the market is taking its cue from the strong earnings right now."

He added the three main factors that dictate long-term market direction are interest rates, inflation and corporate earnings.