An unexpected drop in jobless claims lifted the markets to a higher close with the Dow gaining 65 points to 17,763.  Nasdaq rose 6 points to 4,886.

On the upside

Oppenheimer analyst Rohit Vanjani said that the recent plunge in OvaScience’s (Nasdaq: OVAS) stock price resulted from a misunderstanding of data and maintained an Outperform rating on the stock.

TCP International Holdings (NYSE: TCPI) announced that its product validation review was proceeding as expected.

Brazilian stock exchange operator BM&F Bovespa proposed new rules to increase transparency for state run companies such as Petrobras (NYSE: PBR).

On the downside

SeaChange International (Nasdaq: SEAC) widened fourth quarter losses more than expected.

Profit taking continued to weigh down shares of Solar3D (Nasdaq: SLTD).
 
Trinity Biotech (Nasdaq: TRIB) priced its offering of exchangeable senior notes.

In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 2 to 1 on the NYSE and by more than 7 to 5 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 gained 7 points to 2066. Bitcoin rose $6 to $251.