Stocks rose to a session high on Thursday after reports the White House and House Speaker John Boehner were close to a budget agreement. Both the White House and Boehner denied a deal was close to being reached, and stocks pared gains.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> was up 163.70 points, or 1.30 percent, at 12,735.61. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was up 18.75 points, or 1.41 percent, at 1,344.59. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> was up 22.56 points, or 0.80 percent, at 2,836.79.