U.S. Stocks Advance Before Yellen Following Weekly Gain

U.S. stocks rose, following the largest weekly gain this year for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, before Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen delivers her first report on monetary policy tomorrow.

Apple Inc. gained 1.8 percent as activist investor Carl Icahn backed away from his push to increase share repurchases at the iPhone maker. Yelp Inc. jumped 1.9 percent after a person familiar with the matter said Yahoo! Inc. will use the reviews provider to add context to its search results. McDonald’s Corp. slid 1.1 percent as sales at its established U.S. stores fell for the third straight month.