A remarkable rally in financial stocks boosted bullish sentiment across Wall Street on Friday, propelling both the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average to new record levels.

Strong earnings from major U.S. banks helped fuel the broader market, with investors brushing aside mixed economic data released earlier in the day.

The S&P 500, as tracked by theSPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust(NYSE:SPY), surged past the 5,800-point mark, gaining 0.7% on the day and pushing year-to-date returns to nearly 23%.

Simultaneously, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, tracked by theSPDRDow Jones Industrial ETF (NYSE:DIA), rose...