Stocks shook off a wobbly start and ended higher Tuesday as traders weighed another big set of company earnings reports.

Investors were also closely monitoring the latest developments with COVID-19 and its potential impact on a still-recovering economy amid the spread of the more contagious delta variant.

The S&P 500 rose 0.8%. Health care and technology stocks led gains.

Activision Blizzard fell 3.5% after the head of Blizzard Entertainment said he would resign after the company was hit with a sexual harassment lawsuit.

Clorox slumped 9.5% after the company's results missed analysts' forecasts.

The yield on 10-year Treasury note inched up to 1.18%.