Several stocks hit multi-year highs, including Kraft, Gap, Target, Monsanto, Comcast, Cintas and CBS.

Non-farm payrolls increased by a seasonally adjusted 163,000 jobs in July, after a downwardly revised 64,000 increase in June. The unemployment rate stood at 8.3 percent, up from 8.2 percent in June. This was the 42nd consecutive month of unemployment above 8 percent. Economists had been looking for the creation of about 100,000 new jobs in the month with the unemployment rate holding steady. July average hourly earnings increased 0.1 percent after a June increase of 0.3 percent. (Read More: Why Private Job Creation is Even Slower Than it Looks ).

While job creation picked up, an uptick in the unemployment rate keeps the door open for the Federal Reserve to take additional action to further stimulate economic growth.

“The jobs report is not a game changer in terms of slow economic growth,” Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital, said. “It’s a relief for the markets and leaves the door open for more Fed help.”