After President Barack Obama spoke in New York to pitch regulatory reforms, the Dow Jones industrial average fell flat but bank shares rose on Thursday.

"What happens here has real consequences across our country," Obama said, speaking at Coopers Union, near the heart of Manhattan's financial district,

He said, that was a dynamic "some on Wall Street forgot."

Bank shares as a group rose 0.45 percent, despite the scolding, while financial services rose 1.09 percent. Shares of Dow components American Express rose 0.78 percent, while Bank of America shares gained 0.26 percent. JP Morgan & Chase shares fell 1.35 percent.

At the close, the DJIA added 0.08 percent, 9.37 points, to 11,134.29. The Standard & Poor's 500 index, gained 0.23 percent, 2.73 points, to 1,208.67. The Nasdaq composite index of tech-dominated stocks, added 0.58 percent, 14.46 points, to 2,519.07.

2,014 stocks advanced and 1,052 declined on a volume of 6 billion shares traded, on the New York Stock Exchange. The benchmark 10-year Treasury fell 7/32 to yield 3.77 percent.

The euro fell to $1.3291 from Wednesday's $1.3399. Against the yen, the dollar fell to 93.44 yen from Wednesday's 93.20 yen. (With Inputs from Agencies)