Jeremy Siegel, renowned professor of finance at the University of Pennsylvania, is sticking to his long-held view that the Dow Jones Industrial Average will reach 18,000 by year-end.

That would represent a 6.3 percent increase from the Dow's level of 16,927.95 Monday morning. The index hit a record high of 16,978.02 Friday.

The Federal Reserve's indication that it will keep short-term interest rates near record lows for quite some time will help boost stocks, Siegel told CNBC.

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Fed Chair Janet Yellen gave investors the "green light last week," Siegel noted, referring to her comments about economic weakness after the Fed's meeting.

"That's why the defensive sectors have done well, because I'm going to buy yield if there ain't going to be yield anywhere else," he said.

As for the economy, Siegel predicted first-quarter GDP will be revised down to a contraction of almost 2 percent from a contraction of 1 percent previously. But he sees a rebound of 3.5 percent for the second quarter.

"That's one reason the earnings projections are as high as they are," he explained. "And if those projections are reached, this bull market has quite a way to run."

Other market experts also see Fed policy as supportive for stocks.

"The trade now is, nothing's going wrong with the Fed's plan, and they haven't disrupted our expectations that they're going to continue to provide support for the economy," Wayne Lin, a portfolio manager at Legg Mason, tells The Wall Street Journal.

"In that environment, we're just going to continue to nudge this thing up a bit."

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