Stocks Close Mixed as Fed Stands Pat on Rates

Updated with closing market prices

The major indices in New York finished mixed on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve cited economic improvement but opted not to expand purchase programs; the Fed separately faced allegations it was involved in a "cover-up" on the Bank of America(BAC)/Merrill Lynch merger.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 23.05 points, or 0.3%, at 8299.86, while the S&P 500 climbed 5.84 points, or 0.7%, to 900.94. The Nasdaq Composite rose 27.42 points, or 1.6%, to 1792.34.

Boeing(BA), down 5.8%, was the biggest drag on the Dow for a second day after delaying the first flight of the 787 Dreamliner. Industrials and technology stocks fared the best, with Alcoa(AA) adding 2.2%, and DuPont(DD) and Intel(MMM) rising 1.8% apiece.

Oracle(ORCL) helped to stoke tech stocks as its shares rose 7% to $21.26 on better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings and revenue.

Stocks flirted with gains for most of the session before settling into a directionless state for the second consecutive session after a sharp pullback on Monday that fostered debate on whether the market is seeing a correction or just another blip in a multiweek rally.

"Our view would be that we're probably going to be fairly trendless for a while, stuck in some sort of a range where we've got this tug of war, if you will," says Jerry Paul, chief investment officer at Essential Investment Partners, "and frankly we view that as good -- from a technician's point of view that's building a baseline -- but we're not ready to declare a new bull market either."

We've moved off of the "apocalyptic precipice," and that justifies much of the rally, says Paul. "The challenge now is to get real footing under the economy."