Key Takeaways

U.S. equities were mixed and little changed at midday following muted comments about Federal Reserve policy from Chair Jerome Powell in the first of his two reports to Congress. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was marginally higher, the Nasdaq was slightly lower, and the S&P 500 was near flat.

DuPont ( DD ) shares advanced after the chemicals and materials maker reported better-than-expected earnings and gave solid guidance as sales of its electronics products rose.

Shares of Phillips 66 ( PSX ) grew on word that activist investor Elliott Investment Management has taken a $2.5 billion stake in the big petroleum refiner and plans to call for changes in operations.

Ecolab ( ECL ) shares jumped when the provider of water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions gave an upbeat outlook for 2025, citing increasing demand and optimism about U.S. macroeconomic trends.

Marriott International ( MAR ) shares fell when the hotel operator posted weaker-than-expected guidance as it sees room growth below what analysts had been looking for.

Shares of Humana ( HUM ) tumbled after the health insurer announced it was cutting membership in its Medicare Advantage plans in an effort to boost its federal Medicare quality ratings.

Tesla ( TSLA ) shares dropped as a group led by CEO Elon Musk offered to buy artificial intelligence (AI) giant OpenAI for a reported $97.4 billion.

Oil futures climbed. Gold prices were little changed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note was up. The U.S. dollar gained on the yen, but lost ground to the euro and pound. Bitcoin traded lower.

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