The Dow gained more than three-tenths of a percent, the S&P 500 finished essentially flat and the Nasdaq shed three-quarters of a percent.

Shares of Microsoft - which closed down marginally - jumped briefly in after-hours trading before reversing course, after the company beat Wall Street estimates for second-quarter revenue.

Shares of Alphabet - down more than 1 percent at the close - slid further after the bell, as the Google parent reported fourth-quarter advertising revenue below Wall Street expectations.

Other members of the Magnificent Seven report later in the week. They include Amazon, Meta Platforms and Apple - the last of which, along with Tesla, may no longer qualify for the elite group, says Jim Worden, Chief Investment Officer at The Wealth Consulting Group.

"I would narrow that down a little bit more, call it the Fab Five, maybe remove Tesla and Apple. [FLASH] Tesla is challenged with China. Apple is challenged with China. I think consumer discretionary, as a whole, it may be more challenging as consumers, perhaps slow their spending. We didn't see that a whole lot in the fourth quarter, but some are expecting that with the higher interest rates and a lot of the liquidity that consumers had has dried up, and they're using more credit...."

In other earnings news, shares of UPS slid more than 8% after the package delivery giant issued a disappointing revenue forecast for this year and said it would cut 12,000 jobs.

Shares of General Motors jumped nearly 8% after the automaker provided an upbeat 2024 earnings forecast, and promised more capital return to shareholders. Ford shares rose 2%.

Data from the Labor Department Tuesday showed an unexpected rise in job openings, hinting that the market remains too solid for the Fed to consider cutting its key policy rate as soon as March.

The Fed is expected to end its policy meeting on Wednesday leaving rates unchanged. Its accompanying statement and Fed Chair Jerome Powell's subsequent press conference will be parsed for clues on the timing and number of rate cuts this year.