U.S. stocks took a breather Wednesday, pausing a two-day rally as the tenuous Israel-Iran cease fire continued to hold and investors pored over a second day of congressional testimony from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Tech shares lifted the Nasdaq, while the S&P 500 ended essentially unchanged. The benchmark index remained within striking distance of its record closing high reached on February 19.

The blue-chip Dow ended in negative territory.

"It almost feels like back to your regularly scheduled bull market," said Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group in Omaha. "We've dealt with the tariffs, we've dealt with the Middle East drama, but stocks continue to defy the odds by moving higher with the realization that the U.S. economy remains quite resilient."

"But today it's almost like watching paint dry as we're all waiting for the S&P 500 to make new highs," Detrick added.

Nvidia shares touched a record high, lifting its market value to $3.75 trillion and making it the world's most valuable company.

"The lifeblood of a bull market is rotation," Detrick said. "And to see technology and communication services taking back the baton is really a good sign that this surprise summer rally likely has legs."

According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 gained 1.28 points, or 0.02%, to end at 6,093.46 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 65.01 points, or 0.33%, to 19,977.54. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 92.91 points, or 0.22%, to 42,996.11.

The fragile truce between Israel and Iran continued to hold, with U.S. President Donald Trump declaring victory despite a lack of clarity regarding the extent of the damage U.S. strikes had on Iran's uranium enrichment assets.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell, in his second straight day of congressional testimony, reiterated to the Senate Banking Committee that the central bank is well-positioned to wait to cut interest rates until the inflationary effects of Trump's wide-ranging tariffs are better known.

Financial markets are pricing in almost a 25% likelihood of a rate cut at the July policy meeting, and a 67% probability that the first cut will arrive in September, according to CME's FedWatch tool.

Housing data on Wednesday showed new home sales plunged 13.7% and applications for loans to buy homes dipped as mortgage rates edged higher.

On Thursday, the Commerce Department is due to issue its final take on first-quarter GDP, and its Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) report on Friday will provide insights into consumer spending and inflation.

Tesla shares fell as its European sales slumped for the fifth month.

Economic uncertainty continues to weigh on corporate guidance.

FedEx shares slid after the package delivery company forecast quarterly profit below estimates as tariffs weighed on global demand. Rival UPS lost ground as well.

General Mills provided disappointing profit guidance, sending its shares lower.

U.S.-listed shares of cybersecurity firm BlackBerry jumped on the heels of its revenue forecast hike, attributed to steady demand.