U.S. stocks drifted to a mixed close near their record levels

U.S. stocks drifted to a mixed close near their record levels. The S&P 500 ended little changed Wednesday, a day after sliding from its record on worries about a possible widening of the fighting in the Middle East. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.1%. Oil prices rose again as the world waits to see how Israel will respond to Tuesday’s missile attack from Iran, but they pared their gains as the day progressed. Treasury yields rose after an encouraging update on hiring by private U.S. employers.

On Wednesday:

The S&P 500 rose 0.79 points, or less than 0.1%, to 5,709.54.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 39.55 points, or 0.1%, to 42,196.52.

The Nasdaq composite rose 14.76 points, or 0.1%, to 17,925.12.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 2.03 points, or 0.1%, to 2,195.

For the week:

The S&P 500 is down 28.63 points, or 0.5%.

The Dow is down 116.48 points, or 0.3%.

The Nasdaq is down 194.47 points, or 1.1%.

The Russell 2000 is down 29.70 points, or 1.3%.

For the year:

The S&P 500 is up 939.71 points, or 19.7%.

The Dow is up 4,506.98 points, or 12%.

The Nasdaq is up 2,913.77 points, or 19.4%.

The Russell 2000 is up 167.93 points, or 8.3%.