Wall Street on Wednesday ended a smidge higher after making small moves on both sides of the flatline through the session. A gain in consumer focused sectors was offset by a fall in energy and financial stocks. Investors also weighed ongoing uncertainty in peace talks to end the war in Iran.

The benchmark S&P 500 index closed little changed at 7,520.45 points, the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite added 0.1% to settle at 26,674.74 points, and the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4% to 50,644.41 points. All three averages notched record closes. 

“After a strong run, with the S&P 500 up about 18% and tech up 38% from the March 30 lows, it’s not surprising to see the market pause here and digest those gains,” Keith Lerner, chief investment officer and chief market strategist at Truist, told Investing.com. 

“Under the surface, the more interesting story is rotation, as lower oil prices are helping some of the lagging areas, like consumer discretionary and staples, play a bit of catch-up,” he said.

“Stepping back, the bigger picture hasn’t changed, the trend is still up, but after such a sharp move, we’d expect a bumpier path from here. We are now moving past earnings season, which has been a key driver of the market’s upside, and the focus shifts to what the next catalyst will be,” Lerner added.