03:47 PM EDT, 03/25/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes are on track to close mixed on Tuesday, with lower-than-expected new-home sales during February and remarks by a Federal Reserve governor.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.2% to 42,513.1, while the Nasdaq Composite increased 0.3% to 18,236.8. The S&P 500 was flat at 5768.2. Communication systems and consumer discretionary sectors had the biggest gains and utilities saw the steepest decline.

CrowdStrike ( CRWD ) was among the top gainers on the S&P with shares up 3.3%, as BTIG upgraded the stock to buy from neutral.

Northrop Grumman ( NOC ) was up 2.4%. The company is bidding for the US Navy's contract to build a next-generation carrier-based stealth fighter and the announcement for the winner is expected this week, according to Reuters. Boeing ( BA ) and Lockheed Martin ( LMT ) have also submitted detailed proposals and prototypes for evaluation, the report said.

Merck ( MRK ) shares were down 5%, the worst performer on the S&P 500. The company secured exclusive global rights to develop and sell China-based Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals' heart disease drug for up to about $2 billion.

The 10-year US Treasury yield lost 3.6 basis points to 4.3%, while the two-year rate was down 2.8 basis points to 4%.

May West Texas Intermediate crude oil was flat at $69.12 a barrel.