The Dow slipped one tenth of one percent while the S&P 500 added a tenth and the Nasdaq climbed two tenths.

A report from the Institute for Supply Management showed slower-than-expected growth in the U.S. services industry.

That lifted stocks in morning trading on investor hopes that the data might support a rate cut in the near future.

But Powell's comments during a speech at Stanford indicated the Fed will stick to its wait-and-see approach as it considers when to start cutting rates.

Retirement Planners of America CEO and Founder Ken Moraif said regardless of when the Fed starts cutting rates, stocks are due for a fall.

"We started the year with a phenomenal run. And so, what we're anticipating is that given the fact that the market has run so fast, so high that we should be getting a correction of some kind here in the near future. On average, you know we average one correction a year, if you go back the last 50 years and a correction is a drop of 10% in the stock market but not 20."

Individual stocks on the move included Intel which fell eight percent after it disclosed an operating loss at its foundry business last year that widened by about $2 billion.

And shares of Ulta Beauty plunged 15% after the cosmetics retailer gave downbeat forecast at an industry conference.