Stocks ended mixed but little changed Tuesday as traders maintained a cautious stance ahead of Wednesday's highly awaited Consumer Price Index report, which could offer crucial insights into the Fed's potential course of action.

The $S&P 500 Index (.SPX.US)$ inched up 7.52 points (0.1%) to a 5,209.91 close, while the $Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC.US)$ gained 52.68 ticks (0.3%) to 16,306.64.

However, the $Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI.US)$ eased 9.13 points (0.02%) to a 38,883.67 finish.

Meanwhile, the benchmark $U.S. 10-Year Treasury Notes Yield (US10Y.BD)$ dropped 6.8 ticks to 4.356%.

Separately, Comex gold for June delivery rose 1.4% intraday to a record $2,384.50 before later paring its gains.

The consensus expectation among Wall Street analysts is that the annual CPI rate to edge slightly higher from 3.2% to 3.4% in March, mainly due to rising gasoline prices.

Core inflation, which excludes food and energy items, is anticipated to inch lower, from 3.8% to 3.7%.

Among individual stocks of note:

-- $NVIDIA (NVDA.US)$ fell 2% to an $853.54 finish, its lowest close since early March amid a third consecutive week of declines. That's the stock's worst streak since September. Shares fell after ARK CEO Cathie Wood announced that she has sold nearly $4 million worth of Nvidia shares.

-- $Cisco (CSCO.US)$ rallied 3.7% to $50.01 after Morgan Stanley raised the company's price target to $58.

-- $Moderna (MRNA.US)$ surged 6.2% to $111.60 following promising results from an early study of the company's cancer vaccine mRNA-4157.

-- $MP Materials (MP.US)$ gained 8.9% to $17.45 on the heels of a $58.5 million tax-credit award aimed at advancing the construction of its rare earth magnet manufacturing facility.