Stocks are treading water near all-time highs as technology shares have faltered ahead of a bevvy of reports coming from some of the sector's biggest names. Tesla (TSLA) shares have slipped following last night's report from the electric vehicle maker while both Microsoft (MSFT) and Alphabet (GOOGL) shares are lower at midday ahead of reports due out after the bell from the pair of industry titans.

ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., February home price reports revealed a ninth consecutive month of outsized increases, as the S&P Case Shiller 20-city index rose 1.2% to 246.0 while the FHFA home price index rose 0.9% to a 319.7 reading.

TOP NEWS: Tesla shares were down 3% near noon despite the car maker reporting better than expected Q1 adjusted earnings and revenue. Looking ahead, the company reaffirmed its view for 2021 growth in vehicle deliveries above 50%. Of note, Tesla CFO Zach Kirkhorn said on the company's quarterly call that the company invested $1.5B in bitcoin in Q1, and then sold 10% of that holding.

Eli Lilly (LLY) shares also fell 2% after the company reported downbeat Q1 results and tightened its earnings and revenue guidance ranges for fiscal 2021. The drugmaker expects revenue growth to be partially offset by lower revenue for products that have lost patent exclusivity.

Shares of General Electric (GE) were also 3% lower near noon after the U.S. industrial conglomerate reported lower than expected revenue for Q1. GE maintained its adjusted earnings guidance for fiscal 2021, with the company saying it sees an aviation recovery beginning in the second half of the year as well as growth in its services segment for the 2021.

On the other side, UPS (UPS) shares rose 10% after the shipper reported upbeat Q1 results, reporing a year-over-year increase in consolidated average daily volume of 14.3%. Of note, the company said on its quarterly call that it is "confident" that its domestic margin will expand in 2021.

Meanwhile, 3M (MMM) shares were 3% lower despite the company reporting upbeat quarterly results and reaffirming its fiscal 2021 earnings and revenue guidance.

MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Aldeyra (ALDX), which rose 27% after reporting statistically significant results for the primary endpoint and all secondary endpoints of a trial for reproxalap. Also higher was Crocs (CROX), which gained 17% after reporting quarterly results.

Among the notable losers was Splunk (SPLK), which declined 5% after Morgan Stanley analyst Keith Weiss downgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Overweight and cut his price target on the shares to $160 from $213. Also lower was Cadence Design (CDNS), which fell 8% after reporting quarterly results.

INDEXES: Near midday, the Dow was down 7.00, or 0.02%, to 33,974.57, the Nasdaq was down 23.52, or 0.17%, to 14,115.25, and the S&P 500 was up 0.70, or 0.02%, to 4,188.32.