Mixed close despite dovish Fed

The markets closed mixed with the Dow losing 17 points to 18,029 despite a dovish approach to interest rates by the Federal Reserve as crude oil prices fell. Nasdaq rose 7 points to 4,906.

On the upside

Eagle Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: EGRX) narrowed losses on a per share basis as revenue rose.

Advaxis (Nasdaq: ADXS) executed securities purchase agreements for approximately $23 million in registered direct offerings.

Net Element's (Nasdaq: NETE) Aptito product was named a silver winner in the Most Innovative Product of the Year - SMB category in Best in Biz Awards.

On the downside

Varonis Systems (Nasdaq: VRNS) fell to a loss for the fourth quarter and the company forecast current quarter and full year earnings below expectations.

Sonus Networks (Nasdaq: SONS) fell to a fourth quarter loss and forecast first quarter earnings that missed analyst expectations.

Westpac Banking cancelled a sales agreement with Genworth Financial's (NYSE: GNW) Australian affiliate Genworth Mortgage Insurance Australia.

In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 5 to 4 on the NYSE and by nearly 10 to 9 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 eased a fraction to 2099. Bitcoin lost $8 to $232.