The Dow ticked up about a tenth of a percent. But the S&P 500 lost half a percent and the Nasdaq plunged nearly one-and-a-quarter percent.

The University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment survey for October fell sharply as households anticipated higher inflation over the next year.

Investors were also monitoring news out of the Middle East, as Israel on Friday made its first ground raids in Gaza since Hamas's deadly rampage in southern Israel.

U.S. Treasury prices rose, as did gold, as investors sought traditionally safe havens.

"The primary theme in markets right now is uncertainty...."

Adam Coons is Chief Portfolio Manager at Winthrop Capital Management.

"We obviously have a lot of uncertainty from the geopolitical landscape. We've got economic uncertainty here in the U.S. - we've got growing uncertainty with these strikes that we're seeing. So I think if you're looking for a theme that's driving markets, it's that one word."

Among individual movers, financials provided a bright spot, with shares of JPMorgan Chase rising 1.5% and Wells Fargo gaining 3% after their quarterly profits trounced analysts' estimates with help from higher interest rates.

Asset manager BlackRock dipped more than 1% after posting a sharp drop in third-quarter net inflows.

And shares of Dollar General rallied more than 9% as investors cheered the return of former CEO Todd Vasos to the top job to help steer the retailer away from weakening traffic.