US benchmark equity indexes ended lower Tuesday as a regional manufacturing gauge rebounded, while a report showed homebuilder confidence slumping more than anticipated.

* S&P 500 companies' latest quarterly results showed a slowdown in the pace of earnings and revenue growth compared with about a week ago, though the bottom-line results continued to exceed expectations, Oppenheimer Asset Management said Tuesday.

* The Federal Reserve Bank of New York's Empire State manufacturing index rebounded more than expected to reach 5.7 in February. The consensus estimate compiled by Bloomberg was for a reading of minus 2.

* In other economic news, homebuilder confidence deteriorated in February, with the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo's housing market index falling to the lowest level in five months.

* March West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed up $1.06 to settle at $71.80 per barrel, while April Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen up $0.57 to $75.79 as a Ukrainian drone attack on an export pipeline in Russia damaged a pumping station and cut shipments on the 1.3-millon barrel per day line, while a report said OPEC+ is again considering a delay for the return of voluntary production cuts to market.

* Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) and Broadcom (AVGO) are considering pitching deals to acquire separate pieces of Intel (INTC), The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Intel shares rose 15%.

* Medtronic (MDT) was down 7.3% after missing fiscal Q3 revenue projections.