US STOCKS-Wall Street flat as M&A stir fades

                                

                                
 * HP shares slide after 3PAR offer
                                
 * Utilities sector leads gains as buyers seek safety
                                
 * 3M CEO says may double acquisition spending in 2010
                                
 * Dow, S&P 500 flat, Nasdaq down 0.4 pct
                                
 * For up-to-the-minute market news see [STXNEWS/US]
(Updates to midafternoon, changes byline)
                                
 By Leah Schnurr
                                
 NEW YORK, Aug 23 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were little
changed on Monday as investors took refuge in defensive shares
after the latest corporate M&A failed to soothe concerns the
recovery is stalling.
                                
 Technology shares led the downside as a possible bidding
war over data storage company 3PAR <PAR.N> between
Hewlett-Packard Co <HPQ.N> and Dell Inc <DELL.O> sent shares of
HP 1.7 percent lower.
                                
 The bid comes on the heels of other deals last week,
including acquisition offers from Intel Corp <INTC.O> and BHP
Billiton <BHP.AX> and had pushed indexes higher at the
session's open.
                                
 "Overriding the M&A buzz -- which didn't have a lot of
longevity -- is the fact that economic data still remains very
poor and there's concern that the much-discussed soft patch has
the potential to become something greater," said Bucky Hellwig,
senior vice president at BB&T Wealth Management in Birmingham,
Alabama.
                                
 Analysts said the recent spate of M&A also points to
companies continuing to make profits through cost cutting
rather than through topline revenue growth and highlights
economic weakness.
                                
 "It's positive we've got the merger talk, but it doesn't
overlap a vibrant economy," said Hellwig.
                                
 The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> added 8.36 points,
or 0.08 percent, to 10,221.98. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index
<.SPX> edged up 0.48 point, or 0.04 percent, at 1,072.17. The
Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> slipped 9.47 points, or 0.43
percent, to 2,170.29.
                                
 Gains by utilities, healthcare and other defensive sectors
stemmed losses to keep the broad market flat. The S&P 500
utilities sector <.GSPU> gained 0.8 percent, while the
healthcare group <.GSPA> added 0.6 percent.
                                
 The Nasdaq fared worse than the other two indexes as
technology shares slipped. Lingering concerns about the
stalling economic recovery weighed on technology shares.
                                
 The Dow and S&P 500 have notched two straight weeks of
losses on gloominess over softer-than-expected data in recent
days.
                                
 HP, the computer maker, bid $24 a share in cash for 3PAR,
topping an earlier bid from Dell. Shares of 3PAR surged 42.6
percent to $25.72, while HP dropped 1.7 percent to $39.17. Dell
shares fell 1.1 percent to $11.94. For details see
[ID:nN23188685].
                                
 3M Co's <MMM.N> Chief Executive George Buckley said the Dow
component may spend about $2 billion on acquisitions in 2010,
twice its previous estimate. 3M shares gained 1.2 percent to
$81.66. [ID:nTOE67M07U]
 (Reporting by Leah Schnurr; Editing by Kenneth Barry)