US STOCKS-Index futures edge higher after M&A flurry

                                

                                
 * Wal-Mart offers $4 bln for South Africa's Massmart
                                
 * AirTran soars after Southwest bid
                                
 * Unilever to buy Alberto Culver for $3.7 bln
                                
 * Futures up: Dow 6 pts, S&P 500 0.5 pt, Nasdaq 1.75 pts
                                
 * For up-to-the-minute market news see [STXNEWS/US]
  (Updates market activity)
                                
 By Edward Krudy
                                
 NEW YORK, Sept 27 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures
edged higher on Monday following four weeks of gains for Wall
Street as investors eyed a flurry of merger-and-acquisition
deals, a sign that companies are seeing value in the market.
                                
 Wal-Mart Stores Inc <WMT.N>, the world's largest retailer,
offered more than $4 billion for Massmart, South Africa's third
largest listed retailer by value, as it seeks to expand in
Africa. For details, see [ID:nLDE68Q05T]
                                
 Consumer goods giant Unilever Plc <ULVR.L> agreed to buy
Alberto Culver Co <ACV.N>, the U.S. hair care group for $3.7
billion in cash. Alberto Culver shares rose 18 percent to
$37.10 in premarket trading. [ID:nLDE68Q07C]
                                
 U.S. stocks have moved higher in the last four weeks, with
the benchmark S&P 500 index up over 9 percent since the start
of September as investors welcomed signs the economy was on
firmer footing.
                                
 "With the impressive surge on Friday, investors are pausing
while gauging the commitment to additional optimism," said
Andre Bakhos, director of market analytics at Lek Securities in
New York. "The M&A deals should give investors an added boost
of confidence."
                                
 S&P 500 futures <SPc1> rose 0.5 point and were above below
fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into
account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the
contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures <DJc1> gained 6
points, and Nasdaq 100 futures <NDc1> added 1.75 points.
                                
 Shares of AirTran holdings Inc <AAI.N> rose 60.4 percent to
$7.30 after Southwest Airlines Co <LUV.N> said it would acquire
the regional carrier in a deal valued at $7.69 per share.
[ID:nSGE68Q0GW]
                                
 French drugmaker Sanofi-Aventis is seeking to line up more
funding to raise its $18.5 billion bid for Genzyme Corp
<GENZ.O>, The Wall Street Journal reported. [ID:nLDE68Q0BV]
                                
 Preorders in China for Apple Inc's <AAPL.O> iPhone 4 have
exceeded 200,000 units since the smartphone went on sale
Saturday, China Unicom said. [ID:nTOE68Q03F]
                                
 On the earnings front, Jabil Circuit Inc <JBL.N> and
Paychex Inc <PAYX.O> are due to report results later Monday. On
the macroeconomic side, investors are awaiting the Chicago Fed
National Activity Index for August and the Chicago Fed Midwest
Manufacturing Index for August.
                                
 European stocks edged up on Monday, extending Friday's
sharp gains, with food and beverages shares among the top
gainers after the Unilever-Alberto Culver deal. The Nikkei 225
index closed up 1.4 percent.
                                
 U.S. stocks notched their fourth week of gains on Friday as
investors used a rise in business spending to revive the
September rally after three days of losses.
                                
 The next resistance on the S&P 500 it at around 1,173, the
highest level since May 6, when it lost nearly 100 points
intraday during the "flash crash." The index closed up 2.1
percent at 1148.67 on Friday.
  (Reporting by Edward Krudy; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)