* Chevron deal lifts energy sector
* Priceline jumps after earnings
* Euro erases losses, commodities firm
* Indexes: S&P up 0.1 pct, Dow flat, Nasdaq up 0.3 pct
* For up-to-the-minute market news see []
(Updates to midmorning)
By Edward Krudy
NEW YORK, Nov 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were little changed
on Tuesday with few catalysts driving the market after five
weeks of gains, but investors said an uptrend remained in place
as M&A activity boosted energy and technology sectors.
The S&P 500 has run into resistance around the 1,228 level,
which would retrace 61.8 percent of the decline between its
highs in 2007 and the 12-year low in March 2009. This point, a
Fibonacci retracement, is closely followed by technical
chartists and often triggers buying or selling.
Mergers and acquisitions lifted shares but its effect was
largely restricted to specific sectors.
Atlas Energy Inc <ATLS.O> jumped 34 percent to $42.52 after
Chevron Corp <CVX.N> said it will buy the U.S. natural gas
producer, giving Chevron a stake in the fast-growing Marcellus
shale field. For details, see []
News of the deal helped lift the S&P energy index <.GSPE>
0.7 percent.
Yahoo Inc <YHOO.O> jumped 6 percent to $17.43 after a
report it may be a takeout target. Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba
Group, was approached by private equity investors about taking
part in a bid to buy Yahoo, a source said. []
Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald & Co
in San Francisco, said stocks were pausing after a 17 percent
rally in the S&P 500 over two months, adding that the outlook
through the end of the year was robust.
"I think we'll go higher," he said, citing M&A activity as
one driver. "When we get into the new year, I think we'll hear
a lot more about that, mainly because companies have a ton of
cash.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> dropped 4.81
points, or 0.04 percent, to 11,402.03. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> gained 0.83 points, or 0.07 percent, to
1,224.08. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> rose 6.76 points,
or 0.26 percent, to 2,586.81.
On the earnings front, Priceline.com Inc <PCLN.O> advanced
10 percent to $427.22 a day after the online travel agency
posted stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings. At least six
brokers raised their price targets on the stock.
The weaker dollar lifted commodities. U.S. crude oil
futures <CLc1> hit a two-year high, helped by bullish comments
from an industry group, while copper reached its highest level
since mid-2008, also driven by falling inventories and supply
concerns.
Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc <FCX.N> rose 2.1 percent
to $107.50, while Alcoa Inc <AA.N>, the biggest U.S. aluminum
producer, added 1.3 percent $14.14.
On the down side, Dean Foods Co <DF.N> fell 16.1 percent to
$8.69 after the company said profit 50 percent.
(Reporting by Edward Krudy; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
