US STOCKS-Wall St near flat as banks, Apple offset weak data

* Apple beats expectations, shares rise

* UPS falls after Q2 outlook misses expectations

* Housing, jobs data worse than expected

* Dow off 0.1 pct, S&P off 0.1 pct, Nasdaq off 0.3 pct

* For up-to-the-minute market news click [STXNEWS/US] (Updates to early afternoon, changes byline)

By Rodrigo Campos

NEW YORK, April 23 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were little changed on Thursday as disappointing economic data and outlooks from bellwethers like UPS were offset by a rise in regional banks.

Upbeat results from companies like Apple Inc (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research) appeased investors, helping limit the market's losses. The iPhone maker was among the Nasdaq's biggest boosts, up more than 3.5 percent.

United Parcel Service Inc (UPS.N: Quote, Profile, Research) lost 2.3 percent to $53.48 after it said profits were hurt by the economic downturn and gave a second-quarter view that was below expectations. For details, see [ID:nN22253727]