* FTSE 100 barely changed after retail sales figures
* WPP falls after disappointing Q1 sales
* Pace rallies on takeover bid
* William Hill hit by tax, sports bets (Recasts, adds latest prices)
By Francesco Canepa and Lionel Laurent
LONDON, April 23 (Reuters) - Top British shares were leftbroadly unchanged on Thursday after an unexpected fall innational monthly retail sales offset a bump-up for utilitiesstocks just two weeks ahead of a general election.
While no single party is expected to win an outrightmajority on May 7, and experts predicting a kaleidoscope ofpossible outcomes, the stock market has shown few signs ofedginess as some investors choose to stay steady rather thancash out on a market still trading near record highs.
Shares of retailers Marks & Spencer, Sports Direct and Dixons were down 0.2 to 2 percent afterretail data confounded expectations of a robust number, falling0.5 percent in March compared with February.
However, supermarket chain Sainsbury rose after itsaid it would axe 800 store jobs in a drive to cut costs.
Utilities stocks including United Utilities and SSE were up more than 1 percent after a broker update fromCiti said election volatility would affect the sector goingforward, adding that National Grid was the most immune inits view. National Grid was up 0.6 percent at 1155 GMT.
Shares in WPP, the world's biggest advertising company, fell1 percent after the company posted a slowdown in first-quarterlike-for-like net sales, which traders said were more sluggishthan anticipated.
"First take looks weak ... (and) implies a slowdown inFebruary and March," a trader in London said.
The broader FTSE 100 index was flat at 7,028.28points at 1155 GMT. The index has been struggling to makeheadway since hitting an all-time high of 7,119 last week.
Sentiment was dampened by a survey that showed privatesector business growth in the euro zone, a key source ofrevenues for British firms, was weaker than forecast this month.
Eleven FTSE 100 companies, including mining and commoditytrading firm Glencore, went ex-dividend on Thursday,further weighing on the index.
Mid-cap set-top box maker Pace Plc surged 32percent, however, after receiving a takeover offer from Networkgear maker Arris Group Inc.
"The commercial and financial rationale of the deal makesgood sense, with the only hurdle being gaining anti-trustclearance, which while likely is not certain," analysts at Numiswrote in a note, upgrading the stock to "neutral" from "sell".
Bookmaker William Hill fell 3.8 percent afterposting a 19 percent fall in first-quarter operating profit,hurt by additional tax charges and the impact of its worst eversports betting week.
Electronics distribution company Premier Farnell's rose 3.5 percent after Credit Suisse upgraded the stock to"outperform" from "neutral", describing it as the "logical shareto own ... for pure dividend yield". (Additional reporting by Alasdair Pal; Editing by Gareth Jonesand Crispian Balmer)