U.S. stocks closed out a year of double-digit gains and the S&P's best December since 1991 with a quiet and little changed session on Friday as investors found no reason to make big bets ahead of the new year.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> was up 7.80 points, or 0.07 percent, at 11,577.51. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was down 0.24 points, or 0.02 percent, at 1,257.64. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> was down 10.11 points, or 0.38 percent, at 2,652.87.

(Reporting by Edward Krudy; Editing by Padraic Cassidy)