Stocks are mixed in midday trading as investors weighed the impact of President Barack Obama's budget proposal for the next fiscal year.

Obama unveiled a $3.73 trillion budget Monday that includes a five-year freeze on many domestic spending programs. Republicans and Democrats have argued recently over whether deep spending cuts will slow the economy's recovery.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. dropped 1.4 percent after analysts at JPMorgan downgraded the company. Wal-Mart was the weakest stock among the 30 that make up the Dow Jones industrial average.

The Dow fell 18 points, or 0.1 percent, to 12,255. The S&P 500 rose less than a point to 1,329. The Nasdaq composite gained 7 points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,816.

A class action lawsuit is alleging that Fixodent denture cream may have caused serious problems.

ABC News reported that lawyers for two former denture cream users are accusing Proctor & Gamble of manufacturing a product that made their clients extremely ill.

Mark Jacoby, a 41-year-old construction worker who wore dentures for 20 years, told ABC News that he believes his debilitating neurological illness is due to the high zinc content in his Fixodent.

"I started getting tingling in my fingertips. And then it started happening in my toes," he told ABC News' 20/20 anchor Chris Cuomo, who is the Chief of the Law & Justice Unit. "I started getting weaker and, you know, I couldn't walk right, off balance and I'm at this point now."

He said his doctors searched for years for the cause of his debilitating neurological illness that robbed him of his independence.

The plan unveiled Monday includes tax increases for oil, gas and coal producers, investment managers and U.S.-based multinational corporations. The plan would allow Bush-era tax cuts to expire at the end of 2012 for individuals making more than $200,000 and married couples making more than $250,000. Wealthy taxpayers would have their itemized deductions limited, including deductions for mortgage interest, charitable contributions and state and local taxes.

"These policies were unfair and unaffordable when enacted and remain so today," Obama said in his budget message.

Obama's proposal would extend tax credits for college expenses and child care, as well as a more generous Earned Income Tax Credit for the working poor. The plan would enhance and make permanent a popular business tax credit for research and development, and would provide tax breaks for investing in advanced manufacturing and for making commercial buildings more energy efficient.

Many of the tax increases were in the president's previous budget proposals, offered when Obama could expect a more friendly reception from Congress. Lawmakers from both political parties, however, have been wary of limiting the ability of high earners to deduct charitable contributions out of concern it will hurt non-profit organizations.

A group of Senate Democrats has come out in favor of raising taxes on oil and gas companies, but Republicans, who generally oppose such tax increases, have the votes to block them in the Senate.

The technology company said its cash tender offer applies to any and all of the $400 million in aggregate principal amount outstanding. The tender offer expires on Feb. 22, unless extended.

Honeywell's obligation to accept and pay for notes tendered hinges on whether net proceeds from the company's simultaneous offering of new notes are sufficient to buy old notes that are validly tendered.

Shares of Honeywell fell 53 cents, or about 0.9 percent, to $57.45 in morning trading.

THE SPARK: Clorox shares climbed 8 percent Friday to close at $71.26, after Icahn's stake was disclosed in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The notice came a week after Clorox reported an 81 percent drop in fiscal second-quarter profit on softer sales and a charge.

THE BIG PICTURE: The Oakland, Calif., company makes a range of cleaning products along with food products such as Hidden Valley salad dressing.

Icahn has a history of investing in companies going through difficult financial situations and pushing for changes.

The analyst said it was too early to understand the motivation behind Icahn's interest. The investor's targets seem to fall in three categories: break ups, merger and acquisition candidates, or companies that are pushed to improve business fundamentals.