text: IBM Net Flat; Sees Strong Fourth Quarter  NEW YORK (Reuters) - International Business Machines Corp.  &lt;A HREF="http://www.investor.reuters.com/FullQuote.aspx?ticker=IBM.N target=/stocks/quickinfo/fullquote"&gt;IBM.N&lt;/A&gt; on Monday posted a flat quarterly net profit, weighed  down by a legal settlement, but said fourth-quarter results  would be better than expected, and its shares rose 2.3 percent.