Housing stocks decline after home sales data

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Housing shares were down on Monday following data that suggested a still shaky U.S. housing market.

An index of housing shares <.HGX> was down 0.8 percent after a report showed contracts to purchase previously-owned U.S. homes fell more than expected in August.

Among the biggest decliners in the index, shares of KB Home were down 1.8 percent, shares of Meritage Homes were down 1.7 percent and shares of Ryland were down 1.7 percent.

Housing shares have been underperforming the benchmark S&P 500 index this year, with the housing index down 5.9 percent for the year so far, while the S&P 500 is up 6.8 percent.

Last week, data on the housing sector was more upbeat, with one report showing new home sales rose 18 percent in August, hitting a six-year high.

(Editing by Nick Zieminski)

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