Shares of Mueller Water Products Inc. fell with the broader market Monday, following a negative Commerce Department reading on construction spending.
Shares of the Atlanta-based company, which makes pipes, meters and other water-related products, dipped 40 cents, or 4 percent, to $9.73.
Brean, Murray, Carret & Co. analyst Michael Gaugler said in a phone interview that rising prices for certain raw materials have hurt the company's margins. Costs for commodities are rising so fast, Mueller cannot boost its own prices fast enough to keep up, he said.
The stock's drop comes the same day the Commerce Department reported construction spending fell again in April and home building continued a two-year long slide.
A Mueller representative was not immediately available for comment.
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