Flagstar suspends dividend for first quarter

LOS ANGELES, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Bank holding company Flagstar Bancorp Inc (FBC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Tuesday it would suspend payment of its dividend for the first quarter in a bid to conserve cash.

Flagstar warned in January that it might take this action.

In a statement, Chief Executive Mark Hammond said the quarterly dividend would be suspended "until the capital markets normalize and residential real estate shows signs of improvement."

(Reporting by Alexandria Sage, editing by Phil Berlowitz)