Flagstar Reports Fourth Quarter 2016 Net Income of $28 million, or $0.49 per Diluted Share

TROY, Mich., Jan. 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Flagstar Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE: FBC), the holding company for Flagstar Bank, FSB, today reported fourth quarter 2016 net income of $28 million, or $0.49 per diluted share, as compared to $57 million, or $0.96 per diluted share, in the third quarter 2016 and $33 million, or $0.44 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter 2015.

Full year 2016 net income was $171 million, or $2.66 per diluted share, as compared to full year 2015 net income of $158 million, or $2.24 per diluted share. Third quarter 2016 results included a $24 million benefit related to a decrease in the fair value of the Department of Justice ("DOJ") settlement liability. Excluding this benefit, the Company had adjusted non-GAAP 2016 net income of $155 million, or $2.38 per diluted share, an increase in diluted earnings per share of 6 percent from the full year 2015.

"We are pleased to turn in another profitable quarter, capping a year of solid earnings growth for our Company," said Alessandro DiNello, president and chief executive officer of Flagstar Bancorp, Inc. "During the quarter, we saw growth in earning assets combined with net interest margin expansion. Asset quality remained rock solid, as it has all year, and expenses were well controlled. Mortgage originations declined seasonally, as expected, and coupled with rising interest rates made mortgage production challenging."

"We reached an important milestone during the quarter with the lifting of the Consent Order in December with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. We believe this represented a validation of the quality of our risk management organization, the strength of our balance sheet and our improved performance, and also reflected our success in building a broader, more stable and less risky business model."

"With the positive momentum from our 2016 performance, we are looking forward to 2017. We believe the economy will be a bit stronger and the interest rate curve a little steeper. Our business model is poised to continue to be successful."

Fourth Quarter 2016 Highlights:

Net Interest Income

The Company continued to realize growth in its community banking business in the fourth quarter 2016. Net interest income increased to $87 million, compared to $80 million for the third quarter 2016. The results reflected a 4 percent increase in average earning assets, led by growth in investment securities, commercial loans and mortgage loans, and net interest margin expansion of 9 basis points.

Loans held-for-investment averaged $6.2 billion for the fourth quarter 2016, increasing $315 million, or 5 percent, from the prior quarter. During the fourth quarter 2016, average commercial real estate loans increased $127 million, or 12 percent. Average consumer loans rose $111 million, or 4 percent, driven by an increase in mortgage loans (primarily jumbos). Average commercial and industrial loans also registered solid gains, increasing $88 million, or 14 percent.

Average total deposits were $9.2 billion in the fourth quarter 2016, increasing $107 million, or 1 percent, from the third quarter 2016. The increase was led by higher retail deposits, partially offset by lower government deposits. Average retail deposits rose $132 million, or 2 percent, due to an $89 million increase in savings deposits and a $28 million rise in demand deposits.

Net interest margin increased 9 basis points to 2.67 percent for the fourth quarter 2016, as compared to 2.58 percent for the third quarter 2016.  During the quarter, the Company terminated certain fixed rate FHLB advances which resulted in a $2 million benefit to interest expense, accounting for 6 basis points of the increase.

Provision for Loan Losses

The provision for loan losses totaled $1 million for the fourth quarter 2016, as compared to $7 million for the third quarter 2016. The lower level of provision expense reflected strong asset quality and largely matched net charge-offs in the quarter.

Noninterest Income

Noninterest income decreased $58 million, or 37 percent, to $98 million, as compared to $156 million for the third quarter 2016. The decline was driven by a $37 million drop in net gain on loan sales and a $24 million benefit that was recognized in the third quarter 2016 from the reduction in fair value on the DOJ settlement liability.

Fourth quarter 2016 net gain on loan sales fell to $57 million, versus $94 million in the third quarter and $46 million in the same period last year. The decrease from the prior quarter reflected lower fallout-adjusted locks and a drop in the gain on sale margin. In the fourth quarter 2016, fallout-adjusted locks decreased 27 percent to $6.1 billion, primarily due to anticipated seasonal factors and lower refinance activity from significantly higher interest rates. The net gain on loan sale margin fell 20 basis points to 0.93 percent for the fourth quarter 2016, as compared to 1.13 percent for the third quarter 2016, driven by price competition.

Loan fees and charges fell to $20 million for the fourth quarter 2016, as compared to $22 million for the third quarter 2016. The decrease primarily reflected lower mortgage loan closings.

Net return on the mortgage servicing asset (including the impact of hedges) was a net loss of $5 million for the fourth quarter 2016, as compared to a net loss of $11 million for the third quarter 2016. The net return on the mortgage servicing asset increased from the third quarter 2016. This was primarily due to lower prepayments and a $7 million charge recognized in the third quarter 2016 related to MSR sales with a fair value of $50 million that closed in the fourth quarter 2016, partially offset by unfavorable changes in fair value driven by an increase in market implied interest rate volatility experienced in the fourth quarter 2016.

The representation and warranty benefit was $7 million for the fourth quarter 2016, as compared to a $6 million benefit in the third quarter 2016. The representation and warranty reserve was reduced to $27 million at December 31, 2016, from $32 million at September 30, 2016, reflecting a continued improvement in risk trends and a repurchase demand pipeline that was only $6 million at December 31, 2016.

Total other noninterest income for the fourth quarter 2016 was $10 million, as compared to $36 million for the third quarter 2016. The decrease was almost entirely due to a $24 million reduction in the fair value of the Company's DOJ settlement liability recognized in the prior quarter.

Noninterest Expense

Noninterest expense was unchanged at $142 million for the fourth quarter 2016, as compared to the third quarter 2016. Legal and professional expense rose $4 million, while compensation and benefits expense fell $3 million.

The Company's efficiency ratio was 77 percent for the fourth quarter 2016, compared to an adjusted non-GAAP efficiency ratio of 67 percent in the prior quarter, excluding the $24 million benefit from the drop in fair value on the DOJ settlement liability in the third quarter 2016.

Income Taxes

The fourth quarter 2016 provision for income taxes totaled $14 million, as compared to $30 million in the third quarter 2016. The effective tax rate in the fourth quarter 2016 declined slightly to 33 percent, as compared to 34 percent in the third quarter 2016 and the full year 2016.

Asset Quality

The Company continued to experience solid credit performance in the fourth quarter 2016. The allowance for loan losses was $142 million at December 31, 2016, covering 2.4 percent of loans held-for-investment, as compared to an allowance for loan losses of $143 million at September 30, 2016, covering 2.3 percent of loans held-for-investment.

Net charge-offs in the fourth quarter 2016 were $2 million, or 0.13 percent of applicable loans, compared to $7 million, or 0.51 percent of applicable loans in the prior quarter. The fourth quarter 2016 amount included $1 million of net charge-offs associated with loans with government guarantees compared to $5 million in the third quarter of 2016.

Nonperforming loans held-for-investment were $40 million at December 31, 2016, unchanged from September 30, 2016.  As in the prior quarter, there were no nonperforming commercial loans at December 31, 2016. The ratio of nonperforming loans to loans held-for-investment increased to 0.67 percent at December 31, 2016 from 0.63 percent at September 30, 2016. At December 31, 2016, consumer loan delinquencies totaled $10 million, up slightly from September 30, 2016. As in the prior quarter, there were no commercial loans more than 30 days delinquent at December 31, 2016.

Capital

The Company maintained a robust capital position with regulatory ratios well above current regulatory quantitative guidelines for "well capitalized" institutions. At December 31, 2016, the Company had a Tier 1 leverage ratio of 8.88 percent, unchanged from September 30, 2016.

At December 31, 2016, the Company had a common equity-to-assets ratio of 9.50 percent.

Earnings Conference Call

As previously announced, the Company's fourth quarter 2016 earnings call will be held Tuesday, January 24, 2017 at 11 a.m. (ET).

To join the call, please dial (800) 474-8920 toll free or (719) 457-2640 and use passcode 1910792. Please call at least 10 minutes before the conference is scheduled to begin. A replay will be available for five business days by calling (866) 375-1919 toll free or (719) 457-0820, using passcode 1910792.

The conference call will also be available as a live audiocast on the Investor Relations section of flagstar.com, where it will be archived and available for replay and download. The slide presentation accompanying the conference call will be posted on the site.

About Flagstar

Flagstar Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE: FBC) is a $14.1 billion savings and loan holding company headquartered in Troy, Mich. Flagstar Bank, FSB, provides commercial, small business, and consumer banking services through 99 branches in the state. It also provides home loans through a wholesale network of brokers and correspondents in all 50 states, as well as through 41 retail locations in 21 states. Flagstar is a leading national originator and servicer of mortgage loans, handling payments and record keeping for $80 billion of home loans representing 383,000 borrowers. For more information, please visit flagstar.com. 

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In addition to results presented in accordance with GAAP, this news release includes non-GAAP financial measures, such as adjusted net income, adjusted return on average assets, adjusted return on average equity, adjusted return on common equity, adjusted noninterest income, adjusted efficiency ratio and estimated fully implemented Basel III capital levels and ratios. The Company believes these non-GAAP financial measures provide additional information that is useful to investors in helping to understand the capital requirements Flagstar will face in the future and underlying performance and trends of Flagstar.

Non-GAAP financial measures have inherent limitations. Readers should be aware of these limitations and should be cautious with respect to the use of such measures. To compensate for these limitations, we use non-GAAP measures as comparative tools, together with GAAP measures, to assist in the evaluation of our operating performance or financial condition. Also, we ensure that these measures are calculated using the appropriate GAAP or regulatory components in their entirety and that they are computed in a manner intended to facilitate consistent period-to-period comparisons. Flagstar's method of calculating these non-GAAP measures may differ from methods used by other companies. These non-GAAP measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for those financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP or in-effect regulatory requirements.

Where non-GAAP financial measures are used, the most directly comparable GAAP or regulatory financial measure, as well as the reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP or regulatory financial measure, can be found in this news release. Additional discussion of the use of non-GAAP measures can also be found in conference call slides, the Form 8-K Current Report related to this news release and in periodic Flagstar reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These documents can all be found on the Company's website at flagstar.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This earnings release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on the current beliefs and expectations of Flagstar Bancorp, Inc.'s management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in periodic Flagstar reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available on the Company's website (flagstar.com) and on the Securities and Exchange Commission's website (sec.gov). Other than as required under United States securities laws, Flagstar Bancorp does not undertake to update the forward-looking statements to reflect the impact of circumstances or events that may arise after the date of the forward-looking statements.

For more information, contact:
David L. Urban
david.urban@flagstar.com  
(248) 312-5970