Flagstar Bancorp, with $15.8 billion in total assets, it's the Midwest's largest publicly held savings bank and one of the nation's leading mortgage lenders. Flagstar had lowered its dividend in three separate strokes since year-end 2005, from 25 cents to a nickel a share, before eliminating it last week -- as it had recently indicated it would. Payouts had been made for a decade. The stock trades at around half of its 52-week high of 14.64.

Known around the world for its recliners, La-Z-Boy markets furniture for every room of the house. The two-year housing slump naturally has hurt the home-furnishings industry. Still, La-Z-Boy posted a profit in its third fiscal quarter (ended Jan. 31) of $9.5 million, or 18 cents a share, on a 7.8% drop in sales to $373.1 million -- versus a year-earlier loss of $7.8 million, or 15 cents. Nevertheless, it cut its dividend -- to four cents a share from the 12 cents it had been disbursing for the past seven quarters -- to conserve cash, grow and lighten its debt (long-term borrowings total $146.4 million). The reduction translates into an annual savings of roughly $16.5 million. La-Z-Boy, which has been curbing costs by selling noncore assets and closing underperforming stores, among other things, has $63 million in cash on its balance sheet. It's paid dividends steadily since 1963, and its stock, which was recently quoted at 9.11 (its 52-week high is 14.85), yields 1.76%.