Dividend payments paid by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to the U.S. Treasury for its continued financial support held down the two government-sponsored enterprises during the fourth quarter as Freddie would have otherwise posted a profit, while Fannie narrowed its losses during the final three months of 2011. Freddie actually reported $619 million in net income during the fourth quarter of 2011, compared to the third quarter’s net loss of $4.4 billion, before having to repay $1.7 billion in preferred stock dividends to the government. Under the terms of the GSEs’ purchase agreement, the Treasury is entitled...