By Alistair Barr
SAN FRANCISCO (Dow Jones) -- Fortress Investment Group reported
a fourth-quarter net loss Monday after some investors pulled money
out of the firm's hedge funds.
Fortress reported a quarterly net loss of $140 million, or $1.50
a share, versus a loss of $29 million, or 43 cents a share a year
earlier.
Pre-tax distributable losses, which exclude unrealized gains or
losses on illiquid investments and certain types of expenses, but
include so-called contingent revenue, were $258 million, or 56
cents per dividend paying share, in the latest quarter. Pre-tax
distributable earnings in 2007's fourth quarter were $78
million.
Fortress (FIG), one of the first major hedge fund firms to go
public in the U.S. in 2007, has been hit hard by losses and
withdrawals from some of its funds. Fortress shares have slumped
87% in the past year.
The firm suspended redemptions from its largest hedge fund, the
Drawbridge Global Macro fund, in December after getting requests
from investors to withdraw more than $3 billion.