Incentive fees boost Och-Ziff
HEDGE fund company Och-Ziff Capital Management Group yesterday reported higher-than-expected quarterly earnings because it collected more incentive fees as its portfolios delivered strong returns.
The New York-based company, which participated in the Glazer family takeover of Manchester United in 2005, reported distributable earnings of $281.4m (£179m) or 69 cents per share.
A year earlier, the company reported distributable earnings of $28.9m or seven cents.
Och-Ziff, which went public in November 2007, highlights distributable earnings – income from the Och-Ziff Funds segment minus adjustable income taxes – as the best measure of its performance.
At the end of December, Och-Ziff reported $23.1bn in assets under management, up four per cent from the previous quarter but down 14 per cent from a year earlier when investors began pulling money out of hedge funds at the height of the financial crisis.
For Och-Ziff, which distinguished itself from many rivals by not restricting investors’ ability pull out, money began to flow in again during the last weeks of the year.
Three of Och-Ziff’s four portfolios reported double-digit gains with the OZ Asia Master Fund turning in the best performance with a 33.96 per cent gain.
“We surpassed the high-water marks on our assets under management with our OZ Master Fund having one its best years ever and our Asia Master Fund achieving record performance,” chairman and chief executive Officer Dan Och said.
Total revenue jumped 214 per cent to $440.6m.