Insurer Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. reported a sharply lower profit for the fourth quarter, hurt by a series of realized losses.

After markets closed Thursday, the company said profit for the quarter ended Dec. 31, was US$5.6 million, or US16¢ a share, compared with US$6.6 million, or US51¢ a share, in the year-before quarter.

Fairfax said the results were impaired by US$62.6 million of mark-to-market changes in fair value related to hedges put in place against a decline in equity markets.

Other realized losses were in connection with the company’s repurchase of outstanding debt and a reserve for asbestos claims at its Crum & Forster unit.

Quarterly revenue slipped to US$1.45 billion from US$1.58 billion.

For the year ended 2004, Fairfax lost US$17.8 million, or US$2.16 a share, mostly because of a third-quarter loss from its exposure to hurricanes in the southeastern United States. That compared to a profit of US$271.1 million, or US$18.23 a share, in 2003.

Fairfax’s shares closed Thursday at $206.97 on the Toronto Stock Exchange, down $2.04.

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