Unprofitable S&Ls; Last Year Lost $8 Billion

Nearly a fourth of all federally insured savings and loan associations lost money last year, and their losses more than doubled from 1985 levels, the government reported Friday.

The Federal Home Loan Bank Board said that unprofitable S&Ls; lost $8.3 billion over the course of the year, compared with losses of $3.6 billion among unprofitable institutions in 1985.

The last three months of the year were particularly bad, the board said, with 26% of all insured S&Ls; posting losses totaling $3.2 billion, up $1.1 billion from the previous quarter.

Most Firms Made Money

Despite the sharp increase in losses among unprofitable S&Ls;, the board said, most institutions made money. Net income of profitable operations totaled $9.2 billion, up from $7.3 billion in 1985. In the fourth quarter, the board said, 74% of savings and loans were profitable, recording net income of $2.3 billion.

The loss figures are being closely watched because of the vulnerable status of the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corp., which insures deposits of up to $100,000 in affiliated institutions.

The General Accounting Office has told Congress that the FSLIC is technically insolvent and recommended that up to $15 billion in new money, borrowed from capital markets, be raised to supplement the fund.