Hedge fund manager David Tepper, who had $3.1 billion in U.S. stocks in the third quarter, has withdrawn from the market with $648 million as he sold most of his holdings, Bloomberg News reports.

“We moved a lot out early because we didn’t want to lose money,” said Tepper, president of New Jersey-based Appaloosa Management.

The firm, which shifted some money to bonds, now holds 30% - 40% of assets in cash. The Appaloosa experience finds repetition across the hedge fund world in the third quarter as managers were hit by client redemptions, falling financial markets and tighter credit.

Some 38 hedge funds, with more than $1 billion in assets each, saw their holdings shrink in value by 30% to $273 million due to sales and market declines.

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