Legg Mason assets under management edge down in December

Legg Mason Inc.'s assets under management dropped slightly in December, a month after inching up.

The Baltimore money manager reported preliminary assets of $647.9 billion in December, down less than 1 percent from $648.3 billion in November.

Equity assets declined from $145.1 billion in November to $144.8 billion. Fixed-income declined to $366.7 billion in December, down from $369.3 billion a month before.

Liquidity assets — funds that can be quickly converted into cash — increased to $136.4…