(Adds comment from lawyer, further detail on charges)

WASHINGTON, March 3 (Reuters) - Investment adviser MAG Capital and its owner settled U.S. regulators' claims that it took warrants from three hedge funds it advised without compensating them, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said on Tuesday.

The Los Angeles-based investment adviser and owner David Firestone, without admitting or denying the SEC's allegations, will pay $100,000 and $50,000, respectively, to settle the SEC's complaint.

On 44 separate occasions, between 2003 and 2006, MAG took warrants from its clients without compensating their funds for them, the SEC said.

According to the SEC, MAG's hedge fund clients made investments in so-called private investment in public equity (PIPE) transactions.

The PIPE transactions included warrants and other securities. The hedge funds paid for the warrants as part of the bundle of securities sold by the issuers in the transaction.

However, MAG took a portion of the warrants in each transaction and did not compensate the hedge funds for the warrants it took, the SEC alleged.

A warrant is a derivative security that gives the holder the right to buy the security from the company or issuer at a specific price within a specific period of time.

According to the complaint, MAG did not adequately disclose that the warrants it took were being paid for by the hedge funds and that MAG was not compensating the funds for these warrants.

A lawyer for MAG and Firestone said they fully cooperated with the SEC and were glad to have the matter behind them. (Reporting by Rachelle Younglai; editing by Richard Chang and Tim Dobbyn)