Ally Financial IPO Starts on Bad Note for Taxpayers

The low-end pricing of the stock is just another poke in the eye to U.S. taxpayers. All the proceeds will be used to pay back the U.S. Treasury’s $17 billion bailout of the company known as GMAC back in 2008 when the financial crisis hit. Thursday’s sale reduces the federal government stake in the company from about 38% to around 14%.

Underwriters are Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Barclays Capital, which have an overallotment option on an additional 14.25 million shares.

One analyst at BTIG has already put a Buy recommendation on the bank’s stock with a price target of $31 a share, according to a report at TheStreet.com. That is arguable given that Ally failed its most recent Federal Reserve stress test and has set up a subsidiary on which the bank intends to shed all its bad loans.

Ally also has about $79 billion in remaining debt that the bank has to roll over constantly as the principal payments come due. From Ally’s point of view, if interest rates never rise about 0.25%, it is all right with the bank.

Shares opened down 3% at $24.25 and have since picked up slightly to $24.57.