NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) May 7, 2014--Ally Financial Inc. continued to make progress toward functioning as a full-fledged monoline bank in the first quarter by completing a $3 billion private placement and passing the Federal Reserve's annual Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR) stress tests. In addition, in April, the company successfully raised $2.4 billion through its IPO, thereby paring down the U.S Treasury's common equity stake to 17.2% from roughly 37%. Ally's first-quarter results were consistent with our expectations for the ratings (BB/Stable/B). Ally's reported core pretax income (adjusted for nonrecurring items and discontinued operations) was $339 million, compared with $161 million in the previous quarter and $207 million in the first quarter of 2013. Earnings mainly benefited
