This TSX stock was up 17% this week and it could gain another 36%, analysts say

The Canadian Big Banks with increased price targets, why tax loss selling will be trickier this year and some top picks for 2026 from RBC Capital Markets. The Financial Post explores those stories and more in The Week in Stocks.

Stock of the week: Curaleaf Holdings Inc.

Investors might think their eyes are deceiving them to see a cannabis name from the beaten down sector at the top the S&P/TSX composite index gainers list. But that’s what happened this week as Curaleaf Holding Inc. gained 17 per cent. The gain came on news that the company purchased several medical marijuana dispensaries and a growing facility in Virginia. The state, which previously legalized the use of marijuana, is expected to clear the way for a regulated retail system, possibly in the first half of 2026 when a new governor takes office. “Virginia is one of the key catalyst states for the industry through our forecast window,” Kenric S. Tyghe, director of special situations in equity research at Canaccord Genuity, said in a note. Analysts believe Curaleaf has the potential to rise another 36 per cent based on the average price target of $5.17 of nine analysts that cover the shares and have price targets, according to Bloomberg. Their price targets ranged from a low of $4.40 from Morningstar Investment Service to a high of $7.03 from Seaport Research Partners. Canaccord has a price target for Curaleaf of $5.00. Analyst Frederico Gomes at ATB Capital Markets hiked his price target for Curaleaf to $4.50 from $4.00. “Curaleaf distinguishes itself through large domestic scale and unique leading presence in high-growth international markets,” Gomes said in a note to investors. Shares of Curaleaf closed Friday at $3.79.

Keeping score

Tax loss selling ideas among slim pickings as deadline nears

Tax-loss selling will be more a matter of stock picking than sector-based, with the S&P/TSX composite index up just over 26 per cent year to date and gains spread across different industries, according to analysts at Scotia Capital Markets. “Overall, investors do not have a large choice for tax loss purposes this year,”

they said in a note. Scotia recommends swapping West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (TSX:WFG) and Methanex Corp. (TSX:MX), down 31 per cent and 27 per cent respectively year to date, for Nutrien Ltd. (TSX:NTR) and then repurchasing the pair in the new year. Scotia has a price target on Methanex of $67.33. Shares traded Friday near $53. Analysts have a price target of $126.27 on West Fraser, which traded Friday at $86. They also suggested selling TFI International Inc. (TSX:TFII) and Lightspeed Commerce Inc. (TSX:LSPD) and purchasing CAE Inc. (TSX:CAE) and

Shopify Inc.

(TSX:SHOP) to get similar sector exposure while not letting cash sit idle. Constellation Software Inc. (TSX:CSU) and CGI Inc. (TSX:GIB/A) are among names that Scotia doesn’t cover but that have lost big so far in 2025 — down 27 and 23 per cent respectively. Analysts recommend selling the pair and picking up Descartes Systems Group Inc. (TSX:DSG).

Price targets soar after blockbuster Big Bank earnings

Canada’s

Big Six banks

reported earnings that led to price target upgrades across the board. TD Cowen hiked its target for

Bank of Nova Scotia

(TSX:BNS) to $104 from $99 on expansion of net interest margin, buybacks and an improving credit outlook. Shares traded Friday at $98. Analyst Mario Mendonca has a buy rating on the shares, but said he will have an eye out for improvement in commercial loans in 2026. Gabriel Dechaine at National Bank of Canada Capital Markets hiked his price target for

Royal Bank of Canada

(TSX:RY) to $235 from $231, as Canada’s largest company by market capitalization posted quarterly profits that beat expectations by 29 per cent. Shares of RBC traded Friday at nearly $225. CIBC Capital Markets analyst Paul Holden increased his price target for

National Bank of Canada

to $174 from $166 based on an increased earnings-per-share estimate that assumes higher loan growth and interest income. National traded Friday at $170. Darko Mihelic at RBC Capital Markets hiked his price target for

Toronto-Dominion Bank

(TSX:TD) to $128 from $120 as it looks like TD is “well on its way” to meeting its U.S. anti-money laundering targets. He also hiked his price target for

Bank of Montreal

to $178 from $163 on lower corporate losses and higher capital markets earnings. TD and BMO were trading at $121 and nearly $178, respectively.

Select names from RBC’s top picks for 2026

RBC Capital Markets’ recalibrated its Canadian convictions list of stocks for 2026. Among the 27 names, RBC added

Manulife Financial Corp.

(TSX:MFC) and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX:TD), and deleted

Telus Corp.

(TSX:T). RBC analyst Darko Mihelic has a price target on Manulife of $52 based on “solid” growth in Asia and reinsurance deals in long-term

care. Manulife traded Friday near $48. Among risks to the shares are low interest rates, a prolonged economic downturn, deteriorating equity markets and appreciation in the

Canadian dollar

. For TD, Mihelic has a 12-month price target of $120 based on pledges to buy back approximately $6 billion to $7 billion worth of shares and cut costs by $2 billion to $2.5 billion by 2029.

Price target hikes

• TD Cowen analyst Wayne Lam hiked his price target for Equinox Gold Corp.(TSX:EQX) to $22 from $20 on the ramp-up of two Canadian projects. Shares traded Friday around $19.
• Patrick Kenny, an analyst at National Bank of Canada Capital Markets, hiked his price target for Gibson Energy Inc. (TSX:GEI) to $29 from $24 and upgraded the shares to outperform from sector perform, “highlighting an attractive entry point.” Shares traded Friday around the $25.50 level.
• BMO Capital Markets analyst Tom Callaghan upgraded Extendicare Inc. to outperfrom and hiked the price target to $24 from $21 on the company’s deal to purchase CBI Home Health, which “enhances (its) footprint in a space that we see as a structural winner in the coming years.” Extendicare traded Friday at the $22 level.

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• Email: gmvsuhanic@postmedia.com