Jefferies upgrades Air Canada to 'hold', hikes PT

Jefferies upgrades Air Canada's AC.TO rating to 'hold' from 'underperform', raises PT to C$18 from C$12

New PT a downside of 4% to the stock's last close

Shares marginally down at C$18.70 in choppy morning trade

Says co avoided macro uncertainty in Q1, and capacity and cost action will help company achieve 2025 guidance

Jefferies estimates 2025 EBITDA of C$3.48 bln ($2.5 bln), near the top-end of company's reduced forecast of C$3.2 to C$3.6 bln

Says co's costs under control, despite disruptions at Toronto-Pearson and A220 groundings

Co on May 8 posted Q1 loss smaller than analysts' estimates

Fifteen of 17 brokerages rate the stock "buy" or higher, two "hold"; their median PT is $24 - data compiled by LSEG

Including session's moves, shares are down 16.1% YTD