Canadian Solar gains after Mizuho upgrades to 'neutral'

Canadian Solar CSIQ.O rises 2.9% to $18.56 premarket after Mizuho upgrades stock to "neutral" from "underperform"

Brokerage says sharp fall in CSIQ shares since November and underperformance due to "Prohibited Foreign Entity" status seem overdone

Cuts PT to $19 from $21, citing lower volumes and increased cash outflows tied to its U.S. factory investment, partially offset by 45X tax credits

New PT represents an upside of 5.3% to stock's last close

"Near-term catalysts include taking over U.S. factory ownership (or sale), to comply with foreign entity rules, but upside is limited based on comparables," brokerage says

Separately, CSIQ says its energy storage unit, e‑STORAGE, has signed a supply deal with a major U.S. utility for a large battery project to support data center power reliability

Three of 12 brokerages rate the stock "buy" or higher, five "hold" and four "sell" or lower; their median PT is $19.6 - LSEG-compiled data

As of last close, CSIQ down 24.1% YTD