The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday, July 13, edition that analysts were taken by surprise after The Globe was first to report late Tuesday that Laurentian Bank of Canada is undergoing a strategic review to maximize stakeholder value and possibly sell itself. The Globe's Darcy Keith writes that in reaction to the news, which was later confirmed by Laurentian, National Bank of Canada raised its share target to $51 from $39. Veritas Investment research upgraded its rating to a "buy," with a share target of $42. CIBC's share target went up to $60 as it upgraded the stock to an "outperformer" rating. Finally, Cormark Securities set a $43 share target while it upgraded its rating to "buy" from "market perform." Analysts on average target the shares at $42.69, up more than $3 from before the news hit and close to where the stock was trading Wednesday afternoon. That is up about 27 per cent on the day. The Globe notes that views differed significantly on whether a transaction was likely to be concluded. Desjardins Securities analyst Doug Young, in a note released late Tuesday, said he sees the potential sale "as slightly positive" for the bank. Mr. Young rates the shares "hold."