BUZZ-CIBC gains as brokerages upgrade ratings, hike PTs on stellar results

** Shares of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce CM.TO rise ~2.5% to C$79.45 in morning trading

** BofA Global Research upgrades stock to 'buy' from ''; Cormark Securities also raises co to 'buy' from 'market perform'

** On Thursday, CIBC beat Q3 profit estimates on smaller provisions to shield against bad loans; Co's shares closed up ~5.5% after results

** Co set aside a provision for credit losses of C$483 mln ($358.47 mln) in Q3, well below the C$569 mln expected by analysts, per LSEG data

** At least brokerages raise price targets after results

** "The potential for the Canadian economy to stage a rebound year also increases our confidence in adding exposure to the stock" - BofA

** CM posted Q3 adjusted EPS of C$1.93, handily surpassing ests of C$1.74

** Including session gains, stock up ~24.5% YTD

($1 = 1.3474 Canadian dollars)

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru)

((Manya.Saini@thomsonreuters.com))