(This story is for CNBC Pro subscribers only.) Goldman Sachs issued a mea culpa on Shopify Tuesday, upgrading the Canadian e-commerce start-up after missing its massive run this year. "While we acknowledge that we have missed a significant run up in SHOP shares (up 140% in the YTD), we would point out that SHOP has one of the largest Total Addressable Markets in software, which we measure at $200bn globally," Christopher Merwin, Goldman equity analyst, said in a note on Tuesday. The bank hiked its Shopify rating to buy from neutral and maintained its recently-increased price target of $1,127, which represents more than 15% upside for the stock. The Ottawa-based company has become the platform of choice for businesses looking to move operations online quickly during the pandemic. Shopify shares have soared more than 50% in the last three months alone, surging past Royal Bank of Canada to become Canada's largest company by market value. "With a unique customer acquisition funnel that has not only found unmatched success in SMB but increasingly the enterprise segment as well, we believe SHOP should be able to sustain hyper-growth for longer than the market expects," Merwin said. The stock, which went public in May 2015, got another boost last month after Walmart announced its partnership with Shopify as it looks to expand its online marketplace business. Goldman now expects e-commerce revenue in the U.S. to grow 29% this year, up from 15% previously, which would provide a "sustained tailwind" to Shopify's long-term growth. Shopify is set to report its second-quarter earnings on Wednesday before the bell. The company crushed Wall Street estimates with its March-quarter results, reporting a 47% jump in sales growth.
