Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Five Below, Inc. (NASDAQ:FIVE) hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $238.43 and last traded at $240.23, with a volume of 196848 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $236.26.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FIVE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Five Below from $247.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Five Below from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Five Below from $188.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Evercore increased their price target on shares of Five Below from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, William Blair raised shares of Five Below from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $240.10.

Five Below Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $13.10 billion, a PE ratio of 36.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.07. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $222.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $190.81.

Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $4.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.00 by $0.31. Five Below had a net margin of 7.53% and a return on equity of 18.70%. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.48 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Five Below, Inc. will post 8.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ronald Sargent sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.28, for a total value of $2,312,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 83,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,352,122.72. This represents a 10.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Kenneth R. Bull sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.14, for a total value of $2,341,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 92,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,665,208.34. The trade was a 9.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Five Below

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FIVE. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Five Below by 40,774,210.3% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 55,453,062 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $10,445,139,000 after purchasing an additional 55,452,926 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Five Below in the 4th quarter worth approximately $182,786,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Five Below by 176.0% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,168,832 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $220,161,000 after buying an additional 745,272 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Five Below by 397.5% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 819,502 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $126,777,000 after buying an additional 654,763 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in Five Below by 54.6% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,785,169 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $336,254,000 after buying an additional 630,710 shares in the last quarter.

Five Below Company Profile

Five Below, Inc (NASDAQ:FIVE) is an American specialty discount retailer offering a broad assortment of merchandise priced primarily at $5 or below. Since its founding in 2002 by David Schlessinger and Tom Vellios, the company has pursued a value-focused retail model targeting tweens, teens and beyond, with stores designed to deliver trend-driven products at an accessible price point. Headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Five Below has grown into a national chain operating in dozens of U.S.