Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Five Below, Inc. (NASDAQ:FIVE)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on the stock from $245.00 to $235.00. The stock had previously closed at $222.89, but opened at $197.47. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Five Below shares last traded at $194.0360, with a volume of 993,190 shares changing hands.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. William Blair upgraded shares of Five Below from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Five Below from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $242.00 price target on shares of Five Below in a report on Thursday. Craig Hallum reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $246.00 price target on shares of Five Below in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Five Below from $296.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $249.85.

Insider Activity at Five Below

In other Five Below news, Director Ronald Sargent sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 83,674 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,352,122.72. The trade was a 10.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Kenneth R. Bull sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.14, for a total value of $2,341,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 92,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,665,208.34. This represents a 9.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Five Below News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Five Below this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Five Below delivered a big Q1 beat, with earnings of $2.22 per share versus $1.77 expected and revenue of $1.29 billion versus $1.23 billion expected. Comparable sales rose 22.7% and net sales jumped 32.5% year over year, showing strong demand and execution. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised full-year FY2026 guidance, now calling for $5.40 billion to $5.48 billion in sales and $8.65 to $9.05 in adjusted EPS, both well above prior expectations. That signals confidence that momentum can continue. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America reaffirmed a Buy rating and maintained a $305 price target, suggesting Wall Street still sees meaningful upside from current levels. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley cut its price target to $235 from $245 while keeping an Equal Weight rating. That is still above the stock’s recent level, but it reflects a more cautious stance after the earnings run-up. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary questioned whether Five Below’s recent “Squishy Dumplings”/trend-driven merchandising success can be repeated, raising concerns that the company’s hot sales growth may not be fully sustainable. Article Title

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Five Below

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in Five Below by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 3,264 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $615,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Five Below by 26.6% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 257 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Five Below by 29.6% during the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 241 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Optimize Financial Inc grew its stake in shares of Five Below by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Optimize Financial Inc now owns 3,948 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $744,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in shares of Five Below by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 3,743 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $705,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter.

Five Below Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $10.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a fifty day moving average of $225.65 and a 200 day moving average of $205.05.

Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, June 3rd. The specialty retailer reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.45. Five Below had a net margin of 7.53% and a return on equity of 18.70%. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.86 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 32.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Five Below has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.650-9.050 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.170-1.290 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Five Below, Inc. will post 8.26 EPS for the current year.

About Five Below

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.