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what it is
Five Below sells cheap, trendy stuff to kids and teens, mostly under $5, through a fast-growing national store base.
how it gets paid
Last year Five Below made $3.9B in revenue.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 178.7% last year. The rebound came from better merchandise and stronger store productivity.
what just happened
Five Below's latest quarter showed the comeback had teeth, with sales up 23.1% to $1.04B.
At a glance
B++ balance sheet — above average — nothing keeping you up at night
60/100 earnings predictability — reasonably predictable
35.1x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
12.0% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 67/100 — average
What they do
Five Below sells cheap, trendy stuff to kids and teens, mostly under $5, through a fast-growing national store base.
This chain wins because your kid does not need a plan to spend $5. They need 10 minutes and a shopping center. Five Below has 1,771 stores across 44 states, so the hunt for cheap impulse buys is already national. The updated assortment fixed recent miscues, and sales jumped 23% in the latest reported quarter.
How they make money
$3.9B
annual revenue · their business grew +178.7% last year
total revenue
$3.9B
+178.7%
The products that matter
discount store operations
Five Below Stores
$3.9B revenue · 100% of sales
it is the whole company: more than 1,500 stores generated all $3.9B of revenue last year. if store traffic slips, there is nowhere else for growth to hide.
100% of sales
higher-ticket in-store assortment
Five Beyond
above-$5 items · basket expansion
items priced above $5 are the company's attempt to lift the average sale inside a $3.9B retail model. that matters because a business earning just 6.5% net margins benefits from every extra dollar per visit.
ticket growth
exclusive merchandise development
Private Label
disclosure is thin
management does not break this out separately, so the story here is margin support, not segment size. with net margin at 6.5%, even small merchandising wins matter.
margin lever
Key numbers
1,771
store count
This tells you Five Below is already a national chain in 44 states, but it still has room to add stores and chase the $6B revenue estimate for FY2028.
35.1x
trailing p/e
You are paying a premium multiple for a retailer with projected earnings growth of 5.0%, so execution has to stay clean.
$228
18-month target
That sits 16% above today's $196.64 price, which says there is upside, but not a giant margin for error.
12.5%
operating margin
Operating margin means profit after running the stores but before interest and taxes, so what: the business is solid, but not bulletproof.
Financial health
B++
strength
- balance sheet grade B++ — above average financial health
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 30 / 100
- net profit margin 6.0% — keeps 6 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 12% — $0.12 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B++ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in FIVE 3 years ago → it's now worth $11,100.
The index would have given you $14,770.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
Five Below's latest quarter showed the comeback had teeth, with sales up 23.1% to $1.04B.
The rebound came from better merchandise and stronger store productivity. Quarterly EPS rose to $0.66 from $0.03 in the prior-year period.
$1.04B
revenue
$0.66
eps
35.63%
gross margin
the number that mattered
Sales growth of 23.1% mattered most because it says the assortment fix showed up in actual customer spending, not just management slides.
-
five below appears to be making an impressive comeback.
-
after some missteps in recent years, the novelty discount chain has been regaining momentum, with its updated merchandising and marketing approaches resonating well with shoppers.
-
fiscal third-quarter results (ended november 1st) crushed expectations; sales climbed 23%, while same-store sales (a key metric) jumped 14% on higher foot traffic and bigger purchases, pushing share profit to $0.66.
-
the hustle and bustle probably continued into the holiday season, prompting management to raise its full-year fiscal 2025 outlook.
-
it now sees sales of $4.62 billion-$4.65 billion (with a comp gain of 9%-10%) and share profit of $5.51-$5.69, despite some tariff impact.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is a slowdown in discretionary teen and family spending.
med
consumer pullback hits the whole model
Five Below gets 100% of its $3.9B revenue from selling nonessential goods in stores. If traffic weakens, every part of the income statement feels it.
At a 6.5% net margin, it does not take a large sales miss to pressure earnings.
med
tariffs squeeze a low-price retailer
Management already flagged some tariff impact while guiding to $4.62B–$4.65B in sales and $5.51–$5.69 in EPS. A value chain built around low ticket prices has limited room to absorb new import costs.
When you keep only 6.5 cents of each revenue dollar, cost inflation shows up quickly.
med
the turnaround could cool faster than the stock
The recent quarter was strong: sales rose 23% and same-store sales rose 14%. But the stock trades at 35.1x trailing earnings, so the market now expects those merchandising gains to keep showing up.
If comp growth falls from 14% toward flat, the premium multiple likely shrinks before fundamentals catch up.
all $3.9B of revenue comes from one discretionary retail model, and the company keeps only 6.5% of each sales dollar.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
metric
same-store sales
The latest quarter posted 14% growth at existing stores. That is the clearest sign the merchandising reset is working.
calendar
next earnings and guidance
You want to see whether the $4.62B–$4.65B sales outlook and $5.51–$5.69 EPS range still hold.
risk
tariff pressure
Management says the current outlook already absorbs some tariff impact. If that language worsens, margins are next.
trend
basket growth from five beyond
The chain needs customers to spend a little more per visit. That is how a low-margin retailer turns traffic into earnings.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
top 20%
momentum score 2 — in human-speak, analysts think this stock has better-than-average 12-month upside from here.
risk profile
average
stability score 3 — this sits in the middle of the market on risk. not especially safe, not a chaos stock either.
chart momentum
below average
technical score 4 — the stock has rebounded hard, but the chart still does not look as strong as the fundamental story.
earnings predictability
60 / 100
earnings are only moderately predictable. for you, that means the next report can move the stock more than usual.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net buying for 3 consecutive quarters — 297 buyers vs. 186 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 57.4M shares. net buying for 3 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$126
$330
$197
current price
$228
target midpoint · +16% from current · 3-5yr high: $270 (+35% · 8% ann'l return)
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