Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on FIVE. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Five Below in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Five Below from $188.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Five Below from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Five Below from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Five Below from $259.00 to $296.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $240.10.

Five Below Stock Performance

FIVE opened at $230.52 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $12.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.00. Five Below has a 52-week low of $79.48 and a 52-week high of $251.63. The business’s fifty day moving average is $226.10 and its 200-day moving average is $194.69.

Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $4.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.00 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. Five Below had a return on equity of 18.70% and a net margin of 7.53%.Five Below’s revenue was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.48 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Five Below will post 8.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Five Below news, COO Kenneth R. Bull sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 92,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,665,208.34. This trade represents a 9.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Ronald Sargent sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 23rd. The shares were 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 $19,352,122.72. This represents a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Five Below

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Eastern Bank raised its position in shares of Five Below by 705.0% during the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 161 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of Five Below during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Bayban bought a new position in shares of Five Below during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Five Below during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, CI Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Five Below by 44.3% during the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 241 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during 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.