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Five Below (FIVE) Bolsters Its Industry Presence: Here's How

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Five Below, Inc. (FIVE - Free Report) , a specialty value chain retailer, remains committed to meeting customer demand by adjusting its product offerings. The company's strong sales performance and transaction patterns point to a growing customer, base attracted by its value-driven approach and in-trend merchandise.

Despite the challenges, Five Below aims to expand its market share through record store openings and innovative product offerings.

 

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Let’s Delve Deeper

Five Below is known for its wide range of trendy and high-quality products. The brand aims to create an enjoyable and limitless experience for customers, particularly tweens, teens, and beyond. With the majority of items falling within $1-$5 and even featuring some extremely affordable options, the company ensures that customers can easily embrace the newest and most desirable products.

FIVE is focused on providing convenient shopping experiences, including assisted checkout and same-day delivery services. It digitized vendor transactions, implemented a core merchandising platform, and utilized cloud-based data and analytics to manage inventory effectively.

Five Below has also introduced curbside pickup and a mobile app, while expanding its partnership with Instacart for expedited same-day delivery. The addition of Venmo and PayPal as payment options has enhanced the customer experience.

With 1,367 stores as of the first quarter of fiscal 2023, the company sees significant opportunities for further expansion throughout the United States. Five Below aims to drive continued growth by prioritizing an efficient cost structure, strong sales per store, supply-chain initiatives, and economies of scale.

Wrapping Up

Despite the challenging macro environment, FIVE is pleased with its financial results for first-quarter 2023 and operational achievements. For fiscal 2023, net sales are expected to be $3.50-$3.57 billion based on the opening of more than 200 stores and assuming a 1-3% increase in comparable sales. Diluted earnings per share are expected to be $5.31-$5.71, implying year-over-year growth of 13.2-21.7%.

As the year progresses, FIVE anticipates the pandemic-related challenges to transform into favorable conditions. This includes the opening of 200-plus stores, completing more than 400 conversions, and executing a targeted marketing campaign to showcase the new Five Beyond store format. The company is also leveraging an improving supply chain, benefiting from favorable freight costs, and actively building a robust pipeline of new stores.

Impressively, Five Below's stock price has almost doubled over the past five years. The stock's significant appreciation suggests that investors have found value in the company's business model, growth potential and overall performance.

In the past year, shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have rallied 72.1% compared with the industry’s growth of 23.5%. Also, the stock has outpaced the Retail and Wholesale sector’s rise of 12.6%.

Further, the upward trend in the Zacks Consensus Estimate echoes a positive sentiment. The consensus estimate for FIVE’s fiscal 2023 earnings has increased by a penny to $5.59 in the past 30 days. Moreover, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings for the current and next financial years implies year-over-year increases of 19.2% and 21.2%, respectively.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for sales for fiscal 2023 and 2024 is pegged at $3.56 billion and $4.19 billion, indicating year-over-year increases of 15.6% and 17.8%, respectively. The impressive long-term earnings growth rate of 22.1% emphasizes the intrinsic strength of the company.

Bet Your Bucks on These Hot Stocks

Here we have highlighted three better-ranked stocks, namely Urban Outfitters, Inc. (URBN - Free Report) , GIII Apparel Group (GIII - Free Report) and lululemon athletica (LULU - Free Report) .

Urban Outfitters, which specializes in the retail and wholesale of general consumer products, flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. The expected EPS growth rate for three to five years is 18%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Urban Outfitters’ current financial-year sales and earnings suggests growth of 5.1% and 57.1% from the year-ago period. URBN has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 12.2%, on average.

GIII Apparel, which is a manufacturer, designer and distributor of apparel and accessories, sports a Zacks Rank #1 at present. The company has an expected EPS growth rate of 15% for three to five years.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GIII Apparel’s current financial-year sales and earnings suggests growth of 1.9% and 0.4% from the year-ago period’s actuals. GIII has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 47.4%, on average.

lululemon, which is a yoga-inspired athletic apparel company, currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The company has an expected EPS growth rate of 20% for three to five years.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for lululemon’s current financial-year sales and earnings suggests growth of 17.1% and 18.4%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s reported figures. LULU has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 9.9%, on average.

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