Five Below reports loss on one-time costs; revenue surges 40%

Philadelphia -- Tween discounter Five Below Inc. reported Tuesday a loss in the second quarter of $64.2 million due to one-time costs that were attributed mainly to dividend payments made to preferred shareholders, among others. That compares with a loss of $1.7 million in the year-ago period. However, adjusted profit of $1.2 million beat expectations and the company’s third-quarter and full-year estimates are in line with Wall Street’s forecast.



Five Below, which went public in July, saw sales surge 40% to $86.8 million, which handily beat estimates of $82.1 million in revenue. Same-store sales rose 8.6%. The company opened 27 stores and ended the quarter with 226 stores in 18 states.



Co-founder, president and CEO Thomas Vellios, who reminded analysts that the company opened 27 new stores in the quarter – a 35% increase of over the prior-year quarter – said that the company has a “considerable runway for store growth” ahead of it.