Value teen retailer in aggressive store expansion

Five Below Inc. reported its 11th consecutive year of positive same-store sales results amid bullish growth plans for the current year.



The value retailer, which targets tweens and teens with a wide array of goods all priced at $5 or below, said it will open 100 stores in 2017, including its first ever locations in the state of California. The chain opened 85 net new stores in 2016.



Five Below’s net income for the quarter ended January 28, rose 18.5% to $49.8 million, or .90 cents per share, just beating estimates.



Revenue increased 18.9% to $388.1 million in the period, which also topped Street forecasts. Same-store sales inched up 1%.



For the year, the company reported profit of $71.8 million, or $1.30 per share. Revenue was reported as $1 billion.



“Our performance in 2016 once again illustrates the strength, consistency and broad appeal of the Five Below model with a compelling merchandise assortment designed to 'wow' our customers at incredible values,” said Joel Anderson, CEO, Five Below, which operates more than 500 stores in 31 states. “We achieved another strong year of 20% sales growth, reaching the $1 billion milestone in sales as we opened 85 net new stores and delivered our 11th consecutive year of positive comparable sales growth.”



For the current quarter ending in May, Five Below said it expects revenue in the range of $228 million to $232 million. Analysts surveyed by Zacks had expected revenue of $228.9 million.