Discount store chain Five Below Inc. on Nov. 30 raised its full-year fiscal 2017 forecast as it reported results for the third quarter ended Oct. 28.
Five Below said it now expects diluted earnings per share for the fiscal year in the range of $1.72 to $1.79 from the range of $1.62 to $1.66 it projected in its second-quarter results. It also expects net income for the period to be between $95.9 million and $99.7 million from a previous guidance range of $90.3 million to $92.6 million.
The retailer also raised its full-year outlook for comparable sales to the range of 5.7% to 6.5% from a previous expectation of sales to be between 3.5% and 4.5%.
For the third quarter ended Oct. 28, Five Below's diluted EPS increased 80% year over year to 18 cents from 10 cents a year earlier, beating an S&P Capital IQ mean consensus estimate of 13 cents. The retailer's operating income rose 71.6% to $14.8 million, compared to $8.6 million in the same quarter of the last fiscal year. Net sales also went up 28.9% to $257.2 million from $199.5 million in the same period in fiscal 2016.
