Ownership profile
Who owns Five Below?
Five Below is an independently publicly traded company on the NASDAQ (ticker: FIVE) with no controlling parent; private equity firms Advent International and LLR Partners backed it before its 2012 IPO and have since fully exited, leaving ownership dispersed among institutional investors like Vanguard and BlackRock.
Ownership profile
Five Below
Five Below, Inc.
Evidence (10)
Five Below, Inc. is registered in Pennsylvania and its common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under ticker symbol FIVE
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001177609/000117760919000029/q32019fivebelowform8k.htmFive Below's common stock was originally registered on The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC as of the 2012 IPO
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001177609/000119312512302178/d380331d8a12b.htmAt the time of the 2012 IPO, Advent International and LLR Partners were both selling portions of their stakes; after the offering Advent held ~52% and LLR ~8%
https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/five-below-sets-terms-125-million-us-ipo-2012-07-09Private equity firm Advent International received an investment stake in Five Below in 2010, with founders David Schlessinger and Tom Vellios and LLR Partners retaining stakes alongside
https://www.finsmes.com/2010/09/five-below-receives-private-equity-investment-from-advent-international.htmlInstitutional investors hold the largest share blocks; major holders include Vanguard Group (~10–12%), BlackRock (~9.5%), Fidelity, T. Rowe Price, and State Street
https://matrixbcg.com/blogs/owners/fivebelowAdvent International's staged exit was completed post-IPO; by Q3 2025 institutional ownership reached approximately 98%, with no remaining PE sponsor presence
https://matrixbcg.com/blogs/owners/fivebelowFive Below maintains a single-class, one-share-one-vote capital structure with no controlling parent company or majority owner
https://portersfiveforce.com/blogs/owners/fivebelowAdvent International acquired a controlling majority stake in Five Below in 2010 via a leveraged buyout to accelerate national expansion
https://portersfiveforce.com/blogs/owners/fivebelowFive Below's governance structure is now driven by independent directors and institutional shareholders, with no board seats reserved for a PE sponsor
https://portersfiveforce.com/blogs/owners/fivebelowFive Below went public via IPO on July 19–20, 2012 on NASDAQ under the symbol FIVE, priced at $17 per share
https://swottemplate.com/blogs/owners/fivebelow-ownersWhat's uncertain
- The precise date Advent International fully divested its remaining shares post-IPO could not be confirmed from a single authoritative primary source (e.g., a specific SEC 13G/D termination filing); the exit is inferred from multiple secondary sources and the absence of any current PE controlling holder in recent filings.
- LLR Partners' complete exit date is similarly not confirmed from a primary source.
- Institutional ownership percentages (Vanguard, BlackRock, etc.) fluctuate quarterly; figures cited are approximate and sourced from secondary aggregators as of Q3 2025.
- Five Below, Inc. principal executive offices address has moved from 1818 Market Street to 701 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA; filings reflect different periods.