** Shares of discount retailer Five Below FIVE.O rise 2.2% premarket at $176.95

** Truist Securities upgrades stock to "buy" from "hold"; raises PT to $216 from $179

** Brokerage notes Q3 as a "game changer" quarter for FIVE due to strong traffic and higher consumer spend, which "should make the sales growth far more sustainable than we previously anticipated"

** "We believe that both improved merchandising and marketing can yield sustainable benefits to consumer awareness and store traffic," says Truist analyst Scot Ciccarelli

** Morgan Stanley raises PT to $190 from $160; retains rating at "Equalweight"

** Says encouraged by FIVE's solid execution of value offerings, price simplification and customer experiences

** As of last close, stock up 65% YTD

(Reporting by Koyena Das)

((Koyena.das@thomsonreuters.com))