美國雅培 (ABT) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to Abbott's First Quarter 2024 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) This call is being recorded by Abbott. With the exception of any participant's questions asked during the question-and-answer session, the entire call, including the question-and-answer session, is material copyrighted by Abbott. It cannot be recorded or rebroadcast without Abbott's expressed written permission. I would now like to introduce Mr. Mike Comilla, Vice President, Investor Relations.

早安，感謝您的支持。歡迎參加雅培 2024 年第一季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）此通話由 Abbott 錄音。除了問答環節中提出的任何參與者的問題外，整個通話（包括問答環節）的資料均受 Abbott 版權保護。未經雅培明確書面許可，不得對其進行錄製或轉播。現在我想介紹一下投資者關係副總裁麥克·科米拉（Mike Comilla）先生。

Good morning, and thank you for joining us. With me today are Robert Ford, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; Bob Funck, Executive Vice President, Finance; and Phil Boudreau, Senior Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer. Robert and Phil will provide opening remarks. Following their comments, we'll take your questions.

早安，感謝您加入我們。今天與我在一起的有董事長兼執行長羅伯特福特 (Robert Ford)； Bob Funck，財務執行副總裁； Phil Boudreau，財務資深副總裁兼財務長。羅伯特和菲爾將致開幕詞。根據他們的評論，我們將回答您的問題。

Before we get started, some statements made today may be forward-looking for purposes of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including the expected financial results for 2024. Abbott cautions that these forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Economic, competitive, governmental, technological and other factors that may affect Abbott's operations are discussed in Item 1A, Risk Factors, to our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. Abbott undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to forward-looking statements as a result of subsequent events or developments, except as required by law.

在我們開始之前，根據1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》，今天發表的一些聲明可能具有前瞻性，包括2024 年的預期財務業績。的影響。我們截至 2023 年 12 月 31 日的 10-K 表格年度報告的第 1A 項「風險因素」中討論了可能影響雅培營運的經濟、競爭、政府、技術和其他因素。因後續事件或事態發展而對前瞻性陳述進行修改，法律要求的除外。

On today's conference call, as in the past, non-GAAP financial measures will be used to help investors understand Abbott's ongoing business performance. These non-GAAP financial measures are reconciled with the comparable GAAP financial measures in our earnings news release and regulatory filings from today, which are available on our website at abbott.com. Note that Abbott has not provided the GAAP financial measure for organic sales growth on a forward-looking basis because the company is unable to predict future changes in foreign exchange rates, which could impact reported sales growth. Unless otherwise noted, our commentary on sales growth refers to organic sales growth, which is defined in the press release issued earlier today.

在今天的電話會議上，與過去一樣，將使用非公認會計準則財務指標來幫助投資者了解雅培目前的業務表現。這些非 GAAP 財務指標與今天起的收益新聞稿和監管文件中的可比較 GAAP 財務指標進行了調整，這些數據可在我們的網站 abbott.com 上取得。請注意，雅培尚未提供前瞻性的有機銷售成長的公認會計準則財務指標，因為該公司無法預測未來匯率的變化，這可能會影響報告的銷售成長。除非另有說明，我們對銷售成長的評論指的是有機銷售成長，這是在今天早些時候發布的新聞稿中定義的。

With that, I will now turn the call over to Robert.

現在，我將把電話轉給羅伯特。

Thanks, Mike. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us. Today, we reported first quarter adjusted earnings per share of $0.98, which was above analyst consensus estimates. We also raised the midpoint of our guidance ranges for both earnings per share and sales growth. We now forecast full year adjusted earnings per share of $4.55 to $4.70 and organic sales growth, excluding COVID testing-related sales, of 8.5% to 10%.

謝謝，麥克。大家早安，感謝您加入我們。今天，我們報告第一季調整後每股收益為 0.98 美元，高於分析師的一致預期。我們也提高了每股收益和銷售成長指引範圍的中點。我們目前預測全年調整後每股收益為 4.55 美元至 4.70 美元，有機銷售成長（不包括與新冠病毒檢測相關的銷售）為 8.5% 至 10%。

Organic sales growth, excluding COVID testing-related sales, was 10.8% in the quarter, which represents the fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth. The strong start to the year was driven by broad-based growth across the portfolio, including growth of 14% in Medical Devices and Established Pharmaceuticals. In addition to exceeding expectations of both top and bottom lines this quarter, we accomplished a number of objectives across the pipeline, including obtaining several new product approvals and achieving important clinical trial-related milestones.

本季有機銷售成長（不包括與新冠病毒檢測相關的銷售）為 10.8%，連續第五個季度實現兩位數成長。今年的強勁開局得益於整個投資組合的廣泛增長，其中醫療器材和成熟藥品增長了 14%。除了超出本季度收入和利潤的預期之外，我們還實現了整個管道的許多目標，包括獲得多個新產品批准以及實現重要的臨床試驗相關里程碑。

I'll now summarize our first quarter results in more detail before turning the call over to Phil and I'll start with Nutrition, where sales increased 8% in the quarter. Strong growth in the quarter was led by double-digit growth in Pediatric Nutrition, driven by continued market share gains in the U.S. infant formula business and growth across our international portfolio of infant formula, toddler and adult nutrition brands.

現在，我將更詳細地總結我們第一季的業績，然後再將電話轉給 Phil，我將從營養品開始，該季度的銷售額增長了 8%。本季的強勁成長主要得益於兒科營養業務的兩位數成長，這得益於美國嬰兒配方奶粉業務市場份額的持續成長以及我們的嬰兒配方奶粉、幼兒和成人營養品牌國際組合的成長。

In January, we launched a new nutrition shape called Protality, which provides nutritional support for adults pursuing weight loss. As people eat less and lose weight from taking GLP-1 medications, undergoing a weight loss surgery or following a calorie restricted diet, a portion of what is lost is lean muscle mass, which plays an important role in overall health. A combination of high protein and essential vitamins and minerals that Protality offers can help people preserve muscle while pursuing their personal weight loss goals.

一月份，我們推出了一種名為 Protality 的新營養形狀，為追求減肥的成年人提供營養支持。隨著人們透過服用 GLP-1 藥物、接受減肥手術或限制熱量飲食而減少飲食並減輕體重，部分損失的是瘦肌肉質量，這對整體健康起著重要作用。 Protality 提供的高蛋白和必需維生素和礦物質的組合可以幫助人們在追求個人減肥目標的同時保留肌肉。

Turning to EPD, where sales increased 14% in the quarter. This quarter was a continuation of EPD's impressive trend of strong performance, including double-digit growth in 4 of the last 5 quarters. In addition to a strong track record of top line growth, this business has delivered equally impressive gains on the bottom line with an operating margin profile last year that reflected more than 350 basis points of improvement compared to 2019.

轉向 EPD，該季度的銷售額增長了 14%。本季環保署延續了令人印象深刻的強勁表現，包括過去 5 個季度中有 4 個季度實現兩位數成長。除了營收成長強勁的記錄外，該業務在淨利潤方面也取得了同樣令人印象深刻的收益，去年的營業利潤率較 2019 年提高了 350 個基點以上。

Moving to Diagnostics, where sales increased more than 5%, excluding COVID testing sales. Growth in Diagnostics continues to be led by the adoption of our market-leading systems and demand for testing that takes place in a variety of settings, including hospitals, laboratories, urgent care centers, physician offices, retail pharmacies and blood screening facilities.

轉向診斷，銷售額成長超過 5%（不包括新冠檢測銷售額）。我們市場領先的系統的採用以及對在各種環境中進行的測試的需求，包括醫院、實驗室、緊急護理中心、醫生辦公室、零售藥房和血液篩檢設施，繼續引領診斷領域的成長。

Our development efforts in diagnostics focus on developing new systems and creating new tests that play an important role in making health care decisions, expand the accessibility of testing and deliver results as fast as possible. In April, we received FDA approval for a point-of-care diagnostic test that can help determine if someone suffered a mild traumatic brain injury or concussion in just 15 minutes.

我們在診斷方面的開發工作重點是開發新系統和創建新測試，這些系統和測試在製定醫療保健決策、擴大測試的可及性和盡快提供結果方面發揮著重要作用。今年 4 月，我們的即時診斷測試獲得 FDA 批准，該測試可以幫助確定某人是否在短短 15 分鐘內遭受輕度創傷性腦損傷或腦震盪。

The test is run on our portable i-STAT Alinity instrument, which allows concussion testing to move beyond the traditional hospital setting and into urgent care centers, physician offices and other locations that are closer to the patient. With nearly 5 million people in the U.S. going to the emergency room to be checked for suspected concussion each year, we believe this test has the potential to transform the standard of care for concussion testing.

該測試在我們的便攜式 i-STAT Alinity 儀器上運行，該儀器允許腦震盪測試超越傳統的醫院環境，進入緊急護理中心、醫生辦公室和其他更靠近患者的地點。美國每年有近 500 萬人因疑似腦震盪而前往急診室接受檢查，我們相信這項測試有可能改變腦震盪測試的護理標準。

And I'll wrap up with Medical Devices, where sales grew 14%. In Diabetes Care, FreeStyle Libre sales were $1.5 billion in the quarter and grew 23%. As I previously mentioned that Libre has several new growth opportunities that will help continue to fuel the strong sales trajectory we have forecasted. One of those growth opportunities relates to the continued expansion of reimbursement coverage for Libre for individuals who use basal insulin therapy to manage their diabetes.

最後，我將介紹醫療設備，該領域的銷售額成長了 14%。在糖尿病照護領域，FreeStyle Libre 本季銷售額為 15 億美元，成長 23%。正如我之前提到的，Libre 有幾個新的成長機會，這將有助於繼續推動我們預測的強勁銷售軌跡。這些成長機會之一是 Libre 的報銷範圍持續擴大，適用於使用基礎胰島素治療來控製糖尿病的個人。

Last year, we announced that Libre became the first and only continuous glucose monitoring system to be nationally reimbursed in France to include all people who use basal insulin as part of their diabetes management. During this first quarter, Libre obtained reimbursement from a select number of institutional payers in Germany for basal insulin users who also use oral diabetes medication to manage their condition. These select public and private payers cover a limited number of the approximately 1 million basal insulin users in Germany, but this is an encouraging sign of the potential for further coverage expansion not only in Germany, but across other European markets.

去年，我們宣布 Libre 成為法國第一個也是唯一一個在全國範圍內報銷的連續血糖監測系統，涵蓋所有使用基礎胰島素作為糖尿病管理一部分的人。在第一季度，Libre 從德國部分機構付款人獲得了基礎胰島素使用者的報銷，這些使用者也使用口服糖尿病藥物來控制病情。這些精選的公共和私人付款人涵蓋了德國約100 萬基礎胰島素使用者中的有限數量，但這是一個令人鼓舞的跡象，表明不僅在德國，而且在其他歐洲市場都有進一步擴大覆蓋範圍的潛力。

In cardiovascular devices, sales grew 10.5% overall in the quarter led by double-digit growth in electrophysiology, structural heart and continued acceleration in our cardiac rhythm management and vascular portfolios. In Electrophysiology, sales grew 18%, driven by double-digit growth in all major geographic regions and across all major product categories, including double-digit growth in ablation catheters and cardiac mapping-related products. We continue to make great progress towards bringing our innovative PFA catheter, Volt, to market.

在心血管設備方面，本季銷售額整體成長了 10.5%，這得益於電生理學、結構性心臟領域兩位數的成長以及心律管理和血管產品組合的持續加速。在電生理學領域，銷售額成長了 18%，主要得益於所有主要地理區域和所有主要產品類別的兩位數成長，其中包括消融導管和心臟測繪相關產品的兩位數成長。我們在將創新 PFA 導管 Volt 推向市場方面不斷取得巨大進展。

In March, we completed enrollment in our CE Mark clinical study putting us on track to file for international approval before the end of the year. We also recently began enrolling patients in our U.S. clinical trial called VOLT AF, which will generate the data needed to support an FDA approval filing. In Structural Heart, growth of 13% was led by strong performance in several high-growth areas, including TAVR, LAA, mitral and tricuspid repair.

三月份，我們完成了 CE 標誌臨床研究的註冊，使我們預計在年底前申請國際批准。我們最近也開始招募患者參加名為 VOLT AF 的美國臨床試驗，該試驗將產生支持 FDA 批准備案所需的數據。在結構心臟領域，13% 的成長得益於幾個高成長領域的強勁表現，包括 TAVR、LAA、二尖瓣和三尖瓣修復。

Structural Heart is an area that we have invested in over the past years in order to create a diversified portfolio that can sustainably deliver double-digit growth. In the past, we relied almost exclusively on MitraClip to drive the growth. But today, the portfolio and growth are more balanced and reflect increasing contributions from newer products like Navitor, Amulet and TriClip. In April, we received FDA approval for TriClip, a first of its kind heart valve repair device designed for the treatment of tricuspid regurgitation or a leaky tricuspid valve. Data from the clinical trial supporting this approval demonstrated that patients who received TriClip experienced a significant improvement in the severity of their symptoms and quality of life. We're excited to now offer this life-changing treatment option to people in the United States that suffer from this condition.

Structural Heart 是我們過去幾年投資的一個領域，目的是創建一個能夠可持續實現兩位數增長的多元化投資組合。過去，我們幾乎完全依賴 MitraClip 來推動成長。但如今，產品組合和成長更加平衡，反映出 Navitor、Amulet 和 TriClip 等新產品的貢獻不斷增加。今年 4 月，我們的 TriClip 獲得 FDA 批准，這是首款同類心臟瓣膜修復裝置，設計用於治療三尖瓣逆流或三尖瓣滲漏。支持這項批准的臨床試驗數據表明，接受 TriClip 治療的患者症狀嚴重程度和生活品質得到顯著改善。我們很高興現在為美國患有這種疾病的人們提供這種改變生活的治療選擇。

In Rhythm Management, growth of 7.5% was led by Aveir, our recently launched leadless pacemaker. Aveir has rapidly captured market share in the single-chamber pacing segment of the market and is now being used for dual-chamber pacing, which is the largest segment of the pacing market. This revolutionary technology is helping to deliver growth rates in our Rhythm Management business that significantly exceed the overall growth in this market. And lastly, in neuromodulation. Sales grew 17%, driven by Eterna, a rechargeable neurostimulation device for pain management. And in January, we announced the launch of Liberta, the world's smallest rechargeable deep brain stimulation device, which is used to treat movement disorders such as Parkinson's disease.

在節律管理領域，我們最近推出的無引線心律調節器 Aveir 帶動了 7.5% 的成長。 Aveir 迅速佔領了單腔起搏市場的市場份額，目前正用於雙腔起搏，這是起搏市場最大的部分。這項革命性的技術正在幫助我們的節奏管理業務實現顯著超過該市場整體成長的成長率。最後，在神經調節方面。在 Eterna（一種用於疼痛管理的可充電神經刺激設備）的推動下，銷售額成長了 17%。一月份，我們宣布推出 Liberta，這是世界上最小的可充電深部腦部刺激設備，用於治療帕金森氏症等運動障礙。

So in summary, we're off to a very good start to the year, exceeding expectations on both top and bottom lines. And as a result, we raised the midpoint of our sales and EPS guidance ranges. We continue to make good progress on our gross margin expansion initiatives, and we're seeing strong returns from the investments we're making across our growth platforms.

總而言之，我們今年開了個好頭，營收和利潤都超出了預期。因此，我們提高了銷售額和每股盈餘指引範圍的中點。我們在毛利率擴張計劃上繼續取得良好進展，並且我們在整個成長平台上進行的投資獲得了強勁的回報。

Our pipeline has continued to be highly productive, delivering several recently new product approvals, and we're very well positioned to continue to deliver strong results for the remainder of the year. And now I'll turn over the call to Phil.

我們的產品線繼續保持高生產力，最近獲得了多個新產品的批准，並且我們處於非常有利的位置，可以在今年剩餘時間內繼續提供強勁的業績。現在我將把電話轉給菲爾。

Thanks, Robert. As Mike mentioned earlier, please note that all references to sales growth rates, unless otherwise noted, are on an organic basis.

謝謝，羅伯特。正如麥克之前提到的，請注意，除非另有說明，所有提及的銷售成長率都是有機的。

Turning to our first quarter results. Sales increased 4.7% on an organic basis, which, as expected, includes the impact of year-over-year decline in COVID testing-related sales. Excluding COVID testing sales, underlying base business organic sales growth was 10.8% in the quarter.

轉向我們第一季的業績。銷售額有機成長 4.7%，正如預期的那樣，其中包括了與新冠檢測相關的銷售額同比下降的影響。不包括新冠病毒檢測銷售額，本季基礎業務有機銷售額成長 10.8%。

Foreign exchange had an unfavorable year-over-year impact of 2.9% on first quarter sales. During the quarter, we saw the U.S. dollar strengthen versus several currencies, which resulted in exchange having a more unfavorable impact on sales compared to exchange rates at the time of our earnings call in January. Regarding other aspects of the P&L, the adjusted gross margin ratio was 55.7% of sales. Adjusted R&D was 6.7% of sales, and adjusted SG&A was 29.4% of sales in the first quarter. Lastly, our first quarter adjusted tax rate was 15%.

外匯對第一季銷售額較去年同期產生了 2.9% 的不利影響。在本季度，我們看到美元兌多種貨幣走強，這導致與 1 月財報電話會議時的匯率相比，匯率對銷售產生更不利的影響。至於損益表的其他方面，調整後的毛利率為銷售額的55.7%。第一季調整後的研發佔銷售額的 6.7%，調整後的 SG&A 佔銷售額的 29.4%。最後，我們第一季調整後的稅率為 15%。

Turning to our outlook for the full year. We now forecast full year adjusted earnings per share of $4.55 to $4.70, which represents an increase at the midpoint of the range compared to the guidance range we provided in January. We also raised the midpoint of our guidance for organic sales growth. We now forecast organic sales growth, excluding COVID testing, to be in the range of 8.5% to 10%.

轉向我們對全年的展望。我們現在預測全年調整後每股收益為 4.55 美元至 4.70 美元，與我們 1 月份提供的指導範圍相比，該範圍的中點有所增加。我們也提高了有機銷售成長指引的中點。我們現在預測，不包括新冠病毒檢測在內的有機銷售成長將在 8.5% 至 10% 之間。

Based on current rates, we expect exchange to have an unfavorable impact of approximately 2.5% on full year reported sales, which includes an expected unfavorable impact of approximately 3% on second quarter reported sales. Lastly, for the second quarter, we forecast adjusted earnings per share of $1.08 to $1.12.

根據目前的匯率，我們預計交換將對全年報告銷售額產生約 2.5% 的不利影響，其中包括對第二季報告銷售額約 3% 的不利影響。最後，我們預計第二季調整後每股收益為 1.08 美元至 1.12 美元。

With that, we'll now open the call for questions.

至此，我們現在開始提問。

(Operator Instructions) And our first question will come from Robbie Marcus from JPMorgan.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題將來自摩根大通的羅比·馬庫斯。

Congrats on a nice first quarter here. Two for me, I'll just ask them both upfront. First, Robert, we almost never see Abbott raise guidance, particularly on the top line in the first quarter. Looking back over the past, I don't know, 5 to 10 years, it's very rare. So first part is, what gave you the confidence to raise the midpoint of the guidance this early on in the year?

恭喜第一季表現出色。我有兩個，我會提前問他們兩個。首先，羅伯特，我們幾乎從未看到雅培提高指導，特別是在第一季的營收方面。回顧過去，我不知道，5年到10年，非常難得。那麼第一部分是，是什麼讓您有信心在今年年初提高指導的中點？

And then second, obviously, there's been a lot of concern during the quarter with competitors' loss in a case for NEC as it relates to infant nutrition. I was hoping you could address that. What's your stance on the ongoing litigation. I think there's about 1,000 cases that have been filed. And any upcoming data points or time lines we should be looking for?

其次，很明顯，本季人們對競爭對手在 NEC 案件中的損失感到非常擔憂，因為該案件涉及嬰兒營養。我希望你能解決這個問題。您對正在進行的訴訟持什麼立場？我認為已經立案的案件大約有 1,000 起。我們應該尋找任何即將到來的數據點或時間線？

Sure, Robbie. So let's go first to your question on the guidance. Yes, you're right. I guess I had to go back and take a look at that. I think the last time we did raise in Q1 was in 2016. I'd say the freight work here, Robbie, as we've always done is we set a guidance at the beginning of the year, which we believe is top tier. And then throughout the year, we want to beat that guidance, right? And we consider top tier to be high single-digit, double-digit EPS growth and that's, obviously excluding, the COVID testing portion, which is what investors are really more focused on. So that was the guidance that we set a couple of months ago back in January. And we'll target always have that top-tier guidance and find the appropriate balance between the opportunities and, obviously, the challenges that bracket that range.

當然，羅比。那我們先來回答你關於指導的問題。你是對的。我想我必須回去看看。我認為我們最後一次在第一季度籌集資金是在2016 年。 。然後全年，我們都希望超越這項指導，對嗎？我們認為頂級的是高個位數、兩位數的每股收益成長，這顯然不包括新冠病毒測試部分，而這才是投資人真正更關注的部分。這就是我們幾個月前一月制定的指導方針。我們的目標是始終擁有頂級指導，並在機會和挑戰之間找到適當的平衡。

If you remember in January, I said I thought that there was more opportunities than risks. And I think that some of the risks that we saw in January, I still think they haven't gone away. They're still there, whether it's geopolitics or whether it's FX, those are still there. But clearly, the performance of the business continues to be very, very strong in some of our businesses, a lot of our businesses actually accelerating our -- in performance. So as I said in my comments, 5 consecutive quarters of double-digit growth here.

如果你還記得一月的話，我說過我認為機會多於風險。我認為我們在一月份看到的一些風險仍然沒有消失。它們仍然存在，無論是地緣政治還是外匯，它們仍然存在。但顯然，我們的一些業務的業績仍然非常非常強勁，我們的許多業務實際上正在加速我們的業績。正如我在評論中所說，這裡連續 5 個季度實現兩位數成長。

So you look at each of the businesses, EPD consecutive, 3 consecutive years of double-digit growth great margin expansion, and the teams are now working to be able to introduce biosimilars in all the markets that we're participating in. Nutrition has done an incredible job at recovering share and growing our adult business. We've grown over $1 billion versus 2019. Diagnostics continues to have a great track record year of outperforming the market. We've got some great large account wins both in the U.S. and internationally that we're rolling out into this year. And medical devices, what can I tell you has just been a real strong performer. The team has done an incredible job there.

因此，你看看每一項業務，EPD 連續 3 年實現兩位數增長，利潤率大幅擴張，團隊現在正在努力能夠在我們參與的所有市場中引入生物仿製藥。我們的成人業務方面做出了令人難以置信的工作。與 2019 年相比，我們的收入成長了超過 10 億美元。我們在美國和國際上贏得了一些巨大的大客戶，我們將在今年推出這些客戶。至於醫療設備，我能告訴你的是，它的表現非常出色。該團隊在那裡做了令人難以置信的工作。

Last year, we were the fastest-growing med tech company, at least, from what I've seen from our guidance and from the other guidance is in the market, that's what it seems to be again this year. So you put all that together, plus the pipeline that's been contributing to an accelerated level, great new product approvals. I put all that together, and I just feel that this type of performance that we delivered just gives us the confidence for the remainder of the outlook of the year. So we felt comfortable raising the guidance again in the first quarter, which is, as you pointed out, something that we don't usually do.

去年，至少從我從我們的指導和市場上的其他指導中看到的情況來看，我們是成長最快的醫療科技公司，今年似乎又是如此。因此，您將所有這些放在一起，再加上有助於加速水平和出色的新產品批准的管道。我把所有這些放在一起，我只是覺得我們所提供的這種表現讓我們對今年剩餘的前景充滿信心。因此，我們對在第一季再次提高指導感到放心，正如您所指出的，這是我們通常不會做的事情。

And I continue to believe going into the second quarter as we move through that there's probably more opportunities than risks here as we move forward. So I guess that's the framework of raising our guidance in the first quarter, which is something that we usually don't do, just great performance and great momentum.

我仍然相信，進入第二季度，隨著我們的前進，機會可能多於風險。所以我想這就是我們在第一季提高指導的框架，這是我們通常不會做的事情，只是出色的表現和強勁的勢頭。

And then your other question was regarding the net cases. I'd say from a date, yes, we have some court cases that will happen in July. So that's maybe a milestone that we want to look at. But if you were asking me about kind of our framework of how we look at this, I'd say, for decades, we've provided specialized nutrition products that help doctors. And I think that's a key thing here. It helps doctors provide the life-saving attrition to the premature infants. And how you feed a premature infant, it's a medical decision, Robbie. And health care providers, they're going to use a range of options to meet the unique needs of each baby. And that includes mother's milk, that includes pass-throughs donors mill, but that also includes pre-termed infant formula because where mother's milk is not available, there is not a sufficient supply of donor milk to satisfy the nutritional needs of all of these premature infants that are born in the U.S.

你的另一個問題是關於網路案件的。我想說，從某個日期開始，是的，我們有一些法庭案件將在七月發生。所以這可能是我們想要看到的一個里程碑。但如果你問我我們如何看待這個問題的框架，我會說，幾十年來，我們一直提供幫助醫生的專門營養產品。我認為這是關鍵。它可以幫助醫生為早產兒提供挽救生命的減員。至於如何餵養早產兒，這是一個醫療決定，羅比。醫療保健提供者將使用一系列選擇來滿足每個嬰兒的獨特需求。這包括母乳，包括透過捐贈者工廠，但也包括早產嬰兒配方奶粉，因為在沒有母乳的地方，就沒有足夠的捐贈母乳供應來滿足所有這些早產兒的營養需求在美國出生的嬰兒

And quite frankly, even when they're available for some premature infants, human milk may lack some of the calories, the proteins, the vitamins, et cetera, that are necessary to support the nutritional needs of the premature infants. So that milk -- that mother's milk needs to be fortified in order to boost the nutritional output. And the medical community, they consider these products to be critical, a critical part of the standard of care for feeding premature infants. Most of the societies, when you read their positions, it is a standard of care to use these products. So the doctors who work in the NICUs, they've used our products for decades and they continue to do so today. And countless babies, Robbie, have benefited from these products, life-saving experiences over many, many years.

坦白說，即使某些早產兒可以獲得母乳，母乳也可能缺乏一些熱量、蛋白質、維生素等，而這些是支持早產兒營養需求所必需的。因此，母乳需要強化，以提高營養輸出。醫學界認為這些產品至關重要，是早產兒餵食護理標準的重要組成部分。大多數社會，當你閱讀他們的立場時，你會發現使用這些產品是一種謹慎的標準。因此，在新生兒加護病房工作的醫生幾十年來一直在使用我們的產品，並且今天仍在繼續這樣做。無數嬰兒，羅比，多年來受益於這些產品和挽救生命的經驗。

And there are clinical studies that repeatedly established that these products are safe. So these litigation cases, they're really seeking to advance a theory promoted by -- of lawyers that sport the science and it distorts distort everything that we know, and it's not supported by the medical community. So we're preparing for our cases to be able to kind of lay out the facts, the science and the data and we stand behind our products.

並且有臨床研究反覆證明這些產品是安全的。因此，這些訴訟案件，他們實際上是在尋求推進由律師所提倡的理論，這些律師炫耀科學，但它歪曲了我們所知道的一切，而且沒有得到醫學界的支持。因此，我們正在準備我們的案例，以便能夠展示事實、科學和數據，並且我們支持我們的產品。

Our next question will come from Larry Biegelsen from Wells Fargo.

我們的下一個問題將來自富國銀行的拉里·比格爾森。

I'll echo Robbie's congratulations on the strong start to the year here. So Robert, I just wanted to focus on EP. So a multipart question here, but just one. So the EP business grew nicely in the first quarter in the U.S. and outside the U.S. Can you talk about what drove that? What you're seeing with PFA in the different geographies? Your expectations for your EP business going forward before the Volt launch. And just lastly, so it sounds like we should expect the Volt approval in Europe sometime next year based on the filing date. I just want to confirm that.

我將回應羅比對今年良好開局的祝賀。所以羅伯特，我只想專注於 EP。這是一個由多個部分組成的問題，但只有一個。因此，EP 業務第一季在美國和美國以外的地區都成長良好。您在不同地區的 PFA 中看到了什麼？您在 Volt 推出之前對 EP 業務的期望。最後，根據申請日期，我們預計 Volt 將於明年某個時候在歐洲獲得批准。我只是想確認一下。

Sure. Yes. Like I said in my opening comments, we completed the trial. There's a 6-month follow-up, Larry. So that means that we will be on target here to file for CE Mark by the end of this year. And then it's just going to depend on that process. So I think that's probably our anchor point here is getting the filing in before the end of the year. Yes. I mean, I'm not surprised by our EP growth. I know many on the call might be, but I'm not surprised. First of all, it's an important therapy. It's an underpenetrated disease. So we know there's plenty of growth in this segment. And as a result of that, it's highly competitive, right?

當然。是的。正如我在開場白中所說，我們完成了審判。有 6 個月的隨訪，拉里。這意味著我們的目標是在今年年底前申請 CE 標誌。然後這將取決於該過程。所以我認為這可能是我們的重點是在年底之前提交申請。是的。我的意思是，我對我們的 EP 成長並不感到驚訝。我知道電話會議中的許多人可能會這樣，但我並不感到驚訝。首先，這是一種重要的療法。這是一種滲透不足的疾病。所以我們知道這個領域有很大的成長。因此，它的競爭非常激烈，對嗎？

But we haven't been surprised by the growth. If you look at PFA, it's been in Europe for 3 years. If you average our growth rate over those last few years in Europe, we've been growing mid-teens. And the growth remains broad-based. It was broad-based in Europe again this quarter, where we saw double-digit growth in ablation catheters. So not just on the mapping side, on the ablation catheter side also, but then also great growth on the mapping side. And yes, this technology has now come to the U.S. I think we probably had maybe 2 months of seeing the technology be rolled out here in the U.S. I think the competitors have been very aggressive here in terms of bringing the technology to the accounts in the U.S.

但我們對這種成長並不感到驚訝。如果你看看PFA，它在歐洲已經存在了3年了。如果你把歐洲過去幾年的成長率平均下來，我們的成長率一直在十幾歲左右。而且成長仍然是廣泛的。本季歐洲再次出現廣泛基礎，我們看到消融導管出現兩位數成長。因此，不僅在標測方面，在消融導管方面也是如此，而且標測方面也有很大的成長。是的，這項技術現在已經來到美國。

And I can say we've mapped a lot of those cases, Larry. I'm not going to say we've been in every single case, but I'd say a vast majority of the cases, we've been in there. And there are some similarities to Europe, but there are some differences to Europe. I think one of the things that we saw in Europe was that there was this inclination to use the technology starting off as kind of a one shot. So that had an impact more on the cryo business than I would say on the RF side. And that's what we saw in our mapping cases. We saw here, at least, in the first couple of months, that's where the -- a large portion of those cases occurred, at least the ones that we mapped were in places where they were traditionally using cryo. I think the difference that we saw a little bit in Europe is that, at least, 90% of the cases that we were part of directly or indirectly, we're using mapping. That number was lower in Europe. So that's probably a little bit of the difference I saw here in the U.S. And that bodes well for us, right?

我可以說我們已經繪製了很多這樣的案例，拉里。我不會說我們經歷過每一個案例，但我會說絕大多數情況下，我們都經歷過。和歐洲有一些相似之處，但也有一些不同之處。我認為我們在歐洲看到的一件事是，人們傾向於一次性使用該技術。因此，這對低溫業務的影響比我所說的對射頻方面的影響更大。這就是我們在測繪案例中看到的情況。我們在這裡看到，至少在最初的幾個月裡，這就是大部分病例發生的地方，至少我們繪製的那些病例是在傳統上使用冷凍技術的地方。我認為我們在歐洲看到的一點差異是，至少在我們直接或間接參與的 90% 的案例中，我們都在使用地圖。歐洲的這個數字較低。這可能是我在美國看到的一點差異，這對我們來說是個好兆頭，對吧？

Our EnSite system, our mapping system, our mapping catheters are widely viewed as an excellent option here for mapping these PFA cases. We have a large installed base, customers are familiar with it. Don't need to make room, don't need to fight for capital. We've got best-in-class clinical support. And the architecture here is open, as I've said in previous calls. So it integrates well with these PFA catheters. We actually recently released a software upgrade last month that provides even better visualization to these catheters and potential for fast procedures and less floor road time. So I think this is a perfect combination, quite frankly, at a time where there's going to be market transition.

我們的 EnSite 系統、我們的標測系統、我們的標測導管被廣泛視為繪製這些 PFA 病例的絕佳選擇。我們擁有龐大的安裝基礎，客戶對此很熟悉。不需要騰出空間，不需要爭取資本。我們擁有一流的臨床支援。正如我在之前的電話會議中所說，這裡的架構是開放的。因此它可以與這些 PFA 導管很好地整合。事實上，我們最近在上個月發布了軟體升級，為這些導管提供了更好的視覺效果，並有可能實現快速手術並減少地面行駛時間。因此，坦白說，我認為在市場轉型之際，這是一個完美的組合。

There's a lot of new products. There's a lot of choices. And when you have a situation like that, I think flexibility is key, and that's what we heard from our customers. One data point that I thought was also interesting to your question of what helped drive that? In the cases that we were part of we saw, we also observed that an RF catheter was pulled in about a quarter 4 of the cases that we saw. So on top of the catheter and an RF catheter was pulled to do touch ups, et cetera. So I'd say right now, everything that we've seen in Europe on the positive side, it's happening. And then I think there's some interesting dynamics here in the U.S. that could be favorable for us also. But it's still very early.

有很多新產品。有很多選擇。當遇到這種情況時，我認為靈活性是關鍵，這也是我們從客戶那裡聽到的。我認為一個數據點對你的問題也很有趣，即是什麼推動了這一點？在我們看到的部分病例中，我們還觀察到大約四分之一的病例中有射頻導管被拉動。因此，在導管頂部拉動射頻導管進行修補等。所以我現在想說的是，我們在歐洲看到的一切積極的一面都正在發生。然後我認為美國存在一些有趣的動態，這也可能對我們有利。但現在還很早。

And if I look at March, we had probably one of our most -- we look at cases per day. That was probably one of our highest months. So this so far so good. And we're excited about the technology. We're excited about our program. We released data on our program and some recent medical meetings that occurred. And the feedback from those that are being used in our products are very positive, and the integration with EnSite, including like the tissue contact force algorithm and the visualization, all of that is seen as a real promise and a differentiator versus what's being used today so.

如果我看看三月份，我們可能遇到了最多的情況之一——我們每天都會查看病例。那可能是我們業績最高的月份之一。所以到目前為止一切都很好。我們對這項技術感到興奮。我們對我們的計劃感到很興奮。我們發布了有關我們的計劃和最近舉行的一些醫學會議的數據。我們產品中使用的產品的反饋非常積極，與 EnSite 的集成，包括組織接觸力演算法和可視化，所有這些都被視為真正的承諾，並且與當今使用的產品相比具有差異化優勢。

Our next question will come from Josh Jennings from Cowen.

我們的下一個問題將來自考恩的喬什·詹寧斯。

Great to see the strong start here in Q1 results. Robert, I was hoping to just ask first on Libre. And just internationally, any other payment or coverage decisions that we should have on our radar in various countries. It sounds like you've made -- said some nice progress already in Germany. And then in the U.S., I was hoping you could just help or share your thoughts on the share gain opportunity in the integrated pump segment of CGM market versus the share loss risk in the type 2 non-insulin cash pay segment with the competitive launch here early in 2024? I just have one follow-up.

很高興看到第一季業績的強勁開局。羅伯特，我希望先在 Libre 上問一下。就國際而言，我們應該在各個國家/地區關注任何其他付款或承保決定。聽起來您已經在德國取得了一些不錯的進展。然後在美國，我希望您能幫助或分享您對 CGM 市場整合幫浦細分市場的份額增長機會與 2 型非胰島素現金支付細分市場的份額損失風險的看法，這裡有競爭性的推出2024年初？我只有一個後續行動。

Sure. On your international question, I mean it's always difficult to forecast exactly 5 month or quarter, coverage kind of payment decisions. I can tell you, though, that the team has a full global map of all the work that's being done regarding clinical information, negotiations, et cetera. So it's difficult to kind of forecast it. But what I have said is on previous calls and in some of my prepared remarks that I think you're going to see this build that will be occurring globally in the market as the data proves and shows the clinical, medical and health economic benefit by reimbursing for this patient population. And I think we're well positioned there.

當然。關於您的國際問題，我的意思是，要準確預測 5 個月或一個季度的核保類型付款決策總是很困難。不過，我可以告訴你，團隊擁有一份完整的全球地圖，其中包含臨床資訊、談判等方面正在進行的所有工作。所以很難預測它。但我在之前的電話會議和我準備好的一些演講中說過，我認為您將看到這種構建將在全球市場上出現，因為數據證明並顯示了臨床、醫療和健康經濟效益為該患者群體提供補償。我認為我們在這方面處於有利地位。

Internationally, I think we got some pretty large markets already, Canada, Japan, France, Italy, Germany. Those are markets that are either fully reimbursed or starting their process. And like I said, I think you'll see as the year progresses, whether it's in medical events or just as the year progresses, I think you'll see more coverage decisions. Maybe they don't get splashy big PR news, but we are seeing continuous increasing there on that.

在國際上，我認為我們已經擁有一些相當大的市場，加拿大、日本、法國、義大利、德國。這些市場要么已全額報銷，要么已開始流程。就像我說的，我認為隨著時間的推移，無論是醫療事件還是隨著時間的推移，您都會看到更多的承保決定。也許他們沒有得到引人注目的重大公關新聞，但我們看到這方面的新聞不斷增加。

On the U.S. side, I guess I disagree with your premise that I'm going to be trading share gains on the pump side for share losses on the non-insulin side. I mean I'm just -- right now, I'm looking at the data, third-party audited data, 7 out of every 10 new prescriptions for this basal population, which is primarily served by the primary care channel, 7 out of 10 are going to Libre. And I think our product is going to get even more competitive and compelling. So I think this is a great opportunity.

在美國方面，我想我不同意你的前提，即我將用幫浦方面的份額收益來交換非胰島素方面的份額損失。我的意思是，我現在正在查看數據，第三方審核的數據，針對這一基礎人群的每10 個新處方中就有7 個，主要由初級保健渠道提供服務，每10 個新處方中的7個為10 人前往 Libre。我認為我們的產品將變得更具競爭力和吸引力。所以我認為這是一個很好的機會。

And our objective here is to maintain kind of our share dominance and our share leadership as it results in this patient segment. But we do have an opportunity here to participate a little bit more actively in what is a little bit more of a smaller segment of the population, but nonetheless, a very important one. which is the AID and the market system. So there's 150,000 to 200,000 starts a year. There's an opportunity for share gain also of existing users.

我們的目標是保持我們在這個患者細分市場的份額主導地位和份額領導地位。但我們確實有機會更積極參與一小部分人口，但儘管如此，這是一個非常重要的機會。這就是援助和市場體系。所以每年有 150,000 到 200,000 次啟動。現有用戶也有機會獲得份額。

I think that the opportunity to bring a dual analyte sensor with ketones, we showed some data at ATTD this year that showed the safety benefit or the value proposition of a dual analyze sensor for AID system. So I think that's going to be a compelling value proposition. And then we're working with all the pump companies here. And I think as the year progresses, we'll see connectivity occur, whether it's with Libre 2 Plus, our streaming product or whether it's a Libre 3. So this is an area that we're focusing on, and it's a new segment for us to compete in. But I don't think that we're going to be taking our eye off the ball as it relates to the basal opportunity that exists so.

我認為，有機會帶來帶酮的雙分析物感測器，我們在今年的 ATTD 上展示了一些數據，這些數據顯示了用於 AID 系統的雙分析感測器的安全優勢或價值主張。所以我認為這將是一個令人信服的價值主張。然後我們正在與這裡所有的泵浦公司合作。我認為隨著時間的推移，我們將看到連接的出現，無論是我們的串流媒體產品 Libre 2 Plus 還是 Libre 3。不會將注意力從球上移開，因為這關係到存在的基本機會。

Understood. And then just wanted to ask on the transcatheter tricuspid market. Congratulations on the TriClip approval. But there's been some questions around the patient opportunity breakdown between TEER TriClip and replacement with (inaudible). Maybe just any internal team thoughts on that patient opportunity breakdown? And then anything you can share on the pricing strategy for TriClip in the setting of competitor pricing, it's replacement device at a significant premium.

明白了。然後只是想詢問一下經導管三尖瓣市場。恭喜 TriClip 獲得批准。但圍繞 TEER TriClip 和替換（聽不清楚）之間的患者機會細分存在一些問題。也許只是內部團隊對患者機會崩潰的想法？然後，您可以在競爭對手定價的情況​​下分享 TriClip 的定價策略，它的替代設備價格很高。

I'm not going to comment on our pricing strategy just for competitive reasons. We are -- it is a differentiated and novel technology. So there is an opportunity, but we'll have to see how this all plays out. You've got NTAP submissions and all this stuff going on right now. What we're focused on here is a coaching the product and getting cases ramped up, and that's what's happening. I got some feedback yesterday from the team after a couple of weeks. A real nice cadence of growth. We're obviously focusing our initial cases on most of the accounts that were part of our pivotal trial, but just real nice cadence growth there and great feedback from physicians and patients post surgery.

我不會僅僅出於競爭原因就我們的定價策略發表評論。我們是——這是一項差異化的新穎技術。所以這是一個機會，但我們必須看看這一切會如何發展。您已經收到 NTAP 提交以及所有這些事情正在進行中。我們在這裡的重點是指導產品並增加案例，而這就是正在發生的事情。幾週後，昨天我從團隊那裡得到了一些回饋。真正良好的成長節奏。顯然，我們將最初的案例集中在作為我們關鍵試驗一部分的大多數帳戶上，但那裡的節奏增長確實很好，並且手術後醫生和患者的反饋也很好。

I mean if you're trying to poke at what's the breakdown going to be about replace and repair less, and I think it's good. have options. And I guess my view here is that I believe that probably safety is a key driver here to start off with. And I think TriClip has shown a very strong, excellent safety record both in clinical trials and real-world use. So I think that's going to play a key role here in determining repair versus replace. So I expect repair and TriClip, at least, to be the preferred option unless the valves are too damaged and then obviously, replacement is the only remaining option. But there's a large pool of patients here. You got 5 million people globally, 2 million people here in the U.S. And it's going to be an opportunity here that we'll be generating more data, expand the indication of the product. So I think this is easily a $1 billion opportunity for us here as we build the capabilities and as we build more clinical data.

我的意思是，如果你想探究故障是什麼，那麼減少更換和維修，我認為這很好。有選擇。我想我的觀點是，我相信安全可能是關鍵的驅動因素。我認為 TriClip 在臨床試驗和實際使用中都表現出了非常強大、出色的安全記錄。因此，我認為這將在確定維修與更換方面發揮關鍵作用。因此，我預計修理和 TriClip 至少會成為首選，除非閥門損壞太嚴重，然後顯然，更換是唯一剩下的選擇。但這裡有大量的病人。全球有 500 萬人，美國有 200 萬人，這將是一個機會，我們將產生更多數據，擴大產品的適應範圍。因此，我認為這對我們來說無疑是一個價值 10 億美元的機會，因為我們正在建立能力並建立更多的臨床數據。

Our next question will come from Travis Steed from BofA Securities.

我們的下一個問題將來自美國銀行證券公司的 Travis Steed。

Congrats on the good quarter. Maybe just while we're on the pipeline, can you talk a little bit about Aveir.It sounds like that product is going really well. And then I had a question on gross margins as well. Trying to think about is this the right pace to kind of get back to pre-COVID levels? And is that still the opportunity kind of longer term for gross margins?

恭喜季度表現良好。也許就在我們正在開發的過程中，您能談談 Aveir。然後我還有一個關於毛利率的問題。試著思考一下，這是恢復到新冠疫情前水準的正確速度嗎？從長遠來看，這仍然是毛利率的機會嗎？

Yes. I mean I think it's done very well. I mean, we know we all know the advantages it has over the competitive system, whether it's single and dual chamber, the longer-lasting battery, the ability for replacement, retrievability, upgrade ability. So I think it's done very well from a single chamber perspective, I think we're now at about 50 share of the U.S. market. So that's been doing very well. It's performed -- we started doing our dual chamber procedures towards the end of last year. Seen a nice kind of ramp-up over this first quarter here.

是的。我的意思是我認為做得非常好。我的意思是，我們知道我們都知道它相對於競爭系統的優勢，無論是單室還是雙室、更持久的電池、更換能力、可回收性、升級能力。所以我認為從單一商會的角度來看它做得非常好，我認為我們現在在美國市場的份額約為 50%。所以這方面做得非常好。它已經完成——我們從去年年底開始進行雙腔手術。在這裡看到了第一季的良好成長。

Focus here really is really about -- it's a completely different procedure, right? I mean if you think about how these devices have been implanted, this is probably the first time in like 30 years, you have a real meaningful change on how this is done. So our focus here is really getting great clinical results. Real thoughtful approach here about opening new centers and training, and that's been working very well for us.

這裡的重點其實是──這是一個完全不同的過程，對嗎？我的意思是，如果你考慮一下這些設備是如何植入的，這可能是 30 年來第一次，你對如何植入這些設備進行了真正有意義的改變。所以我們的重點是真正獲得良好的臨床結果。這裡關於開設新中心和培訓的真正深思熟慮的方法對我們來說非常有效。

And you could see the impact on our growth rate. I mean historically, our CRM business has been relatively flat with some platforms going up, some platforms going down. So our goal here with this program was to get our CRM portfolio to, at least, be a contributor to growth, mid-single digits, 6%, 7%. So these last couple of quarters, we've done 7.5%. And so Aveir has been doing well and it's going to continue to get better as more and more physicians get trained and we increase the amount of accounts. So I really like the cadence of how we're forecasting this business and the impact that it's going to have on our CRM portfolio. What was your other question?

你可以看到這對我們成長率的影響。我的意思是，從歷史上看，我們的 CRM 業務相對平穩，有些平台上升，有些平台下降。因此，我們此計劃的目標是讓我們的 CRM 產品組合至少為成長做出貢獻，中個位數，6%、7%。所以最近幾個季度，我們完成了 7.5%。因此，Aveir 一直表現良好，並且隨著越來越多的醫生接受培訓以及我們增加帳戶數量，它將繼續變得更好。因此，我非常喜歡我們預測這項業務的節奏以及它將對我們的 CRM 產品組合產生的影響。你的另一個問題是什麼？

Just on gross margins. Kind of thinking about the path back to peak over levels over the long term. And is this the right kind of cadence that -- this year's cadence is the right way to think about that?

只是在毛利率上。有點思考長遠來看回到巔峰的路徑。今年的節奏是思考這個問題的正確方式嗎？

Yes. I mean I think that's a good cadence. I think we're forecasting here about 70 basis points of improvement this year. I feel good about that. I've talked about this not being a question of if, just a question of when. So I think that's not a bad cadence. And we're going to focus on the things that we can control. And the things that we can control are obviously, our cost and our cost teams and the teams that are working on improving gross margin. They're delivering great results here, while at the same time, maintaining high service levels, not running to back orders, et cetera. But probably the biggest opportunity we have here, Travis, is just to expand the gross margin through portfolio mix, right? So when you have our medical device business is growing at mid-teens consistently over the last, whatever, 4 quarters, that has a real strong impact on our gross margin. So a lot of focus on what we can control our gross margin, the cadence, that's what we're targeting. So it's not really a question of if. It's just a question of when.

是的。我的意思是我認為這是一個很好的節奏。我認為我們預測今年會有大約 70 個基點的改善。我對此感覺很好。我說過這不是是否的問題，只是何時的問題。所以我認為這不是一個糟糕的節奏。我們將專注於我們可以控制的事情。顯然，我們可以控制的事情是我們的成本、我們的成本團隊以及致力於提高毛利率的團隊。他們在這裡取得了巨大的成果，同時保持了高服務水平，不會出現延期交貨等情況。但特拉維斯，我們在這裡擁有的最大機會可能就是透過投資組合擴大毛利率，對嗎？因此，當我們的醫療設備業務在過去四個季度中持續以十幾歲左右的速度成長時，這對我們的毛利率產生了真正的重大影響。因此，我們要專注於我們可以控制的毛利率、節奏，這就是我們的目標。所以這其實並不是一個「是否」的問題。這只是時間問題。

You next question will come from Vijay Kumar from Evercore ISI.

您的下一個問題將來自 Evercore ISI 的 Vijay Kumar。

Robert, I had a 2-part question. A lot of questions on pipeline, but I'm curious when people ask us on sustainability of growth, if you could elaborate on the pipeline. What else is there? When you look at the future, what gives us the confidence of sustaining a premium growth within the med tech industry?

羅伯特，我有一個由兩個部分組成的問題。關於管道有很多問題，但我很好奇當人們問我們成長的可持續性時，您是否可以詳細說明管道。那裡還有什麼？展望未來，是什麼讓我們有信心在醫療科技產業中保持高速成長？

And my second part was on the financial modeling side. It looks like FX headwinds came in a little bit higher. Prior guidance a $0.20 headwind to EPS from FX. Did that increase? I'm just curious on I guess, some questions on why the high end of the guidance is not raised, I suspect the FX headwinds increased.

我的第二部分是財務建模方面。看來外匯逆風加劇。先前的指引對每股收益來說，來自外匯的阻力為 0.20 美元。那增加了嗎？我只是好奇，我猜，關於為什麼沒有提高指導的高端的一些問題，我懷疑外匯阻力增加了。

Yes. Like I said, there are certain challenges that still remain with us from January and FX is one of them. I'll let Phil answer that one. On your question on pipeline, listen, I could spend a whole hour on this just going through the pipeline. But I guess I would bucket them into like 3 categories. Vijay, I'd say you got your current contributors, Libre and Alinity, they still operate like pipeline projects and products, right? We still got multiple innovations going through them. MitraClip, great familiarity of their Navitor, TriClip, Amulet, Protality, our concussion test, I think, has got great opportunity in CardioMEMS.

是的。正如我所說，從一月開始，我們仍然面臨某些挑戰，外匯就是其中之一。我會讓菲爾回答這個問題。關於你關於管道的問題，聽著，我可以花整整一個小時來解決這個問題，只是透過管道。但我想我會把它們分成三類。 Vijay，我想說你現在有貢獻者 Libre 和 Alinity，他們仍然像管道項目和產品一樣運作，對嗎？我們仍然透過它們獲得了多項創新。 MitraClip，人們非常熟悉他們的 Navitor、TriClip、Amulet、Protality，我認為我們的震盪測試在 CardioMEMS 領域獲得了很好的機會。

I mean these are all products that I would still characterize them as early innings. Yes, they're established, but they're still early innings and they got a lot of growth rate there. The second group of products, I would call probably near-term future contributors. So think about it in the next 12 to 18 months, these products coming to market and starting to kind of generate revenue there. Our Lingo product, I'm very excited about that and bringing that to the U.S. and expanding that globally. Our dual analyte sensor, our Volt system, Esprit, which is our drug-eluting bioresorbable stent for below the knee. It will be the first of its kind.

我的意思是，這些都是我仍然將其描述為早期產品的產品。是的，他們已經確立了地位，但仍處於早期階段，而且成長率很高。第二組產品，我可能稱之為近期的未來貢獻者。因此，考慮一下在接下來的 12 到 18 個月內，這些產品將進入市場並開始產生收入。我們的 Lingo 產品，我對此感到非常興奮，並將其帶到美國並擴展到全球。我們的雙分析物感測器、我們的 Volt 系統、Esprit，這是我們用於膝蓋以下的藥物洗脫生物可吸收支架。這將是同類中的第一個。

We're developing a whole new Alinity system that will target a segment of the market that we currently don't participate in, and there'll be more to come on that. And then just the great opportunity we have with biosimilars into the emerging markets, and doing it in a very capital-efficient way and bringing that and leveraging our position there. That's our next 12- to 18-month kind of catalyst there. And then thinking about beyond 2026. I mean, we're working on PFA RF catheter, you got leadless, another kind of leadless pacing system that will be launching. We have a second-generation Amulet, excited about entering to the IVL market sometime in 2027. Coronary DCB. We're working on kind of new TAVR systems also that allow us to branch out into other segments.

我們正在開發一個全新的 Alinity 系統，該系統將針對我們目前未參與的市場部分，並且還會有更多的市場出現。然後就是我們透過生物相似藥進入新興市場的巨大機會，並以非常資本高效的方式做到這一點，並利用我們在那裡的地位。這是我們接下來 12 到 18 個月的催化劑。然後考慮 2026 年以後。我們有第二代 Amulet，對 2027 年某個時候進入 IVL 市場感到興奮。我們正在開發一種新的 TAVR 系統，這也使我們能夠擴展到其他領域。

We've got a whole plethora of new analytes in our bio wearables market that will start to come out and have different applications in 2026. And then on top of that, all the clinical work that we're doing to expand indications, expand market, whether it's in TAVR, whether it's in LAA, whether it's in mitral. So we've got, I'd say, a real nice cadence here of products and pipeline beyond, I'd say, the next 12 to 18 months. We're looking at this '26, '27, '28, and I feel really excited about that. There's, obviously, more that we need to do and add. But I think the base here looks really good in terms of the pipeline. And then I think your question on FX, Phil, do you want to take that?

我們的生物穿戴裝置市場上有大量的新分析物，這些分析物將在2026 年開始出現並具有不同的應用。市場，是否在 TAVR、是否在 LAA、是否在二尖瓣。因此，我想說，在接下來的 12 到 18 個月內，我們的產品和管道的節奏非常好。我們正在關注這個'26、'27、'28，我對此感到非常興奮。顯然，我們還需要做更多的事情和添加更多內容。但我認為這裡的基地在管道方面看起來非常好。然後我想你關於外匯的問題，菲爾，你想接受嗎？

Yes. So I mentioned at the onset here, Vijay, in Q1, we saw about a 2.9% headwind on sales growth, and we kind of at current rates anticipate something similar here in Q2 from a full year perspective at the current rates, it's about a 2.5% headwind on the top line. That said, kind of the earnings guide that we have here is in line with the organic sales performance and drop through to earnings on the increased midpoint on the EPS guidance.

是的。所以我一開始就提到，Vijay，在第一季度，我們看到銷售成長出現了2.9% 的逆風，以目前的速度，我們預計第二季度會出現類似的情況，從全年的角度來看，以目前的速度，這大約是頂線面臨 2.5% 的逆風。也就是說，我們這裡的收益指南與有機銷售業績一致，並根據每股收益指南中點的增加而下降到收益。

Our next question will come from Joanne Wuensch from Citi.

我們的下一個問題將來自花旗銀行的 Joanne Wuensch。

And may I add my compliments and congratulations to the quarter. I have 2 questions coming right upfront. The first one is on concussion testing. I'd love to understand the go-to-market strategy for that, how you think about the financial benefit impact and all that kind of good stuff. I think my second question is a little bit more big picture. As you step back in a post-pandemic environment a couple of years into the CEO seat, how do you think about taking out it sort of to the next level? I mean we all sit here and take a look at an incredibly strong balance sheet. How do you put that cash to work? And are these segment, divisions ones you want to keep? Or how do you think about adding to it?

請允許我對本季表示讚揚和祝賀。我有兩個問題要先問。第一個是衝擊測試。我很想了解這方面的進入市場策略，您如何看待財務利益影響以及所有此類好東西。我認為我的第二個問題是一個更宏觀的問題。幾年後，當您在大流行後的環境中重新擔任執行長一職時，您如何考慮將其提升到一個新的水平？我的意思是，我們都坐在這裡，看看令人難以置信的強勁資產負債表。你如何運用這些現金？這些細分、部門是您想要保留的嗎？或者您如何考慮添加它？

Sure. On the point-of-care concussion test, I guess I'd summarize the opportunity here in twofold. I think there's a market conversion component to this, Joanne. I mentioned there are 5 million ER visits to diagnose a concussion. The number one method there to use that is on a CT scan. And I think there's an opportunity here to transform that and allow one to get a faster response in that emergency kind of emergency room visit, which is where the i-STAT point of care team have already have a good position with some of our other blood gas and other assays that we provide to that segment. So I think this will just slide right into that team. And then the value proposition here is going to be, okay, what's the cost of the system can we bend that cost curve? I think we've shown a little bit how we think about things, Joanne, if you look at Libre, if you look at Binax, if you look at how we think about pricing our products when it comes to market conversion and the opportunities that we have there. And we'll be able to do it at a nice return for our shareholders. So I think that's an important part.

當然。在即時腦震盪測試中，我想我應該從兩方面總結這裡的機會。我認為這其中有市場轉換的成分，喬安妮。我提到有 500 萬次急診室診斷腦震盪。最常用的方法是 CT 掃描。我認為這裡有一個機會來改變這種情況，讓人們在緊急情況下的急診室就診中獲得更快的響應，而 i-STAT 護理點團隊已經在我們的其他一些血液中佔據了良好的位置。我們為該細分市場提供氣體和其他檢測。所以我認為這將直接滑入該團隊。然後這裡的價值主張將是，系統的成本是多少，我們可以彎曲該成本曲線嗎？我認為我們已經展示了一些我們對事物的看法，喬安妮，如果你看看 Libre，如果你看看 Binax，如果你看看我們在市場轉換和機會方面如何考慮產品定價。我們將能夠為股東帶來豐厚的回報。所以我認為這是一個重要的部分。

The market expansion opportunity that we have, I think, is going to still require some work on the product. Right now, the products approved whole blood, but it's a venous draw, if we're going to be working on a capillary draw. And if you can then run this assay, taking a sample from a finger stick from a finger prick, then you can look at bringing that technology even closer to where the need for a rapid concussion test would be.

我認為，我們擁有的市場擴張機會仍然需要在產品上做一些工作。目前，這些產品已批准使用全血，但如果我們要進行毛細血管抽取，那麼它是靜脈抽取。如果您可以執行此檢測，從手指刺穿的指尖取樣，那麼您可以考慮使該技術更接近快速腦震盪測試的需要。

If you just look at how many universities exists in this country, how many high schools exist in this country, you can do some multiplications there. And so, okay, there is a great market creation, market expansion opportunity. So I think that, that's how we're thinking about it, commercially, conversion and creation/expansion. There's some more work to be done in terms of the product and the claims and the trials there. So this is a -- this will be a multiyear kind of program over here, we will start to see kind of nice growth in that segment. And then your other question was about the portfolio and balance sheet. And do we like the 4 segments. And the answer to that is, yes, we like all the 4 segments.

如果你看看這個國家有多少所大學，有多少高中，你可以在那裡做一些乘法。所以，好吧，這是一個巨大的市場創造、市場擴張機會。所以我認為，這就是我們思考商業、轉換和創造/擴張的方式。在產品、索賠和試驗方面還有一些工作要做。所以這將是一個為期多年的計劃，我們將開始看到該領域的良好成長。然後你的另一個問題是關於投資組合和資產負債表。我們喜歡這 4 個部分嗎？答案是，是的，我們喜歡所有 4 個部分。

We feel that it gives us a real unique view into the health care system as a whole, starting with nutrition. That's, obviously, the bedrock of good health but then things happen and you need to get a diagnosis. And we've got a great diagnostic portfolio that we've been expanding on and building on to make sure that we can capitalize on all the different types of modalities and locations where people can get tested.

我們認為，它讓我們對整個醫療保健系統有了真正獨特的看法，從營養開始。顯然，這是健康的基石，但當事情發生時，你需要得到診斷。我們擁有出色的診斷產品組合，我們一直在擴展和建立該產品組合，以確保我們能夠利用人們可以接受測試的所有不同類型的模式和地點。

And then once we know -- once physician knows what the problem is, then they got to run through treatment, right? And we do that either through our medicines business or through a medical device business. So I think all four segments are super well aligned to the global demographics and trends in health care. And so we like that. There's always opportunities to add, and we've shown that if there are areas that we feel that we can bring value in a combination, then as you mentioned, yes, we've got a strong balance sheet and strategic flexibility to do that as long as we feel that we can add value to that asset. We felt like that about CSI. We felt like that about St. Jude. We felt like that about Alere. And those deals, they obviously help kind of reshape the company and accelerate our growth rates. But I think that's predicated on us really believing that we can kind of bring value, and we're not trying to fill some top line gap or some issues. So ROIC for us matters, profitability matters. So we've got opportunities, and we can be a little bit more selective to be able to add. But I like the four segments that we're in, and they've been well to shareholders, especially our long-term shareholders.

然後一旦我們知道——一旦醫生知道問題是什麼，他們就必須進行治療，對嗎？我們透過藥品業務或醫療器材業務來做到這一點。因此，我認為所有四個細分市場都非常符合全球人口統計和醫療保健趨勢。所以我們喜歡這樣。總是有機會增加，我們已經證明，如果我們認為我們可以在某些領域的組合中帶來價值，那麼正如您所提到的，是的，我們擁有強大的資產負債表和策略靈活性來做到這一點只要我們認為我們可以為該資產增值。我們對《犯罪現場調查》也有同樣的感覺。我們對聖裘德也有同樣的感覺。我們對 Alere 也有同樣的感覺。這些交易顯然有助於重塑公司並加快我們的成長率。但我認為這是基於我們真正相信我們可以帶來價值，我們並不是試圖填補一些收入差距或一些問題。因此，投資報酬率對我們來說很重要，獲利能力也很重要。所以我們有機會，我們可以更有選擇性地添加。但我喜歡我們所處的四個細分市場，它們對股東，尤其是我們的長期股東來說都很好。

Our next question will come from Matt Miksic from Barclays.

我們的下一個問題將來自巴克萊銀行的馬特·米克西奇。

And congrats on the really strong quarter, particularly in the medical devices. So I had one follow-up on the -- sorry you hear the background. One question on Structural Heart. Robert, you talked a little bit about the portfolio and the combination of the leading TEER device in MitraClip being a little bit more mature in a category of Structural Heart, but being kind of augmented by some of these some of these new products like most recently, obviously, TriClip. And if you could talk a little bit about sort of the momentum in those -- in the portfolio as well as how much of the build-out of this portfolio is still coming organically or under review kind of strategically. I appreciate it.

恭喜這個季度的強勁表現，尤其是在醫療設備領域。所以我對——抱歉你聽到了背景進行了一項後續行動。關於心臟結構的一個問題。 Robert，您談到了 MitraClip 中領先的 TEER 設備的產品組合和組合，該設備在結構心臟類別中更加成熟，但其中一些新產品（例如最近的產品）有所增強顯然，TriClip。如果你能談談投資組合中的勢頭，以及該投資組合的建設有多少仍在有機地進行或正在接受戰略審查。我很感激。

Sure. I mean I didn't want my comments on MitraClip to be construed like that one there is slowing down, and we're relying on others to drive the growth. I mean, that wasn't the intent. If you look at MitraClip this quarter, it's high single digits. And if you look at the last 5 quarters, that's what it's been doing between high single digits, low double digits. And that's good. But we always had a view here that this is an attractive area of growth, an attractive area of medical need. And we wanted to be a leader here.

當然。我的意思是，我不希望我對 MitraClip 的評論被解讀為該公司正在放緩，而我們正在依靠其他人來推動成長。我的意思是，這不是本意。如果你看看本季的 MitraClip，你會發現它的成長率很高。如果你看看過去 5 個季度，你會發現高個位數和低兩位數之間的情況。這很好。但我們始終認為，這是一個有吸引力的成長領域，一個有吸引力的醫療需求領域。我們想成為這裡的領導者。

So yes, MitraClip, I guess you can call MitraClip, the founding father of our structural heart portfolio. But I think the team here has done an incredible job at bringing organic innovation into the portfolio. So if you look at our structural heart, I mean, we grew 13% today. MitraClip grew high single digits. But it accounted for 3% of that growth. The rest -- the other 10% came from all the rest of the portfolio that's being built. So I think that you'll continue to see that. We'll continue to make investments in this business, continue to make investments in the pipeline.

所以，是的，MitraClip，我想你可以稱 MitraClip 為我們結構心臟產品組合的創始人。但我認為這裡的團隊在將有機創新引入產品組合方面做得非常出色。因此，如果你看看我們的結構核心，我的意思是，我們今天成長了 13%。 MitraClip 實現高個位數成長。但它佔了成長的 3%。其餘的——另外 10% 來自正在建造的投資組合的所有其餘部分。所以我認為你會繼續看到這一點。我們將繼續對該業務進行投資，並繼續對管道進行投資。

I'd say right now, most of it is organic, whether it's innovating on LAA, innovating on our TAVR side and all the clinical work that we're doing there. If there's an opportunity inorganically, I just put that in the same bucket that I think I answered kind of Joanne's question here if it makes sense. And we can add it. We've got the flexibility to do it. But the whole strategy here was to say, listen, we're going to build a multibillion-dollar structural heart business that can sustainably grow double digits. And the way to do that is you can't be a division of only one product. And I think the teams over the last 4 or 5 years, have done a really good job at building that and there's more opportunity. I'd say probably the one that we're looking at and is very exciting for us is mitral replacement. We've launched our Tendyne product, which was more a transapical system. Our Cephea system is the transfemoral, transseptal and feedback that we've seen from early implanters, early first-in-man is that this is a great, great valve. So there's an opportunity there also. So I'd say most organic, but we got the capacity for inorganic if it makes sense.

我現在想說的是，大部分都是有機的，無論是 LAA 方面的創新，我們 TAVR 方面的創新，還是我們在那裡所做的所有臨床工作。如果有機地有機會，我會把它放在同一個桶中，我認為我在這裡回答了喬安妮的問題，如果它有意義的話。我們可以添加它。我們可以靈活地做到這一點。但這裡的整個策略是說，聽著，我們將建立一個價值數十億美元的結構性心臟業務，可以持續實現兩位數成長。做到這一點的方法是，你不能只生產一種產品。我認為過去四到五年的團隊在建立這一點方面做得非常好，而且還有更多機會。我想說的是，我們正在研究並且令我們非常興奮的可能是二尖瓣置換。我們推出了 Tendyne 產品，它更像是一種經心尖系統。我們的 Cephea 系統是經股動脈、經間隔和我們從早期植入者看到的回饋，早期的第一人認為這是一個非常非常好的瓣膜。所以那裡也有機會。所以我想說大多數是有機的，但如果有意義的話，我們也有能力生產無機的。

And our final question will come from Danielle Antalffy from UBS.

我們的最後一個問題將來自瑞銀集團的丹妮爾·安塔菲。

And yes, congrats on a strong start to the year. Robert, we spent a lot of time talking about the durability of growth in the med tech business. So I don't want to get too greedy, but just following up on Joanne's question regarding you guys do have a strong balance sheet. Are there any areas -- I guess sort of how do you feel about the state of the med tech business today? And do you feel there are growth areas within med tech that maybe Abbott isn't participating in today that Abbott could or should participate in today? And where are you looking beyond your current markets, if at all? I'll just leave it to one.

是的，祝賀今年取得了良好的開局。羅伯特，我們花了很多時間討論醫療技術業務成長的持久性。所以我不想太貪婪，但只是跟進喬安妮關於你們的問題，你們確實擁有強大的資產負債表。我想您對當今醫療科技產業的狀況有何看法？您是否認為醫療技術領域存在雅培今天可能沒有參與但雅培今天可以或應該參與的成長領域？如果有的話，除了目前的市場之外，您還打算去哪裡？我就把它留給一個人。

Sure. I get the attempt for triangulation here in the multiple different ways, and I guess I'll sign a little bit boring here in terms of how I talk about this. I've been public that, yes, we are interested. We look at areas that we can add value to. I'd say probably the ones that have jumped out more at us in terms of a study and looking at are probably more in the medical device side and on the diagnostics side. We did look at a strategy for biosimilars for Medicines business, and that was a pretty capital-efficient way to do it. So yes, we're looking. We continue to study but I'm not going to sit here and telegraph exactly. It's this, it's that. I think the key thing here is just we -- I mean, look at our med tech business did this quarter, look what it did previous four quarters, and that allows me to be a little bit more selective.

當然。我在這裡以多種不同的方式嘗試進行三角測量，我想我在這裡談論這個問題的方式會有點無聊。我已經公開表示，是的，我們很感興趣。我們著眼於可以增加價值的領域。我想說的是，在研究和觀察方面，我們更感興趣的可能更多是在醫療設備方面和診斷方面。我們確實研究了藥品業務生物相似藥的策略，這是一種相當資本有效的方法。所以是的，我們正在尋找。我們繼續研究，但我不會坐在這裡發電報。是這個，就是那個。我認為這裡的關鍵是我們——我的意思是，看看我們的醫療技術業務本季的表現，看看它在前四個季度的表現，這讓我能夠更有選擇性。

Over the last couple of months, we've seen some fairly large transactions in the med tech space. Those seem to be attractive growth areas. I talked about us getting access to some early IBL technology with the CSI acquisition. So that's an important area for us to focus on. But I don't feel that with our strong organic growth that we need to go out and not pay attention to like other key financial metrics that for us are important, right, in terms of ROICs and it's because we've got that strong growth rate in medtech.

在過去的幾個月裡，我們在醫療科技領域看到了一些相當大的交易。這些似乎是有吸引力的成長領域。我談到我們透過收購 CSI 獲得了一些早期的 IBL 技術。所以這是我們需要關注的重要領域。但我不認為，隨著我們強勁的有機成長，我們需要走出去，而不是像其他關鍵財務指標一樣關注這些指標，這些指標對我們來說很重要，就投資回報率而言，這是因為我們已經實現了強勁的成長醫療技術領域的比率。

You won't get me telegraphing here exactly, Danielle, what specific segments we're looking at. What I can tell you is we have an active team. They study a lot. We look a lot. We follow a lot. And if there's a moment that makes sense for us and those segments continue to be interesting, we've got the balance sheet and the track record to show that we can drive value out of these acquisitions. So I'll just leave it like that. Yes, we've got flexibility. That doesn't mean that we don't pay attention to other key financial kind of returns as we're looking at it. And I feel that I can do that because we've got such a strong top line growth and great pipeline and prospects. So with that, I'll leave it like that.

丹妮爾，你不會讓我在這裡準確地電報我們正在關注哪些具體部分。我可以告訴你的是我們有一個活躍的團隊。他們學習很多。我們看了很多。我們關注了很多。如果某個時刻對我們有意義並且這些細分市場繼續有趣，我們的資產負債表和業績記錄就會表明我們可以從這些收購中創造價值。所以我就這樣吧。是的，我們有彈性。這並不意味著我們在考慮時不專注於其他關鍵的財務回報。我覺得我可以做到這一點，因為我們擁有如此強勁的營收成長以及巨大的通路和前景。那麼，我就這樣吧。

And I'll just close by saying we're very pleased with this very strong start to the year. We delivered another quarter of double-digit organic sales growth on the base business. The investments that we've made during all those years of COVID are generating real strong returns. The pipeline continues to be highly productive as I've outlined. We've got clear visibility to a pipeline all the way out to '27, '28. Obtained several new product approvals that are going to help us accelerate our growth in certain areas. Typically, don't raise guidance in the first quarter. But given the strong performance in the outlook and the remainder of the year, we felt comfortable doing that, and we're very well positioned to continue to sustainably deliver top tier results. So with that, I'll wrap up and thank all of you for joining us today.

最後我要說的是，我們對今年強勁的開局感到非常滿意。我們的基礎業務又實現了四分之一的兩位數有機銷售成長。我們在新冠疫情期間所做的投資正在產生真正強勁的回報。正如我所概述的，該管道仍然保持高效。我們對一直到 27 年、28 年的管道都有清晰的可見性。獲得了多項新產品批准，這將幫助我們加速在某些領域的成長。通常情況下，不要在第一季提高指引。但考慮到前景和今年剩餘時間的強勁表現，我們對此感到放心，並且我們處於非常有利的位置，可以繼續可持續地交付頂級業績。我的總結就到此為止，並感謝大家今天加入我們。

Thank you, operator, and thank you all for your questions. This now concludes Abbott's Conference Call. A webcast replay of this call will be available after 11 a.m. Central time today on Abbott's Investor Relations website at abbottinvestor.com. Thank you for joining us today.

謝謝接線員，也謝謝大家的提問。雅培的電話會議到此結束。本次電話會議的網路直播重播將於今天中部時間上午 11 點後在雅培投資者關係網站 abbottinvestor.com 上播出。感謝您今天加入我們。

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect. Everyone, have a wonderful day.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與。您現在可以斷開連線。祝大家有美好的一天。