亞德諾半導體 (ADI) 2020 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, and welcome to the Analog Devices Third Quarter Fiscal Year 2020 Earnings Conference Call, which is being audio webcast via telephone and over the web.

早安，歡迎參加 Analog Devices 2020 財年第三季財報電話會議，該電話會議正在透過電話和網路進行音訊網路直播。

I'd now like to introduce your host for today's call, Mr. Michael Lucarelli, Senior Director of Investor Relations. Sir, the floor is yours.R

現在我想介紹一下今天電話會議的主持人，投資者關係高級總監 Michael Lucarelli 先生。先生，地板是你的了。R

Thank you, Sheryl, and good morning, everybody. Thanks for joining our fourth quarter and fiscal 2020 conference call. With me on the call today are ADI's CEO, Vincent Roche; and ADI's CFO, Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah. For anyone who missed the release, you can find it and relating financial schedules at investor.analog.com.

謝謝你，謝麗爾，大家早安。感謝您參加我們第四季和 2020 財年的電話會議。今天與我一起參加電話會議的是 ADI 執行長 Vincent Roche；以及 ADI 財務長 Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah。對於那些錯過了該發布的人，您可以在 Investor.analog.com 上找到它以及相關的財務時間表。

Now on to the disclosures. The information we're about to discuss includes forward-looking statements, including statements relating to our objectives, outlook and the proposed Maxim transaction. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, as further described in our earnings release, our most recent 10-K and other periodic reports and materials filed with the SEC. Actual results could differ materially from this forward-looking information as these statements reflect our expectations only as of date of this call. We undertake no obligation to update these statements, except as required by law.

現在開始披露。我們將要討論的資訊包括前瞻性陳述，包括與我們的目標、前景和擬議的 Maxim 交易有關的陳述。這些前瞻性陳述受到某些風險和不確定性的影響，正如我們的收益發布、我們最近的 10-K 以及向 SEC 提交的其他定期報告和資料中進一步描述的那樣。實際結果可能與這些前瞻性資訊有重大差異，因為這些陳述僅反映我們截至本次電話會議之日的預期。除法律要求外，我們不承擔更新這些聲明的義務。

Our comments today will also include non-GAAP financial measures, which exclude special items. When comparing our results to our historical performance, special items are also excluded from prior periods. Reconciliations of these non-GAAP measures to their most directly comparable GAAP measures and additional information about our non-GAAP measures are included in today's earnings release.

我們今天的評論還將包括非公認會計準則財務指標，其中不包括特殊項目。將我們的結果與歷史績效進行比較時，前期的特殊項目也被排除在外。這些非公認會計準則衡量指標與其最直接可比較的公認會計準則衡量指標的對帳以及有關我們非公認會計準則衡量指標的其他資訊均包含在今天的收益發布中。

Okay. With that, I'll turn it over to ADI CEO, Vincent Roche.

好的。接下來，我會將其交給 ADI 執行長 Vincent Roche。

Thank you, Mike, and good morning to you all. I hope that you and your families are healthy and safe at this time.

謝謝你，麥克，祝大家早安。我希望您和您的家人此時健康安全。

So 2020 represented a year of strategic progress for ADI in a very highly uncertain macroeconomic environment. Fortunately, ADI was already operating from a position of strength. Over the last decade, we've created a structurally more profitable business. We realigned our portfolio to target more durable end markets and become more diverse across customers, products and applications. During this past year and at the height of the pandemic, this business model proved quite resilient with gross and operating margins troughing at 68% and 37%, respectively, levels we previously considered peak. It's this resiliency that enables us to sustain a healthy level of investment against any economic backdrop.

因此，2020 年是 ADI 在高度不確定的宏觀經濟環境中取得策略進展的一年。幸運的是，ADI 已經處於強勢地位。在過去的十年裡，我們創造了一個結構上更有利可圖的業務。我們重新調整了我們的產品組合，以瞄準更持久的終端市場，並在客戶、產品和應用方面變得更加多樣化。在過去的一年裡，在疫情最嚴重的時期，這種商業模式被證明具有相當的彈性，毛利率和營業利潤率分別降至 68% 和 37%，而我們之前認為是峰值水平。正是這種彈性使我們能夠在任何經濟背景下維持健康的投資水準。

We've also been not afraid to make strategic pivots towards the most attractive investment opportunities that enhance our customer engagement and better align us to secular growth trend such as digital health care. Clearly, the biggest investment decision of 2020 was our strategic combination with Maxim, which will further extend the scale and scope of our semiconductor portfolio, and I'll expand on this in a while.

我們也不害怕將策略重點轉向最具吸引力的投資機會，以增強我們的客戶參與度並更好地使我們適應數位醫療保健等長期成長趨勢。顯然，2020年最大的投資決策是我們與Maxim的策略合併，這將進一步擴大我們半導體產品組合的規模和範圍，我稍後會詳細闡述這一點。

As I reflect on the immediate challenges of our current environment, we believe there is more ADI can do to leverage our expertise to engineer a more sustainable future and make an even more positive impact on the world. To that end, earlier this year, we published our first corporate responsibility report and launched the semiconductor industry's first green bond. We also took action in the global fight against COVID-19.

當我思考當前環境面臨的直接挑戰時，我們相信 ADI 可以做更多的事情，利用我們的專業知識來設計更永續的未來，並對世界產生更積極的影響。為此，今年早些時候，我們發布了第一份企業責任報告，並推出了半導體產業首個綠色債券。我們也在全球對抗新冠肺炎 (COVID-19) 的鬥爭中採取了行動。

We prioritize production of our health care solutions to support customers, and we're partnering with hospitals and biotech start-ups to develop solutions that leverage our technology. And our impact has extended beyond our own facilities and capabilities, as we've made multimillion dollar donations through the ADI Foundation to support both global and local pandemic response efforts.

我們優先生產醫療保健解決方案來支援客戶，我們正在與醫院和生技新創公司合作，開發利用我們技術的解決方案。我們的影響力已經超越了我們自己的設施和能力範圍，我們透過 ADI 基金會捐贈了數百萬美元，以支持全球和當地的流行病應對工作。

Overall, I'm very proud of how we've come together. We embraced and learned from this challenging time and continue to execute at a high level to generate and capture value in the market.

總的來說，我對我們的走到一起感到非常自豪。我們接受了這個充滿挑戰的時期並從中吸取了教訓，並繼續以高水平執行，以在市場上創造和捕獲價值。

Now turning to our results. In the fourth quarter, revenue was $1.53 billion, and adjusted EPS was $1.44, above the high end of our outlook. For the year, revenue was $5.6 billion, down mid-single digits year-over-year. This was partly driven by the economic volatility and supply chain disruptions related to the pandemic. Despite this, our cumulative B2B revenue outperformed peers for a third consecutive year. We actively managed operating expenses, delivering operating margins of 40% and adjusted EPS of $4.91. We generated approximately $1.8 billion in free cash flow in 2020.

現在轉向我們的結果。第四季營收為 15.3 億美元，調整後每股收益為 1.44 美元，高於我們預期的上限。全年營收為 56 億美元，年減中個位數。這在一定程度上是由於與大流行相關的經濟波動和供應鏈中斷所造成的。儘管如此，我們的累積 B2B 收入連續第三年優於同業。我們積極管理營運費用，營運利潤率為 40%，調整後每股收益為 4.91 美元。 2020 年，我們產生了約 18 億美元的自由現金流。

While this year's 33% free cash flow margin is just below our long-term financial model, we continue to be in the top 10% of companies in the S&P 500.

雖然今年 33% 的自由現金流利潤率略低於我們的長期財務模型，但我們仍然位居標準普爾 500 強公司前 10% 之列。

So now I'd like to provide an update on how we're shaping ADI to be even more impactful in the future. During the year, we invested more than $1 billion in R&D, with over 95% targeted at the most attractive B2B opportunities. This includes funding new product development to fortify our franchises and drive new vectors of growth. As you know, we selectively use M&A to complement these organic investments, and we've taken a very significant step forward with the pending acquisition of Maxim.

因此，現在我想提供有關我們如何塑造 ADI 使其在未來更具影響力的最新資訊。這一年，我們在研發方面的投資超過 10 億美元，其中 95% 以上針對最具吸引力的 B2B 機會。這包括資助新產品開發，以加強我們的特許經營權並推動新的成長方向。如您所知，我們有選擇地利用併購來補充這些有機投資，並且我們在即將收購 Maxim 方面向前邁出了非常重要的一步。

The numerous customers I've spoken with about our combination are delighted that we will join forces. Maxim will strengthen our leadership in the semiconductor industry, creating a more comprehensive analog, mixed signal and power portfolio and further diversifying our business across markets and applications. And at 10,000 engineers strong, the acquisition will solidify ADI as the destination for the world's best analog talent.

我與許多客戶談論過我們的合併，他們對我們的聯手感到高興。 Maxim將加強我們在半導體產業的領導地位，創造更全面的類比、混合訊號和電源產品組合，並進一步實現我們在市場和應用領域的業務多元化。 ADI 擁有 10,000 名工程師，此次收購將鞏固 ADI 作為全球最優秀模擬人才目的地的地位。

We've also been disciplined in our approach to managing our balance sheet. Since we closed the Linear acquisition, we've cut our leverage ratio in half, increased our dividend by 40% and repurchased more than $1 billion of shares and Prashanth will provide further details on our capital allocation outlook for 2021.

我們在管理資產負債表的方法上也遵守紀律。自從我們完成 Linear 收購以來，我們已將槓桿率削減了一半，將股息增加了 40%，並回購了超過 10 億美元的股票，Prashanth 將提供有關我們 2021 年資本配置前景的更多詳細信息。

Shifting now to customer engagement. Our focus has been unwavering as we continue to solve our customers' toughest challenges. A key strength of ADI is our standard products portfolio. With its unparalleled breadth and depth from DC 100 gigahertz from nanowatts to kilowatts and from sensor to cloud, we define the edge of performance.

現在轉向客戶參與。我們的重點始終堅定不移，不斷解決客戶最棘手的挑戰。 ADI 的一個關鍵優勢是我們的標準產品組合。憑藉其無與倫比的廣度和深度，從 DC 100 GHz，從納瓦到千瓦，從感測器到雲，我們定義了性能的優勢。

Our portfolio is sold across customers of all sizes and provides recurring revenue for decades. With watts just as important, these standard products are the foundation upon which we build more targeted integrated solutions for higher growth vertical applications, such as 5G radio systems and automotive battery management.

我們的產品組合是針對各種規模的客戶銷售，並提供數十年的經常性收入。瓦特同樣重要，這些標準產品是我們為更高成長的垂直應用（例如 5G 無線電系統和汽車電池管理）建立更有針對性的整合解決方案的基礎。

To that end, industries are prioritizing digitalization and connectivity more than ever and new industries are emerging focused on the physical and cyber. In many ways, it's semiconductors that are enabling the current virtual economy and ADI, where data is born, is at the center of this evolution and well aligned with key secular growth trends.

為此，各行業比以往任何時候都更加重視數位化和連通性，並且專注於實體和網路的新產業正在興起。在許多方面，半導體推動了當前的虛擬經濟，而數據誕生的 ADI 則處於這一演變的中心，並且與關鍵的長期成長趨勢保持一致。

Now looking across our segments, I'd like to share some highlights with you. Starting first with industrial. This is an incredibly fragmented market with expanding needs as it transition to Industry 4.0 and beyond. We're in a unique position to not only solve traditional challenges like precision fixed processing, control and power, but also new emerging challenges like connectivity and safety. For example, our time-of-flight solution enables safer factory floors by preventing accidents between humans, robot and cobots. And our connectivity portfolio of deterministic Ethernet, secure microwave RF and 5G is helping our customers to create ubiquitous connectivity, merging their operational and informational technologies to unlock the true value of Industry 4.0.

現在回顧我們的細分市場，我想與您分享一些亮點。首先從工業開始。這是一個極其分散的市場，隨著向工業 4.0 及更高版本的過渡，需求不斷擴大。我們處於獨特的地位，不僅可以解決精密固定處理、控制和電源等傳統挑戰，還可以解決連接和安全等新興挑戰。例如，我們的飛行時間解決方案可防止人類、機器人和協作機器人之間發生事故，從而實現更安全的工廠車間。我們的確定性乙太網路、安全微波射頻和 5G 連接產品組合正在幫助我們的客戶創建無處不在的連接，融合他們的營運和資訊技術，以釋放工業 4.0 的真正價值。

In health care, the pandemic is accelerating the market towards telemedicine and transitioning care into the home to support this. Systems are being upgraded and clinical-grade patient monitoring is extending outside of the hospital. We doubled our investment ahead of this trend, bringing to market hundreds of new products and tilting our offerings towards complete system solutions. The result, over the last 5 years, we've grown our customer base by over 20% and our revenues at a double-digit rate, even when excluding pandemic-related demand. And we're now increasing our investment in sensing, computing and cloud to help enable the secular shift to health care from anywhere.

在醫療保健領域，疫情正在加速市場朝向遠距醫療發展，並將照護轉移到家庭中以支持這一點。系統正在升級，臨床級患者監測正在擴展到醫院之外。我們在這一趨勢之前將投資增加了一倍，向市場推出了數百種新產品，並將我們的產品轉向完整的系統解決方案。結果，在過去 5 年裡，即使不包括與流行病相關的需求，我們的客戶群成長了 20% 以上，收入也以兩位數的速度成長。我們現在正在增加對感測、運算和雲端的投資，以幫助實現從任何地方轉向醫療保健的長期轉變。

In communications, we're the market leader in 5G, a position that will deliver significant growth as 5G broadens globally in 2021 and beyond. At the same time, we view open radio access networks, or O-RAN, as a disruptive technology, that enables carriers to scale and upgrade their networks more quickly and economically, an important step to help proliferate 5G into new markets.

在通訊領域，我們是 5G 的市場領導者，隨著 2021 年及以後 5G 在全球範圍內的擴展，這一地位將實現顯著增長。同時，我們將開放無線存取網路（O-RAN）視為一項顛覆性技術，它使營運商能夠更快、更經濟地擴展和升級其網絡，這是幫助5G 進入新市場的重要一步。

And for ADI's wireless franchise, O-RAN opens up new avenues for growth.

對於 ADI 的無線特許經營權來說，O-RAN 開闢了新的成長途徑。

To get ahead of the market, we're further innovating our transceiver and power portfolios to shape the radio of the future. We're also forming strategic partnerships with ecosystem participants, such as Intel and Marvell, and this strategy is working. Last quarter, we announced the collaboration with NEC to enable the first O-RAN installation for Rakuten Mobile.

為了領先市場，我們正在進一步創新我們的收發器和電源產品組合，以塑造未來的無線電。我們也與英特爾和 Marvell 等生態系統參與者建立了策略夥伴關係，而這項策略正在發揮作用。上季度，我們宣布與 NEC 合作，為 Rakuten Mobile 實現首次 O-RAN 安裝。

The automotive market is undergoing a revolution with electric vehicles becoming mainstream. ADI is at the heart of this movement with over half of the top 10 EV brands using our BMS solution. And our new wireless BMS offers the same reliability and performance of our wired solution, while enhancing robustness and configurability. General Motors recently announced that they will deploy our wireless BMS across their entire Ultium battery line. Since the launch just a few months ago, interest in this groundbreaking technology is gaining momentum across the ecosystem.

隨著電動車成為主流，汽車市場正經歷一場革命。 ADI 是這項運動的核心，十大電動車品牌中有一半以上使用我們的 BMS 解決方案。我們的新型無線 BMS 提供與有線解決方案相同的可靠性和效能，同時增強了穩健性和可配置性。通用汽車最近宣布，他們將在整個 Ultium 電池系列中部署我們的無線 BMS。自幾個月前推出以來，整個生態系統對這項突破性技術的興趣日益濃厚。

Looking at automotive more broadly, demand for our audio system solutions with signal processing, A2B connectivity and road noise cancellation is intensified. Our innovative solutions are not only the highest fidelity performance technology in the market, but they also reduce weight, removing nearly 100 pounds from an average vehicle.

從更廣泛的角度來看汽車產業，對我們具有訊號處理、A2B 連接和道路噪音消除功能的音訊系統解決方案的需求正在增強。我們的創新解決方案不僅是市場上保真度最高的性能技術，而且還減輕了重量，使普通車輛減輕了近 100 磅。

We've also identified opportunities to attach our LTC portfolio with our A2B platform to deliver both data and power up to 50 watts. By combining all these capabilities, we're creating deeper customer relationship, while increasing our SAM per audio system.

我們還發現了將 LTC 產品組合與 A2B 平台結合的機會，以提供高達 50 瓦的數據和功率。透過結合所有這些功能，我們正在建立更深層的客戶關係，同時增加每個音訊系統的 SAM。

Turning to consumer now. This is a market that has had its fair share of challenges over the last few years for ADI. However, we believe that the business has bottomed in 2020. Recent design wins across a diverse customer base for new and emerging applications like hearables, wearables, high end audio and video solutions put consumer on a multiyear growth trajectory.

現在轉向消費者。對於 ADI 來說，這個市場在過去幾年中面臨相當大的挑戰。然而，我們認為該業務已於2020 年觸底。最近，針對耳戴式設備、可穿戴設備、高端音訊和視訊解決方案等新興應用的設計贏得了多元化客戶群的青睞，使消費者走上了多年增長的軌道。

So in closing, this is clearly an unprecedented year for us all. We're optimistic that a broad-based recovery is underway, but acknowledge that the recovery remains dependent on the economic impacts of pandemic. With that said, I'm encouraged by our momentum, and we expect 2021 to be a growth year for the company. We've seen an improvement across nearly all of our end markets, and our portfolio is strategically aligned with favorable secular growth trends, a position that gets only stronger with Maxim. In my 30 years-plus at ADI, I've never been more confident about our prospects than I am today.

最後，這對我們所有人來說顯然是前所未有的一年。我們對廣泛的復甦正在進行持樂觀態度，但承認復甦仍然取決於疫情的經濟影響。話雖如此，我對我們的勢頭感到鼓舞，我們預計 2021 年將是公司成長的一年。我們幾乎所有終端市場都取得了進步，而且我們的產品組合在策略上與有利的長期成長趨勢保持一致，這一地位在 Maxim 的幫助下只會變得更加強大。在 ADI 工作的 30 多年裡，我從未像今天這樣對我們的前景充滿信心。

And so with that, I'm going to turn over to Prashanth, who will take us through the financial details.

因此，我將把時間交給 Prashanth，他將向我們介紹財務細節。

Thank you, Vince. Good morning, everyone. Let me add my welcome to our year-end earnings call. As usual, except for revenue and non-op expenses, my comments on the P&L and our outlook will be on a non-GAAP or adjusted basis, which excludes special items outlined in today's press release.

謝謝你，文斯。大家，早安。讓我對我們的年終財報電話會議表示歡迎。像往常一樣，除了收入和非營運費用外，我對損益表和前景的評論將基於非公認會計原則或調整後的基礎上，其中不包括今天新聞稿中概述的特殊項目。

Let me start with a brief recap of 2020. The heightened uncertainty and significant disruption due to the pandemic certainly created a very volatile year. Revenue of $5.6 billion was down 6% year-over-year. However, we saw sequential improvement throughout the year. And our revenue was up 14% in the second half compared to the first.

讓我先簡單回顧一下 2020 年。疫情帶來的不確定性加劇和重大破壞無疑造成了非常動盪的一年。營收為 56 億美元，年減 6%。然而，我們看到全年連續改善。與上半年相比，我們下半年的營收成長了 14%。

Gross margins finished at 69%, down slightly year-over-year, but we enter 2021 within our long-term financial model. Op margins landed at 40% as we prudently managed our discretionary spend. All told, full year adjusted EPS was $4.91.

毛利率最終達到 69%，年比略有下降，但我們在長期財務模型中進入了 2021 年。由於我們謹慎管理可自由支配支出，營運利潤率降至 40%。總而言之，全年調整後每股收益為 4.91 美元。

Now turning to the fourth quarter. Revenue of $1.53 billion was up 5% sequentially, marking the third consecutive quarter of growth. This exceeded the high end of our outlook driven mainly by stronger-than-anticipated growth in automotive.

現在轉向第四季。營收為 15.3 億美元，季增 5%，連續第三季成長。這超出了我們預期的上限，主要是由於汽車行業的成長強於預期。

And if we look at the individual segments, in the fourth quarter, Industrial, which represented 53% of revenue was up 5% sequentially and up 9% year-over-year. We saw growth across nearly all our major applications. Notably, automation, which makes up approximately 20% of industrial grew for the first time in 2 years. For the year, industrial revenue was about flat, underscoring the diversification across customers and applications in this business.

如果我們看一下各個細分市場，第四季佔營收 53% 的工業部門季增 5%，年增 9%。我們幾乎所有主要應用程式都出現了成長。值得注意的是，佔工業約 20% 的自動化在兩年內首次出現成長。今年，工業收入基本上持平，凸顯了該業務客戶和應用程式的多元化。

In the fourth quarter, communications, which represented 20% of revenue, was down 14% sequentially. However, the segment was up 19% year-over-year, driven by double-digit growth in both wireless and wireline. Importantly, our growth was not aided by customer pull-in activity related to geopolitical tensions. And for the year, communications revenue was down 8% year-over-year. However, excluding Huawei sales that were impacted in '19 and '20 by entity list restrictions, our revenue grew modestly, a testament to our strong positions in 5G and optical control for carrier networks and data center.

第四季度，佔營收 20% 的通訊業務季減 14%。然而，在無線和有線業務兩位數成長的推動下，該細分市場較去年同期成長 19%。重要的是，我們的成長並沒有受到與地緣政治緊張局勢相關的客戶吸引活動的幫助。今年，通訊收入較去年同期下降 8%。然而，排除19年和20年受實體清單限制影響的華為銷售，我們的收入略有增長，證明了我們在5G以及運營商網絡和數據中心光控制方面的強勢地位。

In the fourth quarter, automotive, which represented 15% of revenue was up over 40% sequentially and up modestly year-over-year. While we exit the year with revenue above pre-pandemic levels, it was still down mid-teens for the year due to lower vehicle production.

第四季度，佔營收 15% 的汽車業務較上季成長超過 40%，較去年同期小幅成長。雖然我們今年的收入高於疫情前的水平，但由於汽車產量下降，今年的收入仍然下降了十幾歲。

And finally, in the fourth quarter, consumer, which represented 11% of revenue, finished up 12% sequentially, yet down 17% year-over-year. As Vince mentioned, we believe we're positioned to grow in '21 and beyond after 3 years of declines.

最後，在第四季度，佔營收 11% 的消費者業務較上季成長 12%，但年減 17%。正如 Vince 所提到的，我們相信在經歷了 3 年的下滑之後，我們將在 21 年及以後實現成長。

Moving on to the rest of the P&L for the fourth quarter, gross margin was 70%, up 160 bps year-over-year. OpEx was $431 million, up 7% sequentially as we reinstated merit and experienced higher variable compensation. Op margins finished at 41.7%, up nearly 300 bps year-over-year. Non-op expense was $44 million, down both sequentially and year-over-year, driven by lower interest expense. And our tax rate was lower than usual at approximately 10% and adjusted EPS was $1.44.

第四季損益表的其餘部分，毛利率為 70%，較去年同期成長 160 個基點。由於我們恢復了績效並經歷了更高的可變薪酬，營運支出為 4.31 億美元，季增 7%。營運利潤率最終達到 41.7%，較去年同期成長近 300 個基點。由於利息支出下降，非營運支出為 4,400 萬美元，環比和年比均下降。我們的稅率比平常低，約 10%，調整後每股收益為 1.44 美元。

If we shift to the balance sheet and cash flow, inventory dollars on our balance sheet declined modestly sequentially and inventory days finished at 121, down from 125 days in the third quarter. Channel inventory fell slightly and remains below our 7- to 8-week target as we saw strong sell-through trends across all geographies. We plan to return to our target inventory model as we progress through '21.

如果我們轉向資產負債表和現金流，資產負債表上的庫存金額環比小幅下降，庫存天數最終為 121 天，低於第三季的 125 天。由於我們看到所有地區的銷售趨勢強勁，通路庫存略有下降，但仍低於我們的 7 至 8 週目標。我們計劃在 21 年期間恢復目標庫存模型。

In the quarter, cash flow from operations was $673 million, up 2% year-over-year. Given the pandemic, we continue to be judicious with our CapEx, spending only $30 million this quarter or 2% of revenue. We do anticipate CapEx to normalize to around 4% of revenue for 2021. And for the full year, we generated over $1.8 billion of free cash flow. We returned $1.1 billion to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks or about 80% of free cash flow after debt repayments. This was below our target as we paused our share buyback program at the height of the pandemic and then were restricted following the Maxim announcement. As a result, our cash position increased to over $1 billion.

本季營運現金流為 6.73 億美元，年增 2%。鑑於疫情，我們繼續謹慎對待資本支出，本季僅支出 3,000 萬美元，佔收入的 2%。我們確實預計 2021 年資本支出將正常化至收入的 4% 左右。全年，我們產生了超過 18 億美元的自由現金流。我們透過股利和股票回購向股東返還了 11 億美元，相當於償還債務後自由現金流的約 80%。這低於我們的目標，因為我們在大流行最嚴重的時候暫停了股票回購計劃，然後在 Maxim 宣布後受到限制。結果，我們的現金部位增加到超過 10 億美元。

During the quarter, we used $450 million of our cash flow to retire our 2021 notes. Total debt ended the year at approximately $5.1 billion, resulting in a leverage ratio of 1.6 on a trailing 12-month basis.

本季度，我們使用了 4.5 億美元的現金流來償還 2021 年票據。年底債務總額約 51 億美元，過去 12 個月的槓桿率為 1.6。

Recently, we reinstated our share buyback program, which has $1.9 billion left in authorization or approximately 4% of shares outstanding. Given our low leverage, we do not plan to reduce debt further in '21. For context, over the last 3 years, we've decreased our debt by approximately $3 billion. This stronger balance sheet provides us with the flexibility to improve on our 100% free cash flow return and increase shareholder value over the long term, through a combination of reinvestment in the business, continued dividend increases, greater and more consistent share buybacks and targeted acquisitions.

最近，我們恢復了股票回購計劃，該計劃尚有 19 億美元的授權，約佔已發行股票的 4%。鑑於我們的槓桿率較低，我們不打算在 21 年進一步減少債務。就背景而言，在過去 3 年裡，我們的債務減少了約 30 億美元。更強大的資產負債表使我們能夠靈活地提高100% 的自由現金流回報，並透過業務再投資、持續增加股息、更大規模、更一致的股票回購和有針對性的收購來提高長期股東價值。

So now let's look at our first quarter outlook. Revenue is expected to be $1.5 billion, plus or minus $70 million. At the midpoint of guide, we expect B2B revenue in the aggregate to increase high teens year-over-year.

現在讓我們看看第一季的前景。營收預計為 15 億美元，上下浮動 7,000 萬美元。在指南的中點，我們預計 B2B 總收入將年增十幾個百分點。

Op margins are expected to be approximately 40% at the midpoint, down sequentially due to higher variable comp and annual merit. Interest expense is also expected to be down slightly sequentially. For 2021, we anticipate a tax rate between 12% and 14%. And based on these inputs, first quarter adjusted EPS is expected to be $1.30, plus or minus $0.10.

營運利潤率中位數預計約為 40%，由於可變薪酬和年度績效較高，環比下降。預計利息支出也將較上季略有下降。 2021 年，我們預計稅率在 12% 至 14% 之間。根據這些投入，第一季調整後每股收益預計為 1.30 美元，上下浮動 0.10 美元。

I'll wrap with a brief update on our pending acquisition of Maxim. In September, we received clearance from the Federal Trade Commission in the U.S. regarding our merger, followed by the overwhelming shareholder support of the combination from both ADI and Maxim shareholders. We also submitted initial applications for regulatory clearance in China and the EU. I'm very encouraged by our progress, and we remain on track to close the acquisition in the summer of 2021. We are excited about this complementary combination. And together, we expect that we will capture additional growth in the years ahead.

最後我將簡要介紹我們即將收購 Maxim 的最新情況。 9 月，我們獲得了美國聯邦貿易委員會關於合併的批准，隨後 ADI 和 Maxim 股東對合併獲得了壓倒性的股東支持。我們也提交了中國和歐盟監管許可的初步申請。我對我們的進展感到非常鼓舞，我們仍有望在 2021 年夏季完成收購。我們對這種互補的組合感到興奮。我們共同預計未來幾年將進一步成長。

So with that, let me turn it back over to Mike to lead the Q&A.

那麼，讓我把它轉回給麥克來主持問答。

Thanks, Prashanth. Let's get to our Q&A session. (Operator Instructions) With that, we have our first question, please.

謝謝，普拉珊特。讓我們進入問答環節。 （操作員說明） 那麼，我們有第一個問題。

(Operator Instructions) And our first question comes from Vivek Arya from Bank of America.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自美國銀行的 Vivek Arya。

Congratulations on the strong execution, especially the free cash flow generation. Vince, my question is on the demand environment, both near-term and what you sense for the next calendar year? So in the near term, which end markets do you feel are back to normal levels, which are below trend line? Because when I look at your January outlook, up 15%-or-so year-on-year, obviously, against some easier comps. You're certainly starting the year on a very strong note. But just how should we think about the overall year in terms of the puts and takes for the different end markets, industrial, auto, comms and consumer? Any broad color, just near-term and for calendar '21? I think it'd be really helpful to help kind of frame our models for your forecast.

恭喜您強勁的執行力，尤其是自由現金流的產生。文斯，我的問題是關於近期的需求環境以及您對明年的看法？那麼短期內，您認為哪些終端市場已恢復正常水平，哪些低於趨勢線？因為當我查看你們 1 月的前景時，與一些更簡單的比較相比，顯然比去年同期增長了 15% 左右。你肯定會以非常強勁的勢頭開始新的一年。但我們該如何看待全年不同終端市場（工業、汽車、通訊和消費者）的賣權和賣出選擇權？任何廣泛的顏色，只是近期和日曆 '21？我認為這對於幫助您建立我們的預測模型非常有幫助。

Sure. Thanks for your question, Vivek. I would say, clearly, as you said, overall demand is better. And I think as well, there's a very good balance between supply and demand. Inventories are, I'd say, very, very well balanced at our customers as best we can tell. Right now, we're seeing very strong trends in automotive and industrial while we expected comms is a little softer after a big first half of 2020. But overall, I believe 2021, I think, I said in the last call, is going to be a solid growth year for ADI and for the industry. And my conviction has become even stronger since the last earnings call here.

當然。謝謝你的提問，維韋克。我想說，正如你所說，顯然總體需求更好。我也認為，供需之間存在著非常好的平衡。我想說的是，據我們所知，我們客戶的庫存非常非常平衡。目前，我們看到汽車和工業領域的趨勢非常強勁，而我們預計在經歷了2020 年上半年的大發展之後，通訊行業會稍微疲軟。但總的來說，我認為，我在上次電話會議中說過，2021 年將會對 ADI 和整個產業來說，這是穩健成長的一年。自從上次財報電話會議以來，我的信念變得更加堅定。

Let me try and unpack things a little for you, if I go through a couple of the market segments. Industrial, we've clearly seen a broadening of demand. And if you look at 2020, the first half, clearly about health care, aerospace and defense and automatic test equipment, strength in those areas. And that strength has persisted -- persisted in the second half of the year. And I think the second half actually saw good strength emerge in factory automation, process automation. They're more horizontal businesses for ADI. So we believe that, that strength will continue into the first quarter and beyond.

如果我會介紹幾個細分市場，請讓我嘗試為您解開一些謎底。在工業方面，我們清楚地看到需求的擴大。如果你看看 2020 年上半年，你會清楚地看到醫療保健、航空航太、國防和自動測試設備在這些領域的實力。這種勢頭一直持續到今年下半年。我認為下半年實際上在工廠自動化、流程自動化方面出現了良好的實力。對於 ADI 來說，它們是更多的橫向業務。因此，我們相信，這種強勁勢頭將持續到第一季及以後。

Automotive, as you will have seen, we had a strong upsurge there as well. And the business, in fact, is now back to pre-COVID levels. And bookings continue to remain strong in that area. And if I look at just the subsegments within to give you a little bit of color, electrification is strong. So are BMS solutions, where we're on the fifth generation of BMS product solutions are doing particularly well. And our infotainment business, which is -- which has emerged beyond high fidelity rendering of audio and video. Our A2B solutions are emerging with great strength, given the pipeline that we've been building over the last several years, really. And you will have seen no doubt as well the active road noise cancellation solutions that we're adding again on top of that platform.

如您所見，汽車行業也出現了強勁的成長。事實上，業務現在已恢復到新冠疫情爆發前的水平。該地區的預訂量持續保持強勁。如果我只看其中的子部分，給你一點顏色，電氣化是很強的。 BMS解決方案也是如此，我們在第五代BMS產品解決方案上做得特別好。我們的資訊娛樂業務已經超越了音訊和視訊的高保真渲染。考慮到我們過去幾年一直在建立的管道，我們的 A2B 解決方案正在以強大的力量崛起，確實如此。毫無疑問，您也會看到我們在該平台上再次添加的主動道路噪音消除解決方案。

So if I look at maybe comms a little bit here. So 2020 was strong actually across both wireless and wired. Actually, both were up in the fourth quarter of high teens year-over-year. So if we extract Huawei, where we had the restrictions, 2020 was strong across all the rest of the customers. In fact, they grew during 2020.

所以如果我在這裡看一下也許通訊。因此，2020 年無線和有線業務實際上都表現強勁。事實上，這兩項數據在第四季的高青少年中均較去年同期上漲。因此，如果我們排除受到限制的華為，那麼 2020 年所有其他客戶的表現都將表現強勁。事實上，它們在 2020 年有所增長。

So I think '21 will be about deployment of 5G, which is a big, big part of our communication story. I expect it will move more global, beyond China, particularly with deployments in North America. And I'm glad to be able to report as well consumer has been on the downward for ADI

因此，我認為 21 年將是關於 5G 部署的主題，這是我們通訊故事中非常重要的一部分。我預期它將更加全球化，超越中國，特別是在北美的部署。我很高興能夠向大家報告，消費者對 ADI 的看法一直在下降

for several years, but we believe now that we've reached the bottom as we had expected in 2020. And given the diversity of applications that we're now addressing, broader-based customers, we feel good about that business in both the portable as well as the more professional solutions that we serve also. So hopefully, that answers your question completely, Vivek.

好幾年了，但我們現在相信，正如我們在2020 年所預期的那樣，我們已經觸底。考慮到我們現在正在解決的應用程式的多樣性以及更廣泛的客戶，我們對便攜式和行動裝置領域的業務感到滿意以及我們提供的更專業的解決方案。希望這能完全回答你的問題，Vivek。

And our next question comes from Tore Svanberg from Stifel.

我們的下一個問題來自 Stifel 的 Tore Svanberg。

Congratulations on the results. And Vince, I was hoping you could zoom in a little bit more on comms and on 5G. You talked about O-RAN. Obviously, ADI has a very flexible approach with the software-defined radio. I was just hoping you could talk a little bit about how that architecture plays into the role of O-RAN? And just maybe some more comments on 5G generally.

祝賀結果。 Vince，我希望您能進一步關注通訊和 5G。您談到了 O-RAN。顯然，ADI 在軟體定義無線電方面採取了非常靈活的方法。我只是希望您能談談該架構如何在 O-RAN 中發揮作用？也許還有一些關於 5G 的更多評論。

Yes. So if I look at what's happening in the business, maybe I'll take a shorter-term view and a slightly longer-term view and address your question on O-RAN as well, Tore. So what we're seeing is that in the business in general, as I said in the answer to the last question there, comms, in general, for us have seen strength in both wireless and wired technologies, optical wired, particularly in the wired area. And what we're seeing is obviously more aggressive deployments of these massive MIMO-based systems, where our channel count continues to increase, which gives ADI a lot more content per radio. And I would also say that our portfolio has never been stronger, given the investments we've been making up for several years, and our customer share has never been higher with the key OEMs or more balanced in terms of the span of technologies and products that we're supplying.

是的。因此，如果我看看業務中正在發生的事情，也許我會採取短期觀點和稍微長期的觀點，並解決您關於 O-RAN 的問題，Tore。因此，我們看到的是，在整個業務中，正如我在回答最後一個問題時所說的那樣，一般來說，我們已經看到了無線和有線技術、光纖、尤其是有線技術的優勢。區域。我們所看到的顯然是這些基於 MIMO 的大規模系統的更積極部署，我們的通道數量不斷增加，這為 ADI 每個無線電提供了更多的內容。我還想說，考慮到我們多年來的投資，我們的產品組合從未如此強大，而且我們在主要原始設備製造商中的客戶份額從未如此之高，或者在技術和產品的跨度方面更加平衡我們提供的。

So I think it's important to remember, 5G is at the early stages of multiyear, probably decade ramp here. And I think 2021 will be characterized by the deployment of 5G more globally beyond China. I expect America to be the primary driver, probably towards the second half of 2021 for 5G. And we've also -- we've seen a lot of interest in our technologies for O-RAN. We're working with [ecosystem] partners in that area. You will have seen also the first announcement we've had publicly about the use of our technologies, our radio technologies with Rakuten Mobile in Japan through our partnership with NEC. So I think classical 5G being deployed for consumer applications will continue rapidly over the next 3 years. But I'm also beginning to see now the early stages of adoption of 5G into more deterministically critical applications like health care, factory automation and so on and so forth.

因此，我認為重要的是要記住，5G 正處於多年甚至十年的早期階段。我認為 2021 年的特點是 5G 將在中國以外的全球部署。我預計美國可能會在 2021 年下半年成為 5G 的主要推動者。我們也發現人們對我們的 O-RAN 技術很感興趣。我們正在與該領域的[生態系統]合作夥伴合作。您還將看到我們透過與 NEC 的合作，首次公開發布有關使用我們的技術、日本樂天行動無線電技術的公告。因此，我認為面向消費者應用的經典 5G 部署將在未來 3 年內持續快速發展。但我現在也開始看到 5G 在醫療保健、工廠自動化等更具確定性的關鍵應用中採用的早期階段。

So I think if you look over the long term, Tore, this is going to continue to be a growth market for ADI. We have more content. We've got a stronger position with our customers. And we continue to push the boundaries of technology here to enable our customers to simply -- to deal with the complexity that's increasing exponentially and the more rapid innovation cycles with our software-defined radio systems.

因此，Tore，我認為，從長遠來看，這將繼續成為 ADI 的成長市場。我們有更多內容。我們在客戶中擁有更強大的地位。我們繼續突破技術的界限，使我們的客戶能夠透過我們的軟體定義無線電系統簡單地應對指數級增長的複雜性和更快的創新週期。

Our next question comes from John Pitzer from Crédit Suisse.

我們的下一個問題來自瑞士信貸銀行的約翰‧皮策。

Congratulations on solid results. A modeling question for Prashanth. Prashanth, if you look at the quarter, just reported the October quarter, incremental op margins were perhaps lower than I would have expected. I'm assuming that's variable comp coming back into the model as you guys continue to do better on the top line. But I'd be curious, as you look into the January quarter, how we should be thinking about OpEx, just given how funky a year -- calendar year '20 was because COVID had both some puts and some takes on the OpEx and expense line?

祝賀取得了紮實的成果。 Prashanth 的建模問題。 Prashanth，如果你看看這個季度，剛剛報告的十月份季度，增量營運利潤率可能低於我的預期。我假設隨著你們繼續在營收方面做得更好，可變的補償會回到模型中。但我很好奇，當你觀察一月份的季度時，我們應該如何考慮營運支出，考慮到 20 日曆年是多麼有趣，因為新冠疫情對營運支出和費用既有一些看跌期權，也有一些看跌期權線？

Yes. Thank you for the question, John. So let me -- let me handle that in 2 pieces. Let's talk gross margins and then OpEx. So for the quarter just passed, 70% gross margins, we had pretty considerable upside from automotive and so we have some mix headwind with that kind of explosive growth in automotive. It's below the corporate average in terms of margins.

是的。謝謝你的提問，約翰。所以讓我——讓我把它分成兩部分來處理。我們先談談毛利率，然後談談營運支出。因此，在剛剛過去的這個季度，毛利率為 70%，我們在汽車行業有相當大的上升空間，因此我們在汽車行業的爆炸性增長中遇到了一些混合阻力。就利潤率而言，它低於公司平均水平。

As we think about gross margins for the coming quarter, for the first quarter, we're passing through the holiday period, so we're going to have a little bit of continued pressure on utilization, as we have some of our -- some of our fabs will be shut down for the holiday period. But we expect that to improve as the year progresses, and we bring in the remaining $50 million of cost reductions from the shutdown of the 2 LTC facilities in the balance of 2021.

當我們考慮下一季的毛利率時，第一季我們正經歷假期，因此我們的利用率將面臨一些持續的壓力，因為我們有一些——一些我們的工廠將在假期期間關閉。但我們預計隨著時間的推移，這種情況會有所改善，並且我們會在 2021 年剩餘時間關閉 2 個 LTC 設施，從而實現剩餘的 5000 萬美元的成本削減。

On the OpEx side, you're exactly right. We've designed our variable comp system to really act as a shock absorber as a flywheel. So in 2020, when we had the great deal of uncertainty that operated the way it should and it unwound. In addition, we made a decision as a leadership team to delay implementing merit in 2020, and we brought that back into place this past quarter. So you'll see headwinds from those -- from both of those decisions into the first quarter. And I mentioned that in my guide, so it's both -- in my prepared remarks, it's both a full quarter of merit and better variable compensation.

在營運支出方面，您是完全正確的。我們設計的可變補償系統實際上可以充當飛輪的避震器。因此，在 2020 年，我們面臨著巨大的不確定性，但這些不確定性卻以應有的方式運作，並且得到了緩解。此外，我們作為領導團隊做出了推遲在 2020 年實施績效的決定，並在上個季度恢復了這項決定。因此，你會看到這些不利因素——從第一季的這兩個決定來看。我在我的指南中提到了這一點，所以在我準備好的發言中，這既是四分之一的優點，也是更好的可變薪酬。

Our next question comes from Ambrish Srivastava from BMO.

我們的下一個問題來自 BMO 的 Ambrish Srivastava。

Vince, I wanted to zoom in on the industrial business. This business has been really resilient compared to the past cycles for yourself as well as your larger peer. So the question really is, can you just help us understand -- and you gave us a number 20% for automation. But if you help us understand the various segments that are contributing to how you're able to kind of plow through what we have seen, a pretty disastrous 1Q, 2Q? And then with Maxim, we all understand the complementary parts or the additive parts of the automotive. Can you just help us understand how does the industrial business benefit from the Maxim business that you'll be bolting on?

文斯，我想專注於工業業務。對於您自己以及您的較大同行來說，與過去的周期相比，這項業務確實具有彈性。所以真正的問題是，您能否幫助我們理解——您給了我們 20% 的自動化數字。但是，如果您幫助我們了解有助於您如何克服我們所看到的、相當災難性的第一季、第二季的各個部分？然後透過 Maxim，我們都了解汽車的互補部件或附加部件。您能否幫助我們了解工業業務如何從您將要加入的 Maxim 業務中受益？

Yes. So thanks, Ambrish. Yes, first and foremost, it's still a fairly tricky time in terms of trying to predict GDP, but we've come out of the year with tremendous strength. First half of the year for ADI was about aerospace and defense, health care and the automatic test equipment sector as well. So -- and that's continued, by the way, through the second half. And then we're building upon that in the -- with the upsurge, the second half is the expansion of growth in factory automation, which is, particularly in the fourth quarter, we’re going to see a very, very good surge, which we expect to continue, by the way, albeit off a somewhat depressed base as economic expansion really takes root, I believe, in 2021.

是的。謝謝，安布里什。是的，首先也是最重要的是，就試圖預測 GDP 而言，現在仍然是一個相當棘手的時期，但我們已經以巨大的實力走出了這一年。 ADI 今年上半年的業績主要涉及航空航太和國防、醫療保健以及自動測試設備領域。順便說一句，這種情況一直持續到下半場。然後我們在此基礎上——隨著下半年的成長，工廠自動化的成長將擴大，特別是在第四季度，我們將看到非常非常好的成長，順便說一句，我們預計這一趨勢將繼續下去，儘管基礎有些低迷，但我相信，隨著經濟擴張在2021 年真正紮根，這一趨勢將會持續下去。

So -- and also this business for ADI, industrial owns more than half of the company's revenue. The crop of products out there is stronger than it has ever been in the history of the company. Our focus, a decade ago, we decided this was really the root of the company, and we're beginning to really see demonstrated in our results versus our competition, and we're gaining market share. I think that's important too. So we cover more customers. We have more market share, with better product portfolio. So with Industry 4.0 coming on board, health care moving towards digitalization, telemedicine, these all bode really well for ADI for the long term.

因此，對於 ADI 來說，工業業務佔據了該公司一半以上的收入。那裡的產品產量比公司歷史上任何時候都強大。十年前，我們的重點是，我們認為這確實是公司的根源，我們開始真正看到我們的業績與競爭對手相比得到了證明，我們正在獲得市場份額。我認為這也很重要。所以我們覆蓋了更多的客戶。我們擁有更多的市場份額，擁有更好的產品組合。因此，隨著工業 4.0 的到來、醫療保健走向數位化、遠距醫療，從長遠來看，這些都是 ADI 的好兆頭。

And where does Maxim add value to us? Well, industrial actually is really about -- it's primarily about precision signal processing and power management, and Maxim brings very a long heritage in those 2 areas, which we will deploy to even greater effect across the spectrum of sensor to cloud, the raw signal -- the sensing, the signal capture, signal processing, connectivity and that bodes very well for ADI. So I'm excited about getting more capability to bring to more customers as they require ADI to solve bigger swaths of problems for them. The complexity is growing in terms of their needs.

Maxim 為我們增加了哪些價值？嗯，工業實際上主要是關於精密訊號處理和電源管理，Maxim 在這兩個領域擁有悠久的傳統，我們將在感測器到雲端、原始訊號等領域進行部署，以發揮更大的作用——感測、訊號擷取、訊號處理、連接，這對ADI 來說是個好兆頭。因此，我很高興能夠獲得更多能力來為更多客戶提供服務，因為他們需要 ADI 為他們解決更多問題。隨著他們的需求的增加，複雜性也在增加。

The analog skill is becoming scarcer and scarcer. So we'll bring more of that skill to bear to solve more problems in a more complete way for our customers. So I think that's the way to think about it, Ambrish.

模擬技能正變得越來越稀缺。因此，我們將運用更多的技能，以更完整的方式為我們的客戶解決更多問題。所以我認為這就是思考這個問題的方式，安布里什。

Our next question comes from C.J. Muse from Evercore.

我們的下一個問題來自 Evercore 的 C.J. Muse。

Another question on the industrial side, Vince. The business is growing 9% year-on-year in October, yet over the last 2 years, essentially flat. And so curious, it sounds like automation growing for the first time in 2 years is a real positive signal. So would kind of love to hear your thoughts on as we come out of this pandemic, what that business segment growth could look like, considering some of the growth vectors that you're investing in like health care as well as perhaps some of the more tried and true machinery typical industrial businesses begin to recover?

另一個關於工業方面的問題，文斯。 10 月該業務年增 9%，但過去兩年基本持平。令人好奇的是，聽起來自動化在兩年內首次成長是一個真正的正面訊號。因此，很想聽聽您對我們走出這場大流行的想法，考慮到您投資的一些增長向量，例如醫療保健以及其他一些增長向量，該業務部門的增長可能會是什麼樣子久經考驗的機械典型工業企業開始復甦？

Yes. So if I look -- thanks, C.J. If you look out over the longer term, so industrial automation has been really on its way down for the last 2, 2.5 years. And some of that was driven by the trade tensions. Obviously, with the automotive sector way off in – I mean SAR was dropping anyway in 2019. The pandemic crushed demand there even more so in 2020. So automotive is a big, big consumer of sophisticated factory automation system. So that's all improving.

是的。所以，如果我看一下——謝謝，C.J。如果你從長遠來看，工業自動化在過去 2、2.5 年確實在走下坡路。其中一些是由貿易緊張局勢推動的。顯然，隨著汽車產業的發展，我的意思是2019 年SAR 無論如何都在下降。2020 年，疫情對那裡的需求造成了更大的打擊。因此，汽車產業是複雜工廠自動化系統的一個巨大消費者。所以這一切都在改善。

If I think about the long-term prospects for the business, given the vectors, the market vectors, the technology vectors that we've got, my sense is, if you think over the longer-term here, integrate the demand over 3-, 5-year period, my sense is this business can grow in the mid- to high single-digit level for ADI.

如果我考慮業務的長期前景，考慮到我們擁有的向量、市場向量和技術向量，我的感覺是，如果你在這裡考慮更長期的情況，那麼將需求整合到 3- 5年期間，我的感覺是ADI的這項業務可以在中高個位數水準成長。

Our next question comes from Toshiya Hari from Goldman Sachs.

我們的下一個問題來自高盛的 Toshiya Hari。

Vince, I wanted to follow-up on the automotive business, both in terms of your Q4 performance as well as the outlook into fiscal year '21. Just as sort of a clarification on Q4, you guys grew 40% plus sequentially. I think you were guiding that business to be up in the low teens. So obviously, a very big beat in the quarter. Was that essentially a function of higher volume across your customers? And therefore, a beat across most of your customers and most of your applications? Or were there any specific standouts in the quarter? And I guess, more importantly, into fiscal year '21, when you think about your automotive business and the potential for growth there versus the rate of recovery in the overall global Automotive industry. What kind of outperformance would you expect on top of automotive production? It appears as though you guys talk about BMS and active noise cancellation in particular, but are there any specific drivers that you're most excited about?

Vince，我想跟進汽車業務，包括第四季度的業績以及 21 財年的前景。就像第四季的澄清一樣，你們連續成長了 40% 以上。我認為你正在引導該業務在十幾歲的時候成長。顯然，本季的表現非常出色。這本質上是客戶數量增加的結果嗎？因此，對您的大多數客戶和大多數應用程式來說，這是一個節拍嗎？或者本季有什麼特別突出的事情嗎？我想，更重要的是，進入 21 財年，當你考慮你的汽車業務以及該業務的成長潛力與全球汽車產業整體的復甦速度。除了汽車生產之外，您預計會有什麼樣的優異表現？看起來你們特別談論的是 BMS 和主動降噪，但有沒有什麼特定的驅動因素是你們最感興趣的？

Thank you. So let me try and unpack that for you. So yes, in fourth quarter, we were up 2% year-over-year. And actually, we had strength across all the applications. But even though our battery management solutions were down year-on-year, we did better than the auto market at large, and our position has gained strength with the new offerings that we have. And the sheer performance that we bring that nobody else can match in terms of the sensing, the signal processing. So I think that -- just looking at the prognostications of what electrification will do in the electric vehicle area, I think that's a growth trend for decade, 1.5 decades, 2 decades. So we feel good about that given our position.

謝謝。那麼讓我嘗試為您解開它。所以，是的，第四季我們的營收年增了 2%。事實上，我們在所有應用程式上都有優勢。但儘管我們的電池管理解決方案同比下降，但我們的表現比整個汽車市場要好，而且我們的地位隨著我們提供的新產品而增強。我們在感測和訊號處理方面帶來的純粹性能是其他人無法比擬的。所以我認為，只要看看電氣化將在電動車領域發揮什麼作用的預測，我認為這是十年、1.5 年、2 年的成長趨勢。因此，考慮到我們的立場，我們對此感覺良好。

I think also if you just look at the fourth quarter, I talked previously about our signal processing platform, high-performance signal processing platform based on our DSP, our A2B technology, road noise cancellation, A2B alone was up 70% in the year. So we've been talking about it a long time, but now the revenues are really coming home to roost in that area.

我想，如果你只看第四季度，我之前談到了我們的訊號處理平台、基於DSP 的高性能訊號處理平台、我們的A2B 技術、道路噪音消除，僅A2B 就在這一年增長了70% 。我們已經討論了很長時間，但現在該領域的收入確實得到了回報。

If I look at 1Q, typically, the automotive business for ADI is down seasonally, but we believe that it will be up. So the strength that we've been seeing coming through the fourth quarter here will continue into the first and beyond.

如果我看一下第一季度，通常情況下，ADI 的汽車業務會季節性下降，但我們相信它會上升。因此，我們在第四季看到的強勁勢頭將持續到第一季及以後。

And if I look at just the areas that I feel really enthusiastic about, that we've been steering investment increasingly towards over the last 3 years or so. I've talked already about the electric vehicle markets. And we think about that as an opportunity from battery formation to battery deployment and battery disposal. So we're growing share in those key markets, and we continue to innovate in this space and create more [blue sky] between ourselves and our competition, as the problems that our customers are solving become more and more challenging. So we brought wireless BMS quite recently, which we've announced a partnership with GM on. But that is only the start. That is a new growth dimension for ADI in the automotive sector.

如果我只專注在那些我真正感興趣的領域，我們在過去三年左右的時間裡一直在越來越多地引導投資。我已經談到了電動車市場。我們認為這是從電池形成到電池部署和電池處置的一個機會。因此，我們在這些關鍵市場的份額正在不斷增長，隨著我們的客戶正在解決的問題變得越來越具有挑戰性，我們將繼續在這個領域進行創新，並在我們自己和競爭對手之間創造更多的[藍天]。因此，我們最近推出了無線 BMS，並宣布與通用汽車建立合作關係。但這只是開始。這是ADI 在汽車領域的新增長點。

I've talked about infotainment already, A2B, road noise cancellation, and we managed to grow that business in 2020 despite the really, really compressed SAR.

我已經談到了資訊娛樂、A2B、道路噪音消除，儘管 SAR 確實非常壓縮，但我們還是設法在 2020 年實現了該業務的成長。

The other thing I should point out is that we're still in the early innings of attaching our power franchise, the automotive, the critical applications in which we play. And that's all still ahead of us. Again, we feel good about that. In areas like safety, the radar, those vision-based safety systems and just in the car, in general, power is an area where we've made excellent progress, I think, getting design-ins. Now we're turning them to revenue.

我應該指出的另一件事是，我們仍處於附加我們的電力特許經營權、汽車、我們所參與的關鍵應用的早期階段。而這一切仍然擺在我們面前。再次，我們對此感覺良好。我認為，在安全、雷達、基於視覺的安全系統以及汽車等領域，動力是我們取得了巨大進展的一個領域，我們已經進行了設計。現在我們正在將它們轉化為收入。

Our next question comes from Blayne Curtis from Barclays.

我們的下一個問題來自巴克萊銀行的 Blayne Curtis。

I just want to revisit an answer on the comm. You talked about some longer-term drivers like O-RAN, but just kind of curious into January, I think, there's been a pause between kind of Phase 1, Phase 2 in China. I'm just kind of curious your perspective. It seems like it might be down a little bit in January. Just curious when you think comm could see a recovery in any perspective, and timing of China coming back?

我只是想重新檢視一下通訊上的答案。您談到了一些長期驅動程序，例如 O-R​​AN，但我只是對 1 月感到好奇，我認為中國的第一階段和第二階段之間存在暫停。我只是有點好奇你的觀點。看來一月可能會略有下降。只是好奇您何時認為通訊可以從任何角度看到復甦，以及中國復甦的時機？

Yes. I’ll answer that quickly. I think comms is down sequentially. I mean a big reason why comms is down sequentially in 1Q is the Huawei ban. Huawei was a low single-digit customer. Call it 2%, 3% of sales, they're going to be 0. So that will be a headwind into our first quarter. And you're right there, the timing of next round of China 5G deployments are TBD. I think when they do happen, it will be a great business for us, and we'll continue to grow in that market, but it's very hard to call when that market will turn back on, sometime likely in the first half of '21, but really unsure to pinpoint it today when that's going to be, given all the geopolitical tensions out there. I think Vince did a good job talking about how it's not just about China. The good thing as you move to '21 is more global, 5G. North America should start taking off. Europe, Japan, Korea is really starting to broaden out and less about China. China still will be the biggest market, but really global 5G deployment should do better year-on-year in '21.

是的。我會很快回答。我認為通信連續下降。我的意思是，第一季通訊量連續下降的一個重要原因是華為禁令。華為是個位數較低的客戶。稱之為銷售額的 2%、3%，它們將是 0。因此，這將是我們第一季的阻力。沒錯，中國下一輪 5G 部署的時間尚未確定。我認為當它們確實發生時，這對我們來說將是一項偉大的業務，我們將繼續在該市場中成長，但很難判斷該市場何時會重新啟動，可能是在21 年上半年的某個時候，但考慮到地緣政治緊張局勢，今天真的不確定具體是什麼時候。我認為文斯在談論這不僅僅是關於中國方面做得很好。進入 21 世紀，好處是更全球化，即 5G。北美應該開始起飛。歐洲、日本、韓國確實開始放寬視野，減少對中國的關注。中國仍將是最大的市場，但真正的全球 5G 部署在 21 年應該會比去年同期表現更好。

And our last question comes from Ross Seymore from Deutsche Bank.

我們的最後一個問題來自德意志銀行的羅斯·西莫爾。

I just want to wrap up with a little bit of the linearity of demand. Can you just talk about the bookings that you've seen, have any of the concerns that your customers have had in the past about supply disruptions and all those sorts of things? It seems like those have gone away, given your commentary on channel inventory. But just wanted to get to kind of what your book-to-bill was? And how the linearity played out through the October order, please?

我只想以一點需求的線性作為結束語。您能談談您所看到的預訂情況嗎？您的客戶過去對供應中斷和所有此類問題有什麼擔憂嗎？鑑於您對渠道庫存的評論，這些似乎已經消失了。但只是想了解一下您的訂單到帳單情況？請問十月訂單的線性度如何？

Yes, Ross, thanks for the question. So let me give you a couple of data points here. We started the quarter out strong in August, which was up from July, and then we had a pretty normal September. Bookings remain solid so far. I think where -- book-to-bill is at parity. We're going into the first quarter with very normal backlog coverage for our outlook. All of that is reflected in the guide that we have. I did make a comment about inventory in the channel. So maybe that's also worth making sure people understand that we are below our 7- to 8-week model, and then we're going to build ourselves back into that model over the course of 2021. So that should also provide a little bit of -- a little bit of tailwind as we go through 2021.

是的，羅斯，謝謝你的提問。因此，讓我在這裡給您一些數據點。我們在八月開始了本季度的強勁表現，比七月有所上升，然後我們度過了一個非常正常的九月。到目前為止，預訂量依然穩定。我認為訂單到帳單是平等的。當我們進入第一季時，我們的前景展望是非常正常的積壓情況。所有這些都反映在我們的指南中。我確實對頻道中的庫存發表了評論。因此，也許這也值得確保人們了解我們低於 7 到 8 週的模型，然後我們將在 2021 年將自己恢復到該模型。因此，這也應該提供一點——2021 年將迎來一點順風順水。

And thanks, everyone, for joining us today this morning. A copy of the transcript will be available on our website and all available reconciliations. Any additional information can also be found in the quarterly results section of our IR website. Thanks for joining us and your continued interest in Analog Devices. Hope everyone have a good holiday.

感謝大家今天早上加入我們。我們的網站上將提供文字記錄的副本以及所有可用的對帳。任何其他資訊也可以在我們 IR 網站的季度業績部分找到。感謝您加入我們以及您對 Analog Devices 的持續關注。希望大家都有一個愉快的假期。

This concludes today's Analog Devices conference call. You may now disconnect.

今天的 Analog Devices 電話會議到此結束。您現在可以斷開連線。