Applied Industrial Technologies Inc (AIT) 2026 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Welcome to the fiscal 2026 second-quarter earnings call for Applied Industrial Technologies. My name is Mark and I will be your operator for today's call. (Operator Instructions) Please note that this conference is being recorded.

歡迎參加應用工業技術公司 2026 財年第二季財報電話會議。我叫馬克，今天將由我來為您接聽電話。（操作員說明）請注意，本次會議正在錄音。

I will now turn the call over to Ryan Cieslak, Director of Investor Relations and Treasury. Ryan, you may begin.

現在我將把電話交給投資者關係和財務總監瑞安·切斯拉克。瑞恩，你可以開始了。

Okay, thanks, Mark, and good morning to everyone. This morning, we issued our earnings release and supplemental investor deck detailing our second-quarter results. Both of these documents are available in the Investor Relations section of applied.com.

好的，謝謝你，馬克，大家早安。今天上午，我們發布了獲利報告和補充投資者資料，詳細介紹了我們第二季的業績。這兩份文件都可以在 applied.com 的投資者關係部分找到。

Before we begin, just a reminder, we'll discuss our business outlook and make forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based on current expectations subject to certain risks and uncertainties, including those that are detailed in our SEC filings. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. The company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statement.

在開始之前，提醒一下，我們將討論我們的業務前景並做出前瞻性陳述。所有前瞻性陳述均基於當前預期，但受某些風險和不確定性的影響，包括我們在提交給美國證券交易委員會的文件中詳細列出的風險和不確定性。實際結果可能與前瞻性陳述中所表達的結果有重大差異。本公司不承擔公開更新或修改任何前瞻性聲明的義務。

In addition, the conference call will use non-GAAP financial measures, which are subject to the qualifications referenced in those documents. Our speakers today include Neil Schrimsher, Applied's President and Chief Executive Officer; and Dave Wells, our Chief Financial Officer. With that, I'll turn it over to Neil.

此外，本次電話會議將使用非公認會計準則財務指標，這些指標須符合相關文件中提及的條件。今天的演講嘉賓包括 Applied 公司總裁兼執行長 Neil Schrimsher 和財務長 Dave Wells。接下來，我將把麥克風交給尼爾。

Thanks, Ryan, and good morning, everyone. We appreciate you joining us. I'll begin today with perspective and highlights on our results, including an update on industry conditions and the expectations going forward. Dave will follow with more financial detail on the quarter's performance and provide additional color on our updated outlook. I'll then close with some final thoughts.

謝謝你，瑞恩，大家早安。感謝您的參與。今天我將首先介紹我們的業績概況和亮點，包括行業狀況的最新情況以及對未來的預期。Dave 隨後將提供本季業績的更多財務細節，並對我們更新後的展望進行更詳細的說明。最後，我還有一些總結性的想法。

Overall, we continued to effectively manage through a mixed yet evolving end-market backdrop during the second quarter. Sales and EBITDA margins were in line with guidance despite higher-than-expected LIFO expense and seasonally weak sales activity in December. Our team responded well with strong underlying margin performance and cost control while continuing to expand backlogs and business funnels, supporting a stronger sales trajectory into calendar 2026. We also remained active with capital deployment across many fronts, supported by our free cash generation and balance sheet capacity.

總體而言，在第二季度，我們繼續有效地應對了複雜多變的終端市場環境。儘管 12 月 LIFO 費用高於預期，且銷售活動季節性疲軟，但銷售額和 EBITDA 利潤率仍符合預期。我們的團隊表現出色，實現了強勁的利潤率和成本控制，同時不斷擴大訂單積壓和業務管道，從而支持了2026年更強勁的銷售成長。憑藉我們充足的自由現金流和資產負債表實力，我們在多個領域保持了積極的資本部署。

As it relates to sales trends in the quarter, reported year-over-year organic growth of 2.2% was modestly below last quarter of 3%. Underlying sales growth showed signs of strengthening as the quarter progressed, with November sales up by a nearly mid-single-digit percent organically over the prior year, following a low single-digit percent increase in October.

就本季的銷售趨勢而言，報告的年比有機成長率為 2.2%，略低於上一季的 3%。隨著季度的推進，基礎銷售成長顯示出增強的跡象，11 月份的銷售額較上年同期實現了接近中等個位數百分比的有機增長，而 10 月份的增幅則為個位數百分比。

However, growth moderated in December, with average daily sales rates notably below normal seasonal patterns. While monthly sales trends have been choppy for most of the year, we do not view December's weakness as indicative of the underlying sales trend developing across the business. Of note, December is always a noisy month, given seasonal factors that can drive variability in how customers operate plants and phase shipments. This dynamic was further influenced this year by the midweek timing of the holidays.

然而，12 月成長放緩，平均每日銷售額明顯低於正常的季節性水準。雖然今年大部分時間月度銷售趨勢都比較波動，但我們並不認為 12 月的疲軟表現預示著整個業務的潛在銷售趨勢正在改變。值得注意的是，12 月總是比較吵雜的月份，因為季節性因素可能會導致客戶營運工廠和分階段出貨的方式出現差異。今年，由於假期安排在周中，這種趨勢進一步加劇。

In addition, we're encouraged by early fiscal third quarter trends, with organic sales month to date in January trending up by a mid-single-digit percent year over year. Booking rates are also continuing to show positive momentum across both segments.

此外，我們對第三財季初期的趨勢感到鼓舞，1 月迄今的有機銷售額同比增長了中等個位數百分比。兩個細分市場的預訂率也持續呈現正面成長動能。

In particular, orders in our Engineered Solutions segment increased over 10% year over year in the second quarter. This is the strongest quarterly order growth rate in the Engineered Solutions segment in over four years, with the two-year stack trend continuing to improve sequentially. These positive trends are more in line with various underlying demand signals that have developed over the last several quarters, including improved customer sentiment and ongoing growth across our business funnels.

尤其值得一提的是，我們工程解決方案部門的訂單在第二季年增超過 10%。這是工程解決方案領域四年多來最強勁的季度訂單成長率，兩年的訂單成長趨勢也持續改善。這些正面趨勢與過去幾季以來出現的各種潛在需求訊號更加一致，包括客戶情緒的改善和我們業務管道的持續成長。

We're also seeing slightly more positive trends across several of our primary end markets. Year-over-year trends across our top 30 end markets were relatively unchanged sequentially, with 15 generating positive sales growth compared to 16 last quarter, though this is up from 11 in the prior year second quarter. In addition, when looking at our top 10 verticals, we saw 6 positive year over year compared to 5 last quarter and 3 in the second quarter of fiscal 2025.

我們也看到，在幾個主要終端市場中，也出現了略微積極的趨勢。我們前 30 個終端市場的同比趨勢與上一季相比基本保持不變，其中 15 個市場實現了正銷售成長，而上一季為 16 個，儘管這一數字高於去年同期的 11 個。此外，從我們前 10 個垂直領域來看，與上個季度的 5 個和 2025 財年第二季的 3 個相比，有 6 個垂直領域實現了同比增長。

Growth was strongest in metals, aggregates, utilities and energy, mining, machinery, transportation, and construction during the quarter. This was offset by declines primarily in lumber and wood, chemicals, oil and gas, rubber and plastics, and refining.

本季成長最強勁的產業包括金屬、骨材、公用事業和能源、採礦、機械、運輸和建築。但這主要被木材、化工、石油和天然氣、橡膠和塑膠以及煉油業的下滑所抵消。

From an operational and profitability standpoint, we delivered solid performance that helped balance softer sales activity in December and greater-than-expected LIFO expense, as well as a difficult prior year margin comparison, as we had previously highlighted. Of note, LIFO expense came in at roughly $7 million. This was above the $4 million to $5 million range we had assumed in guidance and compares to the less than $1 million in the prior year of second quarter.

從營運和獲利能力的角度來看，我們取得了穩健的業績，這有助於平衡 12 月疲軟的銷售活動和高於預期的後進先出法 (LIFO) 支出，以及去年同期利潤率的艱難比較，正如我們之前強調的那樣。值得注意的是，後進先出法 (LIFO) 的費用約為 700 萬美元。這高於我們先前預期的 400 萬至 500 萬美元的區間，而去年同期第二季則不足 100 萬美元。

As in prior periods of increasing LIFO expense, our teams responded with a focus on internal initiatives, effective management of product inflation, and strong channel execution. Dave will provide more details shortly, but when excluding the impact of LIFO, gross margins were up both year over year and sequentially, and EBITDA margins held firm over the prior year against a difficult prior year comparison. This performance reinforces the durability of our operating model and various self-help opportunities across the business.

與以往 LIFO 費用不斷增加的時期一樣，我們的團隊採取了應對措施，重點關注內部舉措、有效控制產品價格上漲以及強有力的渠道執行。Dave 稍後會提供更多細節，但如果排除後進先出法的影響，毛利率同比和環比均有所增長，而 EBITDA 利潤率在去年同期基數較高的情況下也保持穩定。這項業績鞏固了我們營運模式的持久性，並增強了公司各部門的自助機會。

We also continue to execute thoughtfully against our capital deployment priorities. Of note, this morning, we announced an 11% increase in our quarterly dividend, following a 24% increase last year. The increase is consistent with our expectation of ongoing dividend growth as we align annual increases with normalized earnings growth and our favorable cash generation profile.

我們也會繼續審慎地執行我們的資本部署優先事項。值得注意的是，今天早上我們宣布將季度股息提高 11%，而去年同期股息已提高 24%。此次成長符合我們對股息持續成長的預期，因為我們將年度股息成長與正常獲利成長以及我們良好的現金流狀況相匹配。

We also remain active with share buybacks, deploying over $140 million on repurchases during the first half of fiscal 2026. These actions reflect confidence in our cash flow generation as well as the value we see across Applied from our strategy and long-term earnings potential.

我們也將繼續積極進行股票回購，在 2026 財年上半年投入超過 1.4 億美元回購。這些舉措體現了我們對自身現金流的信心，以及我們對應用科技公司策略和長期獲利潛力的價值的認可。

Further, we continue to evaluate various M&A opportunities across both our segments that could drive a more active pace of acquisitions over the next 12 to18 months. Our acquisition priorities remain unchanged, with an ongoing focus on expanding our technical Engineered Solutions position across automation, fluid power, and flow control. We also remain opportunistic with M&A opportunities across our service center network aimed at optimizing our local market coverage and service capabilities.

此外，我們將繼續評估我們兩個業務部門的各種併購機會，這可能會在未來 12 至 18 個月內推動收購步伐加快。我們的收購重點依然不變，將持續專注於擴大我們在自動化、流體動力和流量控制領域的技術工程解決方案地位。我們也會繼續積極尋求服務中心網路中的併購機會，以優化本地市場覆蓋範圍和服務能力。

Today's announced acquisition of Thompson Industrial Supply is a great example of this. With expected annual sales of $20 million, Thompson is a nice service center segment bolt-on acquisition that will enhance our footprint in Southern California. They bring strong technical knowledge and aligned supplier relationships, as well as in-house belting and fabrication capabilities that strengthen our value-added services and competitive position in the region. We're excited to welcome Thompson to the Applied team and look forward to leveraging their capabilities.

今天宣布收購湯普森工業用品公司就是一個很好的例子。湯普森公司預計年銷售額為 2,000 萬美元，是一家不錯的服務中心業務補充收購公司，將增強我們在南加州的業務版圖。他們帶來了強大的技術知識和一致的供應商關係，以及內部的皮帶和製造能力，這增強了我們在該地區的增值服務和競爭地位。我們很高興歡迎湯普森加入應用科技團隊，並期待利用他們的能力。

As it relates to what we see ahead, I remain constructive on our growth potential entering the second half of fiscal 2026 and beyond. While end-markets remain mixed and choppy, several growth catalysts are becoming more evident. First, our Service Center segment is well-positioned to support our customers' heightened technical MRO needs as they catch up on required maintenance across an aged installed equipment base.

展望未來，我對我們進入 2026 財年下半年及以後的成長潛力仍然保持樂觀。儘管終端市場依然喜憂參半、波動不定，但一些成長催化劑正變得越來越明顯。首先，我們的服務中心部門已做好充分準備，能夠滿足客戶日益增長的技術維護、維修和營運 (MRO) 需求，幫助他們對老舊的已安裝設備進行必要的維護。

We believe there's a clear underlying trend developing around this theme. Of note, our US service center sales were up over 4% year over year in the second quarter, inclusive of seasonally weak December activity. We saw growth across both strategic national accounts as well as our local accounts. Local account sales growth strengthened as the quarter progressed, which is an encouraging signal for broader industrial activity.

我們認為，圍繞這一主題正在形成一種明顯的潛在趨勢。值得注意的是，即使考慮到季節性疲軟的 12 月的銷售情況，我們美國服務中心第二季的銷售額仍同比增長超過 4%。我們看到，無論是策略性全國客戶還是本地客戶，都實現了成長。隨著季度推進，本地客戶銷售成長勢頭增強，這對更廣泛的工業活動來說是一個令人鼓舞的訊號。

We also continue to see stronger activity across several of our heavy US industrial verticals that are break-fix-intensive. This includes primary metals and aggregate markets, where related service center sales were up by a double-digit percent year over year in the quarter. Segment booking rates were positive in the quarter, while month-to-date in January, segment organic sales are trending up by a mid-single-digit percent year over year.

我們也看到，在美國幾個以故障維修為主的重工業垂直領域，業務活動持續增強。這包括初級金屬和骨材市場，相關服務中心的銷售額在本季同比增長了兩位數百分比。本季細分市場預訂率呈正成長，而截至 1 月，細分市場有機銷售額較去年同期呈現中等個位數百分比成長趨勢。

Our scale, local and consistent service capabilities, and technical knowledge of motion-controlled products and solutions are driving greater growth opportunities in both legacy and emerging end-markets. We also continue to benefit from sales process initiatives and ongoing pricing actions, as well as increased traction from our cross-selling efforts. During November, our service center leadership teams gathered in Cleveland to collaborate on our strategic growth initiatives, cross-selling opportunities, and operational requirements moving forward. There remains significant excitement and energy surrounding our core business today, and our teams are making notable progress deploying a number of strategic actions designed to further catalyze our growth long-term.

我們在運動控制產品和解決方案方面的規模、在地化和一致的服務能力以及技術知識，正在推動傳統和新興終端市場獲得更大的成長機會。我們也持續受惠於銷售流程改善措施和持續的價格策略，以及交叉銷售工作的持續推進。11 月期間，我們的服務中心領導團隊齊聚克利夫蘭，共同探討我們的策略成長計畫、交叉銷售機會以及未來的營運需求。目前，我們的核心業務仍然充滿活力和熱情，我們的團隊正在採取一系列策略行動，以進一步促進我們的長期成長，並取得了顯著進展。

Within our Engineered Solutions segment, we expect positive order momentum over the past several quarters to translate into more meaningful sales growth beginning in the second half of fiscal 2026. We're starting to see this play out, with segment organic sales trending up by a high single-digit percent year over year, month to date in January. In addition, we expect increased customer activity across our technology vertical, which represents about 15% of our Engineered Solutions segment.

在我們的工程解決方案部門，我們預計過去幾季積極的訂單動能將從 2026 財年下半年開始轉化為更有意義的銷售成長。我們已經開始看到這種情況發生，1 月迄今為止，該細分市場的有機銷售額同比呈現高個位數百分比成長趨勢。此外，我們預計在技術垂直領域（約占我們工程解決方案部門的 15%）的客戶活動將會增加。

Of note, we continue to receive positive demand signals from our semiconductor customer base. This aligns with broader market indications suggesting a multi-year upcycle is emerging for semi wafer fab equipment. As a reminder, semiconductor space drives the bulk of our technology vertical participation where we provide various fluid conveyance, pneumatic, and automation solutions to wafer fab equipment manufacturers and other providers along the value chain.

值得注意的是，我們持續收到來自半導體客戶群的正向需求訊號。這與更廣泛的市場跡象相符，這些跡象表明半導體晶圓製造設備正在迎來一個多年的上漲週期。需要提醒的是，半導體領域是我們技術垂直領域參與的主要驅動力，我們為晶圓製造設備製造商和價值鏈上的其他供應商提供各種流體輸送、氣動和自動化解決方案。

Many of our solutions are directly specified into wafer fab equipment across both new and established equipment platforms. I would also highlight recent investments we've made in engineering, systems, and production capacity that should provide support to fully leverage these demand tailwinds moving forward. Combined with new business tied to broader data center build-out, we believe our technology vertical could provide a nice tailwind to our organic growth in coming quarters.

我們的許多解決方案都直接應用於晶圓製造設備，涵蓋新型和成熟的設備平台。我還想重點介紹一下我們最近在工程、系統和生產能力方面的投資，這些投資應該能夠為我們充分利用這些需求利好因素提供支持，從而更好地向前發展。結合與更廣泛的資料中心建設相關的新業務，我們相信我們的技術垂直領域可以在未來幾季為我們自身的有機成長提供良好的助力。

Our automation operations are also in solid position to drive stronger growth moving forward. Automation orders were up 20% year over year in the second quarter. We expect various secular tailwinds to continue to positively influence demand for our advanced automation solutions, including structural labor constraints, heightened focus on safety and quality, and North American reshoring activity. These dynamics are accelerating the adoption of collaborative and mobile robots, machine vision, and IoT solutions, as well as require strong application and engineering support that aligns well with our market approach and value proposition.

我們的自動化營運也處於穩固地位，能夠推動未來更強勁的成長。第二季自動化訂單年增20%。我們預計各種長期利好因素將繼續對我們先進的自動化解決方案的需求產生積極影響，包括結構性勞動力限制、對安全和品質的高度重視以及北美回流活動。這些動態正在加速協作機器人、移動機器人、機器視覺和物聯網解決方案的普及，同時也需要強大的應用和工程支持，這與我們的市場策略和價值主張高度契合。

In addition, our flow control team is focused on capturing growth developing within life science, pharmaceutical, and power generation markets across the US. With established product portfolios and leading technical capabilities around calibration services, instrumentation, steam and process heating, and filtration, we are favorably positioned to win in these markets.

此外，我們的流量控制團隊專注於掌握美國生命科學、製藥和發電市場的發展機會。憑藉成熟的產品組合和在校準服務、儀器儀表、蒸汽和工藝加熱以及過濾方面的領先技術能力，我們在這些市場中處於有利地位，有望贏得勝利。

Year to date, flow control sales have been modestly lower year over year, partially reflecting muted activity across the chemicals end market, as well as a slow pace to project shipment phasing in prior year comparisons. However, flow control orders were up by a high single-digit percent year over year in the second quarter, and we expect more productive backlog conversion into the second half of fiscal 2026 based on customer indications and firming in-market trends, as well as broadening maintenance and capital spending on process flow infrastructure across the US in support of energy security and power generation capacity.

今年迄今為止，流體控制產品的銷售額較去年同期略有下降，部分原因是化學品終端市場活動疲軟，以及與去年同期相比，預計出貨進度緩慢。然而，第二季流程控制訂單年增了接近兩位數的百分比，我們預計，根據客戶的回饋和市場趨勢的走強，以及為支持能源安全和發電能力，美國各地流程基礎設施維護和資本支出的擴大，2026 財年下半年積壓訂單的轉換率將更高。

Lastly, we're encouraged by improving trends across our industrial and mobile OEM fluid power operations, where organic sales were positive year over year for the first time in two years during the second quarter, while orders were up by a double-digit percent over the prior year. This positive development is notable considering the drag this area of our business has had on our growth the past several years.

最後，我們工業和移動 OEM 流體動力業務的改善趨勢令我們倍感鼓舞。第二季度，我們的有機銷售額兩年來首次實現同比增長，訂單量也比上年同期增長了兩位數%。考慮到過去幾年我們業務的這一領域對我們的成長造成了拖累，這一積極進展尤其值得關注。

As a reminder, our fluid power customer base includes thousands of small and mid-sized specialty OEMs across a diversified industry base. Our leading innovative engineering capabilities, access to premier supplier technologies, and customer reach are driving new business opportunities with these OEMs as they begin to integrate advanced power and control features into their next-generation equipment. We believe demand for these features will be structurally higher as OEMs begin to re-accelerate production, giving an increased focus on power consumption, machine performance, and automation.

再次提醒，我們的流體動力客戶群包括來自多元化產業領域的數千家小型和中型專業 OEM 廠商。我們領先的創新工程能力、一流的供應商技術以及廣泛的客戶群體，正在推動與這些原始設備製造商 (OEM) 的新業務機會，因為他們開始將先進的電源和控制功能整合到他們的下一代設備中。我們相信，隨著 OEM 廠商開始重新加速生產，並更加關注能耗、機器性能和自動化，這些功能的需求將從結構上更高。

Combined with our enhanced footprint and capabilities following our Hydradyne acquisition last year, our fluid power operations are in a strong position moving forward. As it relates to Hydradyne, we mark the acquisition's one-year anniversary at the end of December. I want to take a moment to thank our team's combined efforts over the past year in making this acquisition a great early success. We've achieved notable growth and operational momentum from this transaction that stands to further augment our earnings potential as underlying in-market demand begins to build. Of note, Hydradyne generated over $30 million of EBITDA in the first 12 months of ownership, with contribution building year-to-date in fiscal 2026 as we continue to align teams and realize synergies. During the second quarter, Hydradyne's EBITDA margins exceeded 13% and were modestly accretive to our consolidated EBITDA margin performance.

結合我們去年收購 Hydradyne 後增強的業務規模和能力，我們的流體動力業務在未來發展中處於有利地位。就 Hydradyne 而言，我們將在 12 月底迎來收購一周年紀念日。我想藉此機會感謝我們團隊在過去一年中的共同努力，使這次收購取得了巨大的早期成功。透過此交易，我們實現了顯著的成長和營運勢頭，隨著市場潛在需求的逐步增強，這將進一步提升我們的獲利潛力。值得注意的是，Hydradyne 在收購後的前 12 個月內創造了超過 3000 萬美元的 EBITDA，隨著我們繼續調整團隊並實現協同效應，預計 2026 財年至今的貢獻將持續增長。第二季度，Hydradyne 的 EBITDA 利潤率超過 13%，對我們的綜合 EBITDA 利潤率表現有小幅提升。

We've made tremendous progress in leveraging complementary solutions, harmonizing technical capabilities and systems, and driving operational efficiencies across the combined operating platforms. We're connecting Hydradyne with new growth opportunities by cross-selling their value-added fluid power repair solutions across our legacy US Southeastern customer base. We're also enhancing their capabilities, serving the rapid pace of innovation developing across fluid power mobile systems, as well as providing fluid conveyance solutions tied to data center thermal management needs.

我們在利用互補解決方案、協調技術能力和系統以及提高合併營運平台的營運效率方面取得了巨大進展。我們正在透過向美國東南部的傳統客戶群交叉銷售 Hydradyne 的增值流體動力維修解決方案，為 Hydradyne 帶來新的成長機會。我們也在增強他​​們的能力，以滿足流體動力移動系統快速發展的創新步伐，並提供與資料中心熱管理需求相關的流體輸送解決方案。

Moving forward, we expect Hydradyne's contribution to be increasingly accretive to our underlying growth and margin performance as this positive momentum feathers into our organic results. At this time, I'll turn it over to Dave for additional detail on our results and outlook.

展望未來，我們預計 Hydradyne 的貢獻將越來越有利於我們的基礎成長和利潤率表現，因為這一積極勢頭將逐步融入我們的有機成長績效中。接下來，我將把發言權交給戴夫，讓他詳細介紹我們的結果和展望。

Thanks, Neil. Just as a reminder before I begin, as in prior quarters, we have posted a quarterly supplemental investor presentation to our investor site for additional reference as we recap our most recent quarter performance. Turning now to our financial performance in the quarter, consolidated sales increased 8.4% over the prior year quarter. Acquisitions contributed 6 points of growth, while the impact from foreign currency translation was a positive 20 basis point impact. The number of selling days in the quarter was consistent year to year. Net of these factors, sales increased 2.2% on an organic basis.

謝謝你，尼爾。在開始之前，我想提醒大家，與前幾季一樣，我們已在投資者網站上發布了季度補充投資者演示文稿，供大家在回顧最近一個季度的業績時參考。現在來看看本季的財務業績，合併銷售額比去年同期成長了 8.4%。收購貢獻了 6 個百分點的成長，而外幣折算的影響帶來了 20 個基點的正面影響。本季銷售天數與往年同期持平。剔除這些因素後，銷售額以有機成長計算成長了 2.2%。

As it relates to pricing, we estimate the contribution of product pricing on year-to-year sales growth was approximately 250 basis points for the quarter. This is up from approximately 200 basis points in the first quarter and primarily reflects the effective pass-through of incremental supplier price increases in recent periods.

就定價而言，我們估計本季產品定價對年比銷售成長的貢獻約為 250 個基點。這比第一季的約 200 個基點有所上升，主要反映了近期供應商價格上漲幅度的有效傳導。

Moving to consolidated gross margin performance, as highlighted on page seven of the deck, gross margin of 30.4% was down 19 basis points compared to the prior year level of 30.6%. During the quarter, we recognized LIFO expense of $6.9 million, which was $2 million to $3 million above our expectations and up meaningfully from prior year's second quarter LIFO expense of $0.7 million.

再來看合併毛利率表現，正如簡報第七頁所強調的，毛利率為 30.4%，比去年同期的 30.6% 下降了 19 個基點。本季度，我們確認了 690 萬美元的後進先出法 (LIFO) 費用，比我們的預期高出 200 萬至 300 萬美元，並且比上年同期第二季度的 70 萬美元後進先出法 (LIFO) 費用有了顯著增長。

On a net basis, this resulted in an unfavorable 54 basis point year-to-year impact on gross margins during the quarter. While the LIFO expense increase partially reflects broader product inflation and supplier price increases, we also prudently increased our level of inventory investment in the quarter based on our outlook and firming demand developing across the business.

淨而言，這導致本季毛利率年減了 54 個基點。雖然後進先出法 (LIFO) 費用增加部分反映了更廣泛的產品通膨和供應商價格上漲，但我們也根據我們的前景和業務中不斷增強的需求，謹慎地提高了本季度的庫存投資水準。

As a reminder, our use of LIFO accounting accelerates the recognition of product inflation on our results, which during periods of increasing inflation and inventory expansion reduces our tax burden and drives cash savings. Importantly, from a reported gross margin standpoint, the impact is more about timing of when we recognize product inflation and is not a change in the underlying economics of the business.

需要提醒的是，我們採用後進先出會計方法，加快了產品通膨對業績的影響，這在通膨加劇和庫存擴張時期可以減輕我們的稅負並節省現金。重要的是，從報告的毛利率角度來看，其影響更體現在我們何時確認產品通膨，而不是企業基本經濟狀況的變化。

As inflation levels out and eventually normalizes, we would expect this impact to unwind accordingly, as we saw in prior periods of greater inflation and LIFO expense. That said, as Neil mentioned earlier, our team responded well to these inflationary headwinds through various countermeasures, including effectively managing supplier price increases, channel execution, and margin initiatives. We also benefited from positive mix tied to our Hydradyne acquisition, as well as stronger growth across local accounts.

隨著通膨趨於平穩並最終恢復正常，我們預計這種影響會相應消退，正如我們在先前通膨較高和後進先出法支出時期所看到的那樣。話雖如此，正如尼爾之前提到的，我們的團隊透過各種應對措施很好地應對了這些通膨逆風，包括有效管理供應商價格上漲、通路執行和利潤率提升計畫。我們也受惠於對 Hydradyne 的收購所帶來的正面產品組合，以及本地客戶的強勁成長。

Excluding LIFO expense, gross margins of 31% were up 34 basis points year-to-year against a strong prior year comparison. As it relates to our operating costs, selling, distribution, and administrative expenses increased 11.1% compared to prior year levels. On an organic constant currency basis, SD&A expense was up 1.4% year-to-year compared to a 2.2% increase in organic sales.

剔除後進先出法費用後，毛利率為 31%，較上年同期強勁成長 34 個基點。就我們的營運成本而言，銷售、分銷和管理費用比去年同期成長了 11.1%。以有機成長固定匯率計算，銷售、管理和行政費用較去年同期成長 1.4%，而有機銷售額較去年同期成長 2.2%。

During the quarter, ongoing inflationary headwinds and growth investments were balanced by solid cost control and internal productivity initiatives. Overall, modest organic sales growth coupled with M&A contribution, favorable underlying gross margin performance, and cost control resulted in reported EBITDA increasing 3.9% year to year, inclusive of a 460 basis point year-to-year LIFO expense headwind. This resulted in EBITDA margins of 12.1%, which was down 52 basis points from the prior year level of 12.6%, inclusive of a 54 basis point year-to-year headwind from higher LIFO expense.

本季度，持續的通膨阻力和成長投資被穩健的成本控制和內部生產力提升措施所抵消。總體而言，適度的有機銷售成長加上併購貢獻、良好的基本毛利率表現以及成本控制，使得報告的 EBITDA 同比增長 3.9%，其中包括同比 LIFO 費用 460 個基點的不利影響。這導致 EBITDA 利潤率為 12.1%，比去年同期的 12.6% 下降了 52 個基點，其中包括 LIFO 費用增加導致的同比下降 54 個基點。

The 12.1% reported EBITDA margin was within our second quarter guidance range of 12% to 12.3%, despite greater than expected LIFO expense, which was approximately 15 to 25 basis points unfavorable to our expectations. Reported earnings per share of $2.51 was up 4.6% from prior year EPS of $2.39. On a year-to-year basis, EPS benefited from a lower tax rate and reduced share count, partially offset by increased interest and other expense on a net basis.

儘管後進先出法 (LIFO) 支出高於預期，比我們的預期低了約 15 至 25 個基點，但報告的 EBITDA 利潤率為 12.1%，在我們第二季度 12% 至 12.3% 的指導範圍內。報告顯示，每股收益為 2.51 美元，較上年同期的 2.39 美元成長 4.6%。年比來看，每股盈餘受益於較低的稅率和減少的流通股數量，但部分被淨利息和其他支出的增加所抵消。

Turning now to sales performance by segment, as highlighted on slides 8 and 9 of the presentation, sales in our Service Center segment increased 2.9% year to year on an organic basis when excluding a 30 basis point positive impact from foreign currency translation. The organic sales increase in the quarter was primarily driven by price contribution as volumes were relatively unchanged year to year, reflecting seasonally slow sales activity in December and lower international shipments.

現在來看看按業務板塊劃分的銷售業績，正如演示文稿第 8 頁和第 9 頁所重點介紹的那樣，我們的服務中心業務板塊的銷售額在不計入外幣折算帶來的 30 個基點積極影響的情況下，同比增長了 2.9%。本季有機銷售額的成長主要由價格因素推動，因為銷售量與去年同期相比相對沒有變化，這反映了12月份季節性銷售活動放緩以及國際出貨量下降。

Across our US operations, sales increased more than 4% over the prior year, reflecting growth across both our national and local account base. US service center sales benefited from firming demand across several core end markets, as well as sales force investments and cross-selling actions that continue to read through within a mixed demand backdrop.

在美國，我們的銷售額比前一年增長了 4% 以上，這反映出我們在全國和本地客戶群中的成長。美國服務中心銷售額受益於幾個核心終端市場需求的穩定成長，以及銷售團隊的投資和交叉銷售活動，這些活動在需求喜憂參半的背景下繼續發揮作用。

Segment trends also continue to be supported by favorable growth across fluid power MRO sales. Segment EBITDA increased 2.2% over the prior year, inclusive of a 340 basis point year-to-year LIFO headwind, while segment EBITDA margin of 13.3% declined 14 basis points, inclusive of a 45 basis point year-to-year LIFO headwind. Excluding the impact of LIFO, the year-to-year improvement in segment EBITDA and EBITDA margin primarily reflects underlying operating leverage on stronger US sales, channel execution, and cost control.

流體動力MRO銷售的良好成長也繼續支撐著細分市場的發展趨勢。分部 EBITDA 較上年增長 2.2%，其中包括同比後進先出法 (LIFO) 340 個基點的不利影響；而分部 EBITDA 利潤率為 13.3%，同比下降 14 個基點，其中包括同比後進先出法 (LIFO) 45 個基點的不利影響。剔除後進先出法的影響，分部 EBITDA 和 EBITDA 利潤率的年比改善主要反映了美國銷售強勁、通路執行和成本控制帶來的潛在經營槓桿效應。

Within our Engineered Solutions segment, sales increased 19.1% over the prior year quarter, with acquisitions contributing 18.6 points of growth. On an organic basis, segment sales increased 0.5% year to year. The increase was primarily driven by price contribution, as well as modest volume growth across fluid power mobile and industrial OEM customers, partially offset by lower flow control sales.

在我們的工程解決方案部門，銷售額比去年同期成長了 19.1%，其中收購貢獻了 18.6 個百分點的成長。以有機成長計算，該業務板塊銷售額年增0.5%。此次成長主要受價格因素推動，以及流體動力移動和工業 OEM 客戶銷售的小幅成長，但部分被流量控制產品銷售的下降所抵消。

Sales across our automation business increased 3% on an organic basis over the prior year, representing a third straight quarter of positive organic growth. Segment EBITDA increased 4.4% year to year over the prior year, inclusive of a 400 basis point year-to-year LIFO headwind, primarily reflecting contribution from our Hydradyne acquisition, partially offset by lower organic EBITDA on muted sales trends in the quarter. Segment EBITDA margin of 14.3% was down roughly 200 basis points from prior year levels, inclusive of a 55 basis point year-to-year LIFO headwind.

我們的自動化業務銷售額較上年同期成長了 3%，實現了連續第三個季度的有機成長。分部 EBITDA 年成長 4.4%，其中包括同比後進先出法 (LIFO) 400 個基點的不利因素，主要反映了我們收購 Hydradyne 的貢獻，但部分被本季度銷售趨勢疲軟導致的有機 EBITDA 下降所抵消。分部 EBITDA 利潤率為 14.3%，比上年同期下降約 200 個基點，其中包括同比後進先出法 (LIFO) 帶來的 55 個基點的不利影響。

Excluding the LIFO impact, the segment EBITDA margin decline was primarily driven by lower flow control sales and unfavorable M&A mix, as well as a difficult prior year comparison from record performance across our Engineered Solutions segment during the second quarter of fiscal 2025 tied to favorable mix, as we had previously highlighted.

剔除後進先出法的影響，該部門 EBITDA 利潤率下降的主要原因是流體控制產品銷售額下降、併購組合不利，以及去年同期業績與去年同期相比較為困難，而去年同期我們工程解決方案部門在 2025 財年第二季度的業績創下歷史新高，這得益於有利的組合，正如我們之前強調的那樣。

Moving to our cash flow performance, cash generated from operating activities during the second quarter was $99.7 million, while free cash flow totaled $93.4 million, representing conversion of 98% relative to net income. Compared to the prior year, free cash was up slightly as greater working capital investment was balanced by ongoing progress with internal initiatives. From a balance sheet perspective, we ended December with approximately $406 million of cash on hand and net leverage at 0.3 times EBITDA.

再來看我們的現金流表現，第二季經營活動產生的現金為 9,970 萬美元，而自由現金流總計 9,340 萬美元，佔淨收入的 98%。與前一年相比，自由現金流略有增加，因為營運資本投資的增加與內部措施的持續進展相平衡。從資產負債表的角度來看，截至 12 月底，我們手頭現金約 4.06 億美元，淨槓桿率是 EBITDA 的 0.3 倍。

Our balance sheet is in a solid position to support our capital deployment initiatives moving forward, including accretive M&A, dividend growth, and opportunistic share buybacks. During the second quarter, we repurchased over 346,000 shares for $90 million, bringing the year-to-date total to over 550,000 shares for $143 million. Turning now to our outlook, as indicated in today's press release and detailed on page 12 of our presentation, we are adjusting our full year fiscal 2026 EPS guidance following our first performance and updated outlook. We now project EPS within a range of $10.45-$10.75 based on sales growth of up 5.5% to 7% and EBITDA margins of 12.2% to 12.4%. Previously, our guidance assumed EPS at $10.10 to $10.85 on sales growth of 4% to7% and EBITDA margins of 12.2% to12.5%.

我們的資產負債表狀況良好，能夠支持我們未來的資本部署計劃，包括增值併購、股息成長和機會性股票回購。第二季度，我們以 9,000 萬美元的價格回購了超過 346,000 股股票，使今年迄今的回購總數超過 55,000 股，總額達 1.43 億美元。現在談談我們的展望，正如今天的新聞稿中所述，並在我們簡報的第 12 頁中詳細說明，根據我們的首次業績和更新的展望，我們正在調整 2026 財年全年每股收益預期。我們現在預計每股盈餘將在 10.45 美元至 10.75 美元之間，銷售額將成長 5.5% 至 7%，EBITDA 利潤率為 12.2% 至 12.4%。此前，我們的業績預期為每股收益 10.10 美元至 10.85 美元，銷售額增長 4% 至 7%，EBITDA 利潤率為 12.2% 至 12.5%。

Our updated guidance now assumes LIFO expense of $24-$26 million compared to prior guidance of $14-$18 million. In addition, we now assume 210 to 230 basis points of year-to-year sales contribution from pricing, up from prior guidance of 150-200 basis points. From an organic sales perspective, we are now assuming a 2.5% to 4% increase for the full year compared to our prior assumption of up 1% to 4%. This takes into account first-half organic sales performance as well as early third quarter organic sales trends, which, as noted earlier, are trending up by a mid-single-digit percent over the prior year in January. I would note prior year sales comparisons are slightly more difficult in February and March compared to January.

我們更新後的指導意見假設採用後進先出法（LIFO）計算的費用為 2400 萬至 2600 萬美元，而之前的指導意見為 1400 萬至 1800 萬美元。此外，我們現在預期價格對年度銷售額的貢獻為 210 至 230 個基點，高於先前 150 至 200 個基點的預期。從有機銷售的角度來看，我們現在預計全年將成長 2.5% 至 4%，而我們先前的預期將成長 1% 至 4%。這考慮到了上半年的有機銷售業績以及第三季度初的有機銷售趨勢，正如前面提到的，1 月份的有機銷售趨勢比上年同期增長了中等個位數百分比。需要指出的是，與一月份相比，二月和三月的銷售額與去年同期相比要困難一些。

In addition, we continue to assume ongoing macro and policy uncertainty will influence customer spending behavior and shipment activity near the term. We believe this could result in ongoing variability in monthly sales growth, pending greater clarity on the macro backdrop or incremental support from lower interest rates and fiscal policy.

此外，我們繼續認為，持續的宏觀經濟和政策不確定性將在近期影響客戶的消費行為和出貨量。我們認為，在宏觀經濟情勢更加明朗或利率和財政政策進一步下調之前，這可能會導致每月銷售成長持續波動。

At the midpoint of our updated guidance, we assume organic sales increase by approximately 4% year-to-year in the second half of fiscal 2026, with third-quarter organic sales expected to increase by a low single-digit to mid-single-digit percent over the prior year. We also project inorganic M&A-related sales and modest foreign currency tailwinds to contribute approximately 50 basis points of year-to-year growth in the second half of the year. The M&A contribution includes today's announced acquisition of Thompson Industrial Supply, as well as our May 2025 acquisition of IRIS Factory Automation.

根據我們更新後的指導意見，我們預計 2026 財年下半年有機銷售額將同比增長約 4%，預計第三季度有機銷售額將比上年同期增長低個位數至中個位數百分比。我們也預計，下半年非有機併購相關的銷售額和適度的外匯利好將貢獻約 50 個基點的年成長。併購貢獻包括今天宣布收購 Thompson Industrial Supply，以及我們於 2025 年 5 月收購 IRIS Factory Automation。

Our guidance does not include contribution from future M&A or additional share purchases in the second half of the year. From a margin perspective, we expect third quarter gross margins to decline sequentially to a low 30% range. This assumes a more normalized level of gross margin execution relative to our strong underlying second quarter performance, as well as slightly higher LIFO expense sequentially. Combined with modestly stronger operating leverage on greater sales growth, as well as ongoing inflationary headwinds, anticipate growth investments in our annual merit increase effective January 1. We expect third quarter EBITDA margins to be within a range of 12.2% to 12.4%. Lastly, some housekeeping items. Our updated guidance does assume a slightly lower share count following second quarter share repurchases, as well as a tax rate assumption of approximately 23% for the full year compared to our prior range of 23% to 24%.

我們的業績指引不包括下半年未來併購或額外股份購買所帶來的貢獻。從利潤率的角度來看，我們預計第三季毛利率將環比下降至 30% 左右。這假設毛利率執行水準相對於我們強勁的第二季業績而言更加正常化，以及 LIFO 費用較上季略有增加。結合銷售成長帶來的略微增強的經營槓桿作用，以及持續的通膨不利因素，預計從 1 月 1 日起，我們將在年度績效加薪中增加成長投資。我們預計第三季 EBITDA 利潤率將在 12.2% 至 12.4% 之間。最後，還有一些家務事項。我們更新後的業績指引假設在第二季股票回購後，股票數量略有下降，且全年稅率假設約為 23%，而我們先前預期的範圍為 23% 至 24%。

These slight EPS tailwinds are partially offset by an increase in net interest expense into the second half of our fiscal year following the net impact of our interest rate swap maturing at the end of January. With that, I will now turn the call back over to Neil for some final comments.

這些輕微的每股盈餘利多因素，部分被下半年淨利息支出的增加所抵消，這是由於我們的利率互換在 1 月底到期，產生了淨影響。接下來，我將把電話轉回給尼爾，請他做一些最後的總結發言。

So to wrap up, our team executed well through the first half of fiscal 2026. We're delivering on our financial commitments and making strong progress on our strategic initiatives. As we enter the second half of the year, we do so from a position of strength with signs of emerging growth catalysts developing across several areas of our business. Early fiscal third-quarter sales trends are encouraging and provide a nice jump-off point.

綜上所述，我們的團隊在 2026 財年上半年表現優異。我們正在履行財務承諾，並在策略舉措方面取得顯著進展。進入下半年，我們處於強勁的發展勢頭，多個業務領域都出現了成長催化劑的跡象。初步的第三財季銷售趨勢令人鼓舞，並提供了一個良好的開端。

We remain prudent with our guidance as we look for greater consistency in sales trajectories as we move into more meaningful seasonal months while balancing the near-term timing impact of LIFO accounting. Importantly, sentiment from both our customers and our sales teams continues to be directionally positive, and our business funnels are expanding. Technical MRO requirements are heightened, entering what should be a more productive operating environment as we move through calendar 2026 when considering potential support from lower interest rates, a more favorable tax policy, and deregulation. In addition, our industry position places us in a unique and comprehensive position to capture growth as capital spending broadens across many of our customer verticals.

隨著我們進入更具意義的季節性月份，我們將尋求銷售軌跡更加穩定，同時平衡後進先出會計準則對近期時間的影響，因此我們仍將保持謹慎的指導態度。重要的是，我們的客戶和銷售團隊的情緒依然保持積極態勢，我們的業務管道也不斷擴大。隨著利率下降、稅收政策更加優惠、市場放鬆管制等因素的影響，到 2026 年，技術性 MRO 要求將有所提高，營運環境也將更有效率。此外，我們的行業地位使我們處於獨特而全面的有利地位，能夠隨著我們眾多客戶垂直領域資本支出的擴大而抓住成長機會。

This includes pro-business policies supporting greater production and investments in core legacy verticals such as metals, mining, and machinery, as well as clear secular and structural tailwinds supporting multi-year cycles across semiconductor, power generation, and energy end-markets. We also expect to play a greater role across the data center space, given our expertise and product offering in areas of thermal management, robotics, and fluid conveyance. With our deep technical industrial facility domain expertise, access to critical higher-engineered industrial products, and balance sheet capacity, we're well positioned to capitalize on these growth opportunities. We also remain positive on our margin expansion potential as these tailwinds drive stronger top-line growth. We continue to see a clear path to achieve our mid-to-high-teens incremental EBITDA margin target at mid-single-digit organic sales growth.

這包括支持在金屬、採礦和機械等核心傳統垂直領域加大生產和投資的親商政策，以及支持半導體、發電和能源終端市場多年周期發展的明顯長期和結構性利好因素。鑑於我們在熱管理、機器人和流體傳輸領域的專業知識和產品，我們也希望在資料中心領域發揮更大的作用。憑藉我們在技術工業設施領域的深厚專業知識、獲得關鍵的高工程工業產品的管道以及雄厚的資產負債表實力，我們完全有能力抓住這些成長機會。我們對利潤率擴張潛力依然保持樂觀，因為這些利好因素將推動營收更強勁成長。我們仍然看到一條清晰的道路，可以實現兩位數中高段的增量 EBITDA 利潤率目標，同時實現個位數中段的有機銷售成長。

This is supported by inherent operating leverage across our business model, combined with mixed tailwinds tied to the ongoing expansion of Engineered Solutions segment and local account growth within our Service Center segment. Additional support should emerge as we continue to scale our automation platform following various growth investments in recent years. Overall, we look forward to fully capturing this growth potential through the remainder of fiscal 2026 and years to come. And as always, we thank you for your continued support. With that, we'll open up the lines for your questions.

這得益於我們業務模式中固有的營運槓桿作用，以及工程解決方案部門持續擴張和我們服務中心部門本地客戶成長帶來的各種利好因素。隨著近年來我們不斷增加成長投資，自動化平台規模持續擴大，未來應該會有更多支持出現。總而言之，我們期待在 2026 財年剩餘時間和未來幾年充分發揮這一成長潛力。一如既往，感謝大家的持續支持。接下來，我們將開放提問環節。

(Operator Instructions) Christopher Glynn, Oppenheimer.

（操作說明）克里斯托弗·格林，奧本海默。

Thanks. Good morning, guys. Just wanted to dive into the Engineered Solutions orders in the quarter, up over 10%. I assume that was an organic basis. Just want to clarify, as well as what degree of positive book-to-bill that might denote.

謝謝。各位早安。只想深入了解本季的工程解決方案訂單狀況，成長超過 10%。我猜想那是有機基礎。我想澄清一下，這可能意味著訂單出貨率的正面程度。

Yes. So that would be on an organic basis. And as we think about it, it broke out across the segments with automation, as we talked about, plus 20% fluid power, low teens, 13%, and flow control, high single digit, 8% into the side. Book-to-bill was above 1 during the quarter and now has been 3 of the last 4 quarters in that side.

是的。所以那將是基於有機的方式。仔細想想，它在各個細分領域都取得了突破，正如我們之前討論過的，自動化佔比 20%，流體動力佔 13%，流量控制佔 8%。本季度訂單出貨比高於 1，並且在過去 4 個季度中已有三個季度達到這一水平。

Great. Thanks. And on the fluid power comparisons, you've got the destocking comparison. So curious if you could sort of dissect the kind of end demand trend versus better kind of sell-through there and alignment.

偉大的。謝謝。至於流體動力對比，還有去庫存對比。我很想知道您能否分析一下最終需求趨勢與更好的銷售情況以及二者之間的契合度。

Yeah. I think really the stock, destocking, given how that's elongated out, has really been worked through. So the performance that we saw in the mobile off-highway part of fluid power is encouraging, as well as the work that's going on with those mid-tier and smaller OEMs. We're also encouraged on the fluid power side of the amount of industrial activity.

是的。我認為，鑑於庫存清倉問題已經持續了很長時間，這個問題實際上已經得到了解決。因此，我們在行動非公路液壓領域看到的表現令人鼓舞，中小型 OEM 廠商正在進行的工作也令人鼓舞。流體動力領域的工業活動量也令我們感到鼓舞。

I think that's similar to service centers on technical MRO requirements, that industrial customers are having to look at the aging of that installed base of producing equipment and is giving us opportunities. And then, right as we talked about in the comments, we think the technology side of our fluid power is really set up well as we think about semi-wafer fab equipment and also that growing participation in data center.

我認為這與技術維護、維修和大修 (MRO) 要求的服務中心類似，工業客戶不得不考慮其已安裝的生產設備老化問題，這給我們帶來了機會。然後，正如我們在評論中提到的，我們認為，考慮到半晶圓製造設備以及在資料中心日益增長的參與度，我們的流體動力技術方面確實已經準備就緒。

Okay. And last one for me. I think of the January sales at mid-single digits. You mentioned Engineered Solutions was up high single digits. And you mentioned February, March, a bit more difficult comps. So just want to make sure I have all that right. And also just on the thought that maybe January had a benefit from neutralizing the December pause.

好的。這是我最後一個問題。我認為一月份的銷售額只有個位數中段。您提到工程解決方案的成長率接近兩位數。你提到二月、三月，比賽難度會稍微大一點。所以我想確認一下我理解的都對嗎？另外，我還想到，1 月或許因為抵銷了 12 月的停滯而有所裨益。

Yeah. You think about it. There could be, right, from the December, right, which we talked about or looked at from that side, from normal seasonal patterns there, right, running lower. So there could be. But I think the height of some of that growth and increase we take as favorable that it's more than just a little bit of timing.

是的。你好好想想。可能從 12 月開始，對吧？我們之前討論過或從那個角度觀察過，從那裡的正常季節性模式來看，情況可能會下降。所以有可能。但我認為，我們所看到的某些成長和提升的高度之所以被認為是有利的，不僅僅是時機使然。

Yeah. And Chris, the other thoughts on the trends in Engineered Solutions being up high single digits in January is correct. And there was maybe another part of your question that maybe we didn't answer, but let us know.

是的。克里斯，關於工程解決方案在 1 月實現高個位數成長的趨勢的其他觀點也是正確的。或許您的問題還有其他部分我們沒有解答，請告訴我們。

Appreciate that. I think we got it.

謝謝。我想我們明白了。

Okay. Thanks.

好的。謝謝。

David Manthey, Baird.

David Manthey，Baird。

Morning, guys. My first question is on SD&A. Organic constant currency SD&A growth was less than organic revenue growth again this quarter, which looks really good.

早上好，各位。我的第一個問題是關於SD&A的。本季有機固定匯率下的銷售、分銷和行政成長再次低於有機收入成長，看起來非常好。

I'm wondering, as we lap Hydradyne here, should overall SD&A come in closer to overall revenue growth next quarter? And then as we look forward, is there anything unusual in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025 on SD&A? It looked like the sequential from the third quarter was up a greater than normal dollar amount there. And I'm just wondering if there was something unusual we should know about.

我想知道，在我們領先 Hydradyne 的情況下，下個季度整體銷售、分銷和分析 (SD&A) 是否應該更接近整體營收成長？展望未來，2025 財年第四季 SD&A 是否有任何不尋常之處？看起來第三季較上季成長幅度高於正常水準。我只是想知道是否有我們應該了解的異常情況。

Yeah. We'll start with the sequential increase in 2025, third to fourth quarter, David. A couple of things came into play there. There was an increase in benefit cost. There's variability, obviously, in our self-insured medical expense, but also about $1.5 million that swapped around with Rabbi Trust or deferred comp that gets offset in other income. So that did skew SD&A just a little bit.

是的。大衛，我們將從 2025 年第三季到第四季的環比成長開始說起。這裡有兩個因素在起作用。效益成本增加。顯然，我們的自保醫療費用有波動，但也有約 150 萬美元與 Rabbi Trust 或遞延補償金交換，這些款項在其他收入中得到抵銷。所以這確實稍微影響了銷售、設計和分析的結果。

As you think about kind of now as we move into third quarter, we do have the focal merit point coming in and lapping Hydradyne, to your point. So we would still work to show an increase less than the rate of the sales increase. But I would expect it, given that, like I said, the last quarter was about half the rate of the sales increase in terms of the SD&A increase. We'd expect that gap to close just a little bit, just given those factors coming into play.

考慮到我們現在進入第三季度，正如你所說，我們確實有一個關鍵的優勢點即將到來，並且超越了 Hydradyne。因此，我們仍需努力使成長率低於銷售額成長率。但我認為這種情況也在意料之中，因為正如我所說，上一季銷售、分銷和行政費用的成長速度大約只有銷售額成長速度的一半。考慮到這些因素，我們預期這一差距會略微縮小一些。

Hey, Dave, just also on the prior year fourth quarter for fiscal 2025, it was impacted, if you recall, by some AR provisioning that we had in the quarter. I think that was over $2 million or so year over year. So that's part of the year-over-year or the uptick in the fourth quarter trend you see there.

嘿，戴夫，還有，關於上一年 2025 財年的第四季度，如果你還記得的話，它受到了我們該季度的一些應收帳款撥備的影響。我認為那一年比前一年多了大約200萬美元。所以，這就是你看到的年比或第四季成長趨勢的一部分。

Yeah. Thanks. And based on your guidance, it would appear that the fourth quarter of this year is a more normal kind of, I don't know, $10 million quarter-to-quarter increase, which looks more normal.

是的。謝謝。根據你的指導，今年第四季的業績似乎會比較正常，比如說，季增 1000 萬美元，看起來比較正常。

Okay. Thank you for that. And then on capital allocation, I'm not sure if it's in the deck here, but did you mention the shares left under your repurchase authorization? And I guess in the context of, I think you have about $1.5 billion of borrowing capacity, including some accordion features. Does share repurchase take priority over debt paydown in the near term, given your ample access to capital and kind of the relative share price?

好的。謝謝。關於資本配置，我不確定這份資料裡有沒有提到，但你有沒有提到回購授權下剩餘的股份？我想，就目前的情況來看，你們大約有 15 億美元的借款能力，其中包括一些可靈活調整的條款。鑑於您擁有充足的資金以及目前的股價水平，短期內股票回購是否優先於償還債務？

We're still be optimistic when you look at the share repurchase. We are contemplating some debt paydown, not the entirety of it, but given the in January, the swap will roll off.

從股票回購的角度來看，我們仍然保持樂觀。我們正在考慮償還部分債務，但不是全部，不過考慮到一月份的互換協議將會到期。

So we'll work to neutralize a little bit of that added interest expense that would come with that. So here again, taking it in rank order priority, it's going to be the organic growth investment, followed by M&A, followed by the dividend increase, kind of 11% this quarter coming off the 24% last year increase. So continuing to move that in line with our increase in earnings in the business, as well as then the opportunistic share repurchase. So we'll balance all those, to your point, plenty of dry powder, given the $1.5 billion capacity and leverage at 0.3x to really work all those angles.

所以我們會努力抵銷一部分由此產生的額外利息支出。所以，再次強調，按優先順序排序，首先是內生成長投資，其次是併購，然後是股息成長，本季成長約 11%，而去年同期成長了 24%。因此，我們將繼續根據公司獲利的成長情況來推進這項工作，並伺機回購股票。所以，正如你所說，我們會平衡所有這些因素，鑑於我們擁有 15 億美元的資金和 0.3 倍的槓桿，我們有足夠的資金來真正從各個方面運作。

And then, Dave, we have, I think, about 700,000 shares left on the current authorization that we had, which we had updated, I think, last August timeframe.

然後，戴夫，我認為我們目前的授權還剩下大約 70 萬股，我們上次更新授權是在去年八月左右。

And so we'll continue to look at that as we continue to buy back shares and update that accordingly as we progress through the current program.

因此，我們將繼續關注這一點，同時繼續回購股票，並隨著當前計劃的推進，相應地更新相關資訊。

And then lastly, Dave, I'd just say on the M&A side, as we touched in the remarks, we feel good about the pipeline, the work, the activity, touch on the potential for greater activity as we look out over the 12 to 18 months, really around our stated priorities of continuing to build out Engineered Solutions with some more select opportunities for differentiation around the service center side. So we're low CapEx requirements. We'll continue to make those. They generate strong returns, but the M&A opportunity for us, we think, remains a good priority for us as we operate through the rest of this fiscal year and look out beyond.

最後，戴夫，關於併購方面，正如我們在演講中提到的，我們對目前的專案儲備、工作和活動感到滿意。展望未來 12 到 18 個月，我們預計會有更大的發展空間，這主要圍繞著我們既定的優先事項，即繼續建立工程解決方案，並在服務中心方面尋找更多差異化的機會。因此，我們的資本支出需求很低。我們會繼續生產這些產品。它們能帶來豐厚的回報，但我們認為，併購機會仍然是我們在本財年剩餘時間以及展望未來時的重要優先事項。

Thanks, guys. Appreciate it.

謝謝各位。謝謝。

Brett Linzey, Mizuho.

Brett Linzey，瑞穗銀行。

Hey, good morning, all. Hey, I wanted to come back to the automation orders up 20%. I guess how much of that do you think is related to pent-up needs that were put on hold that are just starting to release versus new projects, capital formation that's being driven by incremental onshoring your customers might be focused on?

嘿，大家早安。嘿，我想再說說自動化訂單成長 20% 的情況。我想，您認為其中有多少與先前被壓抑的需求開始釋放有關，又有多少與新專案、資本形成有關，而這些新專案和資本形成是由客戶逐步回流到國內所驅動的？

Yeah. Brett, I don't know if I got a perfect answer to that. Obviously, we've had growing funnel within our automation group and also with our service center teams walking in here today. A couple of releases are getting highlighted on projects that were in flight. But there's also a great amount of work. If we consider what is coming to the US from a reshoring standpoint, we have more customers reaching out.

是的。布雷特，我不知道我是否得到了完美的答案。顯然，我們自動化團隊內部的潛在客戶數量一直在成長，今天到場的服務中心團隊也是如此。一些正在進行中的項目正在重點介紹幾個新版本。但同時也有大量的工作要做。如果我們從回流美國的角度來看這個問題，就會發現有更多客戶主動聯絡我們。

How can they drive their efficiencies and productivity where collaborative or mobile robots will help? They're looking at quality control or quality and inspection where vision systems can help, and even just connectivity products, right, to monitor KPI and performance where perhaps people did that manually in the past at equipment to a way to have visual panels and boards on that. So I think both are going to be continued drivers for us as we look out over calendar 2026. Things that we've worked on, on ideas and solutions, but also increased new opportunities as we think about the backdrop. And then things like tax policy and outlooks are probably going to help further accelerate some of that look from customers.

如何利用協作機器人或移動機器人來提高效率和生產力？他們正在研究品質控製或品質和檢驗，視覺系統可以在這方面提供幫助，甚至只是連接產品，對吧，來監控 KPI 和性能，而過去人們可能在設備上手動進行這些操作，現在可以透過在設備上安裝可視化面板和電路板來實現。所以我認為，展望 2026 年，這兩者都將繼續成為我們的驅動力。我們一直在研究各種想法和解決方案，同時也在思考背景問題時發現了新的機會。而稅收政策和前景等因素可能會進一步加速客戶對這一領域的關注。

Yeah. That's great. And then just my follow-ups on price. So the contribution was 250 basis points in the quarter. Curious what you're seeing here in calendar 2026 from a vendor price standpoint, and how should we think about pricing contributions for the balance of this fiscal year in Q3 and Q4 as you got some wrap-around and maybe some incremental coming through?

是的。那太棒了。然後就是我後續關於價格的問題。因此，該季度貢獻了 250 個基點。很好奇您從供應商價格的角度看到了 2026 年日曆中的哪些情況，以及在第三季度和第四季度，由於您有一些結餘款項和一些增量款項即將到位，我們應該如何考慮本財年剩餘時間的定價貢獻？

Yeah. We think about activity from our suppliers. Obviously, those that are more calendar year-based and increases, we see those in place. We did see some that are later year, perhaps mid-year around their fiscal year events, accelerate. So we think to a large part, there's more of that that is in now. We would think the third quarter has the potential to be similar to the second quarter, so 250 basis points in that. And then with the fourth quarter, given perhaps that aging or overlapping of some prior increases, maybe that moderates to a couple hundred basis points impact in the fourth quarter.

是的。我們會考慮供應商的活動。顯然，那些以日曆年為基礎且不斷增長的政策，我們已經看到了它們的實施。我們確實看到一些在年底，或許在年中，圍繞其財政年度事件出現加速增長的情況。所以我們認為，在很大程度上，現在這種現像已經比較普遍了。我們認為第三季有可能與第二季類似，因此會有 250 個基點的波動。而到了第四季度，考慮到先前一些成長可能存在老化或重疊的情況，或許會緩解到第四季度對經濟成長的影響，使其降至幾百個基點。

And so that's what's encapsulated in our outlook. If we look beyond that, right, hey, we will see. There could be a path to higher upside in that as we think about the direction of LIFO that we'll have into that side of it as well.

這就是我們觀點的核心。如果我們放眼更廣闊的世界，對吧，嘿，我們就會看到了。考慮到後進先出（LIFO）策略的發展方向，這方面可能有更高的上漲空間。

All right. Got it. Thanks. Best of luck.

好的。知道了。謝謝。祝你好運。

Sabrina Abrams, Bank of America.

Sabrina Abrams，美國銀行。

Hey, good morning, everyone.

嘿，大家早安。

Good morning.

早安.

Question. So I know you guys did raise the pricing guide this quarter, and pricing, I guess, accelerated nicely quarter over quarter. But you did raise LIFO expense, and we'd just like to ask why not assume prices going to accelerate into the second half? Because I would think price continues to accelerate from here, but just any color around that assumption.

問題。我知道你們這季提高了定價指導價，而且價格似乎也逐季加速上漲了。但是您確實提高了後進先出法（LIFO）的費用，我們只是想問一下，為什麼不假設價格在下半年會加速上漲呢？因為我認為價格會從這裡繼續加速上漲，但任何圍繞這個假設的趨勢都值得關注。

Yeah. So as we think about, we touched on just a little bit there. We're seeing the announced increases from our suppliers as we think about for much of 2026 are perhaps likely in place now. And then if we think about the aging or the overlap of prior increases, that's what we're saying perhaps the price moderates to that 200 basis points in the fourth quarter compared to this 250 level that we have today. Obviously, we'll be close to the inputs of looking at any other metals, material increases that will be coming through with suppliers and work with them to orderly take them through to the markets. But hey, that's our view now. And perhaps the tariff environment is going to stay moderated at its current level right now as we look out over the rest of the fiscal year.

是的。所以，我們剛才稍微談到了這一點。我們看到供應商宣布的漲價措施，在我們看來，可能會在 2026 年的大部分時間裡實施。然後，如果我們考慮到價格老化或先前上漲的重疊情況，我們可能會說，與目前的 250 個基點相比，第四季度的價格可能會緩和到 200 個基點。顯然，我們將密切關注供應商提供的任何其他金屬和材料的成長情況，並與他們合作，有序地將這些產品推向市場。但是，嘿，這就是我們現在的觀點。展望本財年剩餘時間，或許關稅環境將維持在目前的溫和水準。

I'd say too, I'd add the, obviously, you're seeing in the, as you start looking at the comps in the back half of 2025, some higher levels of pricing that does skew year over year just a bit versus the first half. And then thinking about the LIFO, doesn't necessarily travel in exact tandem with the dynamics that we see on the pricing and supplier price increases because that's also influenced by the mix of what we're purchasing. So we did have a heavier concentration this quarter of parts that we had not purchased for two to three years, which attracted a fair amount of LIFO increase as we looked at the buy versus kind of the two or three-year-ago price that we were carrying at. So that is also a factor as you try to correlate those two.

我還要補充一點，很明顯，當你開始查看 2025 年下半年的同類產品時，你會發現一些更高的價格水平，這與上半年相比，同比價格略有偏差。然後，考慮到後進先出法，它並不一定與我們看到的定價和供應商價格上漲的動態完全一致，因為這也受到我們採購商品組合的影響。因此，本季度我們大量採購了過去兩三年未曾採購的零件，這導致後進先出法（LIFO）的採購量大幅增加，因為我們將採購價格與兩三年前的庫存價格進行了比較。所以，在試圖將這兩者連結起來時，這也是一個需要考慮的因素。

Thank you. And just on guidance, on my math, I think there's an extra versus the prior guide, I think there's an extra $0.18 from LIFO expense going up, embedded in the new EPS guide, and there's another couple cents of interest expense. And then on the other side, you have the benefit of maybe a lower share count and very, very modest impact from the acquisition you did.

謝謝。就指導意見而言，根據我的計算，我認為與先前的指導意見相比，由於後進先出法 (LIFO) 費用增加，新的每股盈餘 (EPS) 指導意見中增加了 0.18 美元，此外還有幾美分的利息支出。另一方面，你可能還會面臨股份數量較少、收購帶來的影響非常非常有限的風險。

And just as I think about these moving pieces and the narrowed guidance, maybe is the right way to think about it that the core guide has been raised? Because if I sort of back out all this other stuff, I'm getting to core EBIT is higher versus last quarter, but I just want to clarify with you guys whether that's the correct way to think about it and any moving pieces I might be missing.

正當我思考這些變化因素和縮小的指導方針時，也許正確的思考方式是：核心指導方針已經提高了？因為如果我把其他因素都排除掉，核心息稅前利潤會比上一季更高，但我只是想和你們確認一下，這種思考方式是否正確，以及我可能忽略了哪些其他因素。

Yeah, I think there's a modest increase there resulting from really the strong margin performance. You're going to see stripped out that LIFO of 31% gross margin performance against a very difficult comp. Like I said, you think about the year-over-year still being up, partially driven by that Hydradyne mix benefit, but nonetheless, very pleased with the team's response to the pricing environment. So you're seeing some of that read through. We'll still be cost-conscious and kind of continuing to look at that. So I'd say it's a modest increase there in the core. And then we think about the guide, really kind of tightening the guide at the upper end of the previous guides.

是的，我認為由於強勁的利潤率表現，利潤率確實出現了小幅成長。你會看到，在非常艱難的同業比較背景下，採用後進先出法計算的毛利率為 31%。正如我所說，考慮到同比仍然增長，部分原因是 Hydradyne 混合產品的好處，但儘管如此，我對團隊對定價環境的反應感到非常滿意。所以你現在可以看到一些閱讀內容了。我們仍會注重成本控制，並持續關注這方面的情況。所以我認為核心區域的增幅並不大。然後我們考慮一下指南，實際上是要收緊之前指南中較高的部分。

And just to clarify. Oh, sorry. Sorry, you guys finished.

再澄清一下。哦，對不起。抱歉，你們結束了。

Yeah. No, that's fair. So, I think, yeah, if you look at the midpoint of the guidance, the organic growth we're assuming in the back half of the year is up slightly from what we were assuming in the prior guidance that we provided, and maybe even a more meaningful amount when we look at it at the high end. And so, not a huge change, but we are assuming a little bit greater organic growth on sales in the back half relative to what we were prior.

是的。不，這很合理。所以，我認為，是的，如果你看一下業績指引的中點，我們假設下半年的有機成長比我們之前提供的指引略有上升，如果我們看一下上限，成長幅度可能會更大。因此，變化不大，但我們預計下半年銷售額的自然成長將比之前略高一些。

Thank you. And just one last quick follow-up to that, is that on the raised pricing assumption, or did you raise your volume assumption?

謝謝。最後還有一個小問題，您提高價格假設是基於價格上漲，還是提高了銷售假設？

Yeah. I'd say it's primarily tied to the raised pricing assumption, but still some volume assumptions as well in there as well.

是的。我認為這主要與價格上漲的假設有關，但也與銷售上漲的假設有關。

Thank you. I'll pass it on.

謝謝。我會轉達的。

Ken Newman, KeyBanc Capital Markets.

Ken Newman，KeyBanc Capital Markets。

Hey. Good morning, guys. Thanks for squeezing me in. Wanted to first just touch on the margin guidance if we could. I guess there's a headwind due to LIFO here in the back half. I think the math is around 30 to 40 basis points on EBITDA. But I would think that the high single-digit, the low double-digit sales growth in engineered, and then the automation orders being up 20% would be a decent mix offset. So maybe can you just help us think about bucketing the various moving pieces in the margin guide and what that assumes for mix versus price cost and LIFO headwinds?

嘿。各位早安。謝謝你擠出時間幫我。我們想先簡單談談利潤率預期。我猜想後半程由於後進先出（LIFO）政策而面臨不利影響。我認為計算結果大約是 EBITDA 的 30 到 40 個基點。但我認為，工程產品銷售額實現個位數高點、兩位數低點成長，再加上自動化訂單成長 20%，應該可以起到不錯的平衡。那麼，您能否幫我們思考如何對利潤率指南中的各種變動因素進行分類，以及這種分類對於產品組合與價格成本以及後進先出（LIFO）不利因素的假設是什麼？

Yeah. I can start. So just as we think, right, and we talked about, hey, perhaps we moderate below the 30.4 that we had in the second quarter, that 10 to 30 basis points on gross margin on the guide. I think you're right on potential for LIFO to be a 30 to 40 basis point headwind, path to things that could counteract, right? One will be, hey, what is that true path of LIFO in the second half?

是的。我可以開始了。正如我們所想，對吧，我們也討論過，嘿，也許我們會將毛利率預期下調至低於第二季度的 30.4%，也就是下調 10 到 30 個基點。我認為你說的沒錯，後進先出法可能會帶來 30 到 40 個基點的不利影響，而一些措施可能會抵消這種影響，對吧？其中一個問題是，嘿，後進先出（LIFO）在下半年的真正路徑是什麼？

To your point on mixed dynamics, Engineered Solutions, local account growth, and service centers would both be the potential for benefit in that. The further path on M&A performance, Hydradyne as it comes in would have the perhaps continued improvement. And then, obviously, we'll be focused on our price actions and ongoing margin initiatives that we have across that benefited us in the second quarter.

關於您提到的混合動態，工程解決方案、本地客戶成長和服務中心都可能從中受益。Hydradyne 的加入可能會進一步改善併購表現。然後，很顯然，我們將專注於我們的價格策略和正在進行的利潤率提升計劃，這些計劃在第二季度使我們受益匪淺。

But hey, as we sit here today, right, we see there is that potential for that to show up, including that higher LIFO expense that we had in the second quarter, somewhat to continue on at that $7 million to $8 million impact.

但是，嘿，就我們今天所見，確實存在這種可能性，包括我們在第二季度較高的後進先出法支出，可能會繼續造成 700 萬至 800 萬美元的影響。

Yeah. I think you stripped that out. Sorry. Yeah. You stripped that out, Ken. I'd say the LIFO expense, it's a good story in terms of incrementals. We're up over 20%, what that implies in terms of the guidance in the back half in terms of incrementals ex LIFO. So you are seeing all those things you indicated and highlighted there in terms of the mixed benefit, flow control sales coming back, the acquisition mix benefit, stronger Engineered Solutions shipments, which helps from a mixed standpoint as well. So all those things play in in addition to the workaround pricing and kind of the channel optimization.

是的。我認為你已經把它刪掉了。對不起。是的。肯，你把那部分刪掉了。我認為，就增量而言，後進先出法（LIFO）的費用計算是一個很好的例子。我們成長超過 20%，這意味著下半年的業績指引（不包括後進先出法）會如何改變？所以，正如你剛才指出和強調的那樣，混合收益方面，流量控制銷售正在回升，收購組合收益，工程解決方案出貨量增加，從混合角度來看，這也有所幫助。所以，除了變通定價和通路優化之外，所有這些因素都會影響最終結果。

Okay. That's helpful. And then just for my follow-up, it was nice to hear you guys reiterating the mid-teen incremental EBITDA margin target on mid-single-digit growth. I think the midpoint of this quarter's guide is slightly below that, but I wanted to get your thoughts on, one, do you think you could reach that target exiting this fiscal year? And if so, do you need a specific number or a contribution of volume growth to kind of get there? And maybe also, if we get incremental pricing versus what you're already expecting in the guide today, would you expect that to be neutral to the operating leverage or accretive?

好的。那很有幫助。另外，我想補充一點，很高興聽到你們重申了在中等個位數成長的情況下，EBITDA 利潤率增量目標為 15% 左右。我認為本季業績指引的中點略低於這個目標，但我想聽聽你的看法，第一，你認為你能在本財年結束時達到這個目標嗎？如果是這樣，你需要一個具體的數字還是銷售成長的貢獻才能達到這個目標？另外，如果我們獲得的價格與您目前在指南中預期的價格相比有所增加，您認為這對經營槓桿是中性的還是有利的？

Yeah. I can start. As we think about that leverage and then, hey, right, some of our targets that we have for the business, we think about them really from an annualized basis.

是的。我可以開始了。當我們考慮這種槓桿作用，以及我們為業務設定的一些目標時，我們實際上是從年度的角度來考慮這些目標。

But to your point, we've demonstrated strong incrementals with low single-digit in volumes. As we move up, right, those have the opportunities to improve. So I think as we look out over calendar 2026, we see that opportunity for that to play out and develop for us.

但正如您所說，我們已經證明，銷量成長幅度很大，即使增幅只有個位數。隨著我們不斷進步，這些都有改進的機會。所以我認為，展望 2026 年，我們將看到這一機會得以實現並為我們帶來發展。

Yeah. And again, I would say that at the midpoint of the guidance, we would assume that the fourth quarter gets to, you'll call it a mid-teen incremental margin on EBITDA at, you'll call it that 4% or so type of organic growth that we have baked into the guidance at this point. And that includes the LIFO, increased LIFO year over year. As mentioned earlier, we will have a benefit year over year in the fourth quarter, assuming normalized AR provisioning given that prior year impact that we had.

是的。我再次強調，根據我們目前的業績指引，我們預計第四季度 EBITDA 的增量利潤率將達到 15% 左右，也就是我們目前在業績指引中預期的 4% 左右的內生成長。這其中就包括後進先出法，而且後進先出法的用量逐年增加。如前所述，考慮到前一年受到的影響，假設應收帳款撥備正常化，那麼第四季度我們將比去年同期受益。

And so we're getting to that, call it mid-teen to high-teen range at slightly below mid-single-digit organic growth, but feel very good as we move into a more stabilized and firm mid-single-digit organic growth environment that that incremental margin guide is achievable. And then as it relates to pricing and anything incremental, the team is doing a great job of managing pricing, a number of other initiatives that we have on gross margin and countermeasures to manage through that. And we'll see how it all plays out, but obviously, inflationary environment, but the team's doing a good job executing through it.

因此，我們正朝著這個方向發展，暫定為十幾到十幾的成長率，略低於個位數中段的有機成長率，但隨著我們進入一個更穩定、穩定的個位數中段有機成長環境，我們感覺非常好，因為這個增量利潤率目標可以實現。至於定價和任何增量方面，團隊在定價管理方面做得非常出色，我們還制定了許多其他關於毛利率的舉措以及應對措施來應對這些問題。我們拭目以待，看看事情最終會如何發展，但很顯然，現在是通貨膨脹時期，不過球隊在這樣的環境下執行得很好。

Chris Dankert, Loop Capital Markets.

Chris Dankert，Loop 資本市場。

Hey, morning. Thanks for fitting me in here. I guess just on the third quarter guide, if I'm looking at what you guys have staked out from an organic sales growth perspective, that seems to imply kind of a below typical seasonal growth level. I mean, I think plus 5% sequence is kind of what the midpoint implies. Longer term, you're typically up in the high single-digit range. I guess when we consider the December holiday timing impact, the ES orders, incremental pricing, can you kind of help us square the below seasonal midpoint of that sales guidance for fiscal 3Q?

嘿，早安。謝謝你抽空讓我來這裡。我想，就第三季業績指引而言，如果我從你們對有機銷售成長的預測角度來看，這似乎意味著季節性成長水準低於往年同期水準。我的意思是，我認為中間點所暗示的就是加 5% 的序列。從長遠來看，你的收益通常會達到個位數高點。我想，考慮到 12 月假期時間的影響、ES 訂單、增量定價等因素，您能否幫我們解釋一下 3 財年銷售預期低於季節性中點的原因？

Actually, Chris, if you look at it, given the low- to mid-single-digit assumption for Q3, 4% year again, organic for the total back half, that would assume for the first quarter in quite a while.

實際上，克里斯，如果你仔細想想，考慮到第三季度個位數低到中等的增長率假設，以及全年4%的增長率，下半年整體的有機增長率，這將是相當長一段時間以來的第一個季度。

We've been kind of last quarter was 200 basis points below the typical seasonality, but that's really back in line with what we'd say is normal seasonality as we transition from Q2 to Q3.

上個季度我們比平常的季節性波動低了 200 個基點，但隨著我們從第二季度過渡到第三季度，這實際上已經回到了我們所說的正常季節性波動範圍內。

Got it. Got it. Well, I guess in the interest of time, I'll leave it there, but thanks so much.

知道了。知道了。好吧，為了節省時間，我就先說到這裡吧，非常感謝。

Christopher Glynn, Oppenheimer.

克里斯托弗·格林，奧本海默。

Yes, thanks. Just on the mechanics of LIFO, I definitely don't claim a deep appreciation of how it all works, but I'm wondering about the lead time dynamics, what they've been like for supplier price negotiations. Are they faster cycling than normal, or have the signals been too varied?

好的，謝謝。就後進先出法的運作機製而言，我當然不敢說我對它的運作方式有深刻的理解，但我很好奇交貨週期動態，以及它對供應商價格談判的影響。他們的騎乘速度比正常情況快嗎？還是訊號變化太大？

I'm just wondering if there's perhaps an opportunity to standardize the pre-planning communications with suppliers a little bit more, just given your long-term distinguished excellence in data and analytics throughout the organization on many dimensions.

我只是在想，鑑於貴公司在數據和分析方面長期以來在各個方面都表現出色，我們是否有機會進一步規範與供應商的預先計劃溝通。

Yeah. I can start. Chris, I think suppliers are being orderly in this and, hey, that's our expectations. As they're working on them as they develop, obviously, you need the data, you need the files to work through on that to be able to effectively implement. So we're not changing our expectations or views that that has to be orderly. And so I think suppliers understand that it's best for them as well. So they're working to do that. And so it kind of led a little bit. I think most of the annual increases are in.

是的。我可以開始了。克里斯，我認為供應商們在這件事上做得井然有序，嘿，這正是我們所期望的。顯然，在開發過程中，你需要數據，你需要文件才能有效地實施。所以我們並沒有改變我們對秩序的期望或看法。所以我認為供應商也明白，這對他們來說也是最好的。所以他們正在努力實現這一點。所以事情就這麼發展了。我認為大部分年度增長已經到位。

I think those that we're contemplating are more historically kind of mid or they're more fiscal year side have accelerated. I think most of those are in. So from a price increase standpoint, I won't say that they're finished if metals or something else moves, but then I think most of those are in place right now.

我認為我們正在考慮的那些，從歷史角度來看，更多的是中期或財政年度末期的情況，這些情況已經加速發展。我認為大部分都進去了。所以從價格上漲的角度來看，如果金屬或其他東西價格上漲，我不會說價格上漲就結束了，但我認為目前大多數價格上漲的因素都已經存在了。

Yeah. Chris, I think the other piece of LIFO to consider as it relates to how it moves quarter to quarter, obviously, is what we decide to bring in as it relates to inventory investment, right? And so that remains a fluid, sort of dynamic, and we feel good that what we're seeing in the back half is demand is starting to firm. We're starting to bring more inventory on, as we talked about, in a prudent way.

是的。克里斯，我認為後進先出法的另一個方面，顯然是它如何逐季變化，那就是我們決定在存貨投資方面投入多少，對吧？因此，市場仍然處於一種流動、動態的狀態，我們很高興地看到，下半年的需求開始趨於穩定。正如我們之前討論過的，我們正在以謹慎的方式逐步增加庫存。

And so that drove some of the, I think, increase in LIFO maybe relative to what we expected last October when we talked about LIFO expense guidance. So that's probably a piece of it just to keep in mind that will continue to fluctuate depending on the demand backdrop.

因此，我認為這在一定程度上導致了 LIFO 成本的成長，相對於我們去年 10 月討論 LIFO 成本指引時所預期的成長而言。所以，這大概就是其中一部分原因，要記住的是，它會根據需求環境持續波動。

Yeah. For the context, operating inventory roughly about a point and a half in terms of 0.5% in terms of the sequential change in the quarter, as you see that demand firming, and we brought in some of the inventory to support that.

是的。從背景來看，本季營業庫存季變動約為 0.5%，因為您可以看到需求趨於穩定，我們增加了一些庫存來支持這一需求。

Thanks, everybody.

謝謝大家。

At this time, I'm showing we have no further questions. I will now turn the call over to Mr. Schrimsher for closing remarks.

目前，我表示我們沒有其他問題了。現在我將把電話交給施里姆舍爾先生，請他作總結發言。

Thank you. I just want to thank everyone for joining us today, and we look forward to talking with you throughout the quarter.

謝謝。我只想感謝各位今天蒞臨，我們期待在本季與大家繼續交流。

Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.

謝謝各位女士、先生。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了。