A-Mark Precious Metals Inc (AMRK) 2023 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon, and welcome to A-Mark Precious Metals Conference Call for the fiscal first quarter ended September 30, 2022. My name is Jenny, and I will be your operator this afternoon.

下午好，歡迎參加截至 2022 年 9 月 30 日的第一財季 A-Mark 貴金屬電話會議。我叫珍妮，今天下午我將是你的接線員。

Before this call, A-Mark issued its results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year in a press release, which is available in the Investor Relations section of the company's website at www.amark.com.

在此電話會議之前，A-Mark 在新聞稿中發布了第四季度和財年的業績，可在公司網站 www.amark.com 的投資者關係部分獲取。

You can find the link to the Investor Relations section at the top of the home page. Joining us for today's call are A-Mark's CEO, Greg Roberts; President, Thor Gjerdrum; and CFO, Kathleen Simpson-Taylor.

您可以在主頁頂部找到指向投資者關係部分的鏈接。與我們一起參加今天電話會議的有 A-Mark 的首席執行官 Greg Roberts；總裁 Thor Gjerdrum；首席財務官 Kathleen Simpson-Taylor。

Following their remarks, we will open your call to your questions. Then before we conclude the call, I'll provide the necessary cautions regarding the forward-looking statements made by management during this call.

在他們發表評論之後，我們將打開您的電話以回答您的問題。然後，在我們結束電話會議之前，我將針對管理層在此次電話會議期間所做的前瞻性陳述提供必要的警告。

I would like to remind everyone that this call is being recorded and will be made available for replay via a link available in the Investor Relations section of A-Mark's website.

我想提醒大家，這個電話正在錄音中，可以通過 A-Mark 網站投資者關係部分的鏈接進行重播。

Now I would like to turn the call over to A-Mark's CEO, Mr. Greg Roberts. Sir, please proceed.

現在我想把電話轉給 A-Mark 的首席執行官 Greg Roberts 先生。先生，請繼續。

Thank you, Jenny, and good afternoon to everyone. Thank you all for joining our call today.

謝謝你，珍妮，大家下午好。感謝大家今天加入我們的電話會議。

Today, we reported one of the strongest quarters in A-Mark's history with $45 million of net income and diluted EPS of $1.83. As noted in our earnings release, A-Mark delivered solid gross profit with a 13% sequential increase and a 79 basis point increase in our gross margin percentage.

今天，我們報告了 A-Mark 歷史上最強勁的季度之一，淨收入為 4500 萬美元，攤薄後每股收益為 1.83 美元。正如我們在財報中指出的那樣，A-Mark 實現了穩健的毛利潤，環比增長 13%，毛利率增長 79 個基點。

A-Mark also generated a 24% increase in EBITDA and an amazing 9% quarterly return on equity. These results continue to demonstrate the strength of our business as a result of our growth strategy, which has broadened our customer base and further enhanced our fully integrated capabilities. Our Direct-To-Consumer, or DTC segment, continues to perform outstanding contributing over half of our consolidated gross profit during the quarter. We were successful in growing our DTC customer base by an additional 49,000 new customers during the quarter to a total of 2.1 million customers as we continue to expand our customer reach with our diversified suite of DTC brands that each target their own unique demographic customer.

A-Mark 還帶來了 24% 的 EBITDA 增長和驚人的 9% 的季度股本回報率。由於我們的增長戰略，這些結果繼續證明了我們的業務實力，該戰略擴大了我們的客戶群並進一步增強了我們的全面整合能力。我們的直接面向消費者或 DTC 部門在本季度繼續表現出色，貢獻了我們綜合毛利潤的一半以上。我們在本季度成功地增加了 49,000 名新客戶，使我們的 DTC 客戶群增加到 210 萬客戶，因為我們繼續通過多元化的 DTC 品牌套件擴大我們的客戶範圍，每個品牌都針對自己獨特的人口統計客戶。

Continued wider premium spreads as a result of heightened demand and supply constraints drove a 9% sequential increase in gross profit and expanded our DTC gross margins by 195 basis points to 9.8% in Q1. As we recently announced, JMB closed the asset acquisition of BGASC with its over 120,000 customers and over $200 million in revenue reported in calendar '21.

由於需求和供應限制加劇，保費利差持續擴大，推動毛利潤環比增長 9%，並將我們的 DTC 毛利率在第一季度擴大了 195 個基點，達到 9.8%。正如我們最近宣布的那樣，JMB 完成了對 BGASC 的資產收購，BGASC 擁有超過 120,000 名客戶，21 年日曆中報告的收入超過 2 億美元。

We have now completed the integration of BGASC as a stand-alone brand in our DTC segment and look forward to reporting BGASC's contribution to the segment's performance in the second quarter of fiscal '23. The JMB team is leveraging its technology and resources to capture the full potential of our new brand and to drive additional value for this business. Early indications this quarter are that BGASC is exceeding our expectations. Our minting business also remains a key driver of our performance, with production remaining at near record levels.

我們現在已經完成了 BGASC 作為獨立品牌在我們的 DTC 部門的整合，並期待在 23 財年第二季度報告 BGASC 對該部門業績的貢獻。 JMB 團隊正在利用其技術和資源來挖掘我們新品牌的全部潛力，並為這項業務帶來更多價值。本季度的早期跡象表明，BGASC 超出了我們的預期。我們的鑄幣業務也仍然是我們業績的關鍵驅動力，產量保持在接近創紀錄的水平。

We produced nearly 11 million ounces during the quarter, which was a 56% increase over the same quarter last year. We continue to invest in our minting operations, including our recent acquisition of SilverTowne Mint's largest tooling supplier, Marksmen Tool and Die, which will provide cost reductions, faster response time for repairs and more proactive planning for our future tooling needs.

本季度我們生產了近 1100 萬盎司，比去年同期增長了 56%。我們繼續投資於我們的鑄幣業務，包括我們最近收購了 SilverTowne Mint 最大的工具供應商 Marksmen Tool and Die，這將降低成本、加快維修響應時間並更積極地規劃我們未來的工具需求。

We recently purchased an additional furnace to expand capacity and support double blanking operations, and we continue to evaluate the further expansion of both our minting facility, and its production capabilities.

我們最近購買了一個額外的熔爐以擴大產能並支持雙沖裁操作，我們將繼續評估我們的鑄幣廠及其生產能力的進一步擴張。

Now I will turn the call over to our CFO, Kathleen Simpson-Taylor, to walk you through our financials in more detail. Then our President, Thor Gjerdrum, will discuss our operating metrics. Afterwards, I'll provide a further update, and I look forward to taking your questions. Kathleen?

現在我將把電話轉給我們的首席財務官 Kathleen Simpson-Taylor，讓您更詳細地了解我們的財務狀況。然後，我們的總裁 Thor Gjerdrum 將討論我們的運營指標。之後，我會提供進一步的更新，期待您的提問。凱瑟琳？

Thank you, Greg, and good afternoon, everyone. Our revenues for fiscal Q1 2023 decreased 6% to $1.9 billion from $2 billion in Q1 of last year.

謝謝 Greg，大家下午好。我們 2023 財年第一季度的收入從去年第一季度的 20 億美元下降 6% 至 19 億美元。

The decrease was attributable to a decrease in gold ounces sold and lower average selling prices of gold and silver, partially offset by an increase in silver ounces sold. The DTC segment contributed 23% and 26% of the consolidated revenue in fiscal Q1 2023 and fiscal Q1 2022, respectively.

減少的原因是出售的黃金盎司減少以及黃金和白銀的平均售價下降，部分被出售的銀盎司增加所抵消。 DTC 部門分別貢獻了 2023 財年第一季度和 2022 財年第一季度合併收入的 23% 和 26%。

Revenue contributed by JMB represented 20% of the consolidated revenues for Q1 of 2023 compared to 23% in Q1 of last year. Gross profit for fiscal Q1 2023 increased 37% to $76.6 million or 4.03% of revenue from $56 million or 2.78% of revenue in Q1 of last year.

JMB 貢獻的收入佔 2023 年第一季度綜合收入的 20%，而去年第一季度為 23%。 2023 財年第一季度的毛利潤從去年第一季度的 5600 萬美元或收入的 2.78% 增長 37% 至 7660 萬美元或收入的 4.03%。

The increase in gross profit was due to higher gross profits earned from the wholesale sales and ancillary services and DTC segments. Gross profit contributed by the DTC segment represented 55% of consolidated gross profit in fiscal Q1 2023 compared to 54% in the same year ago period.

毛利潤的增加是由於批發銷售和輔助服務以及 DTC 部門獲得的毛利潤增加。 DTC 部門貢獻的毛利佔 2023 財年第一季度綜合毛利的 55%，而去年同期為 54%。

Gross profit contributed by JMB represented 48% of the consolidated gross profit in fiscal Q1 2023 compared to 44% in Q1 of last year. SG&A expenses for fiscal Q1 2023 increased 7% to $17.8 million from $16.7 million in Q1 of last year.

JMB 貢獻的毛利佔 2023 財年第一季度綜合毛利的 48%，而去年第一季度為 44%。 2023 財年第一季度的 SG&A 費用從去年第一季度的 1670 萬美元增長 7% 至 1780 萬美元。

The increase was primarily due to an increase in compensation expense, including performance-based accruals of $1.0 million; higher advertising costs of $0.7 million; an increase in computer-related expenses of $0.2 million, partially offset by lower consulting and professional fees of $0.5 million and lower insurance costs of $0.5 million.

增加的主要原因是薪酬費用增加，包括基於績效的 100 萬美元應計費用；廣告費用增加 70 萬美元；計算機相關費用增加 20 萬美元，部分被 50 萬美元的諮詢和專業費用減少以及 50 萬美元的保險費用減少所抵消。

Depreciation and amortization expense for fiscal Q1 2023 decreased 62% to $3.2 million from $8.3 million in Q1 of last year. The decrease was primarily due to a $5.1 million decrease in amortization of acquired intangibles related to JMB. Interest income for fiscal Q1 2023 decreased 8% to $5.1 million from $5.5 million in Q1 of last year. The aggregate decrease in interest income was primarily due to lower interest income earned by our Secured Lending segment and lower other finance product income.

2023 財年第一季度的折舊和攤銷費用從去年第一季度的 830 萬美元下降 62% 至 320 萬美元。減少的主要原因是與 JMB 相關的收購無形資產攤銷減少 510 萬美元。 2023 財年第一季度的利息收入從去年第一季度的 550 萬美元下降 8% 至 510 萬美元。利息收入的總減少主要是由於我們的擔保貸款部門賺取的利息收入減少以及其他金融產品收入減少。

Interest expense for fiscal Q1 2023 increased 12% to $6.1 million from $5.5 million in Q1 of last fiscal year. The increase in interest expense was primarily driven by $0.5 billion associated with the company's trading credit facility and AMCS notes, including amortization of debt issuance costs, $0.2 million related to product financing arrangements, $0.1 million in interest associated with liabilities on borrowed metals, and this was offset by a decrease of $0.2 million of loan servicing fees.

2023 財年第一季度的利息支出從上一財年第一季度的 550 萬美元增長 12% 至 610 萬美元。利息支出的增加主要是由於與公司的貿易信貸額度和 AMCS 票據相關的 5 億美元，包括債務發行成本攤銷、與產品融資安排相關的 20 萬美元、與借入金屬負債相關的 10 萬美元利息，以及這被 20 萬美元的貸款服務費減少所抵消。

Earnings from equity method investments in Q1 2023 increased 80% to $2.7 million from $1.5 million in the same year ago quarter. The net increase of $1.2 million was due to increased earnings from equity method investments. Net income attributable to the company for the first quarter of fiscal 2023 totaled $45.1 million or $1.83 per diluted share. This compares to net income attributable to the company of $26 million or $1.08 per diluted share in Q1 of last year and this was adjusted for the effect of the 2 for 1 stock split in June 2022.

2023 年第一季度權益法投資收益從去年同期的 150 萬美元增長 80% 至 270 萬美元。淨增加 120 萬美元是由於權益法投資的收益增加。 2023 財年第一季度歸屬於公司的淨收入總計 4510 萬美元或攤薄後每股收益 1.83 美元。相比之下，去年第一季度歸屬於公司的淨收入為 2600 萬美元或每股攤薄收益 1.08 美元，並根據 2022 年 6 月 2 股拆股的影響進行了調整。

Our diluted EPS for the fiscal first quarter of 2023 is based on weighted average diluted shares outstanding of 24.7 million, compared with 24 million weighted average diluted shares outstanding during the first quarter of last year. This has been adjusted for the effect of the 2 for 1 stock split that occurred in June 2022.

我們 2023 財年第一季度的攤薄後每股收益基於 2470 萬股加權平均攤薄流通股，而去年第一季度為 2400 萬股加權平均攤薄流通股。這已針對 2022 年 6 月發生的 2 股 1 股拆股的影響進行了調整。

Adjusted net income before provision for income taxes, a non-GAAP financial measure, which excludes acquisition expenses, amortization and depreciation for Q1 fiscal 2023 totaled $61.3 million, an increase of 49% compared to $41.1 million in the same year ago quarter. EBITDA, a non-GAAP liquidity measure for Q1 fiscal 2023 totaled $62.2 million, a 52% increase compared to $41 million in Q1 of fiscal 2022.

2023 財年第一季度扣除收購費用、攤銷和折舊後的調整後所得稅準備金前淨收入為 6130 萬美元，與去年同期的 4110 萬美元相比增長了 49%。 EBITDA 是 2023 財年第一季度的非 GAAP 流動性指標，總額為 6220 萬美元，與 2022 財年第一季度的 4100 萬美元相比增長了 52%。

Now turning to our balance sheet. At quarter end, we had $64.6 million of cash compared to $37.8 million at the end of fiscal year 2022. Our tangible net worth at the end of the quarter was $339.7 million, up from $321.6 million at the end of the prior fiscal year.

現在轉向我們的資產負債表。截至季度末，我們擁有 6460 萬美元現金，而 2022 財年末為 3780 萬美元。本季度末我們的有形淨資產為 3.397 億美元，高於上一財年末的 3.216 億美元。

And finally, as we announced in our earnings release, A-Mark's Board of Directors has reaffirmed its previously announced regular quarterly dividend policy of $0.20 per common share or $0.80 per share on an annual basis. The initial quarterly cash dividend under the policy was paid in October 2022. It is expected that the next quarterly dividend will be paid in January 2023. The declaration of regular cash dividends in the future is subject to the determination each quarter by the Board of Directors based on a number of factors, including the company's financial performance, available cash resources, cash requirements and alternative uses of cash and applicable bank covenant. That completes my financial summary.

最後，正如我們在收益發布中宣布的那樣，A-Mark 董事會重申其先前宣布的每普通股 0.20 美元或每年每股 0.80 美元的定期季度股息政策。 2022年10月派發該政策下的首個季度現金分紅，預計2023年1月派發下一季度現金分紅。未來定期現金分紅的宣派以每季度董事會決議為準基於多種因素，包括公司的財務業績、可用現金資源、現金需求和現金的替代用途以及適用的銀行契約。這完成了我的財務摘要。

Now I will turn the call over to Thor, who will update us on metrics. Thor?

現在我將把電話轉給 Thor，他會向我們更新指標。雷神？

Thank you, Kathleen. Looking at our key operating metrics for the first quarter of fiscal 2023, we sold 629,000 ounces of gold in Q1 fiscal 2023, which was down 6% from Q1 of last year and down 2% from the prior quarter.

謝謝你，凱瑟琳。從我們 2023 財年第一季度的主要運營指標來看，我們在 2023 財年第一季度銷售了 629,000 盎司黃金，比去年第一季度下降 6%，比上一季度下降 2%。

We sold 35.9 million ounces of silver in Q1 fiscal 2023, which was up 28% from Q1 of last year and down 4% from last quarter. The number of new customers in the DTC segment, which is defined as a number of customers that have registered or set up a new account, or made a purchase for the first time during the period was 49,000 in Q1 fiscal 2023, which is down 7% from Q1 of last year and compares to 48,800 from last quarter.

我們在 2023 財年第一季度售出了 3590 萬盎司白銀，比去年第一季度增長 28%，比上一季度下降 4%。 2023 財年第一季度，DTC 細分市場的新客戶數量（定義為在此期間已註冊或設立新賬戶或首次購買的客戶數量）為 49,000，下降了 7與去年第一季度的百分比相比，上一季度為 48,800。

The number of total customers in the DTC segment at the end of the first quarter was approximately $2.1 million, which is a 12% increase from the prior year. The year-over-year increases in the customer base metrics were primarily due to organic growth of our JMB customer base.

第一季度末 DTC 部門的客戶總數約為 210 萬美元，比上年增長 12%。客戶群指標的同比增長主要是由於我們的 JMB 客戶群的有機增長。

The DTC segment average order value, which represents the average dollar value of third-party product orders delivered to DTC segment customers during Q1 fiscal 2023 was $2,333, which is up 2% from Q1 fiscal 2022. For the fiscal first quarter, our inventory turn ratio was 2.7 and which is a 29% decrease from 3.8 in Q1 of last year and comparable with the prior quarter.

DTC 細分市場平均訂單價值，即 2023 財年第一季度交付給 DTC 細分市場客戶的第三方產品訂單的平均美元價值為 2,333 美元，比 2022 財年第一季度增長 2%。在第一財季，我們的庫存周轉率比率為 2.7，比去年第一季度的 3.8 下降了 29%，與上一季度相當。

Finally, the number of secured loans at the end of September totaled 1,082, a decrease of 48% from September 30, 2021, and a decrease of 52% from the end of June. The dollar value of our loan portfolio at the end of September totaled $87.3 million, a decrease of 31% from the end of last fiscal year.

最後，9月末擔保貸款筆數為1082筆，較2021年9月30日下降48%，較6月底下降52%。截至 9 月底，我們貸款組合的美元價值總計 8730 萬美元，比上一財年末下降 31%。

Typically, the number of loans increased during periods of rising precious metals prices and decrease during periods of declining precious metal prices. Numerous CFC loans were paid off during the quarter when the market experienced a material drop in precious metals prices. Our system and controls operated effectively, and we did not incur any related loan losses.

通常，貸款數量在貴金屬價格上漲期間增加，而在貴金屬價格下跌期間減少。當市場經歷貴金屬價格大幅下跌時，本季度償還了大量 CFC 貸款。我們的系統和控制有效運行，我們沒有發生任何相關的貸款損失。

That concludes my prepared remarks. I'll now turn it over to Greg for closing remarks. Greg?

我準備好的發言到此結束。我現在將其轉交給 Greg 作結束語。格雷格？

Thank you, Thor and Kathleen. As you can see, we're off to a strong start in our fiscal 2023 and are optimistic that this year will be another period of solid performance for A-Mark.

謝謝托爾和凱瑟琳。正如您所看到的，我們在 2023 財年開局良好，並且樂觀地認為今年將是 A-Mark 又一個表現強勁的時期。

Looking ahead, we continue to see positive macro tailwinds, including precious metal supply constraints and elevated demand for our products in both wholesale and retail segments. To build on this momentum and further strengthen our platform, we are continuing to evaluate investment opportunities to expand our geographic presence and market reach while creating value for our shareholders.

展望未來，我們繼續看到積極的宏觀有利因素，包括貴金屬供應限制以及批發和零售領域對我們產品的需求增加。為了在此勢頭的基礎上進一步加強我們的平台，我們將繼續評估投資機會，以擴大我們的地域影響力和市場範圍，同時為我們的股東創造價值。

We are focusing on opportunities that align with our business model and are synergistic for A-Mark. We remain optimistic that our proven business model and integrated platform will allow us to realize growth and profitability over the long term. Jenny?

我們專注於與我們的商業模式相一致並且對 A-Mark 具有協同作用的機會。我們仍然樂觀地認為，我們經過驗證的商業模式和集成平台將使我們能夠實現長期增長和盈利。珍妮？

Thank you, Greg. (Operator Instructions) Our first question will come from Thomas Forte of Davidson.

謝謝你，格雷格。 （操作員說明）我們的第一個問題將來自 Davidson 的 Thomas Forte。

So Greg, Thor, Kathleen, congrats on a great quarter. I have a couple of questions. I'll go 1 at a time. A lot of really good impressive numbers in the quarter. But Greg, what stood out to me was I think you said you had 56% higher private mint production. It sounds like you made an acquisition to advance your efforts there. How are you able to achieve such a large growth in your production? And how should we think about your ability to grow the production in the future?

所以 Greg、Thor、Kathleen 祝賀一個偉大的季度。我有一些問題。我一次去1。本季度有很多非常好的令人印象深刻的數字。但是格雷格，對我來說最突出的是我認為你說你的私人薄荷產量高出 56%。聽起來你進行了一次收購以推進你在那裡的努力。您是如何實現產量如此大的增長的？我們應該如何考慮你們未來增加產量的能力？

Well, I think the acquisition we did was actually a tool and die company locally to where our men is located, and it was just a small acquisition to make sure that we locked up their expertise whenever we need it, when any of our machines or any of our operations are struggling or we hit a hiccup.

好吧，我認為我們所做的收購實際上是我們員工所在地的一家工具和模具公司，這只是一次小型收購，以確保我們在需要時鎖定他們的專業知識，當我們的任何機器或我們的任何業務都在苦苦掙扎，或者我們遇到了麻煩。

So we were very happy to acquire that. I don't believe that was a contributor to the increase in production. I think the increase in production was something we've been working on for a number of quarters where we have been able to get all of our all of our production operating 24/7 and really maxing out what at the very top of our capabilities are, and we were able to stay running with all of our production lines for this quarter.

所以我們很高興獲得它。我不認為這是產量增加的原因。我認為增加產量是我們幾個季度以來一直在努力的事情，我們已經能夠讓我們所有的生產全天候 24/7 運行，並真正最大限度地發揮我們的能力，並且我們能夠在本季度保持所有生產線的運行。

So a testament to Brent and Jamie at SilverTowne. They really hit it out of the park this quarter, and it was particularly good timing for us because we had plenty of demand for the product. And once again, we maximized our performance by having product available when our competitors did not or were limited in what they had.

這是對 SilverTowne 的 Brent 和 Jamie 的證明。他們在這個季度真的很成功，這對我們來說是一個特別好的時機，因為我們對該產品有很多需求。再一次，當我們的競爭對手沒有或他們擁有的產品有限時，我們通過提供產品來最大化我們的性能。

So I really think, as you have seen over time now, all of these parts of the business that's fully integrated now, really, when they all work together, the potential is tremendous. And I think we got that done this quarter.

所以我真的認為，正如你隨著時間的推移所看到的那樣，現在已經完全整合的所有這些業務部分，真的，當它們一起工作時，潛力是巨大的。我認為我們在本季度完成了這項工作。

All right. So great, so there's 3 things that are having an impact on your business or historically, I think would impact your business. And I'm trying to understand because I feel like some of these things are moving in different directions.

好的。太好了，所以有 3 件事正在對您的業務產生影響，或者從歷史上看，我認為會影響您的業務。我正在努力理解，因為我覺得其中一些事情正朝著不同的方向發展。

So the first one is geopolitical, especially on a global basis, that seems to be kind of a persistent, I would think, tailwind. And then macroeconomic, I'm not sure to what extent it's a positive or a negative. And then third, it's interesting how well you're managing earnings with the movements in precious metal prices up and down in gold and silver.

所以第一個是地緣政治，尤其是在全球範圍內，我認為這似乎是一種持久的順風。然後是宏觀經濟，我不確定它在多大程度上是積極的還是消極的。第三，有趣的是，隨著貴金屬價格在黃金和白銀中的上下波動，您管理收益的能力如何。

So how is it that you're able to generate such impressive profits with the movement in gold and silver maybe not necessarily favorable? Maybe it is favorable, and I'm just misinterpreting it.

那麼，您如何能夠在黃金和白銀的走勢不一定有利的情況下產生如此可觀的利潤呢？也許這是有利的，我只是誤解了它。

Yes. I think we'll start there. We've always said that volatility in the spot prices is really good for us. And particularly, when we have dips and significant dips and I would focus that on silver. In this quarter that we're currently reporting, we did have 1 or 2 instances where silver made new lows and that really kind of supercharges our demand at the DTC level as well as at the wholesale level because as we've said many times before, the silver buyers in particular, tend to buy the dips.

是的。我想我們將從那裡開始。我們一直說，現貨價格的波動對我們來說真的很好。特別是，當我們出現下跌和大幅下跌時，我會把重點放在白銀上。在我們目前報告的這個季度，我們確實有 1 到 2 次白銀創下新低，這確實在某種程度上刺激了我們在 DTC 層面和批發層面的需求，因為正如我們之前多次說過的那樣，尤其是白銀買家，傾向於逢低買入。

And then quickly, thereafter, we had recovery and then traded up towards recent highs within the quarter. So we just had a very large range of prices in gold and silver in Q1. And I think that just drove a lot of demand. And I think once again, A-Mark was well-positioned at all levels to take advantage of that.

然後很快，此後，我們開始復蘇，然後在本季度內上漲至近期高點。所以我們在第一季度的黃金和白銀價格波動很大。我認為這只是推動了很多需求。我再次認為，A-Mark 在各個層面都處於有利地位，可以利用這一點。

And I think that's the common theme that we talk about, is that positioning ourselves being ready to take advantage of opportunities when they're there. Now obviously, throughout this quarter, we had a fairly robust quarter across all 90 days. I think we had a few slow weeks in August, but we were very, very active in July and September was particularly strong for us, and a lot of it had to do with this volatility.

我認為這是我們談論的共同主題，就是讓自己做好準備，在機會出現時利用它們。現在很明顯，在整個本季度，我們在所有 90 天內都有一個相當強勁的季度。我認為我們在 8 月度過了幾個緩慢的星期，但我們在 7 月非常非常活躍，而 9 月對我們來說尤其強勁，這在很大程度上與這種波動有關。

I think whenever you see big moves in the price, and I can kind of maybe frame that a little bit this quarter -- Q2 now I'm talking about. You've seen a couple of days in the recent -- just in the recent weeks that gold had a $50 move in the same day in 1 day. That's a very significant move for us and that drives a lot of activity.

我認為，每當你看到價格出現大幅波動時，我可能會在本季度對這一點進行一些框架——我現在談論的是第二季度。你最近幾天看到了——就在最近幾週，黃金在 1 天內的同一天移動了 50 美元。這對我們來說是一個非常重要的舉措，並且推動了很多活動。

Silver had 2 days in the last few weeks where it had a $1 move in a single day. Again, that's the type of volatility that is going to play well for us. And I think it has a little bit to do back to the initial part of your question as it relates to macroeconomic and just overall supply-demand imbalances.

過去幾週，白銀有 2 天單日波動 1 美元。同樣，這就是對我們有利的波動類型。我認為這與你問題的開頭部分有一點關係，因為它與宏觀經濟和整體供需失衡有關。

As I said a year ago, inflation is good for us. And I said I didn't think it was transitory and it wasn't, and it continues to drive good things in our business, and we're benefiting from that. The continued polarization and political turmoil, again, very good for us. So I think I hit everything in your question, but...

正如我一年前所說，通貨膨脹對我們有利。我說我不認為這是暫時的，事實並非如此，它繼續推動我們業務的發展，我們正從中受益。持續的兩極分化和政治動盪再次對我們非常有利。所以我想我已經解決了你問題中的所有問題，但是......

Yes, you did. So last question for me. And again, congrats on a very impressive quarter. So you acquired some of the assets from BGASC. It sounds like you're talking about potential geographic expansion. At a high level, how should we think about your potential future M&A activities?

是的，你做到了。所以我的最後一個問題。再一次，祝賀一個非常令人印象深刻的季度。所以你從 BGASC 獲得了一些資產。聽起來你在談論潛在的地理擴張。在較高的層面上，我們應該如何考慮您未來潛在的併購活動？

I believe you should think about us as being very active. And I think we are -- we believe there is a great opportunity for us right now. We believe the moat around A-Mark is wider than ever. We do believe that the opportunities are presenting themselves because of what we've done with the company. I think the strength of our balance sheet right now is unbelievable. And over $500 million in shareholder equity with no long-term debt.

我相信您應該認為我們非常活躍。而且我認為我們 - 我們相信現在對我們來說是一個很好的機會。我們相信 A-Mark 周圍的護城河比以往任何時候都寬。我們確實相信，由於我們對公司所做的一切，機會正在出現。我認為我們目前資產負債表的實力令人難以置信。股東權益超過 5 億美元，沒有長期債務。

I just -- we are set up really well to take advantage of opportunities, and we think we feel really good about this BGASC deal. Early indications are the return on the investment for us will be even quicker than we anticipated. We just believe that our model and our ability to plug these businesses in and move them just into our ecosystem can improve the performance of these acquisitions and we just feel that we have a very good advantage here. And like I said, I expect us to be very active.

我只是 - 我們的設置非常好，可以利用機會，我們認為我們對 BGASC 交易感覺非常好。早期跡象表明，我們的投資回報將比我們預期的更快。我們只是相信我們的模型和我們將這些業務插入並將它們轉移到我們的生態系統中的能力可以提高這些收購的績效，我們只是覺得我們在這裡擁有非常好的優勢。就像我說的，我希望我們會非常活躍。

Your next question is coming from Greg Gibas of Northland Securities.

你的下一個問題來自 Northland Securities 的 Greg Gibas。

Greg, Thor and Kathleen, I wanted to ask if you're seeing any changing in buying patterns from customers. And also I just wanted to follow up on the -- congrats on the gross margin improvement and really all around results on that regard.

Greg、Thor 和 Kathleen，我想問一下你們是否發現客戶的購買模式發生了任何變化。而且我只想跟進 - 祝賀毛利率的提高以及這方面的所有結果。

But regarding the improvement, wondering if you could just maybe discuss. Is it mostly coming from increased spreads on lower prices of metals? Or if you could kind of discuss maybe that versus more in-house production, seeing higher margins there or anything on the mix shift from to.

但是關於改進，想知道您是否可以討論一下。它主要來自金屬價格下跌導致的價差增加嗎？或者，如果你可以討論一下，與更多的內部生產相比，看到那裡更高的利潤率或混合中的任何東西從到。

Yes. I mean I think that those who follow us know that we make a good amount of our gross profit is on silver and particularly in 1-ounce and 10-ounce and 100-ounce silver products.

是的。我的意思是，我認為那些關注我們的人都知道，我們的毛利潤中有很大一部分來自白銀，尤其是 1 盎司、10 盎司和 100 盎司的白銀產品。

We make more money on those products if we make them ourselves and manufacture them ourselves. And we collect just a bigger piece of the overall gross profit chain. I think that right now, you're seeing a company that has really built out and is touching more wide and broader demographics than we've ever touched before, both at the wholesale level as well as at the retail level at the DTC side, and we're just able to accommodate more ounces.

如果我們自己製造並自己製造這些產品，我們就能從這些產品上賺更多的錢。我們只收集了整個毛利鏈的更大一部分。我認為現在，你看到的是一家真正建立起來的公司，並且正在接觸比我們以前接觸過的更廣泛的人口統計數據，無論是在批發層面還是在 DTC 方面的零售層面，我們只能容納更多盎司。

And I would point to the ounces this quarter in silver, in particular, that was a very big number for us. And we did it. We didn't strain to do it. We have been able to keep the raw metal flowing through our manufacturing businesses. We've been able to avoid logistics and supply chain hiccups that others have had trouble with. And it just says a lot about from our traders to our minting business, to our friends at SMI and then all the way to DTC.

我要特別指出本季度白銀的盎司數，這對我們來說是一個非常大的數字。我們做到了。我們沒有費力去做。我們已經能夠讓原材料流經我們的製造業務。我們已經能夠避免其他人遇到過的物流和供應鏈問題。它只是從我們的交易員到我們的鑄幣業務，再到我們在 SMI 的朋友，然後一直到 DTC，說了很多。

So I think we definitely really -- our vision of what we're doing really came together this quarter, and it's certainly -- we feel like initially in Q2, we're seeing some of the same performance. I think that when you talk about where it's coming from and are there any changes, I think I touched on this a little bit last call. We continue to see a very surprising and positive size of purchases at our DTC segment.

所以我認為我們絕對真的 - 我們對我們正在做的事情的願景在本季度真正匯集在一起，而且肯定 - 我們覺得最初在第二季度，我們看到了一些相同的表現。我認為當你談論它的來源以及是否有任何變化時，我想我在最後一次電話會議上談到了這一點。我們繼續看到我們的 DTC 部門的採購規模非常令人驚訝和積極。

We're continuing to see very large first-time buys and very large second and third repeat customer business at very large levels. And I would say that of all the things that are different that we feel right now is just a much -- when I look at like our top individual transactions at DTC for the week or for the month, we're just seeing a large number of first-time people coming in with very large purchases.

我們繼續看到非常大的首次購買和非常大的第二和第三次回頭客業務。我想說的是，在我們現在感覺的所有不同之處中，只有很多——當我查看 DTC 本週或本月的最高單項交易時，我們看到了很多首次購買大量商品的人。

And mostly, we're seeing some real positive on gold product that we're able to source as well as the smaller silver buyers and just the numbers on new users and those smaller invoices are also growing. So it is a -- it's a good time for us, and we're very, very pleased with everybody at A-Mark that they've been able to pick up the slack. And we have not really had any down days, and we've not really missed any of the opportunity. And I think that's just really just great news as it relates to what our employees are able to do.

大多數情況下，我們看到我們能夠採購的黃金產品以及較小的白銀買家以及新用戶和那些較小發票的數量也在增長。所以這對我們來說是個好時機，我們對 A-Mark 的每個人都非常非常高興，因為他們能夠收拾殘局。而且我們並沒有真正度過任何低迷的日子，也沒有真正錯過任何機會。我認為這真的是個好消息，因為它關係到我們員工的能力。

Right. Really appreciate all that color, Greg. And great to hear about the strong repeat purchases and strong purchases of our new customers, too. I did want to ask in relation to the short-term borrowing that you guys do to fund metals purchases. Do you see any -- are you seeing impact, I guess, from increased rates and -- or do you even expect to regarding kind of...

正確的。真的很欣賞所有這些顏色，格雷格。很高興聽到我們的新客戶的強烈重複購買和強烈購買。我確實想問一下你們為金屬購買提供資金的短期借款。你有沒有看到任何 - 我猜你是否看到利率上升的影響 - 或者你甚至期望關於......

Certainly, interest rates have affected us, and we do pay a higher rate on our short-term borrowings because it's tied to an index or a benchmark. And I think that we have experienced increased borrowing costs. If you look at the actual metrics and if you dig into our Q a little bit.

當然，利率影響了我們，我們確實為短期借款支付了更高的利率，因為它與指數或基準掛鉤。而且我認為我們經歷了借貸成本的增加。如果您查看實際指標並深入研究我們的問題。

I would guess, and I haven't looked at the number myself, but I would guess that our actual gross dollars of interest paid probably hasn't fluctuated all that much with the increase because I believe we're just borrowing less money.

我猜，我自己沒有看過這個數字，但我猜我們實際支付的利息總額可能並沒有隨著增加而波動那麼大，因為我相信我們只是藉了更少的錢。

We've had 2 really strong quarters back-to-back. We've generated a tremendous amount of free cash, and we're just borrowing less dollars right now. And we're, in essence, self-funding. So it's kind of we generally say that when rates rise, we should be able to outperform the rate increase, and I believe that's happening right now, whether it be passing on increase cost to our customers as it relates to where we lend to people or whether it's just we're not borrowing as many gross dollars because our performance has been exceptional. So that's kind of everything there.

我們連續有兩個非常強勁的季度。我們已經產生了大量的自由現金，而我們現在只是藉了更少的錢。從本質上講，我們是自籌資金。所以我們通常會說，當利率上升時，我們應該能夠跑贏利率上升，我相信現在正在發生這種情況，無論是將增加的成本轉嫁給我們的客戶，因為這與我們向人們提供貸款的地方有關，還是是否只是因為我們的表現非常出色，所以我們沒有借入那麼多美元。這就是那裡的一切。

Sure. Yes, that's very helpful. Last one for me. You talked about plans for expansion on the minting facility. Just wondering if you could discuss that a little bit more and then kind of the timing around it.

當然。是的，這很有幫助。最後一個給我。您談到了鑄幣廠的擴建計劃。只是想知道你是否可以再討論一下，然後再討論一下它的時間安排。

Yes. I mean when we talk about minting, we talk about 2 different entities. We have our minority interest in Sunshine Mint and we've talked about that before, and we're very pleased with what Tom Power and Jason and his team at SMI are doing there.

是的。我的意思是，當我們談論鑄造時，我們談論的是兩個不同的實體。我們在 Sunshine Mint 擁有少數股權，我們之前已經討論過這個問題，我們對 Tom Power 和 Jason 以及他在 SMI 的團隊在那裡所做的事情感到非常滿意。

And they have worked very hard the last couple of quarters to integrate some new machinery and to raise capacity and A-Mark has been the beneficiary of that. We've been able to acquire not only just regular Sunshine Mint products, but we've also been able to create some higher-margin specialty products with SMI. That's working very well.

他們在過去幾個季度非常努力地整合了一些新機器並提高了產能，A-Mark 一直是這方面的受益者。我們不僅能夠獲得常規的 Sunshine Mint 產品，而且還能夠通過 SMI 開發一些利潤更高的特色產品。效果很好。

At the SilverTowne level, Jamie and Brent are getting everything they can out of our facility. I will say that we have -- in the last 60 days, we've acquired some more raw land in Winchester. And we are starting to look at how we can expand in Winchester, Indiana, at the SilverTowne level.

在 SilverTowne 層面，Jamie 和 Brent 正在從我們的設施中獲得他們所能得到的一切。我要說的是，在過去的 60 天裡，我們在溫徹斯特獲得了更多的未開發土地。我們開始研究如何在 SilverTowne 級別在印第安納州溫徹斯特進行擴展。

And we think that's going to be a great opportunity for us to, at least, have plans ready to go in the event that this demand continues and we just need more capacity. So we're -- it's all part of the like I said, the vertical integration, and we want to smartly and cautiously expand our production and what we can have available to sell, without getting too far over our skis and grow too quickly.

我們認為這將是一個很好的機會，至少可以在這種需求持續存在並且我們只需要更多容量的情況下準備好計劃。所以我們 - 這都是我所說的垂直整合的一部分，我們希望巧妙而謹慎地擴大我們的生產以及我們可以出售的產品，而不會在我們的滑雪板上走得太遠並且增長太快。

But to this point, I think we're very comfortable with the pace and looking out the next 2 to 3 years where we see a clear path to continuing to dominate this space.

但就這一點而言，我認為我們對未來 2 到 3 年的步伐和展望感到非常滿意，我們看到了一條繼續主導該領域的清晰道路。

Your next question is coming from Andrew Scutt of ROTH Capital Partners.

你的下一個問題來自 ROTH Capital Partners 的 Andrew Scutt。

Congrats on the strong results. Most of my questions have been answered. So just a quick one on CyberMetals. We're a few quarters out from the launch we've seen some healthy growth, especially in the last few quarters. Do you guys kind of a clear picture now on what you see as the potential of this business? And also just -- I know you talked about potential marketing efforts to drive customers to the platform. Have you guys gone -- done any marketing? And how has that progressed as well?

祝賀你取得了優異的成績。我的大部分問題都已得到解答。所以只是快速介紹一下 CyberMetals。距離發布還有幾個季度，我們看到了一些健康的增長，尤其是在過去幾個季度。你們現在對這項業務的潛力有什麼清晰的了解嗎？而且 - 我知道你談到了將客戶吸引到平台的潛在營銷努力。你們去了——做過營銷嗎？進展如何？

Yes. We have pretty much finished our testing with the existing DTC customers at JM Bullion. And I think that most of the growth you're seeing is coming from that customer base. I don't think that we've converted as many customers as maybe we hoped we would I think that's a function of the demographic and the makeup of the JMB customer who has always been a physical metals customer that wants to take delivery that wants the metals shipped to them.

是的。我們已經基本完成了對 JM Bullion 現有 DTC 客戶的測試。而且我認為您看到的大部分增長都來自該客戶群。我認為我們轉化的客戶數量沒有我們希望的那麼多 我認為這是人口統計和 JMB 客戶構成的函數運送給他們的金屬。

I think that we see some conversion. But I believe that the physical metal customer is probably not the best place for us to be fishing for that type of customer for CyberMetals. I think we're going to continue to see steady growth there. We have started to test some marketing outside of the normal channels that you would see JM Bullion or Goldline or any of our DTC brands advertising in, and we have started to test some newer more tech-related innovative marketing that we've been able to do to try to touch and convert customers that don't even know who JM Bullion or A-Mark is.

我認為我們看到了一些轉變。但我認為，實體金屬客戶可能不是我們為 CyberMetals 尋找這類客戶的最佳場所。我認為我們將繼續在那裡看到穩定的增長。我們已經開始測試一些您會看到 JM Bullion 或 Goldline 或我們的任何 DTC 品牌在其中投放廣告的正常渠道之外的營銷，並且我們已經開始測試一些更新的與技術相關的創新營銷，我們已經能夠嘗試接觸和轉化甚至不知道 JM Bullion 或 A-Mark 是誰的客戶。

So we are doing that. We're seeing some results. We look forward to continuing to update everybody on how this goes and happy with the performance. But I would say it's probably going to be a little bit slower, a little slower climb than maybe we initially thought. But the system is working great. The platform is working good. The logistics of managing and servicing the trades is we have no problem whatsoever. So we have a great platform. I think now is just we're going to need to fish in a little different pond to find customers for CyberMetals.

所以我們正在這樣做。我們看到了一些結果。我們期待繼續向大家通報最新情況，並對性能感到滿意。但我會說它可能會比我們最初想像的慢一點，爬升慢一點。但係統運行良好。該平台運作良好。管理和服務貿易的物流是我們沒有任何問題的。所以我們有一個很棒的平台。我認為現在只是我們需要在一個稍微不同的池塘里釣魚來為 CyberMetals 尋找客戶。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員說明）

We appear to have no further questions in the queue. At this time, it concludes our question-and-answer session. I would now like to turn the call back over to Mr. Roberts for his closing remarks.

隊列中似乎沒有其他問題了。到這個時候，我們的問答環節就結束了。我現在想把電話轉回給羅伯茨先生，請他作結束語。

Thank you very much. I'd like to thank our shareholders for joining our call today. Thank you for your continued support. Many thanks to our employees for their dedication and commitment to A-Mark's success and we look forward to keeping you apprised of A-Mark's progress moving forward. Thank you very much.

非常感謝你。我要感謝我們的股東今天加入我們的電話會議。感謝您一直以來的支持。非常感謝我們的員工為 A-Mark 的成功所做的奉獻和承諾，我們期待讓您了解 A-Mark 的進步。非常感謝你。

This will conclude today's call. I would like to provide A-Mark's safe harbor statement that includes important cautions regarding forward-looking statements made during this call.

今天的電話會議到此結束。我想提供 A-Mark 的安全港聲明，其中包括關於本次電話會議期間所做的前瞻性聲明的重要警告。

During today's call, there were forward-looking statements made regarding future events. Statements that relate A-Mark's future plans, objectives, expectations, performance, events and the like are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Future events, risks and uncertainties individually or in the aggregate, could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements.

在今天的電話會議中，有關於未來事件的前瞻性陳述。與 A-Mark 的未來計劃、目標、預期、業績、事件等相關的陳述是 1995 年私人證券訴訟改革法案和 1934 年證券交易法含義內的前瞻性陳述。未來事件、風險和不確定性單獨或總體而言，可能導致實際結果與這些陳述中明示或暗示的結果存在重大差異。

Factors that could cause actual results to differ include the following: the failure to execute the company's growth strategy as planned; greater-than-anticipated costs incurred to execute the strategy; changes in the current domestic and international political climate; increased competition for A-Mark's higher-margin services, which could depress pricing; the failure of the company's business model to respond to changes in the market environment as anticipated; general risks of doing business in the commodity markets; and other business, economic, financial and governmental risks as described in the company's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

可能導致實際結果不同的因素包括：未能按計劃執行公司的增長戰略；執行戰略所產生的成本高於預期；當前國內和國際政治氣候的變化；對 A-Mark 的高利潤服務的競爭加劇，這可能會壓低定價；公司商業模式未能按預期應對市場環境變化；在商品市場開展業務的一般風險；以及公司向美國證券交易委員會提交的公開文件中所述的其他商業、經濟、金融和政府風險。

The words should, believe, estimate, expect, intend, anticipate, foresee, plan and other similar expressions and variations thereof, identify certain of such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they were made. Additionally, any statements related to future improved performance and estimates of revenues and earnings per share are forward-looking statements.

應該、相信、估計、預期、打算、預期、預見、計劃和其他類似的表達及其變體，識別某些此類前瞻性陳述，這些陳述僅在作出這些陳述的日期發表。此外，任何與未來業績改善相關的陳述以及對收入和每股收益的估計都是前瞻性陳述。

The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

公司不承擔公開更新或修改任何前瞻性陳述的義務。告誡讀者不要過分依賴這些前瞻性陳述。

Finally, I would like to remind everyone that a recording of today's call will be available for replay link via a link in the Investors section of the company's website. Thank you for joining us today for A-Mark's earnings call. You may now disconnect.

最後，我想提醒大家，今天的電話會議錄音將通過公司網站投資者部分的鏈接提供重播鏈接。感謝您今天加入我們參加 A-Mark 的財報電話會議。您現在可以斷開連接。