Adtalem Global Education Inc (ATGE) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

(technical difficulty) Adtalem Global Education first quarter 2026 earnings. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.

（技術難題）Adtalem Global Education 2026 年第一季財報。（操作說明）提醒各位，本次會議正在錄音。

It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Jay Spitzer, VP of Investor Relations. Thank you, Jay. You may begin.

現在，我很高興向大家介紹主持人，投資者關係副總裁傑伊‧斯皮策。謝謝你，傑伊。你可以開始了。

Good afternoon, and welcome to our earnings call for the first quarter fiscal year 2026 results. On the call with me today are Stephen Beard, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Adtalem Global Education; and Bob Phelan, Chief Financial Officer.

下午好，歡迎參加我們2026財年第一季業績電話會議。今天和我一起通話的是 Adtalem Global Education 的董事長兼執行長 Stephen Beard，以及財務長 Bob Phelan。

Before I hand you over to Steve, I will, as usual, take you through the legal Safe Harbor and cautionary declarations. Certain statements and projections of future results made in this presentation constitute as forward-looking statements that are based on current market, competitive, and regulatory expectations and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to vary materially. We undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statement after this presentation whether a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise.

在將你交給史蒂夫之前，我將像往常一樣，帶你了解法律上的安全港條款和注意事項。本簡報中某些關於未來績效的陳述和預測構成前瞻性陳述，這些陳述基於當前的市場、競爭和監管預期，並受到風險和不確定性的影響，這些風險和不確定性可能導致實際結果與預期結果有重大差異。我們不承擔在本次演示之後因新資訊、未來事件、假設變更或其他原因而公開更新任何前瞻性聲明的義務。

Please see our latest Form 10-K, Form 10-Q for a discussion of risk factors that relate to forward-looking statements.

有關與前瞻性陳述相關的風險因素的討論，請參閱我們最新的 10-K 表格和 10-Q 表格。

In today's presentation, we use certain non-GAAP financial measures. We refer you to the appendix in the presentation material available on our Investor Relations website for reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures and related information. You will find a link to the webcast on our Investor Relations website at investors.adtalem.com. After this call, the presentation will be webcasted and archived on the website for 30 days.

在今天的示範中，我們使用了一些非GAAP財務指標。有關與最直接可比較的 GAAP 財務指標及相關資訊的調整表，請參閱我們投資者關係網站上提供的簡報資料附錄。您可以在我們的投資者關係網站 investors.adtalem.com 上找到網路直播連結。本次電話會議結束後，簡報將在網站上進行網路直播並存檔 30 天。

I will now hand you over to Steve.

現在我把你交給史蒂夫。

Thanks, Jay, and good afternoon, everyone. Thanks for joining us today.

謝謝傑伊，大家下午好。感謝您今天收看我們的節目。

We delivered an outstanding start to fiscal year 2026. This marks our ninth consecutive quarter of enrollment growth. Total enrollment is up 8% year-over-year to 97,000 students. Revenue grew nearly 11% to $462 million, and we expanded our adjusted EBITDA margins by 100 basis points while delivering adjusted earnings per share of $1.75. That's growth of nearly 36% year-over-year.

我們在2026財年取得了優異的開局。這標誌著我們連續第九個季度實現招生人數成長。總入學人數年增 8%，達到 97,000 名學生。營收成長近11%至4.62億美元，調整後EBITDA利潤率提高了100個基點，調整後每股收益為1.75美元。較去年同期成長近36%。

This performance demonstrates the power of our growth of purpose strategy and the operational excellence we've embedded across the enterprise. Walden grew enrollment for the ninth straight quarter and achieved record total enrollment. Our Medical and Veterinary segment posted its third consecutive enrollment cycle of growth.

這項業績展現了我們以目標為導向的成長策略的強大力量，以及我們在整個企業中貫徹的卓越營運理念。沃爾登大學連續第九個季度招生人數成長，並創下招生總數紀錄。我們的醫療和獸醫業務板塊連續第三個招生週期成長。

Chamberlain grew enrollment for the 11th straight quarter, and we're continuing to generate strong free cash flow while maintaining attractively low net leverage.

張伯倫學院連續第 11 個季度招生人數成長，我們繼續產生強勁的自由現金流，同時保持著極具吸引力的低淨槓桿率。

Before I dive into the quarter, let me place our performance in the context of what's happening in healthcare. The healthcare workforce crisis continues to intensify. It's being driven by our aging population and accelerating retirements among practicing clinicians. This challenge is particularly acute in rural settings where nursing shortages alone are projected to triple by 2027, according to the National Center for Health Workforce Analysis. The shortage spans the entire healthcare workforce from physicians to technicians and represents a defining characteristic of healthcare for the foreseeable future.

在深入分析本季業績之前，我想先將我們的業績置於醫療保健產業當前情勢的背景下進行分析。醫療衛生人力危機持續加劇。這是由人口老化和臨床醫生加速退休所導致的。根據國家衛生人力分析中心的數據，到 2027 年，農村地區的護理人員短缺問題預計將增加兩倍，這項挑戰在農村地區尤為嚴峻。從醫生到技術人員，整個醫療保健團隊都面臨人手短缺的問題，這將成為可預見的未來醫療保健產業的一個顯著特徵。

The industry is working to accelerate modernization through AI to augment practitioner efficiency, but these innovations don't solve the structural workforce challenge, and that's precisely where our opportunity lies. As the largest provider of healthcare-focused education in the country, we're well positioned to play a vital role as essential talent infrastructure. That opportunity has never been clearer or more compelling.

該行業正努力透過人工智慧加速現代化，以提高從業人員的效率，但這些創新並不能解決結構性勞動力挑戰，而這正是我們的機會所在。作為全國最大的醫療保健教育提供者，我們有能力在重要的人才基礎設施建設中發揮關鍵作用。這個機會從未如此清晰、如此誘人。

Now, let me address Chamberlain's performance in the quarter directly. Chamberlain grew total enrollment by just over 2% in the first quarter to nearly 40,000 students, but that growth fell short of our standards. The primary driver was execution failures within our marketing and enrollment operations. We've completed a rigorous diagnostic, so let me be specific about what we found.

現在，讓我直接談談張伯倫本季的表現。張伯倫大學第一季總入學人數成長略超過 2%，達到近 4 萬名學生，但這一成長未達到我們的標準。主要原因是行銷和招生營運的執行失敗。我們已經完成了一項嚴格的診斷，現在讓我具體說明我們發現了什麼。

First, we underperformed in local marketing effectiveness during our critical September intake cycle. Our local market campaigns didn't resonate as effectively as they could have in key metropolitan areas. And we failed to optimize our marketing mix quickly enough when we saw early warning signs.

首先，在關鍵的九月招生週期中，我們的本地行銷效果不佳。我們在主要大都會地區的本地市場推廣活動並沒有達到預期的效果。當我們看到早期預警訊號時，我們未能及時優化行銷組合。

Second, we failed to convert inquiry volume at historical rates. Our enrollment funnel conversion rates fell below our benchmarks, which means we generated strong interest, but didn't close enrollments efficiently. That's an operational issue, and it's fixable.

第二，我們未能將詢價轉換率恢復到歷史水準。我們的招生漏斗轉換率低於預期目標，這意味著我們引起了強烈的興趣，但沒有有效地完成招生。這是操作方面的問題，可以解決。

To be clear, this quarter's variance is driven by execution. The fundamentals of our Chamberlain platform remain attractively robust. Nursing demand has never been stronger. Chamberlain has a powerful brand that resonates with students and employers, significant capacity, a full breadth of nursing programs across multiple modalities. We have everything we need to serve this market effectively. We simply need to execute better at converting that demand into enrollment. Put another way, we're execution constrained, but not capacity constrained.

需要明確的是，本季的波動是由執行情況造成的。我們張伯倫平台的基本面依然非常穩健。護理需求從未如此強勁。張伯倫大學擁有強大的品牌影響力，深受學生和雇主的認可，辦學能力強，提供涵蓋多種教學模式的全面護理課程。我們擁有有效服務該市場所需的一切條件。我們只需要在將需求轉化為入學人數方面做得更好。換句話說，我們受限於執行力，但不受限於產能。

So we've taken decisive action to strengthen performance. First, we've made operational improvements to our marketing mix with enhanced local market focus. We're reallocating resources to the channels and geography that drive the highest quality enrollments, and we're moving faster to optimize underperforming campaigns.

因此，我們採取了果斷措施來提升業績。首先，我們對行銷組合進行了營運改進，更加重視本地市場。我們正在將資源重新分配到能夠帶來最高品質招生人數的管道和地區，我們正在加快優化效果不佳的行銷活動。

Second, we streamlined our enrollment processes to reduce friction in the student journey. Every unnecessary step in our enrollment funnel is an opportunity to lose a student. So we're eliminating those barriers.

其次，我們簡化了招生流程，以減少學生入學過程中的阻力。招生流程中每一個不必要的步驟都可能導致學生流失。所以我們正在消除這些障礙。

Third, we've made key leadership changes at Chamberlain. Following the recently announced retirement of our current President, we're conducting a national search for Chamberlain's next leader. We've also restructured the senior leadership team to accelerate decision-making and sharpen accountability. These changes reflect our commitment to accountability. When we don't execute to our standards, we address it decisively.

第三，我們對張伯倫進行了重要的領導調整。鑑於我們現任總裁近期宣布退休，我們正在全國範圍內尋找張伯倫的下一任領導人。我們還重組了高階領導團隊，以加快決策速度並加強問責制。這些改變體現了我們對問責制的承諾。當我們未能達到既定標準時，我們會果斷處理。

Looking ahead, we anticipate continued softness in post-licensure enrollment through the second and third quarters as we implement these changes. That's a realistic assessment based on enrollment cycle dynamics and the time required for our operational improvements to gain traction. However, we expect to return to stronger new enrollment in the back half of the year. We're already seeing early positive signals from our adjusted marketing approach and our restructured leadership team is moving with urgency and precision.

展望未來，隨著這些變革的實施，我們預計第二季和第三季獲得執照後的註冊人數將繼續保持疲軟。這是基於招生週期動態以及我們的營運改善措施取得成效所需時間而做出的現實評估。不過，我們預計下半年新生入學人數將恢復強勁成長。我們已經從調整後的行銷策略中看到了積極的早期跡象，重組後的領導團隊正在以緊迫感和精準度推進工作。

To be clear, we believe this is fixable, we're leaning in to correct it with speed and discipline, and most importantly, this doesn't change our conviction in Chamberlain's long-term trajectory, its strength as a brand or our full year guidance as an enterprise.

需要明確的是，我們相信這是可以解決的，我們正在迅速而有條不紊地糾正它，最重要的是，這不會改變我們對張伯倫長期發展軌跡、其品牌實力或我們全年企業業績預期的信心。

I also don't want to focus on this quarter's challenge to obscure Chamberlain's fundamental strengths and strategic progress. Our pre-licensure BSN programs continue robust enrollment. In just its fourth year, our online offering added nearly 750 students sequentially, now serving over 4,000 students in aggregate.

我也不想因為本季的挑戰而掩蓋張伯倫的基本優勢和策略進展。我們的護理學士（BSN）執照前課程招生人數持續保持強勁成長。短短四年，我們的線上課程就連續增加了近 750 名學生，目前總共服務超過 4000 名學生。

Our second Atlanta campus in Stockbridge, which opened just two years ago, now has 600 students and our 24th location in Kansas City is now enrolling its first cohort starting this January. Taken together, that's all a testament to how quickly we can meet the market's demand for flexible, high-quality nursing education.

我們在亞特蘭大斯托克布里奇的第二個校區於兩年前開業，現在已有 600 名學生；我們在堪薩斯城的第 24 個校區將於今年 1 月開始招收第一批學生。總而言之，這一切都證明了我們能夠多麼迅速地滿足市場對靈活、高品質護理教育的需求。

We recently expanded our practice-ready specialty focused model through a partnership with the American Association of Post-acute Care Nursing. This addresses the critical shortage of post-acute care nurses. This new specialization joins existing tracks in critical care, emergency care, home healthcare, nephrology, oncology, and perioperative nursing. Taken together, it further positions Chamberlain to meet the evolving needs of the healthcare workforce.

我們最近透過與美國復健護理協會的合作，擴展了我們以實踐為導向的專業模式。這解決了康復護理護士嚴重短缺的問題。這項新專業與現有的重症監護、急診護理、家庭醫療保健、腎臟病學、腫瘤學和圍手術期護理等專業方向相結合。綜上所述，這將進一步鞏固張伯倫大學滿足醫療保健產業不斷變化的需求的能力。

Again, our fundamentals are strong, the market opportunity is massive, and we're addressing the execution gaps with rigor and accountability.

再次強調，我們的基本面很強勁，市場機會巨大，我們正在以嚴謹的態度和高度負責的態度解決執行方面的差距。

Turning to Walden University. We delivered our ninth consecutive quarter of enrollment growth at nearly 14%, achieving record total enrollment of over 52,000 students. Walden's digital learning platform and flexible offerings continue to demonstrate strength as we innovate and deliver an increasingly seamless experience for working adult learners.

轉而考慮瓦爾登大學。我們連續第九個季度實現了招生人數成長，增幅接近 14%，創下總招生人數超過 52,000 名學生的紀錄。沃爾登的數位化學習平台和靈活的課程安排持續展現出強大的實力，我們不斷創新，為在職成年學習者提供越來越無縫的學習體驗。

We're optimizing our marketing mix, curating content for large language model recognition, and building upon Walden's strong brand recognition. Our investments in program enhancements, the Believe & Achieve Scholarship offering and AI-enabled technology are translating directly into enrollment growth. We recently streamlined our professional doctoral programs, creating a more intuitive student experience with a simplified tuition structure, integrated scholarship support, and a redesigned capstone process that enables students to build toward degree completion throughout their studies.

我們正在優化行銷組合，精心策劃內容以提升大型語言模型的識別能力，並鞏固 Walden 強大的品牌知名度。我們在計畫改善、「相信與成就獎學金」計畫和人工智慧技術方面的投資，正直接轉化為入學人數的成長。我們最近簡化了專業博士課程，透過簡化學費結構、整合獎學金支援和重新設計畢業設計流程，為學生創造了更直觀的學習體驗，使學生能夠在整個學習過程中逐步完成學位。

Technology is enabling our faculty and advisers to spend less time on administrative tasks and more time on student-facing support. Walden's value proposition is clear and it is reflected in total enrollment growth across all degree levels and very, very strong persistence rates.

科技使我們的教職員工和顧問能夠減少在行政事務上花費的時間，從而將更多的時間用於為學生提供支援。瓦爾登大學的價值主張很明確，這體現在所有學位級別的總入學人數增長以及非常非常高的學生留校率。

In our Medical and Veterinary segment, we're showing consistent progress. Total enrollment grew 2.4% to approximately 5,300 students and key leading indicators across our medical schools are pointing to sustainable long-term growth. Notably, Ross Med had its largest September new student start in the last five years. And Ross Vet continues to operate near capacity, maintaining its position as a leader in veterinary education with a one-of-a-kind experiential learning model.

在醫療和獸醫領域，我們取得了持續進展。總入學人數增加了 2.4%，達到約 5300 名學生，我們各醫學院的關鍵領先指標均表明，我們將實現可持續的長期成長。值得注意的是，羅斯醫學院九月的新生入學人數是近五年來最多的。羅斯獸醫學院繼續保持接近滿載運轉的狀態，憑藉其獨一無二的體驗式學習模式，繼續保持著獸醫教育領域的領先地位。

Our partnership philosophy extends across all of our institutions as we create innovative ways to enhance educational access and remove learning barriers. AUC's partnership with the University of Lancashire in the UK remains our international hub. And we've established a new direct admittance partnership with the University of Wolverhampton, creating an additional pipeline for prospective students.

我們的合作理念貫穿我們所有的機構，我們不斷創新，以增強教育機會並消除學習障礙。AUC 與英國蘭開夏大學的合作關係仍然是我們的國際樞紐。我們與伍爾弗漢普頓大學建立了新的直接錄取合作關係，為未來的學生創造了額外的入學管道。

We're expanding our global reach through a partnership with Sage in India, offering a pathway for Indian students to attend Ross Med upon completion of an advanced medical preparation program. And here in the States, we announced a partnership with ScribeAmerica, creating the MedPath program designed specifically for existing frontline healthcare workers to advance into medical school.

我們正透過與印度 Sage 的合作來擴大我們的全球影響力，為印度學生在完成高級醫學預科課程後進入羅斯醫學院深造提供了途徑。在美國，我們宣布與 ScribeAmerica 建立合作關係，創建了 MedPath 計劃，該計劃專門為現有的一線醫護人員設計，幫助他們進入醫學院深造。

This is an excellent pathway for experienced US healthcare professionals to step up and help fill the physician gap. These partnerships aren't opportunistic. They're strategic investments in expanding access to in-demand healthcare education while strengthening our long-term enrollment pipelines.

對於經驗豐富的美國醫療保健專業人員來說，這是一條絕佳的途徑，可以挺身而出，幫助填補醫生缺口。這些合作關係並非出於機會主義。這些策略性投資旨在擴大人們獲得熱門醫療保健教育的機會，同時加強我們的長期招生管道。

I also want to highlight our continued leadership in preparing students for technology-enabled careers. We recently launched a strategic partnership with Google Cloud to prepare healthcare workers for an AI-enabled future. This is the first partnership of its scale designed specifically for healthcare students and practicing clinicians, and it's fully complementary to our partnership with Hippocratic AI.

我還想強調我們在培養學生從事技術相關職業方面一直處於領先地位。我們最近與Google雲端建立了策略合作夥伴關係，旨在幫助醫療保健工作者為人工智慧時代做好準備。這是第一個專門為醫療保健學生和執業臨床醫生設計的如此大規模的合作項目，它與我們和 Hippocratic AI 的合作項目完全互補。

We'll codevelop customized AI credentials for our students, including a foundational AI fluency course for every Adtalem student, plus specialized courses tailored for each career pathway, including nursing, physicians assistance, counseling, and other disciplines. This partnership directly addresses one of healthcare's most pressing challenges while differentiating our institutions for prospective students and practicing clinicians. It's exactly the forward-thinking investment that positions us as the leader in healthcare education.

我們將與學生共同開發客製化的人工智慧證書，包括為每位 Adtalem 學生開設的基礎人工智慧素養課程，以及針對每個職業發展方向量身定制的專業課程，包括護理、醫師助理、諮詢和其他學科。這項合作直接解決了醫療保健領域最緊迫的挑戰之一，同時也使我們的院校在吸引潛在學生和執業臨床醫生方面脫穎而出。正是這種前瞻性的投資，使我們成為醫療保健教育的領導者。

Our financial position remains exceptionally strong, giving us significant flexibility to execute our strategy and return value to shareholders. We're generating trailing 12-month free cash flow of $319 million. We have cash and equivalents of $265 million as of September 30. We increased our revolving credit facility by $100 million to $500 million, and we extended the maturity to August 2030. In addition, we repaid over $50 million of outstanding Term Loan B balance on October 29.

我們的財務狀況仍然非常強勁，這使我們能夠靈活地執行策略並為股東創造價值。我們過去 12 個月的自由現金流為 3.19 億美元。截至9月30日，我們擁有現金及等價物2.65億美元。我們將循環信貸額度增加了 1 億美元，達到 5 億美元，並將到期日延長至 2030 年 8 月。此外，我們在 10 月 29 日償還了超過 5,000 萬美元的未償還 B 類定期貸款餘額。

We repurchased $8 million of shares in the first quarter with $142 million remaining on our $150 million Board-authorized share repurchase program through May of 2028. We're executing our capital allocation philosophy with discipline, investing first in student growth, and then in strategic initiatives. We're maintaining financial strength and flexibility. We're returning excess cash to shareholders, and we're thoughtfully pursuing strategic M&A where we can find attractively valued assets that extend our capabilities or expand our presence in in-demand healthcare education markets. This brings me to our upcoming Investor Day on Tuesday, February 24, 2026.

第一季我們回購了價值 800 萬美元的股票，而我們經董事會授權的 1.5 億美元股票回購計畫（截至 2028 年 5 月）還剩下 1.42 億美元。我們秉持嚴謹的資本配置概念，先投資學生發展，然後再投資於策略舉措。我們保持著財務實力和靈活性。我們將多餘的現金回饋給股東，並且我們正在謹慎地進行策略併購，以尋找具有吸引力的資產，從而擴展我們的能力或擴大我們在需求旺盛的醫療保健教育市場的業務。這讓我想到了我們即將於 2026 年 2 月 24 日星期二舉行的投資者日活動。

We're going to use that forum to provide much deeper visibility into our strategic road map, our capacity expansion plans, our long-term value creation framework and our capital allocation philosophy. You'll hear directly from our institutional leaders about how we're executing at the operational level. You'll see the operational discipline that allows us to invest in growth while expanding margins, and you'll gain a comprehensive understanding of how we're positioned to serve as the essential talent infrastructure for America's healthcare workforce. I encourage you all to join us either in person or virtually.

我們將利用這個論壇，更深入地展示我們的策略路線圖、產能擴張計畫、長期價值創造框架和資本配置理念。您將直接聽到我們機構領導層介紹我們在營運層面的執行情況。您將看到我們如何在擴大利潤的同時投資於成長的營運紀律，您還將全面了解我們如何定位自己，為美國醫療保健勞動力提供必要的人才基礎設施。我鼓勵大家親自或在線上參加。

Let me close with three clear statements. First, we're maintaining our full year fiscal 2026 guidance. That's revenue of $1.9 billion to $1.94 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $7.60 to $7.90.

最後，我想明確表態三點。首先，我們維持2026財年全年業績預期不變。這意味著營收為 19 億美元至 19.4 億美元，調整後每股收益為 7.60 美元至 7.90 美元。

Second, our strategic opportunity has never been greater. The structural healthcare workforce shortage isn't going away. It's actually intensifying. We have the scale, the brand strength, the program breadth, the technology leadership, and the financial resources to serve as the essential talent infrastructure for America's healthcare system.

其次，我們的戰略機會從未如此巨大。醫療衛生人員結構性短缺的問題不會消失。情況實際上正在加劇。我們擁有規模、品牌實力、專案廣度、技術領先地位和財政資源，可以成為美國醫療保健系統的重要人才基礎設施。

Third, we're going to continue to allocate capital with discipline, return value to shareholders, and hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards of execution. That's our commitment to you, and we'll deliver on it. As I've said before, my objective above all else is creating category-leading long-term value for shareholders through operational excellence and strategic discipline. This quarter demonstrates that commitment. Our strong enterprise results show the power of operational discipline.

第三，我們將繼續有條不紊地分配資本，為股東創造價值，並以最高的執行標準要求自己。這是我們對您的承諾，我們一定會履行承諾。正如我之前所說，我的首要目標是透過卓越的營運和策略紀律，為股東創造業界領先的長期價值。本季的數據體現了這一承諾。我們強勁的企業業績體現了營運紀律的力量。

We started the year with momentum. We're addressing challenges with clarity, speed, and accountability. We're positioned to deliver on our commitments, and we're building a healthcare education platform that will create sustainable long-term shareholder value. I look forward to discussing all of this with you in greater detail at our Investor Day in February.

我們年初就勢頭強勁。我們以清晰、迅速和負責的態度來應對挑戰。我們有能力履行我們的承諾，我們正在建立一個醫療保健教育平台，這將創造可持續的長期股東價值。我期待在二月份的投資者日上與您更詳細地討論所有這些問題。

And with that, I'll turn it over to Bob to walk through the financials in more detail.

接下來，我將把麥克風交給鮑勃，讓他更詳細地講解一下財務狀況。

Thank you, Steve, and hello, everyone. We started the fiscal year with financial strength in line with our expectations as we continue to sustain our momentum. We are generating significant cash flow and have taken proactive actions to strengthen our balance sheet while also increasing our financial flexibility.

謝謝你，史蒂夫，大家好。本財年伊始，我們的財務狀況穩健，符合預期，我們將持續維持成長動能。我們正在產生可觀的現金流，並已採取積極措施來加強我們的資產負債表，同時提高我們的財務靈活性。

We are well positioned to continue to execute our growth with purpose strategy and we will continue to be disciplined capital allocators. We are deploying capital to high ROI growth opportunities, focusing on maximizing our existing capacity.

我們已做好充分準備，繼續執行目標明確的成長策略，並將繼續保持嚴謹的資本配置。我們將資金投入高投資報酬率的成長機會中，重點是最大限度地發揮我們現有的產能。

Further, our robust financials uniquely provide us with the ability to optimally invest in additional growth opportunities, bringing new capacity to market and providing innovative student-facing technology while continuing to increase our level of profitability.

此外，我們穩健的財務狀況使我們能夠以獨特的方式優化投資於額外的成長機會，為市場帶來新的產能，並提供面向學生的創新技術，同時不斷提高我們的獲利水平。

I'll now review our financial results and key drivers for our first quarter performance. Later in my remarks, I'll discuss our expectations and assumptions for the remainder of fiscal year 2026. Starting with the top line. Revenue in the first quarter increased by 10.8% to $462.3 million, driven by all three segments, in particular at Walden.

接下來，我將回顧我們第一季的財務表現和關鍵驅動因素。稍後，我將討論我們對 2026 財年剩餘時間的預期和假設。從第一行開始。第一季營收成長 10.8% 至 4.623 億美元，主要得益於所有三個業務部門的推動，尤其是 Walden 的業務。

Consolidated adjusted EBITDA came in at $112 million, up 15.8% compared to the prior year. This growth was led by Walden with Med/Vet contributing, partially offset by Chamberlain. Adjusted EBITDA margin of 24.2% expanded 100 basis points from last year. Adjusted operating income was $90.3 million, up 19% compared to the prior year as revenue growth and efficiencies generated operational leverage, which was partially offset by investments in our strategic growth initiatives. We continue to balance our strategic growth investments with our more efficient, integrated, and scaled operational foundation.

調整後的綜合 EBITDA 為 1.12 億美元，比上年增長 15.8%。沃爾登引領了這一增長，醫療/獸醫業務也做出了貢獻，但張伯倫的業務部分抵消了這一增長。經調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率為 24.2%，比去年增長了 100 個基點。調整後的營業收入為 9,030 萬美元，比上年增長 19%，這主要得益於收入增長和效率提升帶來的營運槓桿效應，但部分被我們在戰略增長計劃中的投資所抵消。我們將繼續在策略成長投資與更有效率、更一體化、規模更大的營運基礎之間取得平衡。

Our margin can fluctuate quarter-to-quarter as we remain flexible on how we deploy capital to generate the highest long-term return. Adjusted net income for the quarter was $64.9 million, up 28.5% compared to last year, attributed to adjusted operating income growth and lower interest expense resulting from our actions to reduce outstanding debt and our borrowing costs, partially offset by a higher provision for income taxes.

由於我們將靈活運用資本以實現最高的長期回報，因此我們的利潤率可能會逐季度波動。本季經調整後的淨收入為 6,490 萬美元，比去年同期增長 28.5%，這主要歸功於經調整後的營業收入增長以及我們採取措施減少未償債務和借貸成本而導致的利息支出減少，但部分被更高的所得稅準備金所抵消。

Adjusted earnings per share was $1.75 or a 35.7% increase compared with the prior year. We repurchased 57,000 shares of our common stock at an average price of $134 within the quarter, resulting in first quarter diluted shares outstanding of 37.1 million or $2.1 million lower than last year.

調整後的每股收益為 1.75 美元，比上年增長 35.7%。本季我們以平均每股 134 美元的價格回購了 57,000 股普通股，導致第一季稀釋後流通股為 3,710 萬股，比去年減少了 210 萬美元。

Next, I'll discuss the first quarter financial highlights by segment. Chamberlain reported first quarter revenue of $179.2 million, an increase of 6.7% compared with the prior year, driven primarily by growth in enrollments and pricing optimization. Total student enrollment during the quarter increased 2.2%, the 11th consecutive quarter of growth and our investments to grow our pre-licensure BSN online offering are yielding returns. Total enrollment growth in pre-licensure programs, along with high continued persistence rates was partially offset by post-licensure programs.

接下來，我將按業務板塊討論第一季的財務亮點。Chamberlain公佈的第一季營收為1.792億美元，比去年同期成長6.7%，主要得益於招生人數的成長和定價優化。本季學生總入學人數增加了 2.2%，這是連續第 11 個季度實現成長，我們為發展執業前 BSN 線上課程所做的投資正在獲得回報。執業前培訓計畫總入學人數的成長，以及較高的持續入學率，部分被執業後培訓計畫所抵消。

Adjusted EBITDA decreased by 5.1% to $35.1 million for the quarter. Adjusted EBITDA margin of 19.6% was 240 basis points lower compared to the prior year as we reinvested revenue growth, focusing on bringing new capacity to market, and continuing to invest in our students to support enrollment growth and academic outcomes.

本季調整後 EBITDA 下降 5.1% 至 3,510 萬美元。經調整的 EBITDA 利潤率為 19.6%，比上年下降了 240 個基點，原因是我們將收入成長再投資於市場，專注於將新的產能推向市場，並繼續投資於我們的學生，以支持招生成長和學術成果。

Turning to Walden. First quarter revenue of $190 million, an increase of 17.6% versus the prior year was driven primarily by strong growth in enrollments. Total student enrollment was up 13.6% compared to the prior year. The ninth consecutive quarter of growth from robust enrollment growth across all degree levels, particularly in master’s and undergraduate and continued high persistence rates.

轉而閱讀瓦爾登湖。第一季營收達 1.9 億美元，比去年同期成長 17.6%，主要得益於入學人數的強勁成長。與前一年相比，學生總入學人數增加了13.6%。連續第九個季度實現成長，這得益於各學位級別的強勁入學人數增長，尤其是碩士和本科生入學人數的增長，以及持續的高留校率。

Growth in our healthcare programs was led by social and behavioral health and nursing. Our non-healthcare programs also grew in the quarter.

我們醫療保健計畫的成長主要由社會和行為健康以及護理領域引領。本季我們的非醫療保健項目也有所成長。

Adjusted EBITDA increased by 29.5% to $61.9 million. Adjusted EBITDA margin expanded by 300 basis points versus the prior year to 32.6% as our operational excellence generated efficiencies and leverage that outpaced increased brand, student-facing digital investments, and additional student support commensurate with the high level of new enrollment.

調整後 EBITDA 成長 29.5% 至 6,190 萬美元。經過調整的 EBITDA 利潤率較上年增長 300 個基點，達到 32.6%，這得益於我們卓越的運營效率和槓桿作用，其增長速度超過了品牌推廣、面向學生的數字化投資以及與高入學率相稱的額外學生支持。

For the Medical and Veterinary segment, first quarter revenue was $93.1 million, an increase of 5.9% versus prior year. Total student enrollment was up 2.4% as a result of our execution against our long-term strategic growth initiatives at our medical schools, and vet continues to operate near capacity.

醫療和獸醫業務部門第一季營收為 9,310 萬美元，比上年同期成長 5.9%。由於我們在醫學院實施了長期策略成長計劃，學生總入學人數增加了 2.4%，獸醫學院繼續保持接近滿載運作。

Adjusted EBITDA increased by 11.6% versus the prior year to $21.4 million. Adjusted EBITDA margin increased 120 basis points versus the prior year to 23% as we remain focused on operating our institutions efficiently while making long-term growth investments, leveraging our existing capacity, and delivering academic outcomes.

調整後 EBITDA 比上年增長 11.6%，達到 2,140 萬美元。經調整的 EBITDA 利潤率較上年增長 120 個基點至 23%，因為我們繼續專注於高效運作我們的機構，同時進行長期成長投資，利用我們現有的能力，並取得學術成果。

We started the third year of our growth with purpose strategy with strong results. Our operational excellence continues to fuel increased investments in future growth off of record levels of enrollment. We are sustaining momentum and in turn, we are maintaining our fiscal year 2026 guidance as we continue to execute our strategic and financial goals.

我們以強勁的業績開啟了目標導向成長策略的第三年。我們卓越的營運能力持續推動著未來成長的投資，而創紀錄的招生人數也為此做出了貢獻。我們保持了發展勢頭，因此，在繼續執行我們的策略和財務目標的同時，我們也維持了 2026 財年的業績預期。

Revenue in the range of $1.9 billion to $1.94 billion, approximately 6% to 8.5% growth year-over-year, with adjusted earnings per share in the range of $7.60 to $7.90, approximately 14% to 18.5% growth year-over-year.

營收預計在 19 億美元至 19.4 億美元之間，年增約 6% 至 8.5%；調整後每股收益預計在 7.60 美元至 7.90 美元之間，年增約 14% 至 18.5%。

Looking forward to the remainder of the year, we continue to anticipate revenue growth to be higher in the first half of the year than in the second half. As Steve mentioned in his prepared comments, our maintained guidance contemplates softness in Chamberlain's top line in the second and third quarters. And as a reminder, for Walden, one academic week shifts from the third quarter into the second quarter this fiscal year.

展望今年剩餘時間，我們仍預期上半年的營收成長將高於下半年。正如史蒂夫在事先準備好的評論中所提到的，我們維持的業績預期考慮到了張伯倫在第二季和第三季的進攻火力有所疲軟。另外提醒一下，對於瓦爾登大學來說，本財年有一個學期週從第三季轉移到了第二季。

Our top priority remains to reinvest into our institutions and deliver positive student outcomes through our financial strength and dynamic capital allocation approach. And while we plan to make targeted investments during the second quarter, we remain committed to expanding our fiscal year 2026 adjusted EBITDA margin by approximately 100 basis points. Included within our guidance are the recent capital allocation actions as well as our continued strong cash flow generation.

我們的首要任務仍然是繼續投資於我們的院校，並透過我們雄厚的財力和靈活的資本配置方式，為學生帶來積極的成果。儘管我們計劃在第二季度進行有針對性的投資，但我們仍然致力於將 2026 財年調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率提高約 100 個基點。我們的業績指引中包含了近期資本配置措施以及我們持續強勁的現金流量產生情況。

Finally, we continue to anticipate an effective tax rate to be higher than fiscal year 2025. We started the fiscal year with strength in line with our expectations. We will continue to execute on expanding access and delivering positive student outcomes, deploying capital to meet the healthcare education market's growing demand, maximizing long-term value and ultimately generating high returns for all stakeholders.

最後，我們仍預期 2025 財年的實際稅率將高於該水準。本財年伊始，我們的業績表現強勁，符合預期。我們將繼續擴大招生範圍，為學生帶來積極的學習成果，投入資金以滿足醫療保健教育市場不斷增長的需求，最大限度地提高長期價值，並最終為所有利益相關者創造高回報。

And with that, I'll now turn the call over to the operator for Q&A.

接下來，我將把電話交給接線生進行問答環節。

(Operator Instructions) Jack Slevin, Jefferies.

（操作說明）傑克·斯萊文，傑富瑞。

Nice work on the quarter guys. I want to start the commentary on Chamberlain and all the color you gave. But maybe just to get a little bit more granular there. I just want to understand the range of outcomes that you're thinking about moving forward here given the really strong ramp you've had the last two years in enrollment. And are we thinking this is something where we might see sequential declines in enrollment as you get new starts back online? Or I'd just love to think through the range of outcomes that you're thinking about in that second and third quarter guidance as you look at the Chamberlain volumes.

夥計們，四分之一的成績不錯。我想開始評論張伯倫以及你所描述的一切。但或許我們可以更細緻一點。我只是想了解一下，鑑於過去兩年招生人數的強勁增長，你們正在考慮哪些方面的後續發展。我們是否認為，隨著新課程的恢復，入學人數可能會持續下降？或者，我只是想了解您在考慮第二季和第三季業績指引時，考慮到張伯倫的銷量，可能會出現哪些結果。

Yeah. So I'd encourage you to put the deceleration in post-licensure nursing into a discrete box. We don't believe this represents a go-forward trend in that part of the Chamberlain portfolio. We believe that our market position in post-licensure nursing remains strong. We've historically taken share in RN to BSN and expect to continue to do that.

是的。所以我建議你把執業後護理職涯發展的放緩階段單獨列出來。我們認為這並不代表張伯倫投資組合中該部分未來的發展趨勢。我們相信，我們在執業後護理領域的市場地位依然穩固。我們歷來在註冊護士到護理學士的銜接課程中佔有一席之地，並希望繼續保持這一地位。

This is really, I think, a misstep on our part in relation to how we thought about marketing in advance of the September enrollment cycle. And so we've taken a hard look at where we went wrong, what we can do to remedy that. And we expect that while we'll see a tail on that deceleration flow through the balance of the year, we will recover, and we will continue to defend our position in post-licensure nursing at the same time, growing really, really attractively what we're doing in pre-licensure nursing, particularly with our BSN online program.

我認為，這確實是我們在9月份招生週期開始前對行銷的思考方式上的一個失誤。因此，我們認真審視了我們哪裡出了問題，以及我們可以採取哪些措施來彌補這些問題。我們預計，雖然今年剩餘時間這種放緩趨勢還會出現，但我們會復甦，同時我們將繼續捍衛我們在執業後護理領域的地位，並真正、非常有吸引力地發展我們在執業前護理領域的業務，特別是我們的 BSN 在線課程。

So again, this is not a trend that has legs in our view. This is a onetime dislocation that's a result of our execution miss. But because it's within our control, we feel very confident about what that means for purposes of the out periods in post-licensure nursing, and that's why we're confident enough to maintain our guide for the full year.

所以，我們認為這種趨勢不會持續下去。這是由於我們執行失誤造成的一次性延誤。但因為這在我們的掌控之中，我們對獲得執業資格後的護理實習期所代表的意義非常有信心，這也是為什麼我們有信心將我們的指南維持一整年的原因。

Okay. Got it. Super helpful. One follow-up on that front. So just to maybe look at the margin in the quarter pulls back a little bit in Chamberlain. Should I think about that as a reaction to some of the trends you were seeing intra-quarter? Or can you spell out what you think about sort of that trajectory going forward on the cost side?

好的。知道了。非常有用。關於這方面，還有一點後續。所以，我們不妨來看看本季的利潤率，張伯倫的利潤率略有回落。我是否應該將此視為對您在本季觀察到的一些趨勢的一種反應？或者，能否詳細說明一下您對未來成本發展趨勢的看法？

Yeah. Look, I think as we begin to recover the top line at Chamberlain to something consistent with what we would expect ordinarily, you'll see the margin expansion over the course of a full year period. So that, too, is a reflection of the temporary pressure on the top line from the performance miss in September. We expect to recover that as we approach the end of the fiscal year.

是的。我認為，隨著張伯倫的營收逐漸恢復到正常水平，你會看到利潤率在一整年內擴張。所以，這也反映了9月業績不及預期對營收的暫時壓力。我們預計隨著財政年度的結束，這種情況將會得到改善。

Got it. Okay. Super helpful. Last one for me and more just out of an abundance of caution given your stock traded off 5% yesterday. Just want to clarify that you feel comfortable with where your systems, backbone and platforms from a technology standpoint are across your business, but probably in Walden would be the most relevant one.

知道了。好的。非常有用。這是我最後一次這麼做了，主要是出於謹慎考慮，因為你們的股票昨天下跌了 5%。我只是想確認一下，您是否對公司內部從技術角度來看的系統、骨幹網路和平台的位置感到滿意，但沃爾登可能是最相關的。

Just want to clarify the question. Just our technology infrastructure generally.

我想澄清一下這個問題。主要是我們整體的技術基礎設施。

Yes. I guess you had a peer yesterday or someone in the peer set that had large issues around -- yeah, do you get the question now?

是的。我猜你昨天遇到了一位同行或同儕團體中的某個人，他遇到了很大的問題──是的，你現在明白我的意思了嗎？

Yeah, perfect. Thank you for the clarification. No, we feel great about the tech stack that we use to support the operations, both on the front end of the funnel as well as everything we deploy in support of the student journey. And in fact, we are really excited about some of the innovations that we're rolling out to both enhance and differentiate that student journey. So certainly sympathetic with what happened with one of our peers, but no analogous dynamic in our model to be concerned about.

對，完美。謝謝你的解釋。不，我們對用於支援營運的技術棧感到非常滿意，無論是在銷售漏斗的前端，還是在支援學生學習旅程的整個過程中部署的所有技術棧。事實上，我們對即將推出的一些創新措施感到非常興奮，這些措施旨在提升和區分學生的學習體驗。所以，我們當然對一位同行的遭遇表示同情，但我們的模式中沒有類似的動態需要擔心。

Jeff Silber, BMO Capital Markets.

Jeff Silber，BMO資本市場。

Sorry to go back to the Chamberlain issue. How do you know that this is not a competitive issue where you're losing share?

很抱歉又要提起張伯倫的問題了。你怎麼知道這不是導致你失去市場佔有率的競爭問題？

Because as recently as two quarters ago, we were taking share in RN to BSN. We know -- you know and we know that's not a growth area in the way that it was many years ago, but we believe we still have one of the most attractive brands in RN to BSN. We believe that employers, in particular, are keen to see their RNs make the leap to BSN through Chamberlain's program.

因為就在兩個季度前，我們還在 RN 到 BSN 的招生市場中佔有份額。我們知道——你也知道，我們也知道，這不像多年前那樣是一個成長領域了，但我們相信，我們仍然擁有 RN 到 BSN 領域最具吸引力的品牌之一。我們相信，雇主們尤其渴望看到他們的註冊護士透過張伯倫學院的課程獲得護理學士學位。

So there's nothing we're seeing in the competitive landscape that gives us any concern that we've lost our positioning relative to the alternatives. I just think as we've looked to move from an historical national-based marketing campaign to one that's more market specific; we had a misstep along the way.

因此，在競爭格局中，我們沒有看到任何跡象表明我們相對於其他競爭對手的地位已經喪失。我認為，在我們嘗試從傳統的全國性行銷活動轉向更具針對性的行銷活動的過程中，我們犯了一個錯誤。

I think we've diagnosed that well. And I think you'll see the product of that correction over the course of the fiscal year. We intend to defend our position to RN to BSN given our legendary strength there, even as we grow our pre-licensure presence through BSN Online. So I don't believe we are suffering from any adverse competitive dynamics in post-licensure nursing.

我認為我們已經準確地診斷出了這個問題。我認為在本財年內，你會看到這種調整帶來的結果。我們打算捍衛我們在 RN 到 BSN 領域的地位，因為我們在該領域擁有強大的實力，同時我們也在透過 BSN Online 擴大我們的執照前教育規模。因此，我認為我們在執業後護理領域並沒有面臨任何不利的競爭局面。

Okay. That's really helpful. Last quarter, you announced a partnership with Sallie Mae, and I was just wondering if we can get an update on how that's progressing and when we may see some announcement in terms of the specifics.

好的。這真的很有幫助。上個季度，您宣布與 Sallie Mae 建立合作夥伴關係，我想知道能否了解一下該合作的進展情況，以及我們何時會看到一些具體細節的公告。

Yeah. We're working to finalize definitive documentation with Sallie Mae. My hope is that we'll be able to close that relatively soon, and I expect we'll be able to announce that. We're really encouraged by what that means for all the students we have across the portfolio and Sallie Mae's willingness to step up and support the broad program mix we have. But that work continues to be in flight, and we're certain we'll get it locked down soon.

是的。我們正在與 Sallie Mae 敲定最終文件。我希望我們能夠盡快完成這項工作，並且我預計我們能夠宣布這一消息。我們對這項舉措對我們所有學生的意義以及 Sallie Mae 願意挺身而出支持我們廣泛的課程組合感到非常鼓舞。但這項工作仍在進行中，我們確信很快就能完成。

Alex Paris, Barrington Research.

Alex Paris，巴林頓研究公司。

Add my congrats on the strong quarter. I have a couple of questions that are more industry-oriented. Earlier this year, the Department of Education announced increased verification efforts to root out fraud across all of higher education. I've talked with a couple of other companies in this space, one notably that had some issues with friction because of the fraudsters crowding out well-intentioned students, and that had an impact on new student enrollment. I'm wondering what your thoughts are there and maybe just some additional color about what you have to do now that you didn't have to do before? And are you seeing a spike in increased fraudulent activity in the enrollment process?

恭喜你們本季業績出色。我還有一些比較偏向業界的問題。今年早些時候，教育部宣布加強核查力度，以根除高等教育領域的詐欺行為。我曾與該領域的其他幾家公司交談過，其中一家公司尤其遇到了一些摩擦問題，因為詐騙分子擠佔了真正有誠意的學生，這影響了新生入學人數。我想知道你對此有何看法，以及能否補充說明一下你現在必須做而以前不必做的事情？您是否發現招生過程中詐欺活動激增？

Yes. So I'll answer the second part of the question first. We're not seeing any spike in go students or fraudulent enrollments or anything like that. We obviously are subject to the same administrative burdens associated with the department's focus on that as everyone else. But as we sit here today, we don't have any concerns that that's an issue across our program set. But obviously, we continue to monitor it closely.

是的。那我先回答問題的第二部分。我們沒有看到 Go 學生人數激增、欺詐性註冊或其他類似情況發生。顯然，我們和其他人一樣，都承受著與部門重點關注該領域相關的行政負擔。但就目前而言，我們並不擔心這會是我們整個專案組面臨的問題。但很顯然，我們會繼續密切關注事態發展。

Yeah, I was wondering if that might have been a contributing factor with the new student enrollment challenges at Chamberlain, but (multiple speakers) --

是的，我當時就在想這是否是張伯倫大學新生入學人數面臨挑戰的因素，但是（多位發言者）——

No. Really, at Chamberlain, two issues. One, the marketing mix we deployed in advance of the September cycle wasn't effective as hoped and wasn't executed as well as hoped. And then also at the conversion level, even where we were seeing strong demand with a number of missteps at the conversion level, which resulted in the diminished enrollment growth for that cycle. But I don't believe the verification issue had anything to do with the deceleration in enrollment at Chamberlain.

不。實際上，在張伯倫，有兩個問題。第一，我們在九月週期之前部署的行銷組合沒有達到預期效果，執行效果也沒有達到預期。此外，在轉換率方面，即使我們看到了強勁的需求，但在轉換率方面也出現了一些失誤，導致該週期的入學人數成長減少。但我認為驗證問題與張伯倫大學入學人數放緩沒有任何關係。

Okay. Good. And then shifting gears a little bit. I got two more. The Google Cloud partnership and these AI credentials that you're talking about for healthcare professionals, this would be both existing students as well as noncurrent students at Chamberlain and the other brands within the portfolio. Are these four credit courses? And as such, are they Title IV eligible given the increased coverage proposed in the Big Beautiful Bill for shorter-term credentials?

好的。好的。然後稍微轉換一下話題。我又得了兩個。您所提到的Google雲端合作夥伴關係以及您所謂的醫療保健專業人員的人工智慧認證，既包括張伯倫大學及旗下其他品牌的在學學生，也包括非在學學生。這是四門學分課程嗎？因此，鑑於《大美好法案》中提議增加短期證書的覆蓋範圍，他們是否符合第四章的資格？

Yeah. As an initial matter, these are programs that will run alongside our existing degree programs. We're ways away from thinking about how to embed them comprehensively in our programs. Obviously, there are accreditation issues that come with that, but we think that's an opportunity down the road. We view this as a way both to provide a differentiated student experience by creating baseline fluency and AI tools across our student populations and to create stackable credentials that have real currency in the clinical marketplace.

是的。首先，這些項目將與我們現有的學位課程並行。我們距離認真思考如何將它們全面融入我們的專案中還有很長的路要走。顯然，這會帶來認證方面的問題，但我們認為這是未來的機會。我們認為這既能透過為學生群體創造基本的流利度和人工智慧工具來提供差異化的學生體驗，又能創造在臨床市場中具有真正價值的可疊加證書。

So Google has been in the certification and stackable credentials business for a while. It's really exciting to be able to partner with them in a way that brings what we do best together with what they do best. So not wholesale modifications to existing degree programs, but ancillary complementary certificate programs that run alongside our degree programs.

所以穀歌涉足認證和可疊加憑證業務已經有一段時間了。能夠與他們合作，將我們最擅長的和他們最擅長的結合起來，真的令人興奮。因此，並非對現有學位課程進行全面修改，而是開設與學位課程並行的輔助性補充證書課程。

Got you. Is there an additional cost for existing students? And likewise, is there a cost for non-existing students?

抓到你了。在校學生是否需要額外付費？同樣地，對於不存在的學生，是否需要支付費用？

No incremental additional cost for students.

學生無需支付額外費用。

Got you. Okay. And then my last question is, again, industry-related. Given one of your competitors made an announcement about the impact of military, active duty, tuition assistance, I'm wondering what your institutional, your enterprise exposure is to military. And I suspect that's primarily GI Bill and VA.

抓到你了。好的。最後一個問題也與產業相關。鑑於您的一個競爭對手發布了有關軍事、現役、學費資助影響的公告，我想知道您的機構、您的企業在軍事方面的風險敞口有多大。我懷疑這主要是退伍軍人教育法案和退伍軍人事務部提供的福利。

Yeah. So active duty military exposure is pretty low, very low actually. Obviously, the platform you're referring to, that's a very large part of their model. So we've not really seen any problems with student disbursements, whether that's veterans benefits or traditional Title IV benefits. Obviously, it's something we continue to monitor as the shutdown drags on. But for the moment, that has not been an issue for our programs.

是的。因此，現役軍人接觸到的風險非常低，實際上是非常低。顯然，你提到的平台，是他們商業模式中非常重要的一部分。因此，我們還沒有真正看到學生撥款方面出現任何問題，無論是退伍軍人福利還是傳統的第四章福利。顯然，隨著政府停擺的持續，我們會繼續關注此事。但就目前而言，這還沒有對我們的專案造成影響。

Yeah. That was my related question, government shutdown related. And then last question, just a silly one. The February Investor Day, is that going to be held at your Chicago headquarters or elsewhere?

是的。那是我提出的相關問題，與政府停擺有關。最後一個問題，一個很愚蠢的問題。二月的投資者日活動是在芝加哥總部舉行，還是在其他地方舉行？

It won't be in Chicago, TBD. I suspect it will be out East, but we'll have details for you pretty soon here. Stay tuned.

地點不在芝加哥，待定。我估計會在東部地區，但我們很快就會在這裡公佈詳細資訊。敬請關注。

Steven Pawlak, Baird.

Steven Pawlak，Baird。

On the marketing missteps at Chamberlain, I guess just kind of maybe piggyback off an earlier question, what gives the confidence that the marketing mix or marketing message in your other programs is appropriate that there isn't -- or that this is contained and now addressed problem?

關於張伯倫的行銷失誤，我想藉用一下先前的問題，是什麼讓您確信您其他專案中的行銷組合或行銷訊息是合適的，而不是存在問題——或者說這個問題已經得到控制並得到解決？

Yeah. So we deploy a central marketing center of excellence that then localizes our marketing programs for each of our institutions. So even though our institutions are like in the sense that they're all postsecondary, the unique marketing strategies across the portfolio do vary quite a bit. So we have every reason to believe that the root causes of the misstep in September with Chamberlain are Chamberlain-specific. And no reason to believe that they present any issue for any of the four institutions, and that's obviously borne out by what you see in the enrollment trends across those institutions.

是的。因此，我們設立了一個中央行銷卓越中心，然後根據我們每個機構的具體情況制定在地化的行銷方案。因此，儘管我們的機構在某種意義上都是高等教育機構，但各個機構獨特的行銷策略卻大相逕庭。因此，我們完全有理由相信，9 月張伯倫失誤的根本原因是張伯倫本身造成的。沒有理由相信他們會給這四所院校中的任何一所帶來任何問題，這一點從這些院校的招生趨勢中也明顯可以看出。

So it's a Chamberlain-specific issue. We have a tremendous amount of confidence in the steps we've taken to address it, and we're confident that, that will flow through results of operations over the course of the fiscal year.

所以這是張伯倫特有的問題。我們對為解決這個問題所採取的措施充滿信心，並且我們相信，這將在本財年的營運結果中得到體現。

Okay. And then on the conversion challenges, is there a particular part of the funnel that students were sort of falling out of? Or was it maybe more the number of steps and sort of the increased friction points that you referenced?

好的。那麼，在轉換率挑戰方面，是否存在學生在轉換漏斗的某個特定環節落後的情況呢？或者，更確切地說，是您提到的步驟數量和摩擦點增加的問題？

Yeah. So any time there's a handoff of a student from one part of the enrollment journey to another, that's an opportunity for leakage.

是的。因此，每當學生從入學流程的一個環節過渡到另一個環節時，就存在著資訊外洩的機會。

And at Chamberlain, we determined that there are opportunities to simplify and reduce the number of handoffs in a way that diminishes the risk of that kind of leakage. When our students are considering our programs, they're also considering other programs and our ability to stay in front of them to ensure they're getting the information they need to make an informed decision about enrollment. It is critical to preserve the high conversion rates that make all the difference in our model. That just didn't happen in September, but we believe we know what needs to happen for the upcoming enrollment cycles at Chamberlain to change that outcome starting with January.

在張伯倫，我們發現有機會簡化和減少交接環節，從而降低此類資訊外洩的風險。當我們的學生考慮我們的課程時，他們也會考慮其他課程，以及我們能否始終走在他們前面，確保他們獲得所需的信息，以便就入學事宜做出明智的決定。保持高轉換率至關重要，這在我們的模式中起著決定性作用。9 月並沒有發生這種情況，但我們相信我們知道從 1 月開始，張伯倫大學接下來的招生週期需要做些什麼來改變這個結果。

There are no further questions at this time. I'd like to pass the call back over to Steve Beard for any closing remarks.

目前沒有其他問題了。我想把電話轉回給史蒂夫·比爾德，讓他做最後的總結發言。

I just want to thank the team across the Adtalem family for a really strong and robust start to the fiscal year. This is year three of growth with purpose for us. We've been incredibly pleased with the strategy, and we look forward to a strong third year of that strategy, but that is entirely down to the folks that support our students across our five institutions. So a sincere thanks to our teams.

我只想感謝 Adtalem 集團全體團隊成員，感謝他們為本財年取得的強勁開局。今年是我們有目標地發展壯大的第三年。我們對這項策略非常滿意，並期待這項策略在第三年取得強勁的成效，但這完全取決於我們五所院校中支持學生的各位人士。在此衷心感謝我們的團隊。

That concludes today's teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

今天的電話會議到此結束。您可以在此時斷開線路。感謝您的參與。

Portions of this transcript marked (technical difficulty) indicate audio problems. The missing text will be supplied if a replay becomes available.

本文字稿中標示（技術難題）的部分錶示有音訊問題。如果有重播視頻，我們會補充缺少的文本。