Brookfield Business Partners LP (BBU) 2025 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Welcome to the Brookfield Business Partners fourth quarter 2025 results conference call and webcast. (Operator Instructions) The conference is being recorded. (Operator Instructions)

歡迎參加 Brookfield Business Partners 2025 年第四季業績電話會議和網路直播。（操作員指示）會議正在錄音。（操作說明）

Now I would like to turn the conference over to Alan Fleming, Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead, Mr. Fleming.

現在我謹將會議交給投資人關係主管艾倫‧弗萊明。請繼續，弗萊明先生。

Thank you, operator, and good morning. Before we begin, I'd like to remind you that in responding to questions and talking about our growth initiatives and our financial and operating performance, we may make forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to known and unknown risks, and future results may differ materially. For further information on known risk factors, I encourage you to review our filings with the securities regulators in Canada and the US which are available on our website.

謝謝接線員，早安。在開始之前，我想提醒各位，在回答問題以及談論我們的成長計畫和財務及營運績效時，我們可能會做出前瞻性陳述。這些聲明存在已知和未知風險，未來結果可能與這些聲明有重大差異。有關已知風險因素的更多信息，我建議您查閱我們在加拿大和美國證券監管機構提交的文件，這些文件可在我們的網站上查閱。

We'll begin the call today with Anuj Ranjan, our Chief Executive Officer, who will provide an overview of the year and an update on our strategy. Anuj will then turn the call over to Adrian Letts, Head of our Global Business Operations team to share some observations on the global operating environment and progress we've made on our value creation plans. Jaspreet Dehl, our Chief Financial Officer, will then discuss our financial results for the year. After we finish our prepared remarks, the team will be available to take your questions.

今天我們將首先由執行長 Anuj Ranjan 主持電話會議，他將概述今年的工作情況並介紹我們的策略進展。隨後，Anuj 將把電話轉交給全球業務營運團隊負責人 Adrian Letts，讓他分享一些關於全球營運環境以及我們在價值創造計畫方面取得的進展的看法。接下來，我們的財務長賈斯普雷特·德爾將討論我們今年的財務表現。我們發言結束後，團隊成員將回答大家的問題。

I'd now like to pass the call over to Anuj.

現在我想把電話轉給阿努傑。

Thanks, Alan, and good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us on the call today. 2025 was an excellent year for BBU and the execution of our strategy to continue compounding value for our shareholders.

謝謝你，艾倫，大家早安。感謝您今天參加我們的電話會議。 2025年對BBU來說是碩果累累的一年，我們成功執行了持續為股東創造價值的策略。

Over the past year, we generated more than $2 billion of proceeds from capital recycling, repaid roughly $1 billion of our corporate borrowings, invested $700 million in four growth acquisitions and repurchased about $235 million of stock at a significant discount to intrinsic value. We also delivered strong underlying financial performance driven by the continued execution of our value creation plans, which Adrian will get into more later.

過去一年，我們透過資本再利用獲得了超過 20 億美元的收益，償還了約 10 億美元的公司借款，投資 7 億美元用於四項成長收購，並以遠低於內在價值的價格回購了約 2.35 億美元的股票。我們也取得了強勁的基礎財務業績，這得益於我們價值創造計畫的持續執行，Adrian 稍後會詳細介紹。

In addition, we're close to completing our corporate reorganization, which will result in us being a single newly listed corporation. This is a big change, and we think that it will improve our trading liquidity, double the index-driven demand for our shares and make it easier for investors globally to invest in our business.

此外，我們即將完成公司重組，重組完成後我們將成為一家新的上市公司。這是一個重大變化，我們認為這將提高我們的交易流動性，使我們股票的指數驅動需求翻一番，並使全球投資者更容易投資我們的業務。

We received the required unit and shareholder approvals earlier this month, and we're on track to complete the conversion over the coming weeks, pending final regulatory approval. Stepping back, we created our business about a decade ago with a simple purpose to provide public market investors with access to Brookfield's global private equity capabilities, which has compounded value at exceptional rates for over 25 years. The strategy is straightforward.

本月初，我們獲得了必要的單位和股東批准，目前正按計劃推進轉換工作，預計將在未來幾週內完成，只待最終監管部門批准。回顧過去，我們大約十年前創立了這家公司，其宗旨很簡單，就是讓公開市場投資者能夠接觸到 Brookfield 的全球私募股權投資能力，而這種能力在過去 25 年里以驚人的速度實現了價值的複合增長。策略很簡單。

We find great businesses, we buy them for a reasonable value, and we execute on our operational plans to improve performance. More than half of the value we have historically realized has come from improving the businesses we own.

我們尋找優秀的企業，以合理的價格收購它們，並執行我們的營運計劃來提高績效。歷史上，我們實現的價值超過一半都來自於改善我們所擁有的企業。

In a world where returns can no longer depend on falling rates, cheap financing or multiple expansion, our approach to operational excellence matters more than ever. This is the environment that our business was built for and two forces are accelerating demand for that strategy. First, deglobalization is reshaping supply chains, causing businesses to rethink sourcing, manufacturing and distribution strategies, which require both capital and significant change management expertise.

在一個回報不再能取決於利率下降、低成本融資或倍數擴張的世界裡，我們對卓越營運的追求比以往任何時候都更重要。這正是我們業務所處的環境，而兩股力量正在加速對此策略的需求。首先，去全球化正在重塑供應鏈，迫使企業重新思考採購、製造和分銷策略，這不僅需要資金，也需要大量的變革管理專業知識。

Just to illustrate this, CapEx in US manufacturing has grown from $50 billion in 2020 to nearly $250 billion in 2025. At the same time, AI is reshaping industrial and essential services businesses, not just technology platforms behind the models. The beneficiaries will be those who can implement tools to automate processes, reduce costs, address labor shortages and transform analog systems to digital operations. The opportunity is massive, but the constraint isn't technology.

舉例來說，美國製造業的資本支出已從 2020 年的 500 億美元成長到 2025 年的近 2,500 億美元。同時，人工智慧正在重塑工業和基礎服務產業，而不僅僅是模型背後的技術平台。受益者將是那些能夠實施工具來實現流程自動化、降低成本、解決勞動力短缺問題並將類比系統轉變為數位操作的人。機遇巨大，但限制因素並非技術。

It's experienced operators who can implement real change and properly transform businesses. That is where we stand apart. Our integrated operating model, combining investment capabilities with decades of operating expertise and leveraging the power of the $1 trillion Brookfield ecosystem has underpinned our returns for decades and will continue to differentiate our approach to value creation. It's an exciting time for BBU.

只有經驗豐富的經營者才能真正實現變革，並妥善改造企業。這就是我們與眾不同的地方。我們整合的營運模式，結合了投資能力和數十年的營運經驗，並利用了價值 1 兆美元的 Brookfield 生態系統的力量，幾十年來一直支撐著我們的回報，並將繼續使我們的價值創造方式與眾不同。對BBU來說，這是一個令人興奮的時刻。

The market backdrop for what we do is as attractive as it has been in years, and the value proposition for our investors is as strong as ever. First, our trading price is 50% higher than it was a year ago, but still at a material discount to NAV, which continues to grow.

我們所從事領域的市場環境是多年來最具吸引力的，對我們投資者而言，其價值主張也一如既往地強勁。首先，我們的交易價格比一年前高出 50%，但與淨資產值相比仍有較大折扣，而淨資產值仍在持續增長。

Second, we own market-leading providers of vital products and services, which underpin the durability of our cash flows. And lastly, every dollar that is recycled is reinvested by the same Brookfield team, which has compounded capital at exceptional rates for decades. We made great progress over the past year and are well positioned with the capital and capabilities to continue building value in 2026.

其次，我們擁有市場領先的重要產品和服務供應商，這支撐了我們現金流的可持續性。最後，每一美元的回收利用都由布魯克菲爾德團隊進行再投資，該團隊幾十年來一直以卓越的速度實現資本複利增長。過去一年我們取得了巨大進步，憑藉充足的資金和能力，我們已做好充分準備，在 2026 年繼續創造價值。

With that, I'll turn it over to Adrian for an update on the operating environment and the progress we're making on our value creation plans.

接下來，我將把發言權交給 Adrian，讓他報告營運環境以及我們在價值創造計畫方面的進展。

Thank you, Anuj, and good morning, everyone. Starting with some observations on the operating environment. While select regions and sectors continue to have their challenges, the overall backdrop remains relatively stable.

謝謝你，阿努傑，大家早安。首先對運行環境進行一些觀察。儘管部分地區和產業仍面臨挑戰，但整體情況仍相對穩定。

In North America, conditions are benefiting from easing rates, steady consumer spending and resilient labor markets. Demand is holding up, although near-term growth is still hard to come by in certain end markets where sentiment and the pace of capital spending remain more measured. Longer-term structural trends around reshoring, automation and the repositioning of critical supply chains are taking hold as businesses respond to evolving trade policy and geopolitical uncertainty.

在北美，利率下調、消費者支出穩定和勞動市場韌性強，這些因素都對經濟狀況有利。儘管在某些終端市場，由於市場情緒和資本支出速度仍較為謹慎，短期成長仍難以實現，但需求仍保持穩定。隨著企業應對不斷變化的貿易政策和地緣政治不確定性，圍繞製造業回流、自動化和關鍵供應鏈重新定位的長期結構性趨勢正在形成。

In Europe, conditions are more challenging. Activity has been slower in some cyclical and industrial end markets, including construction and certain more CapEx-sensitive manufacturing segments where customer decision-making remains slow. That said, we're seeing some early signs of improvement, supported by increases in fiscal spending in countries like Germany, stabilizing energy prices and more accommodative monetary policy across most parts of the region to promote growth.

歐洲的情況更加嚴峻。在一些週期性較強和工業終端市場，包括建築業和某些對資本支出較為敏感的製造業領域，客戶決策速度仍然緩慢，市場活動放緩。儘管如此，我們看到了一些早期改善跡象，這得益於德國等國財政支出的增加、能源價格的穩定以及該地區大部分地區為促進成長而採取的更加寬鬆的貨幣政策。

As you know, we have teams on the ground across all the regions we operate, deeply embedded within our businesses, focused on implementing our operating playbook and working closely with our management teams to advance our core -- our value creation plans.

如您所知，我們在所有營運地區都設有團隊，他們深入到我們的業務中，專注於實施我們的營運策略，並與我們的管理團隊密切合作，以推進我們的核心——我們的價值創造計劃。

One of the best examples of our approach in action is at Clarios, which is coming off another record calendar year of performance. Since our acquisition, underlying annual EBITDA has increased 40% or almost $700 million, and we see a path to a similar level of growth over the next five years as the team continues to execute. We're working closely with management on initiatives to strengthen operational efficiency, enhance Clarios' pricing and commercial strategy and push forward the innovation of new product technologies.

Clarios 是我們方法的最佳實踐案例之一，該公司剛剛經歷了另一個創紀錄的業績年度。自我們收購以來，公司基本年度 EBITDA 成長了 40%，即近 7 億美元，我們預計，隨著團隊繼續執行，未來五年內將達到類似的成長水平。我們正與管理層密切合作，推動各項舉措，以增強營運效率，提升 Clarios 的定價和商業策略，並推動新產品技術的創新。

At the same time, to meet the growing demand for high-performance advanced batteries, the business is investing to expand its advanced battery manufacturing capacity, enhanced recycling and critical mineral recovery capabilities and accelerate its state-of-the-art manufacturing capabilities, all supported by strong cash generation and US manufacturing tax credits.

同時，為了滿足日益增長的高性能先進電池需求，該公司正在投資擴大其先進電池製造能力，增強回收和關鍵礦物回收能力，並加快其最先進的製造能力，所有這些都得到了強勁的現金流和美國製造業稅收抵免的支持。

We've also made excellent progress over the past year at Nielsen, our audience measurement operation. Since our acquisition, the business has executed about $800 million of cost savings, including over $250 million achieved in the past year, increasing EBITDA margins by more than 350 basis points.

過去一年，我們的受眾測量機構尼爾森也取得了顯著進展。自我們收購以來，該業務已節省了約 8 億美元的成本，其中去年節省了超過 2.5 億美元，使 EBITDA 利潤率提高了 350 多個基點。

Most of the improvements have been driven by organizational simplification, automation and reduction of third-party spend. On the back of the strong performance, the business recently completed two refinancings, which combined with the debt paydown will result in about $90 million of annual interest savings.

大部分改進都得益於組織結構的簡化、自動化以及減少第三方支出。憑藉強勁的業績，該公司最近完成了兩項再融資，加上債務償還，每年將節省約 9,000 萬美元的利息。

The team at DexKo has done great work to manage through weak end market conditions. While overall volumes are down for the year, full year EBITDA was up -- low single digits and margins have held up in line with levels at acquisition, driven by our continued focus on cost optimization, commercial execution and productivity improvements. It's still early days, but we're cautiously optimistic that volumes are stabilizing with new business wins, positioning DexKo well for a broader market recovery when it comes.

DexKo團隊在應對疲軟的終端市場環境方面做得非常出色。儘管全年整體銷量有所下降，但全年 EBITDA 卻有所增長——實現了低個位數增長，利潤率也與收購時的水平持平，這得益於我們持續專注於成本優化、商業執行和生產力提升。現在下結論還為時過早，但我們謹慎樂觀地認為，隨著新業務的贏得，銷售正在趨於穩定，這將使 DexKo 在市場全面復甦時佔據有利地位。

Outside of North America, performance at Network, our Middle East payment processor is tracking in line with our expectations. Over the past year, the team has driven meaningful operational improvements, upgrading the core technology platform, optimizing the cost base, improving network e-commerce offering and expanding value-added services, particularly around data analytics, fraud and loyalty solutions.

在北美以外，我們在中東的支付處理商 Network 的表現符合我們的預期。過去一年，團隊推動了意義重大的營運改進，升級了核心技術平台，優化了成本基礎，改進了網路電子商務產品，並擴展了增值服務，尤其是在數據分析、詐欺和忠誠度解決方案方面。

We've also strengthened the leadership team, made significant process -- progress on combining the business with our legacy payments processing operation in the region and closed an add-on acquisition, driving both operational and scale efficiencies to position the business for its next phase of growth.

我們還加強了領導團隊，在將業務與我們在該地區的傳統支付處理業務合併方面取得了重大進展，並完成了一項附加收購，從而提高了營運效率和規模效益，為業務的下一階段成長奠定了基礎。

We've been busy over the past year and are encouraged by the momentum we're seeing across our businesses. Execution has been strong, and our value creation plans are progressing well. Where we are seeing weaker end market conditions, our teams have leaned in to protect margins and strengthen cash generation to ensure we're best positioned for when conditions improve.

過去一年我們一直很忙碌，我們對旗下各業務的發展動能感到鼓舞。執行力強勁，我們的價值創造計畫進展順利。在終端市場狀況疲軟的情況下，我們的團隊會加強保護利潤率並增強現金流，以確保我們在市場狀況好轉時能夠做好充分準備。

With that, I'll hand it over to Jaspreet for a review of our financial results, and I'll be available for questions.

接下來，我將把財務報告交給賈斯普雷特進行審核，如有任何問題，歡迎隨時提問。

Thanks, Adrian, and good morning, everyone. We generated full year adjusted EBITDA of $2.4 billion compared to $2.6 billion in 2024. Current year results reflect the impact of lower ownership in three businesses following the partial sale of our interest and include $297 million of tax credits compared to $271 million in the prior year.

謝謝你，艾德里安，大家早安。我們全年調整後 EBITDA 為 24 億美元，而 2024 年為 26 億美元。本年度業績反映了我們部分出售股份後，三家企業的持股比例下降的影響，其中包括 2.97 億美元的稅收抵免，而上一年為 2.71 億美元。

Excluding the tax credits and the impact of acquisitions and dispositions, adjusted EBITDA was $2.1 billion compared to $2 billion in the prior year. Adjusted EFO for the year was $1.2 billion, which included $161 million of net gains during the year.

剔除稅收抵免和收購及處置的影響，調整後的 EBITDA 為 21 億美元，而上年同期為 20 億美元。調整後的年度經營活動收益為 12 億美元，其中包括年度淨收益 1.61 億美元。

Turning to segment performance. Our Industrial segment generated full year adjusted EBITDA of $1.3 billion compared to $1.2 billion last year. Excluding the impact of acquisitions, dispositions and tax benefits, segment performance increased by 10% compared to prior year.

接下來分析細分市場表現。我們的工業部門全年調整後 EBITDA 為 13 億美元，而去年為 12 億美元。剔除收購、處置和稅收優惠的影響，該業務板塊的業績比上年增長了 10%。

Results benefited from strong performance at our Advanced Energy operation, driven by the favorable mix of higher-margin batteries and strong commercial execution. Performance of our engineered components manufacturer increased over the prior year, supported by margin improvement initiatives and commercial actions despite weak end market conditions.

由於我們先進能源業務的強勁表現，業績得到了顯著提升，這主要歸功於高利潤電池的有利組合和強大的商業執行力。儘管終端市場狀況疲軟，但在利潤率提升計劃和商業舉措的支持下，我們工程零件製造商的業績較上年有所增長。

Moving to our Business Services segment, we generated full year adjusted EBITDA of $823 million compared to $832 million last year. On a same-store basis, adjusted EBITDA increased by approximately 5% over the prior year.

再來看我們的業務服務部門，我們全年調整後 EBITDA 為 8.23 億美元，而去年為 8.32 億美元。以同店計算，調整後的 EBITDA 比上年增長約 5%。

Results at our residential mortgage insurer during the year reflect the timing impact of slower revenue recognition under the IFRS 17 accounting standard given uncertain Canadian economic forecast. Volumes of new insurance premium increased during the year, reflecting the benefit of new mortgage insurance products, which have expanded the market and helped improve affordability in an otherwise soft Canadian housing market.

本年度我們住宅抵押貸款保險公司的表現反映了由於加拿大經濟預測不明朗，根據 IFRS 17 會計準則收入確認速度放緩所帶來的時間影響。年內新增保險費收入有所增長，這反映了新型抵押貸款保險產品的益處，這些產品擴大了市場，並有助於提高原本疲軟的加拿大住房市場的可負擔性。

At our dealer software and technology services operation, stable renewal activity and commercial initiatives are largely offsetting the impact of churn in the business. Costs associated with the modernization initiatives were included in results during the year and will continue to impact results through 2026.

在我們的經銷商軟體和技術服務營運中，穩定的續約活動和商業舉措在很大程度上抵消了業務流失的影響。與現代化措施相關的成本已計入當年的業績，並將持續影響 2026 年的業績。

Finally, our Infrastructure Services segment generated full year adjusted EBITDA of $436 million compared to $606 million last year. Results reflect the sale of our offshore oil services shuttle tanker operation and a $14 million impact related to the sale of a partial interest in our work access services operation earlier this year.

最後，我們的基礎設施服務部門全年調整後 EBITDA 為 4.36 億美元，而去年為 6.06 億美元。結果反映了我們出售海上石油服務穿梭油輪業務以及今年稍早出售我們工作通道服務業務的部分權益所帶來的 1,400 萬美元影響。

Improved margins and the ongoing ramp-up of recent commercial wins at our lottery services operation was offset by the impact of lower terminal deliveries and hardware sales during the year. The business continues to execute on a strong pipeline of new commercial opportunities, including the recent full rollout of its UK digital service offering. Our modular building leasing services operation was impacted by lower activity levels and fleet utilization, which was partially offset by continued growth of value-added products and services.

雖然彩票服務業務的利潤率有所提高，並且近期商業訂單不斷增加，但年內終端交付量和硬體銷售額下降的影響抵消了這些收益。公司持續推動一系列強勁的新商業機會，包括最近在英國全面推出的數位服務產品。我們的模組化建築租賃服務業務受到業務量和車隊利用率下降的影響，但增值產品和服務的持續成長部分抵消了這一影響。

Turning to our balance sheet and capital allocation priorities. We ended the year with approximately $2.6 billion of pro forma liquidity at the corporate level, including the fair value of units we received in exchange for the sale of a partial interest in three businesses to a new Brookfield Evergreen Fund last year.

接下來，我們來看看資產負債表和資本配置優先事項。截至年底，公司層級的備考流動資金約為 26 億美元，其中包括去年我們向新的 Brookfield Evergreen Fund 出售三家企業的部分權益而獲得的單位的公允價值。

During the quarter, $87 million of the units we received were redeemed. We came into 2026 with a strong liquidity position and significant flexibility to support our growth and balanced capital allocation priorities. Credit markets remain quite constructive, and we completed more than $20 billion of financings over the past year across our operations, extending maturities, improving terms and reducing the cost of refinanced borrowings by over 50 basis points.

本季度，我們收到的8700萬美元份額被贖回。進入 2026 年，我們擁有強勁的流動性和相當大的靈活性，以支持我們的成長和平衡的資本配置優先事項。信貸市場仍然相當積極，過去一年，我們在各項業務中完成了超過 200 億美元的融資，延長了期限，改善了條款，並將再融資借款的成本降低了 50 多個基點。

Finally, to date, we've repurchased approximately $235 million of our units and shares at an average price of approximately $26 per unit and share. We remain committed to completing our $250 million buyback program and beyond that we will be opportunistic with respect to further repurchase activity.

最後，迄今為止，我們已回購了約 2.35 億美元的股份和單位，平均價格約為每單位/每股 26 美元。我們仍致力於完成 2.5 億美元的股票回購計劃，除此之外，我們將抓住機會進行進一步的回購活動。

With that, I'd like to close our prepared remarks and turn the call back to the operator for questions.

至此，我的發言就到此結束，現在把電話交還給接線員，供大家提問。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作說明）

Devin Dodge, BMO Capital Markets.

Devin Dodge，BMO資本市場。

I wanted to start with a question on Clarios. Look, the business is clearly performing very well. Just wondering if we should be assuming that once the 45 times tax credits start to come in, should we look at that as being a bit of a tipping point for when Brookfield could get more front-footed on monetizing that business? Or are there other factors that we should be thinking about?

我想先問一個關於Clarios的問題。你看，這家公司顯然經營狀況非常好。我只是想知道，一旦 45 倍稅收抵免開始到位，我們是否應該將其視為布魯克菲爾德可以更積極主動地將該業務貨幣化的轉折點？或者有其他因素需要考慮嗎？

Devin, it's Jaspreet. Look, Clarios is an incredible business. It's a global champion industrial business that doesn't come around very often. The business is generating a lot of free cash flow today. And the 45 times credits just add to that cash and kind of reinvestment into further growth for the business.

德文，我是賈斯普雷特。你看，Clarios 是一家非常了不起的公司。這是一家全球領先的工業企業，這樣的企業並不常見。這家公司目前產生了大量的自由現金流。而 45 倍的信貸額度只會增加現金，並且可以再投資於業務的進一步發展。

So we've got a lot of optionality around the business and getting proceeds up to shareholders, whether that's doing distributions, doing some kind of monetization event, like there's a lot of optionality when you've got such an incredible business.

因此，我們在業務運營和向股東分配收益方面有很多選擇，無論是進行分紅，還是進行某種形式的變現，當你擁有如此出色的業務時，就會有很多選擇。

So we're constantly thinking about that, whether it's Clarios or any of our mature businesses, like how do we get cash and distributions back up to shareholders, and that will be a focus for us.

因此，我們一直在思考這個問題，無論是 Clarios 還是我們任何成熟的業務，例如如何將現金和分紅回饋給股東，這將是我們關注的重點。

Okay. Makes sense. So Jaspreet, do you have line of sight for when those production tax credits should start to be received? And would you ever consider selling these credits to third parties to pull forward the timing? I think we've seen that from some others -- or just are the discounts for that be too steep right now?

好的。有道理。賈斯普雷特，你預計什麼時候能開始收到生產稅收抵免嗎？您是否考慮將這些積分出售給第三方以提前完成交易？我認為我們已經從其他一些案例中看到了這一點——或者說，目前的折扣力度是否太大了？

So look, we filed our return. It's being processed. We feel really good about qualifying. We had third-party independent advisers kind of verify everything, and we feel very good about qualifying and getting these credits. The timing is hard for us to predict, but we do know that it's being processed.

你看，我們已經提交了報稅表。正在處理中。我們對晉級感到非常樂觀。我們請第三方獨立顧問對所有事項進行了核實，我們對獲得這些信貸資格感到非常滿意。我們很難預測具體時間，但我們知道它正在處理中。

And in due course, we should receive it. So I'd say from that perspective, we feel good. The being able to -- when we applied for the credit, we had a choice of kind of getting cash back or getting it in a form that's transferable. And for the 2024 credits, we did choose to get cash back. So at this point, we're not looking to sell the credits, and we should, in due time, get the cash from the IRS.

我們遲早會收到它。所以從這個角度來看，我們感覺很好。當時我們申請貸款時，可以選擇獲得現金回饋或以可轉讓的形式獲得貸款。對於 2024 年的抵免額，我們選擇了現金回饋。所以目前我們不打算出售這些稅收抵免，而且我們應該會在適當的時候從美國國稅局獲得現金。

Okay. Good color. Maybe just switching over to Scientific Games. We thought it was actually encouraging to see the sequential pickup in earnings this quarter. So just wondering if you feel the business has passed an inflection point where it's on an earnings growth trajectory from here?

好的。顏色不錯。或許可以轉投 Scientific Games 陣營。我們認為本季獲利環比回升確實令人鼓舞。所以我想知道您是否認為公司已經過了轉捩點，從此走上了獲利成長的道路？

Or were there developments in Q4, at least versus Q2 or Q3 that were more of a onetime benefit that made -- that should temper the enthusiasm.

或者說，第四季度是否有一些發展，至少與第二季或第三季相比，這些發展更像是一次性收益——這應該會抑制人們的熱情。

So look, I think -- it's Adrian Letts speaking. I think the first thing to say is we're very pleased that the market launch in the UK has gone successfully last week. You are starting to see the benefit of crystallization in earnings of the pipeline. We still continue to see a relatively strong pipeline for this business.

所以你看，我想──說話的是艾德里安‧萊茨。首先要說的是，我們非常高興上週在英國的市場發布取得了成功。您開始看到產品線開發帶來的收益成長。我們仍然看到該業務擁有相對強勁的業務成長潛力。

But to manage expectations, it takes anywhere between 6 to 12 months for earnings to come through. We remain very positive about the business. We think there's a strong market. The business has a very strong market position. But the outlook, we're cautiously optimistic.

但為了避免過度擔憂，收益通常需要 6 到 12 個月才能到達。我們對公司業務依然非常樂觀。我們認為市場需求強勁。該公司擁有非常強大的市場地位。但對於前景，我們持謹慎樂觀態度。

Okay. And then maybe just one last one. On Scientific Games, we saw that there was a credit rating downgrade this month. I'm just -- just for you, just how do you think about the balance between the need to reduce leverage and pursuing growth in that business?

好的。然後，也許就最後一個吧。關於 Scientific Games，我們看到該公司本月信用評等被下調。我只是——只是問你，你如何看待降低槓桿率和追求業務成長之間的平衡？

Look, if you can grow EBITDA, like that reduces your overall leverage levels. And our thesis when we bought this business was twofold. We thought, as Adrian said, the business has an incredible market position. They've got a good team that can go after contracts, win these great contracts. And we saw the ability to really grow this business both in the US and globally, both in kind of the instant gaming, but more importantly, on the digital side.

你看，如果你能提高 EBITDA，就能降低你的整體槓桿水平。我們收購這家公司的理由有兩點。正如艾德里安所說，我們認為這家公司擁有令人難以置信的市場地位。他們擁有一支優秀的團隊，能夠爭取合同，贏得這些大合同。我們看到了這項業務在美國乃至全球範圍內真正發展壯大的能力，不僅在即時遊戲領域，更重要的是在數位領域。

So that continued growth and focus on the growth and increasing EBITDA should naturally kind of delever the business. And then in addition to that, as we move forward with free cash flow and as we start thinking about eventual monetization and what that path looks like, we can decide where we use free cash flow, whether it's to pay down debt or other purposes.

因此，持續成長以及專注於成長和提高 EBITDA，自然會降低企業的槓桿率。此外，隨著我們推進自由現金流，並開始考慮最終的貨幣化以及實現這一目標的路徑，我們可以決定如何使用自由現金流，無論是用於償還債務還是用於其他用途。

But growth is a really important lever to hit our original underwriting and the investment thesis on this business. So we are focused on that. And maybe the other thing I'd say is that this is a fairly stable business, contracted revenues. It generates a stable level of free cash flow and is more than equipped to service the debt that's in place. So we don't have any issues around that. And in the fullness of time, the business will naturally delever.

但成長是實現我們最初的承保目標和這項業務投資理念的一個非常重要的槓桿。所以我們現在專注於此。我可能還要補充一點，這是一個相當穩定的行業，收入穩定。它能產生穩定的自由現金流，完全有能力償還現有債務。所以在這方面我們沒有任何問題。假以時日，企業自然會降低槓桿率。

Gary Ho, Desjardins Capital Markets.

Gary Ho，德斯賈丁資本市場。

Maybe just going back to the Clarios for a sec here. I recall there was an insurance contract arranged. Just wondering if you can remind me how that works. If you -- if the check payment is a bit delayed, is it by a certain time that Clarios would get a payment? Just curious if you can provide a bit more detail on that.

或許我們應該先回到Clarios那裡一會兒。我記得當時簽訂了一份保險合約。請問您能提醒我具體操作方法嗎？如果——如果支票付款稍微延遲了一點，Clarios 會在某個特定時間收到付款嗎？我只是好奇您能否提供更多細節。

Sure, Gary. It's Jaspreet. So like I said, we feel really good that we qualify under the regulations, and we will receive the 45 times credits. We got third-party advisers involved to verify and support our claim. So we do believe in due course, we will get paid through kind of the normal channels.

當然可以，加里。是賈斯普雷特。正如我所說，我們非常高興我們符合規定，並將獲得 45 倍的積分。我們聘請了第三方顧問來核實和支持我們的說法。所以我們相信，在適當的時候，我們會透過正常的管道收到報酬。

When we filed the return, just given some of the overall changes that were taking place in the government, we had insured a substantial amount of the credit. And look, if we don't end up getting paid through the IRS, then we'll have to go through the insurance claim channel. But at this point, we feel really good that we will get paid out. But there is kind of the backup of the insurance if we don't receive payment from the IFRS. But we have to kind of wait to see what they come back with before we do anything on the claim.

在我們提交報稅表時，考慮到政府正在發生的一些整體變化，我們已經為相當一部分稅收抵免投保了。而且，如果我們最終沒能透過國稅局獲得賠償，那麼我們就只能透過保險索賠管道了。但就目前而言，我們覺得很有希望拿到賠償。但是，如果我們沒有收到 IFRS 的付款，保險還有一定的保障。但是，在就索賠事宜採取任何行動之前，我們必須先等等看他們的回應。

Okay. Got it. And then my second question, maybe moving on to discussion on monetization environment and outlook. So outside of the Evergreen fund, maybe can you talk about some of the mature assets like BRK, also La Trobe? I think public market multiples are pretty healthy today. Just wondering if you can comment on the IPO environment as well.

好的。知道了。接下來我的第二個問題，或許可以探討一下獲利環境和前景。除了 Evergreen 基金之外，您能否談談一些成熟的資產，例如 BRK 和 La Trobe？我認為目前公開市場的估值倍數相當健康。想問您是否也能談談IPO市場環境？

Yes. It's Anuj here. I'll take that one. So the -- look, the environment is strong generally around the world, and capital is available for monetizations or realizations. For us, we review our portfolio on a regular basis, and we try to prioritize on businesses where we've completed our value creation plans, and we can realize the full and right value for the business after derisking it.

是的。我是阿努傑。我選那個。所以——你看，全球環境總體上是強勁的，而且有資金可用於貨幣化或變現。我們會定期檢視我們的投資組合，並努力優先考慮那些我們已經完成價值創造計劃，並且在降低風險後能夠為企業實現全部和正確價值的企業。

And so you hit on two that are definitely in that category. BRK, I'd say in Brazil, the IPO markets kind of open up every so often. They seem to be opening up again right now. Interest rates feel like they have peaked. And the BRK business has been performing exceptionally well, double-digit growth and actually winning even some new concession very recently.

所以你找到了兩個絕對屬於這一類的例子。就巴西而言，我認為IPO市場是每隔一段時間才會開放一次的。他們現在似乎正在重新開業。利率似乎已經達到高峰。BRK 的業務表現非常出色，實現了兩位數的成長，最近還贏得了一些新的特許經營權。

So it feels like the right time for a listing of BRK, and it's something that we're very strongly evaluating and continuing to make progress on. Separately on La Trobe, again, an amazing business that has done extremely well in our ownership. We really pivoted the business from more of a nonbank model to a fixed income asset manager, which gets more of a premium in terms of valuations.

因此，現在似乎是波克夏海瑟威上市的合適時機，我們正在對此進行非常認真的評估，並繼續推進相關工作。另外，拉特羅貝街上還有一家非常棒的企業，在我們接手後發展得非常好。我們確實將業務模式從非銀行模式轉向了固定收益資產管理模式，這種模式在估值方面可以獲得更高的溢價。

We -- as you know, there was a regulatory notice that was dealt with and resolved. The business has had inflows come back very strongly. So we're sort of reengaging now with parties that could lead to some sort of return of capital in the future. And I'd say all options are on the table.

如您所知，我們之前收到了一份監管通知，該通知已經處理並解決了。該業務的資金流入已強勁回升。所以我們現在正在重新與一些各方接觸，這些各方未來可能會帶來某種形式的資本回報。我認為所有選項都在考慮範圍內。

And then maybe I can sneak one more in. Just on the buyback, Jaspreet, I think you mentioned you're $235 million into your $250 million NCIB program. Stock still trades below your $54 NAV. How should we think about your commitment to renew this buyback this year?

然後或許我還能偷偷再加一個。關於股票回購，Jaspreet，我想你提到過你的 2.5 億美元 NCIB 計劃已經完成了 2.35 億美元。該股票的交易價格仍然低於您54美元的淨資產值。我們該如何看待您今年繼續履行回購承諾？

So look, the stock has done incredibly well this year, as Anuj mentioned in his opening comments, and we're happy about that. But it still continues to trade below our view of intrinsic value. We're committed to completing our $250 million buyback program. And we did renew the NCIB in August, and we've got quite a bit of capacity under the NCIB.

所以你看，正如 Anuj 在開場白中提到的那樣，這支股票今年的表現非常出色，我們對此感到高興。但它的交易價格仍然低於我們所認為的內在價值。我們致力於完成2.5億美元的股票回購計畫。我們在 8 月續簽了 NCIB，而 NCIB 為我們提供了相當大的資金支持。

So beyond the $250 million program, we'll continue to be opportunistic as we always are. And where we see opportunities to buy back at material discounts to intrinsic value, we'll continue to be active. We're also balancing our capital allocation priorities between buybacks and continuing to pay down corporate lines and invest in kind of further growth of the business.

所以，除了這 2.5 億美元的項目之外，我們將像以往一樣繼續抓住機會。如果發現有機會以遠低於內在價值的價格回購股票，我們將繼續積極參與。我們也努力平衡資本配置的優先事項，既要考慮股票回購，又要繼續償還公司貸款，並投資於業務的進一步成長。

Bart Dziarski, RBC Capital Markets.

Bart Dziarski，加拿大皇家銀行資本市場。

I wanted to ask around CDK, if you could just kind of give us an update. I think you talked about some retentions and new bookings. So any additional color you can provide on just how operations are going there?

我想問 CDK 的各位，你們能否提供我們最新的情況。我想你剛才談到了客戶留存率和新預訂量。那麼，您還能提供一些關於那裡的運作情況的額外資訊嗎？

Thank you, Bart. It's Adrian. I'll talk to that. So as you know, we're continuing to invest in modernizing the tech stack and the product proposition. And some of that cost will continue to come through as we go through 2026.

謝謝你，巴特。是艾德里安。我會跟他們談談。如您所知，我們正在持續投資，以實現技術堆疊和產品方案的現代化。而其中一部分成本將在2026年持續顯現。

The focus of the business is very much adoption and increasing the adoption of the new technology that we're rolling out, which is helping to stabilize churn. Renewal activity has been strong, including we won a large multisite dealership extension. And the focus of the team has really been on solidifying customer relationships and extending contract duration.

公司業務的重點在於推廣和提高我們正在推出的新技術的採用率，這有助於穩定客戶流失率。續約業務表現強勁，其中包括我們贏得了一項大型多站點經銷商續約合約。團隊的工作重點一直是鞏固客戶關係和延長合約期限。

And over half of the contracts now have a duration of three-year plus. The business has a very strong market position, a very strong product, and we remain very positive on the business and its longer-term outlook.

目前超過一半的合約期限為三年以上。該公司擁有非常強大的市場地位和非常強大的產品，我們對該公司及其長期前景仍然非常樂觀。

Okay. Great. And then just following up on the attractive kind of market backdrop. So we talked about monetizations, but any thoughts you can provide in terms of deployment. It was a pretty healthy year last year, I think, $700 million or so.

好的。偉大的。然後，就順應了這種有吸引力的市場背景。我們已經討論了獲利模式，但您在部署方面有什麼想法嗎？我認為去年是個相當不錯的年份，收入大約是7億美元。

Like how should we think about the pacing of deployment in this year as you try and take advantage of the environment?

例如，為了充分利用當前環境，我們該如何考慮今年的部署節奏？

Yes. Look, I'd say if I look back -- it's Anuj here, sorry, Bart. And if we look back at 2025, it was quite a strong year, and we were able to make several acquisitions of the kinds of businesses that we want to own at the values at which we wanted to acquire them. And the performance, while early, is quite strong. So I'd say going into '26, it feels like we will continue with that momentum.

是的。聽著，如果我回顧過去──是 Anuj，抱歉，是 Bart。回顧 2025 年，那一年業績相當強勁，我們以理想的價格收購了幾家我們想要擁有的企業。雖然目前還處於早期階段，但表現相當出色。所以我覺得進入2026年，我們會繼續保持這種勢頭。

And we're working -- the team are working on many different opportunities, things that we consider right down the fairway similar to what you've seen us do in the past. And there are some exciting opportunities that I think that are coming up ahead. I think it will be a very active year.

我們正在努力——團隊正在努力尋找許多不同的機會，我們認為這些機會與我們過去所做的事情非常相似，都是順理成章的事情。我認為未來會有一些令人興奮的機會出現。我認為這將是非常忙碌的一年。

And I'm showing no further questions. So with that, I'll hand the call back over to management for any closing remarks.

我不會再提其他問題了。那麼，接下來我將把電話交還給管理階層，請他們作總結發言。

Thank you all for joining us, and we look forward to speaking with you again next quarter.

感謝各位的參與，我們期待下季再次與大家交流。

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for participating. This does conclude today's program, and you may now disconnect.

女士們、先生們，感謝各位的參與。今天的節目到此結束，您可以斷開連線了。