Beacon Roofing Supply Inc (BECN) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the Beacon fourth quarter 2023 earnings call. My name is Victoria, and I will be your coordinator for today. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference call is being recorded for replay purposes.

女士們、先生們，晚上好，歡迎參加 Beacon 2023 年第四季財報電話會議。我叫維多利亞，我將擔任你們今天的協調員。（操作員說明）謹此提醒，本次電話會議正在錄音以供重播之用。

I would now like to turn the call over to Mr. Binit Sanghvi, Vice President, Capital Markets and Treasurer. Please proceed, Mr. Sanghvi.

我現在想將電話轉給資本市場副總裁兼財務主管 Binit Sanghvi 先生。請繼續，桑維先生。

Thank you, Victoria. Good evening, everybody. And as always, we thank you for taking the time to join our call today. I'm joined by Julian Francis, our Chief Executive Officer, and Carmelo Carrubba, Beacon's Interim Chief Financial Officer. Julian and Carmelo will begin today's call with prepared remarks that will follow the slide deck posted to the Investor Relations section of Beacon's website. After that, we will open the call for questions.

謝謝你，維多利亞。晚上好大家。一如既往，我們感謝您今天抽出時間參加我們的電話會議。我們的執行長朱利安·弗朗西斯 (Julian Francis) 和 Beacon 臨時財務長 Carmelo Carrubba 也與我一起出席。朱利安和卡麥隆將以事先準備好的演講開始今天的電話會議，這些演講將在 Beacon 網站投資者關係部分發布的幻燈片之後進行。之後，我們將開放提問。

Before we begin, please reference slide 2 for a couple of brief reminders. First, this call will contain forward-looking statements about the company's plans and objectives and future performance. Forward-looking statements can be identified because they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts and use words such as anticipate, estimate, expect, believe, and other words of similar meaning. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, but not limited to those set forth in the Risk Factors section of the company's 2022 Form 10-K.

在我們開始之前，請參考投影片 2 以獲取一些簡短的提醒。首先，本次電話會議將包含有關公司計劃、目標以及未來業績的前瞻性陳述。前瞻性陳述可以被識別，因為它們與歷史或當前事實並不嚴格相關，並且使用諸如預期、估計、期望、相信和其他類似含義的詞語。由於各種重要因素（但不限於公司 2022 年表格 10-K 的風險因素部分中列出的因素），實際結果可能與此類前瞻性陳述所示的結果有重大差異。

Second, the forward-looking statements contained in this call are based on information as of today, February 27, 2024, and except as required by law, the company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any of these forward-looking statements.

其次，本次電話會議中包含的前瞻性陳述是基於截至今天（2024 年 2 月 27 日）的信息，除非法律要求，否則公司不承擔更新或修改任何這些前瞻性陳述的義務。

And finally, this call will contain references to certain non-GAAP measures and reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP measures is set forth in today's press release and the appendix to the presentation accompanying the call. Both the press release and the presentation are available on our website at the becn.com. Now let's begin with opening remarks from Julian.

最後，本次電話會議將引用某些非公認會計準則衡量標準，並且這些非公認會計準則衡量標準與最具可比性的公認會計準則衡量標準的調節將在今天的新聞稿和電話會議演示文稿的附錄中進行闡述。新聞稿和簡報均可在我們的網站 becn.com 上取得。現在讓我們從朱利安的開場白開始。

Thanks, Binit, and good afternoon, everyone, and let's begin on slide 4. I'm very pleased to report that we had a strong finish to the year. The Beacon team delivered a record fourth quarter as a result of executing on our strategic plan ambition 2025. Sales were up nearly 17% year over year to $2.3 billion, a fourth quarter record and above our expectations from our third-quarter call.

謝謝 Binit，大家下午好，讓我們從投影片 4 開始。我很高興地向大家報告，我們今年取得了圓滿的成績。由於執行了我們的 2025 年策略計畫目標，Beacon 團隊在第四季度取得了創紀錄的業績。銷售額年增近 17%，達到 23 億美元，創第四季紀錄，超出我們第三季電話會議的預期。

Demand for our services drove organic sales growth across all three lines of business. We continue to create value for our customers, especially by enhancing our service proposition, allowing them to maximize the productivity of the scarce labor resources they have. Acquired and newly opened greenfield branches contributed approximately 6% growth to the top line.

對我們服務的需求推動了所有三個業務線的有機銷售成長。我們繼續為客戶創造價值，特別是透過增強我們的服務主張，使他們能夠最大限度地提高其稀缺勞動力資源的生產力。收購和新開設的綠地分行為營收成長貢獻了約 6%。

Our gross margin came in at 25.7% above our guidance of 25.5% that we provided on our third quarter call. We stayed focused on labor productivity and our bottom-quintile branch initiative delivered. As a result, we achieved a fourth-quarter record for adjusted EBITDA of $217 million.

我們的毛利率達到 25.7%，高於我們在第三季電話會議上提供的 25.5% 的指導值。我們繼續關注勞動生產力和我們的倒數五分之一的分公司計畫的實施。最終，我們在第四季度調整後 EBITDA 達到 2.17 億美元，創歷史新高。

I'm particularly pleased with our management of working capital, which generated record fourth-quarter cash flow of $262 million. This enabled us to deploy capital towards our Ambition 2025, including greenfield locations and acquisitions while maintaining our balance sheet capacity.

我對我們的營運資金管理感到特別滿意，第四季現金流創造了創紀錄的 2.62 億美元。這使我們能夠為實現 2025 年雄心壯志部署資本，包括新建地點和收購，同時保持我們的資產負債表能力。

We've completed four acquisitions since the end of the third quarter. This includes adding to our industry-leading waterproofing footprint by acquiring Metro Sealant and Waterproofing Supply earlier this month. Metro, along with Garvin Construction Products acquired in October, enhances our position on the eastern seaboard as we continue to become recognized as a national leader in specialty waterproofing distribution. We also completed the acquisition of Roofers Supply of Greenville, adding commercial roofing branch locations in North and South Carolina. The Roofers Supply team has great talent and strong capabilities, and we welcome them to Beacon.

自第三季末以來，我們已經完成了四次收購。這包括透過本月稍早收購 Metro Sealant and Waterproofing Supply 來增加我們領先業界的防水足跡。Metro 與 10 月收購的 Garvin Construction Products 一起，增強了我們在東部沿海地區的地位，因為我們繼續被公認為專業防水分銷領域的全國領導者。我們還完成了對 Roofers Supply of Greenville 的收購，在北卡羅來納州和南卡羅來納州增加了商業屋頂分支機構。Roofers Supply團隊人才濟濟，能力雄厚，我們歡迎他們加入Beacon。

At our Investor Day two years ago, we said that we will unlock the potential of Beacon, and I can confidently say today that we are well on our way to achieving that goal. We demonstrated once again that we have multiple paths to growth and can deliver results in a variety of conditions.

在兩年前的投資者日上，我們表示我們將釋放 Beacon 的潛力，今天我可以自信地說，我們正在實現這一目標。我們再次證明，我們有多種成長途徑，並且可以在各種條件下取得成果。

Now please turn to page 5. At that Investor Day, we laid out our targets to drive above market growth, deliver consistent double-digit adjusted EBITDA margins, build a great organization, and generate superior shareholder returns. Creating value for our customers is central to achieving these goals, and our team is relentlessly focused on doing that every day.

現在請翻到第5頁。在那個投資者日，我們制定了我們的目標，以推動高於市場的成長，提供持續兩位數的調整後 EBITDA 利潤率，建立一個偉大的組織，並產生卓越的股東回報。為客戶創造價值是實現這些目標的核心，我們的團隊每天都堅持不懈地致力於實現這一目標。

Let me provide you with an update on our strategic initiatives, starting with how we are building a winning culture. One of our core values is do the right thing, and this applies to our efforts to build better for the environment by engaging our employees and improving the climate in our communities. During the quarter, we launched a Turn It Off campaign to educate our truck and forklift drivers about their role in reducing non-productive engine idling. Our drivers have pledged to turn off their vehicles whenever they can to contribute to cleaner air at our branches, on job sites, and throughout the community.

讓我向您介紹我們策略舉措的最新情況，首先是我們如何建構制勝文化。我們的核心價值之一是做正確的事，這也適用於我們透過員工參與和改善社區氣候來改善環境的努力。在本季度，我們發起了「關閉它」活動，向我們的卡車和堆高機司機介紹他們在減少非生產性引擎空轉方面的作用。我們的司機承諾盡可能關閉車輛，為我們分店、工地和整個社區的空氣清潔做出貢獻。

In addition, we contracted to power over 30 of our branches with renewable energy from community solar installations. We're proud to support investment in community solar, which allows underserved neighborhoods to receive discounts on their energy bills.

此外，我們還與 30 多個分支機構簽訂了合同，使用社區太陽能裝置的可再生能源供電。我們很自豪能夠支持對社區太陽能的投資，這使得服務不足的社區能夠獲得能源帳單折扣。

Our second pillar is driving growth above market and enhancing margins through a set of targeted initiatives. Expanding our customer reach continues to be a major lever in our growth plans. This includes our investments in greenfields and acquisitions. A dedicated team continues to execute on our pipeline of greenfield locations.

我們的第二個支柱是透過一系列有針對性的措施推動高於市場的成長並提高利潤。擴大客戶範圍仍然是我們成長計畫的主要槓桿。這包括我們對綠地的投資和收購。一個專門的團隊繼續在我們的綠地專案管道上執行任務。

In the fourth quarter, we opened 11 new branches. Each time we add a new location, we add sales resources and reduce the average distance and time for us to reach our customers. This enhances our overall value proposition, giving us the opportunity to earn market share.

第四季度，我們新開了11家分行。每次我們新增地點時，我們都會增加銷售資源，並減少我們接觸客戶的平均距​​離和時間。這增強了我們的整體價值主張，使我們有機會贏得市場份額。

We have now opened 45 new branches since the beginning of 2022, exceeding our original Ambition 2025 goal. These branches have contributed more than $290 million to our top line over two years. It also demonstrates our ability to adjust to prevailing market opportunities. We've seen the impact these new branches have had in our results and accelerated the program.

自 2022 年初以來，我們現已開設 45 家新分行，超越了我們最初的 2025 年雄心目標。兩年來，這些分公司為我們的營收貢獻了超過 2.9 億美元。它也表明我們有能力適應當前的市場機會。我們已經看到這些新分支機構對我們的成果產生的影響並加速了該計劃。

On acquisitions, we discussed the recent additions of Roofers Supply and of Metro Sealant as well as Garvin. And we also acquired H&H Roofing Supply, strengthening our presence in the Central Valley of California and in Bakersfield to our service area. Since announcing our Ambition 2025 plan, we have acquired 16 companies adding 50 branches.

關於收購，我們討論了最近增加的 Roofers Supply 和 Metro Sealant 以及 Garvin。我們也收購了 H&H Roofing Supply，加強了我們在加州中央山谷和貝克斯菲爾德服務區的業務。自從宣布我們的「2025 年雄心」計畫以來，我們已經收購了 16 家公司，增加了 50 個分店。

Our online capability continues to be a clear competitive differentiator for Beacon. Sales through our online platform deliver approximately 150 basis points better margin compared to offline channels. Our valuated integrations are driving performance, and in the fourth quarter, we grew digital sales, nearly 28% year over year.

我們的線上能力仍然是 Beacon 的明顯競爭優勢。與線下通路相比，透過我們的線上平台銷售的利潤率高出約 150 個基點。我們重視的整合正在推動業績成長，第四季度，我們的數位銷售額年增近 28%。

Digital sales to our residential customers were a highlight as we achieved adoption of nearly 22%. We have plans to build on our digital leadership by continuing to invest in this area and to differentiate ourselves and build upon our competitive advantage in the marketplace.

對住宅客戶的數位銷售是一大亮點，採用率接近 22%。我們計劃透過繼續投資這一領域來鞏固我們的數位領導地位，使自己與眾不同，並建立我們在市場上的競爭優勢。

Our third pillar involves driving operational excellence and expanding capacity through our continuous improvement and productivity initiatives. Our focus on the bottom-quintile branches generated a significant contribution to EBITDA in the fourth quarter. A disciplined process for diagnosing and addressing issues has been core to our operational improvements for the last two years. I'm pleased to report that the process added approximately $15 million to the bottom line year over year in the fourth quarter.

我們的第三個支柱涉及透過持續改進和生產力計劃來推動卓越營運並擴大產能。我們對排名倒數五分位的分支機構的關注為第四季度的 EBITDA 做出了重大貢獻。診斷和解決問題的嚴格流程是我們過去兩年營運改善的核心。我很高興地報告，該流程使第四季度的利潤同比增加了約 1500 萬美元。

And fourth, let's review how we are creating shareholder value. In July, we deployed a little over $800 million to repurchase the entirety of the outstanding preferred shares from CD&R, reducing the as-converted share count by 9.7 million. Since then, CD&R sold off its remaining stake in our common stock and exited its Board representation. In addition, we continue to execute on our current authorization to repurchase our common stock retiring 8.4 million shares in the last two years.

第四，讓我們回顧一下我們如何創造股東價值。7 月份，我們部署了 8 億多美元，從 CD&R 回購了全部已發行優先股，使轉換後的股票數量減少了 970 萬股。此後，CD&R 出售了在我們普通股中的剩餘股份，並退出了董事會代表權。此外，我們繼續執行目前的授權，回購過去兩年退役的 840 萬股普通股。

Since the start of Ambition 2025, we have deployed more than $1.3 billion to shareholder returns, reducing the as-converted share count by approximately 21%. And impressively, even without -- even with the purchase of our shares, the investment in M&A, and the record spending on growth CapEx, we exited the year with net debt leverage at 2.4 times.

自 Ambition 2025 啟動以來，我們已將超過 13 億美元用於股東回報，將轉換後的股份數量減少了約 21%。令人印象深刻的是，即使沒有——即使購買了我們的股票，進行了併購投資，以及創紀錄的成長資本支出，我們今年結束時的淨債務槓桿率為 2.4 倍。

In summary, we have a differentiated approach and have built the tools to enable multiple paths of growth, margin expansion, and value creation through the cycle. Our Ambition 2025 plan brings it all together to amplify the resiliency of our business model and unlock our potential.

總而言之，我們採取了差異化的方法，並建立了工具來實現整個週期中成長、利潤擴張和價值創造的多種路徑。我們的「2025 年雄心」計畫將所有這些結合在一起，以增強我們業務模式的彈性並釋放我們的潛力。

Now let me introduce our Interim Chief Financial Officer, Carmelo Carrubba. First, let me say that I'm delighted that Carmelo has accepted this interim responsibility until a permanent CFO has been appointed. Carmelo has extensive, executive, functional, and operational experience, creating value serving in various roles.

現在讓我介紹一下我們的臨時財務長 Carmelo Carrubba。首先，我很高興卡梅隆接受了這項臨時職責，直到任命了永久財務長。卡梅隆擁有豐富的執行、職能和營運經驗，在各種角色中創造價值。

I was pleased when he joined us in April of 2022 as Vice President of Strategy and Transformation and as a member of Beacon's Executive Committee. In these key leadership positions, Carmelo shares responsibility for creating and supporting the value creation framework to drive the successful execution of Beacon's Ambition 2025 plan.

當他於 2022 年 4 月加入我們，擔任策略與轉型副總裁兼 Beacon 執行委員會成員時，我感到很高興。在這些關鍵領導職位上，Carmelo 共同負責創建和支持價值創造框架，以推動 Beacon 的 Ambition 2025 計劃的成功執行。

With that, I'll pass the call over to Carmelo to provide the details on our fourth-quarter result.

這樣，我會將電話轉接給卡梅洛，以提供有關我們第四季度業績的詳細資訊。

Thank you, Julian, and good evening, everyone. Turning to slide 7, we achieved nearly $2.3 billion in total net sales in the fourth quarter, up nearly 17%, primarily driven by organic growth volume across all three business lines as well as contributions from acquisitions. In the aggregate, average selling prices for our products were slightly positive year over year. Organic volumes, including those from greenfields, increased approximately 12% to 13%, while overall price contributed less than 1%.

謝謝你，朱利安，大家晚上好。轉向幻燈片 7，我們在第四季度實現了近 23 億美元的總淨銷售額，增長了近 17%，這主要是由所有三個業務線的有機增長以及收購的貢獻推動的。總體而言，我們產品的平均售價較去年同期略有上漲。有機產量（包括來自綠地的產量）增加了約 12% 至 13%，而整體價格貢獻不到 1%。

Acquisitions are performing well and contributed approximately 4% to net sales growth year over year. As a reminder, as of November 1, we lapped the acquisition of Coastal Construction Products, which has been the largest acquisition under our Ambition 25 plan.

收購表現良好，為淨銷售額年增率貢獻了約 4%。提醒一下，截至 11 月 1 日，我們完成了對 Coastal Construction Products 的收購，這是我們 Ambition 25 計劃下最大的收購。

Our backlog continued to convert in the quarter and was lower sequentially, but still well above historical levels. The mix of backlog is now more aligned with our sales mix with non-resi representing slightly less than 30% of the total. Residential roofing sales were higher by more than 20% as higher volumes were driven by resilient underlying R&R demand and storm activity combined with the higher prices in the low single-digit range.

我們的積壓訂單在本季持續變化，季比有所下降，但仍遠高於歷史水準。現在，積壓訂單的組合與我們的銷售組合更加一致，其中非樹脂訂單佔比略低於總數的 30%。住宅屋頂銷售量成長了 20% 以上，這是由於彈性的 R&R 需求和風暴活動以及低個位數範圍內的較高價格推動銷量增加。

Already volumes in the quarter were strong, and adjusting for channel restocking, we estimate that we grew in line with the market for the full year. We're very pleased to see the improvement of demand in the new residential construction, in particular, single-family homes.

本季的銷售量已經很強勁，並且根據通路補貨進行調整，我們估計全年的成長與市場一致。我們很高興看到新住宅建設的需求有所改善，特別是單戶住宅。

Non-residential sales increased more than 11% on solid R&R activity. As expected, the stocking at our customer contractor level came to an end. Estimated volumes increased in the mid-teens. And while prices declined in the low-single digits year over year from a high comparable in the year prior, they remained stable on a sequential basis.

由於穩健的 R&R 活動，非住宅銷售額成長了 11% 以上。正如預期的那樣，我們的客戶承包商等級的庫存已經結束。估計銷量在十幾歲左右有所增加。儘管價格較前一年的高點同比下降了低個位數，但環比保持穩定。

Complimentary sales increased by 16% year over year as our new waterproofing platforms continue to grow. Higher volume of siding products also contributed to the growth. Selling prices across product lines, with the exception of lumber, were stable year over year. Please keep in mind that with the addition of Coastal our complementary product category now has approximately 70% residential and 30% non-residential exposure.

隨著我們新防水平台的不斷增長，免費銷售額年增 16%。壁板產品銷售的增加也促進了成長。除木材外，各產品線的銷售價格較去年同期穩定。請記住，隨著 Coastal 的增加，我們的補充產品類別現在大約有 70% 的住宅和 30% 的非住宅曝險。

Turning to slide 8, will review gross margin and operating expenses. Gross margin was 25.7% in the fourth quarter, higher than our guidance on our third-quarter call. Price cost was down approximately 50 basis points year over year as a result of stable average selling prices and higher product costs, especially in the non-residential line of business. Keep in mind that we had significant inventory profits generated in the year-ago period.

轉向幻燈片 8，將回顧毛利率和營運費用。第四季毛利率為 25.7%，高於我們第三季電話會議的指引。由於平均銷售價格穩定和產品成本上升，特別是在非住宅業務領域，價格成本比去年同期下降約 50 個基點。請記住，我們去年同期產生了可觀的庫存利潤。

Adjusted OpEx was $409 million, an increase of $45 million compared to the prior-year quarter. Adjusted OpEx as a percentage of sales decreased to 17.8% or down 70 basis points year-over-year. The year-over-year change in adjusted OpEx was driven primarily by expenses associated with acquired and greenfield branches accounting for approximately $24 million of the year-over-year increase.

調整後營運支出為 4.09 億美元，比去年同期增加 4,500 萬美元。調整後營運支出佔銷售額的百分比下降至 17.8%，較去年同期下降 70 個基點。調整後營運支出的年比變化主要是由與收購和新建分行相關的費用推動的，約佔同比增長的 2,400 萬美元。

The increases in wages and benefits, including incentive comp, annual bonus true-up and commissions also contributed to the increase. These increases were partially offset by lower T&E and fleet expenses year over year. Branch productivity helped drive favorable operating leverage for year over year. As you can see, our sales-per-hour metric reached the highest fourth-quarter level since we began tracking at the beginning of the first quarter in 2020.

薪資和福利的增加，包括激勵補償、年度獎金調整和佣金也促進了這一成長。這些增長被逐年下降的差旅費和車隊費用部分抵消。分行生產力幫助推動了逐年有利的營運槓桿。正如您所看到的，我們的每小時銷售額指標達到了自 2020 年第一季初開始追蹤以來第四季度的最高水平。

Investments in Ambition 2025 priorities to drive above market growth and margin enhancement continued in the quarter. These investments include our dedicated greenfield and M&A teams as well as initiatives related to our sales organization, customer experience, pricing tools, e-commerce technologies and branch optimization.

本季繼續對 Ambition 2025 優先事項進行投資，以推動高於市場的成長和利潤率的提高。這些投資包括我們專門的綠地和併購團隊以及與我們的銷售組織、客戶體驗、定價工具、電子商務技術和分支機構優化相關的措施。

Let's turn now to slide 9. Operating cash flow was strong in the fourth quarter at $262 million. We had about $95 million less in inventory as compared to the prior-year quarter, even with inventory acquired through M&A and new inventory to support greenfields. This reflects our effective inventory management that continue into the year-end. Through close collaboration with the field management team and our supply chain organization, we efficiently manage working capital contributing to a strong finish to the year.

現在讓我們翻到投影片 9。第四季營運現金流強勁，達 2.62 億美元。與去年同期相比，我們的庫存減少了約 9500 萬美元，即使是透過併購獲得的庫存以及支持綠地建設的新庫存也是如此。這反映了我們持續到年底的有效庫存管理。透過與現場管理團隊和供應鏈組織的密切合作，我們有效地管理營運資金，為今年取得了良好的成績。

Our fourth-quarter cash conversion was impressive at more than 120% of adjusted EBITDA. In our full-year 2023, we generated a record $788 million of operating cash flow with conversion of more than 84%. We continue to balance our capital allocation between organic and inorganic growth opportunities and shareholder returns. Our ability to invest in greenfields and value-creating acquisitions is underpinned by our ample balance sheet capacity and liquidity.

我們第四季的現金轉換令人印象深刻，超過調整後 EBITDA 的 120%。2023 年全年，我們創造了創紀錄的 7.88 億美元營運現金流，轉換率超過 84%。我們持續平衡有機和無機成長機會與股東回報之間的資本配置。我們充足的資產負債表能力和流動性支撐著我們投資綠地和創造價值的收購的能力。

As Julian mentioned, our former largest shareholder CD&R recently sold off its remaining stake in our common stock and exited its representation on our Board of Directors. At the same time in February, Moody's upgraded our long-term credit rating one notch, which will improve our access to capital and lower our overall cost of debt going forward.

正如朱利安所提到的，我們的前最大股東 CD&R 最近出售了其在我們普通股中的剩餘股份，並退出了我們在董事會的代表權。同時，穆迪在二月將我們的長期信用評級上調了一級，這將改善我們獲得資本的機會並降低我們未來的整體債務成本。

We are investing record amounts in our business, deploying more than $120 million in capital expenditures in 2023. This has not only included the investments in the greenfields already discussed, but also the upgrading of our fleet and facilities as well as building out the technology tools that will benefit us in 2024 and beyond.

我們正在對業務進行創紀錄的投資，到 2023 年部署的資本支出將超過 1.2 億美元。這不僅包括已經討論過的綠地投資，還包括我們的機隊和設施的升級，以及建造將在 2024 年及以後使我們受益的技術工具。

Let me give you some of the details on our share buybacks. Share repurchases in the fourth quarter were made through open-market repurchases and resulted in the retirement of 140,000 shares during the quarter. Net of share issuances for stock-based compensation reduced our common shares outstanding to 63.3 million on December 31 versus the 64.2 million at the same time the prior year.

讓我向您介紹我們股票回購的一些細節。第四季的股票回購是透過公開市場回購進行的，導致本季回購了 140,000 股股票。扣除以股票補償為基礎的股票發行後，截至 12 月 31 日，我們的已發行普通股減少至 6,330 萬股，而去年同期為 6,420 萬股。

We are confident in our ability to successfully compete in and react to changing market conditions and look forward to a successful start of the year. We're also investing in the processes and technologies in order to build upon the foundation of a high-caliber service, future growth, and operational excellence.

我們對自己在不斷變化的市場條件中成功競爭和做出反應的能力充滿信心，並期待今年取得成功。我們也對流程和技術進行投資，以便為高品質服務、未來成長和卓越營運奠定基礎。

Now let me turn the call back to Julian for his closing remarks.

現在讓我把電話轉回給朱利安，讓他發表結束語。

Thanks, Carmelo, and please reference page 11 of the slide materials. Before we move to the outlook, I'd like to take a minute to reflect on the impressive 2023 results and the progress we have made toward the Ambition 2025 targets we conveyed two years ago. In 2023, we produced sales growth of over 8% to $9.1 billion.

謝謝 Carmelo，請參考投影片資料的第 11 頁。在展望展望之前，我想花一點時間回顧一下 2023 年令人印象深刻的業績，以及我們在實現兩年前提出的 2025 年雄心目標方面所取得的進展。2023 年，我們的銷售額成長超過 8%，達到 91 億美元。

When we started the year, uncertainties around the economy, housing, inflation and mortgage rates were all in the headlines. We remained confident that we could grow, and we did just that despite headwinds from destocking at the commercial contractor level and sluggish new construction demand to start the year. We focused on delivering high-caliber service to our customers and productivity and continuous improvement of our branches.

年初時，圍繞經濟、住房、通膨和抵押貸款利率的不確定性都成為頭條新聞。我們仍然對自己能夠實現成長充滿信心，儘管商業承包商層級的去庫存帶來了阻力，而且年初新建築需求低迷，但我們還是做到了這一點。我們專注於為客戶提供高品質的服務以及分公司的生產力和持續改進。

We delivered approximately [$930] million of adjusted EBITDA and our third consecutive calendar year of double-digit EBITDA margins. We delivered record sales in our national accounts, private label and digital initiatives, which deliver both enhanced growth and margin. We generated $21 million in EBITDA contribution from our bottom-quintile branch initiative, bringing the two-year total to $57 million, three quarters of our $75 million Ambition 2025 target.

我們實現了約 9.3 億美元的調整後 EBITDA，並且連續第三年實現兩位數的 EBITDA 利潤率。我們在國民帳戶、自有品牌和數位計畫方面實現了創紀錄的銷售額，從而實現了成長和利潤的提高。我們從倒數五分之一的分公司計畫中獲得了 2,100 萬美元的 EBITDA 貢獻，使兩年總額達到 5,700 萬美元，是我們 2025 年 7,500 萬美元目標的四分之三。

We opened 28 greenfields across 17 states, enhancing service to our customers. These new branches are ramping up ahead of expectations. And in total, all new greenfield locations contributed nearly $200 million to the top line in 2023 alone. We welcomed nine new acquisitions, adding 21 branches, new markets and capabilities. I'm pleased to report that our acquisition portfolio is performing well and delivering results.

我們在 17 個州開設了 28 個綠地，增強了對客戶的服務。這些新分支機構的擴張速度超出了預期。總的來說，光是 2023 年，所有新建地點就為營收貢獻了近 2 億美元。我們迎來了 9 項新收購，增加了 21 個分公司、新市場和新能力。我很高興地報告，我們的收購組合表現良好並且取得了成果。

Acquired branches contributed approximately $370 million to net sales in 2023 and like our greenfield strategy, expands our ability to serve our customers across the country. We filled several key leadership positions with our sales force, line of business, and leadership ranks while at the same time advancing our diversity, inclusion, and equity initiatives. We repurchased and retired 1.6 million shares for approximately $111 million and as discussed redeemed the entirety of the preferred shares for a little over $800 million.

收購的分公司在 2023 年為淨銷售額貢獻了約 3.7 億美元，就像我們的綠地策略一樣，擴大了我們為全國客戶服務的能力。我們用銷售團隊、業務線和領導層填補了多個關鍵領導職位，同時推進了我們的多元化、包容性和股權計劃。我們以約 1.11 億美元的價格回購並退役了 160 萬股股票，並按照討論的結果以略高於 8 億美元的價格贖回了全部優先股。

In summary, our performance in 2023 has created significant value for our customers and shareholders, including achieving two of the Ambition 2025 targets, net sales of $9 billion and shareholder returns of more than $500 million two years ahead of plan, as well as a third year of double-digit EBITDA margin, another of our A25 targets.

總之，我們2023 年的業績為客戶和股東創造了巨大價值，包括提前兩年實現2025 年雄心勃勃目標中的兩項、淨銷售額90 億美元和股東回報超過5 億美元，以及第三項目標.EBITDA 利潤率達到兩位數，這是我們 A25 的另一個目標。

Please reference slide 12. Before we head to Q&A, I'd like to provide our 2024 market expectations. We expect that residential re-roofing market demand will be lower this year, driven by our assumption that storm demand will revert to the 10-year average. At the same time, we expect non-storm repair and re-roofing to be higher as the number of older roofs grows. Residential new construction and existing home sales are expected to improve also.

請參考投影片 12。在進行問答之前，我想先介紹一下我們對 2024 年的市場預期。我們預計，由於我們假設風暴需求將恢復到 10 年平均水平，今年住宅屋頂翻修市場需求將會下降。同時，隨著舊屋頂數量的增加，我們預計非風暴修復和重新屋頂的數量將會增加。住宅新建和成屋銷售預計也將改善。

Regarding commercial roofing, we are monitoring the Architectural Billing Index, which remains below 50, indicating contraction in activity in the first half of the year. We also see a continued shift from new construction to repair and re-roofing activity as the year progresses.

關於商業屋頂，我們正在監測建築帳單指數，該指數仍低於 50，顯示今年上半年的活動有所收縮。隨著時間的推移，我們也看到從新建築到維修和重新屋頂活動的持續轉變。

Despite these modest market headwinds for the first quarter, we expect total sales growth to be in the high single-digit range year over year, demonstrating the value of our model. And this is considerably more than the 4% sales per day decline we saw in January, which, as you know, had cold and wet weather in many parts of the country. Non-residential shipments are expected to be higher versus the prior year quarter in which we experienced considerable destocking at the commercial contractor level.

儘管第一季市場阻力不大，但我們預計總銷售額將年比成長將保持在較高的個位數範圍內，這證明了我們模型的價值。這比我們在 1 月看到的每日銷售額 4% 的下降幅度要大得多，正如您所知，該國許多地區的天氣寒冷潮濕。非住宅出貨量預計將高於去年同期，去年我們在商業承包商層級經歷了大幅去庫存。

With respect to the first quarter gross margins, we expected to be in the mid 24% range, which is down driven by line of business mix and the impact of both new greenfield locations and the M&A we've conducted in the past year that is yet to be fully synergized. Operating expenses as a percentage of sales is expected to increase year over year, largely attributable to the higher expenses related to headcount from greenfields and acquired branches. But also given tight labor markets, we are making efforts to ensure that we are properly staffed to meet the ramp in seasonal activity to continue to provide the high level of service our customers expect.

就第一季的毛利率而言，我們預計將在 24% 左右，這是由於業務組合以及新綠地地點和我們去年進行的併購的影響而下降的尚待充分協同。營運費用佔銷售額的百分比預計將逐年增加，這主要是由於與新建和收購分公司的員工人數相關的費用增加。但考慮到勞動力市場緊張，我們正在努力確保配備適當的人員來滿足季節性活動的增加，以繼續提供客戶期望的高水準服務。

For the full year, we expect net sales growth in the mid-single digit percent range, including contributions from acquisitions previously announced. This is an upward revision to the expectations provided in January for low single-digit growth reflecting our recent acquisitions and our expectations for the announced April residential price increase.

就全年而言，我們預計淨銷售額成長將在中個位數百分比範圍內，其中包括先前宣布的收購的貢獻。這是對 1 月低個位數成長預期的向上修正，反映了我們最近的收購以及我們對 4 月宣布的住宅價格上漲的預期。

Regarding gross margin, structural improvements from our initiatives, including higher private label and digital sales, are expected to be somewhat offset by higher non-residential mix. Important to note that we expect price cost to be neutral, resulting in a full-year gross margin percentage in the mid-25% range. With all that in mind, we expect adjusted EBITDA to range between $920 million and $980 million.

就毛利率而言，我們的舉措帶來的結構性改善，包括更高的自有品牌和數位銷售，預計將在一定程度上被更高的非住宅組合所抵消。值得注意的是，我們預計價格成本將保持中性，導致全年毛利率在 25% 左右。考慮到所有這些，我們預計調整後的 EBITDA 將在 9.2 億美元至 9.8 億美元之間。

Regarding cash flow, we expect inventory to follow a more normal pattern of seasonality as we build inventory and working capital in the first half of the year. For the full year, we expect to generate strong cash flow with conversion from adjusted EBITDA above 50%.

關於現金流，隨著我們在上半年建立庫存和營運資金，我們預計庫存將遵循更正常的季節性模式。我們預計全年將產生強勁的現金流，調整後的 EBITDA 轉換率將超過 50%。

Our focus will remain on the areas within our control, including enhancing our customer experience, pricing, and daily execution on safety, service, and efficiency. We will continue to invest in initiatives that we expect will result in accelerated growth for the acquisitions and approximately 25 additional greenfield locations. We're investing in improving our operations, delivering results today but also getting ready for the future.

我們的重點仍將放在我們控制範圍內，包括增強我們的客戶體驗、定價以及安全、服務和效率的日常執行。我們將繼續投資於預計將加速收購成長的舉措以及約 25 個新增地點。我們正在投資改善我們的運營，在今天取得成果的同時也為未來做好準備。

And last but certainly not least, we continue to be committed to generating returns for our shareholders, and we will be balancing growth investments with share repurchases. We have approximately $390 million left remaining on the authorization from our Board approval early last year.

最後但同樣重要的是，我們繼續致力於為股東創造回報，我們將平衡成長投資與股票回購。去年年初董事會批准的授權中，我們還剩下約 3.9 億美元。

In summary, our business model is resilient, and we are positioned to outperform the market in any demand environment, creating value for all our stakeholders. We are looking forward to the rest of 2024 and as always, helping our customers build more.

總之，我們的業務模式具有彈性，我們有能力在任何需求環境中跑贏市場，為所有利害關係人創造價值。我們期待 2024 年剩下的時間，並一如既往地幫助我們的客戶建立更多。

And with that, Victoria, I'll turn it back to you and open up the question-and-answer session.

接下來，維多利亞，我將把它轉回給你並開始問答環節。

Of course. (Operator Instructions)

當然。（操作員說明）

Ryan Merkel, William Blair.

瑞恩·梅克爾、威廉·布萊爾。

Hey. Thanks. Good afternoon. Thanks for taking the question. I wanted to ask on gross margin. You gave the reasons why in the first quarter it is going to be down year over year, but then it assumes that it will be up year over year the rest of the year. So some of the factors you cited like line of business and mix and the dilutive new greenfields, do those things improve through the year or are you counting on something else to drive the gross margin improvement through the year?

嘿。謝謝。午安.感謝您提出問題。我想問毛利率。您給出了第一季同比下降的原因，但隨後假設今年剩餘時間同比增長。那麼，您提到的一些因素，例如業務線和組合以及稀釋性的新綠地，這些因素在這一年中是否有所改善，或者您是否指望其他因素來推動全年毛利率的改善？

Thanks for the question, Ryan. I'm glad you asked for that clarification. In the first quarter, what we've got is as we've mentioned, we got 11 greenfields that we opened in the fourth quarter. Obviously, we don't get the full gross margin benefit of those. So that's a piece of it. That's a drag in the first quarter. We would expect those to improve through the year and get better as we fully ramp them up and get their product mix right. So that's a piece of it.

謝謝你的提問，瑞安。我很高興你要求澄清。在第一季度，正如我們所提到的，我們在第四季度開闢了 11 個綠地。顯然，我們並沒有獲得這些產品的全部毛利率收益。這就是其中的一部分。這是第一季的一個拖累。我們預計這些將在這一年中得到改善，並隨著我們充分提升它們並使其產品組合正確而變得更好。這就是其中的一部分。

Similarly with our acquisitions, particularly with some of the more recent ones, we're working very carefully on driving the performance that we expect. But some of our larger acquisitions, apart from Coastal, it's now included in our continuing results. Some of the newer acquisitions we've yet to fully synergize because they were done later in the year, and they were a little bit larger than others we've done previously. So they are having more of an impact early on in the year. And again, we expect to see that improve year over year.

與我們的收購類似，特別是最近的一些收購，我們正在非常謹慎地努力推動我們預期的表現。但除了 Coastal 之外，我們的一些大型收購現在已包含在我們的持續業績中。我們尚未完全整合一些新的收購，因為它們是在今年稍後完成的，而且比我們之前完成的其他收購要大一些。因此，他們在今年年初產生了更大的影響。我們再次期望看到這種情況逐年改善。

Also as we start to come out, if you look back beyond the last couple of years, which have been a little bit odd in terms of price carryover and inventory profits, we've returned to a sort of more normal seasonality. And so we normally would see a lower margin gross margin in the first quarter of the year. That's a more typically seasonal basis that we recover through the rest of the year as the mix shifts more towards the residential side.

另外，當我們開始發佈時，如果你回顧過去幾年，在價格結轉和庫存利潤方面有點奇怪，我們已經回到了一種更正常的季節性。因此，我們通常會看到今年第一季的毛利率較低。這是一個更典型的季節性基礎，隨著混合更多地轉向住宅方面，我們在今年剩餘時間內恢復了這個基礎。

So to answer your question, relatively succinctly, it's mostly on improvements in what we have. And then the other piece of it would be a more typical selling season as we get more into the shingle re-roof area, the margins go up. So it's just a more normal pattern of behavior with season -- we're not relying on other elements, but thanks for the clarifying questions.

因此，相對簡潔地回答你的問題，主要是關於我們現有的改進。然後，隨著我們更多地進入木瓦翻新屋頂領域，另一部分將是一個更典型的銷售季節，利潤率會上升。所以這只是季節更正常的行為模式——我們不依賴其他因素，但感謝您澄清問題。

Perfect. Thank you.

完美的。謝謝。

Thank you for your question. Michael Rehaut, JPMorgan.

謝謝你的問題。麥可雷豪特，摩根大通。

Hi, guys. Doug Wardlaw on for Mike. I'm curious if you could give a little bit more color on some of the trends you saw throughout the quarter. And in addition to that, if any of that was surprising in any surprising variation in market and just kind of your general view on how the market can develop throughout 2024? Thanks.

嗨，大家好。道格沃德勞 (Doug Wardlaw) 替補邁克 (Mike)。我很好奇您是否可以對整個季度看到的一些趨勢提供更多的資訊。除此之外，市場中是否有任何令人驚訝的變化以及您對 2024 年市場如何發展的整體看法？謝謝。

Thanks for the question. I'd be happy to do that. So a couple of things, I think, were very evident to us throughout the fourth quarter -- and I'll split it into residential and commercial.

謝謝你的提問。我很樂意這樣做。因此，我認為，在整個第四季度，有幾件事對我們來說非常明顯——我將把它分為住宅和商業。

Residential remains strong. The season stretched out a little bit. There was -- despite some cold weather, we saw contracting on the residential side working through, particularly in the western half of the country. And obviously, we've seen significant storms out west it last year. And I think there was a real opportunity for people to get some of that work done. And so residential demand held up through most of the fourth quarter.

住宅依然強勁。季節稍微延長了一些。儘管天氣寒冷，但我們看到住宅方面的合約正在發揮作用，特別是在該國的西半部。顯然，去年我們在西部地區看到了嚴重的風暴。我認為人們確實有機會完成其中一些工作。因此，住宅需求在第四季度的大部分時間都保持不變。

What we did see on the residential side was Florida came down hard after Hurricane Ian sort of rolled off. You could see the difference kind of going into the -- a little bit in the third quarter, but certainly in the fourth quarter and the impact of Hurricane Ian was clearly done. So those two have impacts. They weren't offsetting -- the storms in the West was significantly greater. And so we've continued to see and some really good demand.

我們在住宅方面確實看到的是，在颶風伊恩平息後，佛羅裡達州的情況嚴重惡化。你可以看到第三季度出現的一些變化，但肯定是在第四季度，伊恩颶風的影響顯然已經結束。所以這兩個是有影響的。它們並沒有抵消——西部的風暴要大得多。因此，我們繼續看到一些非常好的需求。

And quite honestly, we expect to see that rolling into the start of 2024 on the residential side, which is very encouraging and also why we wanted to maintain our workforce through the winter because we've seen the demand on the residential side, particularly when we have reasonably warm days in February we've seen the demand be particularly good. So we're excited about that side.

老實說，我們預計住宅方面的需求將持續到 2024 年初，這是非常令人鼓舞的，也是我們希望在整個冬季維持勞動力的原因，因為我們已經看到了住宅方面的需求，特別是當二月份的天氣相當溫暖，我們看到需求特別好。所以我們對這方面感到興奮。

Switching to the commercial volumes, I think what we were convinced of in the fourth quarter was kind of the rebound we saw in the commercial business. And we think that a lot of that is just the -- lapping some of the contractor destocking that I don't think we really captured in fourth quarter or last year that was sort of evident in our numbers in the fourth quarter of 2023. So commercial volumes were good.

轉向商業銷量，我認為我們在第四季度所確信的是我們在商業業務中看到的反彈。我們認為，其中很多只是——我認為我們在第四季度或去年沒有真正捕捉到一些承包商去庫存的情況，這在我們 2023 年第四季度的數據中很明顯。所以商業銷售很好。

We believe that the market is solid. There's a few headwinds out there -- interest rates not being the least of them in terms of new projects. So we think that that will move the commercial low slope roofing business, a little bit more towards the repair and replacement than the new side.

我們相信市場是穩固的。就新項目而言，存在一些不利因素——利率並不是最重要的因素。因此，我們認為這將使商業低坡屋頂業務比新一側更傾向於維修和更換。

Obviously, the numbers we see in Q1 -- Q1's destocking last year was significant. So we're seeing significant uptick in volumes year over year in Q1. But obviously, that's not market related; that's more distribution and probably manufacturing related as opposed to total market because of the destocking that was so prevalent in the first quarter.

顯然，我們在第一季看到的數字——去年第一季的去庫存是顯著的。因此，我們看到第一季的銷售量較去年同期大幅上升。但顯然，這與市場無關；而是與市場有關。與整個市場相比，這更多是與分銷和可能與製造相關的，因為第一季去庫存非常普遍。

I think the other thing I'd touch on is the growth in some of the waterproofing business as well. That's been very attractive for us. And we're seeing a shift there away from new commercial construction also to the repair and replace, which I think is very underappreciated part of it. When you think of codes that are starting to be written around waterproofing, not just in coastal areas, but all across the country, we're starting to see the renovation of waterproofing become something that's really important to the code writers but also to the buildings themselves, obviously. So, exciting things there.

我想我要談的另一件事是一些防水業務的成長。這對我們來說非常有吸引力。我們看到從新的商業建築轉向維修和更換，我認為這是其中非常被低估的一部分。當您想到開始圍繞防水編寫的規範時，不僅在沿海地區，而且在全國範圍內，我們開始看到防水改造對規範編寫者和建築物來說都非常重要顯然，他們自己。所以，那裡有令人興奮的事情。

So we think drawing conclusions from that, coming into the first of the year, we expect to get off to a decent start to the year, a little bit of pressure on gross margin but higher OpEx in the first quarter, but we are absolutely ready for March, April, May and the second quarter of the year.

因此，我們認為從中得出結論，進入今年第一季度，我們預計今年會有一個不錯的開局，毛利率會受到一些壓力，但第一季的營運支出會更高，但我們絕對做好了準備3月、4月、5月和今年第二季。

Great. Thank you, guys.

偉大的。感謝你們。

Thank you for your question. Trey Grooms, Stephens.

謝謝你的問題。特雷格魯姆斯、史蒂芬斯。

This is Sid Ramesh on for Trey. Thanks for taking my question. Could you guys talk through the cadence for OpEx -- 1Q, 1Q makes sense, but maybe 2Q onwards? Thanks.

我是席德·拉梅什 (Sid Ramesh)，替補特雷 (Trey)。感謝您提出我的問題。你們能談談 OpEx 的節奏嗎？第一季、第一季是有道理的，但也許從第二季開始？謝謝。

Yeah, I'll add some kind of a high-level sort of working theory of what we believe and then I'll let Carmelo add some color. As we said, we do expect to have higher OpEx in Q1 mainly because we did not winterize the branches as much as we would normally do because of the scarcity of labor. And our full belief that we're going to get off to a really good start to the year once the season breaks out, and we get away from the cold wet weather into sort of a more normal climate pattern, we'll start to see that.

是的，我會添加一些我們所相信的高級工作理論，然後我會讓卡梅羅添加一些顏色。正如我們所說，我們確實預計第一季的營運支出會更高，主要是因為由於勞動力稀缺，我們沒有像通常那樣對分支機構進行防凍。我們完全相信，一旦季節爆發，我們將在今年有一個非常好的開始，我們將擺脫寒冷潮濕的天氣，進入一種更正常的氣候模式，我們將開始看到那。

We've continued to invest in what we believe are growth-enhancing initiatives. So we believe that that's still important for us to continue to do. So as we look at the key initiatives we have and particularly, as we think about greenfields and M&A, obviously, greenfields, you staff up first before you have any sales. We have to bring definitely branch managers in; we have to bring the drivers in, the warehouse people, the salespeople.

我們繼續投資於我們認為能夠促進成長的舉措。所以我們相信這對我們繼續做仍然很重要。因此，當我們審視我們擁有的關鍵舉措時，特別是當我們考慮綠地和併購時，顯然，綠地，您在進行任何銷售之前首先要配備人員。我們一定要引進分行經理；我們必須讓司機、倉庫人員、銷售人員進來。

So obviously, OpEx grows ahead of those greenfields. And obviously, we just announced that we've committed to around 25 new branches. So there'll be additional OpEx coming in throughout the year as we build out new capabilities there.

顯然，營運支出的成長領先於那些綠地。顯然，我們剛剛宣布我們已承諾開設約 25 個新分公司。因此，隨著我們在那裡建立新功能，全年都會有額外的營運支出。

And then some key initiatives that we want to get done this year. We're getting really close to achieving the goals that we laid out in Ambition 2025, and we've seen the investments we've made in these initiatives really pay off over the last couple of years. And so we certainly don't want to dial that back just yet. But I'll let Carmelo add a little bit of color.

然後是我們希望今年完成的一些關鍵舉措。我們非常接近實現「2025 年雄心壯志」中設定的目標，我們已經看到過去幾年我們在這些舉措中所做的投資確實得到了回報。因此，我們當然還不想改變這一點。但我會讓卡梅羅添加一點色彩。

Yeah, I think Julian covered pretty well. I will just add that -- you were asking about the expected evolution throughout the year, quarter over quarter. And of course, after Q1, we expect sales to ramp like following the normal seasonal dynamic that we have in our business. And so we will see some OpEx leverage in Q2 and Q3. I'd say for the full year, we will probably expect it to remain flat versus what we had in 2023.

是的，我認為朱利安覆蓋得很好。我只想補充一點——您問的是全年、逐季度的預期演變。當然，在第一季之後，我們預計銷售額將按照我們業務中正常的季節性動態而成長。因此，我們將在第二季和第三季看到一些營運支出槓桿。我想說，對於全年而言，我們可能會預計與 2023 年持平。

Got it. Appreciate the color, guys. Thanks.

知道了。欣賞一下這個顏色，夥計們。謝謝。

Thank you for your question. Garik Shmois, Loop Capital.

謝謝你的問題。Garik Shmois，Loop Capital。

Hi. Thank you. So wondering if you could speak to your expectations for residential pricing, recognizing your anticipating price cost neutrality, but given there's a price increase in the market for April, wondering how that might influence your assumptions?

你好。謝謝。因此，想知道您是否可以談談您對住宅定價的預期，並認識到您預期的價格成本中性，但考慮到 4 月份市場價格上漲，想知道這可能會如何影響您的假設？

Yeah. I mean, we've factored in that a price increase Garik in terms of what we've forecast going forward. I mean. the big question -- I'll tell you, I don't want to be too aggressive in terms of forecasting out; we don't know what the execution is going to be like. So we're encouraged by it. We've announced our own price increase on top of the manufacturers. So we certainly expect to recover the crust and hold onto our gross margin. But we will -- we do believe that it's warranted.

是的。我的意思是，我們已經根據我們對未來的預測考慮了加里克的價格上漲。我是說。大問題——我告訴你，我不想在預測方面過於激進；我們不知道執行會是什麼樣子。所以我們對此感到鼓舞。我們已經宣佈在製造商之上提高我們自己的價格。因此，我們當然希望恢復地殼並維持我們的毛利率。但我們會——我們確實相信這是有道理的。

We're watching the commercial side closely. That's an area where we've had slightly weaker demand. The destocking from the contractor level volumes at the manufacturers and distributors are likely to be up this year. But we're watching the overall end-market demand there. So we're feeling pretty good.

我們正在密切關注商業方面。這是我們需求稍弱的領域。製造商和分銷商的承包商級別的去庫存量今年可能會增加。但我們正在關注那裡的整體終端市場需求。所以我們感覺很好。

We do think we'll get some benefits in probably the second quarter from inventory profits as we go up and watch our weighted average cost of goods come in. Obviously, that will roll off probably in mid third quarter. But overall, we're expecting it to be relatively neutral.

我們確實認為，隨著我們觀察加權平均商品成本的上升，我們可能會在第二季從庫存利潤中獲得一些好處。顯然，這可能會在第三季中期開始。但總的來說，我們預計它會相對中性。

I'd love to see some opportunity elsewhere. And I think the longer-term piece is we're starting to roll out our new pricing model, and that's -- that won't have a lot of impact in the first half of the year, but we hope to expect to see some impact from that in the second half of the year as well. So hopefully, we'll see some good opportunity to improve on our overall numbers this year as well.

我很想在其他地方看到一些機會。我認為長期而言，我們開始推出新的定價模式，這不會在今年上半年產生太大影響，但我們希望看到一些下半年的影響也是如此。因此，希望今年我們也能看到一些改善整體數據的好機會。

Understood. Thank you very much.

明白了。非常感謝。

Thank you for your question. David Manthey, Baird.

謝謝你的問題。大衛曼蒂，貝爾德。

Thank you. Good afternoon. Julian, I was wondering if I could get your view on a couple of industry factors. First, changes in homeowners’ insurance from replacement value to depreciated cash value like those last year. And then second, E-Verify and you mentioned labor issues in general, but if you can give us your thoughts on both of those issues.

謝謝。午安.朱利安，我想知道是否可以了解您對幾個行業因素的看法。首先，房屋保險從重置價值變成去年的折舊現金價值。其次，E-Verify 和您提到了一般的勞工問題，但您能否給我們您對這兩個問題的想法。

You snuck in two questions there, David, but I'll be happy to do that. So first of all, on the insurance -- look, this is part of our theory about our business is that if you need a roof, you're going to figure out how you can get a roof. If the insurance pays a portion of it or it pays all of it, if you need a new roof, you're going to get all of it. And this is the core piece of our model.

大衛，你偷偷問了兩個問題，但我很樂意這麼做。首先，在保險方面——看，這是我們業務理論的一部分，如果你需要屋頂，你就要弄清楚如何獲得屋頂。如果保險支付部分費用或支付全部費用，如果您需要新屋頂，您將獲得全部費用。這是我們模型的核心部分。

I think, many, many contractors and certainly distribution we offer, financing through a partner. So the ability to get the money to a finance a roof one way or another is there. And so while I think it puts a little bit of strain on homeowners in terms of cash position, what happens is that it's not the roof that they decide that they're not going to do; it's other things. So it's less about roofing in that situation.

我認為，有很多很多承包商，當然還有我們提供的分銷，透過合作夥伴進行融資。因此，以某種方式將資金用於屋頂融資的能力是存在的。因此，雖然我認為這給房主的現金狀況帶來了一些壓力，但實際情況是，他們決定不做的不是屋頂；而是他們決定不做的事情。這是其他事情。因此，在這種情況下，屋頂的問題就更少了。

So we don't think ultimately it creates challenges for the roofing business. We think that's it's one of the great things about the roofing business. It's really is non-discretionary, and people will find ways. And there is financing out there -- customers' balance sheets, consumer balance sheets are strong. So they're able to borrow. So that's the first part.

因此，我們認為這最終不會為屋頂業務帶來挑戰。我們認為這是屋頂業務的偉大之處之一。這確實是不可自由裁量的，人們會找到方法的。而且還有融資——客戶的資產負債表、消費者的資產負債表都很強勁。所以他們可以藉錢。這是第一部分。

The second part regarding E-Verify. I had mentioned this on a prior earnings call maybe two or three quarters ago; we were asked specifically about the rule in Florida. And I'd say we did see an impact in the immediate aftermath of events, not so much on our business obviously. We follow the verified programs, but we did see some activity in Florida decline. We believe a lot of that came back over probably a five-, six-month period. We think that in general, the contractors found ways to mitigate some of the losses that you saw in Florida.

第二部分關於電子驗證。我可能在兩三個季度前的一次財報電話會議上提到過這一點；我們被特別詢問了佛羅裡達州的規定。我想說的是，事件發生後我們確實看到了影響，但顯然對我們的業務影響不大。我們遵循經過驗證的計劃，但我們確實看到佛羅裡達州的一些活動有所下降。我們相信其中很多可能會在五、六個月的時間內恢復。我們認為，總的來說，承包商找到了減輕你在佛羅裡達州看到的一些損失的方法。

So broadly, I think we're going to find ways to figure out the -- some of the labor tightness. Fundamentally, I don't believe that the labor challenges we face is necessarily going to be solved by more labor. I think it's going to be driven by efficiencies, productivities. And that's really what we're working on for our customers. If we can deliver on time and save them time, if we can do roof loading in those markets that require it, we save them time. So we're working very hard to find ways to enable our contractors with better services.

總的來說，我認為我們將找到方法來解決一些勞動力緊張的問題。從根本上說，我不認為我們面臨的勞動力挑戰一定會透過增加勞動力來解決。我認為這將由效率和生產力驅動。這正是我們為客戶所做的努力。如果我們能夠按時交貨並節省他們的時間，如果我們能夠在需要的市場進行屋頂裝載，我們就可以節省他們的時間。因此，我們正在努力尋找方法，為我們的承包商提供更好的服務。

Very clear. Thanks, Julian.

非常清楚。謝謝，朱利安。

Thank you for your question. (Operator Instructions)

謝謝你的問題。（操作員說明）

David MacGregor, Longbow Research.

大衛‧麥格雷戈，長弓研究中心。

Yeah, good afternoon, everyone, and thanks for taking my questions. Julian, I wanted to go back to the new pricing model, which you mentioned in passing to a previous question. And you mentioned that the impact felt in the second half of the year. Is there any way you could help us in terms of just quantifying how we should think about the expected impact to margins or EBITDA on a run-rate basis going forward? And also is there any -- how confident are you that around the risks associated with implementing a model that being potentially disruptive on a short-term basis?

是的，大家下午好，感謝您提出我的問題。朱利安，我想回到您在回答上一個問題時提到的新定價模型。您提到下半年感受到的影響。您是否可以透過任何方式幫助我們量化我們應該如何考慮未來運行率對利潤率或 EBITDA 的預期影響？您對實施短期內具有潛在破壞性的模型所帶來的風險有多大信心？

Dave, thank you for the questions. It's a great question, and we've worked very hard to mitigate the downside of the new model. So we have -- we committed during our Ambition 2025 Investor Day presentation to 50-basis-points improvement through a better pricing model. We've been really diligent in terms of implementing that.

戴夫，謝謝你的提問。這是一個很好的問題，我們非常努力地減輕新模型的缺點。因此，我們在 2025 年雄心勃勃的投資者日演講中承諾，透過更好的定價模型將業績提高 50 個基點。我們在實施方面非常努力。

We have begun rollouts in several trial markets to make sure that we're getting the right implementation. We are seeing good traction with our people, which is probably the most important thing in the early rollout, difficult to pick out and exactly the impact we're having on pricing in such a short period of time.

我們已經開始在幾個試驗市場進行推廣，以確保我們得到正確的實施。我們看到我們的員工有良好的吸引力，這可能是早期推出中最重要的事情，很難挑選出來，而且我們在如此短的時間內對定價產生了確切的影響。

But I'm very, very pleased with the fact that the usage of the tool that we are implementing has been very high. The adoption rate is good. And I was also concerned, not just about the adoption but the abandonment rate -- so people going away from it. And I think that's been pretty good; it is still early.

但我非常非常高興我們正在實施的工具的使用率非常高。採用率良好。我還擔心，不僅是採用率，還有放棄率——所以人們會遠離它。我認為這已經相當不錯了；現在還早。

So we're not going to get through the bulk of the launch and sale probably through the end of the third quarter. We do expect and we continue to commit to that 50 basis points of run rate. And we do think we'll be seeing that come through. I have no reason to doubt it right now. I've been very pleased with the execution.

因此，我們可能不會在第三季末完成大部分的發布和銷售。我們確實預計並將繼續致力於實現 50 個基點的運行率。我們確實認為我們將會看到這一點的實現。我現在沒有理由懷疑這一點。我對執行情況感到非常滿意。

We've been incredibly diligent about making sure that this isn't disruptive to our people or to the market; it's just our ability to respond better to inbound information. And the scale that we have, the information we have, the data that we have coming in because of the size, we believe that we're getting much better market intel that we can feed into our model and deliver better results.

我們非常努力地確保這不會對我們的員工或市場造成乾擾；這只是我們更好地回應傳入訊息的能力。我們擁有的規模、我們擁有的資訊、我們因規模而獲得的數據，我們相信我們正在獲得更好的市場情報，我們可以將其輸入到我們的模型中並提供更好的結果。

So you won't see a tremendous impact this year, maybe a little bit in the fourth quarter. But I would expect us to be sort of up and running the beginning of next year and ramping up and we still are committed to at least 50 basis points of margin improvement for the whole company.

因此，今年你不會看到巨大的影響，第四季可能會看到一點影響。但我預計我們將在明年初開始營運並加速發展，我們仍然致力於將整個公司的利潤率提高至少 50 個基點。

Got it. Thanks for that, and good luck.

知道了。謝謝你，祝你好運。

Appreciate it. Thanks for your questions.

欣賞它。感謝您的提問。

Thank you for your question. There are currently no questions registered. (Operator Instructions) That concludes the questions for now. I would like to turn the call back over to Mr. Francis for his closing comments.

謝謝你的問題。目前沒有登記任何問題。（操作員說明） 現在的問題到此結束。我想將電話轉回給弗朗西斯先生，請他發表結束語。

Thank you, Victoria. Once again, we thank you all for your interest in Beacon. 2023 was a truly inspiring year for our team. We've set records across the board, including record stock prices. And I'm thrilled that we continue to be able to deliver on our Ambition 2025 goals. And with that, thank you. Good night.

謝謝你，維多利亞。我們再次感謝大家對 Beacon 的關注。 2023 年對我們的團隊來說是真正鼓舞人心的一年。我們在各方面都創下了記錄，包括創紀錄的股價。我很高興我們能夠繼續實現我們的 2025 年野心目標。謝謝。晚安。

That concludes today's call. Thank you for your participation and enjoy the rest of your day.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與，祝您有個愉快的一天。