BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings Inc (BJ) 2023 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Hello, everyone, and welcome to the BJ's Wholesale Club Q1 2023 Earnings Conference Call. My name is Carla, and I will be coordinating your call today. (Operator Instructions) I'll now pass the call over to your host, Cathy Park. Please go ahead.

大家好，歡迎來到 BJ's Wholesale Club 2023 年第一季度收益電話會議。我叫 Carla，今天我將負責協調您的來電。 （接線員說明）我現在將電話轉給您的房東 Cathy Park。請繼續。

Good morning, and thank you for joining BJ's Wholesale Club's First Quarter Fiscal 2023 Earnings Conference Call. On the call today are Bob Eddy, President and Chief Executive Officer; Laura Felice, Chief Financial Officer; and Bill Werner, Executive Vice President, Strategy and Development.

早上好，感謝您參加 BJ's Wholesale Club 的 2023 財年第一季度收益電話會議。今天接聽電話的是總裁兼首席執行官 Bob Eddy； Laura Felice，首席財務官；和戰略與發展執行副總裁 Bill Werner。

Please remember that during this call, we may make forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These statements are based on our current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations described on this call.

請記住，在本次電話會議期間，我們可能會做出聯邦證券法意義上的前瞻性陳述。這些陳述基於我們目前的預期，涉及可能導致實際結果與我們在本次電話會議上描述的預期存在重大差異的風險和不確定性。

Please see the Risk Factors section of our most recent Form 10-K and Form 10-Q filed with the SEC for a description of those risks and uncertainties. Finally, please note that on today's call, we will refer to certain non-GAAP financial measures that we believe will provide useful information for investors. The presentation of this information is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information presented in accordance with GAAP.

請參閱我們最近向美國證券交易委員會提交的 10-K 表格和 10-Q 表格的風險因素部分，了解對這些風險和不確定性的描述。最後，請注意，在今天的電話會議上，我們將參考某些我們認為將為投資者提供有用信息的非 GAAP 財務指標。此信息的呈現不應被孤立地考慮或替代根據 GAAP 呈現的財務信息。

Please refer to today's press release and the latest investor presentation posted on our IR site for a reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable measures prepared in accordance with GAAP.

請參閱今天的新聞稿和我們 IR 網站上發布的最新投資者介紹，以了解這些非 GAAP 財務指標與根據 GAAP 編制的最具可比性指標的對賬情況。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Bob.

有了這個，我會把電話轉給鮑勃。

Morning. Thank you for joining us today. It's a pleasure to be here today to discuss the results that we reported this morning. In the first quarter, our business continued to perform at a high level, demonstrating the power of our member-centric model, and the warehouse club channel. At our Investor Day in March, we shared with you several significant milestones resulting from the company's incredible transformation, including a record 90% membership renewal rate surpassing $1 billion in adjusted EBITDA and nearly tripling our adjusted EPS since fiscal 2018.

早晨。感謝您今天加入我們。很高興今天來到這裡討論我們今天早上報告的結果。第一季度，我們的業務繼續保持高水平，展示了我們以會員為中心的模式和倉庫俱樂部渠道的力量。在 3 月的投資者日，我們與您分享了公司令人難以置信的轉型帶來的幾個重要里程碑，包括創紀錄的 90% 的會員續訂率超過 10 億美元的調整後 EBITDA 以及自 2018 財年以來調整後的每股收益增長了近兩倍。

We achieved these results by steadfastly focusing on value, driving market share gains. We have created a growing and profitable digital business, and we have accelerated our footprint expansion. We built on these milestones in the first quarter with the launch of our co-brand credit card program.

我們通過堅定不移地關注價值、推動市場份額增長來取得這些成果。我們已經創建了一個不斷增長且盈利的數字業務，並且我們加快了我們的足跡擴張。我們在第一季度推出了我們的聯合品牌信用卡計劃，以這些里程碑為基礎。

This program, underpinned by our strong value prop is designed to drive higher member lifetime values, traffic and market share gains. These initiatives, combined with the strong operational performance, enabled us to report a record first quarter in adjusted EBITDA. Merchandise comparable club sales which exclude gas sales were up 5.7% in the first quarter as our food and sundries businesses remained robust with comp sales up 8%.

該計劃以我們強大的價值支柱為支撐，旨在推動更高的會員生命週期價值、流量和市場份額收益。這些舉措與強勁的運營業績相結合，使我們能夠報告第一季度調整後的 EBITDA 創下歷史新高。由於我們的食品和雜貨業務保持強勁，其中 comp 銷售額增長 8%，第一季度不包括天然氣銷售的商品可比俱樂部銷售額增長了 5.7%。

Our consistent focus on value once again resulted in strong growth in sales per member across each of our income cohorts. Further, more than half of our merchandise comps were driven by growth in traffic. With value being top of mind for our members, our teams have worked diligently to solidify BJ's as the first choice for their weekly household needs. And we are pleased to have grown market share across our core business in the first quarter, both on a year-over-year and a pre-COVID basis. As a reminder, our market share is about 50 basis points higher than it was pre-COVID.

我們對價值的一貫關注再次導致我們每個收入群體的每位會員銷售額強勁增長。此外，我們一半以上的商品組合是由流量增長推動的。價值是我們會員的首要考慮因素，我們的團隊努力工作以鞏固 BJ's 作為滿足他們每周家庭需求的首選。我們很高興第一季度核心業務的市場份額同比和 COVID 前增長。提醒一下，我們的市場份額比 COVID 之前高出約 50 個基點。

We recognize that in today's environment, consumers remain selective in their shopping behavior and members are more conscious as they continue to work to stretch their dollars. Additionally, unfavorable weather trends dampened seasonal demand in the first quarter. As a result, our general merchandise and services comp was down 8% year-over-year.

我們認識到，在當今的環境中，消費者在購物行為上仍然有選擇性，而且會員在繼續努力以節省資金時會更加自覺。此外，不利的天氣趨勢抑制了第一季度的季節性需求。因此，我們的一般商品和服務收入同比下降 8%。

Our merchandise gross margins improved dramatically in the quarter as supply chain headwinds that we faced last year became tailwinds this year, driven by declining diesel and ocean freight costs. Also recall that inflation was on the upswing in the first quarter of last year, causing us to invest in key items, which further pressured our margins.

在柴油和海運成本下降的推動下，我們的商品毛利率在本季度大幅提高，因為我們去年面臨的供應鏈逆風在今年變成了順風。還記得去年第一季度通貨膨脹率上升，導致我們投資於關鍵項目，這進一步壓低了我們的利潤率。

We also gained share in our gasoline business in the first quarter with comp gallons up year-over-year compared to the broader market, which is still trending down in volumes. Though profit per gallon was not nearly at last year's levels, it was slightly higher than expected in the first quarter.

第一季度，我們在汽油業務中的份額也有所增加，與大盤相比，加侖數同比增長，而大盤的銷量仍呈下降趨勢。雖然每加侖的利潤與去年的水平相去甚遠，但略高於第一季度的預期。

The combination of our comp sales growth, merchandise margin improvement and better-than-expected gas profits contributed to adjusted EBITDA growth of approximately 16% to a first quarter record of $257 million. We are very pleased with the strength of our operating performance this quarter.

我們的 comp 銷售增長、商品利潤率提高和好於預期的天然氣利潤共同推動調整後的 EBITDA 增長約 16%，達到第一季度 2.57 億美元的創紀錄水平。我們對本季度的經營業績感到非常滿意。

As we navigate choppiness in the near term, we remain confident in our longer-term growth prospects, fueled by our strategic priorities, which are improving member loyalty, driving an unbeatable shopping experience, delivering value conveniently through digital and growing our footprint.

當我們在短期內應對動盪時，我們對我們的長期增長前景仍然充滿信心，這得益於我們的戰略重點，這些戰略重點是提高會員忠誠度，推動無與倫比的購物體驗，通過數字方便地提供價值並擴大我們的足跡。

Let me spend a moment on each. Membership is by far the most important product that we sell, and it's also our most valuable asset. We currently serve over 6.8 million members. And in the first quarter, we grew our member count by approximately 5% and year-over-year. Our acquisition efforts across new and existing clubs as well as growth in digital acquisitions have contributed to the increase. In addition to overall member growth, we are improving the quality of our membership.

讓我花點時間在每個問題上。會員資格是迄今為止我們銷售的最重要的產品，也是我們最寶貴的資產。我們目前為超過 680 萬會員提供服務。在第一季度，我們的會員數量同比增長了約 5%。我們對新俱樂部和現有俱樂部的收購努力以及數字收購的增長促成了這一增長。除了整體會員增長外，我們還在提高會員質量。

As many of you know, we launched our new co-brand credit card on February 27. I believe it's the best program in retail today. Remember, when we launched our credit card program 9 years ago, we committed to reinvesting all of the benefits back into member rewards. We took the same approach this time around applying even better economics back into the program. We took that approach because our credit card members have almost 2x greater lifetime value than members without a co-brand credit card.

眾所周知，我們於 2 月 27 日推出了新的聯名信用卡。我相信這是當今零售業最好的計劃。請記住，當我們 9 年前推出信用卡計劃時，我們承諾將所有福利重新投資回會員獎勵。這次我們採用了相同的方法，將更好的經濟學應用到該計劃中。我們之所以採用這種方法，是因為我們的信用卡會員的終生價值比沒有聯名信用卡的會員高出近 2 倍。

I think it's safe to say that they're worth the investment. We could not have asked for a better partner in Capital One. Our combined teams executed the transition very well, surpassing our admittedly high expectations. We're only about 90 days since launch, so it's still early days. But as we sit here today, we have successfully executed the conversion of our existing accounts and have now transitioned to growing the program.

我認為可以肯定地說它們值得投資。我們找不到比 Capital One 更好的合作夥伴了。我們的合併團隊很好地執行了過渡，超出了我們公認的高期望。我們距離發布只有大約 90 天，所以現在還處於早期階段。但當我們今天坐在這裡時，我們已經成功地執行了現有賬戶的轉換，現在已經過渡到發展該計劃。

Let me put a finer point on the success of the transition with some data.

讓我用一些數據更詳細地說明過渡的成功。

We transitioned about 1.5 million accounts to Capital One. And to date, we have activated over 3/4 of those accounts outperforming our expectations. Furthermore, we have added over 115,000 new credit card members since launch, and we are excited to see our members experiencing more rewards from the program. Also, as you know, in addition to the co-brand value proposition improvements, we also took the opportunity to provide additional benefits for Club Plus members, too. That's our $110 membership fee without the credit card.

我們將大約 150 萬個賬戶轉移到了 Capital One。迄今為止，我們已經激活了超過 3/4 的賬戶，其表現超出了我們的預期。此外，自推出以來，我們新增了超過 115,000 名信用卡會員，我們很高興看到我們的會員從該計劃中獲得更多獎勵。另外，如您所知，除了聯合品牌價值主張改進之外，我們還藉此機會為 Club Plus 會員提供額外福利。這是我們 110 美元的會員費，不含信用卡。

The gas discount that we implemented as part of the credit card program back in 2014 has been so well received with our members that we now extended a $0.05 per gallon discount to our Club Plus members as well, making us the only club store with an instant gas discount across all higher tier membership programs. This means about 40% of our gas gallons sold include a higher tier member discount on top of our market-leading gas prices.

我們在 2014 年作為信用卡計劃的一部分實施的汽油折扣深受會員歡迎，現在我們還向我們的 Club Plus 會員提供每加侖 0.05 美元的折扣，使我們成為唯一一家提供即時折扣的俱樂部商店所有更高級別會員計劃的汽油折扣。這意味著我們售出的大約 40% 的加侖汽油在我們市場領先的汽油價格之上包含更高級別的會員折扣。

We believe the new program will help drive continued growth in our higher tier membership penetration, which, in turn, will yield greater member lifetime value. Over the course of the last year, we foreshadowed that we may experience a temporary decline in higher tier membership penetration driven by the transition to the new co-brand credit card program.

我們相信新計劃將有助於推動我們更高級別會員滲透率的持續增長，而這反過來又會產生更大的會員終身價值。在過去的一年中，我們預示著由於向新的聯合品牌信用卡計劃的過渡，我們可能會經歷更高級別會員滲透率的暫時下降。

I'm pleased to report that despite the transition, our higher tier penetration held steady at 38% in the first quarter. This was up about 2 points year-over-year due in part to double-digit percentage growth in our $110 membership. Our dedication to growing membership in both size and quality resulted in several milestones last year, including a record renewal rate of 90%.

我很高興地報告，儘管發生了轉變，但我們較高層級的滲透率在第一季度穩定在 38%。這比去年同期增長了約 2 個百分點，部分原因是我們 110 美元會員的兩位數百分比增長。我們致力於在規模和質量上增加會員，從而在去年取得了幾個里程碑，包括創紀錄的 90% 續約率。

This is the ultimate measure of member loyalty, and we expect to maintain this strength this year as members continue to seek value in their shopping. All of these efforts have translated to approximately 6% year-over-year membership fee income growth in the first quarter.

這是衡量會員忠誠度的最終指標，隨著會員繼續在購物中尋求價值，我們預計今年將保持這一優勢。所有這些努力已轉化為第一季度會員費收入同比增長約 6%。

Ensuring the best shopping experience for our members is crucial to how we strengthen membership loyalty. There are various elements to delivering a great shopping experience, and we believe that we differentiate ourselves by consistently showcasing unbeatable value to our members. Value is paramount in our business, and we are always striving to offer the best assortment to our members at the best prices.

確保我們會員的最佳購物體驗對於我們加強會員忠誠度至關重要。提供卓越購物體驗的要素多種多樣，我們相信，通過始終如一地向我們的會員展示無與倫比的價值，我們可以脫穎而出。價值在我們的業務中至關重要，我們一直致力於以最優惠的價格為我們的會員提供最好的商品組合。

Last year, in a period of high inflation, we remain dedicated to this goal, making strategic investments to improve our pricing position by 130 basis points across our competitive set. We kept the investments coming in the first quarter of this year, particularly in our key value items, such as our own Wellsley Farms water, which we offer at about a 28% savings versus grocery and mass competitors.

去年，在高通脹時期，我們仍然致力於實現這一目標，進行戰略投資，將我們在競爭中的定價地位提高 130 個基點。我們在今年第一季度保持了投資，特別是在我們的關鍵價值項目上，例如我們自己的 Wellsley Farms 水，與雜貨店和大眾競爭對手相比，我們提供的水節省了約 28%。

As this water example suggests we are earning our members' trust through the quality and reliability of our own brands, Wellsley Farms and Berkley Jensen, which we offer at significant savings. We are pleased to be able to offer more affordable high-quality alternatives for our members, especially in this current time when inflation while moderating remains elevated.

正如這個水的例子表明，我們通過我們自己的品牌 Wellsley Farms 和 Berkley Jensen 的質量和可靠性贏得了會員的信任，我們以顯著節省的價格提供這些產品。我們很高興能夠為我們的會員提供更多負擔得起的高質量替代品，尤其是在目前通脹放緩但仍處於高位的時代。

In fact, our own brand sales growth in our sundries and grocery divisions more than doubled that of the overall market during the quarter, contributing about 1 point of growth in the first quarter owned brand penetration year-over-year. We are well on our way to our goal of 30% penetration. Members who engage in our own brands spend more, visit us more often and are therefore better members.

事實上，本季度我們雜貨和雜貨部門的自有品牌銷售額增長是整體市場的兩倍多，第一季度自有品牌滲透率同比增長約 1 個百分點。我們正在朝著 30% 滲透率的目標邁進。參與我們自有品牌的會員消費更多，訪問我們的頻率更高，因此是更好的會員。

Our third strategic priority is driving convenience through digital. Through our app and website, we have improved upon the ways in which members engage with us over the years and members' preferences for these platforms continue to grow. During our March Investor Day, we mentioned that our digitally enabled members spend nearly 70% more on average than club only members and are more loyal members, as indicated by higher renewal rates.

我們的第三個戰略重點是通過數字化推動便利。通過我們的應用程序和網站，多年來我們改進了會員與我們互動的方式，並且會員對這些平台的偏好持續增長。在我們的 3 月投資者日期間，我們提到我們的數字化會員平均比俱樂部會員多花費近 70%，並且是更忠誠的會員，如更高的續訂率所示。

Our digitally enabled comp sales grew 19% in the first quarter to approximately 10% of our net merchandise sales. This growth was led by the convenience of BOPIC and curbside as well as the growing adoption of same-day delivery. The club business is structurally advantaged to win with digital, and we will lean into convenience initiatives that we believe will deliver outsized value to our members.

第一季度，我們的數字化產品銷售額增長了 19%，約占我們商品淨銷售額的 10%。這種增長是由 BOPIC 和路邊的便利以及越來越多地採用當日送達所帶動的。俱樂部業務在結構上具有優勢，可以通過數字取勝，我們將傾向於便利的舉措，我們相信這些舉措將為我們的會員帶來巨大的價值。

Finally, we have dramatically accelerated our real estate plans and remain focused on sustaining this trajectory going forward. Our new club openings since fiscal 2016 have outperformed openings in prior years. For example, these new clubs on average have delivered double-digit percentage point increases in renewal rates and higher tier penetration in their first year.

最後，我們大大加快了我們的房地產計劃，並繼續專注於維持這一發展軌跡。自 2016 財年以來，我們新開設的俱樂部表現優於往年。例如，這些新俱樂部在第一年平均實現了兩位數的續約率增長和更高級別的滲透率。

This year, we continue to expect to open around 11 new clubs. As you know, we opened 2 new clubs in the first quarter and expect to make our entry into our 19th state next month in the Nashville market. Our commitment to bringing unbeatable value to our members remains a powerful advantage in times like these. As a result, we believe we are well positioned to continue growing our top line and gain market share, anchored by strength in our grocery businesses.

今年，我們繼續期望開設大約 11 個新俱樂部。如您所知，我們在第一季度開設了 2 家新俱樂部，預計下個月將在納什維爾市場進入我們的第 19 個州。在這樣的時代，我們致力於為我們的會員帶來無與倫比的價值的承諾仍然是一個強大的優勢。因此，我們相信我們有能力繼續增加我們的收入並獲得市場份額，這取決於我們雜貨業務的實力。

Our newly launched credit card bolsters our already strong value power. As part of our merchandising transformation new general merchandise assortments will begin to arrive at our clubs in the back half of this year. Ultimately, we will be there for our members, reliably delivering the products and services that they want and need at a great value in order to deepen loyalty, reinforce our brand and drive long-term growth.

我們新推出的信用卡增強了我們本已強大的價值能力。作為我們商品銷售轉型的一部分，新的一般商品分類將在今年下半年開始到達我們的俱樂部。最終，我們將為我們的會員服務，可靠地提供他們想要和需要的具有巨大價值的產品和服務，以加深忠誠度、強化我們的品牌並推動長期增長。

Before I wrap, I'd like to acknowledge and thank our team members for their dedication to serving our members and caring for the communities in which we operate. To our team members who are listening in today, thank you for your hard work. Your efforts continue to make a significant impact on the success of our company. I will now turn it over to Laura to provide more details on our results and outlook for the rest of the year.

在我結束之前，我想感謝並感謝我們的團隊成員為服務我們的成員和關心我們運營所在的社區所做的奉獻。感謝今天收聽的團隊成員，感謝你們的辛勤工作。您的努力將繼續對我們公司的成功產生重大影響。我現在將其轉交給勞拉，以提供有關我們今年剩餘時間的結果和展望的更多詳細信息。

Thank you, Bob. Before I begin, I'd like to reiterate Bob's gratitude for our team members across our clubs, club support center and distribution centers. Thanks to their hard work and commitment at BJ's, we have maintained strong momentum in our first quarter results.

謝謝你，鮑勃。在開始之前，我想重申鮑勃對我們俱樂部、俱樂部支持中心和配送中心的團隊成員的感謝。由於他們在 BJ's 的辛勤工作和承諾，我們在第一季度的業績中保持了強勁的勢頭。

Net sales for the first quarter were $4.6 billion, a 5% increase over the prior year. Our first quarter total comparable club sales increased 2% year-over-year. Stronger merchandise sales offset the decline in gas sales dollars. Despite growth in gas volumes over last year, average retail price per gallon fell in the low-teen range.

第一季度的淨銷售額為 46 億美元，比上年增長 5%。我們第一季度的可比俱樂部總銷售額同比增長 2%。強勁的商品銷售抵消了天然氣銷售美元的下降。儘管去年天然氣銷量有所增長，但每加侖的平均零售價仍處於低位區間。

Merchandise comp sales, which exclude gas sales increased by 5.7% and more than half of this was driven by traffic. Our 2-year comp stack was 9.8% and exhibiting slight growth on a sequential basis. The impact of inflation on our sales moderated through the quarter. As Bob mentioned earlier, our first quarter comp in our grocery, perishables and sundries division grew by approximately 8% in the first quarter as our members continue to rely on BJ's to restock on household essentials.

不包括天然氣銷售的商品銷售增長了 5.7%，其中一半以上是由交通推動的。我們 2 年的競爭堆棧為 9.8%，並且環比略有增長。通貨膨脹對我們銷售的影響在本季度有所緩和。正如 Bob 之前提到的，由於我們的會員繼續依賴 BJ's 來補充家庭必需品，我們第一季度雜貨、易腐食品和雜貨部門的收入在第一季度增長了約 8%。

On a 2-year stack, this division grew about 15% and accelerated from the fourth quarter, which grew just under 14% on a 2-year stack. We gained market share year-over-year during the quarter, and our overall share remains well above pre-COVID levels. Our general merchandise and services comp decreased by 8% for the first quarter and was also down about 18% on a 2-year stack. In general merchandise, the broader industry faced a slower and wetter start to the spring season amid an increasingly discerning consumer environment.

在 2 年的堆棧中，該部門增長了約 15%，並從第四季度加速增長，在 2 年的堆棧中增長略低於 14%。本季度我們的市場份額同比增長，我們的整體份額仍遠高於 COVID 之前的水平。我們的一般商品和服務收入在第一季度下降了 8%，並且在 2 年的堆棧中也下降了約 18%。在日用商品方面，由於消費者環境越來越挑剔，整個行業的春季開局都變得緩慢而潮濕。

That being said, we drove pockets of strength in areas such as apparel, where a cleaner and more relevant assortment was well received by our members, resulting in a 5% comp in the quarter. Our digital offerings have made our members' shopping experience more convenient than ever. Digitally enabled comp sales in the first quarter grew 19% year-over-year and approximately 90% of our digitally enabled sales were fulfilled by our clubs in the first quarter with services like BOPIC and same-day delivery. We remain committed to improving convenience by increasing our level of digital engagement with our members over time.

話雖這麼說，我們在服裝等領域推動了一些優勢，我們的會員在這些領域更清潔、更相關的產品種類很受歡迎，導致本季度的收入增長了 5%。我們的數字產品使會員的購物體驗比以往任何時候都更加方便。第一季度的數字化 comp 銷售額同比增長 19%，我們的俱樂部在第一季度通過 BOPIC 和當日送達等服務實現了大約 90% 的數字化銷售額。隨著時間的推移，我們將繼續致力於通過提高我們與會員的數字互動水平來提高便利性。

In our gas business, our comp gallons grew slightly year-over-year in the first quarter. This was in line with our expectations as we continue to sustain and build upon our significant share gains from the past 2 years. Our gas profits, while lower year-over-year, marginally outperformed our internal plans, driven by slightly better than normal gas margins in the quarter.

在我們的天然氣業務中，我們的補償加侖數在第一季度同比略有增長。這符合我們的預期，因為我們將繼續維持和鞏固過去 2 年的顯著份額增長。我們的天然氣利潤雖然同比較低，但略好於我們的內部計劃，這是由於本季度天然氣利潤率略高於正常水平。

Membership fee income, or MFI, grew approximately 6% to $102.5 million in the first quarter, and continues to underscore the progress we have made improving our business. We are pleased with our membership trends, a top the records we achieved last year, including higher tier penetration, easy renewal and first year and tenured renewal rates. I also share Bob's enthusiasm for the attractive value proposition that our newly launched co-branded credit card program brings to our members and the growth opportunities that lie ahead.

會員費收入或 MFI 在第一季度增長了約 6% 至 1.025 億美元，並繼續強調我們在改善業務方面取得的進展。我們對我們的會員趨勢感到滿意，這是我們去年取得的最高記錄，包括更高級別的滲透率、輕鬆續訂以及第一年和終身續訂率。我也和鮑勃一樣，對我們新推出的聯名信用卡計劃為我們的會員帶來的有吸引力的價值主張以及未來的增長機會充滿熱情。

Moving on to gross margins. Excluding the gasoline business, our merchandise gross margin rate improved by 100 basis points year-over-year, primarily due to a much anticipated and welcome relief in supply chain costs that challenged our business last year. As Bob mentioned earlier, we also lapped the timing of price investments we made to combat accelerating inflation, which negatively impacted our margins last year.

轉向毛利率。不包括汽油業務，我們的商品毛利率同比提高了 100 個基點，這主要是由於去年對我們的業務構成挑戰的供應鏈成本得到了備受期待和歡迎的緩解。正如 Bob 之前提到的，我們還把握了為應對加速通脹而進行的價格投資的時機，這對我們去年的利潤率產生了負面影響。

SG&A expenses for the quarter were $689.3 million. The year-over-year increase was primarily attributable to our new unit expansion and other continued investments to drive our strategic priorities. On unit expansion, I'd offer these 2 reminders. First, new clubs will continue to have a levering effect as they ramp and mature. And second, our growth profile this year is weighted to own clubs, elevating our depreciation expense. We continue to expect our SG&A to delever slightly through the rest of the year.

本季度的 SG&A 費用為 6.893 億美元。同比增長主要歸因於我們的新單位擴張和其他持續投資以推動我們的戰略重點。關於單位擴張，我會提供這兩個提醒。首先，隨著新俱樂部的發展和成熟，它們將繼續發揮槓桿作用。其次，我們今年的增長情況主要集中在擁有俱樂部上，這增加了我們的折舊費用。我們繼續預計我們的 SG&A 在今年剩餘時間裡會略微去槓桿化。

Our first quarter adjusted EBITDA grew by approximately 16% to a record first quarter of $257 million, largely reflecting our sales and merchandise gross margin growth. Finally, our adjusted EPS was $0.85, down approximately 2% year-over-year despite our strong operating performance. This was largely due to a $21.6 million unexpected tax expense, approximately half of which should have been applied in prior periods in immaterial amounts.

我們第一季度調整後的 EBITDA 增長了約 16%，達到創紀錄的 2.57 億美元，這在很大程度上反映了我們的銷售和商品毛利率的增長。最後，儘管我們的經營業績強勁，但我們調整後的每股收益為 0.85 美元，同比下降約 2%。這主要是由於 2,160 萬美元的意外稅費，其中大約一半本應在前期以小額金額計入。

This elevated our effective tax rate in the first quarter to 32.6% compared to 21.1% in the prior year quarter. Turning to our capital structure. We ended the first quarter with $848 million of debt and 0.8 turns of net leverage, which is consistent with the fourth quarter of last year. We work to fortify our balance sheet over the past 5 years and expect to maintain this strength in the future.

這將我們第一季度的有效稅率從去年同期的 21.1% 提高到 32.6%。轉向我們的資本結構。我們以 8.48 億美元的債務和 0.8 倍的淨槓桿率結束了第一季度，這與去年第四季度一致。我們努力在過去 5 年中鞏固我們的資產負債表，並期望在未來保持這種實力。

As we allocate our capital going forward, we will continue to be flexible in our approach, but our priority remains growing our business. Investments to support membership Digital and our real estate growth plans will be funded by our cash flows and enabled by our strong balance sheet. We continue to return excess cash to shareholders through share repurchases. In the first quarter, we bought back over 200,000 shares at approximately $15 million and have over $300 million remaining under our current authorization.

在我們未來分配資金的過程中，我們將繼續採取靈活的方式，但我們的首要任務仍然是發展我們的業務。支持會員數字和我們的房地產增長計劃的投資將由我們的現金流提供資金，並由我們強大的資產負債表提供支持。我們繼續通過股票回購向股東返還多餘的現金。第一季度，我們以大約 1500 萬美元的價格回購了超過 200,000 股股票，目前的授權剩餘超過 3 億美元。

Let me now touch on our current outlook for the year. The last time we spoke, I noted the uncertainty of the macro backdrop and its impact on the broader consumer demand. As we sit here today, we see a consumer that is continuing to visit and spend in our stores. On the margin, while they are spending more with us, they are also being more choosy with their dollars and allocating those dollars in favor of necessities. That said, I have also previously expressed our confidence in our advantaged business model, execution of strategic priorities and commitment to delivering value, which should all contribute to continued growth in our core business.

現在讓我談談我們目前對今年的展望。上次我們交談時，我提到了宏觀背景的不確定性及其對更廣泛消費者需求的影響。當我們今天坐在這裡時，我們看到消費者繼續光顧我們的商店並在我們的商店消費。在邊際上，雖然他們在我們身上花費更多，但他們對美元也更加挑剔，並將這些美元分配給必需品。也就是說，我之前也表達了我們對我們的優勢商業模式、戰略優先事項的執行和交付價值的承諾的信心，這些都將有助於我們核心業務的持續增長。

These sentiments still ring true today. As such, we continue to expect our fiscal 2023 comparable club sales, excluding gas, to grow in the 4% to 5% range towards the lower end with strength in our food business, offsetting a more conservative view around general merchandise performance. We continue to expect inflation to moderate through the rest of the year. We are also confident in the ongoing transformation of our merchandising. We currently see the second quarter merchandise comps in the low single-digit range, and we expect comps in the back half of the year to be slightly stronger than the second quarter.

這些情緒在今天仍然適用。因此，我們繼續預計我們 2023 財年的可比俱樂部銷售額（不包括天然氣）將在 4% 至 5% 的範圍內向低端增長，同時我們的食品業務表現強勁，抵消了對一般商品表現更為保守的看法。我們繼續預計通貨膨脹將在今年餘下時間緩和。我們也對正在進行的商品銷售轉型充滿信心。我們目前看到第二季度的商品價格處於較低的個位數範圍內，我們預計今年下半年的商品價格將略高於第二季度。

Moving down the P&L. Our outlook on MFI and margin for the remainder of the year are unchanged. We expect that our Q1 year-over-year MFI growth rate will be the highest in the year. On merchandise gross margins, we believe our rate of improvement will moderate meaningfully as we progress through the year.

向下移動損益表。我們對今年剩餘時間的 MFI 和利潤率的展望保持不變。我們預計我們第一季度的 MFI 同比增長率將是今年最高的。在商品毛利率方面，我們相信隨著我們今年的進展，我們的改善速度將顯著放緩。

In our gas business, we continue to expect slight growth in comp gallons for the full year. As for profitability, we continue to believe that we will settle to more normalized and structurally more profitable gas margins as compared to prior years. Our assumptions have clearly materialized in the first quarter, but with profit per gallon to date running a touch better than what we had contemplated as normal at the start of the year. As a result, we are becoming more optimistic about fiscal 2023's profitability running slightly higher than we originally expected.

在我們的天然氣業務中，我們繼續預計全年的加侖數將略有增長。至於盈利能力，我們仍然相信，與往年相比，我們將適應更正常化、結構上更有利可圖的天然氣利潤率。我們的假設在第一季度顯然已經實現，但迄今為止每加侖的利潤略高於我們年初預期的正常水平。因此，我們對 2023 財年的盈利能力略高於我們最初的預期變得更加樂觀。

That being said, we will still face our toughest comparisons in gas prices, volumes and margin across the second and third quarters of this year. A quick note on our tax rate. While first quarter taxes were higher than we anticipated at the start of the year, we expect our tax rate to return to more normal levels in the 27% range for the remainder of the year. All in, we continue to expect our in-club sales growth and merchandise gross margin improvements to offset normalizing gas profitability, and we maintain our view that fiscal 2023 EPS will be approximately flat year-over-year with EPS in the second quarter expected to be slightly higher than Q1.

話雖如此，我們仍將在今年第二和第三季度面臨最艱難的天然氣價格、數量和利潤率比較。關於我們的稅率的快速說明。雖然第一季度的稅收高於我們年初的預期，但我們預計我們的稅率將在今年剩餘時間內恢復到 27% 範圍內的更正常水平。總而言之，我們繼續預計我們的俱樂部內銷售增長和商品毛利率的改善將抵消天然氣盈利能力的正常化，我們仍然認為 2023 財年每股收益將與去年同期大致持平，預計第二季度每股收益將略高於Q1。

Before turning it back to Bob, I'd like to reiterate our confidence in the strength of our business and the transformation we have made in our company. We believe we are well positioned to deliver sustainable growth longer term. With that, I will turn it back over to Bob for final remarks.

在把它轉回 Bob 之前，我想重申我們對我們的業務實力和我們在公司中所做的轉型的信心。我們相信我們有能力實現長期可持續增長。有了這個，我將把它轉回給 Bob 作最後的評論。

Thanks, Laura. We're very proud of our team for the great quarterly results in the first quarter. Our members continue to reward us for the structural improvements in our membership, our merchandising, our digital capabilities and even how we expand our footprint. These are further amplified by the advantages inherent in our warehouse club model and our differentiated approach to the channel itself.

謝謝，勞拉。我們為我們的團隊在第一季度取得的出色季度業績感到非常自豪。我們的會員繼續獎勵我們在會員資格、商品銷售、數字能力甚至我們擴大足跡方面的結構性改進。我們的倉儲俱樂部模式固有的優勢和我們對渠道本身的差異化方法進一步放大了這些優勢。

Moreover, we have an incredibly talented leadership team that, together with our passionate team members across our clubs, distribution centers and Club Support Center is executing on our strategic priorities. I firmly believe that these powerful elements combined will allow us to continue to profitably grow this business, maximize sustainable long-term shareholder value and build an even stronger future for our company.

此外，我們擁有一支才華橫溢的領導團隊，與我們充滿激情的俱樂部成員、配送中心和俱樂部支持中心一起執行我們的戰略重點。我堅信，這些強大的元素結合在一起，將使我們能夠繼續盈利地發展這項業務，最大限度地提高可持續的長期股東價值，並為我們的公司打造更強大的未來。

With that, I will now turn it back over to the operator to take your questions.

有了這個，我現在將把它交還給接線員來回答你的問題。

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from the line of Kate McShane from Goldman Sachs.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自高盛的 Kate McShane。

I just wondered if you could talk a little bit about the cadence of both MFI and gross margins. I think you mentioned in the prepared comments that you expected Q1 to be the strongest with regards to MFI.

我只是想知道你是否可以談談 MFI 和毛利率的節奏。我想你在準備好的評論中提到，你預計第一季度在 MFI 方面最為強勁。

So we wondered why that was the case and what you faced for the rest of the year in terms of compares. And then with gross margin kind of the same question, I think you said that it's expected to moderate how should we think about that for the rest of the year?

所以我們想知道為什麼會這樣，以及你在今年餘下的時間裡所面臨的比較。然後對於同樣的問題的毛利率，我想你說過它預計會緩和我們應該如何在今年餘下的時間裡考慮這個問題？

Good morning, Kate. Thanks for the question. Laura is going to fill in the gaps here, but let me take them one at a time. We had a pretty good quarter from a membership fee income perspective. We continue to grow the size and the quality of our membership with about a 6% MFI growth and about 5% of that coming from bodies.

早上好，凱特。謝謝你的問題。勞拉將填補這裡的空白，但讓我一次一個。從會員費收入的角度來看，我們有一個相當不錯的季度。我們繼續擴大我們會員的規模和質量，小額信貸機構增長約 6%，其中約 5% 來自機構。

As we continue to grow the company and look for ways to innovate, we've been offering different types of membership offers.

隨著我們不斷發展公司並尋找創新方法，我們一直在提供不同類型的會員優惠。

And some of those have different accounting treatments. So some of -- we're lapping some of those things this year that we tried last year, we'll try some new stuff this year. And so that informs sort of the pacing of MFI growth as we go through this year. We aren't anticipating slowing down our membership growth, it really is sort of just how the numbers work out.

其中一些有不同的會計處理方法。所以一些 - 我們今年正在嘗試去年嘗試過的一些東西，今年我們將嘗試一些新東西。因此，這可以說明我們今年經歷的小額信貸機構增長的步伐。我們並沒有預料到我們的會員增長會放緩，這確實是數字的計算方式。

And from a margin perspective, we had an outstanding quarter in the first quarter.

從利潤率的角度來看，我們在第一季度有一個出色的季度。

Our merchants did a great job managing through the economic circumstances and lapping what happened last year and taking advantage of the tailwinds this year is the cost of distribution declined with diesel cost and ocean freight and a few other odds and ends.

我們的商人在管理經濟環境方面做得很好，並利用了去年發生的事情，並利用今年的順風，柴油成本和海運費以及其他一些零碎的東西降低了分銷成本。

I would say, as we get through the rest of the year, those tailwinds just lessen. And so we do expect this to be our highest quarter of the year from a gross margin perspective. Not knowing what's coming in any of the inputs to gross margin. But certainly, as we sit here today, it feels like Q1 should be the highest for us.

我會說，隨著我們度過今年餘下的時間，這些順風只會減弱。因此，從毛利率的角度來看，我們確實預計這將是我們今年最高的季度。不知道毛利率的任何輸入是什麼。但當然，當我們今天坐在這裡時，感覺 Q1 對我們來說應該是最高的。

Yes. I think, Kate, the only thing I would add, Bob covered off MFI well, the only thing I would add on gross margins is Q1 was about 100 bps of growth. I would expect it will trail off meaningfully as we head into Q2 and kind of trail over the course of the year. So the growth rate will certainly moderate quarter by quarter. Thank you.

是的。我想，凱特，我唯一要補充的是，鮑勃很好地涵蓋了小額信貸機構，我唯一要補充的毛利率是第一季度大約增長了 100 個基點。我希望它會在我們進入第二季度時有意義地下降，並在一年中有所下降。因此，增長率肯定會逐季放緩。謝謝。

Our next question of Edward from Wells Fargo.

我們的下一個問題來自富國銀行的愛德華。

I wanted to ask you about the comp guidance and the cadence of the comp guidance. Laura, I think you said back half slightly stronger than Q2. We will see, I think, inflation decelerate pretty meaningfully. So I'm hoping that you could give us a little bit more color around that cadence, what your inflation expectation is in that? How we should be thinking about the gen merch comp? And then as part of that, maybe you could help us with how you're running so far in Q2.

我想問你關於comp指導和comp指導的節奏。勞拉，我想你說後半部分比 Q2 稍微強一點。我認為，我們將看到通貨膨脹明顯減速。所以我希望你能圍繞這個節奏給我們多一點色彩，你的通脹預期是什麼？我們應該如何考慮 gen merch comp？然後作為其中的一部分，也許你可以幫助我們了解你在第二季度的運行情況。

Yes. Thanks, Ed. So for the remainder of the year, I think comp will moderate but it will be relatively balanced. You have it right that we think the inflation levels will decelerate across the remainder of the year. I would remind you for Investor Day, we talked about our general merchandise business. We've talked about that for quite some time. And the transformation we have underway there. So we think that piece of the business, specifically in the back half of the year as we get towards holidays will comp better than GM did in the first quarter.

是的。謝謝，埃德。因此，在今年餘下的時間裡，我認為 comp 會適度，但會相對平衡。你說得對，我們認為通脹水平將在今年餘下時間減速。我想在投資者日提醒你，我們談到了我們的一般商品業務。我們已經談了很長時間了。我們在那裡正在進行的轉型。因此，我們認為這部分業務，特別是在我們接近假期的下半年，將比通用汽車在第一季度的表現更好。

Yes. Maybe, Ed, I'll talk for a minute, too. I think Q1 is a bit of a microcosm of some of the things we'll see the rest of the year, too, right? We've certainly seen some deflation or disinflation or whatever you like to call it. Our inflation in Q4 was double digits. It was meaningfully lower than that in the first quarter. And I expect that will continue. I don't know that we've changed our sort of global inflation input for the year, but I do think it's receding a little faster than we had in our model. And I think Laura is on the right point. We had, as we noted, a bright spot in general merchandise in Q1 was apparel.

是的。也許，艾德，我也想說一分鐘。我認為第一季度也是我們今年餘下時間看到的一些事情的縮影，對吧？我們當然已經看到了一些通貨緊縮或反通貨膨脹或任何你喜歡稱之為的東西。我們在第四季度的通貨膨脹率是兩位數。明顯低於第一季度。我希望這種情況會繼續下去。我不知道我們是否改變了今年的全球通脹輸入，但我確實認為它的消退速度比我們模型中的要快一些。我認為勞拉的觀點是正確的。正如我們所指出的，我們在第一季度的一般商品中有一個亮點是服裝。

That is a business for us that our new merchant team has had great influence on for the back half. And I would say, moderate influence for Q1. And we saw a nice positive comp in that, that refreshed assortments. So I'm looking at that as green shoots on what they can and will do later in the year. And I've certainly seen some of the new assortments and I'm excited to see how our members react to it.

這對我們來說是一項業務，我們的新商人團隊對後半部分產生了重大影響。我會說，對第一季度的影響適中。我們在其中看到了一個很好的積極組合，它刷新了分類。因此，我將其視為他們在今年晚些時候可以做和將做的事情的萌芽。我當然看到了一些新的分類，我很高興看到我們的會員對此有何反應。

So as we sit here in Q2, I don't want to talk too much about it, but Q1 suffered from some deflation, it suffered from certainly not breaking any new ground talking about weather. As you've heard it from everybody else, that was certainly a thing. And as we sit here in Boston today, it's still not very warm. So that informs our view that the General Merchandise business will not be robust in the second quarter and it forms that low single-digit Q2 comp.

所以當我們坐在第二季度這裡時，我不想談論太多，但第一季度遭遇了一些通貨緊縮，它肯定沒有在談論天氣方面取得任何新突破。正如你從其他人那裡聽到的那樣，那肯定是一回事。當我們今天坐在波士頓這裡時，天氣仍然不是很暖和。因此，我們認為一般商品業務在第二季度不會強勁，它形成了低個位數的第二季度業績。

But we do believe the business will come back. And our consumer is holding in there very nicely. So we'll get through the next few weeks here and talk to you at the end of Q2 and tell you more about the back half.

但我們確實相信業務會恢復。我們的消費者很好地堅持在那裡。所以我們在這裡度過接下來的幾週，並在第二季度末與你交談，並告訴你更多關於後半部分的信息。

Great. Just a quick follow-up. So you have a pretty sizable tax headwind in Q1 that was unanticipated. You maintained a full year, but now you sound, I think maybe you're a bit more optimistic around that. Is that really just around the operational aspects of Q2 coming in above plan?

偉大的。只是快速跟進。因此，您在第一季度遇到了意想不到的相當大的稅收逆風。你保持了整整一年，但現在你聽起來，我想你可能對此更加樂觀。這真的只是圍繞上述計劃中第二季度的運營方面嗎？

No. I mean, it doesn't really have much to do with Q2, Ed. I think we're optimistic on the business overall in the long term. There are certainly some macro headwinds out there -- for the full year, as we've talked about with inflation and the consumer health and the economy and the debt ceiling and everything everybody is worried about.

不，我的意思是，這與第二季度並沒有多大關係，Ed。我認為從長遠來看，我們對整體業務持樂觀態度。全年肯定存在一些宏觀不利因素，正如我們談到的通貨膨脹、消費者健康、經濟、債務上限以及每個人都擔心的一切。

Q2 has some odd things to lap, right? We're going to lap the highest gas prices of the year in the next couple of weeks. And gas is an important part of our offering and our value to our membership and I'm sure $5 gas drove some trips that we'll lap.

Q2 有一些奇怪的事情要解決，對吧？我們將在接下來的幾週內創下今年的最高油價。汽油是我們提供的服務的重要組成部分，也是我們對會員的價值，我敢肯定，5 美元的汽油會推動我們進行一些旅行。

And so we sit here looking at the trends in Q1 were pretty good. We thought it was a great operational quarter despite the tax item that you pointed out. And we -- we're bullish on the long term of this business, and we'll kind of work on the year, 1 quarter at a time. Thank you.

所以我們坐在這裡看看第一季度的趨勢非常好。儘管您指出了稅收項目，但我們認為這是一個很好的運營季度。而且我們 - 我們看好這項業務的長期發展，我們將在一年中工作，一次一個季度。謝謝。

Our next question comes from Chuck Grom from Gordon Haskett.

我們的下一個問題來自 Gordon Haskett 的 Chuck Grom。

Just a question on the second quarter guidance. Bob, I think you're saying a little bit higher than the first quarter of $0.85. Is that on an absolute basis? Or is that on a year-over-year basis? And then as a follow-up to that, can you help us think about the margin component and the building blocks to get to that number in the second quarter?

只是關於第二季度指導的問題。 Bob，我想你說的比第一季度的 0.85 美元要高一點。這是絕對的基礎嗎？還是按年計算？然後作為後續行動，您能否幫助我們考慮保證金組成部分以及在第二季度達到該數字的構建模塊？

Yes, sure. Why don't I let Laura handle that since its guidance related.

是的，當然。為什麼我不讓 Laura 處理它，因為它的指導相關。

Yes. So the slightly better than Q1 is on an absolute basis, Chuck. From a margin perspective, I talked a little bit about it already. We think the inflation levels will moderate as we head into the quarter and travel through the quarter, month by month. I think we talked about there were a lot of underlying things that we lapped in Q1, diesel cost, markdowns, high inventory levels from last year. So we expect -- and as we think about those heading into Q2 that we -- those won't be as meaningful from a base perspective.

是的。所以在絕對基礎上比 Q1 稍微好一點，查克。從保證金的角度來看，我已經談了一點。我們認為，隨著我們進入本季度並逐月通過本季度，通脹水平將會放緩。我想我們談到了我們在第一季度遇到的很多潛在問題，柴油成本、降價、去年的高庫存水平。因此，我們預計——當我們考慮進入第二季度的那些人時——從基本角度來看，這些不會那麼有意義。

As we look at our inventory levels and where we sit today, I would tell you, as we head into Q2, we feel comfortable with where we are, specifically from a gen merch perspective, but we will continue to watch it very closely through the quarter.

當我們審視我們的庫存水平和我們今天的位置時，我會告訴你，當我們進入第二季度時，我們對我們的位置感到滿意，特別是從 gen merch 的角度來看，但我們將繼續密切關注它四分之一。

Okay. And just as a follow-up. I think -- I'm not sure if you touched on this, but can you talk about the cadence of the comp in the quarter? And I guess, May month to date, are you guys running in that low-single-digit range over the past few weeks?

好的。並作為後續行動。我想——我不確定你是否談到了這一點，但你能談談本季度比賽的節奏嗎？我想，從 5 月至今，你們在過去幾週內是否在那個低個位數範圍內運行？

Certainly, again, I'm not going to break any new ground here either, February is the strongest month for us. And nearly 2 months were lower. And I don't want to get too much into Q2 because we're sort of just into it now. But certainly, I think you can read into it that the lower-single-digit is certainly lower than where we were in Q1. But again, we're very bullish on the long term. We feel like there's some Q2 dynamics we need to get through and then the back half should be better.

當然，我也不打算在這裡開闢任何新天地，二月對我們來說是最強勁的月份。而近2個月則更低。而且我不想過多地進入第二季度，因為我們現在才剛剛開始。但當然，我認為你可以讀到較低的個位數肯定低於我們在第一季度的水平。但是，從長遠來看，我們再次非常看好。我們覺得我們需要通過一些 Q2 動態，然後後半部分應該會更好。

Our next question comes from Simeon Gutman from Morgan Stanley.

我們的下一個問題來自摩根士丹利的 Simeon Gutman。

Follow-up in this one part, and then I'll yield. The first question is, can you -- did you have any markets in which weather wasn't problematic. Can you talk about the general merchandise trends there? And then the second part is gallon growth and the fact that you're taking market share, are you approaching cents per gallon any different in terms of managing your competitive spread versus other gasoline operators?

後續在這一部分，然後我會屈服。第一個問題是，你能不能——你有沒有天氣沒有問題的市場。你能談談那裡的一般商品趨勢嗎？然後第二部分是加侖增長和你正在佔據市場份額的事實，在管理你與其他汽油運營商的競爭價差方面，你接近每加侖美分有什麼不同嗎？

There wasn't a tremendous difference in the overall geography of general merchandise sales, but if you do look at sort of weather-sensitive categories like patio sets might be a good example, the Southeast did perform better than the Northeast. So there certainly is a weather component embedded in there. However, I would tell you the biggest thing that we're seeing is members being much more reticent about almost anything big ticket. So if you look at patio sets the structure, if you look at television and sort of high-dollar electronics, it's a very picky consumer out there at this point from a high ticket perspective. So weather plus the economy plays into it.

一般商品銷售的整體地理差異並不大，但如果您確實查看露台套裝等對天氣敏感的類別可能是一個很好的例子，東南部的表現確實優於東北部。所以肯定有一個天氣組件嵌入其中。然而，我要告訴你的是，我們看到的最重要的事情是會員們對幾乎所有大票都更加沉默寡言。因此，如果您看一下庭院佈景結構，如果您看一下電視和某種高價電子產品，那麼從高價位的角度來看，此時那裡的消費者是非常挑剔的。所以天氣加上經濟影響了它。

The gas business has been a tremendous source of profitability for us over the past couple of years, for sure. But frankly, as we talked about in our Investor Day, we don't run that business for profit. We run it for price image and for lifetime value.

毫無疑問，在過去幾年中，天然氣業務一直是我們巨大的盈利來源。但坦率地說，正如我們在投資者日所說的那樣，我們經營該業務並不是為了盈利。我們運行它是為了價格形象和終生價值。

And -- it has certainly been something our team has done a great job at not only figuring out how to be a little bit more structurally profitable in that business, but to show fantastic value every day and provide great service to our members, which is driving those market share gains you referenced.

而且 - 這當然是我們團隊所做的出色工作，不僅在弄清楚如何在該業務中獲得更多結構性盈利，而且每天都展示出驚人的價值並為我們的會員提供優質服務，這是推動您提到的那些市場份額收益。

We haven't talked at all about the co-brand card so far in the Q&A session. But certainly, the gas business is a huge piece of that for us as well, right? It's one of the bigger pieces of the benefits that you get from being a cardholder with as much as a $0.15 difference. And effectively, we get a member of the entire gas business when they become a cardholder. So we'll continue to price our gasoline more sharply and try and continue to gain those trips on that market share.

到目前為止，我們在問答環節還沒有談到聯名卡。但當然，天然氣業務對我們來說也是很大一部分，對吧？這是您作為持卡人獲得的最大好處之一，差額高達 0.15 美元。實際上，當他們成為持卡人時，我們就成為了整個天然氣業務的一員。因此，我們將繼續提高我們的汽油價格，並嘗試並繼續在該市場份額上獲得這些旅行。

And we'll also try and build on the discounts that we give through our co-brand program and then our higher tier program altogether. As you know, we added a $0.05 discount for our rewards members as well. So really been a great business for us in the long term. And certainly, it's something that's resonating well with our members.

我們還將嘗試通過我們的聯合品牌計劃以及更高級別的計劃提供折扣。如您所知，我們還為獎勵會員增加了 0.05 美元的折扣。從長遠來看，這對我們來說確實是一項偉大的業務。當然，這在我們的成員中引起了很好的共鳴。

Our next question comes from Robby Ohmes from Bank of America.

我們的下一個問題來自美國銀行的 Robby Ohmes。

Yes, 2 quick questions. I think, Bob, can you just talk about the competitive environment? And I'd be curious about the Sam's Club membership discounting, maybe remind us what the overlap is and what kind of impact do you expect from their membership discounting? And if there are other upticks in promotions and grocery competitively or anything like that going on that you can highlight for us?

是的，2 個快速問題。我想，鮑勃，你能談談競爭環境嗎？我對 Sam's Club 會員折扣很好奇，也許可以提醒我們重疊是什麼，您對他們的會員折扣有什麼樣的影響？如果在促銷和食品雜貨競爭方面有其他上升趨勢或類似的情況，您可以為我們強調一下嗎？

Sure. It's a good question. Certainly, the competitive environment is fierce. It always has been. We have the joy of competing against the best retailers in the world. And -- so we see what they do. We try and emulate the great stuff that they do. And certainly, our warehouse club competitors have some good stuff to emulate. Sam's has been more and more aggressive from a membership perspective. And their results are to be admired.

當然。這是個好問題。當然，競爭環境是激烈的。一直都是。我們很高興與世界上最好的零售商競爭。而且 - 所以我們看到他們做了什麼。我們嘗試模仿他們所做的偉大事情。當然，我們的倉庫俱樂部競爭對手有一些值得效仿的好東西。從會員的角度來看，Sam's 變得越來越激進。他們的結果值得欽佩。

And Certainly, we've tried to take some lessons from what they're doing and try to tick up our own great ideas as well and have our own great results to point out. I think what you'll continue to see is everybody trying to innovate to get their businesses to be better. That's what our jobs are. And that's what we're trying to do here at BJ's is find the right offer to attract the right member and then the right engagement strategies to retain those members.

當然，我們已經嘗試從他們正在做的事情中吸取一些教訓，並嘗試提出我們自己的偉大想法，並取得我們自己的偉大成果。我認為你會繼續看到的是每個人都在努力創新以使他們的業務變得更好。這就是我們的工作。這就是我們在 BJ's 所做的就是找到合適的報價來吸引合適的會員，然後找到合適的參與策略來留住這些會員。

And I would argue our last few years of performance, I would say we're doing a pretty good job of that. In Q1, certainly, getting away from membership and getting into sales. Q1, I would tell you was a little bit more promotional and I would expect Q2 to be as well, than the past few quarters.

我會爭論我們過去幾年的表現，我會說我們在這方面做得很好。在第一季度，當然，擺脫會員制並開始銷售。第一季度，我會告訴你更多的促銷活動，我希望第二季度也比過去幾個季度更好。

And I think that's just to be expected when everybody is calling for sales and market share, whether it's in the general merchandise business for sure, is more promotional. But certainly, everybody is trying to show value to their consumers. We try and do that every day as a core function of what we do. And I would argue we're a little bit more promotional and our competitors are, too.

而且我認為，當每個人都在呼籲銷售和市場份額時，這是可以預料的，無論是在一般商品業務中，肯定都更具促銷性。但可以肯定的是，每個人都在努力向他們的消費者展示價值。我們每天都在努力做到這一點，這是我們所做工作的核心功能。而且我認為我們的促銷活動更多一些，我們的競爭對手也是如此。

That's helpful. And just a quick follow-up. At the beginning of the call, I think you guys mentioned that you're gaining with, I think, all cohorts. But is there any -- anything you can highlight or call out on, is there -- are you seeing more strength with your better income? Or are you seeing the low income reline for you more? Any kind of color you can give?

這很有幫助。并快速跟進。在電話會議開始時，我想你們提到過你們正在與所有群體一起獲益。但是有沒有什麼 - 任何你可以強調或呼籲的東西，有沒有 - 你看到更多的力量和更好的收入嗎？還是您更多地看到了低收入線？你可以給任何一種顏色？

Look, we've grown trips for member and sales for -- with each of our cohorts that we track and disclose to you all. So I thought Q1 was a very good quarter from that perspective. it's clear that there's pressure out there. And as you would expect, those folks in the lower economic strata are feeling more pressure than those at the high end. With that said, we offer them tremendous value. And so their business has hung in there nicely with us. So again, their trips sales grew as did the folks at the higher end. And I think that's just the psyche of the consumer at the higher end right? Everybody wants to save money.

看，我們已經增加了會員和銷售的旅行——我們跟踪並向大家披露的每個隊列。所以我認為從這個角度來看，第一季度是一個非常好的季度。很明顯那裡有壓力。正如您所預料的那樣，處於較低經濟階層的人比處於高端的人感受到更大的壓力。話雖如此，我們為他們提供了巨大的價值。因此，他們的業務與我們的關係很好。同樣，他們的旅行銷售額與高端人群一樣增長。我認為這只是高端消費者的心理，對吧？每個人都想省錢。

Everybody feels like it's a bumpy economy out there. And we're a great place to find value in all of your everyday needs and essentials as well as some great general merchandise as well. So I would expect as we get through the rest of the year, you'll see that same type of a thing where as the economy gets tougher, we become a greater place to go.

每個人都覺得那裡的經濟不景氣。我們是尋找您所有日常需求和必需品以及一些很棒的一般商品的價值的好地方。因此，我希望在今年餘下的時間裡，你會看到同樣的情況，隨著經濟變得更加艱難，我們將成為一個更好的去處。

Our next question is from Peter Benedict from Baird.

我們的下一個問題來自 Baird 的 Peter Benedict。

Just wanted to follow up on just pricing particularly on the grocery side, you talked about inflation moderating, maybe a little faster than you thought. It sounds like the full year is still how you see it or how you were seeing it.

只是想跟進定價，特別是在雜貨方面，你談到了通脹放緩，可能比你想像的要快一點。聽起來全年仍然是你如何看待它或你如何看待它。

Just curious like what you're seeing from competitors in terms of pricing on grocery. Are you getting to a point where you're seeing any deflation? And if you do get to that point, just curious what the playbook is, Bob, kind of how you think about managing the business in the event that we're in a deflationary environment, not just disinflation?

就像您在雜貨店的定價方面從競爭對手那裡看到的一樣好奇。你是否到了看到通貨緊縮的地步？如果你真的到了那個地步，只是好奇劇本是什麼，鮑勃，你是如何考慮在我們處於通貨緊縮環境的情況下管理業務的，而不僅僅是通貨緊縮？

Yes. Pete, thanks for the question. It's a really good one. We've certainly seen disinflation across the business. And in certain commodities, we've seen deflation. I mean, eggs and chicken and some dairy stuff that come to mind. And I think our playbook honestly, is to always offer the right value to our members. That is what is paramount.

是的。皮特，謝謝你的提問。這是一個非常好的。我們當然看到了整個行業的通貨緊縮。在某些商品中，我們已經看到通貨緊縮。我的意思是，我想到了雞蛋、雞肉和一些奶製品。老實說，我認為我們的劇本是始終為我們的會員提供正確的價值。這是最重要的。

That's why they buy membership. That's why they come to see us. And so as pricing gets more and more important, we'll continue to play offense on that. We told you in March, we made huge investments last year to improve our pricing. Those investments have continued here in the first quarter. And that -- I don't think that will stop, right? We want to make sure we are priced right every day on the commodities that matter most to our members.

這就是他們購買會員資格的原因。這就是他們來看我們的原因。因此，隨著定價變得越來越重要，我們將繼續在這方面進攻。我們在 3 月份告訴過您，我們去年進行了大量投資以提高定價。這些投資在第一季度在這裡繼續進行。而且——我認為這不會停止，對吧？我們希望確保我們每天都為對我們的會員最重要的商品定價正確。

Certainly, that might put some pressure on margin, obviously, investments cost money. The good thing I would tell you is we have that CPI muscle that you know about from years ago that we've sort of embedded into our merchandising culture, where we know how to buy much better today than we did 7 or 8 years ago, and we have a process by which we can do that. So I think it will continue to be a thing we spend a lot of time on, meaning pricing and value, but our team is pretty good at managing margin, too.

當然，這可能會給利潤率帶來一些壓力，顯然，投資是要花錢的。我要告訴你的一件好事是，我們擁有你多年前就知道的 CPI 肌肉，我們已經將其嵌入到我們的營銷文化中，我們今天知道如何比 7 或 8 年前更好地購買，我們有一個流程可以做到這一點。所以我認為這將繼續是我們花費大量時間的事情，這意味著定價和價值，但我們的團隊也非常擅長管理利潤率。

Yes, that's helpful. Then just to follow up on the second half view with general merchandise or opportunities around general merchandise. You mentioned apparel kind of an early proof point here. I think toys was called out at the Investor Day. Just remind us the other categories that you see particular opportunity in to kind of improve that general merch -- or support the general merchandise business later this year.

是的，這很有幫助。然後只是跟進一般商品或圍繞一般商品的機會的下半年觀點。你在這裡提到服裝是一個早期的證據。我認為玩具是在投資者日被召集的。只需提醒我們您認為有特殊機會改善一般商品的其他類別，或在今年晚些時候支持一般商品業務。

Yes. Look, I mean, you know the story, we're trying to really reinvent the general merchandising business over time. And the team has sort of been in place for about a year at this point, which now you're starting to see the fruits of their labor in apparel and some other stuff here over the summer and more -- even more into the back half.

是的。看，我的意思是，你知道這個故事，我們正在努力隨著時間的推移真正重塑一般商品業務。這個團隊在這一點上已經存在了大約一年，現在你開始看到他們在整個夏天在這裡的服裝和其他一些東西上的勞動成果 - 甚至更多到後半部分.

A lot of these categories are very long lead times to buy. So you're buying next year's patio sets, I don't know, about a month ago, actually, probably, -- and so the team has done a great job in picking and choosing the things that they need to work on first. That's why we talked to you about toys. It's certainly a category that we have underperformed in for years.

許多這些類別的購買交貨時間很長。所以你要購買明年的庭院套裝，我不知道，大約一個月前，實際上，可能， - 因此團隊在挑选和選擇他們需要首先處理的事情方面做得很好。這就是我們與您談論玩具的原因。這肯定是我們多年來表現不佳的類別。

And I would tell you, it's assortment related, right? We had a very transactional focus with our suppliers. We didn't have a great relationship with many of our suppliers in that category. We had 0 relationship with some of the most key players in that assortment. So first and foremost, the team has been out building relationships and understanding what we need to put on the shelves and making sure that we can get access to those things.

我會告訴你，它與分類有關，對嗎？我們非常重視與供應商的交易。我們與該類別的許多供應商沒有很好的關係。我們與該類別中一些最關鍵的參與者的關係為 0。因此，首先，團隊一直在努力建立關係，了解我們需要上架的東西，並確保我們能夠獲得這些東西。

We have great businesses that we've been successful in for a long time like televisions and electronics that we have good relationships with. We have the right assortment and they're off trying to figure out what we might do from an assortment promotion standpoint, pricing standpoint in the back half to really make those businesses stronger, too. So I like what they've done so far. It hasn't yet see the members, the members haven't seen it yet. So I kind of reserve judgment.

我們擁有長期成功的偉大業務，例如與我們有著良好關係的電視和電子產品。我們有正確的分類，他們試圖從分類促銷的角度、後半部分的定價角度來弄清楚我們可以做什麼，以真正讓這些業務也變得更強大。所以我喜歡他們到目前為止所做的一切。還沒有看到成員，成員還沒有看到呢。所以我有點保留判斷。

I'm very optimistic on what they can do over the long term. I say that recognizing that we still face a choppy economy for the rest of the year, too. So I can't imagine in spite of anything brilliant that they might do from a television business perspective, I'm not sure that business is going to be great given the large ticket that comes along with it.

從長遠來看，我對他們可以做的事情非常樂觀。我說的是認識到我們在今年餘下的時間裡仍然面臨著動蕩的經濟。所以我無法想像，儘管從電視業務的角度來看他們可能會做任何出色的事情，但鑑於隨之而來的大票，我不確定業務是否會很好。

But I am optimistic for toys and apparel and some of the other key businesses that they've already kind of put their stamp on. So we'll see how it goes in the next few weeks and months and quarters, and we'll continue to iterate and get better.

但我對玩具和服裝以及他們已經打上烙印的其他一些關鍵業務持樂觀態度。因此，我們將在接下來的幾週、幾個月和幾個季度看到它的進展情況，我們將繼續迭代並變得更好。

The next question is from Mike Baker from D.A. Davidson. Just reconnecting him.

下一個問題來自 D.A. 的 Mike Baker。戴維森。只是重新連接他。

I wanted to bring Bill Werner into the conversation and ask about a couple of quarters ago, you guys talked about your BJ's market concept with the customer so focused on needs versus wants, that becomes maybe more interesting. Can you just update us on that concept, what you've seen in that initial test and how we should think about that maybe going forward?

我想把 Bill Werner 帶入對話並詢問幾個季度前，你們與客戶討論了 BJ 的市場概念，如此專注於需求與需求，這可能變得更有趣。您能否向我們介紹一下這個概念，您在初始測試中看到的內容以及我們應該如何考慮未來的發展？

We've made great progress with BJ's market. We talked about it as pilot as a way to see just another innovative approach of how to bring the club closer to the members. And we've seen good results so far. And I think as we talked about in the Analyst Day, we're continuing to look at ways of how to expand on what we're learning on that club. So as we think about the overall portfolio of how we get more convenient, right? It's the broad picture of different formats continuing to lean into our omni capabilities that had such great growth during the quarter through BOPIC and same-day delivery.

我們在 BJ 的市場上取得了很大的進步。我們將其作為試點進行討論，以了解如何使俱樂部更接近會員的另一種創新方法。到目前為止，我們已經看到了良好的結果。我認為正如我們在分析師日所討論的那樣，我們正在繼續研究如何擴展我們在該俱樂部所學到的東西。因此，當我們考慮如何變得更方便的整體組合時，對嗎？這是不同格式的廣泛圖景，繼續依靠我們的全方位能力，通過 BOPIC 和當天交付在本季度取得如此巨大的增長。

And then also the new club growth in total. So the 2 clubs that we opened up in the first quarter in Davenport and McDonough to a great start. The membership there is substantially higher than our initial projection. So we're really happy that we've seen the continued momentum in the early clubs of this year that we've seen over the past couple of years. So as we think about the new club vertical in general and how we expand the footprint. We remain really bullish and we're -- all eyes are focused on our first club in the state of Tennessee in Luverne, which is just outside Nashville here in the second quarter.

然後還有新俱樂部的總體增長。所以我們在第一季度在達文波特和麥克多諾開設的 2 個俱樂部開局不錯。那裡的成員數量大大高於我們最初的預測。所以我們真的很高興我們看到了過去幾年我們在今年早期俱樂部看到的持續勢頭。因此，當我們總體上考慮新的垂直俱樂部以及我們如何擴大足跡時。我們仍然非常看好，我們 - 所有的目光都集中在我們在田納西州盧文的第一家具樂部，第二季度就在納什維爾郊外。

Got it. All right. So since I asked one longer-term question, let me ask a short-term question, if I could. It wasn't mentioned on the call, but do you think tax -- lower tax refunds impacted you guys at all with all your data any way to tell which of your customers may have been impacted by that and how much of a headwind that may or may not have been in the first quarter.

知道了。好的。所以既然我問了一個長期問題，讓我問一個短期問題，如果可以的話。電話中沒有提到，但你認為稅收——較低的退稅對你們有影響嗎，你的所有數據都可以通過任何方式告訴你的哪些客戶可能受到影響，以及可能有多大的逆風或者可能不在第一季度。

Mike, Look, we don't have tremendous data on this. We never had a great model to measure it. It does feel like there was an impact, particularly in those big ticket businesses, where you might use a tax refund check to buy a patio set or a mattress or something. But I'd be lying if I tell you we had a wonderful model to predict that.

邁克，你看，我們沒有這方面的大量數據。我們從來沒有一個很好的模型來衡量它。感覺確實有影響，特別是在那些大票業務中，您可能會使用退稅支票購買露台套裝或床墊或其他東西。但如果我告訴你我們有一個很棒的模型來預測那件事，那我就是在撒謊。

Our next question comes from Mark Carden from UBS.

我們的下一個問題來自瑞銀集團的馬克卡登。

So a number of your mass merchant and general merchandise competitors have been calling out increasing pressures from shrink. Have you seen much of an uptick on this front? Or does your model just insulate you a bit better from some of these headwinds?

因此，您的許多大型零售商和日用商品競爭對手一直在呼籲越來越大的收縮壓力。您是否看到這方面有很大的上升？還是您的模型只是讓您更好地免受這些不利因素的影響？

Mark, it's a great question. I do think you're -- let me start by saying organized retail crime is definitely a thing, and we see it in our business, as I talked to my counterparts across the retail industry, they are definitely seeing it in their businesses. Your point on our format is a relevant one. And we -- although we see it and it is material. We benefit from the fact that our -- we have a membership business, you need a card to get in. Our stuff is largely in bigger pack sizes. So it's harder to fill for. And our team has done really wonderful work sort of keeping track all of our inventory, keeping our shrink as low as possible and most importantly, keeping our members and our team members safe every day. I think you'll continue to hear it across the industry.

馬克，這是一個很好的問題。我確實認為你 - 讓我首先說有組織的零售犯罪絕對是一件事，我們在我們的業務中看到它，當我與零售行業的同行交談時，他們肯定在他們的業務中看到它。您對我們格式的看法是相關的。而我們——儘管我們看到了它，而且它很重要。我們受益於我們的 - 我們有會員業務，你需要一張卡才能進入。我們的東西主要是更大的包裝尺寸。所以更難填補。我們的團隊做了非常出色的工作，可以跟踪我們所有的庫存，使我們的收縮率盡可能低，最重要的是，確保我們的成員和我們的團隊成員每天都安全。我想你會繼續在整個行業聽到它。

And one of the reasons -- one of the other reasons why ours might be lower than some is although shrink is a problem in many, if not most markets, it is a much more pointed problem in certain places, particularly on the West Coast, or places like Chicago or Albuquerque that have blue state or local blue governments that don't really feel like prosecuting crime.

原因之一——我們的價格可能低於某些市場的其他原因之一是，雖然收縮在許多市場（如果不是大多數市場）是一個問題，但在某些地方，尤其是在西海岸，這是一個更為尖銳的問題，或像芝加哥或阿爾伯克基這樣的藍色州或地方藍色政府並不真正想起訴犯罪的地方。

My view is the government's first obligation is to provide a safe environment for people to do their daily business. And in some places, that's not happening. But politics aside, I think you'll continue to see this be a problem that the retail industry as a whole needs to work on. We spend a ton of time with our partners in the industry, trying to mitigate our own losses and help our competitors mitigate their losses. And it's an unfortunate part of the society that we live in today. But long story short. It's a less material problem for us than it might be for some of our competitors.

我的觀點是，政府的首要義務是為人們開展日常業務提供安全的環境。在某些地方，這並沒有發生。但撇開政治不談，我認為你會繼續認為這是整個零售業需要努力解決的問題。我們花費大量時間與業內合作夥伴合作，試圖減輕我們自己的損失並幫助我們的競爭對手減輕他們的損失。這是我們今天生活的社會中不幸的一部分。但長話短說。與我們的一些競爭對手相比，這對我們來說不是一個實質性問題。

Makes sense. And then you're seeing some pretty strong momentum in your new markets. What are you seeing on the membership acquisition front in your legacy markets. And has there been any shifts in trajectory there?

說得通。然後你會在你的新市場中看到一些相當強勁的勢頭。您在傳統市場的會員獲取方面看到了什麼。那裡的軌蹟有任何變化嗎？

Really, we've had great membership results for a while now in both new and existing markets. Our team been pretty successful in acquiring new members regardless of newer existing markets.

確實，我們在新市場和現有市場中都取得了不錯的會員成績。無論現有的新市場如何，我們的團隊都非常成功地獲得了新成員。

We've made a tremendous shift towards digital acquisition over the years that's been very successful as we've talked about, we've iterated on the different types of offers that we use out in the market. And we're pretty pleased with the team and the results that they've been able to provide. And a lot of it is us running a better business. A lot of it is putting better things in front of our members, having great offerings like our co-brand credit card that we transitioned to Capital One this quarter.

多年來，我們已經向數字收購取得了巨大的轉變，正如我們所說的那樣非常成功，我們已經迭代了我們在市場上使用的不同類型的報價。我們對團隊以及他們能夠提供的結果感到非常滿意。其中很多是我們經營更好的業務。其中很多是將更好的東西放在我們的會員面前，提供很棒的產品，比如我們在本季度過渡到 Capital One 的聯合品牌信用卡。

It's all about value, it's all about service and convenience. And we're doing a much better job on each one of those axes to show to our members and prospective members that we are a place to go.

一切都與價值有關，一切都與服務和便利有關。我們在每一個軸上都做得更好，以向我們的成員和潛在成員表明我們是一個值得去的地方。

I think that was our last question. I want to thank everybody for your attention and for your support of our company. And we will get in touch with you over the summer and tell you how we did in Q2. Thank you very much.

我認為這是我們的最後一個問題。我要感謝大家對我們公司的關注和支持。我們將在整個夏天與您取得聯繫，並告訴您我們在第二季度的表現如何。非常感謝。

This concludes today's call. You may now disconnect your lines.

今天的電話會議到此結束。您現在可以斷開線路。