CDW Corp (CDW) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Hello, and welcome to today's CDW Fourth Quarter 2023 Earnings Call. My name is Jordan, and I'll be coordinating your call today. (Operator Instructions)

您好，歡迎參加今天的 CDW 2023 年第四季財報電話會議。我叫喬丹，今天我將協調您的電話。 （操作員說明）

I'm now going to hand over to Steven O'Brien of Investor Relations to begin. Steven, please go ahead.

我現在將由投資者關係部的史蒂文·奧布萊恩 (Steven O'Brien) 開始。史蒂文，請繼續。

Thank you, [Taylor]. Good morning, everyone. Joining me today to review our fourth quarter and full year 2023 results are Chris Leahy, our Chair and Chief Executive Officer; and Al Miralles, our Chief Financial Officer.

謝謝你，[泰勒]。大家，早安。今天與我一起回顧我們第四季和 2023 年全年業績的是我們的董事長兼執行長 Chris Leahy；以及我們的財務長 Al Miralles。

Our fourth quarter and full year earnings release was distributed this morning and is available on our website, investor.cdw.com, along with supplemental slides that you can use following along during the call. I'd like to remind you that certain comments made in this presentation are considered forward-looking statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Those statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially.

我們的第四季度和全年收益報告已於今天上午發布，可在我們的網站 Investor.cdw.com 上獲取，以及您可以在電話會議期間使用的補充幻燈片。我想提醒您，根據1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》，本簡報中的某些評論被視為前瞻性陳述。這些陳述受到許多風險和不確定性的影響，可能導致實際結果出現重大差異。

Additional information concerning these risks and uncertainties is contained in the earnings release and Form 8-K we furnished to the SEC today and in the company's other filings with the SEC. CDW assumes no obligation to update the information presented during this webcast. Our presentation also includes certain non-GAAP financial measures, including non-GAAP operating income, non-GAAP operating income margin, non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP earnings per share. All non-GAAP measures have been reconciled to the most directly comparable GAAP measures in accordance with SEC rules. You'll find reconciliation charts in the slides for today's webcast and in our earnings release on Form 8-K.

有關這些風險和不確定性的更多資訊包含在我們今天向 SEC 提供的收益報告和 8-K 表格以及公司向 SEC 提交的其他文件中。 CDW 不承擔更新本網路廣播中提供的資訊的義務。我們的簡報還包括某些非 GAAP 財務指標，包括非 GAAP 營業收入、非 GAAP 營業利潤率、非 GAAP 淨利潤和非 GAAP 每股收益。根據 SEC 規則，所有非 GAAP 衡量標準均已與最直接可比較的 GAAP 衡量標準進行了調整。您可以在今天網路廣播的幻燈片和我們的 8-K 表格收益發布中找到調節表。

Please note all references to growth rates or dollar amount, changes in our remarks today are versus the comparable period in 2022, unless otherwise indicated. Replay of this webcast will be posted to our website later today. I want to remind you that this conference call is the property of CDW and may not be recorded or rebroadcast without specific written permission from the company.

請注意，除非另有說明，所有提及成長率或金額的內容均與 2022 年同期相比發生變化。這個網路廣播的重播將於今天稍晚發佈到我們的網站上。我想提醒您，本次電話會議屬於 CDW 的財產，未經本公司明確書面許可，不得錄製或轉播。

With that, let me turn the call over to Chris.

現在，讓我把電話轉給克里斯。

Thank you, Steve. Good morning, everyone. I'll begin our call with an overview of our fourth quarter and full year performance and share some thoughts on our strategic progress and expectations for 2024. Then I will hand it all -- hand it over to Al, who will take you through a more detailed review of the financials as well as our capital allocation strategy and outlook.

謝謝你，史蒂夫。大家，早安。在我們的電話會議開始時，我將概述我們第四季度和全年的業績，並分享一些關於我們的策略進展和 2024 年預期的想法。然後我將把一切交給 Al，他將帶您了解對財務狀況以及我們的資本配置策略和前景進行更詳細的審查。

We'll move quickly through our prepared remarks as always to ensure we have plenty of time for questions. Fourth quarter net sales were $5 billion, 7.7% below 2022. Strong growth and operating income margins mitigated the impact of top line performance on profits, and we delivered gross profit of $1.15 billion, 2% lower year-over-year, non-GAAP operating income of $519 million, 1% below prior year and non-GAAP net income per share of $2.50, up 3% year-over-year.

我們將一如既往地快速完成準備好的發言，以確保我們有足夠的時間提問。第四季淨銷售額為50 億美元，比2022 年下降7.7%。強勁的成長和營業利潤率減輕了營收業績對利潤的影響，我們實現了11.5 億美元的毛利潤，比去年同期下降2%（非GAAP）營業收入為 5.19 億美元，較上年同期下降 1%，非 GAAP 每股淨利為 2.50 美元，較去年同期成長 3%。

Our results reflect consistent strong execution by the team, our financial rigor and our ability to deliver solutions and services across the full life cycle full stack. Results delivered under uneven commercial and international market conditions, which continue to drive cautious customer behavior.

我們的業績反映了團隊一貫的強大執行力、我們的財務嚴謹性以及我們在整個生命週期全端提供解決方案和服務的能力。在不平衡的商業和國際市場條件下取得的成果繼續推動謹慎的客戶行為。

Customer priorities remained laser focused on operating efficiency and expense elasticity, priorities increasingly met by as-a-service and consumption-based solutions like cloud and SaaS as well as nascent ratable on-premise solutions. The team's ability to pivot to address these priorities drove excellent performance across solutions, including categories that commonly net down on a revenue basis.

客戶的優先事項仍然集中在營運效率和費用彈性上，優先事項越來越多地透過雲端和 SaaS 等基於消費的解決方案以及新生的可評估本地解決方案來滿足。該團隊專注於解決這些優先事項的能力推動了整個解決方案的出色表現，包括通常在收入基礎上淨值下降的類別。

The impact of this success, combined with ongoing softness in traditional hardware categories resulted in further pressure on net sales. When this happens, we experienced what we saw this quarter, meaningfully dampened net sales growth with very strong gross margins. This phenomenon was not unique to the fourth quarter.

這一成功的影響，加上傳統硬體類別的持續疲軟，導致淨銷售額進一步受到壓力。當這種情況發生時，我們經歷了本季所看到的情況，顯著抑制了淨銷售成長，但毛利率非常高。這種現象並非第四季獨有。

Market dynamics drove hardware deprioritization and preference for solutions that net down throughout 2023. And our net sales of $21 billion were over $2 billion less than 2022.

市場動態導致硬體優先下降以及對解決方案的偏好在 2023 年全年淨值下降。我們的淨銷售額為 210 億美元，比 2022 年減少了 20 億美元以上。

Notwithstanding our muted top line, strong execution by the team, underpinned by our full stack, full life cycle, full outcomes go-to-market approach delivered flat non-GAAP operating income, a 1% increase in non-GAAP net income per share and strong adjusted free cash flow of $1.4 billion, outcomes driven by the strategic investments we have made over the past 5 years to increase the value we deliver to our customers.

儘管我們的營收低迷，但團隊的強大執行力，在我們全堆疊、全生命週期、全面成果的上市方法的支撐下，實現了非 GAAP 營運收入持平，非 GAAP 每股淨利潤增長 1%以及14 億美元的強勁調整後自由現金流，這些成果是由我們在過去5 年中為增加為客戶提供的價值而進行的策略性投資所推動的。

That is the power of our strategy when combined with our resilient business model. 2023 was the year that truly pressure tested our strategy. The fourth quarter is an exemplary example of this in action. There were 3 main drivers of results, our balanced portfolio of customer end markets, breadth of our product solutions and services portfolio and relentless execution of our 3-part strategy for growth.

這就是我們的策略與我們富有彈性的業務模式結合的力量。 2023 年是我們策略真正經受壓力的一年。第四季就是一個典型的例子。業績的三個主要驅動因素是我們平衡的客戶端市場組合、我們產品解決方案和服務組合的廣度以及對三部分成長策略的不懈執行。

First, the balanced portfolio of our diverse customer end markets. As you know, we have 5 U.S. sales channels: Corporate, small business, health care, government and education. Each channel is a meaningfully -- is a meaningful $1 billion-plus business on its own. Within each channel, teams are further segmented to focus on customer end markets, including geographies and verticals, we also have our U.K. and Canadian operations, which together delivered sales of USD 2.6 billion.

首先，我們多樣化的客戶端市場的平衡組合。如您所知，我們在美國有 5 個銷售管道：企業、小型企業、醫療保健、政府和教育。每個管道本身都是一項有意義的業務，價值超過 10 億美元。在每個管道中，團隊進一步細分，以專注於客戶終端市場，包括地理和垂直市場，我們還有英國和加拿大業務，總計銷售額達 26 億美元。

Often, our customer end markets performed differently given macroeconomic or industry-specific headwinds or tailwinds. This quarter, all but one customer end market experienced a decline in net sales. The profit story was very different, with gross margin increasing across all customer end markets. Let's take a look at the puts and takes of how each end market performed in the quarter.

通常，考慮到宏觀經濟或行業特定的逆風或順風，我們的客戶端市場表現會有所不同。本季度，除一個客戶端市場外，所有市場的淨銷售額均出現下降。利潤情況則截然不同，所有客戶端市場的毛利率都在成長。讓我們來看看本季每個終端市場的看跌期權和賣出期權表現。

Corporate net sales decreased 8%. Top line performance continued to reflect the impact of both netting down and hardware pressure. Momentum remained for projects focused on increasing productivity as well as projects focused on enhanced customer and coworker experiences.

企業淨銷售額下降 8%。營收表現持續反映出淨額下降和硬體壓力的影響。專注於提高生產力的專案以及專注於增強客戶和同事體驗的專案仍然保持著勢頭。

The team's ability to meet customer demand for these priorities with as-a-service and ratable solutions drove strong cloud performance. Year-over-year client device declines moderated down mid-single digits compared to the double-digit declines of the first 3 quarters. For NetComm, while network modernization stayed a top priority, customers focused on digesting investments made over the past few years, leading to a long expected backlog normalization and sales declined year-over-year.

該團隊能夠透過即服務和可評估的解決方案滿足客戶對這些優先事項的需求，從而推動了強大的雲端效能。與前三個季度的兩位數降幅相比，客戶端設備的年減幅放緩至中個位數。對NetComm來說，雖然網路現代化仍然是重中之重，但客戶專注於消化過去幾年的投資，導致長期預期的積壓正常化，銷售額逐年下降。

Small Business net sales declined 13%. Market conditions were consistent with the first 3 quarters of the year, and customer behavior remained cautious. Priorities remain squarely focused on cost management and projects that need to get done. Once again, projects that were more -- launched, the needs remain paused.

小型企業淨銷售額下降 13%。市場狀況與今年前三季一致，客戶行為依然謹慎。優先事項仍然集中在成本管理和需要完成的項目上。再一次，更多的專案啟動了，但需求仍然暫停。

Customer demand for projects with shorter-term return on investment drove excellent performance in cloud and in total security -- total software, excuse me. Security remained a top priority, and the team delivered strong performance across our broad portfolio of hardware, software and services security offerings. Similar to corporate, small business client device declines moderated in the quarter, down high-single digits compared to the prior 3 quarters double-digit declines.

客戶對短期投資回報專案的需求推動了雲端和整體安全性（整體軟體，請原諒）的出色效能。安全性仍然是重中之重，該團隊在我們廣泛的硬體、軟體和服務安全產品組合中表現出色。與企業類似，小型企業客戶端設備的下降在本季度有所放緩，與前三個季度兩位數的下降相比，下降了高個位數。

Public sales decreased 4% year-over-year as government's mid-single-digit net sales increase was more than offset by declines across our other public end markets. The federal team delivered a double-digit net sales increase as they continued their success helping agencies implement more efficient solutions to manage and protect data. This drove excellent NetComm performance up strong double digits.

公共銷售年減 4%，因為政府的中個位數淨銷售成長被我們其他公共終端市場的下降所抵消。聯邦團隊繼續取得成功，幫助各機構實施更有效的解決方案來管理和保護數據，實現了兩位數的淨銷售成長。這使得出色的 NetComm 性能實現強勁的兩位數成長。

The team continued its efforts to help agencies optimize their existing cloud environments as well as deliver new cloud solutions. The state and local team delivered a mid-single-digit increase. The team's success enabling cloud-based solutions, especially with budget constrained cities delivered a triple-digit increase in cloud performance. For the second quarter in a row, the team delivered sales growth in client devices.

該團隊繼續努力幫助機構優化現有的雲端環境並提供新的雲端解決方案。州和地方團隊實現了中個位數的成長。該團隊成功實現了基於雲端的解決方案，特別是在預算有限的城市，雲端效能實現了三位數的成長。該團隊連續第二個季度實現客戶端設備銷售成長。

Healthcare net sales decreased by 5%, augmenting talent needs, modernizing data centers, driving cost savings and efficiency projects all remain focus areas for our customers. The team drove a significant increase in cloud performance, growth driven by their success helping systems adopt deep cloud portfolio, which includes proprietary health care solutions.

醫療保健淨銷售額下降了 5%，增加人才需求、實現資料中心現代化、推動成本節約和效率專案仍然是我們客戶關注的重點領域。該團隊推動了雲端效能的顯著提高，這種成長是由他們成功幫助系統採用深度雲端產品組合（其中包括專有的醫療保健解決方案）所推動的。

Our broad portfolio of solutions also contributed to security growth as the team helped customers address heightened cybersecurity needs. Education net sales decreased by 12%, with K-12 posting a mid-single-digit decline and higher ed down mid-teens. For K through 12, the team continued their success helping schools and their efforts to sustain technology gains over the past several years.

我們廣泛的解決方案組合也促進了安全成長，因為該團隊幫助客戶滿足了日益增長的網路安全需求。教育淨銷售額下降 12%，其中 K-12 下降幅度為中個位數，高等教育下降幅度為中位數。對於 K 到 12 年級，該團隊在過去幾年中繼續成功幫助學校並努力維持技術進步。

This delivered excellent growth in services and cloud, both posting double-digit gains, gains that were offset by the combined impact of a double-digit decline in NetComm and low single-digit decline in client-device sales. The high ed team success helping universities to address business process transformation efforts contributed to double-digit growth in services and cloud.

這帶來了服務和雲端的出色成長，兩者都實現了兩位數的成長，但這些成長被 NetComm 兩位數下降和客戶端設備銷售小幅個位數下降的綜合影響所抵消。高等教育團隊成功幫助大學解決業務流程轉型工作，推動了服務和雲端的兩位數成長。

Client devices showed stability. These encouraging trends were more than offset by declines in NetComm this quarter. Other, our combined U.K. and Canada business declined by 14%. While the teams continue to execute well, market conditions were as expected. And sales in both the U.K. and Canada decreased by double digits in local currency.

客戶端設備表現出穩定性。這些令人鼓舞的趨勢被 NetComm 本季的下滑所抵銷。此外，我們在英國和加拿大的合併業務下降了 14%。雖然團隊持續表現良好，但市場狀況符合預期。以當地貨幣計算，英國和加拿大的銷售額均出現兩位數下降。

Once again, our diverse end markets contributed to our performance amid an uncertain and uneven environment. The second driver of performance was our broad and deep portfolio. Let's take a look at how each category performed. The market did not experience the stabilization in hardware we expected and net sales of our hardware portfolio declined by high-single digits.

在不確定和不平衡的環境中，我們多元化的終端市場再次為我們的績效做出了貢獻。業績的第二個驅動因素是我們廣泛而深入的產品組合。讓我們看看每個類別的表現如何。市場並沒有經歷我們預期的硬體穩定，我們的硬體產品組合的淨銷售額下降了高個位數。

This was primarily driven by double-digit year-over-year declines in NetComm as the normalization of backlog adversely impacted year-over-year growth. Client device performance improved sequentially with a low single-digit decline. Software customer spend increased by high single digits but given the significant portion of the category that nets down, net sales declined.

這主要是由於積壓正常化對年成長產生了不利影響，導致 NetComm 年比下降兩位數。客戶端設備效能持續改善，但下降幅度較小。軟體客戶支出成長了高個位數，但考慮到該類別的大部分淨收入下降，淨銷售額下降。

Strength was broad-based across software as we continue to help customers manage data, enhance productivity and secure their IT environment. Growth was particularly strong across security, virtualization and application suites. Cloud remained an important driver of performance across the business and was a meaningful contributor to gross profit. Customer spend increased across all end markets with roughly half of spend from commercial customers.

隨著我們繼續幫助客戶管理資料、提高生產力並保護其 IT 環境，我們的優勢遍及各個軟體領域。安全、虛擬化和應用程式套件的成長尤其強勁。雲端仍然是整個業務績效的重要驅動力，並且對毛利做出了有意義的貢獻。所有終端市場的客戶支出均增加，其中約一半的支出來自商業客戶。

Infrastructure as a Service, productivity and security were the top 3 cloud workloads during the period. Security remains top of mind for our customers as cyber threats continue to emerge, evolve and increase and customer spend increased by low single digits. Our teams continue to conduct vulnerability assessments, implement identity and access management solutions and provide training to our customers to help manage cloud deployments and enhance endpoint and application security.

基礎設施即服務、生產力和安全性是這段期間排名前三的雲端工作負載。隨著網路威脅不斷出現、發展和增加，以及客戶支出以較低的個位數成長，安全仍然是我們客戶最關心的問題。我們的團隊繼續進行漏洞評估，實施身分和存取管理解決方案，並向客戶提供培訓，以協助管理雲端部署並增強端點和應用程式安全性。

Services was a standout category this period with double-digit increases in professional and managed services. Integral to today's complex technology solutions, customers continue to lean into CDW as an extension of their own teams and leverage our services capabilities as part of their strategies.

服務業是這段期間的一個突出類別，專業服務和託管服務出現了兩位數的成長。作為當今複雜技術解決方案的一部分，客戶繼續將 CDW 作為其團隊的延伸，並利用我們的服務能力作為其策略的一部分。

Our portfolio performance leads to the third driver of our results this quarter, relentless execution of our growth strategy. Core to our growth strategy are our objectives to expand and enhance our solutions and services capabilities. Over the past 5 years, investments, both organic and nonorganic, including 10 acquisitions have bolstered our expertise and resources in these two key areas to support our full stack, full life cycle, full outcomes go-to-market approach.

我們的投資組合表現是本季業績的第三個驅動因素，即持續執行我們的成長策略。我們成長策略的核心是擴大和增強我們的解決方案和服務能力的目標。在過去 5 年裡，有機和非有機投資（包括 10 次收購）增強了我們在這兩個關鍵領域的專業知識和資源，以支持我們的全端、全生命週期、全面成果的上市方法。

Investments that have grown our capabilities in high-growth complex areas like cloud migration and cybersecurity that have enhanced capabilities like full stack and cloud-native software development, DevOps engineering, robust consulting and cloud-based workflow automation, expertise and resources and investments that have expanded our services footprint across the U.S. and Canada.

這些投資增強了我們在雲端遷移和網路安全等高成長複雜領域的能力，增強了全端和雲端原生軟體開發、DevOps 工程、強大的諮詢和基於雲端的工作流程自動化、專業知識和資源以及投資等能力。擴大了我們在美國和加拿大的服務足跡。

As you can see, each investment we made is purposeful and delivers a specific capability that furthers our strategy, a strategy designed to ensure we evolve with the market and constantly fortify our leading position as trusted adviser to our customers and vendor partner of choice. Evolving with capabilities that underpin our relevance and ensure we are there for our customers today and as new technologies come to market, new technologies like artificial intelligence. With its extremely short high cycle, our customers are increasingly seeking opportunities to use AI to achieve their objectives. And while most customers are in the discovery phase, some are already adopting AI with our help.

正如您所看到的，我們所做的每項投資都是有目的的，並提供了一種特定的能力，可以推進我們的策略，該策略旨在確保我們與市場一起發展，並不斷鞏固我們作為客戶和首選供應商合作夥伴值得信賴的顧問的領先地位。隨著人工智慧等新技術進入市場，我們的能力不斷發展，這些能力支撐著我們的相關性，並確保我們為客戶提供服務。由於其極短的高週期，我們的客戶越來越多地尋求使用人工智慧來實現其目標的機會。雖然大多數客戶還處於發現階段，但有些客戶已經在我們的幫助下採用人工智慧。

Here's a great example. An industry-leading semiconductor and software designer needed training and development for a domain-specific large language model to support a range of internal use cases. The data-intensive and highly proprietary nature of the company's designs and intellectual property made the use of a hyperscaler LLM and cloud-based compute and storage resources less optimal.

這是一個很好的例子。業界領先的半導體和軟體設計師需要針對特定領域的大型語言模型進行培訓和開發，以支援一系列內部用例。該公司設計和智慧財產權的資料密集和高度專有性使得超大規模法學碩士以及基於雲端的運算和儲存資源的使用不太理想。

The CDW hybrid infrastructure team worked with the customer to build a custom platform that supports both training and inference workloads for generative AI. The team designed the underlying architecture, which included a best-in-class 60-node supercomputer with a high-performance parallel file system storage solution. The successful installation and customer handoff resulted in a multimillion dollar hardware and software engagement and services opportunity.

CDW 混合基礎設施團隊與客戶合作建立了一個自訂平台，支援生成式 AI 的訓練和推理工作負載。該團隊設計了底層架構，其中包括具有高效能平行檔案系統儲存解決方案的一流 60 節點超級電腦。成功的安裝和客戶移交帶來了價值數百萬美元的硬體和軟體參與及服務機會。

With both usage and use cases growing quickly, the company has engaged CDW to support further expansion of their existing infrastructure and to evaluate new solutions. Clearly, investments in our customer-centric growth strategy have elevated our relevance to customers to the highest level it's ever been. Our focused and disciplined execution of our strategy continues to make us a vital technology partner, whether enabling customer priorities that require high complex or transactional solutions.

隨著使用量和用例的快速增長，該公司已聘請 CDW 來支援其現有基礎設施的進一步擴展並評估新的解決方案。顯然，對以客戶為中心的成長策略的投資將我們與客戶的相關性提升到了前所未有的最高水平。我們對策略的專注和嚴格執行使我們繼續成為重要的技術合作夥伴，無論是支援需要高度複雜的解決方案還是交易解決方案的客戶優先事項。

And that leads us to our 2024 outlook. The uneven market conditions we experienced throughout 2023 have persisted into 2024. Customer decisions remain deliberate and restrained with ongoing project scrutiny, pursuit of short-term ROIs and continued buying hesitancy particularly around hardware. With this backdrop, we currently look for the U.S. IT market to grow by low single digits in 2024 on a customer spend basis, including the expectation of a slow start to the year, a view that incorporates the potential impact of some of our recent wildcards, including upcoming elections and geopolitical issues.

這引導我們展望 2024 年。我們在2023 年經歷的不平衡的市場狀況一直持續到2024 年。由於持續的項目審查、追求短期投資回報率以及持續的購買猶豫（尤其是在硬體方面），客戶的決策仍然是深思熟慮和克制的。在此背景下，我們目前預計美國 IT 市場在 2024 年以客戶支出計算將實現低個位數增長，包括今年開局緩慢的預期，這一觀點考慮了我們最近一些通配符的潛在影響，包括即將舉行的選舉和地緣政治議題。

For CDW, these conditions set up a year that thematically looks much like 2023, and our outlook assumes the growth of customer spend outpaces our net sales growth. Our customers face proliferating data and ever-expanding cybersecurity needs. They face expanding workloads and hardware obsolescence and they face the potential and promise of exciting new technologies. With our broad and deep portfolio of solutions and services, we are there for our customers today and tomorrow, wherever their priorities lie.

對於 CDW 來說，這些條件設定的年份在主題上看起來很像 2023 年，我們的前景假設客戶支出的成長超過我們的淨銷售額成長。我們的客戶面臨著激增的數據和不斷擴大的網路安全需求。他們面臨著不斷擴大的工作負載和硬體過時，他們面臨著令人興奮的新技術的潛力和前景。憑藉我們廣泛而深入的解決方案和服務組合，無論客戶的優先事項在哪裡，我們今天和明天都會為他們服務。

We are there for our customers as their trusted adviser to help them navigate increasingly complex technologies. Whether growth comes from consumption-based or as-a-service solutions or from hardware sales, we are well positioned to continue our track record of profitably outpacing U.S. IT market growth by 200 to 300 basis points.

我們身為客戶值得信賴的顧問，幫助他們駕馭日益複雜的科技。無論成長來自基於消費的解決方案、即服務解決方案或來自硬體銷售，我們都處於有利地位，能夠繼續保持利潤成長超過美國 IT 市場 200 至 300 個基點的記錄。

As we always do, we will provide an update -- an updated perspective on business conditions and refine our view of the market as we move through the year. In the meantime, we'll continue to do what we do best, leverage our competitive advantages and out-execute the competition. Now let me turn it over to Al, who will provide more detail on our financials and outlook. Al?

一如既往，我們將提供最新資訊——對商業狀況的最新看法，並在這一年中完善我們對市場的看法。同時，我們將繼續做我們最擅長的事情，利用我們的競爭優勢並超越競爭對手。現在讓我將其轉交給 Al，他將提供有關我們的財務和前景的更多詳細資訊。艾爾？

Thank you, Chris, and good morning, everyone. I'll start my prepared remarks with detail on fourth quarter performance, briefly touch on full year 2023 results, move to capital allocation priorities and then finish with our 2024 outlook. The team's strong execution and our financial discipline delivered very strong quarterly gross and operating margins and growth in our fourth quarter earnings per share on a diluted basis.

謝謝你，克里斯，大家早安。我將首先詳細介紹第四季度的業績，然後簡要介紹 2023 年全年業績，然後討論資本配置優先事項，最後以我們的 2024 年展望作為結束語。該團隊強大的執行力和我們的財務紀律帶來了非常強勁的季度毛利率和營業利潤率以及第四季度攤薄每股收益的成長。

We achieved these results on consolidated net sales of $5 billion, which were 7.7% below 2022 on a reported and average daily sales basis. Fourth quarter net sales performance reflected both our ongoing success providing cloud and SaaS-based solutions that drove meaningful customer spend and profits and the continued impact of uneven market conditions that we experienced throughout 2023.

我們取得這些業績的綜合淨銷售額為 50 億美元，按報告銷售額和日均銷售額計算，比 2022 年下降 7.7%。第四季的淨銷售業績反映了我們在提供雲端和基於SaaS 的解決方案方面所取得的持續成功，這些解決方案推動了有意義的客戶支出和利潤，以及我們在2023 年經歷的不平衡市場狀況的持續影響。

On a sequential average daily sales basis, fourth quarter net sales decreased 10.8%, while historically, fourth quarter net sales are lower than the third quarter, the sequential decline this quarter was more significant than we expected, reflecting a lack of hardware spending recovery, a continued mix shift into solutions that net down and generally softer economic conditions impacting our international end markets.

以日均銷售額較上季計算，第四季淨銷售額下降10.8%，而從歷史來看，第四季淨銷售額低於第三季度，本季環比下降幅度比我們預期更為顯著，反映出硬體支出復甦缺乏，持續的混合轉向解決方案，以消除影響我們國際終端市場的經濟狀況和整體疲軟的情況。

Fourth quarter gross profit was $1.2 billion, down 2.3% versus prior year, with our gross margin increasing 130 basis points year-over-year and partially offsetting the impact of lower net sales volume. Gross margin of 23% was driven by one factor, a higher mix into netted-down revenues, which while dampening net sales growth also enhanced gross profit margin.

第四季毛利為 12 億美元，比去年同期下降 2.3%，毛利率年增 130 個基點，部分抵銷了淨銷量下降的影響。毛利率達到 23% 是由一個因素推動的，即淨收入下降的比例增加，這在抑制淨銷售額成長的同時也提高了毛利率。

Cloud and SaaS-based revenue streams once again outpaced overall net sales growth. For the quarter, this category represented a high 35.4% of our gross profit compared to 30.7% in the prior year fourth quarter and was also up from the third quarter's 32.6% level. While we expect the mix of netted-down revenues to be an important long-term durable trend within our business, it is important to recognize that this mix may fluctuate with customer priorities and product demand.

基於雲端和 SaaS 的收入流再次超過整體淨銷售額成長。本季度，該類別占我們毛利的 35.4%，高於去年第四季的 30.7%，也高於第三季 32.6% 的水平。雖然我們預期淨收入下降的組合將成為我們業務中重要的長期持久趨勢，但重要的是要認識到這種組合可能會隨著客戶優先順序和產品需求而波動。

Turning to expenses for the fourth quarter. Non-GAAP SG&A totaled $635 million, down 3.5% year-over-year. Prudent and diligent management of discretionary expenses and our overall fixed cost base helped to hold the line on profitability amidst the challenging IT spending environment. Coworker count at the end of the fourth quarter was approximately 15,100, up slightly from the third quarter and flat relative to year-end 2022. We continue to expand our solutions and services capabilities while concurrently driving efficiency and cost leverage from our broader operations.

轉向第四季的支出。非 GAAP SG&A 總額為 6.35 億美元，較去年同期下降 3.5%。可自由支配費用和整體固定成本基礎的審慎和勤奮管理有助於在充滿挑戰的 IT 支出環境中保持獲利能力。第四季末的員工人數約為 15,100 人，較第三季略有增加，與 2022 年底持平。我們繼續擴展我們的解決方案和服務能力，同時透過更廣泛的業務提高效率和成本槓桿。

Following along on Slide 9, our flexible business model and financial discipline helped to deliver non-GAAP operating income of $519 million down 0.8% versus the prior year despite our contraction on the top line. Non-GAAP operating income margin reached 10.3%, up 70 basis points from the prior year and up 40 basis points from last year's 9.9%.

如投影片 9 所示，儘管我們的營收有所收縮，但我們靈活的業務模式和財務紀律幫助我們實現了 5.19 億美元的非 GAAP 營業收入，較前一年下降了 0.8%。非 GAAP 營業利潤率達到 10.3%，比上年增長 70 個基點，比去年的 9.9% 增長 40 個基點。

As reflected on Slide 10, our non-GAAP net income was $349 million in the quarter, up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. With fourth quarter weighted average diluted shares of approximately $136 million, non-GAAP net income per diluted share was up 2.8% year-over-year.

如投影片 10 所示，我們本季的非 GAAP 淨利潤為 3.49 億美元，年增 1.7%。第四季加權平均稀釋股票約 1.36 億美元，非 GAAP 稀釋每股淨利潤年增 2.8%。

Shifting gears briefly and moving to Slide 11 to review full year results. We experienced a persistently challenging environment in 2023. Uncertainty for our customers cause reevaluation and optimization of their tech spending, which combined with a marked shift in spending mix, led to a full year decline in our net sales of 10% on both the reported and average daily sales basis.

暫時換個話題，轉到投影片 11 回顧全年業績。 2023 年，我們經歷了持續充滿挑戰的環境。客戶的不確定性導致他們重新評估和優化他們的技術支出，再加上支出結構的顯著變化，導致我們全年的淨銷售額在報告和預測上均下降了10%。平均日銷售額為基礎。

Despite the top line decline, gross profit was approximately flat, down 0.7% for the year. This gross profit stability exemplifies the impact of our strategy over the last 5 years with both organic and inorganic investments, underpinning the team's ability to pivot to our customers where customers need us no matter the environment.

儘管營收下降，毛利基本持平，全年下降 0.7%。這種毛利的穩定性反映了我們過去 5 年策略對有機和無機投資的影響，支撐了團隊無論環境如何，都能在客戶需要我們的地方轉向客戶的能力。

Enhanced gross margin combined with effective cost controls resulted in a full year non-GAAP operating income margin of 9.5% with non-GAAP operating profit dollars similarly down just 0.6% year-over-year.

毛利率的提高與有效的成本控制相結合，全年非 GAAP 營業利潤率達到 9.5%，而非 GAAP 營業利潤同比僅下降 0.6%。

Moving down the P&L. Our net interest expense was slightly below our full year expectations, driven by higher interest income earned on our cash balances. Our tax rate was within our expected range. As shown on Slide 12, our non-GAAP net income was $1.3 billion, up 0.4% and non-GAAP net income per diluted share was $9.88, up 0.9% from the prior year.

損益表向下移動。由於現金餘額賺取的利息收入增加，我們的淨利息支出略低於全年預期。我們的稅率在我們的預期範圍內。如投影片 12 所示，我們的非 GAAP 淨利潤為 13 億美元，比上年增長 0.4%，非 GAAP 攤薄後每股淨利潤為 9.88 美元，比上年增長 0.9%。

Moving ahead to Slide 13. At period end, net debt was $5.1 billion. Net debt declined by approximately $200 million from the third quarter, reflecting our increased cash position and modest debt repayment during the quarter. Liquidity remains strong with cash plus revolver availability of approximately $1.8 billion.

請看投影片 13。期末淨債務為 51 億美元。淨債務較第三季減少約 2 億美元，反映出我們本季現金狀況的增加和適度的債務償還。流動性依然強勁，現金加左輪手槍的可用量約為 18 億美元。

Moving to Slide 14. The 3-month average cash conversion cycle was 17 days, down 4 days from the prior year and within our targeted range of high teens to low 20s. Our cash conversion reflects our effective management of working capital particularly with respect to our inventory levels. As we have mentioned in the past, timing and market dynamics can influence working capital in any given quarter or year.

轉向投影片 14. 3 個月平均現金轉換週期為 17 天，比前一年減少 4 天，在我們的目標範圍（高 10 到 20 多）之間。我們的現金轉換反映了我們對營運資金的有效管理，特別是在我們的庫存水準方面。正如我們過去所提到的，時機和市場動態可能會影響任何特定季度或年度的營運資金。

We continue to believe our target cash conversion range remains the best guidepost for modeling working capital longer term. Strong profits and effective working capital management drove a record full year adjusted free cash flow of $1.4 billion on shown on Slide 15, representing 106% of non-GAAP net income and well above our stated rule of thumb at 6.7% of net sales.

我們仍然相信，我們的目標現金轉換範圍仍然是長期營運資本建模的最佳指南。強勁的利潤和有效的營運資金管理推動全年調整後自由現金流達到創紀錄的14 億美元，如幻燈片15 所示，佔非GAAP 淨利潤的106%，遠高於我們規定的佔淨銷售額6.7% 的經驗法則。

For the quarter, we utilized cash consistent with our 2023 capital allocation objectives, including returning approximately $83 million to shareholders through dividends and $50 million in share repurchases. For the full year, this translated to $322 million in dividends and $500 million in share repurchases, a combined $822 million return to shareholders or approximately 58% of adjusted free cash flow.

本季度，我們根據 2023 年資本分配目標使用了現金，包括透過股利和 5,000 萬美元的股票回購向股東返還約 8,300 萬美元。全年而言，這相當於 3.22 億美元的股息和 5 億美元的股票回購，總計為股東帶來 8.22 億美元的回報，約佔調整後自由現金流的 58%。

This was within our initial target range for the year and slightly below our updated range due to stronger-than-expected cash flow in the fourth quarter. That brings me to our capital allocation priorities on Slide 16. Our first capital priority is to increase the dividend in line with non-GAAP net income.

這在我們今年的初始目標範圍內，但由於第四季度現金流強於預期，略低於我們的更新範圍。這讓我想到了幻燈片 16 上我們的資本配置優先事項。我們的首要資本優先事項是根據非 GAAP 淨利潤增加股息。

Last November, we announced a 5% increase of our dividend to $2.48 annually, our tenth consecutive year of increasing the dividend. In 2024 and beyond, we will continue to target a 25% target ratio growing the dividend in line with earnings. Our second priority is to ensure we have the right capital structure in place with targeted net leverage ratio.

去年 11 月，我們宣布將股息增加 5% 至每年 2.48 美元，這是我們連續第十年增加股息。 2024 年及以後，我們將繼續以 25% 的目標比率為目標，根據收益增加股息。我們的第二要務是確保我們擁有正確的資本結構和目標淨槓桿率。

We ended 2023 at 2.4x and down from 2.6x at the end of 2022 and within our targeted range of 2 to 3x. We have rigorous processes in place to proactively manage liquidity while maintaining flexibility. Finally, our third and fourth capital allocation priorities of M&A and share repurchases remain important drivers of shareholder value.

2023 年底，我們的成長率為 2.4 倍，低於 2022 年底的 2.6 倍，且在 2 至 3 倍的目標範圍內。我們制定了嚴格的流程來主動管理流動性，同時保持彈性。最後，我們的第三和第四資本配置重點－併購和股票回購仍然是股東價值的重要驅動力。

For 2024, we will target returning 50% to 75% of adjusted free cash flow to investors through dividends and share repurchases. In lockstep with this, we've announced the Board's authorization for a $750 million increase to our share repurchase program. Combining our prior authorization with this new additional authorization, we currently have approximately $1.1 billion of availability under a share repurchase program as we start 2024.

2024 年，我們的目標是透過股利和股票回購將 50% 至 75% 的調整後自由現金流返還給投資者。同時，我們宣布董事會授權我們的股票回購計畫增加 7.5 億美元。將我們先前的授權與此新的額外授權結合，從 2024 年開始，我們目前在股票回購計畫下擁有約 11 億美元的可用資金。

And that leads to our outlook on Slide 17. The uncertain market conditions we operated under 2023 have persisted into early 2024, and customer sentiment remains cautious and prudent. And while indicators suggest a compelling need to address workload in data growth, rising security threats and eventual client device obsolescence, our current expectations for a slow start to the year for IT spending and full year growth in the low single-digit range.

這引出了我們對幻燈片 17 的展望。我們在 2023 年營運的不確定市場條件一直持續到 2024 年初，客戶情緒仍然保持謹慎和審慎。儘管指標顯示迫切需要解決資料成長的工作量、不斷上升的安全威脅以及最終的客戶端設備淘汰問題，但我們目前預計 IT 支出開局緩慢，全年成長將保持在較低的個位數範圍內。

With this customer spend scenario as our baseline, we additionally expect to profitably gain 200 to 300 basis points of share in 2024. As you know, when we mix in and netted down solutions, the impact is fully reflected in our gross profit, but it is muted in our net sales growth. Conversely, when hardware volume was strong as we saw in 2021 and 2022, our net sales growth is stronger as these products are accounted for on a full gross accounting basis.

以這種客戶支出場景為基準，我們也預計到2024 年，我們的份額將獲得200 到300 個基點的盈利。如您所知，當我們混合併減少解決方案時，其影響會充分反映在我們的毛利中，但我們的淨銷售額成長疲軟。相反，當我們在 2021 年和 2022 年看到硬體銷量強勁時，我們的淨銷售額增長更為強勁，因為這些產品是按完整的總會計基礎計算的。

Given the impact of shifting customer priorities on our net sales and the inherent accounting differences that result from different business mix, we believe that gross profit has become a more effective barometer for gauging our growth expectations.

考慮到客戶優先順序變更對我們淨銷售額的影響以及不同業務組合所導致的固有會計差異，我們認為毛利已成為衡量我們成長預期的更有效晴雨表。

As such, beginning with 2024 and go forward, we will align our outlook with a view on gross profit in lieu of net sales. Based on our current view of mix and margin rates across our portfolio, our expectation for 2024 is for low to mid-single-digit gross profit growth. This assumes a flat to modestly higher gross margin relative to full year 2023.

因此，從 2024 年開始及未來，我們將把我們的前景與毛利潤而不是淨銷售額的觀點結合起來。根據我們目前對整個投資組合的組合和利潤率的看法，我們對 2024 年毛利成長的預期是低至中個位數的成長。假設毛利率相對於 2023 年全年持平或略有上升。

Finally, we expect our full year non-GAAP earnings per diluted share to be up mid-single digits year-over-year. Please remember that we hold ourselves accountable for delivering our financial outlook on a full year constant currency basis. Additional modeling thoughts for annual depreciation and amortization interest expense and the non-GAAP effective tax rate can be found on Slide 18.

最後，我們預期全年非公認會計原則攤薄每股收益將年增中個位數。請記住，我們有責任以全年不變貨幣為基礎提供我們的財務前景。有關年度折舊和攤銷利息費用以及非 GAAP 有效稅率的其他建模想法可在幻燈片 18 中找到。

Moving to modeling thoughts for the first quarter. We anticipate gross margin comparable to 2023's level albeit lower than Q4 and leading to low single-digit gross profit growth on a year-over-year basis. Moving down the P&L. We expect operating expenses to be higher to begin 2024 compared to Q4 as we accrue for a reset of compensation expense that was more muted at the end of 2023 along with other seasonal workforce expenses.

轉向第一季的建模想法。我們預計毛利率將與 2023 年的水平相當，儘管低於第四季度，並導致毛利同比增長率較低。損益表向下移動。我們預計 2024 年開始的營運費用將高於第四季度，因為我們提列了補償費用的重置，而這些費用在 2023 年底與其他季節性勞動力費用一起更加溫和。

We expect operating expense leverage as a percentage of gross profit to gradually improve as the year progresses and expenses even out. Finally, we expect first quarter non-GAAP earnings per diluted share to be in the low to mid-single-digit range year-over-year. As we start the new year, we are also adjusting our approach on the outlook for adjusted free cash flow.

我們預計，隨著時間的推移以及費用的平衡，營業費用槓桿佔毛利的比例將逐漸提高。最後，我們預期第一季非公認會計原則攤薄每股收益將比去年同期在低至中個位數範圍內。在新的一年開始之際，我們也在調整調整後自由現金流前景的方法。

Again, given the variability of mix of business and the corresponding impact on net sales, we believe the relationship between adjusted free cash flow to non-GAAP net income will provide a more consistent metric going forward. For 2024, we expect adjusted free cash flow to be in the range of 80% to 90% of our non-GAAP net income. It is important to note that while we continue to operate in a cautious and uncertain environment, we remain confident in our ability to deliver profitability, margins and cash flow to our stakeholders just as we did in 2023.

同樣，考慮到業務組合的可變性以及對淨銷售額的相應影響，我們相信調整後的自由現金流量與非公認會計原則淨利潤之間的關係將提供一個更一致的指標。到 2024 年，我們預計調整後的自由現金流量將佔非 GAAP 淨利的 80% 至 90%。值得注意的是，儘管我們繼續在謹慎和不確定的環境中運營，但我們仍然對向利益相關者提供盈利能力、利潤率和現金流的能力充滿信心，就像我們在2023 年所做的那樣。

That concludes the financial summary. As always, we will provide updated views on the macro environment and our business on our future earnings calls. And with that, I will ask the operator to open it for questions. We'd ask each of you to limit your questions to one with a brief follow-up.

財務摘要到此結束。像往常一樣，我們將在未來的財報電話會議上提供有關宏觀環境和我們業務的最新觀點。然後，我會要求接線員打開它來提問。我們會請你們每個人將你們的問題限制在一個簡短的後續跟進的範圍內。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from Matt Sheerin of Stifel.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自 Stifel 的 Matt Sheerin。

Yes. My first question is just regarding your comments on weakness in infrastructure products, particularly NetComm products after a very strong first 3 quarters with that backlog down. Do you get a sense of how long it's going to take in terms of digestion period from customers and when that might pick up again?

是的。我的第一個問題是關於您對基礎設施產品疲軟的評論，特別是 NetComm 產品，在前三個季度非常強勁且積壓下降之後。您是否知道客戶的消化期需要多長時間以及何時會再次回升？

Yes. Matt, this is Al. I would say, Matt, the first just -- I think you hit it right we would expect some headwinds on the; NetComm front. I'd say underlying demand is solid with some strength in some pockets but not significantly strong. The bigger headwind there would really be the compares when you look back in 2023 and particularly the first few quarters, the growth in NetComm was between 20% and 40%. So with those type of growth numbers from 2023, we would expect that we'd see declines, at least for the next few quarters.

是的。馬特，這是阿爾。我想說，馬特，第一個——我認為你說得對，我們預計會遇到一些阻力；網通前台。我想說的是，潛在需求是穩固的，某些領域有一定的實力，但並不是特別強勁。當你回顧 2023 年，尤其是前幾季時，真正面臨的更大阻力是 NetComm 的成長在 20% 到 40% 之間。因此，從 2023 年開始的此類成長數字來看，我們預計至少在接下來的幾個季度會出現下降。

Okay. And then on the PC demand and client devices, it looked like the year-over-year decline was much better or less worse, if you will, in Q4. What are your expectations in terms of client device upgrades? It doesn't sound like you're super optimistic at least for the first half. So what's the outlook there?

好的。然後，在個人電腦需求和客戶端設備方面，第四季度的同比下降情況似乎要好得多，或者說要差一些。您對客戶端設備升級有何期望？聽起來你至少在上半年沒那麼樂觀。那麼那裡的前景如何？

Sure. I'll take that as well, Matt. I think that's right. For at least the first half, what we're calling for is similar trends to what you've seen in the last few quarters that is continued strength in netted-down revenues, specifically cloud and SaaS. And we would not see strength on the hardware side, including PCs.

當然。我也接受這個，馬特。我認為這是對的。至少在上半年，我們所呼籲的趨勢與過去幾季類似，即淨收入下降的持續強勁，特別是雲端和 SaaS。我們不會看到硬體方面的實力，包括個人電腦。

What our outlook calls for is a modest recovery in the back half and that includes PCs. And look, I'll just add the -- while we still believe that there is impetus and catalyst for PCs to return, it becomes just basically a matter of when, not, if, we think we're a few quarters off from that.

我們的前景要求的是下半年的溫和復甦，其中包括個人電腦。看，我只想補充一點——雖然我們仍然相信個人電腦的回歸有動力和催化劑，但這基本上只是一個時間問題，而不是我們認為距離這一點還有幾個季度的問題。

Our next question comes from Adam Tindle of Raymond James.

我們的下一個問題來自雷蒙德·詹姆斯的亞當·廷德爾。

Okay. I just want to start at a high-level question, maybe Chris or Al could answer. But as we think about CDW from an investor perspective, a lot of us have thought of this as a compounder that generally experiences double-digit earnings growth with an algorithm of kind of mid-single-digit top line, some leverage, some capital allocation, you kind of get to this double-digit earnings growth. You just finished the year with flattish earnings growth. And then this year, your initial guidance for 2024, I think, is mid-single-digit earnings growth. So I'm just wondering if you could revisit that and how should investors think about CDW's earnings algorithm.

好的。我只想從一個高層次的問題開始，也許克里斯或阿爾可以回答。但當我們從投資者的角度考慮 CDW 時，我們很多人都認為這是一個複合器，通常會經歷兩位數的盈利增長，其演算法具有中個位數的頂線、一些槓桿、一些資本配置，你可以實現兩位數的獲利成長。您剛剛以平淡的盈利增長結束了這一年。我認為，今年你們對 2024 年的初步指引是中個位數的獲利成長。所以我只是想知道你是否可以重新審視一下這個問題，以及投資者應該如何看待 CDW 的獲利演算法。

At this level of size and scale, should we sort of reset our expectations and think of this more as a mid-single-digit compounder at this point? Why or why not?

在這種規模和規模的水平上，我們是否應該重新調整我們的期望，並將其更多地視為一個中個位數的複合器？為什麼或為什麼不？

Sure. Thanks, Adam. This is Al. Look, I do think that we're in this transitory period, right? We've gone through periods of extremity with the pandemic and with returns that were significant. Obviously, there's been some digestion and quite a bit of mix shift as we've eased in the post-pandemic period.

當然。謝謝，亞當。這是艾爾。聽著，我確實認為我們正處於這個過渡時期，對嗎？我們經歷了疫情帶來的極端時期，但也獲得了巨大的回報。顯然，隨著我們在大流行後時期的放鬆，已經進行了一些消化和相當多的混合轉變。

I would continue to call 2024 a transitory period, right? We are just not seeing the strength or the return to demand on the hardware side of things as customers have essentially decided to ration their spend to items that they believe will optimize their cost, create the greatest ROI, et cetera. That being said, all cycles kind of have their beginning, and we do believe that on the backside of this, there are significant catalysts that will balance things out and include a return to growth on the hardware side.

我會繼續稱 2024 年為過渡期，對嗎？我們只是沒有看到硬體方面需求的強勁或恢復，因為客戶基本上決定將他們的支出分配給他們認為可以優化成本、創造最大投資回​​報率等的項目。話雖這麼說，所有周期都有其開始，我們確實相信，在這背後，有重要的催化劑可以平衡一切，包括硬體方面的恢復成長。

So I think what you're seeing from our outlook and what you saw in 2023 is something like a transitory period. And when we look beyond that and some of the catalysts that we think are on the other side, we believe the returns will look more significant.

因此，我認為您從我們的展望中看到的以及您在 2023 年看到的情況類似於過渡時期。當我們超越這一點以及我們認為在另一邊的一些催化劑時，我們相信回報看起來會更顯著。

Yes. Al, thanks. I would just add, if you take a big step back, Adam, what are our customers facing? They're facing proliferating data. They're facing ever expanding cyber threats, expanding workloads, hardware obsolescence, the incredible promise of new technologies. And so the landscape that they're facing and the essential nature of technology to every single walk of life is not going away.

是的。艾爾，謝謝。我想補充一點，亞當，如果你退一步，我們的客戶面臨什麼？他們面臨著激增的數據。他們面臨著不斷擴大的網路威脅、不斷擴大的工作負載、硬體過時以及新技術的令人難以置信的前景。因此，他們所面臨的景觀以及科技對各行各業的本質都不會消失。

So as we look forward to these catalysts that Al mentioned, think about digital transformation. That's a durable trend and it's continuous process, and many customers have really paused on their investment and evolution in 2023. That's going to come back when uncertainty abates. Network modernization continues to be top of mind.

因此，當我們期待艾爾提到的這些催化劑時，請考慮數位轉型。這是一個持久的趨勢，也是一個持續的過程，許多客戶在 2023 年確實暫停了投資和發展。當不確定性減弱時，這種情況將會回來。網路現代化仍然是首要考慮因素。

And once that digestion gets through the process, then there's only going to be a need for greater -- to handle greater network traffic and data, et cetera. Security threats continue to grow, and they're more sophisticated kind of exclamation point. Client devices are just aging and even the pre-pandemic devices are coming on 4 years old, and then we've got Windows 10 sunsetting.

一旦消化過程完成，那麼就需要更大的處理更大的網路流量和數據等等。安全威脅持續成長，而且是更複雜的感嘆號。客戶端裝置剛剛老化，甚至疫情前的裝置也已經使用了 4 年，然後我們就看到了 Windows 10 的日落。

So you've got all of those things that are catalysts that we're going to see coming down the pike and then just add AI, still early innings, use case is not quite proven out yet, but we're seeing incredibly exciting opportunities for the services and execution of adoption around those. So I think we couldn't be more excited about the technology industry generally.

因此，所有這些都是我們將看到的催化劑，然後添加人工智慧，仍處於早期階段，用例尚未完全得到證實，但我們看到了令人難以置信的令人興奮的機會圍繞這些服務和執行採用。所以我認為我們對科技業整體感到非常興奮。

Okay. That's helpful. Maybe just a quick follow-up, Chris. Obviously, net leverage is about at optimal levels. Cash flow has certainly been a bright spot for the business. I understand the share repurchase authorization today, but I wanted to ask more from a strategic M&A standpoint since that's been sort of a core competency of CDW, I would say.

好的。這很有幫助。也許只是快速跟進，克里斯。顯然，淨槓桿率大約處於最佳水平。現金流無疑是該業務的亮點。我今天了解股票回購授權，但我想從策略併購的角度提出更多問題，因為我想說，這是 CDW 的核心競爭力。

As you think on a forward basis, obviously, there's been some moves around you from some competitors moving into some more cloud-based strategic areas. Wondered how you were evaluating or thinking about the strategic road map from an M&A perspective. On one hand, I think in the past, we've talked about perhaps expanding more internationally after such strong success with the Kelway acquisition years ago. On the other hand, obviously, expanding strategic capabilities would be another direction. Just how you're thinking about strategic road map from here?

當你前瞻性地思考時，顯然，你周圍的一些競爭對手已經採取了一些行動，進入了一些更多基於雲端的策略領域。想知道您是如何從併購的角度評估或思考策略路線圖的。一方面，我認為在過去，我們曾討論過在幾年前收購 Kelway 取得如此巨大成功之後，或許可以進行更多的國際擴張。另一方面，顯然，擴大戰略能力將是另一個方向。您是如何考慮這裡的策略路線圖的？

Yes. No problem, Adam. Thanks for the question. The vectors you hit would be still consistent with how we're thinking about it, whether geographic expansion, larger acquisitions to bolster capabilities and tuck-ins, which we've been doing. And I would just reiterate, look, M&A is a strategic driver of our value prop and our growth strategy. And you've seen us do 10 acquisitions over the past 5 years.

是的。沒問題，亞當。謝謝你的提問。你所遇到的向量仍然與我們的思考方式一致，無論是地域擴張、為增強能力而進行的大規模收購，還是我們一直在做的整合。我想重申一下，併購是我們價值支撐和成長策略的策略驅動力。您已經看到我們在過去 5 年裡進行了 10 次收購。

And those have been very valuable in terms of driving value to our customers. So as we think about where we focus our efforts, driving capabilities and solutions that are high growth and high relevance and in services capabilities, there's a plethora of areas that we could focus, including areas like security and cloud and AI.

這些對於為我們的客戶帶來價值而言非常有價值。因此，當我們思考我們的工作重點、推動高成長、高相關性的能力和解決方案以及服務能力時，我們可以專注於許多領域，包括安全、雲端和人工智慧等領域。

And so I would just say, look, at the end of the day, we said it before, we're always looking. And we've got a number of identified targets in our pipeline, but it also has to be opportunistic. The one thing I would say, Adam, is when you think about the success in evolving our business to be able to deliver the profitability that we did this year with the hardware pressure and the other dynamics happening in the marketplace that's due to bringing on capabilities that are highly strategic, highly relevant and then executing against them.

所以我只想說，看，歸根結底，我們之前說過，我們一直在尋找。我們的管道中已經確定了許多目標，但它也必須是機會主義的。亞當，我要說的一件事是，當你想到我們的業務發展的成功，以便能夠實現我們今年在硬體壓力和市場上由於能力帶來的其他動態而實現的盈利能力時具有高度戰略性、高度相關性，然後針對它們執行。

So when I think back 5 years versus now, our cloud business has grown on a compound annual growth basis by 30%, and we did it again in 2023. I look at security, another area that we are very focused on maiden acquisition in addition to internal investments, and that business has doubled in 3 years. So we really are investing behind the most important capabilities, and we're seeing great results as a result.

因此，當我回顧5 年前與現在的情況時，我們的雲端業務的複合年增長率為30%，並且我們在2023 年再次做到了這一點。我關注安全性，這是我們非常關注首次收購的另一個領域內部投資，該業務在三年內翻了一番。因此，我們確實在最重要的功能上進行了投資，並且我們看到了良好的結果。

And Adam, let me just add one element. You hit it on the front end. We take pride in our ability to compound and you noted about free cash flow. In the environment we've been in, there's a bit of a kind of hunkering down, focus on margins, focus on cash flow.

亞當，讓我加入一個元素。你擊中了前端。我們對我們的複利能力感到自豪，您也提到了自由現金流。在我們所處的環境中，存在著一種沉思，關注利潤，關注現金流。

You'll note that we've increased our cash position. We're excited about what's on the horizon from a capital perspective when we think about the cash optionality we have in front of us, and that would certainly include M&A.

您會注意到我們增加了現金部位。當我們考慮擺在我們面前的現金選擇時，我們對從資本角度即將發生的事情感到興奮，其中肯定包括併購。

Next question comes from Asiya Merchant of Citigroup.

下一個問題來自花旗集團的Asiya Merchant。

Great. How do you guys think about market share gains in the current environment? And if you could maybe peel back a little bit on the gross profit linearity looks like that's going to be a key metric, and I could read it's a rightful metric. Maybe if you can walk us through the confidence and what's driving the confidence in improving gross profit growth rate from the low-single digits at the start of the year and as you ramp through the year?

偉大的。你們如何看待當前環境下的市佔率成長？如果你可以稍微剝離毛利線性，看起來這將是一個關鍵指標，我可以認為這是一個正確的指標。也許您可以向我們介紹一下信心，以及是什麼推動了毛利成長率從年初的低個位數提高到全年成長的信心？

Yes. Thanks for the question. I'll start on market share gain. Look, we hold ourselves accountable consistently to deliver 200 to 300 basis points above IT market rate of growth. And we have a track record of doing just that, and we are confident that in 2023, we did gain share. If you look at our net sales versus what customers spend with CDW, we've talked about that delta widening significantly, and we're over 7 basis points now.

是的。謝謝你的提問。我將從市場份額的成長開始。看，我們始終有責任讓 IT 市場成長率高出 200 到 300 個基點。我們在這方面有著良好的記錄，我們有信心在 2023 年，我們確實獲得了市場份額。如果你看看我們的淨銷售額與客戶在 CDW 上的支出，我們已經討論過增量顯著擴大，現在已經超過 7 個基點。

So we're very confident that we've taken share even in this very cautious and uneven market environment. And that's to the team's excellent execution, and the value of our full stack, full life cycle portfolio. Now I'll turn it to you for the gross profit question.

因此，我們非常有信心，即使在這個非常謹慎和不平衡的市場環境中，我們也能佔據份額。這得歸功於團隊出色的執行力，以及我們全端、全生命週期產品組合的價值。現在我將向您提出毛利問題。

Yes. So Asiya, on the gross profit front, obviously, like Chris said, there is a focus in this environment, thinking about customer spend and that spread between customer spend and net sales has been significant. We also feel confident about the continued trend of items such as netted-down revenues, which we think will bolster gross margin. There may be a bit of an evening outs on the gross margin front in the back half as we see additional mix of hardware start to kick in. But all things considered, I think that the seasonality and the pacing of GP would not be dissimilar to what you've seen in historical seasonal trends.

是的。因此，Asiya，在毛利方面，顯然，正如克里斯所說，在這種環境下有一個重點，考慮客戶支出以及客戶支出和淨銷售額之間的差距很大。我們也對淨收入下降等項目的持續趨勢充滿信心，我們認為這將提振毛利率。隨著我們看到更多的硬體組合開始發揮作用，下半年的毛利率可能會出現一些波動。但考慮到所有因素，我認為 GP 的季節性和節奏不會有什麼不同您在歷史季節性趨勢中看到的內容。

Okay. And so just to recap, you guys are thinking about some perhaps modest recovery in the second half on client devices. And against that backdrop, you guys are still kind of thinking about gross profit improving sequentially on a year on -- sequentially as you progress through the year?

好的。回顧一下，你們正在考慮下半年客戶端設備可能會出現一些適度的復甦。在這種背景下，你們仍然在考慮毛利逐年提高——隨著今年的進展逐年提高？

Yes, I think that is broadly correct on the mix front in terms of the modest recovery in the back half. And with that, our GP would accelerate through the year?

是的，我認為就後半段的溫和復甦而言，在混合方面這基本上是正確的。這樣一來，我們的 GP 會在這一年加速發展嗎？

Our next question comes from Amit Daryanani of Evercore ISI.

我們的下一個問題來自 Evercore ISI 的 Amit Daryanani。

I have two as well. I guess, Chris, maybe just to start with, I'd love to understand, as you engage and talk to customers, what are the top priorities from an IT spend perspective in calendar '24? And I'm sure AI is a very hot topic, but the part I'd love to understand is are the investments for AI, the dollars for that, are they coming from some other bucket, i.e., that cannibalistic or do you think it will be net incremental to IT budgets?

我也有兩個。我想，Chris，也許首先，我很想了解，當您與客戶接觸並交談時，從 IT 支出的角度來看，24 世紀的首要任務是什麼？我確信人工智慧是一個非常熱門的話題，但我想了解的是對人工智慧的投資，投資的美元，它們是否來自其他方面，即同類相食的還是你認為的IT 預算會淨增量嗎？

Amit. Yes, in terms of priorities, they're consistent with what we've said in the prepared remarks. I mean customers in the commercial space, in particular, are focused on cost optimization, customer employee experience and things that revolve around that.

阿米特。是的，就優先事項而言，它們與我們在準備好的發言中所說的一致。我的意思是商業領域的客戶尤其專注於成本優化、客戶員工體驗以及與之相關的事情。

There's still a heavy focus on digital transformation, obviously, and security as well. AI, which is where you're getting to AI, it's a hyper focus. I think last call, we mentioned that you can't have a conversation with the customer without AI coming up. And it's been very exciting because we've had a data AI practice for several years.

顯然，人們仍然高度關注數位轉型以及安全性。人工智慧，這是你接觸人工智慧的地方，它是一個超級焦點。我想在上次電話會議中，我們提到如果沒有人工智慧的出現，你就無法與客戶對話。這非常令人興奮，因為我們已經進行了數年的數據人工智慧實踐。

And that practice, I would say, we deepened it and we scaled it particularly when we brought IGNW and Sirius into the CDW family. And currently, I'd say there is burgeoning demand for consultative services, in particular. And I'm talking deep technical capabilities as well as industry-specific capabilities. And so we're seeing quite a bit of momentum in our practice there.

我想說的是，我們加深了這種做法並擴大了規模，特別是當我們將 IGNW 和 Sirius 納入 CDW 家族時。目前，我想說，尤其是對諮詢服務的需求不斷增長。我說的是深厚的技術能力以及特定產業的能力。因此，我們在那裡的實踐中看到了相當大的勢頭。

What I would tell you is that a number of customers are at the front end of their experiences. And we're helping them through use cases and what the efficiencies are to be had. And then we've got customers who are actually piloting some really interesting capabilities, and we're helping them work through those. Here's what we're not seeing. We're not seeing a budget shift out of IT.

我要告訴你的是，許多客戶正處於他們體驗的前端。我們正在透過用例和效率來幫助他們。然後我們的客戶實際上正在試驗一些非常有趣的功能，我們正在幫助他們解決這些問題。這是我們沒有看到的。我們沒有看到 IT 部門的預算改變。

What we are seeing and hearing is that budgets are coming from elsewhere in the organization, the functional areas that are going to be improved through AI, innovation like HR, like finance, like marketing, literally across the organization. Organizations are using budgets there to allocate to AI improvements because they're thinking about it nearly as business transformation. So we haven't seen it a shifted, frankly, we're not expecting that to happen. We're very excited about the opportunities that lie ahead, though.

我們所看到和聽到的是，預算來自組織的其他地方，這些功能領域將透過人工智慧、人力資源、財務、行銷等創新來改進，實際上是整個組織的。組織正在使用預算來分配人工智慧改進，因為他們幾乎將其視為業務轉型。所以我們還沒有看到它發生變化，坦白說，我們不希望這種情況發生。不過，我們對未來的機會感到非常興奮。

Perfect. And I guess, Al, if I could ask you a question, your gross margins in '23 are up about 210 basis points. I think if I go from '21 to '23, they're up north of 400. I guess I always get a question on like what is the right gross margin range for CDW? But as you look at this performance, maybe for time to '23, to the extent you can parse out, how much of this do you think the gross margin expansion is secular versus cyclical? And is there a normalized range once you think about gross margins for the company?

完美的。我想，阿爾，如果我可以問你一個問題，你在 23 年的毛利率上升了約 210 個基點。我想如果我從 21 歲到 23 歲，他們就會超過 400。我想我總是會遇到這樣的問題：CDW 的正確毛利率範圍是多少？但當你觀察這種表現時，也許到 23 年，在你可以解析的範圍內，你認為毛利率擴張有多少是長期的，而不是週期性的？一旦考慮到公司的毛利率，是否存在一個標準化範圍？

Look, if I peel back '23, three core drivers the most significant would be the pickup and mix shift to netted-down revenues and particularly SaaS and cloud. That was the most significant component. Number two would be that hardware was softer. And therefore, that less mix of hardware and particularly PCs benefited us from a mix perspective.

看，如果我回顧 23 年，最重要的三個核心驅動因素將是淨收入下降的成長和混合轉變，特別是 SaaS 和雲端。這是最重要的組成部分。第二是硬體更軟。因此，從混合的角度來看，硬體（尤其是個人電腦）的較少混合使我們受益。

And then three, and we've noted this before, overall product margins were firm in 2023. And so that was a positive contributor to the gross margin story. So if I scroll that for, which I think is the logical question on it. We expect that the netted-down revenue trend is durable and will continue. And particularly, we would know we expect strength in the first half, and then you'll get some balancing out with hardware.

第三，我們之前已經注意到這一點，2023 年整體產品利潤率保持堅挺。因此，這對毛利率故事做出了積極貢獻。因此，如果我滾動它，我認為這是一個邏輯問題。我們預計收入淨下降的趨勢將持續並將持續。特別是，我們知道我們預計上半年會表現強勁，然後你會在硬體方面得到一些平衡。

Number two, on the hardware front, we are expecting a modest recovery in the back half on hardware, including PCs. So that would have the effect of diluting margin somewhat. To be candid, though, we don't believe that, that shift and what we're calling modest would significantly move the gross margins. And then finally, on the product margin front, but we study this closely and really our assessment at this point would be that product margins are holding firm.

第二，在硬體方面，我們預計下半年硬體（包括個人電腦）將出現溫和復甦。因此，這會在一定程度上產生稀釋利潤的效果。但坦白說，我們並不認為這種轉變以及我們所說的適度轉變會顯著改變毛利率。最後，在產品利潤率方面，我們仔細研究了這一點，實際上我們目前的評估是產品利潤率保持堅挺。

And I think that's a reflection of both a competitive environment but not any rational environment from a pricing and margin perspective. And then I've mentioned this before, but there's a trend of, I'll call it, richer configurations on the product front, right, customers moving up the value chain. And we do feel like that trend is and will persist. And so really, that's the rationale overall for our outlook and gross margins being substantially similar to 2023, maybe a tick up.

我認為這反映了競爭環境，但從定價和利潤的角度來看，這並不反映任何理性環境。我之前也提到過這一點，但有一種趨勢，我稱之為，產品前端的配置更豐富，是的，客戶向價值鏈上游移動。我們確實覺得這種趨勢將會持續下去。事實上，這就是我們的前景和毛利率與 2023 年基本相似（甚至可能有所上升）的總體理由。

Our next question comes from Keith Housum of Northcoast Research.

我們的下一個問題來自 Northcoast Research 的 Keith Housum。

Great. As we think about AI, I understand it's very nascent still for you guys and the rest of the industry. Is this more of a solutions or a hardware or a software or consulting opportunity for CDW. And how does that evolve over the next several years? How should we think about that?

偉大的。當我們思考人工智慧時，我知道它對你們和產業的其他人來說仍然處於萌芽階段。這對 CDW 來說更像是解決方案、硬體、軟體還是諮詢機會？未來幾年這種情況將如何發展？我們該如何思考這個問題？

Yes, it's a great question. And I would say, currently, nascent, the opportunity in the burgeoning demand right now is because of the complexity and the speed and trying to figure out and test use cases. So we are seeing most of the activity for us in our advisory and consulting services. I think I used the word burgeoning. It's -- the momentum has been significant. But as you think longer term, this is a full stack play, and that's why CDW is a scaled, full stack, full life cycle provider with expertise, not just technically but deep into each industry vertical is -- positions us well to help our customers.

是的，這是一個很好的問題。我想說，目前，新興需求中的機會是因為複雜性和速度以及試圖找出和測試案例。因此，我們在諮詢和諮詢服務中看到了大部分活動。我想我用了「新興」這個詞。勢頭非常強勁。但從長遠來看，這是一個全端遊戲，這就是為什麼CDW 是一家規模化、全端、全生命週期的提供商，擁有專業知識，不僅在技術上，而且深入到每個垂直行業——使我們能夠很好地幫助我們的客戶顧客。

And as you know, when we think about CDW's strategy and the growth over the years, we have been moving our capabilities to ensure that we're moving closer to the front end of the value chain. AI is a great example of that strategy in action given the consultant -- consulting momentum that we've been seeing. But at the end of the day, we're talking about the need for power consumption and data center enhancements and up and down the stack.

如您所知，當我們考慮 CDW 的策略和多年來的成長時，我們一直在提升我們的能力，以確保我們向價值鏈的前端靠攏。考慮到我們所看到的顧問諮詢勢頭，人工智慧是該策略付諸實踐的一個很好的例子。但歸根結底，我們討論的是功耗和資料中心增強以及堆疊上下的需求。

So in terms of timing across the next several years, it's hard to say exactly when the various components of the stack will hit. But what I would say is just like any kind of revolutionary technology change it moves fast and this will move faster. So we're seeing AI as an accelerant in our business and one that we think will play out fairly quickly over the next 24 months.

因此，就未來幾年的時間安排而言，很難確切地說出堆疊的各個組件何時會發揮作用。但我想說的是，就像任何一種革命性的技術變革一樣，它發展得很快，而且會發展得更快。因此，我們將人工智慧視為我們業務的促進劑，我們認為人工智慧將在未來 24 個月內很快發揮作用。

Great. And maybe as a follow-up, maybe to touch on a little bit here, but during the quarter, you guys announced some optimization charges within the EPS. So perhaps, Al, you can perhaps touch on the genesis of what those items were?

偉大的。也許作為後續行動，也許在這裡稍微談一下，但在本季度，你們宣布了每股收益中的一些優化費用。那麼，艾爾，你或許可以談談這些物品的起源？

I'm sorry, can you say that one more time?

對不起，你能再說一次嗎？

Yes. Just when we look at your non-GAAP EPS, we see that you had some optimization charges or restructuring charges in there. Perhaps you can just highlight what those items were made up of?

是的。當我們查看您的非公認會計準則每股收益時，我們發現您其中有一些優化費用或重組費用。也許您可以強調一下這些物品是由什麼組成的？

Yes. Yes sure. So largely Keith, they would fall in the category of workforce optimization, really two components to that. We did have, as you know, some coworker events during 2023, and that was really about aligning our fixed cost base and our coworker count base with the level of the business and activity we were seeing. So that's one, call that more really onetime nature.

是的。是的，當然。所以很大程度上基思，他們屬於勞動力優化的範疇，實際上是其中的兩個組成部分。如您所知，我們在 2023 年確實舉辦了一些同事活動，這實際上是為了使我們的固定成本基礎和同事計數基礎與我們所看到的業務和活動水平保持一致。這就是其中之一，稱之為真正的一次性自然。

The other element within that category would be real estate, as you would expect, and you're seeing more broadly, we are and continue to take a hard look at our real estate portfolio where we are in the hybrid phase, if you will, of our workforce and making sure that we constantly rationalize our real estate portfolio. And so there are some charges that are coming through that front.

這個類別中的另一個要素是房地產，正如您所期望的那樣，您會看到更廣泛的情況，我們正在並將繼續認真審視我們處於混合階段的房地產投資組合，如果您願意的話，我們的員工隊伍，並確保我們不斷合理化我們的房地產投資組合。因此，有一些指控來自這方面。

Our next question comes from Samik Chatterjee of JPMorgan.

我們的下一個問題來自摩根大通的 Samik Chatterjee。

And maybe for the first one, if I could just follow up on the AI question and -- so the question Amit asked. We -- I understand sort of your comments about being more heavy towards consulting in sort of the early days of these AI sort of discussions with your customers. But when you think of a full stack solution or envision one in the future -- in sort of when the customers deploy it, does this even take you further down the road of netted-down revenue mix increasing in the overall mix of your business or does it really bring back, sort of pull back the netted-down revenue mix in terms of balancing out the hardware and the software sales? Just curious about how you see a full stack solution playing out. And I have a quick follow-up.

也許對於第一個，如果我能跟進人工智慧問題——所以阿米特問的問題。我們—我理解您關於在與客戶進行人工智慧討論的早期階段更加註重諮詢的評論。但是，當您想到全端解決方案或設想未來的解決方案時（例如，當客戶部署它時），這是否會帶您進一步走上淨收入組合的道路，使您的業務整體組合增加或增加在平衡硬體和軟體銷售方面，它真的能恢復淨收入組合嗎？只是好奇您如何看待全端解決方案。我有一個快速的跟進。

Yes, I'll start and then Al can jump in. I think it's hard to say at this point. What I would say is when we think about AI as a tool to increase productivity and results. Just like we say, technology is essential to every component of every organization, being competitive and winning and delivering on their mission. AI is going to be central to that proposition because artificial intelligence is going to be embedded in every component and everything that we sell from the edge to the core.

是的，我先開始，然後艾爾就可以插話了。我想現在還很難說。我想說的是，當我們將人工智慧視為提高生產力和成果的工具時。正如我們所說，科技對於每個組織的每個組成部分都至關重要，以保持競爭力、獲勝並實現其使命。人工智慧將成為這一主張的核心，因為人工智慧將嵌入我們從邊緣到核心銷售的每個組件和所有東西中。

And so however that plays out in terms of how our customers consume it, how they purchase it and how they consume, we will be able to deliver across the full stack to them. In terms of what that looks like in netted down revenue specifically, again, hard to -- hard to really have a crystal ball as to how it's going to play out in that regard. Al, I don't know if you have thoughts on that?

因此，無論我們的客戶如何使用它、如何購買它以及如何消費，我們都將能夠向他們提供整個堆疊。就淨收入的具體情況而言，再次，很難 - 很難真正掌握在這方面將如何發揮作用的水晶球。艾爾，不知道你對此有什麼想法嗎？

Yes, I think that's right. And Samik, look, we will see exactly how this evolves. At this point, like you said, it is a bit more consultative and maybe services oriented which is not netted down substantially. Chris hit it earlier, this is ultimately a full stack opportunity for us, and that would certainly include hardware. So we think that will be meaningful. As I would contemplate the netted down component, that would likely show up in spend associated with cloud and SaaS.

是的，我認為這是對的。薩米克（Samik），聽著，我們將確切地看到它是如何演變的。在這一點上，正如你所說，它更多的是諮詢性的，也許是面向服務的，但並沒有大幅減少。克里斯早些時候說過，這對我們來說最終是一個完整的堆疊機會，其中肯定包括硬體。所以我們認為這將是有意義的。正如我所考慮的淨縮減部分，這可能會出現在與雲端和 SaaS 相關的支出中。

So is it conceivable that we would see that come through, certainly. It just becomes kind of a matter of when and the pacing and track, if you will, for customers and how they ultimately deploy AI.

因此，我們肯定會看到這一點實現。對於客戶來說，這只是時間、節奏和追蹤（如果你願意的話）以及他們最終如何部署人工智慧的問題。

And for my follow-up, I mean, just curious, given the change we've had here in the inflation backdrop, are you starting to see any changes from the customer side in relation to their discussions around pricing with you or even with relation to sort of the OEMs themselves. How they think about pricing? Or are you preparing for a different sort of pricing regime that we've been in the last sort of couple of years?

對於我的後續行動，我的意思是，只是好奇，考慮到我們在通膨背景下發生的變化，您是否開始看到客戶方面與您討論定價甚至關係的任何變化對 OEM 本身進行排序。他們如何看待定價？或者您正在為我們過去幾年採用的不同定價機製做準備？

Sure, Samik. I'll start and then Chris may want to add. As I think as I mentioned we've not seen an environment that's irrational on the pricing or the margin front. I would say ASPs have largely held firm. So looking forward at this point, we wouldn't see any drastic changing. We're not seeing activities from partners or customers that we -- that would suggest that we're going to see any sharp movements up or down. So our outlook is based on the presumption that would be largely firm here.

當然，薩米克。我先開始，然後克里斯可能想補充。正如我所提到的，我們還沒有看到定價或利潤方面不合理的環境。我認為 ASP 基本上保持堅挺。因此，展望目前，我們不會看到任何劇烈的變化。我們沒有看到合作夥伴或客戶的活動，這表明我們將看到任何急劇的上升或下降。因此，我們的前景是基於基本堅定的假設。

Our next question comes from Erik Woodring of Morgan Stanley.

我們的下一個問題來自摩根士丹利的艾瑞克‧伍德林。

Maybe, Chris, to start off. It's been a few quarters now where you've been clear that the spending environment is challenging. And in some cases, some of that hardware spend hasn't come through in the way that you perhaps thought it was. As you talk to your customers or you look at your pipeline, what is that catalyst that will unlock the recovery in the second half of the year right now. What gives you confidence? What are you hearing or what are you seeing that allows you to take that view as we sit here today? And then I have a follow-up.

克里斯，也許可以開始吧。幾個季度以來，您已經清楚地看到支出環境充滿挑戰。在某些情況下，一些硬體支出並沒有像您想像的那樣實現。當您與客戶交談或查看管道時，現在能夠推動下半年復甦的催化劑是什麼？是什麼給了你信心？當我們今天坐在這裡時，您所聽到或看到的是什麼讓您持這種觀點？然後我有一個後續行動。

Yes, Erik, it's a great question and when we actually face here at CDW. At one point, do we lose the first string? Here's what I'd say, two things. One, there is definitely pent-up demand. Our customers are ready to start putting plans in action. Two, they're looking to be more confident in the expectations for the rest of the year.

是的，Erik，這是一個很好的問題，當我們真正在 CDW 面對時。在某一時刻，我們會失去第一根弦嗎？這就是我要說的兩件事。第一，肯定有被壓抑的需求。我們的客戶已準備好開始將計劃付諸實施。第二，他們希望對今年剩餘時間的預期更有信心。

So while there have been some more positive indicators currently around the economy, I mean we still have elevated inflation and elevated interest rates and they're just merely waiting to feel more confident in where the economy is going. I hate to make it that simple, but frankly, it is. But we're also equally confident of the pent-up demand and the desire for our customers to get moving on those projects. I'm talking about the commercial space in particular, but get moving on those projects that they have delayed and deferred for some period of time.

因此，雖然目前經濟出現了一些更積極的指標，但我的意思是，我們的通膨和利率仍然很高，他們只是在等待對經濟的發展方向更有信心。我不想把事情說得這麼簡單，但坦白說，確實如此。但我們也同樣對被壓抑的需求和客戶繼續進行這些計畫的願望充滿信心。我特別談論的是商業領域，但要繼續推進那些已經推遲了一段時間的專案。

Okay. And then may be Al, clearly some puts and takes when it comes to free cash flow, obviously , a bit of a changing business mix depending on the environment that we're in . The new kind of net income to free cash flow conversion of 80% to 90%, that's a bit lower than it's just been over the last 2 years, realized, again, puts and takes this year. But if we -- if you could just address anything that we should think about that you'd call out this year specifically when it comes to either working capital changes, that would be helpful. But really longer term, is there a rule of thumb that we should be thinking of for free cash flow conversion? Is 80% to 90%, how we should think 3, 5 years down the line? And that's it for me.

好的。然後可能是阿爾，顯然在自由現金流方面有一些看跌期權和拿取，顯然，根據我們所處的環境，業務組合會發生一些變化。新的淨收入到自由現金流的轉換率為 80% 到 90%，比過去兩年的情況要低一些，今年再次實現。但如果我們——如果你能解決我們今年應該考慮的任何問題，以及你今年在涉及營運資本變化時特別提出的問題，那將會有所幫助。但從長遠來看，我們是否應該考慮自由現金流轉換的經驗法則？ 80%到90%，我們該如何思考3、5年後的狀況？對我來說就是這樣。

Sure. Thanks, Erik. At this juncture, 80 to 90% is the rule of thumb that we would give you. As you will recall we start the year with a prudent view of what that would look like, and we'll see how the years play out. If you look back at the last 2 years, we were north of 100% on a non-GAAP net income basis. That reflected, I'd say, strong cash profits, strong and diligent management of our working capital, but also the countercyclical components, right, as growth softened a bit if you will. So I would say the other element that I would add for 2024, Erik, is the -- we don't know exactly how the year will play out and what the pacing of business would look like. And so we try to give a little bit of space for use of working capital.

當然。謝謝，埃里克。目前，80% 到 90% 是我們給您的經驗法則。你可能還記得，我們​​在新的一年開始時對未來的情況持謹慎的態度，我們將看看這些年會如何發展。如果你回顧過去兩年，我們的非 GAAP 淨利潤已經超過 100%。我想說，這反映了強勁的現金利潤、對我們營運資本的強有力和勤勉的管理，而且也反映了反週期成分，對吧，如果你願意的話，增長會有所放緩。因此，Erik，我想說的是，我要為 2024 年添加的另一個要素是——我們不確切知道這一年將如何發展以及業務節奏會是什麼樣子。所以我們盡量給營運資金的使用留一點空間。

Our inventory is at very low levels, and you can look at that both on a DIO and just inventory balance dollar basis. And so look, we just want to take a prudent view out of the gates here that we may be more active users of working capital. And certainly, we'll update you as the year progresses. And I would just finally just say that it is and will continue to be a high priority for us of continue to drive cash flow, convert profits and ultimately have the optionality in our capital decisions to deploy it.

我們的庫存水準非常低，您可以根據 DIO 和庫存餘額美元來查看。因此，我們只是想謹慎地看待我們可能會成為營運資金的更積極的使用者。當然，隨著時間的推移，我們會向您通報最新情況。我最後想說的是，繼續推動現金流、轉換利潤並最終在我們的資本決策中擁有部署現金流的選擇權，現在是並將繼續成為我們的首要任務。

With that, I'll hand back to CEO, Chris Leahy, to begin -- to end. Chris, please go ahead.

接下來，我將由執行長克里斯·萊希 (Chris Leahy) 負責開始和結束。克里斯，請繼續。

Well, thank you very much, Taylor. And let me close by recognizing the incredible dedication and hard work of our coworkers around the globe. Their ongoing commitment to serving our customers is what makes us successful. Thank you to our customers for the privilege and opportunity to help you achieve your goals, and thank you to those listening for your time and continued interest in CDW.

嗯，非常感謝你，泰勒。最後，讓我對我們全球同事令人難以置信的奉獻精神和辛勤工作表示認可。他們對服務客戶的持續承諾是我們成功的原因。感謝我們的客戶給予我們幫助您實現目標的特權和機會，並感謝那些花時間聆聽以及對 CDW 持續關注的人們。

Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's call. Thank you for joining. You may now disconnect your lines.

女士們、先生們，今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的加入。現在您可以斷開線路。