CRH PLC (CRH) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and welcome to the CRH plc Q3 2024 Results Presentation. My name is Jay, and I'll be your operator today. (Operator Instructions)

美好的一天，歡迎來到 CRH plc 2024 年第三季業績發表會。我叫傑伊，今天我將擔任您的接線生。 （操作員說明）

At this time, I'd like to turn the conference over to Albert Manifold, CRH Chief Executive to begin the conference. Please go ahead, sir.

現在，我想請 CRH 執行長 Albert Manifold 開始會議。請繼續，先生。

Good morning, everyone. Albert Manifold here, CRH Group Chief Executive. And you're all very welcome to our quarter three 2024 results presentation and conference call.

大家早安。阿爾伯特·馬尼福德 (Albert Manifold)，CRH 集團執行長。非常歡迎大家參加我們的 2024 年第三季業績演示和電話會議。

Joining me on the call is Jim Mintern, Group CFO and CEO designate; Randy Lake, Chief Operating Officer; and Tom Holmes, Head of Investor Relations.

與我一起參加電話會議的是集團財務長兼候任執行長吉姆‧明特恩 (Jim Mintern)。蘭迪·萊克，營運長；和投資者關係主管湯姆霍姆斯。

Before we get started, I'll hand you over to Tom for some brief opening remarks.

在我們開始之前，我將請湯姆做一些簡短的開場白。

Thanks, Albert. Hello, everyone. Before we begin today's proceedings, I'd like to draw your attention to slide 1, shown here on screen. During today's presentation, we will be making some forward-looking statements relating to our future plans and expectations. These are subject to certain risks and uncertainties and actual results and outcomes could differ materially due to the factors outlined on this slide.

謝謝，艾伯特。大家好。在我們開始今天的會議之前，我想請您注意螢幕上顯示的幻燈片 1。在今天的演講中，我們將做出一些與我們未來計劃和期望相關的前瞻性陳述。這些都受到某些風險和不確定性的影響，並且由於本投影片中概述的因素，實際結果和成果可能會存在重大差異。

For more details, please refer to this slide, our annual report, and other SEC filings, which are available on our website.

有關更多詳細信息，請參閱此幻燈片、我們的年度報告以及我們網站上提供的其他 SEC 文件。

I will now hand you back to Albert, Jim and Randy, to deliver some prepared remarks.

現在我將把你們交還給艾伯特、吉姆和蘭迪，讓你們發表一些準備好的演講。

Thanks, Tom. Over the next 20 minutes or so, we'll take you through a brief presentation of the results we've published this morning, highlighting the key drivers of our operating performance for the third quarter of the year, our recent capital allocation activities as well as providing you with an update on our expectations for the year as a whole.

謝謝，湯姆。在接下來的 20 分鐘左右的時間裡，我們將向您簡要介紹今天早上發布的業績，重點介紹我們今年第三季度經營業績的關鍵驅動因素以及我們最近的資本配置活動為您提供我們對全年預期的最新資訊。

Based on the visibility that we have at this moment in time, we'll also share our thoughts on some of the trends we're seeing across our markets as we look ahead to 2025, and afterwards, we'll be available to take any questions that you may have.

基於我們目前掌握的可見性，我們還將分享我們對展望 2025 年時在整個市場中看到的一些趨勢的看法，之後，我們將可以採取任何措施您可能有的問題。

First, on slide 3, let me take you through some of the key messages from this morning's announcement. I'm pleased to report another robust financial performance, underpinned by the benefits of our differentiated solution strategy. For the third quarter of the year, we delivered strong growth in all key financial metrics, supported by positive pricing momentum and our relentless focus on cost management, all despite having to contend with some significant weather disruption in certain regions.

首先，在投影片 3 上，讓我向您介紹今天早上公告中的一些關鍵資訊。我很高興地報告又一個強勁的財務業績，這得益於我們差異化解決方案策略的優勢。今年第三季度，我們在積極的定價勢頭和對成本管理的不懈關注的支持下，所有關鍵財務指標均實現了強勁增長，儘管某些地區不得不應對一些嚴重的天氣幹擾。

Looking ahead to the remainder of the year and based on the current momentum that we see across our business, I'm pleased to say we are reaffirming the midpoint of our guidance. Assuming normal seasonal weather patterns and no major dislocations in the macroeconomic environment, we expect full year group adjusted EBITDA to be between $6.87 billion and $6.97 billion, representing another strong year of performance and double-digit growth for CRH.

展望今年剩餘時間，基於我們整個業務目前的勢頭，我很高興地說，我們正在重申我們指導的中點。假設季節性天氣模式正常且宏觀經濟環境沒有重大混亂，我們預計全年集團調整後 EBITDA 將在 68.7 億美元至 69.7 億美元之間，代表 CRH 又一個強勁的業績年度和兩位數增長。

Regarding our strategic development and capital allocation activities, we remain focused on investing in attractive high-growth markets and building out our solutions capabilities to deliver further growth and value for our shareholders. Year-to-date, we have invested $4.6 billion on 35 acquisitions across materials, road and utility infrastructure and outdoor living.

關於我們的策略發展和資本配置活動，我們仍然專注於投資有吸引力的高成長市場，並建立我們的解決方案能力，為股東帶來進一步的成長和價值。今年迄今為止，我們已投資 46 億美元，進行了 35 項收購，涉及材料、道路和公用事業基礎設施以及戶外生活領域。

I'm pleased to report that our Materials acquisitions in Texas & Australia, representing two of our largest investments this year, are performing well. The integration of these assets into existing businesses are well underway and are progressing as planned.

我很高興地報告，我們在德州和澳洲的材料收購是我們今年最大的兩項投資，表現良好。這些資產與現有業務的整合正在順利進行，並按計劃進行。

We've also been active on the divestment front with proceeds of approximately $1.2 billion in the year-to-date. With regard to cash returns, the strength of our balance sheet also enables us to continue to return significant amounts of capital to our shareholders. Our ongoing share buyback program has returned approximately $1.2 billion so far this year. And today, we're commencing a further quarterly tranche of $300 million.

我們在撤資方面也很活躍，今年迄今的收益約為 12 億美元。在現金回報方面，我們的資產負債表實力也使我們能夠繼續向股東返還大量資本。今年迄今為止，我們正在進行的股票回購計畫已回報約 12 億美元。今天，我們將開始進一步每季撥款 3 億美元。

In line with our policy of consistent long-term dividend growth, the Board has also declared a new quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, representing an annualized increase of 5%.

根據我們一貫的長期股息成長政策，董事會還宣布新的季度股息為每股 0.35 美元，年化成長率為 5%。

Turning to slide 4 and our financial highlights for the third quarter of the year. Overall, a robust performance with revenues, adjusted EBITDA, margin, and EPS, all ahead of the prior year period. Total revenues of $10.5 billion were 4% ahead, reflecting a good underlying demand backdrop across our key markets, further commercial progress as well as contributions from acquisitions.

轉向幻燈片 4 和我們今年第三季的財務亮點。整體而言，營收、調整後 EBITDA、利潤率和每股盈餘均表現強勁，均優於去年同期。總收入達到 105 億美元，成長 4%，反映出我們主要市場良好的潛在需求背景、進一步的商業進展以及收購的貢獻。

This enabled us to deliver adjusted EBITDA of $2.5 billion, 12% ahead and a further 170 basis points of margin expansion, a good performance in the context of some inflationary cost pressures. All of this translated into strong growth in our earnings per share, up 10% on the prior year period and 20% ahead on a 9-month basis.

這使我們能夠實現 25 億美元的調整後 EBITDA，年增 12%，利潤率進一步擴大 170 個基點，在一些通膨成本壓力的背景下表現良好。所有這些都轉化為我們每股收益的強勁增長，比去年同期增長 10%，比 9 個月增長 20%。

Now at this point, I'll hand you over to Randy, who will take you through the operating performance of each of our businesses.

現在，我將把您交給蘭迪，他將帶您了解我們每項業務的營運績效。

Thanks, Albert. Hello, everyone. Turning to slide 6 and beginning with Americas Materials Solutions, which delivered further growth and margin expansion in the period. Third quarter revenues and adjusted EBITDA were 4% and 16% ahead of prior year despite some significant weather disruption impacting our operations in the southern region of the US

謝謝，艾伯特。大家好。轉向幻燈片 6，從美洲材料解決方案開始，該解決方案在此期間實現了進一步的成長和利潤率擴張。儘管一些嚴重的天氣幹擾影響了我們在美國南部地區的業務，但第三季營收和調整後 EBITDA 分別比去年同期成長 4% 和 16%

Looking through the impact of adverse weather, the underlying demand backdrop across our key markets remain robust. Infrastructure, our largest end market, continues to be underpinned by the significant increase in state and US federal funding through the IIJA.

縱觀惡劣天氣的影響，我們主要市場的潛在需求背景仍然強勁。基礎設施是我們最大的終端市場，州和美國聯邦透過 IIJA 提供的資金大幅增加，繼續為基礎設施提供支撐。

Less than 30% of highway funds in the IIJA have been deployed to date, highlighting the significant runway we have ahead of us. We also continue to see good levels of reindustrialization and onshoring activity, which is supporting growth in new build manufacturing facilities and data centers.

迄今為止，IIJA 中的公路資金還不到 30% 已經部署，這凸顯了我們面前的重要跑道。我們也繼續看到良好的再工業化和本土活動水平，這支持了新建製造設施和資料中心的成長。

Against the backdrop of continued inflation in raw materials, labor and subcontracting costs, I'm pleased to see strong commercial discipline from our teams on the ground with positive pricing momentum across all product lines during the third quarter of the year.

在原材料、勞動力和分包成本持續上漲的背景下，我很高興看到我們的實地團隊在今年第三季度保持了強大的商業紀律，所有產品線的定價勢頭積極。

In Essential Materials, Q3 revenues were 5% ahead, supported by pricing growth in aggregates and cement of 10% and 9%.

在基本材料領域，受骨材和水泥價格分別成長 10% 和 9% 的支撐，第三季營收成長 5%。

In Road Solutions, third quarter revenues increased by 4%, driven by improved pricing in asphalt and ready mixed concrete. Our third quarter results also reflects good contributions from acquisitions, primarily our $2.1 billion acquisition of material assets in Texas. And I'm pleased to report, we're also making good progress on the synergies we identified.

在道路解決方案領域，由於瀝青和預拌混凝土定價的提高，第三季營收成長了 4%。我們第三季的業績也反映了收購的良好貢獻，主要是我們以 21 億美元收購了德州的重大資產。我很高興地報告，我們在確定的協同效應方面也取得了良好進展。

Together with disciplined cost control, operational efficiencies and the impact of a gain on certain land asset sales, we delivered 270 basis points of margin expansion compared to the prior year period. Looking ahead to the remainder of the year, I'm encouraged by the continued positive momentum in our backlogs, reflecting the robust infrastructure funding environment I mentioned earlier.

加上嚴格的成本控制、營運效率以及某些土地資產銷售收益的影響，我們的利潤率比去年同期增長了 270 個基點。展望今年剩餘時間，我對我們積壓訂單的持續積極勢頭感到鼓舞，這反映了我之前提到的強勁的基礎設施融資環境。

Next to Americas Building Solutions on slide 7, where our business delivered a resilient third quarter performance, supported by good contributions from acquisitions. Third quarter revenues for our Building & Infrastructure Solutions business were 3% ahead of the prior year, supported by significant IIJA funding for critical utility infrastructure and higher onshoring activity in the manufacturing sector.

在幻燈片 7 上的美洲建築解決方案旁邊，我們的業務在收購的良好貢獻的支持下第三季業績表現強勁。我們的建築和基礎設施解決方案業務第三季營收比去年同期成長 3%，這得益於 IIJA 對關鍵公用設施基礎設施的大量資助以及製造業更多的本土活動。

Q3 revenues in our Outdoor Living Solutions business were in line with prior year, benefiting from its exposure to more resilient residential repair and remodel activity. And as you can see on this slide, our third quarter profitability was behind a strong prior year comparative.

我們的戶外生活解決方案業務第三季的收入與去年持平，受益於更具彈性的住宅維修和改造活動。正如您在這張投影片中所看到的，我們第三季的獲利能力落後於去年同期的強勁水準。

On a 9-month basis, our adjusted EBITDA was just 2% behind, a good performance in the context of some adverse weather conditions and continued subdued demand in the new build residential segment.

以 9 個月為基礎，我們調整後的 EBITDA 僅落後 2%，在一些惡劣天氣條件和新建住宅市場需求持續低迷的情況下，我們的表現良好。

Moving across to Europe on slide 8 and first to Europe Materials Solutions. Overall, our business delivered a strong performance, supported by continued pricing progress as well as the contribution from our recent acquisition of Adbri, resulting in third quarter revenue and adjusted EBITDA, 7% and 24% ahead of the prior year.

在投影片 8 上轉到歐洲，首先是歐洲材料解決方案。總體而言，在持續的定價進展以及最近收購 Adbri 的貢獻的支持下，我們的業務表現強勁，導致第三季營收和調整後 EBITDA 分別比去年同期成長 7% 和 24%。

In Central and Eastern Europe, demand continues to be underpinned by good levels of public and private funding for infrastructure and nonresidential construction activity. While in Western Europe, activity levels continue to be impacted by subdued residential demand, particularly in the new build segment. I'm also pleased to see further margin expansion, 280 basis points ahead of the prior year reflecting good commercial management and further operational efficiencies across our businesses.

在中歐和東歐，基礎設施和非住宅建設活動的公共和私人資金水準良好，並繼續支撐著需求。而在西歐，活動水準持續受到住宅需求疲軟的影響，特別是在新建築領域。我還很高興看到利潤率進一步擴大，比前一年提高了 280 個基點，這反映出我們各業務部門良好的商業管理和進一步的營運效率。

Next to the performance of Europe Building Solutions on slide 9, our smallest segment, representing less than 5% of group adjusted EBITDA and much more exposed to residential new build construction than the rest of our businesses. As you can see on the slide, a challenging quarter with activity levels impacted by adverse weather conditions and continued softness in the new build residential market.

除了幻燈片 9 上的歐洲建築解決方案公司的業績之外，我們最小的部門，佔集團調整後 EBITDA 的不到 5%，並且比我們其他業務更多地接觸住宅新建建築。正如您在幻燈片中看到的那樣，這是一個充滿挑戰的季度，活動水平受到惡劣天氣條件和新建住宅市場持續疲軟的影響。

We continue to focus on disciplined commercial management and cost-saving actions to protect our profitability. And we expect the self-help initiatives that we put in place to leave us well positioned to benefit when market conditions improve.

我們繼續專注於嚴格的商業管理和成本節約行動，以保護我們的獲利能力。我們預計，我們實施的自助措施將使我們能夠在市場狀況改善時受益。

I'd also like to highlight that given recent portfolio activity this morning, we've announced that our Europe Materials Solutions and Europe Building Solutions segments will be combined into a new International Solutions segment, reflecting how the business is now managed. The change took effect in fourth quarter and will be reflected in our Q4 and full year results.

我還想強調，考慮到今天早上最近的投資組合活動，我們宣布我們的歐洲材料解決方案和歐洲建築解決方案部門將合併為一個新的國際解決方案部門，反映了目前業務的管理方式。這項變更於第四季度生效，並將反映在我們第四季和全年的業績中。

At this point, I'll hand you over to Jim to take you through our financial performance in further detail.

此時，我將把您交給吉姆，讓您更詳細地了解我們的財務表現。

Thanks, Randy. Hello, everyone. As you've heard from Albert earlier, we have had a strong third quarter, and this is reflected in our financial performance, as outlined on slide 11. Let me briefly take you through the main drivers of our adjusted EBITDA performance moving from left to right on the slide.

謝謝，蘭迪。大家好。正如您之前從Albert 那裡聽到的，我們第三季度表現強勁，這反映在我們的財務業績中，如幻燈片11 所示。到右）就在幻燈片上。

Starting with organic growth of $180 million, 8% ahead on a like-for-like basis, largely driven by further commercial progress and the continued benefits of our differentiated strategy.

首先有機成長 1.8 億美元，年成長 8%，這主要是由進一步的商業進展和我們差異化策略的持續效益所推動的。

Acquisitions net of divestitures delivered a further $79 million of adjusted EBITDA, primarily reflecting the contribution from our acquisition of material assets in Texas and Australia as well as the impact of the divestiture of the European line operations. Overall, we delivered approximately $2.5 billion of adjusted EBITDA, 12% ahead of the prior year period.

扣除資產剝離後的收購又帶來了 7,900 萬美元的調整後 EBITDA，主要反映了我們收購德州和澳洲物質資產的貢獻以及剝離歐洲航線業務的影響。總體而言，我們實現了約 25 億美元的調整後 EBITDA，比去年同期成長 12%。

Moving now to slide 12, where I will just take a moment to highlight some of the key components of our net debt movements and our strong and flexible balance sheet. Firstly, on the left-hand side, you can see we ended 2023 with a net debt position of $5.4 billion.

現在轉到投影片 12，我將花一點時間強調我們的淨債務變動以及我們強大且靈活的資產負債表的一些關鍵組成部分。首先，在左側，您可以看到 2023 年末我們的淨債務部位為 54 億美元。

Turning to our cash flow performance. We reported a net cash inflow of approximately $2.3 billion during the first nine months of the year. Acquisitions, net of divestitures and other items resulted in an outflow of $4 billion, while we also invested $1.6 billion in capital expenditure to support further growth in our existing business.

轉向我們的現金流表現。我們報告今年前 9 個月的淨現金流入約為 23 億美元。收購（扣除資產剝離和其他項目）導致資金流出 40 億美元，同時我們也投資了 16 億美元的資本支出，以支持現有業務的進一步成長。

In addition, we returned $2.5 billion in the form of dividends and share buybacks, demonstrating our commitment to returning cash to our shareholders. Taking all of this into account results in a net debt position of $11.2 billion at the end of September, representing a net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio of approximately 1.7 times on a trailing 12-month basis.

此外，我們也以股利和股票回購的形式返還 25 億美元，體現了我們向股東返還現金的承諾。考慮到所有這些因素，截至 9 月底的淨債務部位為 112 億美元，相當於過去 12 個月淨負債與調整後 EBITDA 的比率約為 1.7 倍。

Now at this stage, we would like to briefly update you on our recent capital allocation activities. As you can see here on slide 14, we have completed a significant number of acquisitions in the year-to-date, investing approximately $4.6 billion on 35 acquisitions.

現在，在這個階段，我們想向您簡要介紹我們最近的資本配置活動的最新情況。正如您在幻燈片 14 中看到的那樣，我們今年迄今已完成了大量收購，在 35 項收購中投資了約 46 億美元。

The largest of these was our acquisition of material assets in Texas for $2.1 billion, further strengthening our position as the number one building materials business in the fastest-growing state in the US I'm pleased to report that the integration is progressing well with some good early wins on our $65 million run rate synergy target.

其中最大的一筆是我們以21 億美元收購德州的材料資產，進一步鞏固了我們作為美國成長最快的州第一大建築材料企業的地位。順利，有些公司我們早期就成功達成了 6,500 萬美元的營運率協同目標。

In July, we completed our acquisition of a majority stake in Adbri, a leading provider of building materials in Australia. This acquisition enhances our existing Australian businesses and creates a new platform to expand our solution strategy in this attractive market.

7月，我們完成了對澳洲領先建築材料供應商Adbri多數股權的收購。此次收購增強了我們現有的澳洲業務，並創建了一個新平台來擴展我們在這個有吸引力的市場的解決方案策略。

Early integration is progressing well, and we have already identified significant opportunities to enhance the performance of the business, leveraging our scale, industry knowledge and technical expertise to improve long-term growth and operating performance.

早期整合進展順利，我們已經發現了提高業務績效的重大機會，利用我們的規模、行業知識和技術專長來提高長期成長和營運績效。

We have also invested approximately $1.7 billion on 33 strategic bolt-on acquisitions across Essential Materials, Road and Critical Utility Infrastructure and Outdoor Living. All of this activity demonstrates our commitment to the disciplined allocation of capital into attractive high-growth markets and areas where we can further develop our integrated solutions strategy to create further growth and value for our shareholders.

我們還投資了約 17 億美元，進行了 33 項策略性補強收購，涉及基本材料、道路和關鍵公用基礎設施以及戶外生活。所有這些活動都表明我們致力於將資本嚴格配置到有吸引力的高成長市場和領域，在這些市場和領域我們可以進一步製定我們的綜合解決方案策略，為股東創造進一步的成長和價值。

Turning now to our outlook for the remainder of the year on slide 16. This morning, we are pleased to reaffirm the midpoint of our guidance for 2024, reflecting the positive momentum we see across our business as well as the impact of recent portfolio activity. Assuming normal seasonal weather patterns for the remainder of the year and no major dislocations in the macroeconomic environment, we expect the full year group EBITDA to be between $6.87 billion and $6.97 billion. Net income between $3.78 billion and $3.85 billion and earnings per share between $5.45 and $5.55 per share, representing another year of robust double-digit growth for CRH.

現在轉向幻燈片 16 上我們對今年剩餘時間的展望。假設今年剩餘時間季節性天氣模式正常且宏觀經濟環境沒有重大混亂，我們預計全年集團 EBITDA 將在 68.7 億美元至 69.7 億美元之間。淨利潤在 37.8 億美元至 38.5 億美元之間，每股收益在 5.45 美元至 5.55 美元之間，代表 CRH 又一年實現兩位數的強勁增長。

Now before we hand over to Q&A, on slide 17, we would like to take a moment to share our thoughts on some of the trends we see across our markets as we look ahead to 2025. Today, the Americas represents approximately 75% of our adjusted EBITDA. With our new International division comprising our businesses in Europe and Australia, representing the remaining 25%.

現在，在我們進行投影片 17 上的問答之前，我們想花點時間分享一下我們對展望 2025 年時我們所看到的一些市場趨勢的看法。的EBITDA。我們新的國際部門包括歐洲和澳洲的業務，佔剩餘的 25%。

First to Infrastructure, which represents our largest exposure. Here, we expect demand in the United States to be underpinned by the continued rollout of the once-in-a-generation federal and state investment. And as Randy said earlier, less than 30% of the IIJA highway funds have been deployed so far, highlighting the significant runway that lies ahead.

首先是基礎設施，這是我們最大的風險敞口。在這裡，我們預計美國的需求將受到持續推出的千載難逢的聯邦和州投資的支撐。正如蘭迪早些時候所說，到目前為止，IIJA 高速公路資金的部署還不到 30%，這突顯了前方還有重要的跑道。

In our international markets, we expect robust demand in infrastructure activity to continue, supported by significant investment from public funding programs. In nonresidential, we expect our key segments to continue to benefit from increased reindustrialization and onshoring activity. And in the residential segment, we expect new build activity in the US and Europe to begin to improve gradually in the second half of the year, assuming interest rates continue to normalize.

在我們的國際市場上，我們預計在公共融資計畫大量投資的支持下，基礎設施活動的強勁需求將持續下去。在非住宅領域，我們預計我們的關鍵領域將繼續受益於再工業化和本土活動的增加。在住宅領域，假設利率繼續正常化，我們預計美國和歐洲的新建活動將在今年下半年開始逐漸改善。

As we have said in the past, we believe the long-term fundamentals for residential construction remain very attractive in these markets, supported by favorable demographics and significant levels of underbuild.

正如我們過去所說，我們認為，在有利的人口結構和大量建設不足的支持下，這些市場的住宅建設的長期基本面仍然非常有吸引力。

So in summary, the early trends are positive for our business, supported by robust demand in infrastructure and key nonresidential segments with some signs of improving trends in new build residential construction. Regarding the pricing environment, we expect positive momentum to continue across our markets, supported by disciplined commercial management as well as the benefits of our integrated and value-focused solutions strategy. Overall, we are well positioned to capitalize on the strong growth opportunities that lie ahead.

總而言之，早期趨勢對我們的業務是積極的，受到基礎設施和關鍵非住宅領域強勁需求的支持，並且有跡象表明新建住宅建設趨勢有所改善。關於定價環境，我們預計在嚴格的商業管理以及我​​們整合和以價值為中心的解決方案策略的優勢的支持下，我們的市場將繼續保持積極的勢頭。整體而言，我們處於有利位置，可以利用未來的強勁成長機會。

So that concludes our presentation this morning. And we are happy to take your questions. I will now hand you back to the moderator to coordinate the Q&A session of our call.

我們今天早上的演講就到此結束。我們很樂意回答您的問題。現在，我將把您交還給主持人，以協調我們電話會議的問答環節。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員說明）

Anthony Pettinari of Citigroup

花旗集團的安東尼佩蒂納裡

Good morning. Can you talk a little bit more about kind of the key drivers of the performance in 3Q, maybe kind of relative to your expectations given the weather challenges that you saw?

早安.您能否多談談第三季業績的關鍵驅動因素，考慮到您所看到的天氣挑戰，也許與您的預期有關？

Good Morning, Anthony. It's Albert here. I'll take that one as you've seen by the announcement this morning. I mean, we've had a strong quarter, double digit growth despite as you rightly point out the bad weather and that really is building upon the strong quarter, one and quarter two for this year. I think really it speaks to the fact that series is a different bAnthony, it's Albert here. I'll take that one. As you've seen by the announcement this morning, I mean, we've had a strong quarter, double-digit EBITDA growth despite, as you rightly point out, the bad weather. And that really is building upon strong quarter one and quarter two for this year.

早安，安東尼。我是阿爾伯特。我將接受您今天早上發布的公告中所看到的那樣。我的意思是，我們已經實現了強勁的季度兩位數增長，儘管您正確地指出了惡劣的天氣，而且這確實是建立在今年強勁的第一季和第二季的基礎上的。我認為這確實說明了這個系列是一個不同的bAnthony，這裡是Albert。我會接受那個。正如您今天早上的公告所看到的，我的意思是，儘管正如您正確指出的那樣，儘管天氣惡劣，但我們的季度 EBITDA 仍實現了兩位數的強勁增長。這確實是建立在今年第一季和第二季強勁的基礎上的。

I think really, it speaks to the fact that CRH is a different business, it's a differentiated solution strategy. At the core of that is that we do things differently to many, many other people in our industry. We're a much more diverse business geographically, regionally here within the United States and across Europe as well.

我認為，這確實說明了 CRH 是一項不同的業務，它是一種差異化的解決方案策略。其核心是我們的行事方式與行業中許多其他人不同。我們的業務在地理、區域上更加多元化，無論是在美國還是整個歐洲。

Crucially, our end use is much more diverse. We not only just focus on infrastructure, big exposure to nonres and, indeed, residential. And with greater participation all across the value chain rather than just supplying one piece of that value chain. And we incorporate engineering and design skills, technology and innovation into the new products and services that we provide.

至關重要的是，我們的最終用途更加多樣化。我們不僅關注基礎設施、非房地產領域以及住宅領域的大量投資。並且在整個價值鏈上有更多的參與，而不僅僅是供應該價值鏈的一部分。我們將工程和設計技能、技術和創新融入我們提供的新產品和服務中。

So overall, we provide a more comprehensive, complete, put-in-place construction solution and because so much of our products rely on the design skills, the knowledge, the engineering and indeed, the materials technology we have, it's a much more resilient model. And look, we're not immune to weather, but we're just less impacted by weather because of that solutions, model of solution strategy. We're not immune to cycles, but we're less impacted by cycles. So no matter what the weather, no matter what the cycle, CRH always just seems to deliver.

因此，總的來說，我們提供了更全面、更完整、更到位的施工解決方案，並且由於我們的許多產品都依賴我們擁有的設計技能、知識、工程以及材料技術，因此它的彈性更強模型。看，我們並不能免受天氣的影響，但由於有了解決方案、解決方案策略模型，我們受天氣的影響較小。我們不能免受週期的影響，但我們受週期的影響較小。因此，無論天氣如何，無論週期如何，CRH 似乎總是能滿足您的需求。

And at the core of that is our solution strategy, which is much more consistent and much less volatile than others are in this space. Now it's a very simple model, but it takes many, many years to master and understand how we incorporate design, engineering skills, knowledge, materials technology into the products that we sell to provide a more complete construction solution for our customers. It's one that's very difficult to replicate. But as you can see, again, this quarter is one that delivers considerable benefits to our shareholders.

其中的核心是我們的解決方案策略，該策略比該領域的其他策略更加一致且波動性更小。現在它是一個非常簡單的模型，但需要很多很多年才能掌握和理解我們如何將設計、工程技能、知識、材料技術融入我們銷售的產品中，為我們的客戶提供更完整的施工解決方案。這是很難複製的。但正如您所看到的，本季再次為我們的股東帶來了可觀的利益。

Okay. That's very helpful. And I just could you give maybe some additional color on the reaffirmed guidance for '24 and maybe what are kind of the puts and takes within that compared to three months ago?

好的。這非常有幫助。我只是想請您對 24 年重申的指導意見提供一些額外的信息，也許與三個月前相比，其中的看跌和拿跌是怎樣的？

Yeah, morning, Anthony, Jim here. I'll take that. Yes, this morning, we're pleased to reaffirm the midpoint of our guidance, which is going to indicate and lead to another year of double-digit growth for CRH. We have good underlying momentum in the business, right, throughout quarter three. And indeed, the nine months, our adjusted EBITDA is up 12% for both periods. And the guidance that we've given this morning, the midpoint is really showing a continuation of that positive momentum in Q4 with another quarter of double-digit growth in Q4.

是的，早安，安東尼，吉姆在這裡。我會接受的。是的，今天早上，我們很高興重申我們指導意見的中點，這將表明並導致 CRH 又一年實現兩位數增長。在整個第三季度，我們的業務都有良好的潛在動力。事實上，在這 9 個月裡，我們調整後的 EBITDA 均成長了 12%。我們今天早上給出的指導，中點確實顯示出第四季度積極勢頭的延續，第四季度又實現了兩位數的增長。

Since we last updated, maybe there's been a few moving parts, right? We've had a significant additional acquisition spend, but most of that actually closed in early Q4. So we don't expect a significant contribution from those acquisitions to come through this year. And overall, actually, the net impact of M&A, M&A net of our divestitures is in the region of about $150 million for the full year.

自從我們上次更新以來，也許有一些變動的部分，對吧？我們有大量額外的收購支出，但大部分實際上在第四季初就結束了。因此，我們預計這些收購今年不會產生重大貢獻。實際上，總體而言，全年併購的淨影響（扣除我們資產剝離後的併購淨值）約為 1.5 億美元。

We've also had a very good year in terms of land sales and surplus asset sales, and this was built into our guidance that we gave earlier in the year and it really reflects the new processes and the professionalism and the approach that we implemented a number of years ago across the organization. But even excluding these surplus assets and land sales, we're still expecting to deliver another strong year of double-digit growth. And in fact, it's our 11 consecutive year of margin expansion.

在土地銷售和剩餘資產銷售方面，我們也度過了非常好的一年，這是我們今年早些時候給出的指導的一部分，它確實反映了新的流程、專業精神以及我們實施的方法。多年前在整個組織中。但即使排除這些剩餘資產和土地銷售，我們仍然預計今年將實現兩位數的強勁成長。事實上，這是我們連續 11 年獲利率擴張。

Okay. That's very helpful. I'll turn it over.

好的。這非常有幫助。我會把它翻過來。

Keith Hughes of Truist.

Truist 的基斯休斯。

Thank you. Your American Materials aggregate cement pricing was particularly high compared to what we're seeing from some peers in the quarter. Could you just talk more about what you expect from pricing on those products in the fourth quarter? And really, my question is more towards '25. What kind of increase would we see then?

謝謝。與我們本季從一些同業看到的價格相比，你們的美國材料公司的水泥總定價特別高。您能否詳細談談您對第四季度這些產品定價的預期？事實上，我的問題更多是針對'25。那我們會看到什麼樣的成長呢？

This is Randy. I'll take that one. If you look at and I think Albert called it out, our volumes in Q3 and actually year-to-date, certainly impacted a bit by the adverse weather. But supported by strong demand in our key end-use market segments. So Infra, nonres, in res, more, so in the RMI side. So the expectation would be that we would continue to see that kind of momentum as we finish out the year.

這是蘭迪。我會接受那個。如果你看一下，我認為阿爾伯特指出了這一點，我們第三季以及實際上今年迄今為止的銷量肯定受到了惡劣天氣的影響。但受到我們關鍵最終用途細分市場強勁需求的支持。所以 Infra、nonres、in res、more，所以在 RMI 方面。因此，我們預計在今年結束時我們將繼續看到這種勢頭。

So I would say we're looking at volumes being flat to slightly down as we finish 2024. But that environment has been supported, that demand environment has really supported good pricing momentum. As you called out, we had a 10% increase in our aggregate pricing in Q3. The expectation is that would carry on through the balance of the year, and we'll see double-digit pricing as we finish out the full year. But underlying all that is really good momentum as we go into 2025.

因此，我想說，到 2024 年結束時，我們預計銷量將持平或略有下降。正如您所說，我們第三季的總定價上漲了 10%。預計這種情況將持續到今年剩餘時間，當我們全年結束時，我們將看到兩位數的定價。但隨著我們進入 2025 年，這一切的背後是真正良好的勢頭。

I think for us, the greatest picture of the future is our backlogs, and those backlogs continue to be strong, both in dollar margin terms and volumes. When we look at those backlogs, it's probably most reflective of the IIJA funding, which I think we called out that less than 30% has actually hit the ground at this point in time. And so there's still significant runway to go. And so as we look into next year, I would expect low single-digit volume growth as we go into 2025. And again, that momentum is positive in terms of pricing.

我認為對我們來說，未來最美好的前景是我們的積壓訂單，而這些積壓訂單無論是從美元利潤率還是數量上都仍然強勁。當我們查看這些積壓的訂單時，它可能最能反映 IIJA 的資金，我認為我們指出，目前只有不到 30% 的資金實際到位。因此，還有很長的路要走。因此，當我們展望明年時，我預計進入 2025 年銷售量將出現低個位數成長。

We got demand. We also obviously are still counteracting inflationary pressures as we go into '25. So pricing, I would expect to be mid- to high single digits next year.

我們有需求。進入 25 年後，我們顯然仍在應對通膨壓力。因此，我預計明年的定價將達到中高個位數。

Okay. Thank you so much.

好的。太感謝了。

Kathryn Thompson of Thompson Research.

湯普森研究中心的凱瑟琳湯普森。

Hi. Thank you for taking my questions today. Just first tagging on from a question you've had earlier today focusing into 25. Could you get a little more color on the outlook for your main in markets? Res not in res and public construction and in particular, if you focus on the public side, some of your key states. Now you've said that there's a you know, relatively small portion of IIJ A, it's been spent, but maybe focusing on some of your key states in terms of what you're seeing in terms of the infrastructure build out. Thank you.

你好。感謝您今天回答我的問題。首先從您今天早些時候提出的一個問題開始，重點關注 25。資源不在於資源和公共建設，特別是如果您關注公共方面，那麼您的一些關鍵狀態。現在您已經說過，IIJ A 的相對較小部分已被花費，但可能會重點關注您所看到的基礎設施建設方面的一些關鍵狀態。謝謝。

Yes. Kathryn, this is Randy. I'll take that from the US standpoint. As we've called out kind of this once-in-a-generation type investment in and around IIJA, and yes, you're right, less than 30% has hit the street. I think we called out even at the half year and at the back end of 2023 that while it's a 5-year bill, we view this as probably taking seven years to kind of make its way through the system.

是的。凱瑟琳，這是蘭迪。我將從美國的角度來看這一點。正如我們在 IIJA 及其周邊地區所呼籲的這種千載難逢的投資，是的，你是對的，只有不到 30% 的投資投入了市場。我認為我們甚至在 2023 年上半年和年底就曾呼籲，雖然這是一項為期 5 年的法案，但我們認為可能需要 7 年的時間才能通過該系統。

I think what's -- why we say that is, one, the type of projects that are being engaged in are longer-term projects, more complex. And that's been supported by really robust state activity to complement the IIJA. And I think they're tackling some of the most significant opportunities or challenges from a state standpoint. And it really plays to our strength in terms of where we engage in that construction value process. Albert called out the fact that we -- engineering materials technology as well, we use that and design skills to engage early in that process.

我認為我們為什麼這麼說，第一，正在從事的項目類型是長期項目，更複雜。這得到了真正強有力的國家活動的支持，以補充 IIJA。我認為他們正在從州的角度應對一些最重大的機會或挑戰。就我們參與建立價值流程的方面而言，它確實發揮了我們的優勢。阿爾伯特指出了這樣一個事實，即我們——工程材料技術，我們利用它和設計技能來儘早參與這個過程。

And so as we look out at our major states, we'll probably, from a geographic standpoint, be the largest beneficiary of IIJA funding over the term of the bill. And we see that obviously in our backlogs. So we see it in volumes, in terms of margins. So pleased to see that robust environment continue.

因此，當我們觀察我們的主要州時，從地理角度來看，我們可能會成為該法案期限內 IIJA 資金的最大受益者。我們在積壓的訂單中清楚地看到了這一點。因此，我們從數量和利潤方面看到了這一點。很高興看到這種強勁的環境持續下去。

The nonres, we're continuing to see really good demand in and around energy and water, those end markets, supported by the manufacturing and the onshoring, reshoring, in and around data centers, in and around pharmaceuticals, been a bit of softness in the telecom space, but that's more of an issue of timing and weather.

非資源方面，我們繼續看到能源和水領域及其周圍的真正良好需求，這些終端市場在製造業和本土、回流、數據中心及其周圍、製藥行業及其周圍的支持下，在電信領域，但這更多的是時間和天氣的問題。

And actually, in the back end of Q3, we started to see momentum actually improved in that particular space, which is great. And those type of projects, as you would be aware of, are typically pretty complex, highly specified projects, again, plays to the solutions model that we have of early engagement, specific design and engineering capabilities for each project because they are unique, every road's unique, every one of these nonres applications tend to be unique. So plays to the strength. So again, we see that as multiyear projects in the pipeline.

實際上，在第三季末，我們開始看到該特定領域的勢頭實際上有所改善，這很棒。如您所知，這些類型的項目通常是相當複雜、高度具體的項目，再次利用我們為每個項目提供的早期參與、特定設計和工程能力的解決方案模型，因為它們是獨一無二的，每個由於道路是獨一無二的，因此這些非資源應用程式中的每一個都往往是獨一無二的。所以發揮實力。因此，我們再次將其視為醞釀中的多年項目。

And the res, certainly, we continue to call out the res in the US, it's certainly related to interest rates. But it's not just about affordability, it's also about the underlying supply, but the long-term fundamentals are strong. And the expectation, at least from our standpoint, is we'll see some green shoots in the back half of 2025. We have, over time, adjusted our portfolio to be more focused on the RMI side, which tends to be more resilient and less cyclical, and we're seeing that. And so it allows us to deliver more consistent results. And overall, the view for '25 is strong based upon those fundamentals.

當然，我們繼續呼籲美國的資源，這肯定與利率有關。但這不僅與負擔能力有關，也與基礎供應有關，而且長期基本面強勁。至少從我們的角度來看，預計我們將在 2025 年下半年看到一些萌芽。小，我們正在看到這一點。因此它使我們能夠提供更一致的結果。整體而言，基於這些基本面，對 25 年的看法是強烈的。

And just on Europe, Kathryn. Maybe just -- we're seeing. Just on Europe, maybe Kathryn, to give you some color. We're seeing robust infrastructure backdrop really underpinned by strong EU and local government funding programs, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe. Good activity on our high-spec manufacturing projects, seeing it in the areas of clean tech, in terms of power, and again, on data centers.

就歐洲而言，凱瑟琳。也許只是——我們正在看到。只是關於歐洲，也許是凱瑟琳，給你一些顏色。我們看到強大的基礎設施背景確實得到了強有力的歐盟和地方政府資助計畫的支撐，特別是在中歐和東歐。我們的高規格製造項目表現良好，包括清潔技術、電力以及資料中心等領域。

And residential activities are stabilizing at a low levels. We're seeing some early signs of improvement in Central and Eastern Europe. And we're seeing Western Europe kind of troughing out and we expect a kind of very gradual recovery into 2025 on the back of a lower interest rate environment in Europe.

住宅活動穩定在較低水準。我們看到中歐和東歐出現了一些改善的早期跡象。我們看到西歐正在陷入低谷，我們預計在歐洲較低利率環境的支持下，到 2025 年將出現非常緩慢的復甦。

Perfect. So just wrapping up, you're having increasing complexity in terms of projects, and increasing complexity, I would argue, with logistics just because of the size and scale. There are challenges in terms of just the complexity in terms of the products that go into these. This leads me to just a follow-up question.

完美的。總而言之，我認為專案的複雜性不斷增加，物流的複雜性也隨著規模和規模而增加。僅就這些產品的複雜性而言就存在挑戰。這讓我想到一個後續問題。

Can you talk about, at least in the US market, about the potential for having the availability of basic inputs. So as a cement producer, the US market is a net importer, but also shortages and fly ash and admixtures. Talk about that environment and then how CRH sits within that environment, given all the complexities that you just outlined in the earlier question -- answer. Thank you.

您能談談至少在美國市場上獲得基本投入的潛力嗎？所以作為水泥生產國，美國市場是淨進口國，而且還短缺粉煤灰和外加劑。考慮到您在前面的問題 - 答案中概述的所有複雜性，討論該環境，然後討論 CRH 在該環境中的地位。謝謝。

Yeah, Kathryn, Jim here. I'll take that. I think just in terms of the complexity of the projects, we're, again, I guess, what really comes true for us and where we really perform is due really to the nature of our solutions offering, right? We're not just delivering any one individual project. We're in earlier and longer on these projects.

是的，凱瑟琳，吉姆在這裡。我會接受的。我認為就專案的複雜性而言，我想，我們真正實現的目標以及我們真正執行的目標實際上取決於我們提供的解決方案的性質，對嗎？我們不只是交付任何一個單獨的項目。我們在這些項目上投入得更早、更長。

So we're able to help and partner with our end customers, right? And that certainly helps us on these particular complex projects. We got good visibility early of any potential bottlenecks, and we solve those problems together with our customers. Just going to the second part of it, maybe just in terms of supply challenges. You're right.

因此，我們能夠為最終客戶提供幫助並與之合作，對嗎？這無疑對我們處理這些特定的複雜項目有幫助。我們儘早發現任何潛在的瓶頸，並與客戶一起解決這些問題。就進入第二部分，也許只是在供應挑戰方面。你說得對。

The US. imports about 20% of its annual cementitious demand. We're very well positioned from that perspective. We've got excellent global supply lines into the US. So we're very well positioned to the extent that there is any tightness on those bottlenecks, and we're certainly not experiencing them in the current year.

美國。每年水泥需求量的20%左右需要進口。從這個角度來看，我們處於非常有利的位置。我們擁有通往美國的優秀全球供應線。因此，就這些瓶頸的緊張程度而言，我們處於非常有利的位置，而且我們今年肯定不會遇到這些瓶頸。

Ross Harvey of Davy.

戴維·羅斯·哈維。

Thanks. Hi all and thanks for taking my question. Can you discuss the scope impact into 2025 given the M&A activity? And can you also provide us with an update on the M&A pipeline looking forward?

謝謝。大家好，感謝您提出我的問題。您能否討論一下併購活動對 2025 年的範圍影響？您能否向我們提供有關未來併購管道的最新資訊？

Yeah, we'll do, Ross. Yes, the scope impact for 2025 of the M&A activity. We've done about $4.6 billion of acquisitions this year, 35 acquisitions, two large ones being clearly around Hunter and Adelaide Brighton, 33 bolt-on deals. We expect the rollover contribution net of the divestments, primarily our Lime business, so the rollover impact into 2025 is going to be in the region of $250 million incremental adjusted EBITDA in 2025.

是的，我們會的，羅斯。是的，併購活動對 2025 年的範圍影響。今年我們完成了約 46 億美元的收購，其中有 35 筆收購，其中兩筆大型收購顯然是圍繞著亨特和阿德萊德布萊頓進行的，還有 33 筆補充交易。我們預計，剝離資產（主要是我們的 Lime 業務）後的展期貢獻將達到淨值，因此 2025 年的展期影響將在 2025 年增量調整後 EBITDA 達到 2.5 億美元。

As for the pipeline, right now, we're very strong and active pipeline of opportunities in front of us, and that's across all our platforms, across our materials, across our road, our utility infrastructure and our outdoor living. We're operating in fragmented markets with multiple avenues for future growth and value creation, really again, thanks to the benefit of our integrated solutions strategy.

至於管道，目前，我們面前有非常強大且活躍的機會管道，這些機會遍布我們所有的平台、材料、道路、公用設施基礎設施和戶外生活。我們在分散的市場中運營，擁有多種未來成長和價值創造的途徑，這再次歸功於我們的整合解決方案策略的好處。

And it's that strategy, which is delivering with the strong results for the businesses, which are coming out of less cyclical, driving higher profits, cash and returns.

正是這項策略為企業帶來了強勁的業績，這些企業擺脫了週期性的束縛，推動了更高的利潤、現金和回報。

However, notwithstanding the runway that's ahead of us in terms of pipeline, Ross, we're going to remain disciplined and efficient and really focus on driving and delivering further growth and profitability into '25 and beyond.

然而，儘管在管道方面我們處於領先地位，羅斯，我們仍將保持紀律和高效，並真正專注於推動和實現 25 年及以後的進一步增長和盈利。

Excellent. That's great. Thanks a million.

出色的。那太棒了。謝謝一百萬。

Gregor Kuglitsch of UBS.

瑞銀集團 (UBS) 的 Gregor Kuglitsch。

Thank you very much. I mean maybe before I ask a question, I wanted to congratulate Albert on his retirement. I was just looking at his -- since the appointment, the shares have compounded, I think, 18% or 19%. So well done and happy retirement. And Jim, congratulations on your appointment. So my first question is on the input cost outlook.

非常感謝。我的意思是，也許在我提問之前，我想祝賀阿爾伯特退休。我只是在看他的——自從任命以來，我認為股價已經複利了 18% 或 19%。幹得好，退休快樂。吉姆，祝賀你的任命。所以我的第一個問題是關於投入成本的前景。

Could you comment a little bit. You've given us some clues on price, but can you comment where costs are going? And, I guess, the interplay between price cost, if you could give us sort of your view of whether that can continue to be a nice positive spread?

你能評論一下嗎？您已經向我們提供了一些有關價格的線索，但是您能評論一下成本的去向嗎？而且，我想，價格成本之間的相互作用，如果你能給我們一些你的看法，是否可以繼續保持良好的正利差？

And then the second question is, I don't know if you've issued a net debt guidance for this year. Could you help us with that, where we just -- maybe a small technical question, where we end up on net debt for this year.

第二個問題是，我不知道你們是否發布了今年的淨債務指引。你能幫我們解決這個問題嗎？

Sure, Gregor. Thank you, and thank you for your comments. Yes, listen, from a cost perspective, we're still very much operating in an inflationary cost environment, and we're still recovering from that period of very significant inflation that we've incurred over the last number of years.

當然，格雷戈爾。謝謝您，也謝謝您的評論。是的，聽著，從成本的角度來看，我們仍然在通貨膨脹的成本環境中運營，而且我們仍在從過去幾年發生的非常嚴重的通貨膨脹時期中恢復過來。

And we've always said on the last number of calls that it's going to take some time to fully recover that cost inflation. For the full year 2024, firstly, on energy, energy costs are going to be moderately lower for us on a per unit cost basis in 2024.

我們在最近幾次電話會議中總是表示，需要一些時間才能完全恢復成本通膨。對於 2024 年全年，首先在能源方面，2024 年我們的單位成本能源成本將適度降低。

However, in the other categories, we're continuing to see inflation, particularly in the areas of labor, raw materials, subcontractor costs and bought in maintenance materials. And overall, we're looking at kind of mid-single-digit cost inflation increase, which really highlights the importance of achieving the good pricing backdrop that we've achieved in 2024.

然而，在其他類別中，我們繼續看到通貨膨脹，特別是在勞動力、原材料、分包商成本和維護材料購買領域。整體而言，我們預期成本通膨將出現中等個位數的成長，這確實凸顯了我們在 2024 年實現良好定價背景的重要性。

Looking out to 2025, I think it's very early to call at this stage, but we still believe that we're going to see continued inflation across those same categories, across labor raw materials, subcontractor costs heading into 2025. And it's against that backdrop again that we're looking for another good year of positive price momentum in 2025.

展望 2025 年，我認為現階段判斷還為時過早，但我們仍然相信，進入 2025 年，我們將看到這些相同類別、勞動力原材料、分包商成本持續通膨。一個價格積極勢頭的好年頭。

The second question maybe on net debt to EBITDA, yes, we're expecting to exit the year 2024 around 1.6x net debt to EBITDA.

第二個問題可能是關於 EBITDA 的淨債務，是的，我們預計 2024 年退出時的 EBITDA 淨債務約為 1.6 倍。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Trey Grooms of Stephens.

史蒂芬斯的特雷·格魯姆斯。

Hi. Good morning, everyone. I also wanted to echo the congratulations to Albert as well as Jim on your new role. Congrats about that. So a little bit -- well first, one point of kind of just on the Building Solutions, ABS was clearly impacted by weather and weaker new residential as you mentioned. But since weather has maybe started to cooperate a little bit more, at least through most of October, what are you seeing there? And how are you thinking about that line specifically as we kind of look into '25, both from a -- from the end markets but also from a margin standpoint?

你好。大家早安。我也想對阿爾伯特和吉姆就任新職務表示祝賀。對此表示祝賀。所以，首先，就建築解決方案而言，ABS 顯然受到天氣和您提到的較弱的新住宅的影響。但由於天氣可能開始變得更加配合，至少在十月的大部分時間裡，你在那裡看到了什麼？當我們從終端市場以及利潤率的角度來審視 25 年時，您是如何具體考慮這條線的？

Any color you can give us there?

你能給我們什麼顏色嗎？

Yeah, I'll take that, Trey. This is Randy here. Just on -- I think we called out a bit in and around our Building Solutions business in the US, supported primarily and around demand in the energy and water side of the equation, very similar to our Materials business in terms of the connectivity and related to the IIJA funding as well as some of the Inflation Reduction Act and other legislation that actually has created a strong demand environment. Very similar to the Materials business, the backlogs there are good.

是的，我會接受的，特雷。這是蘭迪。剛剛 - 我認為我們在美國的建築解決方案業務及其周圍進行了一些宣傳，主要支持能源和水方面的需求，這與我們的材料業務在連接性和相關方面非常相似IIJA 資金以及一些《通貨膨脹削減法案》和其他立法實際上創造了強勁的需求環境。與材料業務非常相似，那裡的積壓情況很好。

The outlook is strong. Over the next six to nine months, it's really our ability to execute and whether, as you call out, prohibited that. But the underlying demand environment continues to be strong, both at a federal and a state level. And that goes for infra projects, but also goes for those kind of onshoring, reshoring, mega projects that we've called out in the past.

前景強勁。在接下來的六到九個月裡，這實際上是我們的執行能力，以及是否如您所說的那樣禁止這樣做。但聯邦和州層級的潛在需求環境仍然強勁。這不僅適用於基礎設施項目，也適用於我們過去呼籲的那些在岸、回流、大型項目。

Okay. And then maybe a little bit higher level question, and this might actually also be a little bit longer-term looking question as well. In light of the election results a few days ago, any thoughts on what a Trump presidency, any changes -- and the changes we've seen here in Congress, any thoughts on implications that could have, if any, for infrastructure and maybe what that could mean for your business overall?

好的。然後可能是一個更高層次的問題，這實際上也可能是一個更長遠的問題。鑑於幾天前的選舉結果，對川普總統任期的任何想法、任何變化以及我們在國會看到的變化，對可能對基礎設施產生影響（如果有的話）的任何想法這對您的整體業務意味著什麼？

Yeah, sure, Trey. Jim here. I'll take that. Listen, clearly, it's very early days at this stage. I'm not going to speculate, but we're fortunate that we operate in a sector where we have bipartisan support for the last number of years, right, for construction across both sides of the aisles, right?

是的，當然，特雷。吉姆在這裡。我會接受的。聽著，顯然，現階段還處於早期階段。我不想猜測，但我們很幸運，我們所在的行業在過去幾年中得到了兩黨的支持，對吧，對兩黨的建設都給予支持，對嗎？

But CRH, we're a company, we're over 50 years old as a company. And we've seen, over that period, over those decades, we've seen many changes in government, many changes in administration, and we've been through many different economic cycles.

但是 CRH，我們是一家公司，我們已經有 50 多年的歷史了。我們已經看到，在那段時期，在這幾十年裡，我們看到了政府的許多變化，行政管理的許多變化，我們經歷了許多不同的經濟週期。

And at the core of the company, we're supplying sophisticated Building Materials Solutions to the construction sector. And really, no matter what the government or the administration, we continue to deliver consistent performance through the cycles and administration changes. And actually, over that period, over the last 10 and 50-year period, the TSO for the business is over 16% for both periods. So well versed in terms of changes in administration and well versed in terms of dealing with those.

作為公司的核心，我們為建築業提供先進的建築材料解決方案。事實上，無論政府或行政部門如何，我們都會在周期和行政變更中繼續提供一致的績效。實際上，在過去 10 年和 50 年期間，該業務的 TSO 在這兩個時期都超過 16%。非常熟悉管理方面的變化，也非常熟悉處理這些變化。

Okay. Thank you, Jim. Best of luck to everyone.

好的。謝謝你，吉姆。祝大家好運。

Okay. Well, that concludes the presentation for this morning. Now I'm going to hand you back -- apologies, now I'm going to hand you over to Albert for some closing remarks. Thank you.

好的。好了，今天早上的演講就到此結束。現在我要把你交還給你——抱歉，現在我要把你交給阿爾伯特做一些結束語。謝謝。

And look, thanks, Jim. Look, as Jim said, it's all we have time for you today. I want to thank you for your questions. Just before we disconnect, I just want to leave you with some parting words. As many of you know, I'll be retiring at the end of this year, having the great privilege of leading CRH for 11 years as Chief Executive.

看，謝謝，吉姆。聽著，正如吉姆所說，我們今天只有這些時間給你看。我想感謝你的提問。在我們分手之前，我只想給你一些臨別贈言。正如你們許多人所知，我將於今年年底退休，並有幸擔任 CRH 執行長 11 年。

And so this will be my last earnings call. Many of you have followed CRH for a long time, and I've very much enjoyed our interactions, our chats, our challenges over the years. But I sincerely wish you all the very best in your future endeavors.

所以這將是我最後一次財報電話會議。你們中的許多人已經關注 CRH 很長一段時間了，我非常喜歡我們多年來的互動、聊天和挑戰。但我衷心祝福您在未來的工作中一切順利。

I have no doubt that in handing over to Jim, I'm leaving CRH in very capable hands. And as I said earlier, I believe the business is very well positioned to capitalize on the future growth and value creation opportunities that lie ahead.

我毫不懷疑，在將 CRH 移交給 Jim 後，我將把 CRH 交給非常有能力的人。正如我之前所說，我相信該業務處於非常有利的位置，可以利用未來的成長和價值來創造機會。

Thanks, Albert. And on behalf of myself and everybody in CRH, we'd like to thank you for your exceptional leadership and contribution to the business over the last 26 years. I thank everybody for dialing in this morning and for your attention, and I look forward to talking to you again in February when we will report out our fourth quarter and our full year results. Have a good day. Thank you.

謝謝，艾伯特。我們謹代表我自己和 CRH 的每個人，感謝您在過去 26 年來的卓越領導力和對業務的貢獻。我感謝大家今天早上的撥通和關注，我期待在二月份再次與你們交談，屆時我們將報告我們的第四季度和全年業績。祝你有美好的一天。謝謝。

Thank you. Your conference call has now ended. You may now disconnect.

謝謝。您的電話會議現已結束。您現在可以斷開連線。