CSW Industrials Inc (CSW) 2025 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Greetings, and welcome to the CSW Industrials third-quarter earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. It is now my pleasure to introduce Alexa Huerta. Please go ahead.

大家好，歡迎參加 CSW Industrials 第三季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）提醒一下，本次會議正在錄音。現在我很高興介紹 Alexa Huerta。請繼續。

Thank you, Stacy. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the CSW Industrials fiscal 2025 third-quarter earnings call. Joining me today on the call is Joseph Armes, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of CSW Industrials; and James Perry, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

謝謝你，史黛西。大家早安，歡迎參加 CSW Industrials 2025 財年第三季財報電話會議。今天與我一起參加電話會議的還有 CSW Industrials 董事長、執行長兼總裁 Joseph Armes；以及執行副總裁兼財務長詹姆斯佩里 (James Perry)。

We issued our earnings release, updated Investor Relations presentation and Form 10-Q prior to the market's opening today, all of which are available on the investor portions of our website at www.cswindustrials.com. This call is being webcast and information on accessing the replay is included in the earnings release.

我們在今天市場開盤前發布了收益報告、更新的投資者關係介紹和 10-Q 表，所有這些內容均可在我們網站 www.cswindustrials.com 的投資者部分查閱。本次電話會議正在進行網路直播，重播資訊已包含在收益報告中。

During this call, we will make forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Actual results could materially differ because of factors discussed today in our earnings release and comments made during the call as well as the risk factors identified in our annual report on Form 10-K and other filings with the SEC. We do not undertake any duty to update any forward-looking statements. I will now turn the call over to Joe.

在本次電話會議中，我們將做出前瞻性陳述。這些聲明是基於目前的預期和假設，且受各種風險和不確定性的影響。由於我們今天的收益報告中討論的因素和電話會議上發表的評論以及我們在 10-K 表年度報告和向美國證券交易委員會提交的其他文件中確定的風險因素，實際結果可能存在重大差異。我們不承擔更新任何前瞻性陳述的責任。現在我將電話轉給喬。

Thank you, Alexa, and good morning, everyone. I'm pleased to announce that once again, our team has delivered record results for revenue, adjusted earnings per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA for the fiscal third quarter of this year.

謝謝你，Alexa，大家早安。我很高興地宣布，我們的團隊在今年財年第三季再次取得了創紀錄的營收、調整後每股攤薄收益和調整後 EBITDA 的業績。

This morning, we reported fiscal third quarter revenue of $194 million as well as fiscal third quarter adjusted EBITDA of $42 million, adjusted earnings per diluted share of $1.48 and adjusted net income of $25 million. Our adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 70 basis points to 21.7% in the quarter. I'm proud to note that each of our three business segments delivered top line growth and impressive profitability during the quarter.

今天上午，我們報告了第三財季營收為 1.94 億美元，第三財季調整後 EBITDA 為 4,200 萬美元，調整後每股攤薄收益為 1.48 美元，調整後淨收入為 2,500 萬美元。本季度，我們的調整後 EBITDA 利潤率擴大了 70 個基點，達到 21.7%。我很自豪地註意到，我們的三個業務部門在本季度都實現了營收成長和令人矚目的獲利能力。

James will provide further details on the performance of each segment during the fiscal third quarter. We have continued to execute on our capital allocation strategy. During the fiscal third quarter, we deployed $42 million of the proceeds from our follow-on equity offering to fund the strategic acquisition of PF WaterWorks.

詹姆斯將提供有關第三財季各部門業績的更多詳細資訊。我們繼續執行我們的資本配置策略。在第三財季，我們利用後續股票發行所得的 4,200 萬美元資助對 PF WaterWorks 的策略性收購。

Through this acquisition, in the Contractor Solutions segment, we expanded our product offering with innovative, eco-friendly drain management solutions. These new synergistic products will be added to our current wholesale distribution network expanding PF WaterWorks historical path to the market through the retail channel.

透過此次收購，在承包商解決方案領域，我們透過創新、環保的排水管理解決方案擴展了我們的產品範圍。這些新的協同產品將被添加到我們目前的批發分銷網絡中，拓展 PF WaterWorks 透過零售通路進入市場的歷史道路。

We expect calendar year 2025 to be active from an M&A standpoint and CSWI will remain diligent and disciplined when evaluating acquisition opportunities, focusing on synergistic, innovative investment opportunities with attractive risk-adjusted returns that will enhance shareholder value. CSWI has a long-demonstrated track record of respecting capital and delivering growth and shareholder value.

我們預計，從併購的角度來看，2025 年將是活躍的一年，CSWI 將在評估收購機會時保持勤勉和嚴謹，專注於具有吸引力的風險調整回報的協同創新投資機會，從而提高股東價值。CSWI 長期以來致力於尊重資本、實現成長和股東價值。

Our strong balance sheet together with our capital allocation discipline has been the cornerstone of success for CSWI. By aligning capital and labor, we are driving impressive results. Our commitment to our customer satisfaction and our focus on leveraging our distribution network positions us for long-term growth and profitability.

我們強勁的資產負債表和資本配置紀律一直是 CSWI 成功的基石。透過整合資本和勞動力，我們取得了令人矚目的成果。我們致力於讓客戶滿意，並專注於利用我們的分銷網絡，這為我們實現長期成長和獲利奠定了基礎。

At this time, I will turn the call over to James for a closer look at our results. And following his comments, I will return and conclude with our prepared -- and conclude our prepared remarks.

現在，我將把電話轉給詹姆斯，讓他仔細看看我們的結果。在他發表評論之後，我將回來並結束我們準備好的演講。

Thank you, Joe, and good morning, everyone. As Joe mentioned, our consolidated revenue during the fiscal third quarter of 2025 was a record $194 million, a $19 million or 11% increase when compared to the prior year period. $15 million of the revenue growth came from the Dust Free, PSP Products and PF WaterWorks acquisitions that we completed during the last 12 months. The additional $3 million of growth was organic, primarily due to increased volumes. Consolidated gross profit in the fiscal third quarter was $80 million, representing 8% growth over the prior year period.

謝謝你，喬，大家早安。正如喬所提到的，我們 2025 財年第三季的綜合收入達到創紀錄的 1.94 億美元，與去年同期相比成長了 1,900 萬美元，增幅為 11%。 1,500 萬美元的營收成長來自於我們在過去 12 個月內完成的 Dust Free、PSP Products 和 PF WaterWorks 收購。額外的 300 萬美元增長是有機增長，主要歸因於銷量增加。第三財季綜合毛利為 8,000 萬美元，較去年同期成長 8%。

Our gross profit margin declined by 90 basis points to 41.4% compared to 42.3% in the prior year period due to increased freight expenses. Our consolidated adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter increased by $5 million to a fiscal third quarter record $42 million, which was 14% growth when compared to the prior year period. Our adjusted EBITDA margin improved by 70 basis points to 21.7% as compared to 21% in the prior year quarter, demonstrating our commitment to delivering operating leverage.

由於運費增加，我們的毛利率從去年同期的 42.3% 下降了 90 個基點至 41.4%。我們第三季的綜合調整後 EBITDA 增加了 500 萬美元，達到第三財季創紀錄的 4,200 萬美元，與去年同期相比成長了 14%。我們的調整後 EBITDA 利潤率較去年同期的 21% 提高了 70 個基點，達到 21.7%，這表明我們致力於實現營運槓桿。

Adjusted net income attributable to CSWI in the quarter was a fiscal third quarter record of $25 million, with a record $1.48 of adjusted earnings per diluted share, compared to $17 million or $1.07 of adjusted earnings per diluted share in the prior year period, representing growth of 49%, due to the aforementioned performance and lower interest expense, which has now become interest income due to the full repayment of our revolver balance in the second quarter.

本季度歸屬於 CSWI 的調整後淨收入達到創紀錄的第三季度 2500 萬美元，調整後每股攤薄收益達到創紀錄的 1.48 美元，而去年同期的調整後每股攤薄收益為 1700 萬美元或 1.07 美元，增長 49%，這得益於循環信貸前收入和較低的利息收益（由於我們在信貸前收入”

The adjustments to EBITDA, net income and EPS in the quarter are two items: the release of a tax indemnification asset and uncertain tax positions related to acquisitions and the acquisition broker fee we paid during the quarter for PF WaterWorks.

本季度對 EBITDA、淨收入和 EPS 的調整包括兩項：釋放稅收補償資產和與收購相關的不確定稅收狀況以及我們在本季度為 PF WaterWorks 支付的收購經紀費。

Both of these items are included in our Contractor Solutions segment results. During the third quarter, our Contractor Solutions segment, with $132 million of revenue accounted for 67% of our consolidated revenue and delivered $16.7 million or 14.5% total growth when compared to the prior year quarter. Of the revenue growth in the quarter, $15.3 million or 13.3% came from our recent acquisitions, while the remaining $1.4 million or 1.2% was organic volume growth.

這兩項均包含在我們的承包商解決方案部門的結果中。第三季度，我們的承包商解決方案部門的營收為 1.32 億美元，占我們綜合收入的 67%，與去年同期相比成長 1,670 萬美元，成長 14.5%。本季的營收成長中，1,530 萬美元（13.3%）來自我們最近的收購，其餘 140 萬美元（1.2%）是有機銷售成長。

During the quarter, growth was reported in the HVAC/R, electrical and plumbing end markets, offset slightly by a decline in the architecturally specified building products in market within Contractor Solutions. Adjusted EBITDA for the segment was $37.5 million or 28.4% of revenue compared to $33 million or 28.6% of revenue in the prior year period.

本季度，暖通空調/冷凍、電氣和管道終端市場均實現成長，但承包商解決方案市場中建築專用建築產品的下滑略有抵消。該部門的調整後 EBITDA 為 3,750 萬美元，佔營收的 28.4%，而去年同期為 3,300 萬美元，佔營收的 28.6%。

The slight adjusted EBITDA margin decline came from lower gross margins due to increased freight expenses previously mentioned and acquisition integration costs. As a reminder, the fiscal third quarter is our seasonally low point of the year for this segment, which impacts our top line and margins due to lower operating leverage on our fixed costs.

調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率略有下降，是由於先前提到的運費增加和收購整合成本導致的毛利率下降。提醒一下，第三財季是我們該部門今年的季節性低點，由於固定成本的營運槓桿較低，這影響了我們的營業收入和利潤率。

Our Specialized Reliability segment revenue increased by 3% to $34.6 million as compared to the prior period. Revenues increased in the general industrial and rail transportation end markets but declined in the mining and energy end markets. The increased revenue was driven primarily by an increase in unit volumes over the prior period.

我們的專業可靠性部門營收與上一季相比成長了 3%，達到 3,460 萬美元。一般工業和軌道交通終端市場收入增加，但採礦和能源終端市場收入下降。收入增加主要由於上一時期單位銷售增加。

The segment EBITDA of $6.6 million in the third quarter, represented an increase of 26% from $5.2 million in the prior year period. And the EBITDA margin improved by 360 basis points to 19.1% in the current period, driven primarily by operational efficiencies and the prudent management of operating expenses. Our Engineered Building Solutions segment revenue increased to $28.8 million, a 3% increase as compared to $27.9 million in the prior year period, driven by backlog conversion to revenue.

第三季該部門的 EBITDA 為 660 萬美元，較去年同期的 520 萬美元成長 26%。本期間 EBITDA 利潤率提高了 360 個基點，達到 19.1%，主要得益於營運效率的提高和營運費用的審慎管理。我們的工程建築解決方案部門營收增至 2,880 萬美元，較去年同期的 2,790 萬美元成長 3%，這得益於積壓訂單轉化為營收。

Bidding and booking trends remained solid during the fiscal third quarter with our book-to-bill ratio for the trailing eight quarters at 1:1. We continue to see favorable margin mix in bookings and the backlog with our focus on quality contractors and project estimations.

第三財季的競標和預訂趨勢依然穩健，過去八個季度的訂單出貨比為 1：1。由於我們專注於優質承包商和專案估算，我們繼續看到訂單和積壓訂單的有利利潤組合。

Segment EBITDA grew modestly at 3% to $4.1 million, or a 14.2% EBITDA margin, compared to $4 million and a similar 14.2% EBITDA margin in the prior year period. We continue to target a 20% EBITDA margin for this segment in the intermediate term. But keep in mind that the margin will fluctuate from quarter-to-quarter due to project mix and the seasonality of the construction market. Transitioning to our strong balance sheet and cash flow. We ended our fiscal third quarter 2025 with $214 million of cash and reported cash flow from operations of $12 million compared to $47 million in the same quarter last year.

分部 EBITDA 小幅成長 3% 至 410 萬美元，EBITDA 利潤率為 14.2%，而去年同期為 400 萬美元，EBITDA 利潤率為 14.2%。我們中期繼續將該部門的 EBITDA 利潤率定為 20%。但請記住，由於專案組合和建築市場的季節性，利潤率會逐季度波動。轉向我們強勁的資產負債表和現金流。截至 2025 財年第三季度，我們的現金餘額為 2.14 億美元，報告的經營活動現金流為 1,200 萬美元，去年同期為 4,700 萬美元。

Cash flow from operations in the fiscal third quarter decreased due to a $17 million tax payment deferral mentioned on our last earnings call from the fiscal first half of 2025 to the fiscal third quarter, under a temporary federal tax relief related to the severe storms and flooding in Texas in early calendar year 2024. Inventory also increased in the third quarter of 2025 compared to the prior year period.

第三財季的營運活動現金流減少，原因是我們在上次財報電話會議上提到，根據與 2024 年初德州發生的嚴重風暴和洪水相關的臨時聯邦稅收減免，將納稅期限從 2025 財年上半年推遲到第三財季，金額為 1,700 萬美元。與去年同期相比，2025 年第三季的庫存也有所增加。

In order to strategically offset risk from the potential port strike and other potential disruptive events that we anticipated could occur in the first calendar quarter of 2025. Our free cash flow, defined as cash flow from operations minus capital expenditures, was $8.5 million in the fiscal third quarter as compared to $43.1 million in the same period a year ago. This resulted in free cash flow per share of $0.50 in the fiscal third quarter as compared to $2.76 in the same period a year ago, due to the items I previously mentioned.

為了從策略上抵消我們預計可能在 2025 年第一季發生的潛在港口罷工和其他潛在破壞性事件帶來的風險。我們的自由現金流（即經營活動產生的現金流量減去資本支出）在第三財季為 850 萬美元，去年同期為 4,310 萬美元。由於我之前提到的項目，這導致第三財季每股自由現金流為 0.50 美元，去年同期為 2.76 美元。

As discussed last quarter, we repaid all of our borrowings under the revolver in September, utilizing the cash received from our follow-on equity offering and our strong cash flows. As a result, the company was able to eliminate most of our interest expense and invest the net proceeds from the equity offering and money market accounts to generate interest income since the equity offering.

正如上個季度所討論的那樣，我們利用後續股票發行所獲得的現金和強勁的現金流，在 9 月償還了所有循環信貸借款。因此，公司能夠消除大部分利息支出，並投資股票發行和貨幣市場帳戶的淨收益來產生股票發行以來的利息收入。

During the fiscal third quarter, we made a $42 million capital investment for the acquisition of PF WaterWorks, as Joe mentioned. Our effective tax rate for the fiscal third quarter was 13.8% on a GAAP basis and 24.5% when adjusted to exclude the previously disclosed release of a tax indemnification assets and uncertain tax position accruals for TRUaire and Falcon as well as the acquisition broker fee I mentioned.

正如喬所提到的，在第三財季，我們為收購 PF WaterWorks 進行了 4,200 萬美元的資本投資。根據 GAAP，我們第三財季的有效稅率為 13.8%，如果扣除先前披露的稅收補償資產、TRUaire 和 Falcon 的不確定稅務狀況應計費用以及我提到的收購經紀費，則調整後的有效稅率為 24.5%。

As a reminder, our tax rate in the fiscal third quarter can fluctuate more than other quarters due to seasonality. We still believe we will deliver full year growth in revenue, EBITDA and EPS, along with continued strong cash flow.

提醒一下，由於季節性原因，我們第三財季的稅率可能比其他季度波動更大。我們仍然相信，我們將實現全年收入、EBITDA 和 EPS 的成長，同時繼續保持強勁的現金流。

With that, I'll now turn the call back to Joe for his closing remarks.

說完這些，我現在將電話轉回給喬，請他作結束語。

Thank you, James. To summarize, during the fiscal third quarter of 2025, we posted record quarterly results for revenue, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted earnings per share and adjusted net income. Our strong 11% revenue growth included both inorganic growth from our recent acquisitions and organic volume growth.

謝謝你，詹姆斯。總而言之，在 2025 財年第三季度，我們公佈了創紀錄的營收、調整後 EBITDA、調整後每股盈餘和調整後淨收入的季度業績。我們強勁的 11% 營收成長包括最近收購帶來的無機成長和有機銷售成長。

Looking ahead to our final fiscal quarter of 2025, we will continue to focus on delivering sustainable growth that exceeds the markets we serve, and we will look for opportunities to drive operating leverage. We will continue to identify and pursue accretive acquisitions of innovative companies and products that enhance our growth.

展望 2025 財年的最後一個季度，我們將繼續專注於實現超越我們所服務市場的可持續成長，並尋找推動經營槓桿的機會。我們將繼續尋找並尋求能夠促進我們成長的創新公司和產品的增值收購。

I would like to take a moment to welcome the most recent group of employees to join the CSWI family through our acquisition of PF WaterWorks in November of 2024. As I mentioned earlier, PF WaterWorks provides dependable drain management performance solutions that promote self-sufficiency and make life easier for homeowners, contractors, property managers and builders.

我想花點時間歡迎最新一批員工加入 CSWI 大家庭，我們於 2024 年 11 月收購了 PF WaterWorks。正如我之前提到的，PF WaterWorks 提供可靠的排水管理性能解決方案，促進自給自足，並使房主、承包商、物業經理和建築商的生活更加輕鬆。

PF WaterWorks has grown significantly through product innovation and service, which are both totally consistent with the CSWI ethos. Bringing these unique plumbing products and the new team under the CSWI umbrella will allow us to expand the distribution of these products to the important pro-trade channel. I would also like to congratulate our RectorSeal team for being awarded the 2024 Voice of the Distributor award from HARDI, the industry-leading trade group, at their recent HVAC Distributor Conference.

PF WaterWorks 透過產品創新和服務取得了長足的發展，這兩者都與 CSWI 精神完全一致。將這些獨特的管道產品和新團隊納入 CSWI 旗下，將使我們能夠將這些產品的分銷擴展到重要的親貿易管道。我還要祝賀我們的 RectorSeal 團隊在最近的 HVAC 經銷商大會上榮獲業界領先的貿易集團 HARDI 頒發的 2024 年經銷商之聲獎。

This is their single award recognizing the Supplier of the Year and is based on distributor nominations as well as a number of performance metrics. This award is a testament to the hard work of our teams and our commitment to our customers. And lastly, I want to close my prepared remarks by thanking the dedicated team here at CSWI, who collectively own 4% of the company through our employee stock ownership plan as well as all of our shareholders for their interest in and investment in CSWI Industrials.

這是他們表彰年度供應商的唯一獎項，基於分銷商提名以及一系列績效指標。該獎項證明了我們團隊的辛勤工作和我們對客戶的承諾。最後，在結束我的演講時，我想感謝 CSWI 敬業的團隊，他們透過我們的員工持股計畫共同擁有公司 4% 的股份，並感謝所有股東對 CSWI Industrials 的興趣和投資。

Stacy, we are now ready for questions.

史黛西，現在我們可以回答問題了。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指令）

Jon Tanwanteng, CJS Securities.

Jon Tanwanteng，CJS 證券。

Hi, good morning. Thank you for taking my questions and nice quarter. I was wondering first if you could address the impact of freight on the margins and then on gross profit year-over-year? What was the exact impact, I guess? And where do you see that trending in terms of the headwind? And are you expecting to offset that any point of your pricing or other mechanisms?

嗨，早安。感謝您回答我的問題，非常愉快。我想知道您首先能否談談運費對利潤率的影響，然後談談對同比毛利潤的影響？我想，具體的影響是什麼？從逆風角度來看，您認為趨勢如何？您是否希望透過定價或其他機制來抵消這一點？

Yeah, Jon, thanks for being on as always. This is James. Yes, freight was certainly a headwind as you well know, and a lot of our shareholders know, there's a four- to six-months lag on the ocean freight from the time a container leaves Asia crosses the ocean and works its way through cost of goods sold.

是的，喬恩，一如既往地感謝您的參與。這是詹姆斯。是的，如您所知，貨運確實是一個阻力，我們的許多股東也知道，從貨櫃離開亞洲跨越海洋併計入銷售成本，海運需要四到六個月的時間。

So this quarter saw those kind of peak freight rates we had back in the spring and summer. Rates have started to come down since then to some degree, but obviously it can remain volatile. It was the significant headwind we saw in the quarter.

因此本季的運費達到了春季和夏季的高峰。自那時起，利率已開始一定程度下降，但顯然仍會保持波動。這是我們在本季看到的巨大阻力。

There was also, we mentioned in the Q, a freight expense alignment. We had an amount of freight that we had accrued that in the second quarter didn't get pushed all the way through expense. And as we true things up in the third quarter, there was a bit of an alignment shift from Q2 to Q3, about 100 basis points of margin, if you look at it from that perspective, would have shifted. So that kind of explains the gap.

我們在問答中也提到了運費費用調整。我們在第二季累積了一些運費，但這些運費並沒有全部計入費用。當我們在第三季確認情況時，我們發現從第二季到第三季出現了一些調整，如果從這個角度來看，利潤率大約會有 100 個基點的調整。這也就解釋了差距。

I'll remind you that we mentioned last quarter, that we have put forth our price increase earlier than normal. It went into effect January 1. So we would expect our fiscal fourth quarter to do a better job covering those freight expense increases that we saw as that pricing is now in place.

我提醒大家，我們在上個季度提到過，我們比平常更早提出了價格上漲。該法案於 1 月 1 日生效。因此，我們預計第四財季能夠更好地彌補我們看到的運費費用增加，因為現在定價已經到位。

Got it. So you would expect pricing to offset that on one side and freight rates to be coming down on the other as it seems to have peaked?

知道了。所以您是否預計，一方面定價會抵消這一影響，另一方面運費似乎已達到峰值，因此會下降？

That's right. Yeah, rates have started to come down. Again, given the lag, the last few weeks, we've certainly seen rates come down. The avoidance of a port strike was certainly a positive. Rates were starting to spike ahead of that mid-January deadline.

這是正確的。是的，利率已經開始下降。再次，考慮到過去幾週的滯後，我們確實看到利率下降。避免港口罷工無疑是件好事。在 1 月中旬截止日期之前，利率已開始飆升。

That looks like that's been resolved. Rates came down. Also with the at least current ease of conflict in the Middle East, the Red Sea has started to open back up. So forecasters see a potential decline in ocean freight but those are all -- those can all be somewhat temporary and there's a lot of exogenous factors, of course, going on.

看起來這個問題已經解決了。利率下降了。此外，隨著目前中東衝突的緩和，紅海已開始重新開放。因此，預測者認為海運量可能會下降，但這些都是暫時的，當然還有很多外生因素。

But we're seeing rates start to come down, which we would see the impact of kind of in our fiscal first and second quarter at this point. But the pricing we put in place covers the freight that we already know is in our cost of goods sold.

但我們看到利率開始下降，這將對我們的第一季和第二季的財報產生影響。但我們制定的定價已涵蓋了我們已經知道包含在銷售成本中的運費。

Got it. Okay. And then I think I heard you build inventory ahead of the potential strikes and other disruptions. Just how long do you expect to be holding on to that before maybe the risk is passed and you start to run that down?

知道了。好的。然後我想我聽說你在潛在的罷工和其他混亂發生之前建立了庫存。在風險轉移並開始耗盡之前，您預計要堅持多久？

Yeah. It's really just what we would have brought in probably more January, February, March, Jon, it's the stock up for the busy season. As we saw, you always bring in a little bit before the Lunar New Year, obviously, given our heavy reliance on Vietnam. So we always bring a little extra in. But a little more this year, obviously, with that port strike, we obviously saw the scare of that in the fall, I got through that.

是的。這實際上只是我們在一月、二月、三月可能要購買的貨物，喬恩，這是為繁忙季節儲備的庫存。如我們所見，由於我們嚴重依賴越南，顯然農曆新年前總會進口一些。因此我們總是會帶一些額外的東西。但是今年的情況明顯好轉了一點，由於發生了港口罷工，我們顯然在秋天看到了恐慌，但我已經度過了難關。

But we didn't want that to disrupt our stock-up season. So we brought some in ahead of the port strike. As I mentioned earlier, it looks like that's been relieved now, but it's inventory we were going to sell anyway. Secondly, with potential tariffs on certain parts of the world, that's kind of what we alluded to when I mentioned other disruptive events. So far, we've not seen any new action on that.

但我們不想讓這擾亂我們的儲備季節。因此我們在港口罷工之前就引進了一些。正如我之前提到的，現在看來這個問題已經緩解，但無論如何我們都要出售庫存。其次，由於世界某些地區可能徵收關稅，這就是我在提到其他破壞性事件時所暗示的。到目前為止，我們還沒有看到任何新的行動。

But given some of our product obviously comes from Asia, given that's out there, we wanted to get ahead of that. And so we bought a decent amount in early. That's really what you see that was affecting cash flow in the fiscal third quarter. But again, we didn't bring in anything above and beyond what we would need to bring in.

但考慮到我們的部分產品顯然來自亞洲，考慮到亞洲市場的存在，我們希望能夠領先其他市場。因此我們早期購買了相當數量的產品。這確實是您所看到的對第三財季現金流產生影響的因素。但再說一次，我們並沒有帶來超出我們需要的東西。

So now we have the couple of weeks that not a whole lot comes in because of Lunar New Year, at least not much gets shipped in the next two weeks. So now we'll ease that a little bit, and it will work its way through inventory very normally.

因此，現在由於農曆新年的關係，這幾週的進貨量不會很多，至少在接下來的兩週內不會有太多的發貨。所以現在我們會稍微放鬆一點，它就會非常正常地處理庫存。

If you look at the balance sheet year-over-year, also we'll remind people that about half of the inventory growth year-over-year from December to December was just from the acquisitions but didn't flow through cash flows. The way acquisitions are accounted for from a balance sheet standpoint, acquisitions alone are going to add your inventory balance.

如果您查看同比資產負債表，我們也會提醒大家，去年 12 月至 12 月年比庫存成長中約有一半僅來自收購，但並未流入現金流。從資產負債表的角度來看，收購的會計方式是單單收購就會增加您的庫存餘額。

Got it. That's helpful. Could you also address organic growth in the quarter, 1.8%? Just wondering how much volume and pricing was a component of that and what your thoughts are going forward from an organic growth perspective?

知道了。這很有幫助。能談談本季的有機成長率，1.8%嗎？只是想知道數量和定價佔了其中的多少比例，以及從有機增長的角度來看，您對未來的想法是什麼？

Yeah. Sure, John. I think we continue to expect mid- to high single-digit organic growth over a cycle. Year-to-date, organic growth is up 5.5%, 6%. So we're kind of in that zone from an organic perspective on year-to-date, and obviously, we look over a 12-month period, more importantly. The acquisitions we made will start feeding organic growth next year. So we'll see that, that we always talk about that's key to that vitality.

是的。當然，約翰。我認為我們將繼續預期一個週期內中高個位數的有機成長。今年迄今，有機成長率分別為 5.5% 和 6%。因此，從年初至今的有機角度來看，我們處於這個區域，顯然，更重要的是，我們要著眼於 12 個月的時間。我們進行的收購將從明年開始推動有機成長。所以我們會看到，我們總是在談論，這就是活力的關鍵。

During the quarter, there were a couple of things. We mentioned a slight offset to the growth in HVAC, electrical and plumbing by architecturally specified building products. That's our firestopping product. That was just a little bit softer industry-wide in the quarter. So that was a bit of a headwind in the quarter. We mentioned that in our 10-Q and in my script.

本季發生了幾件事。我們提到，建築專用建築產品略微抵消了暖通空調、電氣和管道的成長。這就是我們的防火產品。本季整個產業的成長略微疲軟。因此，這對本季來說是一個小小的阻力。我們在 10-Q 和我的腳本中提到了這一點。

We also, kind of as we end the calendar year, have some true-ups on rebates, and that offset some of the pricing impact. So yeah, we did have favorable pricing year-over-year, but rebates offset that in the quarter just as you true-up those accruals, volume was up a relatively normal amount. But again, quarter-to-quarter, things are going to move around a little bit.

我們也會在日曆年結束時對回扣進行一些調整，以抵銷部分定價影響。是的，與去年同期相比，我們的定價確實有利，但本季的回扣抵​​消了這一因素，正如你調整這些應計項目一樣，交易量上升了一個相對正常的量。但是，每季的情況都會有所改變。

The last thing I would mention is the OEMs you've certainly seen talked about a lot of pull forward on getting the old equipment that could be produced through December 31 out the door as well as the new equipment getting ready for the new refrigerants. So distributors are holding a lot of both.

我最後要提到的是，您肯定已經看到，原始設備製造商 (OEM) 正在大力推進可在 12 月 31 日之前生產的舊設備的推出，以及為新冷媒做好準備的新設備的生產。因此分銷商都持有大量這兩種股票。

So while it wasn't a major headwind necessarily, there was certainly a minor headwind and distributors holding a lot of the OEM inventory which obviously takes a lot of working capital dollars and probably put a bit of a headwind just in the quarter on holding the parts and accessories, but we're seeing normal demand as we enter the fourth fiscal quarter. And as we look into 2025, we're expecting a good year.

因此，雖然這不一定是一個重大的不利因素，但肯定存在輕微的不利因素，分銷商持有大量 OEM 庫存，這顯然需要大量的營運資金，並且可能在本季度對持有零件和配件造成一點不利影響，但進入第四財季，我們看到需求正常。展望 2025 年，我們期待這將是豐收的一年。

Got it. That's helpful. And then last of all, just an update on the acquisition pipeline. What are you seeing out there entering '25? I know you did PF WaterWorks, which seems very nice. But I was just wondering about the scope and aperture and the opportunities that you're seeing, especially after you raised the equity and added cash on your balance sheet now?

知道了。這很有幫助。最後，只是關於收購管道的更新。進入25年你看到了什麼？我知道你做了 PF WaterWorks，看起來很不錯。但我只是想知道您所看到的範圍、深度和機會，特別是在您提高股本並在資產負債表上增加現金之後？

Yeah, Jon, thanks for asking. This is Joe. The -- as you recall, back in September, when we did the equity offering, we said we didn't really need that to do these smaller bolt-on acquisitions that we could do that out of our free cash flow. So we entered 2025 in a spectacular position to take advantage of what we hoped would be an opening of the M&A pipeline. And at this point, we're not at all disappointed in that.

是的，喬恩，謝謝你的詢問。這是喬。您還記得，早在九月份，當我們進行股票發行時，我們說過，我們並不需要進行這些規模較小的附加收購，我們可以用我們的自由現金流來進行。因此，我們在 2025 年處於一個極佳的位置，可以利用我們所希望的併購管道的開放。就這一點而言，我們對此一點也不失望。

We see opportunities in not only small acquisitions but also larger size acquisitions that are coming to market. And for us, it's really an exercise of maintaining our rigor, maintaining our discipline. There are opportunities there. We just need to wait for the right pitch to swing. So we're very optimistic and we like what we're seeing. We like the position we're in.

我們不僅在小型收購中看到了機遇，而且在即將進入市場的大型收購中也看到了機會。對我們來說，這其實是一種保持嚴謹、保持紀律的練習。那裡有機會。我們只需等待正確的音調來揮動。因此我們非常樂觀並且我們喜歡我們所看到的結果。我們喜歡我們所處的位置。

Okay, great. Thank you.

好的，太好了。謝謝。

Susan Maklari, Goldman Sachs.

高盛的蘇珊馬克拉里 (Susan Maklari)。

Thank you. Good morning, everyone. It's good to be here. My first question is on share gains. You've obviously seen a lot of that over the course of the last several quarters in the business. As you look out and even as you start to think about the next fiscal year, where do you see the most opportunities? And how should we think about that potentially coming together?

謝謝。大家早安。我很高興來到這裡。我的第一個問題是關於股價上漲。在過去幾季的業務過程中，你顯然已經看到了很多這樣的情況。當您展望甚至開始思考下一個財政年度時，您認為哪裡是最有機會的？我們該如何看待這種可能？

Yeah. Market share gains, thanks Susan, is an important part of our organic growth rate, that mid- to high single digits we talk about. Obviously, the industry is kind of growing low single digits. Our ability to pick up market share gains from competition continues to be a key part of our strategy.

是的。謝謝蘇珊，市佔率的成長是我們有機成長率的重要組成部分，也就是我們所說的中高個位數。顯然，該行業的成長率處於個位數以下。我們從競爭中獲得市場份額的能力仍然是我們策略的關鍵部分。

And we're putting our budget together, putting the bow on that for next fiscal year, market share gain is a part of that. We would also point to, obviously, we're in certain markets that are over-indexed like indoor air quality, search protection, mini splits, those type things. So that all kind of goes hand in hand. As we bring in these acquisitions that also gives us market share opportunity because more of our distribution customers want to have fewer vendors.

我們正在製定預算，為下一財政年度做好準備，市場份額的成長是其中的一部分。我們還要指出，顯然，我們處於某些被過度指數化的市場，例如室內空氣品質、搜尋保護、迷你分離式空調等等。所以一切都是相輔相成的。當我們進行這些收購時，我們也獲得了市場份額的機會，因為更多的分銷客戶希望擁有更少的供應商。

And so the more product we can offer them gives us that opportunity to pick up market share gain that they can get a full palette, more of a truckload, a full truckload, whatever it may be from us. So while we don't break out the specifics, clearly building up to a mid- to high single-digit organic growth expectation includes a good chunk of market share gain that Jeff and his team are looking toward.

因此，我們能為他們提供的產品越多，我們就越有機會獲得市場份額，他們就能從我們這裡得到一整托盤、一卡車的產品，無論它們是什麼。因此，雖然我們沒有透露具體細節，但顯然建立中高個位數的自然成長預期包括傑夫和他的團隊所期望的很大一部分市場份額的成長。

Okay. That's helpful. And then you mentioned that you closed the PF deal in the quarter. As you think about the synergies there, can you just elaborate a bit on that? And how we should be thinking about them starting to expand within the channel as we do get into the busier spring and summer seasons?

好的。這很有幫助。然後您提到您在本季度完成了 PF 交易。當您考慮那裡的協同作用時，您能詳細說明一下嗎？當我們進入更繁忙的春季和夏季時，我們應該如何考慮它們開始在渠道內擴張？

Yeah. This is Joe. Thanks for asking. It's the really, really innovative, interesting products that have traditionally been sold through the retail market. And so really, where we see the opportunity to accelerate the growth there will be in the professional trade in the wholesale distribution side of the business, which is really our bread and butter.

是的。這是喬。謝謝你的提問。這些是真正具有創新性和趣味性的產品，傳統上是透過零售市場銷售的。因此，我們看到了加速成長的機會，那就是批發分銷業務中的專業貿易，這才是我們真正的收入來源。

And so we see that as the opportunity of taking if not all of those products, at least a number of those products through the professional trade, making those available to professional plumbers and we see lots of opportunity there. We have the distribution for that, that they just did not have.

因此，我們認為這是一個機會，即使不是全部，也可以透過專業貿易獲得其中的一部分產品，並將其提供給專業水管工，我們看到了很多機會。我們有這個分佈，而他們沒有。

One thing I'll mention, Susan, of course, that being a plumbing product, it's not necessarily a seasonal, so we're not having to ramp up for the busy HVAC season. So we'll spread that ramp up through the year and introduce that to our customers. Some are the same customers with that dual trade we've talked about with HVAC and plumbing. So I think we're going to have a real good take on that. And again, that's part of your market share gain question to displace other plumbing products potentially.

蘇珊，當然我要提一件事，作為管道產品，它不一定具有季節性，因此我們不必在繁忙的暖通空調季節加大生產。因此，我們將在全年擴大這一規模，並將其介紹給我們的客戶。有些客戶與我們討論過的暖通空調和管道雙重貿易相同。所以我認為我們會對此有一個非常好的看法。再說一次，這是您市場份額增加問題的一部分，可能會取代其他管道產品。

Yeah. Okay, that's great color. Thank you both and good luck with everything.

是的。好的，顏色很棒。謝謝你們倆，祝一切順利。

Natalia Bak, Citi.

花旗銀行的 Natalia Bak。

Hi, good morning. Congrats on the quarter. I guess first question that I want to ask is if you could elaborate on the overall macro environment, there seems to be a lot of cross currents out there in terms of higher for longer rates or still weak US ISM and now increased geopolitical uncertainty. So what are your distributors telling you about the market? And how are you thinking about the macro as you transition towards fiscal year 2026?

嗨，早安。恭喜本季取得佳績。我想問的第一個問題是，您能否詳細說明一下整體宏觀環境，目前似乎存在許多交叉趨勢，例如長期利率走高、美國 ISM 指數仍然疲軟，以及現在地緣政治不確定性加劇。那你的經銷商對市場有什麼看法？在邁向 2026 財年之際，您如何考慮宏觀問題？

Morning, Natalia, it's James. Thanks for that. Yeah, I think we're still favorably inclined. Obviously, it looks like interest rates are higher for longer, as you say. Inflation seems to be relatively in check, reading kind of what the Fed is saying as recently as yesterday with Chairman Powell.

早安，娜塔莉亞，我是詹姆斯。謝謝。是的，我認為我們仍然持贊同態度。顯然，正如您所說，看起來利率會在較長時間內維持較高水準。通貨膨脹似乎相對受到控制，這與聯準會主席鮑威爾昨天發表的言論類似。

And so we're watching it closely, but we're expecting a normal year of growth. The HVAC market doesn't move around quite as much as some of the other economically dependent factors. You may have a little more repair than replace at times. But again, our products are used for repair and maintenance. Existing home sales and new home sales have been a little down, but some of the housing permit numbers have been up a little bit lately.

因此我們正在密切關注，但我們預計今年將實現正常的成長。與其他一些受經濟影響的因素相比，HVAC 市場波動並不大。有時，修理工作可能會比更換工作多一些。但同樣，我們的產品用於維修和保養。現有房屋銷售量和新房銷售量略有下降，但部分房屋許可證數量最近略有上升。

So the take on new equipment and replacement equipment is there, at some point, you do have to replace your unit. I think we're probably past the pull forward we saw three, four years ago from COVID back into a normal cycle now. So obviously, interest rates being up a little bit higher mortgage rates being up could be a bit of a headwind there. But we continue to see favorable trends in our markets. And that, again, is we're just so critical with these acquisitions we're making, giving us the opportunity to offer more to our customers.

因此，需要新的設備和替換的設備，在某個時候，您確實必須更換您的設備。我認為，我們可能已經度過了三、四年前新冠疫情爆發的階段，現在又回到了正常週期。因此，顯然，利率略有上升，抵押貸款利率略有上升，可能會帶來一些阻力。但我們繼續看到市場呈現良好的趨勢。再次強調，我們對這些收購非常重視，這讓我們有機會為客戶提供更多服務。

If you look at the other couple of segments, clearly, the commercial construction market has been challenged for EBS, but our trailing eight-quarter book-to-bill of 1:1 tells you we continue to put high-quality products in the backlog. Our team is really focused on the right geographies, the right projects, being sure we get that estimation right so we can hit that 20% margin goal that we have. And as we put together next year's budget, we feel good about growth in that market as well.

如果你看看其他幾個細分市場，顯然商業建築市場對 EBS 提出了挑戰，但我們過去八個季度的訂單出貨比為 1：1，這表明我們繼續在積壓訂單中投入高品質的產品。我們的團隊真正專注於正確的地理位置、正確的項目，確保我們得到正確的估計，這樣我們才能達到 20% 的利潤目標。當我們制定明年的預算時，我們對市場的成長也感到滿意。

And then Specialized Reliability Solutions, that tends to be relatively GDP with maybe a little bit of a plus in it. So again, the energy market is somewhat important there. That was down this last quarter, but there's some favorable raise of light in the energy market, we think. You've got an international and domestic component within SRS. So we look more at the global market in that respect.

然後是專業可靠性解決方案，這往往是相對的 GDP，可能還有一點優勢。所以，能源市場在那裡非常重要。雖然上個季度有所下降，但我們認為，能源市場的前景出現了一些有利的上漲。SRS 中有一個國際和國內組件。因此，我們更關注全球市場。

So big picture, I think the macro environment is good. Maybe it's not great per se but given the -- as I mentioned earlier to Susan's question, our being over-indexed to higher growth markets within the sectors that we're in, give us the opportunity to exceed the macro environment expectations.

所以從整體來看，我認為宏觀環境是好的。或許這本身並不是很好，但考慮到——正如我之前在回答蘇珊的問題時提到的那樣，我們在所在行業中對高成長市場的過度指數化，使我們有機會超越宏觀環境的預期。

Got it. Helpful color. And then I'm just curious, like how, if at all, is the new administration impacting your business? Any impact from concerns regarding rollback on the IRA, for example, impacting heat pumps?

知道了。有用的顏色。然後我很好奇，新政府會對您的業務產生什麼影響（如果有的話）？對於 IRA 回滾的擔憂是否會產生任何影響，例如影響熱泵？

I think it's early. We're certainly tracking what's going on out there. The IRA itself, we've heard some of the OEMs say not much of that had come through. So they don't see that, that was much of a tailwind yet. And that going away, I don't think it's going to change things much.

我認為還早。我們當然在追蹤那裡發生的事情。對於 IRA 本身，我們聽到一些 OEM 表示，並沒有太多進展。所以他們還沒看到這一點，這還不是一種順風。而且我認為，即使這種情況消失了，事情也不會發生太大的改變。

We clearly have products that go into the heat pump market. We have products that go into the traditional market. So we're rather agnostic in that respect. So it doesn't seem like that's been a big factor in the success we've had or the industry has had. So I don't think that going away is much of an impact.

我們顯然有進入熱泵市場的產品。我們有進入傳統市場的產品。因此，我們在這方面持相當不可知的態度。因此，這似乎並不是我們或整個產業成功的重要因素。所以我不認為離開會帶來太大的影響。

Obviously, we're watching things like tariffs. And if we need to push through pricing to offset some of those tariffs, then we would take that opportunity. One thing I'll mention or note in that respect, that's a little more near term potentially, we watch the news closely as you do, obviously. As a reminder, we don't have any product coming out of Mexico. We have no product that comes out of Canada very, very little within our EBS group.

顯然，我們正在關注關稅等問題。如果我們需要透過定價來抵銷部分關稅，那麼我們就會抓住這個機會。在這方面我要提到或指出的一件事是，這可能只是近期的事情，顯然，我們會像您一樣密切關注新聞。提醒一下，我們沒有任何來自墨西哥的產品。我們 EBS 集團內幾乎沒有來自加拿大的產品。

So Mexico and Canada, which may have some near-term tariff headwinds don't really affect us. We have a little bit of product that goes into Canada. So if there's a cyclical tariffs, then we'll look at what we need to do there. As we've mentioned before, our China exposure is low teens these days within Contractor Solutions and virtually nothing in the other businesses. So single digits as an overall company.

因此，墨西哥和加拿大在短期內可能會遭遇一些關稅阻力，但這不會對我們有太大影響。我們有少量產品銷往加拿大。因此，如果存在周期性關稅，那麼我們就會研究我們需要做什麼。正如我們之前提到的，目前，我們在承包商解決方案領域的中國業務曝光率很低，而在其他業務領域則幾乎沒有。所以作為一家整體公司來說，其收入僅為個位數。

Vietnam is our biggest exposure. And Vietnam is on good relations right now and has not been talked about as much. So we're watching those things closely. We'll react as we need to.

越南是我們最大的風險敞口。目前兩國關係良好，有關越南的討論並不多。因此我們正在密切關注這些事態。我們將根據需要作出反應。

As a reminder, we already have tariffs on Chinese products, and we were able to pass that through last time. So to your point, we're watching things closely. And I'm sure when we talk again in May at the end of the fiscal year, there will be more things to respond to. But to date, we don't see a whole lot that would affect us directly, but we're watching that very carefully, of course, and we'll react appropriately and think we have good opportunity to do that.

提醒一下，我們已經對中國產品徵收了關稅，並且上次我們已經成功地轉嫁了這筆關稅。正如您所說，我們正在密切關注事態發展。我相信，當我們在財政年度末的五月再次進行談判時，還會有更多事情需要回應。但到目前為止，我們還沒有發現太多會直接影響我們的事情，但我們當然會非常密切地關注，我們會做出適當的反應，並認為我們有很好的機會來做到這一點。

Got it. Helpful. And then just one more final question for me. What about the refrigerant prebuy across the resi HVAC space? Is it impacting CSWI results, if at all?

知道了。很有幫助。最後，我還有一個問題。住宅暖通空調領域的冷媒預購情況如何？如果有的話，它是否會影響 CSWI 結果？

I mentioned just very briefly in response to Jon that we could have seen a little headwind in our fiscal Q3 because there was that prebuy of people stocking up on both the old refrigerant equipment and the new refrigerant equipment, so they could offer both to their customers and the OEMs can't produce the old equipment anymore as of January 1. So we may have seen a little headwind because the distributors have a lot of working capital tied up in capital equipment, in our parts and accessories may have seen that.

我在回答喬恩的問題時非常簡短地提到，我們在第三財季可能會遇到一些阻力，因為人們預購了舊冷媒設備和新冷媒設備，這樣他們就可以同時向客戶提供這兩種設備，而從 1 月 1 日起，原始設備製造商就不能再生產舊設備了。因此，我們可能看到了一些阻力，因為分銷商有大量的營運資金被投入到資本設備中，我們的零件和配件中可能已經看到了這一點。

So we would expect that now that our price increases in effect January 1 and anything we sell this fiscal fourth quarter and into the first quarter as people stock up, we've got a little extra tailwind on price as well, which is helpful. The refrigerant change itself as a reminder, doesn't affect us at all. We're agnostic to that.

因此，我們預計，既然我們的價格從 1 月 1 日起上漲，並且隨著人們的囤貨，我們在本財年第四季和第一季銷售的任何產品都會在價格上獲得一些額外的推動力，這是有幫助的。提醒一下，冷媒的更換本身對我們沒有任何影響。我們對此持懷疑態度。

The one potential tailwind is if people upgrade their systems to the new refrigerant to get better efficiency with SEER ratings that popped up a couple of years ago and more environmentally sound as well as potentially offsetting future repairs having new equipment, a new replacement unit is going to be positive for us overall. But we may have seen a little headwind in Q3 as we look back on it, but nothing dramatic. But that would have tampered our organic growth a little bit.

一個潛在的順風是，如果人們將他們的系統升級為新的冷媒，以獲得更好的效率，符合幾年前出現的 SEER 評級，更加環保，並有可能用新設備抵消未來的維修，那麼新的替換裝置對我們來說總體來說是有利的。但回顧第三季度，我們可能看到了一些阻力，但並不嚴重。但這會稍微損害我們的有機成長。

And Natalia, this is Joe. On your earlier questions, I think James did a great job talking about the operational effects. I think that was really the crux of your question. But as you zoom out and you think about the new administration, the regulatory scheme there and the enforcement of regulations around M&A and you think about higher interest rates for longer.

娜塔莉亞，這是喬。對於您之前的問題，我認為詹姆斯在談論營運效果方面做得非常好。我認為這確實是你問題的關鍵。但如果你把目光放遠，思考一下新政府、那裡的監管體係以及圍繞併購的監管規定的執行，你就會想到更高的利率將持續更長時間。

Both of those are good for our acquisition strategy because I think we might have a competitive advantage with the pristine balance sheet that we have, the dry powder that we have, we're in a much better position from an M&A standpoint than some of our competitors for those assets who may already have leverage and looking at interest payments that we don't have to look at.

這兩項都對我們的收購策略有利，因為我認為，憑藉我們擁有的良好資產負債表和充足的資金，我們可能具有競爭優勢，從併購的角度來看，我們比一些競爭對手處於更有利的地位，因為這些資產可能已經擁有槓桿，而且我們不需要考慮利息支付。

Got it. That's super helpful color. Thank you so much and congrats on the quarter again.

知道了。這是非常有用的顏色。非常感謝您，並再次恭喜本季取得佳績。

I would like to turn the floor over to Joe Armes for closing remarks.

我想請喬·阿姆斯作最後發言。

Yes. Thank you so much, everyone, for joining us for the third quarter conference call. We look forward to speaking to you again soon. Take care. Thank you.

是的。非常感謝大家參加我們的第三季電話會議。我們期待很快再次與您交談。小心。謝謝。

This concludes today's teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time, and thank you for your participation.

今天的電話會議到此結束。此時您可以斷開您的線路，感謝您的參與。