信達思 (CTAS) 2026 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good day, everyone, and welcome to the Cintas Corporation announces fiscal 2026 third quarter results conference call. Today's call is being recorded. At this time, I would like to turn the call over to Mr. Jared Mattingley, Vice President, Treasurer and Investor Relations. Please go ahead, sir.

大家好，歡迎參加 Cintas 公司 2026 財年第三季業績電話會議。今天的通話將會被錄音。此時，我想把電話交給副總裁、財務長兼投資人關係負責人賈里德‧馬廷利先生。請繼續，先生。

Thank you, Ross, and thank you for joining us. With me are Todd Schneider, President and Chief Executive Officer; Jim Rozakis, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer; and Scott Garula, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

謝謝你，羅斯，也謝謝你加入我們。與我一同出席的有：總裁兼執行長托德·施耐德；執行副總裁兼營運長吉姆·羅扎基斯；以及執行副總裁兼財務長史考特·加魯拉。

We will discuss our fiscal 2026 third quarter results. After our commentary, we will open the call to questions from analysts. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe harbor from civil litigation for forward-looking statements. This conference call contains forward-looking statements that reflect the company's current views as to future events and financial performance.

我們將討論2026財年第三季業績。在我們的評論之後，我們將開放問答環節，接受分析師的提問。1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》為前瞻性聲明提供了免於民事訴訟的安全港。本次電話會議包含前瞻性陳述，反映了公司目前對未來事件和財務表現的看法。

These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those we may discuss. I refer you to the discussion on these points contained in our most recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. I'll now turn the call over to Todd.

這些前瞻性陳述存在風險和不確定性，可能導致實際結果與我們討論的結果有重大差異。關於這些要點，請參閱我們最近向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件。現在我將把電話交給托德。

Thank you, Jared. We are pleased to have delivered another successful quarter, showcasing the resilience and strength of our value proposition. Cintas achieved record revenues and strong operating margins while continuing to invest for future growth.

謝謝你，賈里德。我們很高興又一個季度取得了成功，這展現了我們價值主張的韌性和實力。Cintas實現了創紀錄的收入和強勁的營業利潤率，同時繼續投資以實現未來的成長。

Third quarter total revenue grew a strong 8.9% to $2.84 billion. The organic growth rate, which adjusts for the impacts of acquisitions and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, was 8.2%. Each of our three route-based businesses continues to grow at attractive rates.

第三季總營收強勁成長 8.9%，達到 28.4 億美元。經調整收購和外匯匯率波動的影響後，有機成長率為 8.2%。我們三項以路線為基礎的業務均持續以可觀的速度成長。

Turning to profitability. We achieved all-time high gross margins in each of our three route-based businesses. Strong top line growth along with benefits from our strategic investments and cost-saving initiatives continue to help drive margin expansion. Gross margin as a percent of revenue was 51%, a 40 basis point increase over the prior year.

轉向盈利。我們在三項以路線為基礎的業務中均實現了歷史最高毛利率。強勁的營收成長，加上策略性投資和成本節約措施帶來的收益，持續推動利潤率擴張。毛利率佔收入的百分比為 51%，比上年增長了 40 個基點。

Operating income grew to $659.9 million, an increase of 8.2% over the prior year. When you adjust for the onetime gain we recognized in the third quarter of last year, operating income would have grown 11%. Diluted EPS of $1.24 grew 9.7% over the prior year. When you adjust for the onetime gain we recognized in the third quarter of last year, diluted EPS would have grown 12.7%.

營業收入成長至 6.599 億美元，比上年增長 8.2%。如果扣除去年第三季確認的一次性收益，營業收入將成長 11%。稀釋後每股收益為 1.24 美元，比上年增長 9.7%。如果扣除去年第三季確認的一次性收益，稀釋後每股收益將成長 12.7%。

Turning to guidance. We are raising our fiscal 2026 financial guidance. We expect our revenue to be in the range of $11.21 billion to $11.24 billion, a total growth rate of 8.4% to 8.7%. We expect adjusted diluted EPS to be in the range of $4.86 to $4.90, a growth rate of 10.5% to 11.4%.

尋求指導。我們將上調2026財年的財務預期。我們預計營收將在 112.1 億美元至 112.4 億美元之間，總成長率為 8.4% 至 8.7%。我們預計調整後的稀釋每股收益將在 4.86 美元至 4.90 美元之間，成長率為 10.5% 至 11.4%。

The adjusted EPS guide does not include the impact of nonrecurring transaction expenses related to UniFirst. Before I turn the call over to Jim, I'd like to provide some comments on the recently announced merger, our agreement to acquire UniFirst.

調整後的每股盈餘預期不包括與 UniFirst 相關的非經常性交易費用的影響。在將電話交給吉姆之前，我想就最近宣布的合併案，即我們收購 UniFirst 的協議，發表一些看法。

We remain excited about this opportunity and the long-term value creation for Cintas and its shareholders, our employee partners and the team partners of UniFirst and the benefits to our collective customers. When we announced the transaction two weeks ago, we indicated that the merger was subject to approval by UniFirst shareholders, regulatory clearance in both the US and Canada and other customary closing conditions.

我們仍然對這一機會以及為 Cintas 及其股東、我們的員工夥伴和 UniFirst 團隊夥伴創造的長期價值以及為我們共同的客戶帶來的益處感到興奮。兩週前我們宣布這筆交易時，我們曾表示，此次合併須經 UniFirst 股東批准、美國和加拿大監管機構批准以及其他慣例成交條件。

We and UniFirst have begun the process for satisfying these closing conditions. In order to avoid creating speculation, we will not be providing any additional commentary on the process. We will, however, update the market as appropriate. With that, I'll turn it over to Jim to discuss the details of our third quarter results.

我們和 UniFirst 已經開始著手滿足這些成交條件。為避免引起猜測，我們將不再對此過程發表任何評論。不過，我們會根據情況及時更新市場資訊。接下來，我將把發言權交給吉姆，讓他來詳細討論我們第三季的業績。

Thank you, Todd. Our business continues to perform exceptionally well. We're adding new customers who rely on us for image, safety, cleanliness and compliance needs, while successfully cross-selling additional solutions to our existing customer base. Retention remains at record levels, while pricing is consistent with historical levels.

謝謝你，托德。我們的業務持續表現出色。我們正在吸引新的客戶，他們依賴我們來滿足形象、安全、清潔和合規方面的需求，同時我們也成功地向現有客戶群交叉銷售其他解決方案。用戶留存率保持在歷史最高水平，而定價與歷史水平保持一致。

Turning to our business segments. As Todd mentioned, we delivered attractive growth rates across all of our business segments. Organic growth by business was 7.3% for Uniform Rental and Facility Services, 14.6% for First Aid and Safety Services, 10% for Fire Protection Services and 3.1% for Uniform Direct Sale.

接下來，我們來看看我們的業務板塊。正如托德所提到的那樣，我們所有業務部門都實現了可觀的成長率。依業務劃分，有機成長率分別為：制服租賃和設施服務 7.3%，急救和安全服務 14.6%，消防服務 10%，制服直銷 3.1%。

Gross margin percentage by business was 50.3% for Uniform Rental and Facility Services, 58.1% for First Aid and Safety Services, 50.5% for Fire Protection Services and 41.4% for Uniform Direct Sale. Gross margin for the Uniform Rental and Facility Services segment increased 30 basis points from last year. The 50.3% gross margin is the highest gross margin ever for this segment.

各業務的毛利率分別為：制服租賃和設施服務 50.3%，急救和安全服務 58.1%，消防服務 50.5%，制服直銷 41.4%。制服租賃和設施服務部門的毛利率比去年提高了 30 個基點。50.3%的毛利率是該業務部門有史以來最高的毛利率。

We executed at a high level in the third quarter and our continued strong top line growth helped drive results. We've been laser-focused on managing the many inputs we control effectively. We've invested in technologies like SAP to improve our capabilities and the strong performance of our supply chain continues to be a significant strategic advantage for us.

第三季我們執行力很強，持續強勁的營收成長也推動了業績的提升。我們一直專注於有效管理我們可控的眾多投入。我們投資了 SAP 等技術來提升自身能力，而我們供應鏈的強勁表現也一直是我們的重要策略優勢。

Gross margin for the First Aid and Safety Services segment was 58.1%. This is also an all-time high. We are investing in route capacity to serve more customers, leadership and management trainees to build our talent pipeline, advanced technologies to drive efficiency, and we're adding selling resources, all of which are fueling the attractive double-digit growth we are seeing.

急救和安全服務部門的毛利率為 58.1%。這也是歷史最高紀錄。我們正在投資提升航線運力以服務更多客戶，投資培養領導和管理培訓生以建立人才儲備，投資先進技術以提高效率，並增加銷售資源，所有這些都推動了我們所看到的兩位數的可觀增長。

It's important to remember that margins of all our businesses can fluctuate from quarter-to-quarter based on several factors, including things like revenue mix and the timing of our investments. Incremental margins were effectively 28% for the quarter after adjusting for the onetime gain on the asset sale last year, right in line where we like to be.

需要注意的是，我們所有業務的利潤率都會因多種因素而逐季度波動，包括收入結構和投資時機等因素。在扣除去年資產出售的一次性收益後，本季的增量利潤率實際上達到了 28%，完全符合我們預期。

The current macro environment is certainly complex. We help businesses navigate this environment by letting them focus on running their business. Delivering consistent excellence in a complex environment is never easy, but customers want reliable partners with proven solutions.

目前的宏觀環境確實很複雜。我們幫助企業應對這種環境，讓他們能夠專注於業務運作。在複雜的環境中持續保持卓越品質絕非易事，但客戶需要擁有成熟解決方案的可靠合作夥伴。

Our diversified customer base and strong value proposition continues to resonate, particularly in our four verticals, health care, hospitality, education, and state and local government. In addition to being aligned with resilient sectors of the economy, our addressable market is very large and our solutions remain essential for businesses of all sizes regardless of how complex the economic environment.

我們多元化的客戶群和強大的價值主張持續引起共鳴，尤其是在我們的四大垂直領域：醫療保健、飯店、教育以及州和地方政府。除了與經濟中具有韌性的產業保持一致外，我們的潛在市場非常龐大，無論經濟環境多麼複雜，我們的解決方案對於各種規模的企業仍然至關重要。

We have consistently shown ability to convert businesses over to a managed rental solution, typically around two-third of all of our new customers. In addition, we've shown the ability to grow multiples of job creation and GDP.

我們一直展現出將企業轉化為託管租賃解決方案的能力，通常我們所有新客戶中有大約三分之二都採用了這種模式。此外，我們已經證明我們有能力實現就業和GDP的數倍增長。

Lastly, we're very enthusiastic about integrating UniFirst and its team partners into our organization, which we believe will strengthen our ability to better serve our customers. As a reminder, we anticipate that transaction will close in the second half of calendar 2026. With that, I'll turn the call over to Scott to discuss our operating income, capital allocation performance and 2026 guidance assumptions.

最後，我們非常熱衷於將 UniFirst 及其團隊合作夥伴整合到我們的組織中，我們相信這將增強我們更好地服務客戶的能力。再次提醒，我們預計該交易將於 2026 年下半年完成。接下來，我將把電話交給 Scott，讓他來討論我們的營業收入、資本配置表現以及 2026 年的績效預期。

Thanks, Jim, and good morning, everyone. The exceptional results we delivered in terms of revenue growth and gross margin expansion, translated into continued strength in operating margins and cash flow. Selling and administrative expenses as a percentage of revenue was 27.8%, which was a 60 basis point increase from last year.

謝謝你，吉姆，大家早安。我們在營收成長和毛利率擴張方面取得了卓越的成績，並轉化為營業利潤率和現金流的持續強勁成長。銷售及管理費用佔收入的27.8%，比去年增加了60個基點。

When you adjust for the onetime gain on the asset sale last year, SG&A would have been flat year-over-year. Third quarter operating income was $659.9 million compared to $609.9 million last year. Operating income as a percentage of revenue was 23.2% in the third quarter of fiscal 2026 compared to 23.4% in last year's third quarter.

若扣除去年資產出售的一次性收益，銷售、一般及行政費用將與前一年持平。第三季營業收入為 6.599 億美元，去年同期為 6.099 億美元。2026 財年第三季營業收入佔營收的 23.2%，去年同期為 23.4%。

Adjusting for the onetime gain last year, operating income as a percentage of revenue would have increased 40 basis points year-over-year. Our effective tax rate for the third quarter was 20.6% compared to 21% last year. The tax rates in both quarters were impacted by certain discrete items, primarily the tax accounting impact for stock-based compensation.

剔除去年的一次性收益後，營業收入佔收入的百分比將年增 40 個基點。第三季實際稅率為 20.6%，去年同期為 21%。這兩個季度的稅率都受到某些特定項目的影響，主要是股票選擇權激勵的稅務會計影響。

Net income for the third quarter was $502.5 million compared to $463.5 million last year. This year's third quarter diluted earnings per share was $1.24 compared to $1.13 last year, an increase of 9.7%. Earnings per share increased 12.7% after you adjust for the onetime gain last year.

第三季淨利為 5.025 億美元，去年同期為 4.635 億美元。今年第三季稀釋後每股收益為 1.24 美元，去年同期為 1.13 美元，成長了 9.7%。扣除去年的一次性收益後，每股收益成長了 12.7%。

Our disciplined approach to capital allocation has positioned us well to finance the recently announced agreement with UniFirst. With leverage expected to be about 1.5 times debt-to-EBITDA at closing, we maintain flexibility for deploying capital across each of our priorities.

我們嚴謹的資本配置方法使我們能夠為最近宣布的與 UniFirst 的協議提供資金。在預計交易完成時，槓桿率（債務與 EBITDA 之比）約為 1.5 倍，這使我們能夠靈活地將資金部署到我們各項優先事項中。

During the first nine months of fiscal 2026, we have returned $1.45 billion in capital to our shareholders in the form of dividends and share buybacks. Earlier, Todd provided our updated guidance for the remainder of the fiscal year.

在 2026 財年的前九個月，我們以股利和股票回購的形式向股東返還了 14.5 億美元的資本。此前，托德提供了本財年剩餘時間的最新業績指引。

In addition, please note the following in the guidance. Both fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2026 have the same number of workdays for the year and by quarter. Our guidance does not assume any future acquisitions. Our guidance assumes a constant foreign currency exchange rate, the fiscal 2026 net interest expense of approximately $101 million, a fiscal 2026 effective tax rate of 20%, which is the same compared to our fiscal 2025, and the guide does not include the impact of any future share buybacks or significant economic disruptions or downturns.

此外，請注意指南中的以下內容。2025 財年和 2026 財年全年和每季的工作日天數相同。我們的指導意見並未考慮任何未來的收購計劃。我們的業績指引假設外匯匯率保持不變，2026 財年淨利息支出約為 1.01 億美元，2026 財年實際稅率為 20%（與 2025 財年相同），且該指引不包括任何未來股票回購或重大經濟動盪或衰退的影響。

As both Todd and Jim have mentioned, we are excited about the recently announced UniFirst acquisition. While the deal is expected to close in the second half of calendar 2026, we expect to incur nonrecurring transaction costs related to the acquisition.

正如 Todd 和 Jim 都提到的那樣，我們對最近宣布的 UniFirst 收購案感到非常興奮。雖然預計該交易將於 2026 年下半年完成，但我們預計會因此次收購而產生非經常性交易成本。

The adjusted diluted earnings per share guide excludes the estimated impact of these transaction costs. Transaction costs expected to be incurred during fiscal 2026 are estimated to have an impact on diluted earnings per share in the range of $0.03 to $0.04.

經調整後的稀釋每股盈餘預期不包括這些交易成本的預期影響。預計 2026 財年將產生的交易成本將對稀釋後每股收益產生 0.03 美元至 0.04 美元的影響。

In addition, beginning with the fourth quarter, we will break these costs out on our income statement as a separate line item to provide visibility to these transaction-related costs. With that, I'll turn it back to Todd for some closing remarks.

此外，從第四季開始，我們將把這些成本作為單獨的項目列入損益表，以便讓這些與交易相關的成本更加清晰可見。接下來，我將把麥克風交還給托德，讓他做些總結發言。

Thank you, Scott. In closing, our strategic investments in technology, capacity, talent and sales capabilities are driving solid growth and margin progression. These commitments position us to sustain long-term performance while helping customers achieve and surpass their image, safety, cleanliness and compliance goals.

謝謝你，斯科特。總之，我們在技術、產能、人才和銷售能力方面的策略投資正在推動穩健成長和利潤率提升。這些承諾使我們能夠保持長期業績，同時幫助客戶實現並超越其形象、安全、清潔和合規目標。

We're maximizing returns on every dollar invested to maintain our momentum and deliver superior service to our customers. I'd like to thank our employee partners for their exceptional dedication to our customers and the outstanding work they do for Cintas every day. I'll now turn it back over to Jared.

我們力求讓每一美元的投資都獲得最大回報，以保持發展勢頭，並為客戶提供卓越的服務。我要感謝我們的員工夥伴們，感謝他們對客戶的卓越奉獻以及他們每天為 Cintas 所做的出色工作。現在我把任務交還給賈里德。

Thank you, Todd. That concludes our prepared remarks. Before opening it up for questions, I'd like to reiterate Todd's earlier statements about the UniFirst acquisition process. In order to avoid speculation, we will not provide any additional commentary on that process. We will update the market, however, as appropriate. Now we are happy to answer questions from the analysts. (Event Instructions) Thank you.

謝謝你，托德。我們的發言稿到此結束。在開放提問環節之前，我想重申一下托德之前關於 UniFirst 收購過程的聲明。為避免猜測，我們將不再對此過程發表任何評論。我們會根據情況及時更新市場資訊。現在我們很樂意回答分析師們提出的問題。（活動須知）謝謝。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作說明）

Tim Mulrooney, William Blair.

提姆·穆魯尼，威廉·布萊爾。

Just two procedural ones. Scott, I just wanted to follow up on the guidance thing that you were mentioning at the end. How much of that $0.03 to $0.04 of EPS related to the UniFirst transaction was incurred in the third quarter versus expected in the fourth quarter?

只有兩個程序性問題。史考特，我只是想就你最後提到的指導問題再問一下。與 UniFirst 交易相關的每股收益 0.03 美元至 0.04 美元中，有多少是在第三季度發生的，又有多少是在第四季度發生的？

I didn't see a reconciliation table for the third quarter. I just wanted to make sure everyone is aligned on their models. And I also noticed SG&A was a little bit higher in the third quarter than what folks were expecting. So I thought maybe there was a little bit of deal-related expense there in the third quarter, I'm not sure.

我沒有看到第三季的對帳單。我只是想確保大家對自己的模型理解一致。我還注意到，第三季的銷售、一般及行政費用略高於大家的預期。所以我認為第三季可能有一些與交易相關的支出，我不確定。

Yes, Tim, good question. The estimate that we provided of that $0.03 to $0.04 is related to the fourth quarter and the fiscal year guide. Any costs that were incurred in Q3 were immaterial. As far as the comment on SG&A being a little higher, just to remind everyone of that onetime gain last year, that represented about 60 bps.

是的，提姆，問得好。我們給出的 0.03 美元至 0.04 美元的估計與第四季度和財政年度指導有關。第三季產生的任何費用都微不足道。至於有人評論說銷售、一般及行政費用略高，只是想提醒大家去年那一次性的成長，大約相當於 60 個基點。

So when you take that into consideration, SG&A was effectively flat year-over-year. And if you go back really over the last three fiscal years, Q3 is typically elevated due to the timing of certain expenses like the reset of payroll taxes. In fact, when you go back to last fiscal year and you back out the adjustment for the onetime gain, we were up 100 basis points sequentially last year and actually 70 basis points sequentially if you go back to fiscal year '24. So we feel really good where we are with the SG&A expenses. And when you back out the onetime gain, it's flat year-over-year.

因此，考慮到這一點，銷售、一般及行政費用實際上與上年持平。如果回顧過去三個財政年度，第三季通常會偏高，這是因為某些支出的時間安排，例如薪資稅的重置。事實上，如果你回顧上一個財政年度，並剔除一次性收益的調整，我們去年環比增長了 100 個基點，而如果你回顧 2024 財年，實際上環比增長了 70 個基點。所以，我們對目前的銷售、一般及行政費用控制情況非常滿意。如果剔除一次性收益，則與上年同期持平。

Yes. Good point, Scott. I think maybe consensus didn't fully factor in everything because of the onetime gain last year. So that's a good reminder. And then just as my follow-up, apologies if I missed it, but how much were energy costs as a percentage of revenue in the quarter? And what's your expectation for next quarter? Given the increase we've seen in oil prices over the last few weeks, I think this is an important question for investors.

是的。說得對，斯科特。我認為，由於去年的一次性收益，共識可能沒有完全考慮到所有因素。這是一個很好的提醒。最後，我還有一個問題（如果我錯過了請見諒），本季能源成本佔收入的百分比是多少？您對下一季有何預期？鑑於過去幾週油價的上漲，我認為這對投資者來說是一個重要的問題。

Yes. Tim, good question. Energy for the quarter was 1.7%, which was flat year-over-year and up 10 basis points over the previous quarter. Certainly, the increase in gas prices will have an impact. But just I want to remind everyone that only 60% of our energy costs are related to fuel for our vehicles, which when you do the math on that, that equates to about 100 basis points.

是的。提姆，問得好。本季能源價格上漲1.7%，與去年同期持平，較上一季上漲10個基點。當然，汽油價格上漲會產生影響。但我只想提醒大家，我們能源成本中只有 60% 與車輛燃料有關，算下來，這大約相當於 100 個基點。

So if you just look at, fuel has been continuing to increase, but if you assume a 30% increase in fuel cost that would be sustained over an entire quarter, that would add 30 basis points of cost to our results. So yes, it has an impact, but not something that we feel that we can overcome and we have contemplated this in our guide.

所以，如果只看燃油價格，它一直在持續上漲；但假設燃油成本上漲 30%，並且這種情況持續整個季度，那麼這將使我們的業績增加 30 個基點的成本。所以，是的，它確實會產生影響，但我們覺得我們無法克服這種影響，我們在指南中也考慮到了這一點。

George Tong, Goldman Sachs.

喬治唐，高盛集團。

Can you provide an update on higher-level customer purchasing behaviors in the current macro environment, if you're seeing any changes, any increases or reductions?

在當前的宏觀環境下，您能否提供高階客戶購買行為的最新情況，例如是否觀察到任何變化、成長或下降？

George, this is Todd. I'll take that question. It is -- Scott and Jim have spoken about it, it is certainly a complex environment. But our customer base has been quite resilient. I think it ties back into our value proposition, continuing to resonate.

喬治，這是托德。我來回答這個問題。確實如此——斯科特和吉姆都談過，這確實是一個複雜的環境。但我們的客戶群一直很有韌性。我認為這與我們的價值主張息息相關，並且能夠持續引起共鳴。

When you deal with these types of complex environments, it can create opportunity for you as well. And we help our customers run a better business. And by outsourcing items to us that in most cases, what they were solving that somehow, some way in their own fashion and in their own business.

當你身處在這種複雜的環境時，它也能為你創造機會。我們幫助客戶更好地經營業務。透過將一些專案外包給我們，他們在大多數情況下以自己的方式和自己的業務解決了這個問題。

By outsourcing it to us, it allows it to free them up to focus on running their business and taking care of their guests or their patients or their customers, however you want to phrase it. But no real change in the customer base, pretty resilient. And I think our value proposition continues to resonate.

透過將這項工作外包給我們，他們可以騰出精力專注於經營自己的業務，照顧他們的客人、病人或顧客，無論你怎麼稱呼他們。但客戶群沒有發生實質變化，相當有韌性。我認為我們的價值主張依然能引起共鳴。

Got it. That's helpful. And then going back to an earlier point on fuel, you mentioned that fuel expectations are contemplated in your full year guide. Can you elaborate on what exactly you're assuming for the remaining quarters of the year in terms of how fuel will trend? And how you plan to pass along any changes in fuel costs to customers in the form of pricing?

知道了。那很有幫助。然後回到前面提到的燃料問題，您提到過，您的全年指南中已經考慮了燃料預期。您能否詳細說明您對今年剩餘幾季燃油價格走勢的具體假設？你們打算如何將燃油成本的變動以價格調整的形式轉嫁給客戶？

Yes. Thank you, George. As Todd mentioned, I mean, clearly, this is a dynamic environment. And our guide includes our best estimate of the increase in energy cost. As far as our approach to mitigating this or I think you've said passed along, I'll let Todd answer that.

是的。謝謝你，喬治。正如托德提到的那樣，很明顯，這是一個動態的環境。我們的指南包含了我們對能源成本成長的最佳估算。至於我們如何緩解這種情況，或者正如你所說，如何傳達這種做法，我會讓托德來回答。

Yes. So George, it is certainly a dynamic environment. Hence, you look at what oil prices were doing last night and then what they're doing this morning. So they're changing by the minute. That being said, we've got it contemplated in our -- an increased level of gas prices at the pump into our guidance.

是的。所以喬治，這確實是一個充滿活力的環境。因此，你要看看昨晚的油價走勢，然後再看看今天早上的油價走勢。所以它們每分鐘都在變化。也就是說，我們已經將汽油價格上漲納入了我們的業績指引中。

And as far as how we handle that, we do not have a fuel surcharge, that historically is not how we handle it. As Scott correctly pointed out, if you think about the fuel at the pump, it accounts for about 100 basis points of our total as a percent of sales.

至於我們如何處理這個問題，我們不收取燃油附加費，從歷史上看，我們一直都是這樣做的。正如 Scott 正確指出的那樣，如果你考慮加油站的燃油，它約占我們總銷售額的 100 個基點。

So it's not our largest cost. And we also take the approach that we think long term about this, and we find other ways to extract out inefficiencies. We don't just look at it and say, Well, this happened. So we've just got to pass it on. We want to be better than that. And we want to focus on being consistent for our customers and extracting out inefficiencies in other ways that we have in our business and still hitting our goals as a -- financial goals as a company while we're doing that.

所以這不是我們最大的開銷。而我們也採取了長遠的眼光來考慮這個問題，並尋找其他方法來消除效率低下的問題。我們不會只是看看就說：“好吧，這件事發生了。”所以我們只能把它傳遞下去。我們想做得更好。我們希望專注於為客戶提供一致的服務，並透過其他方式消除業務中的低效環節，同時實現我們作為一家公司的財務目標。

Justin Hauke, R.W. Baird.

賈斯汀·豪克，R.W.貝爾德。

I guess I had one question just kind of on the CapEx expectations. Your CapEx as a percentage of revenue has historically been a lot lower than UniFirst has been. Obviously, you guys are much, much bigger, so that's part of it. But I guess just philosophically, looking at their assets and the systems to kind of get to Cintas levels. Just thinking about -- do you expect the CapEx to kind of trend a little bit higher as a percentage of revenue in the first couple of years of integration?

我有一個關於資本支出預期方面的問題。從歷史數據來看，貴公司的資本支出佔收入的比例遠低於UniFirst。顯然，你們的規模要大得多，這也是原因之一。但我想從哲學角度來看，看看他們的資產和系統，或許可以達到 Cintas 的水平。我只是在想——您是否預計在整合的頭幾年裡，資本支出佔收入的比例會略有上升？

Yes, Justin, good question. And I would just say we just announced the agreement a couple of weeks ago. We'll know a lot more as we close the deal. But when we closed this merger, we still expect not only will we continue to generate strong cash flow, UniFirst generates strong cash flow. We'll have a strong balance sheet.

是的，賈斯汀，問得好。我只想說，我們幾週前才剛宣布了這項協議。交易完成後，我們會了解更多。但是，當我們完成此次合併時，我們仍然預期不僅會繼續產生強勁的現金流，UniFirst 也將產生強勁的現金流。我們將擁有強勁的資產負債表。

We talked on our UniFirst call about at closing, we would expect debt-to-EBITDA being at 1.5. So we're in a great position. And I don't see our capital allocation priorities really changing. Our first priority has always been reinvesting back into the business through CapEx, followed by strategic M&A.

我們在與 UniFirst 的電話會議上討論過，預計交易完成後，債務與 EBITDA 的比率將達到 1.5。所以我們目前處境非常有利。而且我認為我們的資本配置優先事項不會有真正的改變。我們始終將資本支出再投資於業務發展放在首位，其次才是策略併購。

And then I will continue to look at returning capital back to our shareholders in the form of dividends and buybacks. So more to come on what we would look at in the future with CapEx as a percent of revenue as we close the deal. But I would really not anticipate any material changes in our capital allocation priorities.

然後，我將繼續考慮以股利和股票回購的形式將資本返還給股東。因此，在完成交易後，我們將進一步探討未來資本支出佔收入的百分比問題。但我預計我們的資本配置優先事項不會有任何實質變化。

Justin, I'd just like to add to that that UniFirst's CapEx was higher. They were certainly trying to catch up on the technology subject and other areas. And we obviously -- we're in a really good position from a technology footprint, and we'll continue to invest in there because we have to make sure that we're positioned to compete in the marketplace.

賈斯汀，我還要補充一點，UniFirst 的資本支出更高。他們顯然是在努力追趕科技和其他領域的腳步。很顯然，我們在技術佈局方面處於非常有利的地位，我們將繼續增加投資，因為我們必須確保自己能夠在市場上競爭。

That being said, one of the uniquenesses about UniFirst versus most companies that transact like this is they were not for sale. And as a result, they ran their business very much thinking in the long term, they invested for the long term.

也就是說，UniFirst 與大多數進行此類交易的公司相比，其獨特之處在於它並不出售。因此，他們在經營業務時非常注重長遠發展，並進行長期投資。

So it's -- we're not acquiring an asset that needs a significant amount of CapEx investment into facilities and to get it up to standard. They run a really good business, they think about how to run a business very similar to us. The cultures are very similar. They think long term, they think about investing for the long term for their people and their customers. And as a result, we think that positions us incredibly well for the future.

所以，我們收購的資產不需要投入大量資本支出用於設施建設，也不需要達到標準。他們的經營模式非常成功，他們思考的經營方式與我們非常相似。這兩種文化非常相似。他們著眼長遠，他們考慮為員工和客戶的長遠利益進行投資。因此，我們認為這讓我們在未來處於非常有利的地位。

Yes. No, certainly, I agree on all that. I think that's it. My other questions have been answered on the items that you already addressed.

是的。不，當然，我完全同意。我想就是這樣了。關於您已經回答過的問題，我的其他問題都已得到解答。

Manav Patnaik, Barclays.

馬納夫·帕特奈克，巴克萊銀行。

This is Ronan Kennedy on for Manav. You commented on retention at record levels, pricing at historic levels. Could you please provide some further color as to how we should think about what those levels are as a reminder, and then the trends and drivers versus your expectations for new business and cross-sell? And then anything to call out from specifically strong organic drivers at a respective segment level, please?

這裡是羅南甘迺迪，為您報道馬納夫。您提到用戶留存率達到歷史新高，定價也處於歷史水準。請您進一步詳細說明我們應該如何看待這些級別，並提醒我們它們的含義，以及新業務和交叉銷售的趨勢和驅動因素與您的預期有何不同？那麼，在各個細分市場層面，還有哪些特別強勁的自然成長驅動因素值得一提呢？

Ronan, this is Jim. I'll take that question. I'll start with it. And if we start to think about our growth formula and what we're attempting to achieve every quarter, we do like to target that mid- to high single-digit total growth rate as an organization. The major contributors to that growth as you correctly pointed out is our new business acquisition.

羅南，這位是吉姆。我來回答這個問題。我先從它開始。如果我們開始思考我們的成長公式以及我們每季想要實現的目標，我們確實希望將組織的整體成長率設定為中高個位數。正如您所指出的，這一成長的主要貢獻因素是我們新收購的業務。

And a reminder, two-third of that new business acquisition comes from that no-programmer or do-it-yourself space, and that continues to perform very well for us, and we really like the trend line there. Retention levels for us has stayed around that steady, that 95% rate, and we are really comfortable with where that is at this point.

另外提醒一下，我們新增業務的三分之二來自非程式設計師或DIY領域，而且這個領域對我們來說一直表現得非常好，我們非常喜歡這個發展趨勢。我們的客戶留存率一直穩定在 95% 左右，我們對目前的留存率非常滿意。

Pricing is at our historical levels, which we've consistently said is in that 2% to 3% range. And then the remainder of the growth, if you kind of put all those together, you start with a negative 5%, you add in 2% for pricing, and you want to get up to 8%, the majority of that is new business, but then the remainder is that cross-selling opportunity selling into the current customer base, which has been highly effective for us this year.

定價處於歷史水平，我們一直表示，價格漲幅在 2% 到 3% 之間。然後，如果把所有這些因素加起來，剩下的增長部分，從負 5% 開始，加上 2% 的價格，目標是達到 8%，其中大部分是新業務，但剩下的部分是向現有客戶群進行交叉銷售的機會，這在今年對我們來說非常有效。

And we think that there's a long runway of opportunity within our current customer base as we continue to provide great value. We think about it in long term. We've made nice investments in the product line and the technology and try to make it easier to do business with us and the customers in this type of an environment is complex, are looking for steady answers and they know they can rely on us.

我們認為，隨著我們持續提供優質服務，現有客戶群中蘊藏著巨大的發展機會。我們從長遠角度來考慮這個問題。我們在產品線和技術方面進行了大量投資，努力讓與我們開展業務變得更加容易。在這種複雜的環境下，客戶尋求的是穩定的答案，他們知道可以信賴我們。

So we've had a lot of success this past year. So I would say new business and cross-sell slightly continuing to improve and the others right where we expected them to be.

所以過去一年我們取得了巨大的成功。所以我覺得新業務和交叉銷售略有繼續改善，其他方面也符合我們的預期。

Jim, I appreciate it. And then for my follow-up, kind of a follow-up to Tim and George's questions. But beyond gas prices, I guess, focusing on the all-time high gross margins in each of the segments. Can you just further unpack the drivers there, I know it's strategic investments, cost initiatives, and assess the sustainability of them?

吉姆，謝謝你。然後，我想就 Tim 和 George 的問題提出一些後續問題。但除了汽油價格之外，我想，重點應該放在各個細分市場創歷史新高的毛利率。能否進一步闡述其中的驅動因素？我知道這涉及策略性投資、成本控制措施，以及評估這些措施的可持續性？

I know there may be a potential immediate impact if there is inflation, but also unpack the other components of your key cost buckets from a gross margin standpoint beyond gas, whether that's materials or the production expense, the labor, et cetera. So drivers of gross margins and sustainability in near term and longer term, given the current dynamics.

我知道如果出現通貨膨脹，可能會產生直接影響，但除了汽油之外，還要從毛利率的角度分析一下主要成本組成中的其他部分，例如材料、生產費用、勞動力等等。因此，在當前情況下，毛利率和永續性的近期和長期驅動因素是什麼？

Ronan, I'll start on that and see if anybody wants to add color. And I'll start at the consolidated level, and say that the gross margin at 51% for the quarter, obviously, a great quarter for us. The team did an excellent job at execution for the quarter. And I think a little bit of that is a demonstration of our culture and the belief that nothing is ever as good as it can be and that there's always an opportunity to improve processes and work out inefficiencies.

羅南，我先來，看看有沒有人想上色。我先從合併層面說起，本季毛利率為 51%，顯然，這對我們來說是一個非常好的季度。本季團隊的執行工作非常出色。我認為這在某種程度上體現了我們的文化，以及這樣一種信念：任何事情都不可能做到盡善盡美，總有機會改善流程，消除效率低下之處。

But if we look at and we think about the quarter in and of itself, first of all, there was no one-timers, nothing significant from a one-timer perspective that helped the quarter. The key drivers of that is our primary focus, which is revenue growth, and we like strong revenue growth to continue to create leverage. And that certainly contributed in all three of our route-based businesses.

但如果我們單獨來看這個季度，首先，沒有一次性事件，也沒有任何從一次性事件角度來看對本季有所幫助的重大事件。實現這一目標的關鍵驅動因素是我們的主要關注點，即收入成長，我們希望強勁的營收成長能繼續創造槓桿效應。這無疑對我們所有三項以路線為基礎的業務都起到了促進作用。

We are always looking for initiatives to remove inefficiencies and expenses out of the business. And you can see that across all of our businesses, certainly in our rental business, is a big focus for them. Maybe the other one to call out is revenue mix in both our First Aid and Fire Protection businesses.

我們一直在尋找各種方法來消除業務中的低效環節和開支。你可以看到，在我們所有的業務中，尤其是在租賃業務中，租賃都是他們非常重視的領域。或許還要指出的是，我們急救和消防業務的收入結構。

That's important for us and revenue mix can fluctuate a little bit quarter-to-quarter. So this was a good quarter for us on that revenue mix. And then, of course, timing of investments and what those investments look like. So all around a strong quarter of execution. So the team did a fantastic job, and those were the key inputs.

這對我們來說很重要，而且收入結構可能會逐季度略有波動。所以從營收結構來看，這對我們來說是一個不錯的季度。當然，還有投資時機和投資的具體形式。總而言之，本季執行情況非常出色。所以團隊做得非常出色，這些都是關鍵。

But then, just a quick reminder that it can fluctuate quarter-to-quarter. Running a business isn't linear and that we're going to continue to make investments in the business for the short-term delivery of results and then long term to be able to set ourselves up for long-term continued success.

但需要提醒的是，它可能會逐季度波動。經營企業並非線性發展，我們將繼續對企業進行投資，以期在短期內取得業績，並在長期內為持續成功奠定基礎。

And then anything to be mindful of from the other cost buckets and potential inflation there on, whether it's materials, labor or otherwise?

此外，其他成本類別以及潛在的通貨膨脹方面，無論是材料、人工或其他方面，有哪些需要注意的地方？

Ronan, thanks for the question. This is Todd. Certainly, it's a dynamic environment on tariffs as well. But our supply chain team has done a magnificent job of navigating that. We've said in the past, we're not immune to tariffs. But any increase in tariff or decrease in that is going to take time to run through our system, whether we have to get into our supply chain and then amortize that. So I would say nothing material there to factor in.

羅南，謝謝你的提問。這是托德。當然，關稅環境也瞬息萬變。但我們的供應鏈團隊在這方面做得非常好。我們過去就說過，我們無法免受關稅的影響。但是，任何關稅的增加或減少都需要時間才能在我們的系統中體現，無論我們是否需要進入供應鏈並進行攤銷。所以我覺得這方面沒有什麼實質因素需要考慮。

Josh Chan, UBS.

瑞銀集團的 Josh Chan。

I guess in terms of your investments, how do you feel about your level of investments kind of exiting 2026 and into '27? Just thinking about how well funded do you think your growth initiatives are at this point?

我想問的是，就您的投資而言，您對2026年底到2027年的投資水準有何看法？你覺得目前你的成長計畫資金是否充足？

Josh, one of the things about our culture here at Cintas is we are constantly investing. And as a result, yes, certain years, you might see more than others. But we think we're in a really good spot from a -- what we have been investing and what we will continue to invest.

喬希，我們 Cintas 的企業文化特徵之一就是我們不斷投資。因此，是的，某些年份你可能會比其他年份看到更多。但我們認為，從我們過去和將來會繼續投資的角度來看，我們目前處境非常好。

So I wouldn't say anything -- no material change there. You should expect us to continue to invest because we look at the future, and it looks incredibly bright. We look at the opportunity out there in the white space of converting over no-programmers, and we want to go after that.

所以我不會說什麼——這方面沒有實質的變化。你們應該預料到我們會繼續投資，因為我們展望未來，而未來看起來無比光明。我們看到了非程式設計師群體這一空白市場的機會，我們想要抓住這個機會。

We're competing in an environment where there's 16 million to somewhere maybe up to 20 million businesses in the US and Canada. And there's 180 million people that go to work every day in the US and Canada. That opportunity is immense. So we're investing for the future because we think the future looks really bright, and we have to position ourselves to be able to compete in those areas.

我們所處的競爭環境是美國和加拿大有 1,600 萬到 2,000 萬家企業。美國和加拿大每天有 1.8 億人上班。那是一個絕佳的機會。所以我們正在為未來投資，因為我們認為未來一片光明，我們必須做好準備，才能在這些領域競爭。

Sure. That makes a lot of sense. And then I guess in terms of your comment about the good balance sheet position. Does that imply that you can continue to perhaps repurchase stock as you desire even through this process? Or how should we think about sort of the pace of buybacks?

當然。這很有道理。然後，我想就您提到的良好的資產負債表狀況而言。這是否意味著即使在此過程中，您仍然可以根據需要繼續回購股票？或者我們該如何看待股票回購的速度？

Josh, thanks for the question. As I mentioned, we continue to generate strong cash flow, strong balance sheet. And certainly, we're not going to be limited due to our capital allocation. However, there are restrictions from the time that we signed the agreement with UniFirst through the expected UniFirst shareholder votes.

喬希，謝謝你的提問。正如我之前提到的，我們持續產生強勁的現金流和穩健的資產負債表。當然，我們的資金配置不會限制我們的發展。但是，從我們與 UniFirst 簽署協議到 UniFirst 股東預期投票期間，存在一些限制。

You might also guess that we were limited during Q3 with share buybacks, just to being in a quiet period as we negotiated the UniFirst agreement and completed confirmatory due diligence. But once those restrictions are lifted, we'll continue to be opportunistic with our buyback strategy.

您可能也猜到，我們在第三季進行股票回購受到限制，因為當時我們正處於與 UniFirst 談判協議和完成確認性盡職調查的平靜期。但一旦這些限制解除，我們將繼續把握機會實施回購策略。

Jasper Bibb, Truist Securities.

Jasper Bibb，Truist Securities。

Just wanted to ask what you're seeing in wearer levels at existing customers in uniform?

我想問一下，您觀察到現有客戶中穿制服的人數比例是多少？

Jasper, I'll start. As I mentioned, our customer base is quite resilient. So if anything, our -- growth from our current customers has slightly improved. Wearer levels are -- we see the jobs reports, but are meaning that they're not as robust as what we would like. But nevertheless, our customers are still quite resilient and hanging on to their people.

賈斯珀，我先來。正如我之前提到的，我們的客戶群非常有韌性。所以，如果說有什麼變化的話，那就是我們現有客戶的成長略有改善。佩戴者數量——我們看到了就業報告，但這意味著它們並不像我們希望的那樣強勁。但即便如此，我們的客戶仍然相當有韌性，並且堅持留住他們的員工。

And we just see an amazing opportunity to sell other items, cross-sell other items into those -- into that customer base, but things are pretty steady.

我們看到了一個絕佳的機會，可以向這些客戶群銷售其他商品，並交叉銷售其他商品，但目前情況相當穩定。

Nice, that makes sense. And then I know we just got UniFirst. But after that closes, I imagine you're going to be looking for more acquisitions outside the uniform business. So just any thoughts on what might be next for you after that point? And maybe how you're thinking about the consolidation opportunity in the Fire business would be interesting.

不錯，這說得通。然後我知道我們剛剛獲得了UniFirst。但交易完成後，我想您會在製服行業之外尋求更多收購機會。那麼，在那之後，你有什麼想法嗎？或許您對消防產業的整合機會有何看法會很有意思。

Sure, Jasper. We're acquisitive in each of our route-based businesses. We'll certainly be busy in our rental business here shortly. But the strength of our balance sheet, the strength of our infrastructure and our other businesses allow us to be acquisitive in all those. So we will continue to go down that path.

當然可以，賈斯柏。我們在所有以路線為基礎的業務中都積極進行收購。我們這裡的租賃業務很快就會非常繁忙。但是，我們強大的資產負債表、基礎設施和其他業務使我們能夠在所有這些領域進行收購。所以我們會繼續沿著這條路走下去。

And those are tough to pace and tough to predict on deal flow, but it won't change how we think about it. That being said, in the Fire business you asked specifically, the mix of business really matters to us. So we try to think long term about that. We prefer service business much more so than installation type business. So it just has to be the right deal. But we have been very acquisitive in that business over the past months and years, and we'll continue with that approach.

這些交易很難控制節奏，也很難預測交易量，但這不會改變我們對它的看法。話雖如此，就您特別提到的消防業務而言，業務組合對我們來說確實非常重要。所以我們盡量從長遠角度來考慮這個問題。我們更傾向於服務型業務，而不是安裝型業務。所以，關鍵是要有合適的交易條件。但在過去幾個月和幾年裡，我們一直在積極收購該業務領域的公司，我們將繼續採取這種策略。

Andrew Steinerman, JPMorgan Securities.

Andrew Steinerman，摩根大通證券。

This is Alex Hess on for Andrew Steinerman. I want to touch on a couple of recent initiatives you have. First is the recently announced three-way contract with you guys, Ford and Carhartt, and the second being the launch of what I think is a new personalized Apparel+ program on your website.

這裡是 Alex Hess，替 Andrew Steinerman 為您報道。我想談談你們最近推出的幾項舉措。首先是最近宣布的與你們、福特和卡哈特的三方合作協議，其次是我認為在你們網站上推出的全新個人化 Apparel+ 計畫。

Both of those seem to be targeting the trades and manufacturing a bit more. Just wanted to maybe start, is there something you're seeing in those goods providing industries that maybe you're leaning into those a little more for sales growth near term?

這兩個項目似乎都更側重於貿易和製造業。我想先問一下，在商品供應行業中，您是否觀察到一些趨勢，促使您在短期內加大對這些行業的投入，以期實現銷售增長？

Alex, thank you for the question. I'll start. Our relationship with Carhartt and with Ford goes back many, many years. And we have a great relationship with both organizations. And this is about providing products that people want to wear.

Alex，謝謝你的提問。我先來。我們與 Carhartt 和福特的合作關係可以追溯到很多很多年前。我們與這兩個組織都保持著良好的關係。而這一切，都是為了提供人們想要穿戴的產品。

And in the case of Ford, I know Jim Farley was passionate about providing the products that his people want to wear and would be proud to wear. And our relationship with Carhartt was an absolute natural. So we're excited about that. Certainly, the trades are something that we think is growing in demand and is an incredible opportunity for us.

就福特公司而言，我知道吉姆法利熱衷於提供他的員工想要穿並且會引以為豪的產品。我們與Carhartt的合作關係是水到渠成的。我們對此感到很興奮。當然，我們認為這些交易的需求正在成長，這對我們來說是一個絕佳的機會。

Those are people that -- frankly, we don't have nearly as many people in the trades in our uniform program as we should, and they're all wearing garments. They're in jobs that are perfectly position for us to tap into. So we're excited about that, and we see the future looks really bright in that area as far as Apparel+. Jim?

坦白說，我們制服計畫中的技工人數遠遠不夠，而且他們都穿著制服。他們目前從事的工作非常適合我們去挖掘人才。所以我們對此感到興奮，並且我們認為 Apparel+ 在該領域的未來一片光明。吉姆？

Yes, I'll add a little color there, Alex, and I appreciate the question. And Apparel+ really goes back to the core of our company culture and values, which is a culture of innovation and continuing to be dynamic and move to where the opportunity is and where the opportunity will present themselves in the future. And so Apparel+ is just another movement towards that.

是的，我會在那裡添加一些色彩，Alex，感謝你的提問。Apparel+ 真正體現了我們公司文化和價值觀的核心，那就是創新文化，以及不斷保持活力、抓住機會並在未來抓住機會的文化。因此，Apparel+ 只是朝著這個方向發展的另一個舉措。

So we want to be able to outfit any job imaginable across North America. And we want to make sure that we have the right apparel in those industries for what people want to wear, what they choose to go to work in, and it's been very successful for us. Regarding specialty trades, I think Todd outlined the fact that that market is really a large employment market. They resonate well with our value proposition, and there's a tremendous amount of opportunity.

所以我們希望能夠為北美各地任何你能想像的工作提供裝備。我們希望確保在這些行業中，我們擁有人們想要穿的、他們選擇上班穿的合適服裝，而這對我們來說非常成功。關於專業技工產業，我認為托德已經指出，該市場確實是一個龐大的就業市場。它們與我們的價值主張非常契合，而且蘊藏著巨大的機會。

In fact, I have an example of one that I brought here for our call today. And as we always speak about two-third of our new customers come from the unserved market, and we always want to illustrate what does that look like? Why do customers continue to partner up with Cintas and what do they see as a main driver of the value proposition?

事實上，我今天通話時就帶來了一個例子。正如我們常說的，我們三分之二的新客戶來自尚未開發的市場，我們一直想說明這究竟是什麼樣的情況？客戶為何繼續與 Cintas 合作？他們認為 Cintas 的價值主張的主要驅動因素是什麼？

So I have a property maintenance example here. And this company was going ahead and they were buying uniforms for their employees, a combination of retail and e-commerce, with the primary objective that they wanted to look professional and they want to look good and cohesive in front of their customer base.

我這裡有一個物業維護的例子。這家公司正在積極為員工購買制服，結合零售和電子商務，其主要目標是讓員工看起來專業、形象良好且團結一致，以便在客戶面前展現形象。

But what they found out over time is that they weren't able to accomplish that objective that they were -- as they bought year after year, the styles would change, they would be inconsistent on an annual basis. What employees determined was clean and what represented the company well would vary depending on the individual employee.

但隨著時間的推移，他們發現他們無法實現他們想要的目標——隨著他們年復一年地購買，款式會發生變化，每年的款式都不統一。員工對清潔的定義以及對公司形象的認可程度，會因員工個人而異。

The management team was spending a bunch of time administering the program, in ordering, in size changes and any time things were worn out. So it took them a bunch of time. And then, of course, budgeting was all over the place. Sometimes they had big spikes in budgets, other times they had very little, made it really hard for them to manage their P&L. When they were introduced to the fully managed rental program for Cintas, they saw all the things that they wanted out of the program.

管理團隊花費大量時間來管理該項目，包括訂購、尺寸變更以及處理任何磨損情況。所以他們花了很長時間。當然，預算方面也一團糟。有時候他們的預算會大幅增加，有時候預算又會非常少，這使得他們很難管理損益表。當他們了解到 Cintas 的全託管租賃計劃時，他們看到了他們想要從該計劃中獲得的一切。

They were able to get higher quality uniforms that were very comfortable, that were branded with specifically the Carhartt name, things that their employees really wanted to wear. They got a nice consistent image across the board because all of their employees are wearing exactly the same thing, and they were in good and usable and presentable conditions because of our professional laundry service that was provided with them.

他們獲得了更高品質、穿著更舒適、印有 Carhartt 品牌標誌的製服，這些都是員工們非常想穿的衣服。由於所有員工都穿著完全相同的服裝，因此他們的整體形象非常統一；而且由於我們提供了專業的洗衣服務，這些服裝都保持著良好、實用和體面的狀態。

They were able to get time back in their day because they were no longer in a uniform business. They were in the business of taking care of their customers, which they certainly appreciated, and it made budgeting a whole lot easier. So that's exactly why we want to continue to expand the product line to be able to show other industries the benefits here of our rental program and why we think that we have such a massive market opportunity.

由於不再從事制服行業，他們每天的時間都節省了不少。他們以服務客戶為宗旨，客戶對此非常感激，這也讓預算變得容易得多。所以，正因如此，我們希望繼續擴大產品線，以便向其他行業展示我們租賃計劃的優勢，以及我們為什麼認為我們擁有如此巨大的市場機會。

Got it. That's awesome, guys. And then maybe as a follow-up. Obviously, you guys are in the midst of implementing SAP into the Fire segment, and you guys have implemented SAP into a host of acquisitions over the years. Maybe you can just highlight one on Fire, the progress and prospective benefits, but also just sort of learnings from running that ERP implementation successfully over the years and what you might be able to do with that going forward?

知道了。太棒了，夥計們。然後或許可以作為後續報道。顯然，你們正在將 SAP 系統引入消防領域，而且多年來，你們已經將 SAP 系統引入許多收購項目中。或許您可以重點介紹 Fire 系統，包括其進展和預期收益，以及多年來成功運行 ERP 系統所獲得的經驗教訓，以及您未來可以利用這些經驗做些什麼？

Yes, Alex, we are preparing to implement our SAP into -- our technology into the Fire business. And we're excited about that. We think it's going to bring standardization with that, allows for a better customer experience. And with that, it also allows for a better employee partner experience.

是的，Alex，我們正準備將我們的 SAP 技術應用到消防業務中。我們對此感到興奮。我們認為這將帶來標準化，從而提升客戶體驗。這樣一來，也能帶來更好的員工合作體驗。

So we focus on these technologies to allow us to make it easier to do business with us and make it easier for our employee partners to do their jobs. So we think it will do just exactly that. And that shows up in all kinds of different ways, retention of customers, retention of our employee partners, productivity, those types of things. That being said, it takes time.

因此，我們專注於這些技術，以便讓與我們開展業務更容易，也讓我們的員工合作夥伴更容易完成他們的工作。所以我們認為它會起到這樣的作用。這體現在方方面面，例如客戶留存率、員工合作夥伴留存率、生產力等等。也就是說，這需要時間。

And technology is certainly never easy to implement. But we have really good muscle memory there, and we're well prepared to roll that out. And once we close on our deal with UniFirst, we're highly positioned to do the exact same thing. And I think we'll see the same experience.

而且，技術的實施從來都不是一件容易的事。但我們在這方面有著非常好的肌肉記憶，我們已經做好了充分的準備來運用它。一旦我們與 UniFirst 達成協議，我們就完全有能力做同樣的事情。我認為我們會看到同樣的情況。

I think the team partners at UniFirst will be excited about it, make it easier to do their jobs, make it more valuable to the customers, make it easier for the customers to do business. And we think long term about those subjects as you go through the challenges of integrating technology, but the long-term impact is powerful for our business.

我認為 UniFirst 的團隊合作夥伴會對此感到興奮，這將使他們的工作更容易，為客戶創造更多價值，使客戶更容易開展業務。在應對技術整合帶來的挑戰時，我們會從長遠角度考慮這些問題，但從長遠來看，這對我們的業務有著巨大的影響。

Jason Haas, Wells Fargo.

傑森‧哈斯，富國銀行。

This is Jun-Yi on for Jason Haas. Can you walk us through some of the key puts and takes to consider for 4Q organic revenue growth by segment? I believe you guys had some onetime benefits in 4Q last year in Uniform Direct and First Aid and Safety. Could you remind us how big those impacts were? And any other factors to consider across the board?

這是 Jun-Yi 替補 Jason Haas 出賽。您能否為我們詳細介紹各業務部門在預測第四季有機收入成長時需要考慮的一些關鍵因素？我相信你們去年第四季在製服直銷和急救安全方面有一些一次性福利。您能提醒我們一下這些影響有多大嗎？還有其他需要考慮的因素嗎？

Thank you for the question. I'll start. And I appreciate you pointing it out because the comparative for Q4 is -- on revenue growth is significant. It was our highest revenue growth quarter last year. The organic was at 9%.

謝謝你的提問。我先來。我很感謝你指出這一點，因為第四季的年比數據——營收成長顯著。這是我們去年營收成長最高的一個季度。有機物含量為9%。

And we did have some onetime benefits, specifically in our First Aid business that ran 18.5% organic growth. We certainly do not anticipate that again. And then in our Uniform Direct Sale business as well. In First Aid, we had an increase in the training business that helped us as it relates to AED training.

我們也獲得了一些一次性收益，尤其是在急救業務方面，實現了 18.5% 的自然成長。我們當然不希望這種情況再次發生。在我們的製服直銷業務中也是如此。在急救方面，我們的培訓業務有所成長，這對我們進行 AED 培訓很有幫助。

So that was a spike that we -- again, we don't think is going to occur at those levels. And the Uniform Direct Sale business can be a little lumpy, but it had a really good quarter. So yes, hopefully, that gives you a little bit of color around the tough comparative in Q4.

所以，那次激增我們——再次強調，我們認為不會再出現那種程度的激增了。制服直銷業務有時會有些波動，但本季業績確實不錯。所以，希望這能讓你對第四季艱難的對比情況有更清晰的了解。

Todd, I might just add, like, first off, I'd just say we had an outstanding quarter this quarter. Jim mentioned that we continue to execute at a high level. We feel that the guide for Q4 is not only a good guide, but it's also consistent with the guide that we gave at the end of the second quarter. I guess let me kind of walk through a little bit of math there that last quarter, the organic growth at the high end of the range was 8%.

托德，我還要補充一點，首先，我想說我們這個季度表現非常出色。吉姆提到我們繼續保持著高水準的執行力。我們認為第四季的業績指引不僅是一個好的指引，而且與我們在第二季末給予的指引是一致的。我想讓我稍微算一下，上個季度，有機成長率在最高區間為 8%。

And if you look at the guide for this quarter, this quarter is also at 8%. And then if you even take it a step further and look at it another way, last quarter, we issued a guide for the second half of the year to grow organically 7.8%. In Q3, we just delivered a growth rate of 8.2% organically. And when you combine that with the Q4 implied of 7.6%, you get an average of 7.9%. So really effectively right in line with the guide that we gave last quarter.

如果你看本季的指導方針，本季也是 8%。如果你再進一步，從另一個角度來看，上個季度，我們發布了下半年有機成長7.8%的指導方針。第三季度，我們的有機成長率達到了 8.2%。再加上第四季隱含的 7.6%，平均下來就是 7.9%。所以，這實際上與我們上個季度給出的指導方針完全一致。

Great. That's really helpful. And as my follow-up, I understand that most of your new business comes from no-programmers. But I want to see if you've seen any change in the competitive environment recently following your acquisition and also given changes in the macro and geopolitical environment?

偉大的。這真的很有幫助。另外，我了解到你們的新業務大多來自非程式設計師。但我很想知道，在你們收購之後，以及考慮到宏觀和地緣政治環境的變化，你們最近是否觀察到競爭環境發生了任何變化？

Thank you for the question. It is -- the geopolitical environment is -- certainly have a dynamic impact on things. But from a competitive set standpoint, no real change, keeping in mind, as you referenced, two-third of our new customers come from that no-program market. So when you're competing with e-commerce and you're competing with retail and you're competing with other managed programs, relative to all that, we also have traditional competitors.

謝謝你的提問。地緣政治環境確實會對事物產生動態影響。但從競爭格局的角度來看，並沒有真正的變化，正如您所提到的，我們三分之二的新客戶都來自沒有專案支援的市場。所以，當你在與電子商務競爭、與零售業競爭、與其他管理項目競爭時，相對於所有這些，我們還有傳統的競爭對手。

So no real change to that competitive set. It's incredibly competitive, and that's the way it always has been and will be. That being said, we are focused on delivering value to that set of prospects out there. There are so many businesses. We do business with a little over 1 million businesses, and there's whatever, 16 million to 20 million businesses in the US and Canada, the opportunity out there is immense.

所以，這種競爭格局並沒有真正的改變。競爭非常激烈，過去如此，未來也是如此。也就是說，我們專注於為潛在客戶創造價值。這裡有很多企業。我們與超過 100 萬家企業開展業務，而美國和加拿大共有 1,600 萬到 2,000 萬家企業，機會非常巨大。

And we're focused on delivering our message and getting our team positioned to better serve that market and get the word out better to that market because so many of them don't realize what we can do for them. And many of them also think that they're not a big enough business to have a program like we offer, which is incredibly contrary to how we make a living, which is servicing Main Street USA is -- and our average size customer is -- spends about $10,000 a year with us. So trying to get that message out to that prospect base is incredibly important to us.

我們專注於傳遞我們的訊息，並讓我們的團隊更好地服務於該市場，更好地向該市場傳播訊息，因為許多市場參與者並不了解我們能為他們做什麼。他們中的許多人也認為他們的企業規模不夠大，無法提供像我們這樣的項目，這與我們的謀生方式截然相反，我們的謀生方式是服務於美國大街小巷的企業——而我們的平均客戶規模是每年在我們這裡消費約 10,000 美元。因此，將這一訊息傳遞給潛在客戶群對我們來說至關重要。

Ashish Sabadra, RBC.

阿什什·薩巴德拉，RBC。

This is Will Qi on for Ashish Sabadra. I just wanted to ask on route density and the incremental opportunities there around footprint, especially with the UNF acquisition in mind. Retention is still at high, will any retention dips result in kind of reorganization there? Or do you still see a lot of opportunity kind of increasing the sell-through on those routes and just further fleet optimization?

這裡是Will Qi，為您報道Ashish Sabadra。我只是想問路線密度以及圍繞佈局的增量機會，特別是考慮到 UNF 的收購。目前員工留存率仍然很高，如果留存率下降，是否會導致公司進行某種形式的重組？或者您仍然認為在這些航線上有很大的機會提高銷售轉換率，並進一步優化車隊？

Why don't I start on that one, and then I'll see if anybody else wants to add color. I think, Ashish, you all are probably aware of our SmartTruck technology and how we approach routing and routing efficiency. And the first thing that we try to do with routing and routing efficiency is be as little disruption as possible, whether that's within our own facilities or when we make an acquisition.

我先來畫這個，然後再看看有沒有其他人想上色。阿什什，我想你們可能都了解我們的智慧卡車技術以及我們如何處理路線規劃和提高路線效率。我們首先要考慮的是路由和路由效率，那就是盡可能減少干擾，無論是在我們自己的設施內還是在我們進行收購時。

And especially when we make acquisitions, we recognize that the most important component of the acquisition are the customers and the new employees that we brought on board, and we try to be as little disruption as possible to those two constituents. And we spent a lot of time trying to win over hearts and minds and build trust.

尤其是在進行收購時，我們認識到收購中最重要的部分是客戶和新員工，因此我們努力盡可能減少對這兩個群體的影響。我們花了大量時間努力贏得人心，建立信任。

And then we implement our SmartTruck technology. And SmartTruck allows us to make incremental moves and to gain efficiency over time rather than a wholesale route consolidation all at one point. We don't like doing that.

然後我們實施我們的智慧卡車技術。SmartTruck 讓我們可以逐步推進，隨著時間的推移提高效率，而不是一次性進行全面的路線整合。我們不喜歡那樣做。

We don't like big route reorganizations within a facility at one point because it could be highly disruptive. So we love the SmartTruck technology. It's been effective for us over the last several years. It's been one of the contributors to continuing to elevate our gross margin, and that would be our approach with any future acquisitions.

我們不喜歡在某個時間點對設施內的路線進行大規模重組，因為這可能會造成很大的混亂。我們非常喜歡SmartTruck技術。在過去幾年裡，它對我們來說一直很有效。它一直是我們毛利率持續提升的因素之一，這也是我們未來進行任何收購時將採取的方法。

Faiza Alwy, Deutsche Bank.

Faiza Alwy，德意志銀行。

I wanted to see if you've gotten any feedback from any of your larger customers around the announced acquisition of UniFirst. And really related to that, I'm wondering if we should be expecting any type of dissynergies when you initially make the -- when the acquisition is completed?

我想了解一下，對於宣布收購 UniFirst 一事，你們的大客戶有沒有給任何回饋。與此密切相關的是，我想知道在最初進行收購時——也就是收購完成後——我們是否應該預期會出現任何類型的協同效應不足？

Faiza, as far as our customers, as you can imagine, we stay really close to our customers, and we're getting a good response from them. They understand that they have many options, and they make that very clear to us that they have many options, which puts them in a good leverage position. And whether it's a national account or a local account, they have the same options.

Faiza，就我們的客戶而言，正如你所想，我們與客戶保持著非常密切的聯繫，並且我們得到了他們很好的回饋。他們明白自己有很多選擇，他們非常明確地告訴我們，他們有很多選擇，這使他們處於良好的談判地位。無論是全國性帳戶還是本地帳戶，他們都擁有相同的選擇。

And our national customers still the vast majority of them are simply hunting licenses. So they'll negotiate centralized terms and conditions and then they allow their locations to decide who they want to do business with whether they're on contract or not. So they have the exact same choices that any local company would have. And they're very clear about that, that, hey, this -- we think this will be good for us.

而我們的國內客戶中，絕大多數仍只是購買狩獵許可證。因此，他們會協商統一的條款和條件，然後允許其分支機構自行決定與哪些企業開展業務，無論這些企業是否​​簽訂了合約。所以他們擁有與任何本地公司完全相同的選擇。他們對此非常明確，認為這對我們有好處。

You'll bring better technology, better infrastructure, speed of delivery to our locations. You'll allow you to spend more time with our business instead of driving. All those things are very positive. So the response has been quite good. Any dissynergies? So I don't know that I would describe it that way. Certainly, we'll have our onetime costs. But we think that the combination of our two companies is going to be really good for all of our constituents, our customers, our employee partners, team partners and our shareholders.

您將為我們的各分店帶來更好的技術、更好的基礎設施和更快的配送速度。這樣您就可以把更多的時間花在我們的業務上，而不是開車上。這些都是非常正面的方面。所以反應相當不錯。是否存在任何不協同效應？所以我不知道我是否會那樣描述它。當然，我們會有一些一次性成本。但我們認為，兩家公司的合併對我們所有的利害關係人、客戶、員工夥伴、團隊夥伴和股東都將大有裨益。

Great. And then just a follow-up on that. I'm curious if you're doing anything differently kind of in terms of managing the business or in the timing of investments, things like that up until the acquisition? And is that going to be a factor in terms of how we should think about incremental margins in the near term? I see the implied kind of 4Q guide, but just curious if you're just managing things a little bit differently?

偉大的。然後，我想就此追問一下。我很好奇，在收購之前，你們在業務管理或投資時機等方面是否採取了什麼不同的做法？那麼，這是否會成為我們近期考慮增量利潤率的因素呢？我看出了你暗示的第四季業績指南，但只是好奇你是不是在管理方式上做了一些調整？

Yes. Thank you for the question, Faiza. Yes, our incrementals that we're guiding towards in Q4 are very attractive. But that is not because of a change in approach. That's simply what we've been predicting and timing around for the year. And I wouldn't see a change in our approach in general as you speak to that. We're investing for the long term and we'll take our normal prudent approach as we think about investing for our business.

是的。謝謝你的提問，法伊札。是的，我們預期第四季的成長目標非常有吸引力。但這並非因為方法改變了。這正是我們今年一直在預測和安排的時間。就你剛才提到的情況而言，我認為我們整體的做法不會改變。我們進行的是長期投資，在考慮為我們的業務進行投資時，我們將採取我們一貫謹慎的態度。

Connor Cerniglia, AllianceBernstein.

Connor Cerniglia，AllianceBernstein。

I wanted to follow up on employment trends you've been seeing and get an update versus last quarter. Are you seeing any changes in the conversion cycle or win rate for first-time buyers? And within that specific verticals, call it, health care or education, are they proving more resilient? And which areas are you seeing more weakness?

我想跟進您觀察到的就業趨勢，並了解與上個季度相比的最新情況。您是否觀察到首次購屋者的轉換週期或成交率有任何變化？在這些特定的垂直領域，例如醫療保健或教育領域，它們是否表現出更強的韌性？您認為哪些方面有較多弱點？

Good question, Connor. Yes, I wouldn't say we see any change in the conversion rate as it speaks to converting over that prospect base. As it relates to our verticals, we think we've chosen our verticals really, really well.

問得好，康納。是的，就轉換率而言，我認為我們並沒有看到任何變化，因為它指的是現有潛在客戶群中進行轉換。就我們的垂直領域而言，我們認為我們選擇的垂直領域真的非常好。

And I think the employment data would defend that statement, meaning that if you look at health care, hospitality, education, state and local government have all fared reasonably well as it relates to employment. And we think the future there looks bright as well.

我認為就業數據可以佐證這一說法，也就是說，如果你看看醫療保健、旅館業、教育、州和地方政府，就就業而言，這些行業都表現得相當不錯。我們認為那裡的未來也一片光明。

Seth Weber, BNP Paribas.

Seth Weber，法國巴黎銀行。

Just a quick one for me. Just on the Fire ERP implementation. I think we had previously talked about like 100 basis points margin headwind next year for '27? I just wanted to sort of mark-to-market and see where we're at from an expense perspective, if that's still the right way to think about it? Just 100 bps for this segment.

我只需要簡單回答一下。僅涉及 Fire ERP 的實施。我記得我們之前討論過，2027 年的利潤率可能會面臨 100 個基點的阻力？我只是想以市值來衡量一下，看看從費用角度來看我們目前的狀況，不知道這種思考方式是否仍然正確？本段僅需 100 bps。

Yes. This is Scott. Thanks for the question. As Todd mentioned, some of the impact on next year's -- on the segment is going to be dependent on the rollout in the Fire business. We're satisfied with our progress today.

是的。這是斯科特。謝謝你的提問。正如托德所提到的，明年該細分市場的部分影響將取決於消防業務的推廣情況。我們對今天的進展感到滿意。

Still not clear on exactly when next fiscal year that will be fully rolled out, but the progress is good. If you looked at an entire year, it would be the 100 basis points that you referenced. Then depending on when we actually go live with the entire business, it will be something less than that because we're not anticipating that to be fully rolled out by June 1.

目前還不清楚下一個財政年度何時全面實施，但進展良好。如果以全年為單位來看，那就是你提到的100個基點。然後，具體時間取決於我們何時正式推出整個業務，實際規模會比這小一些，因為我們預計到 6 月 1 日之前無法全面推出。

And with that, we need to end our Q&A session for today. I'd like to turn the call back over to Jared for closing remarks.

今天的問答環節就到此結束了。我想把電話交還給賈里德，讓他做總結發言。

Thank you, Ross, and thank you for joining us this morning. We will issue our fourth quarter of fiscal 2026 financial results in July. We look forward to speaking with you again at that time.

謝謝你，羅斯，也謝謝你今天早上和我們一起收看節目。我們將於7月發布2026財年第四季財務業績。我們期待屆時再次與您聯繫。

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與。您現在可以斷開連線了。