美元樹 (DLTR) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Hello, and welcome to the Dollar Tree Q1 2024 earnings call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. It's now my pleasure to turn the call over to Bob LaFleur, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations. Please go ahead, sir.

您好，歡迎參加 Dollar Tree 2024 年第一季財報電話會議。 （操作員指示）謹此提醒，本次會議正在錄製中。現在我很高興將電話轉給投資者關係高級副總裁 Bob LaFleur。請繼續，先生。

Good morning and thank you for joining us today to discuss Dollar Tree's first-quarter fiscal 2024 results. With me today are Dollar Tree's Chairman and CEO, Rick Dreiling, and CFO, Jeff Davis.

早安，感謝您今天加入我們討論 Dollar Tree 2024 財年第一季的業績。今天與我在一起的有 Dollar Tree 董事長兼執行長 Rick Dreiling 和財務長 Jeff Davis。

Before we begin, I would like to remind everyone that some of the remarks that we will make today about the company's expectations, plans and future prospects are considered forward-looking statements under the Safe Harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by our forward-looking statements.

在開始之前，我想提醒大家，根據 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》的安全港條款，我們今天將發表的有關公司預期、計劃和未來前景的一些言論被視為前瞻性陳述。風險和不確定性，可能導致實際結果與我們前瞻性陳述中預期的結果有重大差異。

For information on the risks and uncertainties that could affect our actual results, please see the risk factors, business and management discussion and analysis of financial condition, and results of operations sections in our annual report on Form 10-K filed on March 20, 2024, our most recent press release, and Form 8-K, and other filings with the SEC. We caution against reliance on any forward-looking statements made today and we disclaim any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

有關可能影響我們實際結果的風險和不確定性的信息，請參閱我們於2024 年3 月20 日提交的10-K 表格年度報告中的風險因素、業務和管理層討論以及財務狀況分析和運營結果部分、我們最新的新聞稿、表格 8-K 以及向 SEC 提交的其他文件。我們告誡不要依賴今天發表的任何前瞻性聲明，並且我們不承擔更新任何前瞻性聲明的義務，除非法律要求。

Also, during this call, we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations of these non-GAAP items to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures are provided in today's earnings release, available on the IR section of our website. These non-GAAP measures are not intended to be a substitute for GAAP results. Unless otherwise stated, we will refer to our financial results on a GAAP basis.

此外，在本次電話會議中，我們將討論某些非公認會計準則財務指標。今天的收益報告中提供了這些非公認會計準則項目與最直接可比較的公認會計準則財務指標的對賬，可在我們網站的投資者關係部分找到。這些非 GAAP 衡量標準無意取代 GAAP 結果。除非另有說明，我們將根據公認會計原則（GAAP）參考我們的財務表現。

Additionally, unless otherwise stated, all comparisons discussed today for the first quarter of fiscal 2024 are against the same period a year ago. Please note that a supplemental slide deck outlining selected operating metrics is available on the IR section of our website. Following our prepared remarks, Rick and Jeff will take your questions. Given the number of callers who would like to participate in today's session, we ask that you limit yourself to one question.

此外，除非另有說明，今天討論的 2024 財年第一季的所有比較均與一年前同期進行。請注意，我們網站的 IR 部分提供了概述選定營運指標的補充幻燈片。在我們準備好的發言之後，里克和傑夫將回答您的問題。鑑於希望參加今天會議的來電者人數眾多，我們要求您只回答一個問題。

I'd now like to turn the call over to Rick.

我現在想把電話轉給里克。

Thanks, Bob. Good morning, and thank you for joining us on our call today. I'd like to begin my remarks today by extending my heartfelt gratitude to members of our Dollar Tree community, following the devastating tornado in Marietta, Oklahoma. While the tornado destroyed our Dollar Tree distribution center there, I'm especially thankful that no one was injured in our facility. I am also extremely proud of the resilience displayed by our team members in the aftermath of this tragic event.

謝謝，鮑伯。早安，感謝您今天加入我們的電話會議。在俄克拉荷馬州瑪麗埃塔發生毀滅性龍捲風之後，我想先向我們的 Dollar Tree 社區成員表示衷心的感謝。雖然龍捲風摧毀了我們在那裡的 Dollar Tree 配送中心，但我特別慶幸的是我們的設施中沒有人受傷。我也對我們的團隊成員在這場悲劇發生後所表現出的韌性感到非常自豪。

Fortunately, our distribution network is flexible, and while we expect to absorb incremental operating cost, we believe we will keep store-level disruption to a minimum. The leadership team at Dollar Tree is also highly sensitive to the wider impact of this disaster on our associates, their families, and the broader Marietta community. With this in mind, we set up a temporary site at a local hotel to help support our associates in their time of need.

幸運的是，我們的分銷網絡非常靈活，雖然我們希望吸收增量營運成本，但我們相信我們會將商店層面的干擾降至最低。 Dollar Tree 的領導團隊也對這場災難對我們的員工、他們的家人以及更廣泛的瑪麗埃塔社區的更廣泛影響高度敏感。考慮到這一點，我們在當地一家酒店設立了一個臨時站點，以便在員工需要時為他們提供支援。

We brought in food and other essential supplies, such as batteries, chargers, diapers and toiletries. Our associates have access to over $200,000 in immediate response grants and mental health services. For everyone impacted by the recent situation in Marietta, I want to thank you for everything you've done during this difficult time. It's during these periods of adversity that the strength and character of our organization shines through.

我們帶來了食物和其他必需品，例如電池、充電器、尿布和盥洗用品。我們的員工可以獲得超過 20 萬美元的即時回應補助金和心理健康服務。對於受瑪麗埃塔最近局勢影響的每個人，我要感謝你們在這個困難時期所做的一切。正是在這些逆境時期，我們組織的力量和品質才得以彰顯。

Whether it's dealing with natural disasters or important strategic decisions, our associates and the communities they serve are always top of mind. As I'm sure you saw in our announcement earlier today, we are initiating a formal review of strategic alternatives for the Family Dollar business. The decision to explore strategic alternatives includes evaluating how each separate banner might appeal differently to different sets of owners.

無論是應對自然災害還是重要的策略決策，我們的員工及其服務的社區始終是首要考慮的。我相信您在今天早些時候的公告中看到，我們正在啟動對 Family Dollar 業務的策略替代方案的正式審查。探索策略替代方案的決定包括評估每個單獨的橫幅如何對不同的所有者群體產生不同的吸引力。

It also includes evaluating whether accelerating Dollar Tree's growth and completing Family Dollar's transformation might be best accomplished by separate, dedicated leadership teams. Separating the two businesses could enhance the performance of each one individually and allow them both to reach their true valuation potential.

它還包括評估加速 Dollar Tree 的成長和完成 Family Dollar 的轉型是否最好由獨立、專注的領導團隊來完成。分離這兩項業務可以單獨提高每項業務的業績，並使它們都能發揮其真正的估值潛力。

Let me provide some additional background and context. We have been on a multi-year journey to transform this organization and fully unlock its intrinsic value. An important step in this process was our portfolio review and the decision to close 970 underperforming Family Dollar stores. Many of these stores had been underinvested in for years and the capital investment required to fix them could not deliver an acceptable rate of return.

讓我提供一些額外的背景和背景。我們花了多年的時間來改造這個組織並充分釋放其內在價值。這個過程中的一個重要步驟是我們的投資組合審查以及關閉 970 家表現不佳的 Family Dollar 商店的決定。其中許多商店多年來投資不足，修復這些商店所需的資本投資無法帶來可接受的回報率。

Moving forward with a streamlined portfolio should help accelerate Family Dollar's transformation and improve the long-term returns of the business. While we are working to transform Family Dollar, we continue to aggressively grow the Dollar Tree banner by expanding our multi-price offering, accelerating our rate of new store openings, and pursuing accretive transactions like our recent acquisition of up to 170 stores out of the 99 Cents Only bankruptcy.

推動精簡的投資組合應有助於加速 Family Dollar 的轉型並提高業務的長期回報。在我們努力轉型 Family Dollar 的同時，我們繼續積極發展 Dollar Tree 旗幟，方法是擴大我們的多價格產品、加快新店開張速度以及追求增值交易，例如我們最近收購了多達 170 家商店。破產。

These stores are highly complementary to the Dollar Tree banner and are expected to produce sales, profits, and returns that are well above our portfolio average. We are pleased to bring these locations under the Dollar Tree banner and look forward to their openings later this year.

這些商店與 Dollar Tree 旗幟高度互補，預計將產生遠高於我們投資組合平均水平的銷售額、利潤和回報。我們很高興將這些地點納入 Dollar Tree 旗下，並期待它們在今年稍後開幕。

Today, each banner is at a different stage of its respective journey, and each has its own set of unique needs. This is why we believe now is the right time to conduct a thorough review of strategic alternatives for Family Dollar, so we can determine what is the proper operational and ownership structure to best support and enable its transformation.

如今，每個橫幅都處於各自旅程的不同階段，並且每個橫幅都有自己的獨特需求。這就是為什麼我們認為現在是對 Family Dollar 的策略替代方案進行徹底審查的最佳時機，這樣我們就可以確定什麼是適當的營運和所有權結構，以最好地支援和實現其轉型。

At the same time, that should allow us to fully unlock the value of the Dollar Tree banner. In the end, we want to ensure that both the Dollar Tree and Family Dollar banners have the right strategic, operational, and capital structures necessary to meet the evolving needs of their customers and to maximize value creation in each business.

同時，這應該能讓我們充分釋放美元樹旗幟的價值。最後，我們希望確保 Dollar Tree 和 Family Dollar 品牌擁有正確的策略、營運和資本結構，以滿足客戶不斷變化的需求，並最大限度地創造每項業務的價值。

As I said in my opening, our associates in the communities they serve are always top of mind for us. For 65 years, Family Dollar has played an incredibly important role in neighborhoods across America by helping families do more with less. This would not be possible without the dedication of our incredible Family Dollar associates. One of the priorities of this strategic review is to make sure that Family Dollar is properly positioned for long-term prosperity.

正如我在開場白中所說，我們所服務的社區中的員工始終是我們的首要考慮。 65 年來，Family Dollar 幫助家庭用更少的錢做更多的事，在美國各地的社區中發揮了極其重要的作用。如果沒有我們令人難以置信的 Family Dollar 員工的奉獻精神，這是不可能實現的。這次策略審查的首要任務之一是確保 Family Dollar 處於適當的位置，以實現長期繁榮。

All that said, we are still in the very early stages of this review. We have not made any prejudgments regarding the eventual outcome of this process, especially given the wide range of potential outcomes. As I'm sure you can appreciate, there is a lot of work to be done and we do not intend to provide any further updates unless and until the Board has approved a specific course of action or determined that further disclosures are appropriate or necessary. I thank you in advance for your understanding on this matter.

儘管如此，我們仍處於本次審查的早期階段。我們沒有對這個過程的最終結果做出任何預先判斷，特別是考慮到潛在結果的範圍廣泛。我相信您會理解，還有很多工作要做，我們不打算提供任何進一步的更新，除非董事會批准了具體的行動方案或確定進一步的披露是適當或必要的。我預先感謝您對此事的理解。

With that, let's move on to our first quarter results. First quarter adjusted diluted EPS of $1.43 was at the higher end of our outlook range. These results reflect favorable freight costs and careful expense management during the quarter. You've heard me say many times that the three key fundamentals in retail are growth in transactions, sales per square foot, and units. And I'm pleased to report, all three of these metrics continue to move in the right direction.

接下來，我們來看看第一季的業績。第一季調整後攤薄每股收益為 1.43 美元，處於我們預期範圍的高端。這些結果反映了本季有利的貨運成本和謹慎的費用管理。您曾多次聽我說過，零售業的三個關鍵基本面是交易成長、每平方英尺銷售額和銷售量成長。我很高興地報告，所有這三個指標都繼續朝著正確的方向發展。

Let me now cover some key financial highlights from the quarter. On a consolidated basis, net sales increased 4.2% to $7.6 billion. Enterprise comp was 1% as a 2.1% increase in traffic was partially offset by a 1.1% decline in average ticket. In both segments, comp growth was driven by traffic gains that were partially offset by lower average tickets. The average ticket declines reflected weaker discretionary demand, particularly in the Dollar Tree segment.

現在讓我介紹一下本季的一些重要財務亮點。合併後淨銷售額成長 4.2%，達到 76 億美元。企業補償為 1%，因為客流量 2.1% 的成長被平均門票下降 1.1% 部分抵銷。在這兩個細分市場中，複合成長都是由流量成長推動的，而平均票價下降部分抵消了流量成長。平均票價下降反映了可自由支配需求的疲軟，特別是在 Dollar Tree 領域。

Looking at performance by banner, Dollar Tree comps increased 1.7% on a 2.8% increase in customer traffic, partially offset by a 1.1% decrease in average ticket. Dollar Tree's consumable comp was 7.4% and its discretionary comp declined 3.2%. While a 7.4% consumables comp is respectable in its own right, it is worth noting that this came on top of a 6.9% consumables comp last year.

從橫幅廣告表現來看，Dollar Tree 的業績成長了 1.7%，客戶流量增加了 2.8%，但部分被平均客流量下降 1.1% 所抵銷。 Dollar Tree 的消費品成本率為 7.4%，可自由支配成本則下降了 3.2%。雖然 7.4% 的消耗品比較本身就很不錯，但值得注意的是，這是在去年 6.9% 的消耗品比較之上的。

On the other hand, this was the first discretionary comp decline we've seen at Dollar Tree since the first quarter of 2020 at the outset of the pandemic. Dollar Tree's quarter one comp came in below expectations, because Easter was especially challenging for us this year. Easter is historically a major driver of discretionary demand. In fact, to put things in perspective, Easter discretionary sales represent about 1% of our annual sales. For the largest retailers, that figure is closer to 0.1%.

另一方面，這是自 2020 年第一季疫情爆發以來，我們在 Dollar Tree 看到的首次可自由支配的薪資下降。 Dollar Tree 第一季的業績低於預期，因為今年復活節對我們來說尤其具有挑戰性。從歷史上看，復活節是可自由支配需求的主要驅動力。事實上，從長遠來看，復活節可自由支配的銷售額約占我們年銷售額的 1%。對於最大的零售商來說，這個數字接近 0.1%。

Looked at another way, Easter is 10 times more important to Dollar Tree than it is for other retailers. This year, an early Easter, combined with the extra week in our fourth quarter last year, left us with a much shorter selling season. Also, unusually cold and wet weather throughout much of the country negatively impacted the way many families celebrate this traditionally spring-oriented outdoor-centric holiday.

從另一個角度來看，復活節對 Dollar Tree 的重要性是其他零售商的 10 倍。今年，復活節提早到來，再加上去年第四季額外增加了一周，導致我們的銷售季節要短得多。此外，全國大部分地區異常寒冷和潮濕的天氣對許多家庭慶祝這個傳統上以春季戶外活動為中心的節日的方式產生了負面影響。

In fact, recent consumer research showed that Easter gatherings were down 20% this year and that 6 million fewer American households purchased Easter products in 2024. This dampened consumer demand across our seasonal discretionary assortment, which caters heavily to these types of celebrations. We also saw related softness in non-Easter discretionary categories, like garden supplies, outdoor, toys, and other seasonal items.

事實上，最近的消費者研究顯示，今年的復活節聚會數量減少了20%，到2024 年，購買復活節產品的美國家庭將減少600 萬。需求，而我們的季節性非必需品類主要迎合此類慶祝活動。我們也看到非復活節非必需類別的疲軟，例如花園用品、戶外用品、玩具和其他季節性物品。

While the calendar shift was contemplated in our first quarter comp guidance, the unusual weather was not. Overall, the soft Easter highly influenced the monthly cadence of our quarter one comp. It's also important to note that this softness was Dollar Tree-specific and concentrated in the 8 to 10 days prior to Easter. Comps before and after that were essentially in line with our quarterly expectations. All in, we believe Easter was a 150-basis point drag on Dollar Tree's first quarter comp.

雖然我們第一季的業績指引中考慮到了日曆的變化，但不尋常的天氣卻沒有考慮到。總體而言，復活節的疲軟極大地影響了我們第一季比較的每月節奏。還需要注意的是，這種疲軟是美元樹特有的，集中在復活節前的 8 到 10 天。前後的比較基本上符合我們的季度預期。總而言之，我們認為復活節對 Dollar Tree 第一季業績造成 150 個基點的拖累。

Despite this, Dollar Tree took meaningful consumable market share in the quarter with our dollar growth exceeding the market by 660 basis points and our unit growth exceeding the market by 520 basis points. Last quarter, I announced the next phase of our multi-price strategy called More Choices. As part of this program, we are expanding our multi-price assortment by over 300 items at price points above $1.25 in approximately 3,000 Dollar Tree stores by year end.

儘管如此，Dollar Tree 在本季佔據了相當大的消費品市場份額，我們的美元成長超過市場 660 個基點，我們的單位成長超過市場 520 個基點。上個季度，我宣布了我們多價格策略的下一階段，稱為「更多選擇」。作為該計劃的一部分，我們將在年底前在大約 3,000 家 Dollar Tree 商店中增加 300 多種價格高於 1.25 美元的商品，以擴大我們的多價格品種。

Importantly, these multi-price items are being fully integrated into aisles throughout the store rather than concentrated in a single center store aisle. Before I expand on this program, let me take a moment to reiterate what multi-price is and what it is not. Multi-price has never been about raising prices on existing items. It's about adding new items at new price points that are incremental to our core assortment. Multi-price offers our customers the high-quality products that they've come to expect at price points that represent a compelling value proposition in the categories that are most relevant to them.

重要的是，這些多價商品完全整合到整個商店的過道中，而不是集中在單一的中心商店過道中。在詳細介紹這個計劃之前，讓我花點時間重申一下什麼是多價，什麼不是。多價從來都不是提高現有商品的價格。這是關於以新的價格點添加新商品，這些商品是我們核心品種的增量。多價格為我們的客戶提供他們所期望的高品質產品，其價格點代表了與他們最相關的類別中令人信服的價值主張。

Multi-price is designed to complement our core $1.25 strategy, not replace it. Even as we expand our multi-price assortment, we expect that at least 80% of the items in any Dollar Tree store will remain at that entry-level price point. Now, back to the rollout.

多價格旨在補充我們的核心 1.25 美元策略，而不是取代它。即使我們擴大了多價格品種，我們預計 Dollar Tree 商店中至少 80% 的商品將保持在入門級價格點。現在，回到推出。

By the end of the quarter, we had converted roughly 10% of Dollar Tree stores to the new in-line multi-price configuration. To date, we are pleased with the performance of this latest group of stores, which are out-comping our $1.25 only in Dollar Tree Plus stores. As we roll out our latest concept to 2,000 more stores over the balance of this year, we are proactively taking steps to minimize any operational disruption by using teams of dedicated third-party specialists to complete the conversions.

到本季末，我們已將大約 10% 的 Dollar Tree 商店轉換為新的線上多價格配置。迄今為止，我們對這組最新商店的表現感到滿意，這些商店的價格比我們僅在 Dollar Tree Plus 商店中 1.25 美元的價格要高。今年餘下的時間裡，當我們向另外 2,000 家商店推出最新概念時，我們正在積極採取措施，透過專門的第三方專家團隊來完成轉換，以最大程度地減少營運中斷。

I'm excited about our multi-price journey. Post conversion comps are running at or above expectations at the vast majority of stores that we've transitioned. That said, there is a bit of a learning curve with multi-price as we evolve from our fixed price legacy. This is a new discipline for us and it will take us a little bit of time to fully build out our core competencies. But we're off to a good start, and so far, I'm pleased with the customer response to our new offerings.

我對我們的多價之旅感到興奮。在我們轉型的絕大多數商店中，轉型後的業績都達到或高於預期。也就是說，隨著我們從固定價格傳統中發展，多價格存在一些學習曲線。這對我們來說是一門新學科，我們需要一些時間來充分建立我們的核心競爭力。但我們有了一個好的開端，到目前為止，我對客戶對我們新產品的反應感到滿意。

Shifting over to Family Dollar. Topline performance in quarter one was in line with our expectations. Comps were up 0.1% as we cycled a 6.6% comp in quarter one of last year. Customer traffic increased 0.9%, which was partially offset by a 0.8% decrease in average ticket. Both traffic and ticket trends improved on a sequential basis as the multiple merchandising initiatives and growth strategies we've launched over the past several quarters continue to progress.

轉向家庭美元。第一季的營收表現符合我們的預期。去年第一季度，我們的比較成長了 0.1%，而去年第一季的比較為 6.6%。客戶流量增加了 0.9%，但被平均門票下降 0.8% 部分抵消。隨著我們在過去幾季推出的多項行銷計畫和成長策略不斷取得進展，客流量和門票趨勢均較上季改善。

Family Dollar's consumable comp was up 1.4% and its discretionary comp was down 4.7%. While Family Dollar's discretionary comp is still negative, it is worth pointing out that the underlying trend has gradually improved. The pace of mix shift towards consumables at Family Dollar has definitely slowed and since quarter one of last year, our two-year stack discretionary comp has improved by 1,000 basis points.

Family Dollar 的消費品成本上漲 1.4%，而其可自由支配成本則下降 4.7%。雖然 Family Dollar 的可自由支配成分仍然為負，但值得指出的是，基本趨勢已逐漸改善。 Family Dollar 轉向消費品的組合的步伐肯定已經放緩，自去年第一季以來，我們的兩年堆疊可自由支配補償已提高了 1,000 個基點。

While our lower income consumers continue to deal with inflation, higher interest rates, and reduced government benefits, we are encouraged that the worst of the SNAP headwinds appear to be behind us. While lower SNAP benefits were a meaningful 280-basis point drag on Family Dollar's first quarter comp, this was a 200-basis point sequential improvement over the quarter four SNAP headwinds. Similar to Dollar Tree, Family Dollar also continues to gain consumables market share, with our dollar growth exceeding the market by 180 basis points and our unit growth exceeding the market by 80 basis points.

雖然我們的低收入消費者繼續面臨通貨膨脹、利率上升和政府福利減少的問題，但令我們感到鼓舞的是，SNAP 最嚴重的逆風似乎已經過去。雖然較低的 SNAP 福利對 Family Dollar 第一季的業績造成了 280 個基點的顯著拖累，但與第四季度 SNAP 不利因素相比，這已連續改善了 200 個基點。與 Dollar Tree 類似，Family Dollar 也持續擴大消費品市場份額，我們的美元成長超過市場 180 個基點，我們的單位成長超過市場 80 個基點。

Lastly, on Family Dollar, let me take a moment and update you on the portfolio optimization. We closed 506 underperforming Family Dollar stores in the first quarter. The remaining 90 or so stores we identified in the initial round of closures were closed in May. None of the stores that closed in quarter one are included in our comp results, although any revenues and expenses from the time they were open are included in our quarter one P&L.

最後，關於 Family Dollar，讓我花點時間向您介紹投資組合優化的最新情況。第一季我們關閉了 506 家表現不佳的 Family Dollar 商店。我們在第一輪關閉中確定的其餘 90 家左右商店已於 5 月關閉。在第一季關閉的商店均不包含在我們的比較結果中，儘管它們開業時的任何收入和支出都包含在我們的第一季損益表中。

Before I turn things over to Jeff, I want to again emphasize that our operating performance in both segments remains strong. At Dollar Tree, we continue to acquire new customers and gain market share as our next generation of multi-price resonates with a broader base of consumers. And at Family Dollar, we believe the decisive actions we took to solidify the portfolio will have a positive impact on operations and returns. As a more streamlined organization, I am confident that Family Dollar's best days are ahead of it based on the wide range of growth initiatives that are in place.

在將事情交給傑夫之前，我想再次強調，我們在這兩個領域的營運表現仍然強勁。在 Dollar Tree，隨著我們的下一代多價產品與更廣泛的消費者群體產生共鳴，我們不斷獲得新客戶並贏得市場份額。在 Family Dollar，我們相信我們為鞏固投資組合所採取的果斷行動將對營運和回報產生積極影響。作為一個更精簡的組織，我相信，基於現有的廣泛成長計劃，Family Dollar 最好的日子就在前方。

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

這樣，我就把電話轉給傑夫。

Thank you, Rick, and good morning. I will start by discussing our first quarter results, after which I'll provide comments on our Q2 and fiscal 2024 outlook. Where applicable, I will focus on our adjusted results. A reconciliation of non-GAAP adjusted results is provided in our earnings release. Let's begin by looking at the business on a consolidated basis.

謝謝你，瑞克，早安。我將首先討論我們第一季的業績，然後我將對第二季和 2024 財年的前景發表評論。在適用的情況下，我將重點放在我們的調整結果。我們的收益報告中提供了非公認會計準則調整後績效的調節表。讓我們先從綜合的角度來審視該業務。

Net sales increased by 4.2% to $7.6 billion. Adjusted operating income was $436 million, a 3% decrease from last year. Adjusted operating margin decreased by 45 basis points, reflecting a 30-basis point increase in gross margin, offset by a 75-basis point increase in adjusted SG&A rate. Gross margin improvement came from lower freight costs, partially offset by unfavorable sales mix and elevated shrink. Adjusted SG&A increased primarily from temporary labor for Dollar Tree's multi-price rollout, higher depreciation and amortization, and sales deleverage.

淨銷售額成長 4.2%，達到 76 億美元。調整後營業收入為 4.36 億美元，比去年下降 3%。調整後營業利潤率下降 45 個基點，反映毛利率增加 30 個基點，但被調整後 SG&A 率增加 75 個基點所抵銷。毛利率的改善來自貨運成本的降低，但部分被不利的銷售組合和收縮率上升所抵銷。調整後的銷售及管理費用的成長主要來自於 Dollar Tree 推出多價產品的臨時勞動力、較高的折舊和攤銷以及銷售去槓桿化。

Adjusted Q1 SG&A this year excludes $17.5 million of severance and other store closure costs and a $2.5 million reversal of a legal accrual. Q1 last year excluded a $30 million legal accrual. Our adjusted effective tax rate was 24.2%, compared to 23.3%. Adjusted net income was $312 million and adjusted diluted EPS was $1.43.

今年調整後的第一季 SG&A 不包括 1,750 萬美元的遣散費和其他商店關閉成本以及 250 萬美元的法定應計費用沖銷。去年第一季不包括 3000 萬美元的法定應計費用。調整後的有效稅率為 24.2%，去年同期為 23.3%。調整後淨利為 3.12 億美元，調整後稀釋每股收益為 1.43 美元。

Moving to our business segment results, Dollar Tree's net sales increased 5.9% to $4.2 billion. Operating income decreased 3% to $522 million. Operating margin decreased 110 basis points, driven by a 10-basis point increase in gross margin, offset by a 120-basis point increase in SG&A rate.

從我們的業務部門業績來看，Dollar Tree 的淨銷售額成長了 5.9%，達到 42 億美元。營業收入下降 3%，至 5.22 億美元。營業利益率下降 110 個基點，原因是毛利率上升 10 個基點，但 SG&A 率上升 120 個基點所抵銷。

Gross margin improved primarily from lower freight costs. This was partially offset by unfavorable sales mix and elevated shrink. SG&A expenses increased primarily due to temporary labor for the multi-price conversions, higher depreciation and amortization, and sales deleverage.

毛利率的提高主要得益於貨運成本的下降。這被不利的銷售組合和收縮加劇部分抵消。 SG&A 費用增加主要是由於多價格轉換的臨時勞動力、折舊和攤銷增加以及銷售去槓桿化。

Family Dollar's net sales increased by 2% to $3.5 billion. Adjusted operating income was $51 million, a 32% increase from last year, and adjusted operating margin increased 30 basis points. The increase was all attributable to gross margin as the adjusted SG&A rate was flat at 23.7%. Gross margin increased primarily from lower freight, partially offset by product cost increases and an unfavorable sales mix.

Family Dollar 的淨銷售額成長 2%，達到 35 億美元。調整後營業收入為 5,100 萬美元，比去年增長 32%，調整後營業利潤率增加 30 個基點。這一成長全部歸因於毛利率，因為調整後的銷售、管理及行政費用率持平於 23.7%。毛利率的成長主要來自運費的下降，但部分被產品成本的成長和不利的銷售組合所抵銷。

Moving on to the balance sheet and free cash flow. Inventory decreased by 2% or $103 million. On a related note, in the quarter, we recorded a $70 million loss related to the book value of inventory destroyed at our Marietta distribution center and a $47 million loss related to property and equipment destruction. Given our expansive scale and breadth of operations, our insurance policies include significant property and inventory coverage above cost.

接下來是資產負債表和自由現金流。庫存減少 2%，即 1.03 億美元。與此相關的是，本季度，我們記錄了與瑪麗埃塔配送中心銷毀庫存帳面價值相關的 7,000 萬美元損失，以及與財產和設備銷毀相關的 4,700 萬美元損失。鑑於我們的業務規模和廣度都很大，我們的保單包括高於成本的大量財產和庫存保險。

Based on the catastrophic nature of this event, we expect these losses to be fully offset by insurance recoveries. As our recorded losses were fully offset by the insurance receivable, there was no net impact to the first quarter P&L. With cash and cash equivalents of $618 million and long-term debt of $3.4 billion, our balance sheet remains strong. Our bank-defined leverage at quarter-end stood at approximately 2.3 times, which continues to underpin our investment-grade creditworthiness.

基於該事件的災難性性質，我們預計這些損失將由保險賠償完全抵消。由於我們記錄的損失已被保險應收帳款完全抵消，因此對第一季損益沒有淨影響。我們的現金和現金等價物為 6.18 億美元，長期債務為 34 億美元，資產負債表仍然強勁。季度末我們的銀行定義槓桿約為 2.3 倍，這繼續支撐著我們的投資等級信用度。

Regarding cash flow, we generated $696 million from operating activities, compared to $752 million last year. Capital expenditures were $472 million in the quarter versus $350 million last year, reflecting accelerated new store openings and ongoing investments in growth and other initiatives. Notwithstanding the higher CapEx spending, we generated $224 million in free cash flow in the quarter, compared to $402 million last year.

在現金流方面，我們的經營活動產生了 6.96 億美元，而去年為 7.52 億美元。本季資本支出為 4.72 億美元，而去年為 3.5 億美元，反映出新店開業加速以及對成長和其他舉措的持續投資。儘管資本支出增加，但我們在本季創造了 2.24 億美元的自由現金流，而去年為 4.02 億美元。

Consistent with our disciplined approach to capital allocation, after investing in the growth of our business, we returned $310 million to our shareholders by repurchasing 2.5 million shares at an average price of $122 per share. At quarter end, we had approximately $1 billion remaining under our existing share repurchase authorization.

根據我們嚴格的資本配置方法，在投資於業務成長後，我們以每股 122 美元的平均價格回購 250 萬股股票，向股東返還 3.1 億美元。截至季末，我們現有的股票回購授權剩餘約 10 億美元。

Now, let me provide some perspective on our second quarter and full year expectations. Our current outlook reflects the following. We expect to incur additional operating expenses related to the loss of our Marietta DC. The EPS impact of incremental transportation and other costs is estimated to be approximately $0.10 in Q2 and approximately $0.20 to $0.30 on a full-year basis. As more information on the costs associated with this disruption becomes available, we may revisit this outlook in subsequent quarters.

現在，讓我對我們第二季和全年的預期提供一些看法。我們目前的前景反映如下。我們預計會因瑪麗埃塔 DC 的損失而產生額外的營運費用。增量運輸和其他成本對第二季每股收益的影響預計約為 0.10 美元，全年約為 0.20 至 0.30 美元。隨著有關與這種中斷相關的成本的更多資訊的出現，我們可能會在接下來的幾個季度重新審視這一前景。

The expected impact of freight, shrink, mix, and SNAP on our full-year adjusted EPS outlook remains consistent with the expectations we outlined last quarter. Additionally, given the relatively low level of our freight volume that is subject to spot rates, we believe our exposure to recently observed volatility in the global shipping markets is limited and may be partially offset by favorable domestic carrier cost.

貨運、收縮、混合和 SNAP 對我們全年調整後每股收益前景的預期影響與我們上季度概述的預期保持一致。此外，鑑於受即期費率影響的貨運量水準相對較低，我們認為近期觀察到的全球航運市場波動的風險有限，並可能被有利的國內承運成本部分抵銷。

With that as a background, for the second quarter, we expect net sales will be in the range of $7.3 billion to $7.6 billion based on a comparable net sales growth in the low-single digits for the enterprise, 2% to 4% for Dollar Tree segment, and approximately flat for the Family Dollar segment. Adjusting for the stores that were closed as part of the portfolio optimization, we expect second quarter net sales for the Family Dollar segment to decline by 1% to 3% on a year-over-year basis.

以此為背景，我們預計第二季的淨銷售額將在 73 億美元至 76 億美元之間，基於企業的低個位數可比淨銷售額增長，即美元增長 2% 至 4%樹部分，家庭美元部分大致持平。在對因投資組合優化而關閉的商店進行調整後，我們預計 Family Dollar 細分市場第二季的淨銷售額將年減 1% 至 3%。

We expect adjusted EPS will be in the range of $1 to $1.10, which reflects the incremental operating expense associated with the loss of the Marietta DC. For the full year, we still expect net sales to be in the range of $31 billion to $32 billion, although at this point in time, we think we are more likely to be in the lower half of that range.

我們預計調整後每股收益將在 1 美元至 1.10 美元之間，這反映了與瑪麗埃塔 DC 損失相關的增量營運費用。對於全年而言，我們仍然預計淨銷售額將在 310 億美元至 320 億美元之間，儘管目前我們認為我們更有可能處於該範圍的下半部分。

We still expect comparable net sales growth in the low- to mid-single digits for the enterprise, the mid-single digits for Dollar Tree segment, and the low-single digits for the Family Dollar segment. Adjusting for stores closed as part of the portfolio optimization, we expect full year net sales for Family Dollar to decline by 1% to 3% on a year-over-year basis.

我們仍預期企業的可比淨銷售額成長將在中低個位數，Dollar Tree 細分市場將實現中個位數成長，而 Family Dollar 細分市場將實現低個位數成長。作為投資組合優化的一部分，對關閉的商店進行調整後，我們預計 Family Dollar 的全年淨銷售額將年減 1% 至 3%。

Adjusted EPS for the full year is now expected to be in the range of $6.50 to $7, again, reflecting the incremental operating expenses associated with the loss of Marietta. Our outlook for Q2 and the fiscal year does not include any severance or additional incremental costs related to the portfolio review or related workforce reductions. It also excludes any future share repurchases. In the interest of time, I will direct you to our supplemental financial presentation, which is available on our IR website for the remaining details that support our current guidance.

目前預計全年調整後每股收益將在 6.50 美元至 7 美元之間，這再次反映了與 Marietta 虧損相關的增量營運費用。我們對第二季和本財年的展望不包括與投資組合審查或相關裁員相關的任何遣散費或額外增量成本。它也不包括任何未來的股票回購。由於時間關係，我將引導您查看我們的補充財務演示文稿，該演示文稿可在我們的 IR 網站上找到，以獲取支持我們當前指導的其餘詳細資訊。

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

這樣，我會將電話轉回給里克。

Thanks, Jeff. We are pleased that we delivered first quarter adjusted EPS results towards the high end of our outlook range. At Dollar Tree, we overcame some Easter softness and remain focused on rapidly rolling out our next generation of multi-price stores.

謝謝，傑夫。我們很高興我們交付的第一季調整後每股收益接近我們展望範圍的高端。在 Dollar Tree，我們克服了復活節的一些疲軟，並繼續專注於快速推出我們的下一代多價商店。

At Family Dollar, we are taking the difficult but necessary steps to position the business for long-term prosperity. Change is never easy, and I couldn't be prouder of our 200,000 associates across Dollar Tree and Family Dollar for their ongoing commitment to their communities and the customers that they serve. I am truly honored to lead and be part of one of the best teams in retail.

在 Family Dollar，我們正在採取困難但必要的步驟，以使業務長期繁榮。改變從來都不是一件容易的事，我為 Dollar Tree 和 Family Dollar 的 200,000 名員工感到無比自豪，他們對社區和所服務的客戶的持續承諾。我真的很榮幸能夠領導零售業最好的團隊之一併成為其中的一員。

Operator, with that, Jeff and I are ready to take your questions.

接線員，傑夫和我準備好回答你的問題了。

(Operator Instructions) Edward Kelly, Wells Fargo.

（操作員說明）愛德華·凱利，富國銀行。

Hi, good morning, everyone.

嗨，大家早安。

Good morning.

早安.

So I wanted to start with the Dollar Tree. You've maintained the mid-single digit comp guidance for the year. Q1 was obviously a little bit softer. Can you just help us, what underpins the confidence around that? And then, Rick, as it relates to this concept, obviously, there's a lot going on with multiple price point, you're accelerating growth, can you give us a little bit more perspective on how you see the future of this business? What you think the earnings growth profile is here over a multi-year basis and the real opportunity? Thank you.

所以我想從美元樹開始。今年你們維持了中個位數的薪酬指引。 Q1 顯然有點疲軟。您能幫助我們嗎？然後，里克，當它與這個概念相關時，顯然，多個價格點發生了很多事情，你正在加速增長，你能給我們更多關於你如何看待這項業務的未來的觀點嗎？您認為多年的獲利成長狀況和真正的機會是什麼？謝謝。

Yes, sure. I'll take the first part and you can add the second part. The confidence I have in Dollar Tree as we move through the year is the impact of multi-price point. We continue to see trade-down customers into that brand. I love the traffic and the multi-price stores, Ed, are out-comping the stores that have no multi-price in them and they're out-comping the stores that have the valley of multi-price. We continue to be pleased with where we're going with consumables, and we also see nothing but upside in regards to the basket as we introduce these new items.

是的，當然。我將採用第一部分，您可以添加第二部分。今年我對 Dollar Tree 的信心來自於多價位的影響。我們繼續看到以低價購買該品牌的客戶。我喜歡這裡的客流量，而且多價商店比沒有多價商店的商店還要好，而且比那些有多價商店的商店還要好。我們仍然對消耗品的發展方向感到滿意，而且當我們推出這些新物品時，我們也看到了購物籃的上行空間。

So I'm very, very bullish on the Dollar Tree side. And by the way, just for a reference point, the basket, when there's a multi-price item in it, is two times larger than our normal basket. And then also, multi-price is driving more trips into the stores. And you've heard me repeatedly talk about transactions are one of the key drivers of the future.

所以我非常非常看好美元樹。順便說一句，僅供參考，當籃子裡有多價商品時，籃子比我們正常的籃子大兩倍。此外，多種價格也推動了更多人前往商店購物。您已經聽到我反覆談論交易是未來的關鍵驅動力之一。

Just let me add a couple more points on the multi-price before going into longer-term profitability. On multi-price, we mentioned that we had roughly 10% of the stores that have been converted to the in-line conversion. That happened over the course of the first quarter. Those stores are still ramping up. We will still continue to roll that out for another 2,000 stores in the rest of the year. That ramp-up will give us some additional sort of tailwind, if you will.

在討論長期獲利能力之前，讓我先對多價格再補充幾點。關於多價格，我們提到我們大約有 10% 的商店已轉換為線上轉換。這發生在第一季。這些商店仍在增加。今年剩下的時間裡，我們仍將繼續在另外 2,000 家商店推出這項服務。如果你願意的話，這種增長將為我們帶來一些額外的順風。

On top of that, our comps -- I don't know if you've noticed and you probably have by looking at some of the things that we've published before, but our comps actually get to be a little softer in comparison in the back half of the year versus the first half of the year, with the second quarter being our most stringent sort of compare.

最重要的是，我們的比較——我不知道你是否注意到了，你可能已經通過查看我們之前發布的一些內容注意到了，但我們的比較實際上比下半年與上半年的比較，其中第二季度是我們最嚴格的比較。

The second part of your question, I believe, was with respect to how we're thinking about the long-term profitability of the enterprise and the brand. And we continue to be very encouraged by what -- excuse me, what we're seeing across both the banners. The multi-price offering is allowing us to drive sales, allowing us to drive greater profitability. We continue to deliver from a standpoint of our freight cost. We believe that there is opportunity across the Family Dollar brand to continue to drive greater gross margins as we continue to drive continued improvement in private label, as well as the OTC and HBA.

我認為你問題的第二部分是關於我們如何考慮企業和品牌的長期獲利能力。對不起，我們在這兩個橫幅上看到的內容仍然讓我們深受鼓舞。多價格產品使我們能夠推動銷售，從而提高獲利能力。從運費的角度來看，我們繼續交貨。我們相信，隨著我們繼續推動自有品牌以及 OTC 和 HBA 的持續改進，Family Dollar 品牌有機會繼續提高毛利率。

The combination of these things will allow us to drive greater gross profit dollars in the organization as we continue to drive greater discipline in our expenses along the way. So the outlook that we have for the year, we feel very confident in. There's the opportunity to manage through some of this. So, at this point, we really don't have any additional outlook considerations to provide other than the fact we continue to remain on the numbers that we've given you so far.

這些因素的結合將使我們能夠在組織中推動更高的毛利，同時我們將繼續嚴格控制開支。因此，我們對今年的前景非常有信心。因此，在這一點上，除了我們繼續保持迄今為止向您提供的數字之外，我們確實沒有任何額外的前景考慮因素可以提供。

Michael Lasser, UBS.

麥可拉瑟，瑞銀集團。

Good morning. Thank you so much for taking my question. My question is a two-parter on the strategic process. If you are not able to sell Family Dollar, what is the plan B? And as a way to help us frame what the ongoing earnings power of the business could look like, can you give us a sense of how much the corporate overhead is allocated to Family Dollar and what the dis-synergies might be if you were to divest the Family Dollar business? Thank you so much.

早安.非常感謝您回答我的問題。我的問題是關於戰略流程的兩方問題。如果你無法出售 Family Dollar，B 計劃是什麼？作為幫助我們建立企業持續盈利能力的一種方式，您能否讓我們了解一下公司管理費用分配給 Family Dollar 的金額以及如果您要剝離可能會產生什麼協同效應？太感謝了。

Hey, Michael. Thank you for the question. It's too soon in the process for me to say what's going to happen or exactly what all the alternatives are. So I'd like to stay away from that and come back to my original comment that I promise to keep you all updated. In terms of how the corporate overhead is, basically, I think in terms of 50/50. I would also look at you and say that the business, the supply chain, merchandising, and retail are all pretty much separate. There is some -- legal, HR, the basic functions are a little intertwined, but the most important pieces are not. Jeff, I don't know if you have anything you want to add to that.

嘿，麥可。感謝你的提問。對我來說，現在說出將會發生什麼事或所有替代方案到底是什麼還為時過早。因此，我想遠離這一點，回到我最初的評論，我保證向大家通報最新情況。就公司管理費用而言，基本上，我認為是 50/50。我也會看著你說，業務、供應鏈、銷售和零售幾乎都是獨立的。有一些——法律、人力資源，基本職能有點交織，但最重要的部分卻沒有。傑夫，我不知道你是否還有什麼要補充的。

I think that covers it.

我認為這涵蓋了它。

Matthew Boss, JPMorgan.

馬修‧博斯，摩根大通。

Great.

偉大的。

Good morning, Matt.

早安，馬特。

Good morning, Rick. So, a couple of questions, one near term, one multi-year. So at the Dollar Tree banner, near term, just thinking about the 2% to 4% comp guidance for the second quarter, what trends have you seen post Easter? Maybe if you can comment on quarter to date just to provide some confidence around the 2% to 4% relative to the first quarter? And then multi-year, Rick, could you just elaborate on the acceleration strategy at Dollar Tree, maybe speak to the acquisition? Is there any ceiling to consider in terms of annual unit growth and just how you're thinking about long-term saturation for that concept?

早安，瑞克。那麼，有幾個問題，一個是短期問題，一個是多年問題。因此，在美元樹旗幟下，近期，僅考慮第二季度 2% 至 4% 的複合指導，復活節後您看到了什麼趨勢？也許您可以對本季迄今的情況發表評論，只是為了對相對於第一季度的 2% 至 4% 的增長提供一些信心？然後，Rick，您能否詳細說明一下 Dollar Tree 的加速策略，或是談談收購？就年度單位成長而言，是否有任何上限需要考慮？

Yeah, a couple of great questions there.

是的，有幾個很好的問題。

Let me take the first part.

讓我來看第一部分。

Yeah, I'll let you handle the first one. I'll take the second one.

是的，我會讓你處理第一個。我要拿第二個。

So Matt, the guidance we gave of 2% to 4% comp for the Dollar Tree banner, coming out of Q1, we're in line with that guidance. That's the reason why we've provided it. As we came out of that Easter period and we had mentioned in our prepared remarks that in the absence of 8- to 10-day period, we actually pretty much through the course of the quarter had a comp that was pretty reflective of a mid-single digit comp -- I'm sorry, a low to-mid single digit comp. So I think we're still in line with that as we move into Q2.

因此，馬特，我們從第一季開始為 Dollar Tree 橫幅提供 2% 至 4% 的補償指導，我們符合該指導。這就是我們提供它的原因。當我們走出復活節期間時，我們在準備好的發言中提到，在沒有 8 到 10 天的期限的情況下，我們實際上在整個季度的過程中都有一個相當反映中期的比較。數比較——抱歉，這是一個低到中個位數的比較。因此，我認為當我們進入第二季度時，我們仍然符合這一點。

And in regards to the long-term future of the company, you look at 99 Cents, the acquisition there totally reflects, Matt, our commitment to the Dollar Tree franchise and the fact that we think that there are opportunities there to grow the business even more. The acquisition in California, to be very frank, is going to generate returns above our average in the overall chain.

至於公司的長期未來，你看看 99 Cents，那裡的收購完全反映了，馬特，我們對 Dollar Tree 特許經營權的承諾，以及我們認為那裡有機會發展業務的事實，甚至更多的。坦白說，加州的收購將產生高於我們整個產業鏈平均的回報。

And we are very excited about these stores in terms of the real estate that we were able to acquire and the term we have on them. And as we've said on many occasions, a well-run Dollar Tree is an exceptionally powerful retail format. And we are committed -- and I actually think, I'm going to say this, multi-price is attracting a higher income consumer into that box. And I think we have a lot of really good things moving together right now.

就我們能夠獲得的房地產和我們對它們的期限而言，我們對這些商店感到非常興奮。正如我們在許多場合所說的，經營良好的 Dollar Tree 是個異常強大的零售業態。我們致力於 - 我實際上認為，我要說的是，多價正在吸引更高收入的消費者進入這個盒子。我認為我們現在有很多非常好的事情正在一起進行。

John Heinbockel, Guggenheim Securities.

約翰·海因博克爾，古根漢證券公司。

Good morning, John.

早安，約翰。

Good morning. This is actually Anders Myhre on for John. Thank you for taking our question. So I just wanted to touch on the cooler resets. So overall, how have they been progressing? What has been the overall impact to comps? And upon completion, how do you size the sales opportunity with this product? Thank you.

早安.這其實是安德斯·邁爾為約翰做的。感謝您提出我們的問題。所以我只想談談冷卻器的重置。總體而言，他們進展如何？對比較的整體影響是什麼？完成後，您如何評估該產品的銷售機會？謝謝。

Yeah. I mean, the cooler work we're doing is basically on both franchises. Incredibly pleased with what's going on in the Family Dollar banner. We're pulling the number of cooler doors up to approximately 30 and it is driving incremental sales into the store overall. And the consumer is moving more to refrigerated and frozen product.

是的。我的意思是，我們正在做的更酷的工作基本上是針對這兩個系列的。對 Family Dollar 橫幅中發生的事情感到非常滿意。我們將冷櫃門的數量增加到大約 30 個，這推動了整個商店的銷售增量。消費者越來越多地轉向冷藏和冷凍產品。

Now, on the Dollar Tree side, we now have 5,700 stores that have multi-priced frozen food in them. We've expanded the assortment in 1,900 stores. And to be very frank, one of the big surprises for us is frozen and refrigerated in the Dollar Tree banner. The multi-price unlocked that category. And you have to think about it. You go into a Dollar Tree, you can buy a pizza for $4 or $5 that feeds a family of four. And that is a very powerful statement. So very pleased, continuing to push it. It's where the consumer is going, and both banners are chasing it.

現在，在 Dollar Tree 方面，我們現在有 5,700 家商店出售多種價格的冷凍食品。我們在 1,900 家商店中擴大了產品種類。坦白說，對我們來說最大的驚喜之一是在美元樹橫幅中冷凍冷藏。多價格解鎖了該類別。你必須考慮一下。你走進一美元樹，你可以花 4 或 5 美元買一個披薩，足夠一家四口吃。這是一個非常有力的聲明。非常高興，繼續努力。這是消費者的發展方向，兩家公司都在追逐它。

Simeon Gutman, Morgan Stanley.

西蒙古特曼，摩根士丹利。

Good morning.

早安.

Hey, good morning, everyone. Good morning, Rick. I want to be -- I want to ask about Family Dollar, but be respectful if you can't answer. I'll put a second question about Dollar Tree in as well. I wanted to ask if the EBIT that we see in the P&L, I think it's going to get a little bit better. You're going to run rate a little bit better from what the leftover stores look like.

嘿，大家早安。早安，瑞克。我想——我想詢問有關 Family Dollar 的問題，但如果您無法回答，請保持尊重。我還將提出關於美元樹的第二個問題。我想問一下，我們在損益表中看到的息稅前利潤是否會好一點。與剩餘商店的情況相比，您的運行率會更好一些。

Can you tell us if there's a big distribution, call it, among the 7,000 remaining Family Dollar stores, a wide range of profit outcomes or if they're relatively concentrated? And then are you able to share what the average life of the leases are in that portfolio? And then have you talked about, or can you share what the lease break cost could be -- could look like?

您能否告訴我們，在剩下的 7,000 家 Family Dollar 商店中，利潤結果是否分佈廣泛，或者是否相對集中？那麼您能否分享該投資組合中租賃的平均壽命是多少？然後你有沒有談過，或者你能分享一下租賃中斷成本可能會是多少嗎？

(multiple speakers) Let's see if I can take a few pieces of -- and there's -- some of this, of course, we aren't in a position to share. But I can tell you that as you look at the remaining portfolio of stores, you still have a sort of a distribution of profitability across those stores at a much higher level than what you would have had when we -- before we closed the non-performing stores.

（多名發言者）讓我們看看我是否可以摘取一些——當然，其中一些，我們無法分享。但我可以告訴你，當你看看剩餘的商店組合時，你會發現這些商店之間的盈利能力分佈仍然比我們關閉非非商店之前的水平要高得多。

We had already indicated also that for the year, you should expect about $0.15 of additional profitability or increased profitability coming from those closed stores and $0.30 of EPS on an annualized basis. Our leases that we enter into are normally somewhere between 5 to 10 years on average. At any one point in time, approximately 10% to 12% of those leases are being renewed on an annual basis. And that's about what I can really share with you at this point with respect to the lease obligations.

我們還已經指出，今年，您應該預計這些關閉的商店將帶來約 0.15 美元的額外盈利或盈利能力增加，以及年化每股收益 0.30 美元。我們簽訂的租約平均期限通常為 5 至 10 年。在任何一個時間點，大約有 10% 到 12% 的租約每年都會更新。這就是我現在可以與您分享的關於租賃義務的真正內容。

And the one thing I would say is, as you reflect on this announcement, is the fact that we have not lost faith in Family Dollar and the progress its making. The team has done a great job of implementing many initiatives that are designed to drive the long-term growth. What we're wrestling with and trying to figure out is we have two different brands at two different stages of where they're at in their development. And while we want to accelerate Dollar Tree, we want to position Family Dollar's transformation where it has the chance to grow, and by looking at them differently, that might provide more acceleration for both brands long term.

我要說的一件事是，當您反思這項公告時，我們並沒有對 Family Dollar 及其所取得的進展失去信心。該團隊在實施許多旨在推動長期成長的措施方面做得非常出色。我們正在努力解決的問題是，我們有兩個不同的品牌，處於兩個不同的發展階段。雖然我們希望加速 Dollar Tree 的發展，但我們希望將 Family Dollar 的轉型定位在有機會成長的地方，並且透過以不同的方式看待它們，這可能會為兩個品牌的長期發展提供更多加速。

Rupesh Parikh, Oppenheimer.

魯佩什·帕里克，奧本海默。

Good morning, and thanks for taking my question. So just going back to the -- your commentary on multi-price point expansion, we've been to some of your newer locations with the new product. Just any surprises in consumer behavior that you're seeing in store. What type of consumer feedback are you guys seeing with those -- with that expansion? And then just wanted to get a sense how the consumables versus discretionary mix is playing out versus expectations within those locations?

早安，感謝您提出我的問題。因此，回到您對多價位擴張的評論，我們已經帶著新產品去過您的一些新地點。只是您在商店中看到的任何令人驚訝的消費者行為。你們在擴充中看到了哪些類型的消費者回饋？然後只是想了解這些地區的消耗品與非必需品組合的表現與預期如何？

Yeah, a couple of great questions. Our biggest problem with multi-price right now is we can't keep it on the shelf. The consumer is responding to it. The consumer likes it. And I think it's going to be -- I don't think, I believe, truly believe it is going to be a very powerful piece in our ongoing future. You will see, as we move through the calendar year, as you guys know, we have to buy multi-price products, seasonal product more than a year in advance.

是的，有幾個很好的問題。目前，我們在多價方面面臨的最大問題是我們無法將其保留在貨架上。消費者正在對此做出反應。消費者喜歡它。我認為這將是——我不認為，我相信，真正相信它將成為我們未來的一個非常強大的部分。您會看到，隨著日曆年的推移，正如你們所知，我們必須提前一年多購買多價產品、季節性產品。

As we get into the holidays, you're going to see more multi-price show up on the discretionary side. I'm pretty positive for the first time, we'll have an inexpensive Christmas tree in our stores that -- and they'll probably have Christmas lights that will go with all the Christmas decorations we sell. In regards to consumables, multi-price points, again, are driving what's going on with our consumables share.

隨著假期的到來，您將看到更多的多價格出現在可自由支配的方面。我第一次非常肯定，我們的商店裡會有一棵便宜的聖誕樹——而且他們可能會有聖誕燈，與我們銷售的所有聖誕裝飾品搭配。在消耗品方面，多價位再次推動了我們的消耗品份額的變化。

And what -- we are committed that we are not raising the price or introducing like items, we are bringing in different SKUs, which broadens the appeal of the assortment to the consumer.

我們承諾不會提高價格或推出類似的商品，我們會引入不同的 SKU，從而擴大該品種對消費者的吸引力。

I had just one other point. With multi-price, as we're looking at those stores that have had this in-line conversion, the mix of discretionary and consumables is more in line with what we would have seen historically with a heavier balance on discretionary than consumables. So we like that balance in that the multi-price is not only driving consumables, but it's also lifting the discretionary basket also.

我還有另一點。對於多價格，當我們查看那些進行了內嵌轉換的商店時，可自由支配和消耗品的組合更符合我們歷史上看到的情況，可自由支配的餘額比消耗品更重。因此，我們喜歡這種平衡，因為多價格不僅推動了消費品，而且還提升了可自由支配的籃子。

Paul Lejuez, Citigroup.

保羅‧勒胡埃斯，花旗集團。

Good morning.

早安.

Hey, thanks. Good morning. Thanks. Just a follow-up on that last comment. What is the change that you see in terms of traffic versus ticket in the multi-price converted stores? That's just my first follow-up. And second, I'm curious what you're seeing in the promotional landscape, what you see in 1Q versus your expectations, but also curious what you assume for the rest of the year and what you've seen -- based on what you've seen year to date on the promotional landscape out there?

嘿，謝謝。早安.謝謝。只是最後一則評論的後續行動。在多價轉換商店中，您發現客流量與門票方面有何變化？這只是我的第一次後續行動。其次，我很好奇你在促銷領域看到了什麼，你在第一季看到的與你的預期相比，但也很好奇你對今年剩餘時間的假設以及你所看到的——基於你的預測看過今年迄今的促銷狀況嗎？

So with the first part of the question is, we see traffic increase in the multi-price stores to the tune of about approximately 3%. And we also see the ticket goes up about 55 bps. And again, it's soon. And again, I want to come back to we're building a new muscle. I would look at you and say, off the top of my head, and I'm guessing, the old retailer in me, 50% of the stores are probably outperforming our expectation, maybe 25% are right on it, and 25% have opportunities.

因此，對於問題的第一部分，我們看到多價商店的客流量增加了約 3%。我們還看到票價上漲了約 55 個基點。再說一遍，很快了。我想再說一遍，我們正在打造新的肌肉。我會看著你說，我突然想到，我猜，我內心的老零售商，50%的商店可能超出了我們的預期，也許25%是正確的，25%是機會。

And we're definitely seeing the customer right now buying a little bit more on promotion. And it's not that there is more promotional activity, but what the customer is actually buying is items on promotion.

我們肯定會看到客戶現在在促銷活動中購買更多。並不是促銷活動增多，而是顧客實際購買的是促銷商品。

And I think what's on -- important on the promotion thing is that Jeff is in my office every Monday asking me, what's going on in the promotional landscape? We have seen nothing irrational at this time. And I think that's really important. And what we are seeing is maybe incremental movements on CSD, soda pop, and two-liter pop. And that is a very easy traffic driver. But I always remind everybody I talk to, we have to not confuse marking down stale inventory with promotional activity. And I think that's really, really important. So stable environment, I would say it's not irrational and maybe CSD.

我認為，對於促銷而言，重要的是傑夫每週一都會在我的辦公室問我，促銷領域發生了什麼事？目前我們還沒有看到任何不合理的事情。我認為這非常重要。我們所看到的可能是碳酸飲料、汽水和兩公升汽水的增量變化。這是一個非常容易交通的駕駛者。但我總是提醒與我交談的每個人，我們不能將減少陳舊庫存與促銷活動混為一談。我認為這非常非常重要。如此穩定的環境，我想說這並不是不理性的，也許是懲教署。

Chuck Grom, Gordon Haskett.

查克·格羅姆，戈登·哈斯克特。

Good morning, Chuck.

早上好，查克。

Good morning. Hey, good morning, guys. Thanks very much. So, Rick, on the new multi-price rollout, can you talk about the transition once the third-party specialists have actually done the reset? In other words, what's the risk -- and you talked about the new discipline that store managers and employees are going to need to acquire post those specialists doing the initial reset. And then for Jeff, how much of the SG&A deleverage in the first quarter was from the resets? And I think you guys have outlined $23 million of expenses this year. Can you just talk about the phasing of that? Thank you.

早安.嘿，早上好，夥計們。非常感謝。那麼，Rick，關於新的多價格推出，您能談談第三方專家實際完成重置後的過渡嗎？換句話說，風險是什麼——您談到了商店經理和員工在專家進行初始重置後需要掌握的新紀律。那麼對 Jeff 來說，第一季的 SG&A 去槓桿化有多少是來自重置？我想你們已經列出了今年 2300 萬美元的支出。能談談它的階段性嗎？謝謝。

Yeah. Chuck, again, a couple of great questions. First one, I'll take. We have grown up in an environment in this company where everything is the same price point. So it doesn't matter where it goes, and it doesn't matter what the customer does with the product if they decide they don't want it. Now what we have to do is -- and what we're doing is we're introducing the multi-price SKUs into the category that they belong in. We're not just putting them in the center of the store.

是的。查克，又問了幾個很好的問題。第一個，我來拿。我們在這家公司的環境中成長，一切都是相同的價格點。因此，產品流向何處並不重要，如果客戶決定不想要產品，他們如何處理產品也不重要。現在我們要做的是——我們正在做的是將多價格 SKU 引入它們所屬的類別中。

So you have to create a section quite frankly that bears prices, so the consumer knows how much they are and when the consumer changes their mind, that product has to get back into the right spot on the shelf. And that's all about teaching our associates how to handle that product in regards to stocking it and then what to do with it when they condition the store.

因此，您必須非常坦率地創建一個包含價格的部分，以便消費者知道它們的價格，並且當消費者改變主意時，產品必須回到貨架上的正確位置。這就是教導我們的員工如何處理該產品的庫存，以及如何處理商店的情況。

Now, it's a very conquerable discipline, but it's not something that we've had over the years. We're doing all kinds of things to manage that. We put a shelf label literally on the outside of the case that allows the associate to put the product on the shelf, put the shelf tag on the shelf.

現在，這是一個非常容易克服的學科，但它不是我們多年來所擁有的。我們正在做各種事情來解決這個問題。我們將貨架標籤貼在箱子的外面，以便員工將產品放在貨架上，並將貨架標籤放在貨架上。

But believe it or not, we also have to teach the people in the warehouse, when they pull the item, they have to pull the right item because they're used to pulling one item that has the same price. And in regards to the store's inventory, it stays true. But now, the difference is, if they're pulling a multi-price point item, it has to get there as it was supposed to be selected.

但不管你信不信，我們還必須教導倉庫裡的人，當他們拉貨時，他們必須拉正確的貨品，因為他們習慣於拉貨具有相同價格的貨品。至於商店的庫存，情況也是如此。但現在，不同之處在於，如果他們要拉動多價位商品，就必須按照本來應該選擇的方式到達那裡。

And then, Chuck, with respect to the SG&A margin deleverage, if you will, there's really three components. You called out the temporary labor was absolutely the largest component. And the second component was higher depreciation, and the third component was just sort of deleverage as a result of the lower comp. The one thing to recognize with the temp labor, in the first stores that we opened up, there's a learning curve as to the -- how to go about it, the number of crews that were actually allocated, how working with the store leadership teams.

然後，Chuck，關於 SG&A 利潤率去槓桿化，如果你願意的話，實際上有三個組成部分。你說臨時工絕對是最大的組成。第二個組成部分是較高的折舊，第三個組成部分只是因為比較較低而導致的去槓桿化。對於臨時工，我們要認識到的一件事是，在我們開設的第一家商店中，有一個學習曲線——如何去做，實際分配的員工數量，如何與商店領導團隊合作。

We continue to make progress on that in the subsequent stores that we're rolling out. So the initial headwind that we had in the first quarter here, we would expect that to moderate over time. But as we had mentioned earlier, we definitely thought that the impact of using this third-party labor to do the in-line convergence was going to cost us approximately $0.23 of EPS for the year.

我們將在後續推出的商店中繼續在這方面取得進展。因此，我們在第一季遇到的最初阻力預計會隨著時間的推移而減弱。但正如我們之前提到的，我們確實認為使用第三方勞動力進行內聯融合的影響將使我們今年的每股收益損失約 0.23 美元。

Seth Sigman, Barclays.

塞思‧西格曼，巴克萊銀行。

Good morning.

早安.

Thanks. Hey, I want to talk about shrink. It hasn't come up a ton. It was a headwind this quarter, but I think that was expected. Just curious how that played out. With some of the mitigation efforts, any signs of stabilization, given that you didn't change the guidance for that? And then, I guess, a question on gross margin overall. The improvement was a little bit more limited this quarter. I'm just curious, was that mix or something else, if you could just help us with that? Thanks so much.

謝謝。嘿，我想談談收縮。它還沒有出現很多。這是本季的逆風，但我認為這是預料之中的。只是好奇結果如何。鑑於您沒有改變對此的指導，通過一些緩解措施，有任何穩定的跡象嗎？然後，我想，這是一個關於整體毛利率的問題。本季的改善有點有限。我只是很好奇，是混合還是其他什麼，你能幫助我們嗎？非常感謝。

Yes, I'll take the shrink question, if that's okay.

是的，如果可以的話，我會回答心理醫生的問題。

Sure.

當然。

I think the efforts we've put in place, for the first time I can honestly say the shrink trends that we have, while they still are not good, they're not getting away from us anymore. We're definitely tracking in the right direction. But I want to reinforce, shrink is still a problem, but it's not deteriorating like it was last year.

我認為我們所做的努力，我第一次可以誠實地說出我們所面臨的萎縮趨勢，雖然它們仍然不好，但它們不會再遠離我們了。我們肯定正在朝著正確的方向前進。但我想強調的是，收縮仍然是一個問題，但它並沒有像去年那樣惡化。

We feel very good with the initiatives we put in place. I also think it's fair to say that we were ahead on the shrink curve that we were calling it out and we were taking steps that people now are taking around us. Our self-checkout exposure is basically nothing.

我們對我們採取的措施感到非常滿意。我還認為，可以公平地說，我們在我們所呼籲的收縮曲線上處於領先地位，我們正在採取人們現在在我們周圍採取的措施。我們的自助結帳曝光基本上沒什麼。

So we don't have to revisit that. We have started eliminating high shrink SKUs. We started that about a year ago. And we've also placed things behind the check stand counters where we can control them. So I'm pleased we are not out of the woods. But at least I can tell you that it has stabilized.

所以我們不必重新審視這一點。我們已開始消除高縮水 SKU。我們大約一年前開始這樣做。我們還將一些東西放置在收銀台櫃檯後面，以便我們可以控制它們。所以我很高興我們沒有走出困境。但至少我可以告訴你，它已經穩定下來了。

Yeah, just to put maybe a little bit of finer point on it, our expectation for the first half of the year was that we were going to have about $0.30 to $0.35 of headwind across shrink and mix. And that was predominantly going to be on mix. What we're seeing is that our performance is in line with that. We're actually seeing some slight improvement against it, but we're still early in the year.

是的，只是為了說得更詳細一點，我們對今年上半年的預期是，我們在收縮和混合方面將面臨約 0.30 至 0.35 美元的阻力。這主要是在混音上。我們看到的是我們的表現與此相符。我們實際上看到了一些輕微的改進，但我們還處於今年初期。

So as Rick has said, the investments that we were making -- and we did a lot of that on the Family Dollar side, first as a proof-of-concept and now rolling some of those self-help opportunities across the Dollar Tree banner also.

So as Rick has said, the investments that we were making -- and we did a lot of that on the Family Dollar side, first as a proof-of-concept and now rolling some of those self-help opportunities across the Dollar Tree banner也.

As it relates to gross margin, the gross margin pressure really from Dollar Tree was really more as a result of consumable mix, by not having that discretionary Easter complement in our overall performance for the quarter is what really put pressure on the gross margin.

由於與毛利率相關，Dollar Tree 帶來的毛利率壓力實際上更多是由於消費品組合造成的，因為我們本季度的整體業績中沒有可自由支配的複活節補充，這才是真正對毛利率造成壓力的原因。

On the Family Dollar side, very healthy improvement in gross margins overall of 40 basis points. So, notwithstanding the impact of Easter, we're very happy with where we're trending as it relates to our gross margins.

Family Dollar 方面，整體毛利率實現了 40 個基點的健康改善。因此，儘管受到復活節的影響，我們對我們的趨勢感到非常滿意，因為它與我們的毛利率有關。

Krisztina Katai, Deutsche Bank.

克里斯蒂娜·卡泰，德意志銀行。

Good morning.

早安.

Hi, good morning. Good morning, Rick and Jeff. Thanks for taking the question. So I wanted to ask you about the supply chain. You've been making a lot of investments there and you have Rotacarts that are making store deliveries now as part of your fleet. So can you talk about what are some of the early benefits that you're seeing so far regarding in-stock availability, inventory turns? Is it helping reduce shrink in transportation damages? And just how best to think about the overall labor hour savings that you're able to take from the supply chain investments and then reallocate it to store hours? Thank you.

早安.早安，瑞克和傑夫。感謝您提出問題。所以我想問你關於供應鏈的問題。您已經在那裡進行了大量投資，並且您擁有 Rotacarts，它們現在作為您車隊的一部分進行商店送貨。那麼您能談談到目前為止您在庫存可用性和庫存週轉方面看到的一些早期好處嗎？它是否有助於減少運輸損失？如何最好地考慮您能夠從供應鏈投資中節省的整體勞動力時間，然後將其重新分配給商店時間？謝謝。

Yes, there's a lot there. Let me see if I can distill it down to just a couple of elements. The first DC that we rolled out was Matthews, North Carolina, was a Family Dollar DC. It's one in which previously they were delivering to the store off of pallets. So now we're doing it off of Rotacarts. What we're actually seeing is improved delivery time, unload time, which is what we were anticipating. We're also seeing a level of reduced damages, as you had mentioned, the way that this product is being handled.

是的，那裡有很多東西。讓我看看是否可以將其提煉為幾個元素。我們推出的第一個 DC 是北卡羅來納州的馬修斯，是一款 Family Dollar DC。以前他們是用托盤將貨物運送到商店的。所以現在我們用 Rotacarts 來做這件事。我們實際上看到的是交貨時間和卸載時間的縮短，這正是我們的預期。正如您所提到的，我們也看到該產品的處理方式造成的損害減少。

And we're also seeing a higher level of associate engagement and satisfaction, recognizing that it is helping to improve the way that they do their jobs. The next DC that we just really kicked off is here in Chesapeake. It's a Dollar Tree DC. We're seeing a nice, once again, reduction in unload times. It's allowing us now to get product to the shelf quicker and to basically fulfill some of the outs that we have on the shelf. But overall, the in-store in-stocks are improving as well as the DC service levels to these stores.

我們也看到員工的敬業度和滿意度更高，並認識到這有助於改善他們的工作方式。我們剛剛真正啟動的下一個 DC 是在切薩皮克。這是美元樹 DC。我們再次看到卸載時間明顯減少。它使我們現在能夠更快地將產品上架，並基本上滿足貨架上的一些需求。但總體而言，店內庫存以及配送中心對這些商店的服務水準都在改善。

Michael Montani, Evercore ISI.

邁克爾·蒙塔尼，Evercore ISI。

Good morning.

早安.

Thanks for taking the question, and good morning. I just wanted to ask kind of two-part thing. One was, there is an improvement implied in the back half for EBIT margin of 100 bps-plus versus potentially flattish in the front half. So just wanted to see the top couple of drivers of that, that gives you the conviction for that. And then as a follow-up, you all did the incremental acquisition for the 99 Cents stores as you've mentioned. So is it feasible to see kind of $10-plus of EPS power just from core Dollar Tree now as you think out?

感謝您提出問題，早安。我只是想問兩個部分的事情。其中之一是，後半段的息稅前利潤率將有所改善，達到 100 個基點以上，而前半段則可能持平。所以只是想看看其中最頂尖的幾位車手，這讓你對此深信不疑。然後，作為後續行動，正如您所提到的，您都對 99 Cents 商店進行了增量收購。那麼，正如您所想，現在僅從核心 Dollar Tree 中獲得 10 美元以上的 EPS 動力是否可行？

So I'll let you handle the first part of the question.

所以我會讓你處理問題的第一部分。

Sure.

當然。

The second part of the question, it's too soon to know that. I'd like to stay away from that for now, if that's appropriate. Go ahead.

問題的第二部分，現在知道這一點還為時過早。如果合適的話，我想暫時遠離它。前進。

And Michael, as we think about the phasing of our overall EPS for the year -- I appreciate your question, it's really kind of can get bucketed into a couple of areas. From a topline perspective, we talked about multi-price and the acceleration of that as we continue to roll out the in-line conversions. You also have -- shrink and mix is, for us, we believe will be more neutralized in the back half of the year than in the front half. And we -- once again, that $0.30 to $0.35 of EPS headwind was really on the first half.

邁克爾，當我們考慮今年整體每股收益的分階段時，我很欣賞你的問題，這確實可以分為幾個領域。從營收角度來看，我們討論了多價格以及隨著我們繼續推出內嵌轉換而加速的問題。對我們來說，我們也認為，收縮和混合在今年下半年將比上半年更加中和。我們再一次認為，每股收益 0.30 至 0.35 美元的逆風實際上是在上半年發生的。

We also believe that from a SNAP perspective, while SNAP is still within our expectations, in the back half, we think that we may have some tailwinds as a result of the October COLA adjustment that may be available -- will be available, the question is how much. And then the last component is, if you remember, last year in the back half of the year, we had a couple of footfalls, if you will.

我們還認為，從 SNAP 的角度來看，雖然 SNAP 仍然在我們的預期之內，但在下半年，我們認為由於 10 月份可樂調整，我們可能會遇到一些順風車，這可能是可用的，問題是是多少。最後一個組成部分是，如果你還記得的話，去年下半年，我們有一些腳步聲，如果你願意的話。

We had an OTC recall that was about $0.05 of EPS. We had an accrual adjustment that we needed to make on general liability, very specifically around some of the claims that we're going back to pre-pandemic. That was around $0.17. And then last but not least, as we had mentioned, with the portfolio optimization, we are expecting a $0.15 EPS improvement. That is predominantly going to be in the back half of the year.

我們進行了 OTC 召回，每股收益約為 0.05 美元。我們需要對一般責任進行權責發生製調整，特別是圍繞我們將回到疫情大流行前的一些索賠。大約是 0.17 美元。最後但並非最不重要的一點是，正如我們所提到的，透過投資組合優化，我們預計每股收益將提高 0.15 美元。這主要是在今年下半年。

So on balance, as a result of topline acceleration of revenue growth and then some of the softer compares against some of these elements with respect to shrink and SNAP and then the last components are those footfalls, which we believe were one-time in nature.

因此，總的來說，由於營收成長加速，以及與收縮和 SNAP 方面的一些因素相比，一些較軟的結果，最後一個組成部分是那些客流量，我們認為這本質上是一次性的。

Priya Ohri-Gupta, Barclays.

Priya Ohri-Gupta，巴克萊銀行。

Good morning.

早安.

Thank you so much for taking the question. I know it's a bit early in the process, but I was just hoping that perhaps you could talk to us a little bit about how you're thinking about your credit rating with regards to possible considerations for Family Dollar. Would the expectation be to try to maintain your existing rating as you consider these various alternatives, or would it be to at least maintain investment grade? Thank you.

非常感謝您提出這個問題。我知道這個過程還為時過早，但我只是希望您能與我們談談您如何考慮您的信用評級以及 Family Dollar 的可能考慮因素。當您考慮這些不同的替代方案時，您的期望是嘗試維持現有評級，還是至少維持投資評級？謝謝。

Yes. So our investment-grade rating is an important element of our overall financial policy, if you will. We believe that -- and it's too early to get out ahead of ourselves as to what a structure may be or the ultimate outcome of the strategic review, but we believe that given the underlying business, the power of the cash flows generated by this business, the growth and, quite honestly, how we basically execute our capital allocation is all in line with keeping us in an investment-grade level.

是的。因此，如果您願意的話，我們的投資等級評級是我們整體財務政策的重要組成部分。我們相信，現在就確定結構是什麼或戰略審查的最終結果還為時過早，但我們相信，考慮到基礎業務，該業務產生的現金流的力量，增長，老實說，我們基本上執行資本配置的方式都符合使我們保持投資級水準。

Thank you. We've reached the end of our question-and-answer session. I'd like to turn the floor back over to management for any further closing comments.

謝謝。我們的問答環節已經結束。我想將發言權交還給管理階層，以徵求進一步的結束意見。

Hey, thank you all for taking your time to talk to us today, and I look forward to catching up down the road.

嘿，謝謝大家今天抽出時間與我們交談，我期待接下來的交流。

Thank you. That does conclude today's teleconference webcast. You may disconnect your line at this time and have a wonderful day. We thank you for your participation today.

謝謝。今天的電話會議網路廣播到此結束。此時您可以斷開線路並度過美好的一天。我們感謝您今天的參與。