Everforth, Inc. (EFOR) 2017 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Ladies and gentleman, thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Fourth Quarter 2017 Earnings Call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, the conference is being recorded.

各位女士、先生，感謝您稍候。歡迎參加2017年第四季財報電話會議。(接線員指示) 提醒各位，本次會議將被錄音。

I'll now turn the meeting over to our host, CFO, Mr. Ed Pierce. Please go ahead, sir.

我現在把會議交給我們的主持人、財務長 Ed Pierce 先生。先生，請開始。

Thank you. Good afternoon, and thank you for joining us today. Before we get started, I'd like to remind everyone that our presentation contains certain forward-looking statements. Although we believe these statements are reasonable, they are subject to risks and uncertainties, and our actual results could differ materially from those statements. Certain of the risks and uncertainties are described in today's press release and in our SEC filings. We do not assume the obligation to update statements made on this call. For your convenience, our prepared remarks and supplemental materials can be found in the Investor Relations section of our website.

謝謝。各位午安，感謝今天加入我們。在開始之前，我想提醒各位，我們的簡報包含若干前瞻性陳述。雖然我們相信這些陳述是合理的，但其仍受風險與不確定性影響，我們的實際結果可能與這些陳述存在重大差異。部分風險與不確定性已在今日新聞稿及我們向美國證券交易委員會（SEC）提交的文件中說明。我們不承擔更新本次電話會議中所作陳述的義務。為方便各位，我們的事先準備講稿與補充資料可在我們網站的投資人關係（Investor Relations）專區查閱。

Please note that on this call, we'll be referencing certain non-GAAP measures such as adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net income. These non-GAAP measures are intended to supplement the comparable GAAP measures. Reconciliations between the GAAP and non-GAAP measures are included in today's press release.

請注意，在本次電話會議中，我們將引用若干非GAAP衡量指標，例如調整後EBITDA與調整後淨利。這些非GAAP衡量指標旨在補充可比較的GAAP衡量指標。GAAP與非GAAP衡量指標之間的調節表已包含於今日新聞稿中。

I will now turn the call over to Peter Dameris, our CEO.

我現在把電話會議交給我們的執行長 Peter Dameris。

Thank you, Ed. Welcome to the On Assignment 2017 Fourth Quarter Earnings Conference Call. With Ed and me today are Ted Hanson, President of On Assignment; and Rand Blazer, President of Apex Systems. During our call today, I will comment on the markets we serve, our financial highlights, the ECS Federal acquisition and our name change. We'll then turn the call over to Ted and Rand to discuss the performance of our operating segments and then over to Ed for a more detailed review and discussion of our fourth quarter results and our estimates for the first quarter of 2018. We will then open the call up for questions.

謝謝你，Ed。歡迎參加 On Assignment 2017年第四季財報電話會議。今天與Ed和我一同出席的還有：On Assignment 總裁 Ted Hanson，以及 Apex Systems 總裁 Rand Blazer。在今天的電話會議中，我將就我們所服務的市場、財務重點、ECS Federal 收購案以及我們的更名進行說明。接著我們會把電話交給Ted與Rand，討論各營運部門的表現，然後再交給Ed，對第四季業績以及我們對2018年第一季的預估做更詳細的檢視與討論。之後我們將開放提問。

Now on to the fourth quarter results. Our results for the fourth quarter exceeded the high end of our previously announced financial estimates for revenues, gross profits, earnings per share, adjusted net income and adjusted EBITDA. And we were within the range of our estimates for gross margin.

接下來談第四季結果。我們第四季的表現，在營收、毛利、每股盈餘、調整後淨利與調整後EBITDA方面，均超越先前公布之財務預估區間的上緣。而毛利率則落在我們預估區間之內。

Revenues for the quarter were $169.1 million (sic) [679.1 million], up 9.4% year-over-year. This marked the 16th consecutive quarter that our company grew above the IT staffing industry's projected annual growth rate. Our growth rate reflected, among other things, the continued deepening of many large new customer relationships that we have established over the last 4 years; the continuing increase in the rate of adoption of our delivery model; an improvement in -- of the operating performance of Oxford and CyberCoders; and the continued expansion of our statement of work business.

本季營收為1.691億美元（原文如此）[6.791億美元]，年增9.4%。這是我們公司連續第16個季度的成長高於IT人力派遣產業預估的年度成長率。我們的成長率反映了多項因素，包括：過去4年我們所建立的多個大型新客戶關係持續深化；我們交付模式的採用率持續提升；Oxford與CyberCoders的營運表現改善；以及我們工作說明書（statement of work）業務的持續擴張。

Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $82.9 million, up 17.3% from $70.7 million in the fourth quarter of '16. Cash generation continues to be at or above our expectations. And since the closing of the Creative Circle acquisition, we have repaid $287 million of our debt. Our leverage ratio was 1.89x trailing 12-month adjusted EBITDA as of December 31, 2017. We estimate our leverage ratio will be approximately 1.81x by the end of the first quarter of '18, excluding any cost associated with the recently announced acquisition of ECS Federal.

本季調整後EBITDA為8,290萬美元，較2016年第四季的7,070萬美元成長17.3%。現金創造能力持續達到或高於我們的預期。自Creative Circle收購案完成以來，我們已償還2.87億美元的債務。截至2017年12月31日，我們的槓桿比率為過去12個月調整後EBITDA的1.89倍。我們估計至2018年第一季末，我們的槓桿比率約為1.81倍，不包含近期宣布收購ECS Federal所相關的任何成本。

Financial performance in the quarter was driven by strong revenue growth at Apex Systems and CyberCoders and improving revenue trends at Creative Circle. Customer demand was strong across our local, mid-market and large national accounts. Our size and service offerings allow us to grow faster than published staffing industry growth rates, and we believe that we're well positioned to generate solid above-market revenue growth into the future. With respect to recent production, our weekly assignment revenues, which excludes conversion, billable expenses and direct placement revenues, averaged $51.2 million for the last 2 weeks, up 9.6% over the same period in 2016.

本季的財務表現主要由Apex Systems與CyberCoders的強勁營收成長，以及Creative Circle營收趨勢改善所帶動。我們在本地、中型市場與大型全國性客戶的需求皆相當強勁。我們的規模與服務內容使我們能夠以高於已公布的人力派遣產業成長率的速度成長，我們相信未來也具備持續創造高於市場的穩健營收成長之良好條件。就近期產能而言，我們的每週派遣營收（不含轉換、可計費費用與直接安置營收）在最近2週平均為5,120萬美元，較2016年同期成長9.6%。

Our IT business continues to see high demand from its customers, driven in part by greater adoption of staff argumentation as a viable alternative to outsourcing, offshoring and consulting. We believe that we're well positioned to continue to serve our customers' needs as technology rapidly evolves and is adopted. We continue to see signs that the ongoing debate regarding the on-demand workforce or gig economy is accelerating the use of contract labor. Fractionalization of human capital by using the staffing industry's services is the only way to avoid the risk of misclassification of employees as independent contractors. Our customers have and are realizing this, thus creating attractive secular growth opportunities for the entire professional staffing industry.

我們的IT業務持續看到客戶端的高度需求，部分原因在於客戶更廣泛採用人力增補（staff augmentation）作為外包、離岸與顧問服務的可行替代方案。我們相信，隨著科技快速演進並被採用，我們具備良好條件持續滿足客戶需求。我們也持續看到跡象顯示，圍繞按需勞動力或零工經濟（gig economy）的持續辯論，正在加速契約勞動的使用。透過使用人力派遣產業的服務來進行人力資本的碎片化（fractionalization），是避免將員工誤分類為獨立承包商之風險的唯一方式。我們的客戶已經並且正在意識到這一點，因而為整個專業人力派遣產業創造了具吸引力的長期結構性成長機會。

Throughout the year, we continued to benefit from the ongoing debate regarding H-1B visa reform and further adopting of our development/deployment model, i.e., staff augmentation. Recently signed executive orders have only further solidified the trend towards adoption of our model versus offshoring. Our industry association has had several meetings with Congressmen and Senators' staff, and proposed legislation continues to move forward in favor of the provisioning of domestic IT labor.

在整個年度中，我們持續受惠於圍繞H-1B簽證改革的持續辯論，以及對我們的開發/部署模式（即人力增補）的進一步採用。近期簽署的行政命令更進一步鞏固了相較於離岸外包，市場轉向採用我們模式的趨勢。我們的產業協會已與眾議員與參議員的幕僚舉行多次會議，所提法案也持續朝有利於提供國內IT勞動力的方向推進。

As a reminder, we announced on January 31, 2018, that we signed a definitive agreement to acquire our ECS Federal, LLC, one of the largest privately-held government services contractors, for $775 million in cash. ECS delivers cyber security, cloud, DevOps, IT modernization and advanced science and engineering solutions to the U.S. federal government. This acquisition nearly doubles our addressable end market to $279 billion as we enter the $129 billion government services space and ECS' highly specialized skill offerings strengthen our position. ECS' domain expertise and first-hand experience will also position us as a combined company to support our commercial engagements in cyber security, artificial intelligence and biometrics.

提醒各位，我們於2018年1月31日宣布，已簽署最終協議，以7.75億美元現金收購ECS Federal, LLC（原文如此），其為規模最大的民營政府服務承包商之一。ECS向美國聯邦政府提供資安、雲端、DevOps、IT現代化，以及先進科學與工程解決方案。此收購案使我們可觸及的終端市場規模幾乎倍增至2,790億美元，因為我們將進入1,290億美元的政府服務領域，而ECS高度專業的技能服務也將強化我們的市場地位。ECS的領域專長與第一手經驗，也將使我們作為合併後公司，在資安、人工智慧與生物辨識等商業合作案上具備更佳的支援能力。

Before I turn the call over to Ted, I would like to briefly comment on our decision to rename On Assignment to ASGN, Incorporated effective April 2, 2018. In 1985, On Assignment commenced operations as a scientific staffing firm and has expanded its service offerings to include IT, digital creative and engineering via acquisitions and organic growth to meet the ever-changing needs of its diverse client base. As we look to the future, our mission as an organization is to be the premier provider of highly skilled human capital targeting critical STEM skill sets that will drive the economy for the next 20 years and beyond. As we prepare to change our name, I would like to reflect on and acknowledge our success -- that our success is a direct result of the hard work of our many dedicated employees and billable professionals. And I would like to thank the entire organization for its continued commitment to excellence.

在我把電話交給Ted之前，我想簡要說明我們決定自2018年4月2日起，將On Assignment更名為ASGN, Incorporated。On Assignment於1985年以科學人力派遣公司起家，並透過併購與有機成長擴展服務內容，納入IT、數位創意與工程領域，以滿足多元客戶群不斷變化的需求。展望未來，我們作為組織的使命，是成為頂尖的高技能人力資本供應商，聚焦於關鍵STEM技能組合，推動未來20年及更長時間的經濟發展。在我們準備更名之際，我想回顧並肯定我們的成功——我們的成功直接來自眾多敬業員工與可計費專業人才的辛勤付出。我也要感謝整個組織持續致力於卓越。

I'd like to now turn the call over to Ted Hanson, who will review the operations of the segments and then over to Rand. Ted?

我現在把電話會議交給Ted Hanson，他將回顧各部門的營運情況，之後再交給Rand。Ted？

Thanks, Peter. Revenues from our Apex and Oxford segments grew 9.4% year-over-year for the fourth quarter and 7.6% for the full year 2017. Both segments performed better than we expected coming into the quarter. Apex Systems, our largest division, continued to achieve growth rates above the market growth rate and led the performance of their segment, which Rand will discuss in a few minutes. Demand in the end markets we serve, IT, creative digital marketing, engineering and life sciences, remained steady.

謝謝你，Peter。我們Apex與Oxford兩個事業部門第四季營收年增9.4%，2017全年年增7.6%。兩個部門的表現都優於我們在進入本季時的預期。Apex Systems作為我們最大的事業部門，持續達成高於市場成長率的成長，並帶動其部門表現，Rand將在幾分鐘後說明。我們所服務的終端市場（IT、創意數位行銷、工程與生命科學）的需求維持穩定。

Now onto the results of Oxford segment, which is comprised of Oxford core, CyberCoders, our permanent placement business and Life Sciences Europe. Oxford core and CyberCoders performed better than our expectations coming into the quarter, with Life Sciences Europe performing slightly better -- slightly below initial expectations. For the fourth quarter of 2017, Oxford segment revenues were $144.4 million, down 0.3% year-over-year. Revenues decreased 3.5% for the segment on a sequential basis, but increased 0.9% based on a same billable day basis. There were 2.7 fewer billable days in the fourth quarter of 2017 versus the third quarter of 2017. Segment revenues for the year were $588.8 million, down 2.5% over 2016.

接著說明Oxford部門的結果；該部門由Oxford核心業務、CyberCoders、我們的永久派遣（正職媒合）業務以及歐洲生命科學業務所組成。Oxford核心業務與CyberCoders的表現優於我們在進入本季時的預期，而歐洲生命科學業務的表現略為低於初始預期。2017年第四季，Oxford部門營收為1.444億美元，年減0.3%。以季比來看，該部門營收下降3.5%，但以相同可計費天數基礎計算則增加0.9%。2017年第四季相較2017年第三季少了2.7個可計費天數。全年部門營收為5.888億美元，較2016年下降2.5%。

Oxford core revenues, which account for 75% of the segment revenues, were down 3.2% year-over-year, but as mentioned above, better than our initial forecast. The decline in revenues is attributable to the successful completion of a large project in the fourth quarter of last year, which had $4.2 million impact on revenues. Despite the difficulty in growing over this significant project on a year-over-year basis, Oxford core revenues grew 1.9% sequentially on an adjusted per billable day basis. We continue our hard work in this unit to improve growth rates and profitability levels.

Oxford核心業務營收占該部門營收的75%，年減3.2%；但如前所述，仍優於我們的初始預測。營收下滑主要歸因於去年第四季一個大型專案成功結案，對營收造成420萬美元的影響。儘管在年比基礎上要超越這個重大專案的基期具有難度，Oxford核心業務營收在調整後、以每可計費天數計算的季比仍成長1.9%。我們持續在此單位努力，以提升成長率與獲利水準。

CyberCoders, our permanent placement service offering, which accounts for 95.7% of the segment's permanent placement revenues, led segment growth up low double digits year-over-year. CyberCoders' momentum was positive throughout the quarter. Our Life Sciences offerings in Europe, the smallest contributor to total segment revenue, was up year-over-year low single digits. Demand for our Life Sciences skill sets in the Benelux geographic markets remained strong.

CyberCoders為我們的永久派遣（正職媒合）服務，約占該部門永久派遣營收的95.7%，帶動部門年增達低雙位數。CyberCoders在整個季度的動能皆為正向。我們在歐洲的生命科學服務（對部門總營收貢獻最小）年增低個位數。我們在比荷盧地區市場的生命科學專業技能需求仍然強勁。

Gross margin for the segment was 41.8%, up 190 basis points year-over-year. Improvement in gross margin was primarily driven by a higher contribution of revenue from CyberCoders and improving pay-to-bill margin within the Oxford core business. Based on the above and better expense management within the Oxford core unit specifically, the segment's adjusted EBITDA results exceeded both our expectations and the prior year. Much of the hard work pointed at improving lost EBITDA margin at Oxford core continues to show itself in the quarter's results.

該部門毛利率為41.8%，年增190個基點。毛利率改善主要來自CyberCoders營收占比提高，以及Oxford核心業務的派遣薪資對帳單（pay-to-bill）毛利率提升。基於上述因素，並且特別是Oxford核心單位在費用管理上更佳，該部門調整後EBITDA結果超出我們的預期，也優於去年同期。我們為改善Oxford核心業務EBITDA利潤率所投入的大量努力，持續在本季結果中展現成效。

I will now turn the call over to Rand Blazer. Rand?

我現在把電話會議交給Rand Blazer。Rand？

Great. Thanks, Ted. The Apex segment, which consists of Apex Systems, Apex Life Sciences and Creative Circle business units reported solid results for the quarter and finished the year strong.

好的。謝謝你，Ted。Apex部門由Apex Systems、Apex Life Sciences與Creative Circle等業務單位組成，本季繳出穩健成果，並以強勁表現結束全年。

Apex Systems had another very strong quarter, exceeding our expectations, Creative Circle performed slightly better than our initial expectations and Apex Life Sciences performed slightly below our initial expectations. Revenues for the segment in the fourth quarter were $534.7 million, up 12.3% year-over-year on a reported basis. Revenues for the full year for 2017 were $2 billion, up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. Apex Systems, which accounts for 75.5% of the segment's revenues, once again reported double-digit revenue growth. Our Creative Circle unit was up mid-single digits. And the Life Sciences unit, including the impact of StratAcuity -- the StratAcuity acquisition, was up mid-single digits in the fourth quarter.

Apex Systems再度迎來非常強勁的一季，超出我們預期；Creative Circle表現略優於我們的初始預期；Apex Life Sciences則略低於我們的初始預期。該部門第四季營收為5.347億美元，按報告口徑年增12.3%。2017全年營收為20億美元，年增10.9%。Apex Systems占該部門營收的75.5%，再次呈報雙位數營收成長。我們的Creative Circle單位年增中個位數。生命科學單位（包含StratAcuity——StratAcuity併購案的影響）在第四季年增中個位數。

Gross margin for the segment was higher year-over-year on a reported basis due to out-of-period adjustment of $5.6 million to cost of services in the fourth quarter of last year. Exceeding this -- excluding this adjustment, excuse me, gross margin for the segment was down slightly year-over-year as a result of lower perm placement revenue and higher volume discounts. However, the core bill rate and pay rate differentials across our business remained stable and were slightly up for Apex Systems, reflecting a stable pricing environment for our services. Our segment's EBITDA contribution continues to reflect high conversion of gross profit to EBITDA. This performance is driven by continued strong productivity of our sales, delivery...

該部門毛利率按報告口徑年比提高，原因是去年第四季對服務成本做了560萬美元的跨期調整。排除該項調整後（抱歉），該部門毛利率年比略降，係因永久派遣營收較低以及較高的量販折扣所致。然而，我們各項業務的核心帳單費率與薪資費率差（bill rate與pay rate差）仍維持穩定，且Apex Systems略有上升，反映我們服務的定價環境穩定。本部門的EBITDA貢獻持續反映毛利轉換為EBITDA的高轉換率。此表現來自我們銷售與交付團隊持續強勁的生產力……

(technical difficulty)

（技術問題）

I'll finish for him, operator. The continued high growth in our accounts in the 6 -- in 6 of the 7 industry verticals were service, with double-digit revenue growth in aerospace and defense, technology, consumer industrials, healthcare, telecommunications and financial service industry accounts. Business services, the seventh industry vertical, also exhibited positive mid-single-digit growth year-over-year.

我替他講完，接線員。我們的客戶持續維持高成長；在我們服務的7個產業垂直領域中，有6個呈現雙位數營收成長，包含航太與國防、科技、消費與工業、醫療保健、電信以及金融服務產業客戶。商業服務（第七個產業垂直領域）年比也呈現正向的中個位數成長。

Also notable was the acceleration of the growth rate in the fourth quarter in 5 of the 7 industry verticals we serve, with the rate of change increasing across those industries in excess of 500 basis points from the third quarter of '17. Growth was also balanced between top accounts and retail accounts with both achieving double-digit year-over-year growth rates. Our bookings for SOW-type work remain strong in the quarter, and as has been reported in previous quarters, continues to exceed our expectations. And finally, as mentioned, field and back office productivity continued strong in the quarter, supporting Apex Systems' EBITDA performance.

同樣值得注意的是，我們所服務的7個產業垂直領域中，有5個在第四季的成長率加速，與2017年第三季相比，這些產業的變動幅度增加超過500個基點。成長也在大型客戶與零售客戶之間保持均衡，兩者皆達成年比雙位數成長率。本季我們SOW類型工作的接單（bookings）仍然強勁，且如前幾季所述，持續超出我們預期。最後，如同提到的，前線與後勤辦公室的生產力在本季持續強勁，支撐Apex Systems的EBITDA表現。

Ed will now give us the financial results.

接下來由Ed為我們說明財務結果。

Sure. Thanks, Peter. Revenues for the quarter were up 9.4% year-over-year and up 8.6% excluding the $4.5 million contribution from StratAcuity, which we acquired in August 2017. The year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates and the differences in the number of billable days did not have on a net basis a material effect on our revenue growth rate. Assignment revenues for the quarter were $647.5 million, up 9.4% year-over-year. And permanent placement revenues were $31.6 million, up 9.2%. Gross margin for the quarter was 32.5%, which was in line with our previously announced financial estimates.

好的。謝謝你，Peter。本季營收年增9.4%；若排除我們於2017年8月收購的StratAcuity所貢獻的450萬美元，營收年增8.6%。外匯匯率的年比變動以及可計費天數差異，合計後對我們營收成長率並未造成重大影響。本季派遣（assignment）營收為6.475億美元，年增9.4%。永久派遣（正職媒合）營收為3,160萬美元，年增9.2%。本季毛利率為32.5%，與我們先前公布的財務預估一致。

SG&A expenses were $151.4 million or 22.3% of revenues. And after adjusting for $0.9 million in acquisition, integration and strategic planning expenses, which we do not include in our financial estimates, our SG&A expenses were in line with our financial estimates. Interest expense for the quarter was $6 million, down from $7 million in the fourth quarter of 2016. Interest expense for the quarter was comprised of $5.1 million of interest on our credit facilities and $0.9 million of amortization of deferred loan cost. The year-over-year decrease in interest expense reflected a lower debt balance and a lower interest rate as a result of the amendments to our credit facility.

SG&A費用為1.514億美元，占營收22.3%。在調整0.9百萬美元的併購、整合與策略規劃費用後（我們不將其納入財務預估），SG&A費用與我們的財務預估一致。本季利息費用為600萬美元，低於2016年第四季的700萬美元。本季利息費用包含：信用融資額度利息510萬美元，以及遞延貸款成本攤銷90萬美元。利息費用年比下降反映債務餘額較低，以及因信用融資額度修訂而帶來的較低利率。

During the quarter, we reported an income tax benefit of $12.6 million. This benefit included a onetime noncash benefit of $31.4 million related to the recently enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Excluding this one-time benefit, our income tax provision for the quarter was approximately $18.8 million, an effective tax rate of 34.3%, which included approximately $2.5 million in excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation. Net income for the quarter was $67.3 million or $1.28 per diluted share, up from $24 million or $0.45 per diluted share in the fourth quarter last year.

本季我們認列所得稅利益1,260萬美元。此利益包含一筆與近期通過之《減稅與就業法案》（Tax Cuts and Jobs Act）相關的一次性非現金利益3,140萬美元。扣除該一次性利益後，本季所得稅費用約為1,880萬美元，有效稅率為34.3%，其中包含約250萬美元來自以股票為基礎之薪酬的超額稅務利益。本季淨利為6,730萬美元，或稀釋後每股盈餘1.28美元，高於去年第四季的2,400萬美元或稀釋後每股盈餘0.45美元。

As Peter mentioned, adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $82.9 million. Cash flows from operating activities were $58.3 million. And free cash flow, a non-GAAP measure, was $52 million. For the full year 2017, we generated free cash flow of $172.2 million, of which we used $60.1 million to repurchase stock, $68 million to pay down debt and $25.9 million to acquire StratAcuity.

如Peter所提及，本季調整後EBITDA為8,290萬美元。營運活動現金流量為5,830萬美元。自由現金流（非GAAP衡量指標）為5,200萬美元。2017年全年，我們創造自由現金流1億7,220萬美元，其中使用6,010萬美元回購股票、6,800萬美元償還債務，以及2,590萬美元收購StratAcuity。

Now turning to our financial estimates for the first quarter of 2018. We're estimating revenues of $672 million to $682 million, net income of $24.4 million to $26.6 million or $0.46 to $0.50 per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA of $69 million to $72 million. Our financial estimates included $10 million or $7.3 million after-tax of estimated transaction cost related to the pending ECS acquisition. Other than these transaction expenses, these estimates did not include any other acquisition strategy or integration expenses or any excess tax benefits related to stock-based compensation. These estimates do not include any expenses related to the amendment of our existing credit facilities or cost related to the new Term B loan that will be used to fund the acquisition of ECS.

接著說明我們對2018年第一季的財務預估。我們預估營收為6億7,200萬至6億8,200萬美元，淨利為2,440萬至2,660萬美元，或稀釋後每股盈餘0.46至0.50美元，調整後EBITDA為6,900萬至7,200萬美元。我們的財務預估包含與待完成之ECS收購案相關的預估交易成本1,000萬美元（稅後為730萬美元）。除上述交易費用外，這些預估未包含任何其他收購策略或整合費用，亦未包含任何與以股票為基礎之薪酬相關的超額稅務利益。這些預估亦未包含修訂我們現有信貸融資安排的任何費用，或將用於資助收購ECS之新Term B貸款的相關成本。

Our press release also included stand-alone preliminary financial estimates for ECS for the full year 2018 as if the acquisition of ECS occurred at the beginning of the year. As we stated in the release, the operating results of ECS will be included in our 2018 consolidated operating results from the date of acquisition, which is expected to be April 2. The preliminary financial estimates for ECS were based on, among other things, preliminary estimates of the fair value of the assets acquired and their related service lives and the interest cost of the incremental borrowings on the new Term B loan that will be used to fund the acquisition. Interest expense does not include any estimated costs or expenses related to amendments to On Assignment's existing credit facilities.

我們的新聞稿亦包含ECS於2018年全年的獨立初步財務預估，假設收購ECS於年初即已完成。如我們在新聞稿中所述，ECS的營運結果將自收購日（預期為4月2日）起納入我們2018年合併營運結果。ECS的初步財務預估係基於（其中包括）所收購資產公允價值及其相關使用年限的初步估計，以及將用於資助收購之新Term B貸款所新增借款的利息成本。利息費用未包含任何與修訂On Assignment現有信貸融資安排相關的預估成本或費用。

For 2018, we estimate revenues for ECS of $620 million to $640 million, a year-over-year growth rate of 5.7% to 9.1% and net loss of $19 million to $14.3 million, adjusted net income of $26 million to $27.7 million and adjusted EBITDA of $70 million to $73.5 million. Adjusted net income does not include the cash tax savings of the tax amortization of goodwill and trademarks, which is estimated to be approximately $9 million annually over the next 15 years. Reconciliations of the estimated net loss to adjusted net income and adjusted EBITDA were included in the press release.

就2018年而言，我們預估ECS營收為6億2,000萬至6億4,000萬美元，年增率為5.7%至9.1%，淨損為1,900萬至1,430萬美元；調整後淨利為2,600萬至2,770萬美元，調整後EBITDA為7,000萬至7,350萬美元。調整後淨利未包含商譽與商標之稅務攤銷所帶來的現金節稅，該節稅預估在未來15年每年約為900萬美元。由預估淨損調節至調整後淨利及調整後EBITDA之對帳表已載於新聞稿中。

I will now turn the call back over to Peter for some closing remarks.

接下來我將把電話會議交回Peter作結語。

Thank you. We continue to believe our scale, size and breadth of services has us well positioned to take advantage of what we believe will be historic secular growth for the industry and dynamic changes in the technology world. While the entire On Assignment team is very proud of our performance, we remain focused on continuing to profitably grow our business and increase our rate of growth. We'd like to once again thank our many loyal, dedicated and talented employees, whose efforts have allowed us to progress to where we are today.

謝謝。我們持續相信，憑藉我們的規模、體量與服務廣度，我們已具備良好定位，可把握我們認為將是產業歷史性的長期結構性成長，以及科技世界的動態變化。雖然整個On Assignment團隊對我們的表現深感自豪，但我們仍專注於持續以獲利方式成長業務並提升成長率。我們也想再次感謝眾多忠誠、敬業且才華洋溢的員工，正是他們的努力讓我們得以走到今天。

Would now like to now open the call up to participants for questions. Operator?

現在我們想開放電話會議讓與會者提問。接線生？

(Operator Instructions) We'll go to Kevin McVeigh with Deutsche Bank.

（接線生指示）我們接著請德意志銀行（Deutsche Bank）的Kevin McVeigh提問。

Ed, I think I heard you right. I just want to make sure, in the Q1 guidance, you're including the diligence costs and the ECS deal, is that right? So in that EBITDA, there is -- the cost of the diligence is in those numbers, is that right?

Ed，我想我聽得沒錯。我只是想確認一下，在第一季的指引中，你們已納入盡職調查成本以及ECS交易，對嗎？所以在那個EBITDA裡面，盡職調查的成本已包含在那些數字中，對嗎？

Well, we included Ed's prepared remarks. That was $10 million and expenses related to the acquisition.

嗯，我們在Ed的事先準備講稿中已提到。那是1,000萬美元，以及與收購相關的費用。

Those expenses are added back in the determination of adjusted EBITDA.

在計算調整後EBITDA時，這些費用會被加回。

Got it, okay. So in the EPS -- okay, I just wanted to make sure I was kind of thinking about that right. Then Peter, again, you kind of really continued outpaced the market pretty handily. As you think about kind of staffing levels internally and kind of the sales on the sourcing side, are you where you need to be? Or given how tight supply is, are you starting to shift any kind of production into sourcing? Or how should we think about that as we work our way through '18?

了解，好。所以在EPS方面——好，我只是想確認我的理解方向是對的。接著Peter，你們再次相當明顯地持續跑贏市場。當你思考內部人員編制，以及在招募來源端的銷售配置時，你們是否已達到所需水準？或者考量供給如此吃緊，你們是否開始把部分產能轉向招募來源（sourcing）？或者在我們走過2018年的過程中，應該如何看待這件事？

Well, I will turn it over to Ted, and then, Ted, if you want Rand to make any comments, just go ahead. But look, I think the rate of adoption of our delivery model continues to gain traction with our customers. And because of our size and scale and our investments that we've consistently made over the last 4 years, we're well positioned to take advantage of that demand today, not 6 months from now, today. So with that, Ted, I want to -- I do want to brag on Rand and Ted, because the performance was great, it accelerated. And because of the performance we had in our core business, we were able to dedicate a lot of time and attention to getting the ECS transaction signed up and proven up in a very quick fashion. So Ted, why don't you make a couple of comments about where we are on internal staffing levels.

好，我先把問題交給Ted；Ted，如果你想請Rand補充，也請直接說。不過你看，我認為客戶對我們交付模式的採用速度持續提升、逐步取得動能。而且憑藉我們的體量與規模，以及過去4年持續投入的投資，我們已具備良好定位，可以在今天就把握這股需求——不是6個月後，是今天。因此，Ted，我想——我也想稱讚Rand和Ted，因為表現非常出色，而且還加速成長。也因為我們核心業務的表現，我們才能投入大量時間與心力，在非常短的時間內把ECS交易簽下來並完成驗證。所以Ted，何不就我們目前的內部人力配置水準做幾點說明。

Thanks, Peter. So Kevin, we keep increasing headcounts in every unit ratably. I would characterize it as steady. We're not pushing or surging, if you will, but we're also not standing still. And it's having both on our sales side as well as recruiting and delivery side as well as within our statement of work unit, our industries and top accounts. So it's across the board, and I would characterize it as steady.

謝謝，Peter。Kevin，我們在每個單位都按比例持續增加人頭數。我會把它形容為穩健。我們沒有刻意推進或衝刺，但也沒有停滯不前。這同時涵蓋我們的銷售端、招募與交付端，以及我們的工作說明（statement of work）單位、各產業與重點客戶。所以是全面性的，我會形容為穩健。

Yes, Ted, can I -- Kevin, were you asking about our internal staff and also the contract employer community? Were you asking about that as well?

是的，Ted，我可以——Kevin，你問的是我們的內部員工，以及合約雇主社群（contract employer community）嗎？你也在問那一塊嗎？

No, more the internal just in terms of -- again, it's just -- the numbers you just put up are tremendous numbers. And the ability to source, given where the supply is, just continues to be really, really impressive.

沒有，主要是內部這邊，就——再說一次，你們剛公布的數字真的非常亮眼。在供給如此緊俏的情況下，仍能找到人才來源的能力，持續讓人非常、非常印象深刻。

Yes, I think Ted answered it.

是的，我想Ted已經回答了。

Peter, just real quick. Any thoughts on kind of where perm has been trending?

Peter，快速問一下。對於永久職（perm）的趨勢，你有什麼看法嗎？

Yes. It's been solid, and we hope to continue to increase the rate of growth over previous years.

有。表現一直很穩健，我們也希望能持續把成長率提高到高於過去幾年的水準。

And let's go next to Gary Bisbee with RBC Capital Markets.

接下來我們請 RBC Capital Markets 的 Gary Bisbee 提問。

I guess, a question first on the Oxford core business. So now that you've -- it sounds like you basically lapped that client that wound down big project a year ago. Any reason we wouldn't expect that to return to growth in the next couple of quarters? And just maybe an update on demand and what else is going on within Oxford core.

我想先問一個關於 Oxford 核心業務的問題。所以現在聽起來你們基本上已經跨過了那位在一年前縮減大型專案的客戶所造成的比較基期。有沒有什麼原因讓我們不應該預期它在接下來幾個季度回到成長？另外也請更新一下需求狀況，以及 Oxford 核心業務內部還有哪些進展。

Ted, do you want to address that?

Ted，你要回應一下嗎？

Sure. So that's correct. I mean, we've lapped that big project now coming out of the first quarter. There is a little bit of residue, but certainly not a significant size that we've been dealing with over the last 4 quarters. We -- our rate of shrinking revenues, if that's the way to put it, has been narrowing every quarter. And I think now we're seeing increases in both billable headcount hours and revenues on a week-to-week, month-to-month basis in a pretty steady fashion. So I think if you play those numbers out, we're not giving exact guidance at the Oxford level in terms of revenues, but you can see that we're getting back to a point where hopefully we'll be returning to growth here very soon.

當然。沒錯。我的意思是，我們現在已經在第一季結束後跨過了那個大型專案的比較基期。還有一點點殘留影響，但肯定不像過去 4 個季度我們一直在處理的那樣有顯著規模。我們——如果這樣形容的話——營收縮減的速度每一季都在收斂。而我認為現在我們看到可計費人力工時與營收，在每週、每月的基礎上都相當穩定地增加。所以我想，如果把這些數字推演下去，我們不會在 Oxford 層級提供營收的精確指引，但你可以看到我們正回到一個點，希望很快就能重新回到成長。

And anymore color within the portfolio there, anything particularly, strong, weak, still a drag, any sort of high-level commentary?

那在那個投資組合裡還有沒有更多細節？有沒有哪一塊特別強、特別弱、仍然在拖累，或任何高層次的評論？

If you think about that, that Oxford core business, it's heavy in IT, it's heavy in healthcare IT, software and hardware engineering and Life Sciences. I think in all those areas, it has great end markets to be in. Healthcare IT continues to be a really solid marketplace to play in. The engineering has certainly been good. Lots going on with the Internet of Things and other unit comparable technologies within our software, hardware units. So I would say across the board, that Oxford core businesses is in the right markets. We just need to continue to push these initiatives forward on a sales strategy so that we can show the growth that I think exists in the markets for Oxford core.

如果你看 Oxford 核心業務，它在 IT 方面比重很高，在醫療保健 IT、軟體與硬體工程，以及生命科學方面也很重。我認為在所有這些領域，它所處的終端市場都非常好。醫療保健 IT 仍然是一個非常穩健的市場。工程業務確實表現不錯。在我們的軟體、硬體單位裡，物聯網以及其他同類技術都有很多進展。所以我會說整體而言，Oxford 核心業務所在的市場是對的。我們只需要持續推進這些銷售策略上的倡議，讓我們能展現我認為在 Oxford 核心所處市場中確實存在的成長。

Great. And then just 2 quick cleanup ones for Ed. The cash tax savings that you've -- not in your adjusted earnings, but you call out from the legacy deals, those need to be marked down effectively for saving you less under the current lower tax rates related to tax reform, is that right?

很好。接著有兩個給 Ed 的快速釐清問題。你們提到的現金稅務節省——不在你們的調整後盈餘裡，但你們從歷史交易中單獨指出——在目前較低的稅率（稅改後）下，等於需要下修，因為節省會變少，對嗎？

That's right. So if you look at Footnote 1 to our Q1 estimates, you can see what the new tax savings numbers will be on a go-forward basis.

沒錯。所以如果你看我們第一季預估的註腳 1，你可以看到未來新的稅務節省數字會是多少。

Excellent. Got it. And then have you calculated or can you share if you have the billable days for the rest of the quarters of 2018? The release I saw gave it for Q1.

太好了。了解。另外你們是否已經計算，或可以分享 2018 年其餘季度的可計費天數？我看到的新聞稿只提供了第一季的。

In fact, it's included in our supplemental materials that you can find on our website.

其實我們的補充資料裡有包含，你可以在我們網站上找到。

Gary, the $9 million number that Ed gave you preliminarily for ECS on the cash tax savings is a annual straight-line 5 year, and it does take into effect the new tax rate.

Gary，Ed 先前初步給你的 ECS 現金稅務節省 900 萬美元，是按年度、5 年直線法攤提，而且已經反映新的稅率。

Yes.

是。

Right. 5 year for that or 15-year, like the other one?

對。那是 5 年的，還是像另一個一樣是 15 年？

15. You need to add the 2 together, the deferred note and then that post-closing.

15 年。你需要把兩個加在一起：遞延票據那部分，以及交割後那部分。

We'll go to Tim McHugh with William Blair & Company.

接下來我們請 William Blair & Company 的 Tim McHugh 提問。

Can you just elaborate on Creative Circle? I think you mentioned kind of improving when you described at one point, but you also said mid-single-digit growth, which is what you had been talking about the prior quarter?

你能再多談一下 Creative Circle 嗎？我記得你在某個地方描述時提到有所改善，但你也說是中個位數成長，而這跟你們上一季在談的差不多？

Right. So I'll go first and then pass it on to Rand. I'd just point out, if you saw Interpublic's numbers today, they were better. And I think the overall market is better and some of the steps that Rand and the team have done to kind of get refocused has delivered or started to deliver. Rand, you want to kind of get the current momentum and trend?

對。我先說，然後再交給 Rand。我想指出，如果你今天看到 Interpublic 的數字，表現更好。我認為整體市場也更好，而 Rand 和團隊為了重新聚焦所採取的一些步驟已經帶來成效，或開始帶來成效。Rand，你要談談目前的動能和趨勢嗎？

Yes, no, I think we initially thought they might be not be as high as mid-single digits. And we came -- they came on very strong at the end of the quarter. So that's why we gave it that characterization.

是的，我想我們一開始以為可能不會高到中個位數。但他們在季度末端表現非常強勁。所以我們才會用那樣的描述。

Okay. Just that one comment about you didn't think they might even be mid-single digits. I kind of -- I may be mistaken. But I thought on the last call, you had seen some signs of improvement. So was there kind of up and down that we're seeing still?

好的。就是你那句說你們原本覺得可能連中個位數都不到。我有點——也許我記錯了。但我記得在上次電話會議上，你們已經看到一些改善跡象。所以我們現在看到的是仍然有些起伏嗎？

I think he was referring to the third quarter, and June was bad. And then we saw improvement in July and August. But just normal seasonality. We didn't see a softness and the momentum continued.

我想他指的是第三季，而 6 月表現不好。然後我們在 7 月和 8 月看到改善。但這只是正常的季節性。我們沒有看到疲軟，動能也持續下去。

Okay. And then Apex, if I kind of look at the core Apex, the growth really seemed to pick up there. I guess, is there any -- there's always project work here, I guess. But there's -- is there any particularly large projects that, I guess, create a tough comp later on? Anything unusual that drove the growth in terms of...

好的。再來 Apex，如果我看核心 Apex，那邊的成長似乎真的加快了。我想，這裡總是會有一些專案型工作。但是否有任何特別大的專案，可能會在之後造成比較基期變得更難？有沒有什麼不尋常的因素推動了成長，例如……

No more than the normal seasonality we have for certain work in the fourth quarter that you've seen in '15, '16 and '17 now.

沒有，除了我們在第四季某些工作一向會出現的正常季節性之外；你在 2015、2016、以及現在的 2017 都看過。

And the comment about higher volume discounts tied to that, is that just growing within certain customers? Just want to separate that from your comment that the bill pace for Ed was stable.

那你提到與此相關的更高量體折扣，是不是只是某些客戶的量在增加？我只是想把這點和你說 Ed 的計費節奏穩定那段區分開來。

Yes.

是。

Yes.

是。

We have a question from Jeff Silber with BMO Capital Markets.

我們有一個問題來自 BMO Capital Markets 的 Jeff Silber。

Forgive me, I'm actually out of the office, so this is kind of a back of the envelope calculation. But looking at your guidance for the first quarter, it doesn't look like you're looking for a lot of SG&A leverage. The year-over-year increase implied for both gross margins and adjusted EBITDA are about the same. What -- if I'm wrong, forgive me, but if I'm not, are you just being overly conservative, or is there something else going on?

先請見諒，我其實不在辦公室，所以這只是個粗略的估算。但看你們對第一季的指引，似乎沒有預期太多 SG&A 的槓桿效益。你們隱含的毛利率與調整後 EBITDA 的年增幅看起來差不多。如果我算錯了請見諒，但如果我沒算錯，你們只是過度保守，還是有其他因素？

Look, it's the start of the year. We don't have budgets end up getting released and spent. There is the annual reset of payroll taxes, et cetera. So I think what I would look at, Jeff, is what the first 2 weeks' performance were and what the gross margin percentage guidance we gave you. And we'll figure the EBITDA out along the way.

你看，現在是一年之初。我們的預算還沒完全釋出並開始支出。另外還有年度薪資稅等項目的重置。所以我認為，Jeff，你可以看的，是前兩週的表現，以及我們給你的毛利率百分比指引。至於 EBITDA，我們會在過程中再把它算出來。

Okay. Fair enough. And then, sorry, just one more numbers question. What kind of capital expense number should we expect for the year?

好的。可以理解。然後，不好意思，最後再問一個數字問題。今年我們應該預期資本支出大概是多少？

Probably, roughly -- excluding ECS, roughly $29 million.

大概吧，約略——不含ECS，約2,900萬美元。

Are there any big projects, excluding ECS, coming along?

有沒有任何大型專案（不含ECS）正在推進？

No.

沒有。

And we'll go to Tobey Sommer with SunTrust.

接下來請SunTrust的Tobey Sommer提問。

Could you comment on the bill pay spread at Oxford? And is there any kind of emerging skill sets that are helping drive that higher?

你能評論一下Oxford的帳單支付價差（bill pay spread）嗎？另外，是否有任何新興技能組合正在幫助推升這個價差？

Ted?

Ted？

Tobey, I wouldn't say there were emerging skill sets. I mean, certainly, I wouldn't say that's underneath it. I think it's just good -- I would characterize it as good pay to bill, management of the rates. And obviously, remember that in a market like this, because Oxford is not dealing with large customers, it's dealing with small and midsize customers predominantly, that they're creating their rate on the spot every day. And so when there's a high demand skill set, which is what they deal in, then there -- and there's a lot of competition in the marketplace, then they're able to get a better mark. So I think I would attribute most of it to that, and I think that's about it.

Tobey，我不會說有什麼新興技能組合。我的意思是，我當然不會說這是背後的原因。我認為這只是良好——我會把它形容為良好的「薪資對帳單」以及費率管理。而且很明顯，請記得在這樣的市場裡，因為Oxford不是在服務大型客戶，而主要是在服務中小型客戶，他們每天都在當下即時訂定費率。因此當他們所提供的是高需求技能組合——也就是他們所處理的類型——而且市場競爭又很激烈時，他們就能取得較好的加價幅度（mark）。所以我認為大部分都可歸因於此，我想大概就是這樣。

The revenue trend that you gave us for the most recent 2 weeks compared to a year ago, anything noteworthy in that comparison? Or is that, as far as you can tell, a pretty clean comparison?

你剛才提供的最近兩週相較於去年同期的營收趨勢，在這個比較中有什麼值得注意的嗎？或者就你所見，這是一個相當乾淨的可比數字？

Pretty clean number.

相當乾淨的數字。

Okay. Peter, is there anything that you plan on doing or could do to differentiate the company more in the statement of work space, either accelerate some internal investments to achieve that or acquire your way to further differentiation?

好的。Peter，在工作說明書（statement of work, SOW）領域，你是否計畫做任何事、或能做任何事，來讓公司更具差異化？例如加速一些內部投資以達成，或透過併購來進一步差異化？

Tobey, we're doing quite nicely there. We're building the team out. We're really focusing on it organically. We do look at whether there is a smaller acquisition that may have some replicable frameworks that might accelerate. But the bar is pretty high, and Rand's team has done a great job of building the capabilities organically and bringing some people in from prior consulting world experienced to augment the great team we have. So it's steady as she goes.

Tobey，我們在那方面做得相當不錯。我們正在擴編團隊。我們確實專注於有機成長。我們也會評估是否有較小型的併購標的，可能擁有一些可複製的框架，能夠加速進展。但門檻相當高，而Rand的團隊在有機建立能力方面做得很棒，也從先前顧問領域引進一些有經驗的人才，來強化我們既有的優秀團隊。所以就是穩健推進。

Just 2 other questions for me. In the association meeting on Capitol Hill with respect to H-1B visas, are you -- is the association experiencing bipartisan support? Or how would you characterize the receptiveness?

我還有另外兩個問題。關於在國會山莊就H-1B簽證所進行的協會會議，協會是否獲得兩黨支持？或者你會如何形容他們的接受度？

Yes. So I would tell you, the -- you can -- it's public information. It cleared out of the committee on a voice vote and it was 100% bipartisan, 100% consensus. And so it's -- we're seeing the benefits of kind of the greater scrutiny on the award of H-1B visas without even any legislation having been amended or voted in. But we fully expect, once they get to some sort of immigration bill, that this will be kind of tagged on, because it's not controversial.

是的。所以我會告訴你——你可以——這是公開資訊。它以口頭表決（voice vote）方式在委員會闖關通過，而且是100%兩黨支持、100%共識。因此，我們正在看到對H-1B簽證核發更嚴格審視所帶來的好處，即使目前尚未有任何法案條文被修正或表決通過。但我們完全預期，一旦他們推進到某種移民法案，這項內容會被附加上去，因為它並不具爭議性。

Okay. And then the last question from me, what's the outlook at the firm for growth in staffing consultants in the Oxford and Apex units?

好的。那我最後一個問題，對於Oxford與Apex事業單位，貴公司在人力派遣顧問（staffing consultants）成長方面的展望如何？

Ed?

Ed？

I would say, same as it's been in this year, Tobey, if you were just trying to get a relative data point. I mean, we'll grow our headcount, and it depends on where we see the most opportunity, but typically, a little bit less than the rate of the growth in the business. So we expect to pick up a little productivity. And also, we want to support our client opportunities by putting the feet on the street and new recruiters in the chair. So a little bit less than the rate of growth of the business.

Tobey，我會說，跟今年以來一直以來的情況差不多，如果你只是想要一個相對的參考點。我的意思是，我們會增加人頭數，而這取決於我們在哪裡看到最多機會，但通常會略低於業務成長率。所以我們預期生產力會小幅提升。另外，我們也希望透過讓業務人員上街跑客戶、以及讓新招募員到位，來支援客戶機會。所以人頭成長會略低於業務成長率。

And we'll go next to Mark Marcon with R W. Baird. (Operator Instructions) Again, we'll go now to Mark Marcon.

接下來請R W. Baird的Mark Marcon提問。(接線員指示) 再次，我們現在請Mark Marcon。

Just wondering, as you're looking at the first quarter and even thinking about the year, how are you thinking about bill rate increases going through? And specifically on the Apex side, how would you anticipate that those are going to flow?

我想請教，當你們看第一季、甚至思考全年時，你們如何看待帳單費率（bill rate）上調的傳導？特別是在Apex這邊，你們預期會如何反映？

Well, we don't think we're going to see margin compression, because we can't pass along bill rate expansion because of the need to pay the temp more. I mean, we have those conversations appropriately in real time, when appropriate, with the customers. And they're seeing it in their full time staff. So I think that you'll see us continue. Mark, we're not a onesie-twosie business where you try to gouge the customer by telling them this is -- to get a higher margin from the customer before you pass on a pay rate increase. I mean, people who are using our services are doing it for very thoughtful strategic reasons. And so the conversation about increasing pay rate is more -- is a lot more real and thoughtful and optically clear. So I think you should continue to see the trends. I don't think you should see margins expand like you might see in somebody who runs a onesie-twosie retail business. But you should see us being able to pass the expense along to the customer if we're having to pay the temp more. Does that answer your question?

嗯，我們不認為會看到毛利率被壓縮，因為我們無法傳遞帳單費率的擴張，原因是需要支付臨時人員更高的薪資。我的意思是，我們會在適當的時點、在適當的情況下，與客戶即時進行這些溝通。而他們也在他們的正職員工身上看到同樣的情況。所以我認為你會看到我們持續這樣做。Mark，我們不是那種一單兩單的小生意，試圖先跟客戶多收一點、以取得更高毛利，然後才把薪資上調轉嫁出去。我的意思是，使用我們服務的人，是基於非常審慎的策略性原因。因此，關於提高薪資費率的對話更——更真實、更周全，而且在觀感上也更清楚。所以我認為你應該會持續看到這些趨勢。我不認為你會看到毛利率像某些一單兩單的零售型業者那樣擴張。但如果我們必須支付臨時人員更高薪資，你應該會看到我們能把這項成本轉嫁給客戶。這有回答你的問題嗎？

It does. I was just trying to also get a sense for like what was embedded in terms of your guidance, because obviously, it's continuing to grow really well. And looking through the side deck on the average bill rate on Apex side, it's up 1.6% year-over-year. So I was just trying to figure out if you were assuming that we'd have a similar sort of rate of increase and then backing into the hours, et cetera?

有。我也只是想了解一下，你們的指引裡面大概隱含了什麼假設，因為很明顯它仍然成長得很好。而且看你們簡報附錄中Apex端的平均帳單費率，年增1.6%。所以我只是想弄清楚，你們是否假設會有類似幅度的費率上升，然後再回推工時等等？

Yes. I don't want to predict what the rate of wage growth will be. But what I can tell you is what's driving our revenue is really not so much wage growth as it is number of consultants on billing.

是的。我不想預測薪資成長率會是多少。但我可以告訴你，驅動我們營收的其實與其說是薪資成長，不如說是正在計費的顧問人數。

Okay. Great. And then I mean, the gross profit per staffing consultant continues to increase at a dramatic rate. As you increase the number of permanent folks at a slower rate than revenue, I'm assuming that you would expect that, that gross profit per staffing consultant would continue to increase?

好的。很好。另外，單位人力派遣顧問的毛利（gross profit per staffing consultant）仍以顯著的速度增加。當你們以低於營收的速度增加內部正職人員數量時，我假設你們會預期單位人力派遣顧問毛利會繼續上升？

Yes. A couple of things that I would alert you to. That number gets a little bit buzzy if you're looking at it on a consolidated basis because of where we are in enhancing the business model at Oxford or at CyberCoders. And I'm looking, but do we give it on a -- we give it on a consolidated basis, guys, right?

是的。有幾點我想提醒你。如果你用合併口徑來看，這個數字會有點「雜訊」，因為我們正在強化Oxford或CyberCoders的商業模式。我在看一下，但我們是以——我們是以合併口徑提供這個數字，對吧，各位？

Segment.

分部。

So we would -- our whole edict is that we want to have operating leverage. And now that Ted's team is through a lot of hard work in '17, there's still a little work to do, we'd hope that, that could continue.

所以我們會——我們的整體方針是希望具備營運槓桿。而且在Ted的團隊於2017年完成大量艱苦工作之後，雖然還有一些工作要做，我們希望這種情況能持續。

Great. And then 2 more. Just -- you mentioned H-1B legislation looks like it's going to go through. When it comes through, what sort of incremental bump do you think that could potentially lead to over the ensuing 6 months? And then secondly, what's the reaction been internally in terms of the ECS acquisition?

很好。最後再兩個。你提到H-1B立法看起來會通過。當它通過時，你認為在接下來6個月可能帶來多大的增量提振？第二，內部對於收購ECS的反應如何？

So a couple of things. With regard to H-1B visa, no kind of increased incremental growth targets other than to say, anything that puts a focus -- a greater focus on domestic labor versus foreign labor increases demand for our services. And rate of adoption of our delivery model and focus on domestic labor has us very well positioned, because as you know, almost 99% of our workforce is W-2 domestic labor. As it relates to ECS, it's gone incredibly well. You know that the first question we ask is, is a business acquirable, not is it accretive. And this is a great company. Ted -- the reason Ted, Rand and I are now on the same call is we all just came back from our annual awards trip, and we had some of the senior leadership from ECS attend it, so they could start to build relationships directly with people who might help them and who they may help. And it's great. Our thesis is that we can really help that -- they have a great position, they have great contract vehicles. And the biggest inhibitor to growth for the entire federal prime contractor space is cleared personnel. And we're really good at human capital recruitment and traction. And we've got to figure out how we help them in that area. Conversely, our customers on the commercial side are quite concerned about cyber security. And so the work that they're doing is interesting and thoughtful and timely for some of our financial service customers. And the final thing is, because we're really not in that space as a prime contractor, the company ECS can continue to thrive and build out their vision and their management team and excel and reap the shared benefit of performing as our previous companies, Apex and Creative and Oxford have. And it's a much different acquisition than if one of the larger prime contractors acquired them just for their contract vehicles and for their billable staff and didn't want anybody else. So it's an incredibly positive feeling right now, and I think that'll continue based on our past experience, looking at the right companies and -- if they would harmoniously exist with us and not have sales channel or cultural conflicts. So we feel good about it.

所以有幾點。關於 H-1B 簽證，沒有任何提高的、逐步成長目標可談，除了可以說，任何讓焦點——更聚焦於國內勞動力而非外國勞動力的政策，都會增加對我們服務的需求。而我們交付模式的採用速度以及對國內勞動力的重視，讓我們處於非常有利的位置，因為如你所知，我們將近 99% 的員工都是 W-2 的國內勞動力。至於 ECS，進展非常順利。你知道我們問的第一個問題是：這個業務是否「可收購」（acquirable），而不是是否「具增益」（accretive）。而這是一家很棒的公司。Ted——Ted、Rand 和我現在在同一通電話上，是因為我們剛從年度頒獎旅行回來，我們也邀請了 ECS 的一些資深領導參加，讓他們能開始與可能協助他們、以及他們也可能協助的人，直接建立關係。而這很棒。我們的論點是，我們確實能在那方面幫上忙——他們有很好的市場位置，也有很好的合約載具（contract vehicles）。而整個聯邦主承包商（federal prime contractor）領域成長最大的抑制因素，是具備安全許可（cleared）的員工。而我們在人力資本招募與推進（traction）方面非常擅長。我們必須弄清楚要如何在那個領域幫助他們。反過來說，我們商業端的客戶非常關注網路資安。因此，他們正在做的工作對我們一些金融服務客戶而言，既有趣、也有深度且切合時機。最後一點是，因為我們其實並不是以主承包商身分在那個領域運作，ECS 這家公司可以持續茁壯、擴展他們的願景與管理團隊、持續卓越，並像我們先前的公司 Apex、Creative 和 Oxford 一樣，收穫共享的效益。而這與若由某些更大型的主承包商收購他們、只是為了他們的合約載具與可計費人力、且不希望其他人留下的那種收購，完全不同。所以目前感受非常正面，我認為基於我們過去的經驗——挑選對的公司，並且——如果他們能與我們和諧共存，而不會有銷售通路或文化上的衝突——這種正面感受會持續。所以我們對此感覺很好。

(Operator Instructions) We'll go to Edward Caso with Wells Fargo.

(接線員指示) 我們接著請 Wells Fargo 的 Edward Caso。

Given the upcoming addition of ECS and the government business is really not a gross margin, but it's EBITDA margin business, how do you plan to present the data, because you've always given a sort of gross margin guidance historically? Is that going to drop off?

考量到即將納入 ECS，而政府業務本質上不是毛利率業務，而是 EBITDA 利潤率業務，你們打算如何呈現數據？因為你們過去一向提供某種毛利率指引。那會取消嗎？

Ed, it's a great question. We're debating that and welcome your input, but we're debating that as we speak. We'll probably -- ECS is going to be a separate reporting segment. And so what we'll probably do is maybe give you guidance for gross margins at least for the core business, since you're used to it, and then maybe guide you to what EBITDA margins are for the federal prime space and not focus so much on gross margin there.

Ed，這是個很好的問題。我們正在討論，也歡迎你提供意見；我們此刻正在討論這件事。我們可能會——ECS 將會是一個獨立的報告分部。因此我們可能會做的是，至少對核心業務仍提供毛利率指引，因為你們已經習慣了；然後對聯邦主承包領域，我們可能會引導你們看 EBITDA 利潤率，而不會那麼聚焦於毛利率。

Is there any goal for permanent placement fees as a percent of revenue, both on a -- either on a pre-ECS or post-ECS basis?

永久派遣（permanent placement）費用占營收的比重，有沒有任何目標——不論是在納入 ECS 之前或之後？

Not really. I mean, just because of our sheer size and the way we keep our people focused on their daily revenue-generating activity, it's hard to believe that it could get substantially above 5.5%, 6%. And I think this quarter, it was, what, 4.9%, 5%.

沒有特別。我的意思是，因為我們規模很大，而且我們讓同仁專注於每日創造營收的活動，很難相信它能大幅高於 5.5%、6%。而我想本季是，大概多少，4.9%、5%。

4.7%.

4.7%。

4.7%. So I think our peak was 5.1%. Sorry?

4.7%。所以我想我們的高點是 5.1%。抱歉？

6.1% on a pro forma.

以擬制（pro forma）基礎是 6.1%。

6.1% on a pro forma basis, but that was many years ago. And so I really think getting north of 5.5%, 6% would be highly unusual.

以擬制（pro forma）基礎是 6.1%，但那是很多年前了。所以我真的認為要超過 5.5%、6% 會非常不尋常。

Last question. Any thoughts on Investor Analyst Day and your willingness to give multiyear guidance at that point?

最後一個問題。對於投資人／分析師日（Investor Analyst Day），以及你們屆時提供多年期指引的意願，有什麼想法？

Yes. Well, we are working on that. It's just, as you know, we've been busy and we're scheduled to close and we will the ECS acquisition on April 2. The funding -- we had the bank meetings. The underwriting and the subscription of that is going well. But we're looking later May. And when we have confirmed what we're going to do, we'll put out a press release. But it is our intention to try to do something late May and lay out both our strategic and financial goals.

有。嗯，我們正在規劃。只是如你所知，我們一直很忙，而且我們預計在 4 月 2 日完成 ECS 收購交割，我們也會如期完成。資金方面——我們已經開過銀行會議。承銷與認購進展順利。但我們在看 5 月下旬。等我們確認要做什麼，我們會發布新聞稿。但我們的意圖是嘗試在 5 月下旬做一場活動，並闡述我們的策略與財務目標。

And we go back to Tobey Sommer with SunTrust.

我們回到 SunTrust 的 Tobey Sommer。

Just had a numbers question maybe for Ed in terms of the tax rate. Is the 26.5% for ECS pre-amortization or is that post-amortization?

我有個數字問題，可能是問 Ed，關於稅率。ECS 的 26.5% 是攤銷前（pre-amortization）還是攤銷後（post-amortization）？

That is a -- that includes -- that is a financial GAAP tax rate. It's our effective tax rate. And it does not include the benefit of the tax amortization of goodwill in terms -- now let me clarify something. Now it's -- that is an add on, okay, and it's $9 million a year, okay. And so if you were to look at this on a cash tax basis, okay, not a GAAP basis, but a cash tax basis and we calculate the cash tax rate, I think on a consolidated basis, we're going to be somewhere around 19%.

那是——那包含——那是財務 GAAP 稅率。是我們的有效稅率。而且不包含商譽稅務攤銷的利益——不過讓我澄清一下。現在——那是額外加上的，好嗎？每年是 900 萬美元，好嗎？所以如果你用現金稅（cash tax）口徑來看，也就是不是 GAAP 口徑，而是現金稅口徑，並且我們計算現金稅率，我想在合併基礎上，我們大概會在 19% 左右。

And we'll go to Mark Marcon with R W. Baird.

接著請 R W. Baird 的 Mark Marcon。

Just one more tax question. After this year, for the non-ECS businesses, what's the cash tax savings going to end up being from the amortization of the goodwill?

再問一個稅務問題。今年之後，對於非 ECS 的業務，商譽攤銷帶來的現金稅節省，最後會是多少？

Mark, if you look at the Footnote 1 to our estimates, we give that on a quarterly basis. All you got to do is annualize it.

Mark，如果你看我們預估的註腳 1，我們有按季提供那個數字。你只要把它年化就可以了。

I meant for beyond this year?

我是指今年之後更往後的期間？

It's going to be the same.

會是一樣的。

Okay. There's no drop?

好的。不會下降？

Straight line.

直線法（straight line）。

And I'll turn it back to our speakers for any closing remarks.

我把時間交回給我們的講者，看看是否有任何結語。

We appreciate your attention, and we look forward to discussing our first quarter results with you. Thank you very much.

感謝各位的關注，我們期待與各位討論我們第一季的業績結果。非常感謝。

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, this will conclude our teleconference for today. Thank you for your participation and for using AT&T Executive Teleconference Service, and you may now disconnect.

謝謝。各位女士、先生，今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝各位參與並使用 AT&T Executive Teleconference Service，現在可以掛線。