Everforth, Inc. (EFOR) 2018 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by, and welcome to the Second Quarter 2018 Earnings Call. (Operator Instructions) Also, today's conference call is being recorded.

各位女士、先生，感謝您稍候，歡迎參加2018年第二季財報電話會議。(接線員指示) 另外，今天的電話會議將被錄音。

I would now like to turn the conference over to your host, Chief Financial Officer, Ed Pierce. Please go ahead.

現在我想把會議交給您的主持人、財務長 Ed Pierce。請開始。

Thank you, operator. Good afternoon, and thank you for joining us today. With me today are Peter Dameris, our CEO; Ted Hanson, our President; Rand Blazer, President of Apex Systems; and George Wilson, President of ECS.

謝謝，接線員。各位下午好，感謝您今天加入我們。今天與我一同出席的有：我們的執行長 Peter Dameris；總裁 Ted Hanson；Apex Systems 總裁 Rand Blazer；以及 ECS 總裁 George Wilson。

Before we get started, I'd like to remind everyone that our presentation contains 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 these 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.

在開始之前，我想提醒各位，我們的簡報包含前瞻性陳述。雖然我們認為這些陳述是合理的，但它們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。其中部分風險與不確定性已在今日新聞稿及我們向 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。

For your convenience, our prepared remarks and supplemental materials can be found in the Investor Relations section of our website.

為方便各位，我們的預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, on this call, we will 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. And the reconciliations between the GAAP and the non-GAAP measures can be found 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 指標，例如調整後 EBITDA 與調整後淨利。這些非 GAAP 指標旨在補充可比較的 GAAP 指標。GAAP 與非 GAAP 指標之間的調節表可在今日新聞稿中找到。

I will now turn the call over to Peter Dameris. Peter?

現在我將把電話會議交給 Peter Dameris。Peter？

Thank you, Ed. Welcome to the ASGN 2018 Second Quarter Earnings Conference Call. During our call today, I will comment on the markets we serve and our financial highlights. Ted, Rand and George will then discuss the performance of our operating segments in greater detail before turning the call over to Ed for a detailed review of our second quarter results and our estimates for the third quarter of 2018.

謝謝你，Ed。歡迎參加 ASGN 2018 年第二季財報電話會議。在今天的會議中，我將就我們所服務的市場以及財務重點進行評論。接著 Ted、Rand 與 George 將更詳細地討論我們各營運部門的表現，之後再把電話會議交回 Ed，對第二季結果以及我們對 2018 年第三季的預估進行詳細說明。

Now on to the second quarter results. Across all our guided metrics, our results for the quarter were above our previously announced financial estimates. Revenues for the quarter were $878.5 million, up 34.5% year-over-year on a reported basis or 10.1% on a pro forma basis. Our growth rate accelerated during the second quarter and reflected, among other things, the deepening of many large customer relationships established over the last 5 years, a healthy U.S. economy and federal marketplace and a continuing increase in the rate of adoption of our delivery model.

接下來談第二季結果。在我們所提供指引的所有衡量指標上，本季結果均高於先前公布的財務預估。本季營收為 8.785 億美元，以申報口徑（reported basis）年增 34.5%，以擬制口徑（pro forma basis）年增 10.1%。我們在第二季的成長率加速，反映了多項因素，包括過去 5 年建立的多個大型客戶關係持續深化、美國經濟與聯邦市場環境健康，以及我們交付模式採用率持續提升。

Our Q2 results marked the 18th consecutive quarter that our company grew above the IT staffing industry projected annual growth rate. Our size and service offerings allows us to grow faster than published IT service industry growth rates, and we believe that we are well positioned to generate solid above-market revenue growth in the future. During the quarter, we saw strong double-digit revenue growth at Apex and Creative Circle and a return to year-over-year growth at Oxford -- in our Oxford Segment. Our European Life Science business saw strong performance. And our federal IT services and solutions business grew revenues almost 2x its peer group. Customer demand was strong across our federal, local, mid-market and large national accounts.

我們第二季的結果標誌著公司連續第 18 個季度的成長高於 IT 人力派遣產業預估的年度成長率。我們的規模與服務組合使我們能夠以快於已公布的 IT 服務產業成長率的速度成長，我們相信公司已具備良好定位，未來可持續創造穩健、優於市場的營收成長。本季，Apex 與 Creative Circle 皆呈現強勁的兩位數營收成長，而 Oxford（在我們的 Oxford 部門）也恢復年對年成長。我們的歐洲生命科學業務表現強勁。此外，我們的聯邦 IT 服務與解決方案業務營收成長幾乎達到同業群的 2 倍。客戶需求在我們的聯邦、地方、中型市場以及大型全國性客戶中皆相當強勁。

Adjusted EBITDA was up 32.4% year-over-year to $106.6 million and cash generation continues to be at or above our expectations. Free cash flow, a non-GAAP measure, was $68.4 million, up from $33.4 million in the prior year period. During the quarter, we reduced our leverage ratio to 3.2x at the end of the second quarter. We expect that we will be able to further pay down approximately $55 million of our debt and reduce our leverage ratio to approximately 3x trailing 12-month adjusted EBITDA by the end of the third quarter.

調整後 EBITDA 年增 32.4% 至 1.066 億美元，現金創造能力持續達到或高於我們的預期。自由現金流（非 GAAP 指標）為 6,840 萬美元，高於去年同期的 3,340 萬美元。本季末，我們將槓桿比率降至 3.2 倍。我們預期在第三季末前，將能進一步償還約 5,500 萬美元債務，並將槓桿比率降至約 3 倍（以過去 12 個月調整後 EBITDA 計）。

With respect to recent production at our Apex and Oxford segments, our weekly assignment revenues, which excludes conversion, billable expenses and direct placement revenues, averaged $51.6 million for the last 2 weeks, up 5.1% over the same period of 2017. Both measurement periods include the impact of the 4th of July holiday period, but you should take note that the holiday fell on different days of the week, which influences flow of revenue. As for ECS, we estimate revenues will range between $157 million and $160 million for the third quarter.

就 Apex 與 Oxford 部門近期的產出而言，我們的每週派遣營收（不含轉任、可計費費用與直接媒合營收）在最近 2 週平均為 5,160 萬美元，較 2017 年同期成長 5.1%。兩個衡量期間皆包含 7 月 4 日假期的影響，但請注意該假期落在一週中的不同日期，會影響營收流量。至於 ECS，我們估計第三季營收將介於 1.57 億至 1.60 億美元之間。

Our IT business continues to see high demand from its customers, driven in part by greater adoption of staff augmentation as a viable alternative to outsourcing, offshoring and consulting. We believe that we are well positioned to continue to service our IT customers' needs as technology rapidly evolves and is adopted.

我們的 IT 業務持續看到客戶需求維持高檔，部分原因是客戶更廣泛地採用人力增補（staff augmentation），作為外包、離岸外包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，我們已具備良好定位，能持續滿足 IT 客戶的需求。

We also continue to see the ongoing debate regarding the on-demand workforce or gig economy is accelerating the usage 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, creating attractive secular growth opportunities for the entire industry.

我們也持續看到，關於隨需勞動力或零工經濟（gig economy）的持續辯論，正在加速合約勞動的使用。透過使用人力派遣產業的服務來進行人力資本的分割配置（fractionalization），是避免將員工錯誤歸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，為整個產業創造了具吸引力的長期結構性成長機會。

Our federal IT services and solutions business continues to see new long-term contract awards, robust spending against existing contracts and the forward positive benefits of increased funding and visibility of defense, intelligence and federal civilian agency budgets, particularly in the areas of artificial intelligence and machine learning. During the quarter, ECS secured an additional $162.4 million in new awards.

我們的聯邦 IT 服務與解決方案業務持續獲得新的長期合約授予，既有合約的支出強勁，並受惠於國防、情報與聯邦民用機構預算資金增加與能見度提升所帶來的正向前瞻效益，特別是在人工智慧與機器學習領域。本季，ECS 取得額外 1.624 億美元的新得標案。

As a reminder, we announced the closing of the ECS Federal acquisition on April 2. ECS delivers cybersecurity, cloud, DevOps, IT modernization and advanced science and engineering solutions to the U.S. federal government. ECS' service offerings nearly doubles our addressable end market to $279 billion as we enter the $129 billion government services space and ECS' highly specialized skill offerings strengthens our position as a premier human capital provider and complements our highly technical IT offerings. ECS' domain expertise and firsthand experience will position our combined company well to support commercial engagements in cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and biometrics.

提醒各位，我們已於 4 月 2 日宣布完成 ECS Federal 的收購交割。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。隨著我們進入 1,290 億美元的政府服務領域，ECS 的服務項目幾乎使我們可觸及的終端市場規模倍增至 2,790 億美元；同時，ECS 高度專業化的技能組合強化了我們作為頂尖人力資本供應商的地位，並與我們高度技術性的 IT 服務相互補強。ECS 的領域專長與第一手經驗，將使我們的合併後公司具備良好定位，以支援在資安、人工智慧與生物辨識方面的商業合作案。

I would like to now turn the call over to our President, Ted Hanson, who will review the operations of the segments and then over to Rand and George. Ted?

現在我想把電話會議交給我們的總裁 Ted Hanson，他將檢視各部門的營運情況，之後再交給 Rand 與 George。Ted？

Thanks, Peter. The Oxford segment, which is comprised of Oxford Core, CyberCoders, our permanent placement business, and Life Sciences Europe. For the second quarter of 2018, Oxford segment revenues of $155.8 million were up 3.3% year-over-year, which is an acceleration from the 1.8% year-over-year growth rate in the first quarter. Compared to the prior quarter, revenues increased 6.3% for the segment on a sequential basis.

謝謝你，Peter。Oxford 部門由 Oxford Core、CyberCoders、我們的永久派遣（permanent placement）業務，以及歐洲生命科學（Life Sciences Europe）所組成。2018 年第二季，Oxford 部門營收為 1.558 億美元，年增 3.3%，較第一季 1.8% 的年增率有所加速。與前一季相比，該部門營收按季成長 6.3%。

Oxford Core revenues, which account for approximately 73.6% of the segment revenues, were up approximately 1.5% year-over-year, 4.7% sequentially and exceeded our initial expectations. CyberCoders, our permanent placement service offering, which accounts for 96% of the segment's permanent placement revenues, had 10.8% growth year-over-year and 16.9% sequential growth. CyberCoders entered the second quarter with momentum and it remained throughout the quarter with revenues meeting our initial expectations. Our Life Science offerings in Europe were up year-over-year and sequentially for the second quarter on a constant-currency basis. The results were stronger than our initial expectations. The demand for our Life Science skill sets in the geographic markets we serve remains very solid.

Oxford Core 營收約占該部門營收的 73.6%，年增約 1.5%，按季成長 4.7%，並高於我們的初始預期。CyberCoders 為我們的永久派遣服務項目，約占該部門永久派遣營收的 96%，年增 10.8%，按季成長 16.9%。CyberCoders 以動能進入第二季，且整季維持該動能，營收符合我們的初始預期。我們在歐洲的生命科學服務在第二季以固定匯率（constant-currency）基礎計算，年對年與按季皆成長。結果強於我們的初始預期。我們所服務之地理市場對生命科學相關技能的需求仍然非常穩健。

Gross margin for the segment was 42%, up 40 basis points year-over-year due to the business mix within the segment.

該分部的毛利率為42%，由於分部內的業務組合因素，較去年同期提高40個基點。

Based on the performance I have just outlined and better expense management and productivity within the Oxford Core unit specifically, the segment's adjusted EBITDA results exceeded our expectations, increasing year-over-year by 7.7%. There's been much hard work focused on improving lost EBITDA margin at Oxford Core, and the latest quarter's results continue to reflect that.

基於我剛才概述的表現，以及更佳的費用管理，特別是Oxford Core單位內部的生產力提升，該分部的調整後EBITDA結果超出我們的預期，年增7.7%。我們投入大量努力，聚焦於改善Oxford Core流失的EBITDA利潤率，而最新一季的結果持續反映出這些成效。

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

我現在把電話交給Rand Blazer。Rand？

Great, Ted. Thank you. The Apex segment, which consists, of course, of Apex Systems, Apex Life Sciences and Creative Circle business units, again reported solid results for the quarter. Segment revenues were $567.6 million and were up 12.9% year-over-year, an acceleration from our first quarter year-over-year growth rate of 11.6%.

很好，Ted。謝謝。Apex分部當然由Apex Systems、Apex Life Sciences以及Creative Circle等業務單位組成，本季再次繳出穩健的成績。分部營收為5.676億美元，年增12.9%，較我們第一季年增11.6%的成長率有所加速。

Apex Systems, which accounts for 75.1% of the segment's revenues, grew its revenues year-over-year by 13.4% in the second quarter. Also happy to report, our Creative Circle unit grew its revenues 10.3%, and our Life Sciences unit, including StratAcuity, which accounts for 7.8% of our segments' revenues, grew its revenues 15% on an as-reported basis.

Apex Systems占該分部營收的75.1%，其第二季營收年增13.4%。也很高興報告，我們的Creative Circle單位營收成長10.3%；而我們的Life Sciences單位（包含StratAcuity）占我們各分部營收的7.8%，按申報口徑其營收成長15%。

Gross margin for the segment was in line with the prior year period, reflecting stable pricing in our end markets. Our segment's EBITDA also grew double digits as we saw efficient conversion of gross profit to EBITDA, which was mainly driven by continued strong revenue growth and productivity of our sales, delivery and infrastructure teams.

該分部毛利率與去年同期持平，反映我們終端市場的定價穩定。由於毛利有效轉化為EBITDA，我們分部的EBITDA亦呈雙位數成長，主要受持續強勁的營收成長，以及我們銷售、交付與基礎設施團隊的生產力所帶動。

As we usually do on these calls, we give you some insights on some factors driving Apex Systems' performance, which is our principal IT services business unit. Apex Systems revenue growth was propelled by a number of factors including: continued growth in our accounts in all 7 industry verticals we service, with double-digit revenue growth in 4 of the 7 industry verticals, including financial services, health care, consumer industrial and technology industry accounts.

如同我們在這些電話會議上一貫的作法，我們會提供一些洞見，說明推動Apex Systems表現的因素；Apex Systems是我們主要的IT服務業務單位。Apex Systems的營收成長由多項因素推動，包括：我們所服務的7個產業垂直領域中，各客戶帳戶持續成長；其中4個垂直領域的營收呈雙位數成長，包括金融服務、醫療保健、消費/工業以及科技產業客戶。

Of the remaining 3 industry verticals, aerospace/defense, business services, they both grew high single digits; and the 7th industry, telecommunication accounts, exhibited positive mid-single-digit growth year-over-year. Growth was also achieved in both our top accounts and retail or branch-centric accounts with top accounts growing double digits and outpacing our overall revenue growth. Retail accounts also posted mid-single digit revenue growth rates.

其餘3個產業垂直領域中，航太/國防與商業服務皆呈高個位數成長；第7個產業—電信客戶—年增呈現正向的中個位數成長。我們在最大客戶與零售或分公司導向的客戶帳戶也都達成成長，其中最大客戶的成長為雙位數，且增速高於我們整體營收成長。零售客戶亦繳出中個位數的營收成長率。

Our bookings for consulting-type work continue to remain strong in the quarter and, and it has been reported in previous quarters, continue to significantly exceed our expectations for growth.

我們本季顧問型工作的接單（bookings）仍然強勁，而且如前幾季所述，持續大幅超出我們對成長的預期。

And finally, as previously mentioned, our focus on field and back-office productivity and the tools they use also continue to improve during the quarter which supported our EBITDA performance.

最後，如先前提到的，我們對前線與後勤辦公室生產力以及其所使用工具的聚焦，在本季也持續改善，進而支撐了我們的EBITDA表現。

Creative Circle's revenue and profitability growth in the quarter exceeded our initial expectations as I implied. The end market for creative marketing remains positive, and we continue to see more growth in corporate business as our accounts are shifting more work internally versus using ad agencies for support. This trend is a positive for the use of our services by our customer base.

如我所暗示的，Creative Circle本季的營收與獲利成長超出我們最初的預期。創意行銷的終端市場仍然正向，我們也持續看到企業端業務的更多成長，因為客戶帳戶正將更多工作轉為內部執行，而非依賴廣告代理商支援。這一趨勢有利於我們客戶群對我們服務的使用。

Our Life Sciences business revenue growth was also double digits on an as-reported basis, and as I suggested, exceeded our expectations for both revenue growth and EBITDA margins.

我們的Life Sciences業務營收按申報口徑亦呈雙位數成長；如我所提到的，其營收成長與EBITDA利潤率均超出我們的預期。

Overall, the Apex segment had yet another very solid quarter and continues to significantly outpace the growth rate of the overall industry.

整體而言，Apex分部又度過了一個非常穩健的季度，且持續顯著超越整體產業的成長率。

George, turn it over to you.

George，交給你了。

Thanks, Rand. As this is my first earnings call with ASGN, I would like to take a moment to say that I am pleased to be speaking with you today and look forward to highlighting ECS' solid performance in the second quarter, both from a revenue and a profitability standpoint.

謝謝，Rand。由於這是我在ASGN的第一場法說電話會議，我想先花一點時間表示，很高興今天能與各位對話，並期待從營收與獲利兩個面向，重點說明ECS在第二季的穩健表現。

ECS reported revenues of $155.1 million, an increase of 7.1% year-over-year and 4.1% sequentially on a pro forma basis. This growth was ahead of the industry average for peer companies operating in the federal IT services space. And over 80% of this work was performed as the prime contractor.

ECS營收為1.551億美元，年增7.1%，按擬制（pro forma）基礎計算則較前一季成長4.1%。此成長高於在聯邦IT服務領域營運之同業公司的產業平均。且其中超過80%的工作是以主承包商（prime contractor）身分執行。

Demand for IT services and solutions has increased over the prior year. And under the current administration, federal spending is expected to continue to increase at least into the near term, particularly in the areas of cybersecurity and cloud solutions, 2 key business areas for ECS. The recent budget deal and appropriations bill have also driven increased funding for IT modernization investments that ECS is well positioned to support through current customer knowledge and contract vehicles. We are currently experiencing a high level of proposal activity, which we believe is due, in part, to a compressed window of the traditional federal buying season and pent-up demand following several years of continuing resolutions and delayed passage of the federal budget.

對IT服務與解決方案的需求較去年增加。在現任政府之下，聯邦支出預期至少在短期內將持續增加，特別是在網路安全與雲端解決方案領域，這兩者是ECS的關鍵業務領域。近期的預算協議與撥款法案也推動了對IT現代化投資的資金增加；ECS憑藉既有的客戶知識與合約載具（contract vehicles），具備良好條件提供支援。我們目前正經歷高度的提案活動；我們認為部分原因在於傳統聯邦採購季的時間窗口被壓縮，以及在多年持續決議（continuing resolutions）與聯邦預算延後通過之後所累積的被壓抑需求。

At the end of the second quarter, ECS had $1.4 billion in total contract backlog, resulting in a healthy coverage of 2.3x our trailing 12-month revenues. Our contract backlog provides good visibility into future revenues and includes the value of negotiated contracts that have been awarded to ECS, less revenues that have been previously recognized. Our backlog does not include any estimate of future potential task orders that might be awarded under IDIQ or GSA schedule-type contracts.

截至第二季末，ECS的合約積壓（backlog）總額為14億美元，使其對過去12個月營收的覆蓋倍數達到健康的2.3倍。我們的合約積壓為未來營收提供良好能見度，包含已授予ECS且已完成協商之合約價值，扣除先前已認列的營收。我們的積壓不包含在IDIQ或GSA排程類型合約下，未來可能獲授予之任務單（task orders）的任何潛在估計。

ECS continues to strengthen our technical skills and business partnerships with commercial providers in cloud, cyber, risk management, artificial intelligence and machine learning. ECS was recently awarded the Machine Learning Competency status from Amazon Web Services and continues to deliver critical solutions to customers in defense and intelligence communities.

ECS持續強化我們在雲端、資安、風險管理、人工智慧與機器學習等領域的技術能力與與商業供應商的業務夥伴關係。ECS近期獲得Amazon Web Services授予的「機器學習能力認證」（Machine Learning Competency）資格，並持續為國防與情報社群客戶交付關鍵解決方案。

From a profit standpoint, we saw nice year-over-year growth attributed to higher top line revenue, reduced indirect expenses and leveraging of our fixed costs over a larger base.

從獲利角度來看，我們看到不錯的年增成長，主要歸因於更高的營收規模、間接費用降低，以及在更大的基礎上攤提固定成本所帶來的槓桿效益。

I will now turn the call over to Ed Pierce to discuss ASGN's overall financial results. Ed?

我現在把電話交給Ed Pierce，請他說明ASGN整體的財務結果。Ed？

Thanks, George. Our consolidated results for the second quarter include the results of ECS for the full quarter. On a reported basis, our revenues were up 34.5% year-over-year and 10.1% on a pro forma basis, which assumes the acquisition of ECS occurred at the beginning of 2017. Revenues from ECS totaled $155.1 million and accounted for 17.7% of consolidated revenues.

謝謝，George。我們第二季的合併結果包含ECS全季的業績。按申報口徑，我們營收年增34.5%；按擬制（pro forma）口徑則年增10.1%，該口徑假設我們在2017年初即完成對ECS的收購。ECS營收合計1.551億美元，占合併營收的17.7%。

Differences in billable days and changes in foreign exchange rates had an insignificant effect on our year-over-year growth rate. Revenues for the quarter included $5.9 million in revenues from StratAcuity, which was acquired in August of last year. Gross margin for the quarter was 30%, which was at the high end of our previously announced financial estimates.

可計費天數差異與匯率變動，對我們年增成長率的影響不顯著。本季營收包含來自StratAcuity的590萬美元營收；StratAcuity於去年8月完成收購。本季毛利率為30%，位於我們先前公布之財務預估區間的高端。

SG&A expenses were $179.6 million or 20.4% of revenues, which included $3.5 million of onetime expenses related to the ECS acquisition that were not included in our previously announced financial estimates.

SG&A費用為1.796億美元，占營收20.4%；其中包含與ECS收購相關的一次性費用350萬美元，該費用未納入我們先前公布的財務預估。

Interest expense was $20.6 million, up [from] $6.1 million from the second quarter of 2017. Interest expense was comprised of $13.3 million of interest on the credit facility, onetime expenses of $5.8 million related to the amendment of our credit facility to fund the acquisition of ECS and $1.5 million of amortization of deferred loan costs.

利息費用為2,060萬美元，較2017年第二季的610萬美元增加。利息費用包括：信貸融資（credit facility）利息1,330萬美元、為籌措收購ECS而修訂信貸融資所產生的一次性費用580萬美元，以及遞延貸款成本攤銷150萬美元。

Our effective tax rate was 25.5%, which was lower than our previously announced estimate, primarily related to excess tax benefits on stock-based compensation, which we do not include in our financial estimates.

我們的有效稅率為25.5%，低於我們先前公布的預估值，主要與以股票為基礎之薪酬所產生的超額稅務利益有關，而我們並未將其納入我們的財務預估中。

Net income was $33.6 million or $0.63 per diluted share, up from $33.1 million or $0.62 per diluted share in the second quarter last year. Adjusted net income, a non-GAAP measure, which includes, among other things, amortization of intangible assets and acquisition, integration and strategic planning expenses and credit facility amendment expenses, was $58.7 million or $1.11 per share, up from $41.5 million or $0.78 per share in the second quarter of 2017. As we have previously stated, ECS was accretive to our adjusted net income and related per share amounts.

淨利為3,360萬美元，或稀釋後每股0.63美元，高於去年第二季的3,310萬美元，或稀釋後每股0.62美元。調整後淨利（非GAAP衡量指標）包含但不限於無形資產攤銷，以及併購、整合與策略規劃費用與信貸融資安排修訂費用，為5,870萬美元或每股1.11美元，高於2017年第二季的4,150萬美元或每股0.78美元。如我們先前所述，ECS對我們的調整後淨利及相關每股金額具有增益效果。

Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $106.6 million. And reconciliations of net income to adjusted net income and adjusted EBITDA, both non-GAAP measures, were included in today's press release. As Peter mentioned, cash flows from operating activities were $76.7 million. And free cash flow was $68.4 million or 7.8% of revenues. During the quarter, we repaid $133 million of our long-term debt.

本季調整後EBITDA為1.066億美元。而淨利調節至調整後淨利及調整後EBITDA（兩者皆為非GAAP衡量指標）的對帳表已包含於今日的新聞稿中。如Peter所提及，營運活動現金流量為7,670萬美元。自由現金流為6,840萬美元，或占營收的7.8%。本季我們償還了1.33億美元的長期負債。

Now moving on to our overall financial estimates for the third quarter of 2018. We're estimating revenues of $888 million to $898 million, net income of $37.9 million to $41.6 million or $0.71 to $0.78 per diluted share, adjusted net income of $56.2 million to $59.8 million or $1.06 to $1.13 per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA of $103 million to $108 million. Adjusted net income does not include the cash tax savings related to amortization, deduction of goodwill and trademarks. Our revenue estimates for the quarter imply year-over-year growth of 8.3% to 9.5%, which is more than 2x higher than the estimated growth rate of the IT staffing industry for 2018.

接著說明我們對2018年第三季的整體財務預估。我們預估營收為8.88億至8.98億美元，淨利為3,790萬至4,160萬美元，或稀釋後每股0.71至0.78美元；調整後淨利為5,620萬至5,980萬美元，或稀釋後每股1.06至1.13美元；調整後EBITDA為1.03億至1.08億美元。調整後淨利不包含與攤銷、商譽及商標扣除相關的現金稅負節省。我們對本季的營收預估意味著年增率為8.3%至9.5%，超過2018年IT人力派遣產業預估成長率的2倍以上。

I'll now turn the call back over to Peter for some closing remarks. Peter?

我現在把電話交回給Peter做一些結語。Peter？

Thank you, Ed. 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 service industry. Undoubtedly, the world of work is changing. The accelerating digital transformation, along with favorable labor and immigration legislation and an improving U.S. government market are all market forces that will help propel ASGN into the future. While the entire ASGN team is very proud of our performance, we remain focused on continuing to profitably grow our business and increase our rate of growth. We would like to once again thank and acknowledge and congratulate our many loyal, dedicated and talented employees whose efforts have enabled ASGN to progress to where it is today.

謝謝你，Ed。我們仍然相信，我們的規模、體量與服務廣度，使我們處於有利位置，能把握我們認為服務產業將出現的歷史性長期結構性成長。毫無疑問，工作的世界正在改變。加速的數位轉型，加上有利的勞動與移民立法，以及改善中的美國政府市場，都是將推動ASGN邁向未來的市場力量。雖然整個ASGN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高成長速度。我們也想再次感謝、表揚並恭賀我們眾多忠誠、敬業且才華洋溢的員工，正是他們的努力讓ASGN得以發展到今天的地位。

Thank you, again, for your time. I would like to now open up the call to participants for questions. Operator?

再次感謝各位撥冗參與。我現在開放讓與會者提問。接線員？

(Operator Instructions) And we'll go to the first question in queue of the line of Tobey Sommer with SunTrust.

(接線員指示) 我們將接聽排隊中的第一個問題，來自SunTrust的Tobey Sommer。

This is Kwan Kim on for Tobey. First off, could you give us an update on the status of the new large health care record systems contract with the Department of Defense in which Leidos is the prime contractor? And is that ramping up on schedule as expected?

我是代替Tobey的Kwan Kim。首先，能否請您更新一下國防部那份新的大型醫療照護病歷系統合約的狀態？Leidos是該案的主承包商。該案是否如預期按進度擴編推進？

Right. So that is a contract that resides at our Apex group, and I'll let Rand respond to it.

好的。那是一份隸屬於我們Apex事業群的合約，我請Rand來回應。

Okay. Well, as you know, the DoD side of the large contract is now coming out of its initial pilot or initial operational capability. Therefore, it's been a little bit of a slow process over the last, say, 6 months. Once they clear through the milestone of initial operational capability, which they expect to do, I think, very soon -- you can probably hear that better from Leidos -- then we'll go into fuller deployment in the operational DoD marketplace. In the meantime, the VA contract has been awarded, as you know, to Cerner. They have done contracts with the key players that are similar on the DoD contract, and the VA contract. And that work should begin at some early stages, I think, once the initial operational capability of the DoD work is passed and completed.

好的。如各位所知，該大型合約在國防部（DoD）端目前正從最初的試點或初始作戰能力階段走出來。因此，過去大約6個月的進展稍微慢了一些。一旦他們通過初始作戰能力這個里程碑——他們預期很快就會達成，我想Leidos那邊可能能提供更清楚的說法——接著我們就會在DoD的實際作戰市場進入更全面的部署。同時，退伍軍人事務部（VA）的合約如各位所知已授予Cerner。他們已與在DoD合約及VA合約中類似的關鍵參與者簽訂合約。而我認為，一旦DoD工作的初始作戰能力階段通過並完成，VA的工作應該就會在某些早期階段開始。

That's helpful. And on ECS, what was the book-to-bill ratio for the quarter?

這很有幫助。另外關於ECS，本季的接單出貨比（book-to-bill ratio）是多少？

We don't disclose that. The metrics that we've elected and we'll refine them if they're not sufficient are listed in the supplemental financial information that's contained in the press release.

我們不揭露該數據。我們選擇揭露的指標——若不夠充分我們也會再加以精煉——已列在新聞稿所附的補充財務資訊中。

Next, we'll go to the line of Edward Caso with Wells Fargo.

接下來我們請Wells Fargo的Edward Caso提問。

Wondering if you are -- part of the ECS theory was that the old On Assignment groups would be able to supply staff to completely fill the open reqs at ECS. Has some of that happened?

我想了解的是——ECS併購論點的一部分是，原On Assignment的各事業群能夠提供人力，完全填補ECS的未結職缺需求。這方面是否已經有一些進展？

Yes. So we're taking it slow because, as you know, we're in a supply-demand constrained environment where we all have more work than we can say grace over, Ed. But with that said, we have tested it in a controlled environment successfully on a couple of projects for ECS in the St. Louis area and it's gone successfully.

有的。我們採取較為循序漸進的方式，因為如你所知，目前處於供需受限的環境，我們每個人手上的工作都多到忙不過來，Ed。不過即便如此，我們已在受控環境下進行測試，並在ECS位於聖路易斯地區的幾個專案上成功驗證。進展相當順利。

Given that September is the big bid period here, are there any implications for margins for both ECS and therefore, overall ASGN in the September quarter?

鑑於9月是這裡的重要投標期，這是否會對ECS、進而對整體ASGN在9月季度的毛利率造成任何影響？

I'll speak to the commercial piece, no. And for ECS, George, do you want to address that, steady as we go?

我先就商業端的部分回答：不會。至於ECS，George，你要不要回應一下？我們就按部就班、穩健推進？

Ed, are you saying what we're looking at as far as new contracts or submitted proposals, is that what you're asking?

Ed，你是指我們在新合約或已提交提案方面的情況嗎？你問的是這個嗎？

Usually, there's a spike in B&P dollars in the September quarter. Just wondering if that was the case here. You said you were active in bidding.

通常9月季度在B&P（投標與提案）費用上會出現一波高峰。我只是想確認這次是否也是如此。你提到你們投標很積極。

Yes. Okay. So yes, we're just very active in bidding. I wouldn't say we're having a spike in cost, but we certainly are working very hard at getting a lot of proposals in.

是的。好的。所以是的，我們確實非常積極在投標。我不會說成本出現高峰，但我們確實非常努力地提交大量提案。

Okay. Last question. There was some data out recently talking about the rejection rates dramatically increasing for Hs and L visas. Are you hearing clients express that as a challenge for them and therefore, coming to you to get work because they're not able to get people through the -- either directly through an H or indirectly through their offshore providers?

好的。最後一個問題。最近有一些數據指出，H與L簽證的拒簽率大幅上升。你們是否聽到客戶把這視為他們的挑戰，因此轉而找你們承接工作，因為他們無法讓人員通過——不論是直接透過H簽證，或是間接透過其離岸供應商？

Right. So Ed, we've been speaking about this for over 2 years and have published some white papers and actually engaged with a couple of other industry stalwarts, a lobbying firm to make sure that what's being proposed on the Hill is the right thing for our customers and for domestic workers. And as I have said on previous calls, even before legislation is passed, this administration's focus on making sure that the existing laws are appropriately implemented because there was widespread abuse on prevailing wage, advertising prevailing wage, meeting the requirements to get an H-1B visa or an amendment. Just being stricter on that has really reduced the use of foreign labor because you have no guarantee as a employer if the visa is going to be issued. The note that you released that quoted some data about rejections and denials just supports what we've been saying for the last couple of years that sophisticated users of human capital realize that, that wasn't going to be a viable source of reliable, immediate talent. And they moved away from that deployment model and more towards us over the last couple of years. So what was released is just further evidence of what we've been seeing and saying over the last couple of years.

沒錯。所以，Ed，我們已經就這件事討論了超過2年，也發表了一些白皮書，並且實際上與其他幾位業界中堅合作，還聘請了一家遊說公司，以確保國會山莊正在提出的內容，對我們的客戶以及對國內勞工而言是正確的。而且如同我在先前的電話會議中所說，即使在立法通過之前，本屆政府也著重於確保既有法律被適當落實，因為在現行工資（prevailing wage）、刊登現行工資廣告、以及符合取得H-1B簽證或修正案的要求等方面，曾出現廣泛的濫用情形。僅僅是對這些要求更嚴格，就已大幅降低外籍勞工的使用，因為身為雇主，你無法保證簽證一定會核發。你發布的那份備忘錄引用了一些關於退件與拒發的數據，這也只是支持了我們過去幾年一直在說的：成熟的人力資本使用者已經意識到，那不會是一個可行、可靠、能立即取得人才的來源。因此，他們在過去幾年逐步遠離那種部署模式，轉而更多地選擇我們。所以這次發布的內容，只是進一步證明了我們過去幾年所看到、也所說的情況。

And next, we'll go to the line of Jeff Silber with BMO Capital Markets.

接下來，我們請BMO Capital Markets的Jeff Silber提問。

Sounds like you had a strong quarter all around. I'm just curious from your perspective what really outperformed your expectations in the quarter. Any specific areas you could call out would be great.

聽起來你們本季各方面表現都很強勁。我想請教，從你們的角度來看，本季有哪些部分真正超出你們的預期？如果能點出任何特定領域就太好了。

I'll go first and then I'll let Ted follow. It's easy just to look at top line percentage growth numbers. But when you look at the number that the Apex division put up against the largest base of revenue and you look at their second quarter '17 growth rate, it's impressive that they were able to actually accelerate their growth rate off of a very big core base of business. The second would be that Creative regained double-digit growth and that ECS grew 2x their peer group. Ted, complement those comments, please.

我先說，然後再請Ted補充。很容易只看營收端的百分比成長數字。但當你看Apex事業部在最大營收基礎之上所交出的成績，並且看他們2017年第二季的成長率，能在非常龐大的核心業務基礎上還加速成長，確實令人印象深刻。第二點是Creative恢復了雙位數成長，而ECS的成長是同業群的2倍。Ted，請補充這些評論。

The only thing I would add to that is, Oxford certainly had a great sequential quarter. The year-over-year growth is not quite where we want it, but it had kind of mid- to high single growth from first quarter to second, which is a really good move in any one quarter to another. And then lastly, CyberCoders really had a blowout quarter on the top line, which obviously is a big supporter of the gross margin. So I'd say division by division, those would be the highlights, Jeff.

我唯一要補充的是，Oxford的季度環比表現確實很出色。年增率還沒有達到我們想要的水準，但從第一季到第二季大約有中到高個位數的成長，這在任何單一季度之間都是很好的進展。最後，CyberCoders在營收端有一個爆發性的季度表現，這顯然對毛利率有很大的支撐。所以我會說，就各事業部來看，Jeff，這些是亮點。

Okay. Great. That's really helpful. And I'm just curious from your own internal hiring perspective given that you've had accelerating growth, are you hiring ahead of this, expecting this to continue? Can you just talk about how those plans are going?

好的。很好。這非常有幫助。另外我也想從你們內部招募的角度請教：既然你們成長在加速，你們是否會提前增聘人力，預期這樣的成長會持續？能否談談這些計畫目前的進展？

Jeff, I don't think -- -- we've never been in the practice of hiring ahead of the curve, if you will, and then telling you it will come. I mean, we've been hiring at the pace that the business is growing and really focused on what the market opportunity is and making sure that we're matching our headcount to those opportunities. And that's the discipline that we follow today and we'll continue to follow in the future.

Jeff，我不認為——我們從來沒有那種先超前招人、然後再告訴你業務會跟上的做法。我們一直是依照業務成長的速度來招募，並且真正聚焦於市場機會，確保我們的人力配置與那些機會相匹配。這就是我們今天遵循的紀律，未來也會持續如此。

And given that, given what's going on in the labor markets today, I know it's been tough for a while, are you finding it's getting tougher to find people?

在這樣的前提下，考量到目前勞動市場的狀況，我知道這段時間一直都不容易，你們是否覺得找人變得更困難了？

On our temporary workforce side or internally?

你是指我們的派遣/臨時人力端，還是內部人員？

I guess internally and if you could talk about the temp side as well that would be great.

我想是內部為主；如果也能談談臨時人力端就更好了。

Well, look, internally, it's very competitive. I mean, I think that the people that we're looking for we're able to find right now. And I don't think there's been a change. But certainly as it relates to -- there's more competition for those resources than there's ever been, but we've been able to make that work. On our consultant and our technologist and our other billable temps, if you will, I mean, we've been living in a sub 2% or 3% unemployment area in the skill sets that we serve for a long time. And it's still tight, maybe even an inch tighter, but we found a way to work through that. And we think we can continue to do that.

嗯，你看，就內部而言，競爭非常激烈。我的意思是，我們目前仍然能找到我們要找的人。而且我不覺得情況有什麼改變。但確實，就——對這些資源的競爭比以往任何時候都更激烈，不過我們一直有辦法應對。至於我們的顧問、技術人員以及其他可計費的臨時人力，我們所服務的技能領域長期處於低於2%或3%失業率的環境。現在仍然很緊，甚至可能再緊一點點，但我們也找到方法去克服。而且我們認為可以持續做到。

So Jeff, I would just add that we're really benefiting from our size and our performance. I mean, when you grow at the rate that we are, that means there's a lot more commission paid. So people -- we spend a lot of time making sure people understand that employees investing their talents with us versus someone else. That there's real benefits to this platform that we've built. And that they're going to generate more money and have more resources and tools to generate their business and get commissions off of with us versus some small business that throws them an opportunity that looks on paper good, but actually in reality is not as good as what they currently have. So retention and attraction has been very good internally for us.

Jeff，我再補充一點：我們確實受惠於公司的規模與績效表現。當你以我們這樣的速度成長，就代表會支付更多佣金。因此我們花很多時間確保大家理解：員工把才能投入我們、而不是投入其他公司，在我們打造的平台上會有實質的好處。他們能賺到更多錢，並且擁有更多資源與工具來拓展業務、並從中取得佣金；相較之下，有些小公司給的機會紙面上看起來不錯，但實際上並不如他們目前所擁有的。所以就內部而言，我們的人才留任與吸引力一直都非常好。

Next, we go to the line of Tim McHugh with William Blair & Company.

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

First, I guess, absolutely great quarter. I guess I want to ask a little bit about some of the indicators or guidance for the third quarter. Just ECS, I guess, I think if I look at the numbers you gave at the Investor Day, the guidance you're talking about for third quarter is closer to 4% growth. And so any color there? And then you also gave kind of the last 2 weeks growth, I know it's clouded by early July and the holidays, but that being a slower growth rate, I guess, for the temp side.

首先，我想說這一季真的非常出色。我想問一下第三季的一些指標或指引。就ECS而言，我想如果我看你們在投資人日提供的數字，你們談到的第三季指引看起來更接近4%的成長。這部分能否多給一些說明？另外你們也提到最近2週的成長，我知道會受到7月初與假期影響而變得不那麼清楚，但那看起來像是臨時人力端較慢的成長率。

Yes. So let me go first and then, George, you add color, please. As it relates to the 2-week data point we gave you, we were just -- unfortunately, Tim, we didn't have a better clean metric because the 4th of July fell on it. And it fell in the middle of the week. So it just kind of skews things. But what you're hearing from us is, we have not seen a deceleration. We exited the quarter with great momentum.

是的。我先說，然後George請補充說明。關於我們提供的2週數據點，很不巧，Tim，我們沒有更乾淨的衡量指標，因為7月4日剛好落在那段期間。而且是在一週的中間。所以會讓數據有些偏移。但我們要傳達的是：我們沒有看到成長在減速。我們在季度結束時帶著很強的動能。

As it relates to ECS, I'll let George respond qualitatively, but we try to help our investors and analysts by giving them a range of revenue for the full year of $620 million to $640 million, with $630 million being the midpoint. And based on the guidance we gave for the third, which George will discuss ebb and flow, so to speak, and ramping up, we feel good about kind of being plus or minus $5 million to the midpoint of the full year guidance that we gave you. So everything is on track. George, can you kind of just walk, Tim, through the flow of revenue and what would accelerate it or delay it?

至於ECS，我會讓George做定性的回應，但我們希望透過提供全年營收區間（6.20億至6.40億美元，6.30億美元為中位數）來協助投資人與分析師。而根據我們對第三季所給的指引——George會談到所謂的起伏（ebb and flow）以及逐步拉升——我們對於全年指引中位數上下約5百萬美元的範圍感到有信心。所以一切都在軌道上。George，你能否帶Tim走一遍營收的節奏，以及哪些因素會讓它加速或延後？

Yes. Sure. Thanks, Peter. I'll just reiterate what Peter said. We still feel confident in terms of our midrange. But as you know, in our business, some things are a little lumpy. And we do have several projects that we are waiting to get turn on and working with the customers. And those will create some significant revenue flow. And so that will get us. So the Q3 guidance, $157 million to $160 million, but there's no kind of a slowdown whatsoever in terms of the business.

是的。當然。謝謝你，Peter。我再重申一下 Peter 剛才說的。我們對於中期展望仍然很有信心。但如你所知，在我們的業務中，有些事情會有些波動。而且我們確實有幾個專案正在等待啟動並與客戶合作。這些將帶來相當可觀的營收流入。因此這會推動我們的表現。所以第三季指引為 1.57 億至 1.60 億美元，但就業務而言完全沒有任何放緩的跡象。

Okay. Great. And can you help us organically, I guess, I was trying to think about the margins and how much ECS contributed. I think I saw the disclosure on gross margin, but from an EBITDA perspective, what the margin trends are for ECS?

好的。很好。另外你能否從有機成長的角度幫我們理解一下，我在想利潤率以及 ECS 貢獻了多少。我想我看到你們對毛利率的揭露，但從 EBITDA 的角度來看，ECS 的利潤率趨勢如何？

Yes. As you know, we don't give it on a segment basis, but you can assume that they have a high-quality EBITDA margin because you saw what our consolidated reported EBITDA margin is with ECS included.

是的。如你所知，我們不按部門提供該資訊，但你可以假設他們的 EBITDA 利潤率品質很高，因為你已看到在納入 ECS 後我們合併報表所揭露的 EBITDA 利潤率。

Next, we'll go to the line of Gary Bisbee with Bank of America.

接下來我們轉到美國銀行（Bank of America）的 Gary Bisbee。

I guess a couple of questions from me. From a high level, are you hearing anything from your clients about sentiment or just impact from the tariffs and potential trade war situation going on? All the metrics look great, the economic data looks good, but are you hearing any deceleration or concern from clients?

我這邊大概有兩個問題。從較高層次來看，你們是否從客戶那裡聽到任何關於情緒面的訊息，或是關於關稅與潛在貿易戰情勢的影響？各項指標看起來都很棒，經濟數據也不錯，但你們是否聽到客戶有任何放緩或擔憂？

Rand, you want to address that?

Rand，你要回應一下嗎？

Yes, not yet, Gary. I think it's in process. It certainly isn't slowing their spend on IT systems, I would say, but it's not been a topic we hear much about or anything about. And we haven't seen an interruption in their plans to spend money around IT.

是的，Gary，目前還沒有。我認為這仍在發展中。我會說這當然沒有讓他們在 IT 系統上的支出放慢，但這並不是我們常聽到的話題，幾乎沒有聽到相關討論。而且我們也沒有看到他們在 IT 相關支出計畫上有中斷。

Okay. And then it looks like perm is doing quite well and yet without the ECS impact on gross margins there wasn't a lot of movement. I guess Oxford improved year-over-year. Is there anything else going on with bill rates or anything else that we should think about impacting margins outside of just purely the perm mix which you disclosed?

好的。另外，看起來永久派遣（perm）表現相當不錯，但若不考慮 ECS 對毛利率的影響，毛利率並沒有太大變動。我想 Oxford 年增有所改善。除了你們揭露的永久派遣組合（perm mix）之外，是否還有其他因素，例如計費費率（bill rates）或其他事項，會影響利潤率？

No, I mean, look, bill rates went up. It's a tough market to recruit to. It's a tough market for customers to hire to. And so there's a lot of focus and attention to bill pay spread and trying to make sure that's sustainable so that the solution is available for the long-term usage. And we're not exploiting our customers. So our customer base is Fortune 400, Fortune 500. It's not customers that have 30 employees where we're just doing one placement. And we just say we got bargaining power and we're going to raise it just because we got the power to do it. We're thoughtful about a long-term relationship. And it's not easy, Gary, right now to be honest with you just because of how much wages are going up and how quickly and then how quickly you can pass that along. But we have a good relationship with our customers. There's respect on both sides. And that's why we're able to sustain good margins. But trying to expand them just because of the tight labor market, I don't think is good for long-term customer relationships.

沒有。我的意思是，你看，計費費率確實上升了。現在招募是個很艱難的市場。對客戶而言招人也很難。因此大家非常關注計費與薪資之間的價差（bill-pay spread），並努力確保這是可持續的，讓解決方案能夠長期使用。我們並不是在剝削客戶。我們的客戶群是《財富》400、《財富》500。不是那種只有 30 名員工、我們只做一次安置的客戶。我們不會因為覺得自己有議價能力，就說我們有權力所以要漲價。我們重視長期合作關係。而且老實說，Gary，現在確實不容易，因為薪資上漲幅度很大、速度也很快，以及你能多快把成本轉嫁出去。但我們與客戶關係良好。雙方彼此尊重。這也是我們能維持良好利潤率的原因。但僅僅因為勞動市場緊俏就想擴大利潤率，我認為對長期客戶關係並不好。

Yes, that makes sense. And then I wanted to ask about one of the incremental ECS disclosures you gave, the mix of revenue by contract type. It's obviously pretty balanced. But I wondered, can you sort of generalize over time, is one or another of these should we think of them as higher margin, lower margin? Is there any sort of predictable pattern or are they pretty similar? I'm talking about the fixed price versus time and materials versus cost-plus.

是的，這很合理。另外我想問你們新增揭露的一項 ECS 資訊：按合約類型劃分的營收組合。顯然相當均衡。但我想知道，從時間推移來看，你能否概括一下：這些類型中是否有某一種通常是高利潤率、某一種是低利潤率？是否存在任何可預測的模式，還是它們其實差不多？我指的是固定價格（fixed price）對比工時與材料（time and materials）對比成本加成（cost-plus）。

George, do you mind addressing that?

George，你介意回應一下嗎？

Sure, not a problem. Our mix is pretty even between the 3. It will vary as the ups and downs and the types of contracts that we have. You don't determine what type of contract. The government decides that, not us. In general, you can expect higher margins with fixed price and time and materials than you can with cost-plus. There's a little more risk associated with the time and materials, fixed price that's why the government gives you higher margins. So I hope that helps you with your question.

當然，沒問題。我們在這三者之間的組合相當平均。它會隨著我們合約的起伏以及合約類型而變動。你並不能決定合約類型。是政府決定的，不是我們。一般而言，你可以預期固定價格與工時與材料的利潤率會高於成本加成。工時與材料、固定價格的風險稍高一些，這也是政府給你較高利潤率的原因。希望這能回答你的問題。

(Operator Instructions) And we will go to the line of Mark Marcon with R.W. Baird.

（接線員指示）接下來我們轉到 R.W. Baird 的 Mark Marcon。

With regards to Apex, a couple of questions there for Rand. Actually, going back to the very first question, can you talk a little bit about the magnitude of some of those, the contracts with DoD in terms of when they do scale up, how much they could end up adding and how you would characterize that? Appreciate any color.

關於 Apex，我有幾個問題想問 Rand。其實回到第一個問題，你能否談談其中一些與國防部（DoD）的合約規模？也就是當它們開始放量時，最終可能增加多少，你會如何描述？希望能提供一些補充說明。

Peter, I'll go ahead and respond?

Peter，我來回應可以嗎？

Yes, please, please.

可以，請說，請說。

Mark, I think, first of all, the primary players here are Cerner, Leidos, Accenture. We actually support the 3 of them. And then there are certain roles we play, particularly in the education and training. So what you'll find -- and also in the implementation and the data conversions. So when we get into full-scale production and out of the initial operational capability, which is where we're transitioning to now in DoD, we should see our work share go up. We've had a nice flow over the last year or so, but obviously the spend when you're putting it across multiple DoD sites versus 1 or 2 is going to be 5, 10x higher than what we had over the past year. So I think we're looking -- all those players in that contract are looking at an increase in business flow over the next few years as we broaden to all the DoD sites, both U.S. and overseas. VA is lagging all of that. So you got to assume a year or 2 lag as they go through initial operational capability and they learn from what DoD is doing. Did that give you some sense, Mark?

Mark，我想首先，這裡的主要參與者是 Cerner、Leidos、Accenture。我們其實為他們三家都提供支援。此外我們也扮演一些特定角色，特別是在教育與訓練方面。同時也包括導入與資料轉換。因此當我們進入全面量產（full-scale production），並從初始作戰能力（initial operational capability）階段走出來——也就是我們目前在 DoD 正在轉換到的階段——我們應該會看到我們的工作份額（work share）增加。過去一年左右我們有不錯的業務流入，但顯然，當你把它推廣到多個 DoD 站點而不是 1 或 2 個站點時，支出將會是過去一年的 5 倍、10 倍。所以我認為，隨著我們擴展到所有 DoD 站點（包含美國本土與海外），該合約中的所有參與者在未來幾年都會看到業務流量增加。退伍軍人事務部（VA）在這方面落後。因此你得假設他們會落後 1 到 2 年，因為他們要經歷初始作戰能力階段，並從 DoD 的做法中學習。這樣是否讓你更有概念，Mark？

It gives me some. With regards to DoD, when does that go into effect? I mean, when that really scales up?

有一些概念。關於 DoD，這什麼時候會生效？我是說，什麼時候會真正開始大幅放量？

Well, they're now passing through what they call a milestone review when you go through an initial operational capability. And once you pass the initial operational capability and get sign-off, which I think is still -- they're in the process of doing that now, then you go into full-scale production. So you begin to roll out the architecture, if you will, to all the sites, so our sites in waves, if you will. So you're going from a few sites to a lot of sites now in the next couple of years.

嗯，他們現在正在通過他們所稱的里程碑審查（milestone review），也就是在你完成初始作戰能力時會進行的審查。一旦通過初始作戰能力並取得核准（sign-off）——我認為目前仍在進行中——接著就會進入全面量產。因此你會開始把架構（architecture）推廣到所有站點，可以說是分波次推進。所以你會在未來幾年從少數站點擴展到大量站點。

Great. And then a statement of work, it seems like that continues to grow the percentage of Apex Systems. Can you give a little bit more color with regards to just the rate of growth that you're seeing there and the further adoption among some of your larger clients of it?

很好。接著是工作說明書（statement of work），看起來這部分持續提高 Apex Systems 的占比。你能否再多補充一些細節，談談你們看到的成長速度，以及在一些較大型客戶之間的進一步採用情況？

Rand, I'd like you to give a qualitative -- Mark, I just want to set the boundaries. At some point, I think we will break out specific numbers. But at this point, as you articulated, it's more qualitative. I do think, Rand, you should compare that growth rate vis-à-vis the staff aug growth rate. But giving a precise number at this point, we haven't gotten to the point where we're prepared to do that on an ongoing basis and print it in our supplemental financial information. But Rand, please give him a size, a relative growth rate compared to the staff aug and how it's positively contributing.

Rand，我希望你先給一個定性的說法——Mark，我只是想先界定一下範圍。我想在某個時間點，我們會把具體數字拆分揭露。但就目前而言，如你所說，這更多是定性描述。不過我確實認為，Rand，你應該把那個成長率與人力派遣（staff aug）的成長率做比較。但現在要給出精確數字，我們還沒到準備好能夠持續性地這麼做、並把它印在我們的補充財務資訊裡的階段。不過 Rand，請你給他一個規模感、相對於人力派遣的相對成長率，以及它如何帶來正面貢獻。

Yes. Mark, I think during Analyst Day we talked about this. And the consulting work, in general, is growing as a percent of our total business. It's been certainly material. And it is growing at 2 or 3x the growth of our staffing level -- staffing size of the business. So we measure growth in 2 ways, first -- in many ways, but one of the ways you measure it is, how many bookings we get or contracts we're awarded. And then the second is, the actual revenue flow that comes from executing that revenue. So our bookings growth rate is astonishing literally. But we're doing it in a way, as Peter would say, that we can control it, we can manage it, we can avoid risk and we can serve the clients. Mark, I think we also talked about at the Analyst Day that the clients are not looking necessarily to fill a body or fill a position. They're looking to solve problems. And so we're seeing, if you will, work packages. Packages of work that we're able to bid on and respond. And that's generating the growth of the consulting side of the business, if you will. But the client wants more than just a body. They want solutions and/or work packages executed. So it's a good trend. It's what the clients are requiring. And we understood this many, many years ago. And we're right there at the front end, I think, of this wave.

好的。Mark，我想在分析師日（Analyst Day）我們談過這點。整體而言，顧問業務占我們總業務的比重正在上升。這當然已相當顯著。而且其成長速度是我們人力派遣業務規模成長的 2 到 3 倍。所以我們用兩種方式衡量成長，首先——其實有很多方式，但其中一種是看我們拿到多少訂單（bookings）或獲得多少合約。第二種是看執行合約所帶來的實際營收流入。因此我們的訂單成長率確實非常驚人。但我們是以一種——如 Peter 會說的——可控、可管理、可避免風險並能服務客戶的方式在做。Mark，我想我們在分析師日也談到，客戶不一定只是要補一個人或填一個職缺。他們要的是解決問題。因此我們看到的是——如果你願意這麼說——工作套件（work packages）。也就是我們能夠投標並回應的一整包工作。而這正帶動了顧問端業務的成長。但客戶想要的不只是「一個人」。他們要的是解決方案，和／或把工作套件執行完成。所以這是個好趨勢。這也是客戶所要求的。而我們在很多很多年前就理解到這點。我認為我們正站在這波浪潮的最前端。

That's great. And then with regards to the bill rates that you're seeing within Apex, it looks like we're seeing good bill rate increases on a percentage basis. I'm wondering if you share the opinion of others that we could end up actually seeing some further acceleration in terms of that expansion, not necessarily in terms of fanning up the gross margins, but just in terms of supply-demand leading to further increases.

很好。另外，關於你們在 Apex 看到的計費費率（bill rates），看起來我們在百分比上有不錯的提升。我想知道你是否同意其他人的看法：我們可能會看到這種擴張進一步加速——不一定是指推升毛利率，而是供需關係可能帶來進一步的上調。

Well, look, Mark, I'll just echo my comment. Our customer base and the size of business they're doing with us, we're pretty respectful of the challenge that they have. And what's driving the bill rate is not relative bargaining power, it's what we have to pass along to the temp in order to get them to work at XYZ bank versus ABC bank. Whereas, other people may just artificially raise the bill rate because they can and not pass along the increase in the bill rate to the temp. That's not what we're doing. And I think the increase that you see in our bill rate is a very good indicator of what wage inflation is for tech workers in the United States.

嗯，Mark，我就重申我剛才的評論。我們的客戶基礎，以及他們與我們往來的業務規模，我們相當尊重他們所面臨的挑戰。推動計費費率的不是相對議價能力，而是我們必須轉嫁給臨時人員（temp）的部分，才能讓他們願意到 XYZ 銀行工作而不是 ABC 銀行。相較之下，有些人可能只是因為有能力就人為地提高計費費率，卻不把計費費率的增加轉給臨時人員。那不是我們在做的事。而我認為你看到的我們計費費率的上升，是美國科技工作者薪資通膨的一個非常好的指標。

Great. And then can you talk a little bit, you gave us some helpful metrics with regards to the contract backlog on ECS. Just wondering how we should think about those numbers and how that would trend or how that portends for the future.

很好。另外，你們提供了一些關於 ECS 合約積壓（contract backlog）的有用指標。我想請教我們應該如何看待這些數字、它們會如何走勢，或它們對未來有何預示。

Yes. So George will describe that, but there's all sorts of numbers, awarded, funded. They all have different data points. But George, why don't you kind of point out what you think is the most relevant and how it seasonally flexes because of the buying season.

好的。George 會說明這點，但相關數字有很多種：已授予（awarded）、已撥款（funded）等等。它們各自代表不同的資料點。不過 George，你不妨指出你認為最相關的是哪些，以及因為採購季（buying season）而在季節性上如何波動。

Sure. So contract backlog, we sort of view as a runway of contracts that we have that we believe are going to be funded and we fully expect to recognize all the revenue on those contracts. And right now with a contract of 2.3x our trailing 12-month revenue, you can think of it as, we wouldn't have to submit another proposal and we'd run out for another 2.3 years. And so every quarter about 1/4 of that would burn off. And then particularly in the buying season when we start to win new contracts, that's when you start picking up additional contract vehicles to keep that up into a healthy range of, like I said, about 2.3 is a good range. We don't typically report the book-to-bill. We haven't reported that because that's on a quarterly basis and that can be skewed. One quarter could be very high, another quarter could be low. So we look at the longer term in terms of the contract backlog to look at the health of our overall contract vehicles looking out into the future. Does that help?

當然。合約積壓我們大致視為一條合約跑道：我們相信這些合約會獲得撥款，並且我們完全預期能在這些合約上認列全部營收。而目前合約積壓約為我們過去 12 個月營收的 2.3 倍，你可以把它理解為：我們即使不再提交任何新提案，也還能再跑 2.3 年才會用完。因此每一季大約會消耗掉其中的 1/4。而特別是在採購季、當我們開始贏得新合約時，你就會開始新增更多合約載具（contract vehicles），以把這個比率維持在健康區間——如我所說，大約 2.3 是個不錯的範圍。我們通常不揭露 book-to-bill。我們沒有揭露，因為那是以季度為基礎，可能會被扭曲。某一季可能很高，另一季可能很低。所以我們會用較長期的合約積壓來觀察整體合約載具的健康狀況，並展望未來。這樣有幫助嗎？

It does. I was just wondering how we should think about, would you expect that contract backlog to pick up in terms of year-over-year growth as the second half of this year unfolds or how you would think about that?

有的。我只是想了解，我們應該怎麼看：隨著今年下半年展開，你會預期合約積壓在年對年成長上會有所回升嗎？或你會怎麼看待這件事？

Yes. On the second half of the year is the buying season, we hope that, that would go up a little bit. And again, as we grow, our trailing 12-month increases. So we look at it as a ratio. So we would like to keep it above 2, in the range that we are with the 2.3. So as we continue to grow, continue to award contract vehicles, we keep it in that range.

會的。下半年是採購季，我們希望那會稍微上升一些。另外，隨著我們成長，我們的過去 12 個月營收也會增加。所以我們是以比率來看。我們希望把它維持在 2 以上，並維持在目前 2.3 這樣的區間。因此當我們持續成長、持續獲得合約載具授予時，我們就把它維持在那個範圍內。

Great. And then one question for Ed. Interest expense for the coming quarter, how should we think about it?

很好。接著有一個問題想問 Ed。下一季的利息費用（interest expense），我們應該如何看待？

Well, the interest expense we're estimating $14.4 million. And of that, Mark, I think $1.5 million relates to amortization of deferred loan costs.

嗯，我們估計利息費用為 1,440 萬美元。其中，Mark，我想有 150 萬美元與遞延貸款成本的攤銷（amortization of deferred loan costs）有關。

And there are no further questions in queue at this time.

目前佇列中沒有其他問題。

All right. Well, we appreciate your attention and your questions, and we look forward to reporting our third quarter results. Be well.

好的。感謝各位的關注與提問，我們期待公布第三季業績。祝各位安好。

And ladies and gentlemen, this conference will be available for replay at 4 p.m. and will remain available through August 8, 2018. The dial-in number for the reply is (800) 475-6701, access code 450933. That does conclude our conference for today. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.

各位女士、先生，本次電話會議將於下午 4 點提供重播。並將持續提供至 2018 年 8 月 8 日。重播撥入電話為 (800) 475-6701，存取碼 450933。今天的會議到此結束。感謝各位參與。您現在可以掛線。