EZCORP Inc (EZPW) 2025 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the EZCORP third quarter fiscal 2025 earnings call. (Operator Instruction) As a reminder, this call may be recorded. I'd now like to turn the conference over to Sean Mansouri, the company's Investor Relations adviser with Elevate IR. Please go ahead, Sean.

女士們、先生們，早安。歡迎參加 EZCORP 2025 財年第三季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）提醒一下，此通話可能會被錄音。現在，我想將會議交給 Elevate IR 的公司投資者關係顧問 Sean Mansouri。請繼續，肖恩。

Thank you, and good morning, everyone. During our prepared remarks, we will refer to slides, which are available for viewing or download from our website at investors.ezcorp.com. Before we begin, I'd like to remind everyone that this conference call as well as the presentation slides contain certain forward-looking statements regarding the company's expected operating and financial performance for future periods.

謝謝大家，早安。在我們的準備演講中，我們將參考幻燈片，這些幻燈片可從我們的網站 investors.ezcorp.com 查看或下載。在開始之前，我想提醒大家，本次電話會議以及簡報中包含一些關於公司未來預期營運和財務表現的前瞻性陳述。

These statements are based on the company's current expectations. Actual results for future periods may differ materially from those expressed due to a number of risks or other factors that are discussed in our annual, quarterly and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

這些聲明是基於公司目前的預期。由於我們向美國證券交易委員會提交的年度、季度和其他報告中討論的若干風險或其他因素，未來期間的實際結果可能與所表達的結果有重大差異。

And as noted in our presentation materials and unless otherwise identified, results are presented on an adjusted basis to remove the effect of foreign currency fluctuations and other discrete items. Joining us on the call today are EZCORP's Chief Executive Officer, Lachie Given; and Tim Jugmans, Chief Financial Officer. Now I'd like to turn the call over to Lachie Given. Lachie?

正如我們的簡報資料中所述，除非另有說明，否則結果均按調整後的基礎呈現，以消除外匯波動和其他離散項目的影響。今天參加電話會議的有 EZCORP 執行長 Lachie Given 和財務長 Tim Jugmans。現在我想把電話轉給 Lachie Given。拉奇？

Thanks, and good morning, everyone. This quarter showcased the continued strong financial and operating momentum across the business, disciplined execution by our team and the growing operating leverage in our platform, which drove exceptional earnings growth for our shareholders. We delivered record third quarter revenue of $319.9 million, up 14% year over year and an all-time high PLO of $293.2 million, reflecting sustained demand for immediate cash and affordable preowned merchandise across our geographies. Earnings for the quarter were up significantly. Adjusted EBITDA rose 42% to $45.2 million and diluted EPS increased 38% to $0.33, driven by operating leverage embedded in our model.

謝謝，大家早安。本季度展示了整個業務持續強勁的財務和營運勢頭、我們團隊的嚴格執行以及我們平台不斷增長的營運槓桿，為我們的股東帶來了卓越的獲利成長。我們第三季的營收達到創紀錄的 3.199 億美元，年增 14%，PLO 達到歷史最高的 2.932 億美元，反映了我們各個地區對現金和廉價二手商品的持續需求。本季收益大幅成長。調整後的 EBITDA 成長 42% 至 4,520 萬美元，稀釋每股盈餘成長 38% 至 0.33 美元，這得益於我們模型中嵌入的經營槓桿。

As we scale, we're capturing more margin and deeper customer engagement across both new and existing markets. Turning to slide 3. EZCORP now operates 1,336 pawn stores across the United States and Latin America, including 604 in Mexico. We remain a global leader in short-term collateralized lending and pre-owned retail. Persistent inflation and tighter access to credit continue to drive customers towards pawn as a trusted and transparent alternative for instant cash.

隨著規模的擴大，我們在新市場和現有市場中獲得了更多的利潤並獲得了更深層的客戶參與。翻到幻燈片 3。EZCORP 目前在美國和拉丁美洲經營 1,336 家當鋪，其中 604 家在墨西哥。我們仍然是短期抵押貸款和二手零售領域的全球領導者。持續的通貨膨脹和信貸管道的收緊繼續促使客戶將典當視為一種值得信賴且透明的即時現金替代品。

Our value proposition is fast and accessible with no credit checks, no collections and no long-term obligations. This ongoing demand is translating into strong lending activity and deeper customer engagement across the business. Our 8,000-plus team members' commitment to customer service and innovation allows us to scale with discipline, remain highly engaged with the customer and deliver valuable financial solutions when people need them most.

我們的價值主張是快速且易於獲取，無需信用檢查、無需收款、無需長期義務。這種持續的需求正在轉化為強勁的貸款活動和整個業務更深入的客戶參與度。我們 8,000 多名團隊成員致力於客戶服務和創新，這使我們能夠嚴格地擴大規模，與客戶保持高度互動，並在人們最需要的時候提供有價值的財務解決方案。

Moving on to slide 4. This was a meaningful quarter for both expansion of our store footprint and earning asset base, a clear demonstration of how we're deploying capital to grow the business in ways that support long-term earnings growth.

轉到投影片 4。對於我們門市規模和獲利資產基礎的擴張而言，這是一個意義重大的季度，清楚地表明了我們如何部署資本以支持長期獲利成長的方式發展業務。

During the quarter, we acquired 40 stores under the Monte Providencia and Tu Empeno Efectivo brands across 13 Mexico states. The business offers traditional pawn loans as well as auto pawn transactions, some of which are through stand-alone auto pawn stores. These stores not only expand our geographic footprint, they also meaningfully broaden our addressable market through secured auto lending.

本季度，我們收購了墨西哥 13 個州的 Monte Providencia 和 Tu Empeno Efectivo 品牌下的 40 家門市。該公司提供傳統的典當貸款以及汽車當鋪交易，其中一些是透過獨立的汽車當鋪進行的。這些商店不僅擴大了我們的地理覆蓋範圍，而且還透過有擔保的汽車貸款大大拓寬了我們的目標市場。

Auto pawn is a growing category of collateral in Mexico with higher ticket sizes and stronger appeal to customers who may not qualify for traditional credit. It also allows us to reach a broader demographic and participate in a segment where we've historically been underpenetrated.

汽車典當是墨西哥一種日益增長的抵押品類別，其票面金額更高，對那些可能不符合傳統信貸條件的客戶具有更強的吸引力。它還使我們能夠接觸到更廣泛的人群，並參與我們過去一直未充分滲透的領域。

In the US, we added three new stores, including a Max Pawn luxury format location in Miami Beach and opened 10 de novo locations across Latin America, focusing on Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador. All of this helped drive earning assets to $520 million, including a record PLO of $293.2 million, up 12% year over year. We saw continued strength in same-store lending and rising average loan sizes, particularly given increased jewelry volume. The PLO to inventory ratio also remains healthy at 1.3 times.

在美國，我們增加了三家新店，包括位於邁阿密海灘的 Max Pawn 豪華店，並在拉丁美洲開設了 10 家新店，專注於墨西哥、瓜地馬拉和薩爾瓦多。所有這些都幫助推動獲利資產達到 5.2 億美元，其中包括創紀錄的 2.932 億美元的 PLO，年增 12%。我們看到同店貸款持續強勁，平均貸款規模不斷上升，尤其是在珠寶交易增加的情況下。巴解組織與庫存的比率也維持在 1.3 倍的健康水準。

We ended the quarter with $472.1 million in cash, down from $505.2 million last quarter, reflecting capital deployed into store acquisitions and growth in earning assets, partially offset by strong operating cash flow. In the three-month period ending July 31, we repurchased $3 million worth of shares. In July, we also provided an additional $3 million in secured loan to Founders One, a growth platform through which we invest in Simple Management Group, which currently operates 99 pawn stores.

本季末，我們的現金為 4.721 億美元，低於上一季的 5.052 億美元，這反映了部署到門市收購和盈利資產增長的資本，但強勁的經營現金流部分抵消了這一影響。在截至 7 月 31 日的三個月內，我們回購了價值 300 萬美元的股票。7 月份，我們還向 Founders One 提供了額外的 300 萬美元擔保貸款，Founders One 是一個成長平台，我們透過該平台投資 Simple Management Group，該集團目前經營著 99 家當鋪。

The acquisition pipeline remains robust, and we believe that with our highly liquid balance sheet, we can continue to deploy capital opportunistically to significantly scale the platform for our shareholders. Turning to slide 5. Although you can only see the past four quarters of performance here, it's worth noting that we've delivered more than two years of consecutive growth across all four of our key performance metrics: revenue, PLO, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EPS, a testament to the durability of our model and the execution across our store network.

收購管道依然強勁，我們相信，憑藉我們高度流動的資產負債表，我們可以繼續適時部署資本，為股東大幅擴大平台規模。翻到幻燈片 5。雖然您只能在這裡看到過去四個季度的業績，但值得注意的是，我們在所有四個關鍵業績指標上都實現了連續兩年以上的增長：收入、PLO、調整後的 EBITDA 和調整後的 EPS，這證明了我們的模型的持久性和我們整個門市網絡的執行力。

Additionally, our earnings growth has accelerated for thee quarters in a row, further demonstrating the momentum in our business. Total revenue increased 14% year over year to $319.9 million, driven by growth in PSC, merchandise sales and a significant increase in scrap. Merchandise sales grew 10% with same-store sales up 9%, supported by strong customer demand and effective retail execution. Gross profit rose 13% to $188.4 million, in line with revenue growth. EBITDA increased 42% to $45.2 million, with EBITDA margin expanding 280 basis points to 14.1% and adjusted EPS rose 38% to $0.33.

此外，我們的獲利成長已連續三個季度加速，進一步證明了我們業務的強勁勢頭。總收入年增 14% 至 3.199 億美元，主要得益於 PSC 的成長、商品銷售的成長以及廢料的大幅增加。由於強勁的客戶需求和有效的零售執行，商品銷售額成長了 10%，同店銷售額成長了 9%。毛利成長 13% 至 1.884 億美元，與營收成長一致。EBITDA 成長 42% 至 4,520 萬美元，EBITDA 利潤率擴大 280 個基點至 14.1%，調整後每股盈餘成長 38% 至 0.33 美元。

It's worth noting that EBITDA margin has now expanded five quarters in a row on a year over year basis. These results reflect the operating leverage we're capturing as we scale, both in terms of loan demand and retail productivity.

值得注意的是，EBITDA 利潤率已連續五季年增。這些結果反映了我們在擴大規模時所獲得的經營槓桿，包括貸款需求和零售生產力。

Slide 6 provides a closer look at our consolidated revenue and gross profit performance for the quarter. In Q3, total revenue grew 14% to $319.9 million and gross profit increased 13% to $188.4 million, supported by growth across all major revenue streams. As always, our focus is on driving both gross profit dollars and margin, whether from PSC, merchandise sales or scrap. PSC increased 10% year over year to $118.2 million and remains our most consistent and high-margin earnings engine. Merchandise and sales gross profit rose 19% to $70.2 million, reflecting both higher gold prices and improved execution at the counter.

投影片 6 詳細介紹了我們本季的綜合收入和毛利表現。第三季度，總營收成長 14% 至 3.199 億美元，毛利成長 13% 至 1.884 億美元，這得益於所有主要收入來源的成長。像往常一樣，我們的重點是提高毛利和利潤率，無論是來自 PSC、商品銷售還是廢料。PSC 年增 10%，達到 1.182 億美元，仍是我們最穩定、利潤率最高的獲利引擎。商品和銷售毛利成長 19% 至 7,020 萬美元，反映出金價上漲和櫃檯執行力改善。

Gross margin held steady at 59%, even as we scaled, a reflection of the consistency embedded in our model. While PLO increased 12% year over year, inventory grew at a faster pace, up 32%, driven by greater purchasing activity this quarter, higher layaways as well as lower inventory turns. It's worth noting that outright purchases generally yield higher margins than pawn sourced goods. From a mix perspective, US pawn continues to drive the majority of our business, contributing 69% of revenue and 71% of gross profit this quarter.

即使我們擴大規模，毛利率仍穩定維持在 59%，這反映了我們模型的一致性。雖然 PLO 年成長 12%，但庫存成長速度更快，成長了 32%，這得益於本季採購活動增加、分期付款增加以及庫存週轉率降低。值得注意的是，直接購買通常比當鋪商品的利潤更高。從組合角度來看，美國典當繼續推動我們的大部分業務，本季貢獻了 69% 的收入和 71% 的毛利。

As we continue to grow in Latin America, we're applying the same operating model that's delivered consistent results in the US from pricing and inventory systems to training and in-store execution. The opportunity ahead is clear to improve performance, strengthen unit economics and drive higher margin contribution as the platform scales.

隨著我們在拉丁美洲的不斷發展，我們正在採用相同的營運模式，該模式在美國從定價和庫存系統到培訓和店內執行都取得了一致的成果。隨著平台規模的擴大，未來的機會顯然是提高績效、增強單位經濟效益並提高利潤貢獻。

Turning to slide 7, our business strategy highlights for the quarter. We continue to strengthen our core pawn operations while advancing the initiatives that position us for long-term growth across customer experience, digital engagement and field execution.

翻到第 7 張投影片，我們本季的業務策略亮點。我們持續加強核心典當業務，同時推動使我們在客戶體驗、數位參與和現場執行方面實現長期成長的措施。

Our EZ+ Rewards program continues to grow as we added 300,000 new members during the third quarter, reaching 6.5 million globally and accounting for over 70% of our known customer transactions in Q3. Website traffic grew 9% to 1.9 million visits, supported by continued improvements in our SEO programs. We also saw increased digital traction with $30 million in US online payments. In Mexico, 20% of layaways and extensions were completed digitally, more than double from this time last year.

我們的 EZ+ 獎勵計畫持續發展，我們在第三季增加了 30 萬名新會員，全球會員總數達到 650 萬，佔第三季已知客戶交易量的 70% 以上。由於我們 SEO 計劃的持續改進，網站流量增加了 9%，達到 190 萬次造訪。我們也看到數位吸引力的增強，美國線上支付金額達到 3000 萬美元。在墨西哥，20% 的分期付款和延期付款都是透過數位化方式完成的，比去年同期增加了一倍多。

Our view-online purchase in-store experience now covers nearly 80% of US stores, making our inventory more accessible and convenient to browse. We also began testing Instant Quote, a new tool that gives customers a preliminary loan estimate before visiting the store. While still early, we believe it has the potential to drive stronger conversion and improve in-store efficiency. Max Pawn e-commerce platform sales increased 28%, reflecting sustained demand for affordable luxury and reinforcing our position in the high-quality resale category.

我們的線上查看購買店內體驗現已覆蓋近 80% 的美國商店，使我們的庫存更易於訪問和瀏覽。我們也開始測試 Instant Quote，這是一種新工具，可以在客戶造訪商店之前為其提供初步的貸款估算。雖然還處於早期階段，但我們相信它有潛力推動更強勁的轉換並提高店內效率。Max Pawn 電子商務平台銷售額成長了 28%，反映出市場對平價奢侈品的持續需求，並鞏固了我們在高品質轉售類別中的地位。

From a team perspective, we completed the FY25 team member engagement survey during the quarter with 89% participation and an engagement score of 85, both well above industry benchmarks. This speaks to our unique culture of pride to work at EZCORP, serving our customers with passion and respect and genuine alignment to our company-wide mantra of people, pawn and passion.

從團隊角度來看，我們在本季完成了 FY25 團隊成員敬業度調查，參與率為 89%，敬業度得分為 85，均遠高於行業基準。這體現了我們在 EZCORP 工作的獨特自豪感，我們以熱情和尊重為客戶服務，並真正符合我們全公司的「人、典當和熱情」的宗旨。

Having a highly engaged tenured workforce is a unique competitive advantage for EZCORP and continues to be a strong focus for our leadership team. Our strategy remains focused on investing in the platform, empowering our people and delivering consistent, high-quality service at scale. With that, I'll hand the call over to Tim Jugmans, our CFO, who will provide a deeper look at our financial results. Tim?

擁有高度敬業的長期員工隊伍是 EZCORP 的獨特競爭優勢，並且持續成為我們領導團隊的重點。我們的策略仍然專注於投資平台、增強員工能力以及大規模提供一致、高品質的服務。說完這些，我將把電話交給我們的財務長 Tim Jugmans，他將更深入地了解我們的財務表現。提姆？

Thanks, Lachie. Slide 9 provides a detailed look at our consolidated financial results for the third fiscal quarter. We ended Q3 with record pawn loans outstanding of $293.2 million, up 12% year over year and 9% on a same-store basis. Growth was driven by sustained demand, improved operational execution and higher average loan size, supported by both organic expansion and new store contributions. Pawn service charges revenue increased 10%, generally in line with PLO growth and reflecting strong lending activity across our footprint.

謝謝，拉奇。投影片 9 詳細介紹了我們第三財季的綜合財務表現。第三季結束時，典當貸款餘額達到創紀錄的 2.932 億美元，年增 12%，同店成長 9%。成長的動力來自持續的需求、改善的營運執行和更高的平均貸款規模，這得益於有機擴張和新店貢獻。典當服務費收入成長了 10%，與 PLO 的成長基本一致，並反映了我們業務範圍內強勁的貸款活動。

Merchandise sales rose 10% with 9% same-store growth as customer demand continues to support strong retail performance. Inventory increased 32% year over year, driven by higher PLO, elevated purchase activity and growth in our US layaway program. Turnover declined to 2.4 times from 2.7 times last year, some of which is due to greater mix of jewelry, which naturally carries a longer sales cycle. Despite lower inventory turns, aged general merchandise declined 83 basis points to 2.3% or 2%, excluding luxury, reflecting disciplined pricing and markdown execution.

由於顧客需求持續支撐強勁的零售業績，商品銷售額成長 10%，同店銷售額成長 9%。庫存年增 32%，這得益於 PLO 的提高、購買活動的增加以及美國分期付款計劃的增長。營業額從去年的2.7倍下降到2.4倍，部分原因是珠寶的種類更多，自然意味著銷售週期更長。儘管庫存週轉率較低，但老舊日用百貨商品下降 83 個基點至 2.3% 或 2%（不包括奢侈品），這反映了嚴格的定價和降價執行。

Merchandise margin came in at 35.7%, while down 30 basis points year over year, it improved 166 basis points sequentially from Q2. As Lachie mentioned earlier, we continue to grow with discipline and deliver meaningful operating leverage. Adjusted EBITDA increased 42% to $45.2 million and EBITDA margin expanded 280 basis points to 14%.

商品利潤率為 35.7%，年減 30 個基點，但季減第二季提高 166 個基點。正如 Lachie 先前提到的，我們將繼續嚴格遵守紀律，實現有意義的營運槓桿。調整後的 EBITDA 成長 42% 至 4,520 萬美元，EBITDA 利潤率擴大 280 個基點至 14%。

Moving to our US Pawn segment on slide 10. Revenue increased 11% year over year to $220 million, of which approximately half came from scrap sales. Earning assets increased 21% to $387.4 million, which includes an 11% increase in PLO to $221.1 million and a 36% increase in inventory to $166.4 million. The inventory increase is a function of higher PLO, greater purchasing activity and the customer layaways program introduced in July of last year.

前往投影片 10 上的美國典當部分。營收年增 11% 至 2.2 億美元，其中約一半來自廢品銷售。獲利資產成長 21% 至 3.874 億美元，其中包括 PLO 成長 11% 至 2.211 億美元，庫存成長 36% 至 1.664 億美元。庫存增加是 PLO 提高、採購活動增加以及去年 7 月推出的客戶分期付款計劃的結果。

We remain focused on optimizing our merchandise mix and improving turnover. In the current quarter, we are increasing incentives for our team members, increasing marketing activities, including the use of reward points as well as targeted price reductions and category-specific promotions to drive further improvements.

我們仍然專注於優化商品組合和提高營業額。本季度，我們正在增加對團隊成員的激勵，增加行銷活動，包括使用獎勵積分以及有針對性的降價和特定類別的促銷，以推動進一步的改進。

Slide 11 provides a geographic view of our US operations, where we now have 545 stores across 19 states. As Lachie mentioned earlier, this quarter, we added three stores, including a luxury format location in Miami Beach. Our platform continues to be anchored in Texas, Florida and other major urban markets where we benefit from scale advantages, local pricing intelligence and strong brand equity.

投影片 11 提供了我們在美國業務的地理視圖，目前我們在美國 19 個州擁有 545 家門市。正如 Lachie 之前提到的，本季我們增加了三家門市，其中包括位於邁阿密海灘的豪華門市。我們的平台繼續紮根於德克薩斯州、佛羅裡達州和其他主要城市市場，在這些市場中我們受益於規模優勢、本地定價情報和強大的品牌資產。

Lending dynamics remain healthy. US average loan size rose 13% to $207, supported by increased values in both jewelry and general merchandise. Roughly 80% of that growth came from higher jewelry pricing, particularly gold. Jewelry now accounts for 67% of PLO and 65% of inventory, both up from prior year, given our emphasis on the category and current gold prices.

貸款動態保持健康。受珠寶和日用百貨價值上漲的推動，美國平均貸款規模上漲 13%，達到 207 美元。其中約 80% 的成長來自珠寶價格上漲，尤其是黃金價格。鑑於我們對珠寶類別和當前黃金價格的重視，珠寶目前佔巴解組織資產負債表的 67% 和庫存的 65%，均比上年有所上升。

Slide 12 provides a deeper look at our US segment financial performance for the quarter. All loans outstanding rose 11% year over year, supported by higher loan values, improved store level execution and steady demand for short-term liquidity. On service charge revenue rose 8%, primarily driven by same-store PLO growth. While the growth in PSC trailed PLO, the overall performance reflects a strong lending environment across the store base. On the retail side, merchandise sales rose 4% year over year and 4% on a same-store basis.

投影片 12 深入了解了我們本季美國分部的財務表現。受貸款價值上升、門市執行力改善以及短期流動性需求穩定的影響，所有未償還貸款年增 11%。服務費收入成長 8%，主要受同店 PLO 成長的推動。儘管 PSC 的成長落後於 PLO，但整體表現反映出整個門市的貸款環境強勁。零售方面，商品銷售額年增 4%，同店銷售額成長 4%。

Merchandise margin expanded 80 basis points to 38.5%, supported by better pricing execution and improved product mix. Inventory increased 36%, driven by growth in PLO, purchases and layaways as well as a decline in turnover to 2.1 times from 2.6 times.

由於更好的定價執行和改進的產品組合，商品利潤率擴大了 80 個基點，達到 38.5%。庫存增加了 36%，這得益於 PLO、購買和分期付款的增長以及週轉率從 2.6 倍下降到 2.1 倍。

Despite this, aged general merchandise improved 260 basis points to 2.5% or 1.8%, excluding luxury, a testament to active inventory management. Running a balanced business in the US Pawn segment through a combination of growth in PSC, merchandise sales and scrap revenue with expense management led to an EBITDA increase of 31% to $50.3 million and margin expansion of 360 basis points to 23%.

儘管如此，老舊日用百貨商品上漲 260 個基點至 2.5% 或 1.8%（不包括奢侈品），證明了積極的庫存管理。透過 PSC、商品銷售和廢品收入的成長以及費用管理相結合的方式，在美國典當領域實現業務平衡，導致 EBITDA 成長 31% 至 5,030 萬美元，利潤率擴大 360 個基點至 23%。

Turning to our Latin American segment on slide 13. Revenue increased 21% to $99.9 million in Q3, reflecting continued strength across the region. Earning assets rose 18% with PLO up 16% or 4% on a same-store basis, driven by improved operational performance and increased loan demand. Inventory increased 21% and 13% on a same-store basis with aged general merchandise increasing modestly to 2.2% of total GMV inventory, which equates to a total of $800,000. The increase in PLO and inventory was also largely driven by our recent acquisition in Mexico.

前往投影片 13 上的拉丁美洲部分。第三季營收成長 21% 至 9,990 萬美元，反映出該地區持續強勁的成長勢頭。受營運績效改善和貸款需求增加的推動，生息資產成長 18%，其中 PLO 成長 16%，同店成長 4%。庫存增加了 21%，同店增加了 13%，其中陳年日用百貨小幅增加至 GMV 總庫存的 2.2%，相當於總計 80 萬美元。巴拿馬行動計畫和庫存的成長也很大程度上得益於我們最近在墨西哥的收購。

Importantly, we remain focused on embedding best practice from our US operations to drive consistent execution and profitability growth across Latin America. As shown on slide 14, we ended the quarter with 791 stores across four countries. During the period, we acquired 40 stores in Mexico and opened 10 de novo stores across Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador and consolidated one store in Mexico. Jewelry PLO increased 510 basis points year over year to 40%, supported by focused operational initiatives in Mexico and higher gold price. Jewelry inventory composition also increased 150 basis points to 35%.

重要的是，我們仍然專注於融入美國業務的最佳實踐，以推動整個拉丁美洲的持續執行和獲利成長。如投影片 14 所示，本季末我們在四個國家擁有 791 家門市。在此期間，我們在墨西哥收購了 40 家門市，並在墨西哥、瓜地馬拉和薩爾瓦多開設了 10 家新店，並合併了墨西哥的一家門市。受墨西哥重點營運措施和金價上漲的支撐，珠寶 PLO 年增 510 個基點，達到 40%。珠寶庫存組成也增加了150個基點，達到35%。

Turning to slide 15 for more detail on our LatAm operations. Merchandise sales grew 23% with 90% same-store growth. Merchandise sales gross profit increased 17%, partially offset by a 170 basis point decline in margin due to more frequent counter-based price negotiation, a reflection of higher transaction volumes. PSC grew 13% year over year, supported by the growth in PLO.

請翻到第 15 張投影片來了解我們拉丁美洲業務的更多詳情。商品銷售額成長 23%，同店銷售額成長 90%。商品銷售毛利增加 17%，但由於交易量增加導致櫃檯價格談判更加頻繁，導致利潤率下降 170 個基點，部分抵消了這一增長。在巴林石油成長的推動下，PSC 年增 13%。

EBITDA rose 28% to $15.5 million, driven by higher gross profit and offset in part by a 12% increase in expenses with 7% same-store expense growth, primarily driven by labor expense. EBITDA margin expanded 90 basis points to 15% reflected continued operating leverage.

EBITDA 成長 28% 至 1,550 萬美元，這得益於毛利的提高，但部分抵銷了費用增加 12% 的影響，同店費用成長 7%，主要受勞動力費用推動。EBITDA 利潤率擴大 90 個基點至 15%，反映了持續的經營槓桿。

From a balance sheet perspective, our robust position of $472.1 million and a low net leverage will enable us to continue funding organic growth on compelling acquisition opportunities and thoughtfully return capital to shareholders over time. This quarter's acquisition of 40 pawn stores in Mexico is a strong example of how we're deploying capital with a discipline to capitalize on the global scale opportunity. Looking ahead, we remain focused on growing PLO, improving inventory efficiency and scaling operational best practices across all geographies.

從資產負債表的角度來看，我們 4.721 億美元的穩健狀況和較低的淨槓桿將使我們能夠繼續利用有吸引力的收購機會為有機增長提供資金，並隨著時間的推移向股東提供周到的回報。本季在墨西哥收購 40 家當鋪是一個很好的例子，說明我們如何有紀律地部署資本，以利用全球規模的機會。展望未來，我們將繼續致力於發展 PLO、提高庫存效率以及在所有地區擴展最佳營運實踐。

Based on the current gold price remaining steady, we expect similar scrap sales gross profit in quarter 4 and then for scrap margins to decline sequentially during FY26. We are very pleased with the expense management to date. However, we do expect a sequential increase in total expenses. Our M&A pipeline is very attractive in both the US and Latin America, and we continue to approach each opportunity with rigorous financial discipline.

基於目前金價維持穩定，我們預期第四季廢料銷售毛利將類似，而2026財年廢料利潤率將季減。我們對迄今為止的費用管理非常滿意。然而，我們確實預期總支出將持續增加。我們的併購管道在美國和拉丁美洲都非常有吸引力，我們將繼續以嚴格的財務紀律來對待每一個機會。

We believe this focused execution will continue to drive long-term compounding value for our shareholders. Now I would like to turn it over to Lachie for a few closing remarks.

我們相信，這種專注的執行將繼續為我們的股東帶來長期複合價值。現在我想請拉奇做最後總結。

Thanks, Tim. I'd like to extend my sincere appreciation to our entire team for delivering an exceptionally strong quarter of earnings growth. It reflects our rigorous focus on operational excellence, increasing scale, robust core business model and an extremely strong balance sheet. As we look ahead, we remain confident in our ability to scale with discipline, invest with purpose and deliver sustained long-term value for our shareholders. And with that, we'll open the call to questions.

謝謝，蒂姆。我要向我們整個團隊表達最誠摯的感謝，感謝他們在本季實現了異常強勁的獲利成長。它反映了我們對卓越營運、不斷擴大的規模、強大的核心業務模式和極其強勁的資產負債表的嚴格關注。展望未來，我們仍然對自己有紀律地擴大規模、有目的地進行投資以及為股東創造持續的長期價值的能力充滿信心。接下來，我們將開始提問。

Operator?

操作員？

(Operator Instructions) John Hecht, Jefferies.

（操作員指示）約翰‧赫克特 (John Hecht)，傑富瑞 (Jefferies)。

Congrats on a good quarter. First question is just the US retail margins have been stronger than we expected. There's some sustained momentum there. I'm wondering, if you look at the mix of retail activity with gold, jewelry and other products as well as like aged inventory, what do you attribute the strong margin performance to?

恭喜本季業績良好。第一個問題是美國零售利潤率高於我們的預期。那裡存在著一些持續的勢頭。我想知道，如果您看一下黃金、珠寶和其他產品以及陳舊庫存的零售活動組合，您會將強勁的利潤表現歸因於什麼？

Is it that the consumer is negotiating less? Or is it just that the value of jewelry is going up with gold? Or how do we think about the trends there?

是不是消費者的議價能力變弱了？或者只是珠寶的價值隨著黃金而上漲？或者我們如何看待那裡的趨勢？

Thank you for the question. Tim, do you want to take that one?

謝謝你的提問。提姆，你想拿那個嗎？

It's two things there, John. One is the gold price increase has helped, but it's also that we are lending -- improved lending. So that has -- both of those have helped increase that margin. Better lending means that we're pricing it correctly when we lend it. So if it does drop into inventory, that it's at the right price to be able to sell at the right margin.

那裡有兩件事，約翰。一方面是金價上漲有所幫助，另一方面也是因為我們的貸款有所改善。所以這兩者都有助於提高利潤率。更好的貸款意味著我們在貸款時能夠正確定價。因此，如果它確實進入庫存，那麼它的價格就合適，能夠以合適的利潤率出售。

Okay. And then you guys have been pretty active in acquisitions and consolidation. Maybe talk about the pipeline now and the pricing in the market and maybe geographically where you guys are looking?

好的。你們在收購和合併方面非常活躍。也許可以談談現在的通路和市場定價，以及你們正在尋找的地理位置？

Sure. So -- so we obviously did our financing a few months back and now have a really strong balance sheet from which to pretty opportunistically execute on acquisitions. And so we're really excited about the pipeline. I think it's -- we've got plenty of opportunities across our existing markets, and we're starting to look at new markets as well. But I think the pipeline has always been quite robust.

當然。所以——我們顯然在幾個月前就完成了融資，現在我們擁有非常強大的資產負債表，可以藉此機會進行收購。因此，我們對這條管道感到非常興奮。我認為——我們在現有市場上有很多機會，我們也開始關注新市場。但我認為通路一直都相當穩健。

It's just that now we are really well capitalized. And I think we've been very consistent in our message to our shareholders and to the market that this is a business that's capable of truly scaling up from here. We think we're actually undercapitalized for our mission because the global opportunity is so large in pawn broking. And just even in our own existing markets, it's -- it's a very large scale opportunity. So we're trying to match our capital base with the size of that opportunity.

只是現在我們的資本確實很充足。我認為，我們向股東和市場傳達的訊息非常一致，那就是我們的企業能夠真正從現在開始擴大規模。我們認為，我們實際上沒有足夠的資金來完成我們的使命，因為當鋪的全球機會太大了。即使在我們現有的市場中，這也是一個非常大的機會。因此，我們正努力將我們的資本基礎與該機會的規模相匹配。

And clearly, we've got a good amount of cash in the bank at the moment. But as I said, even just in our existing markets in the US, Mexico and the rest of Latin America, we see a really large opportunity. And we're doing a pretty robust de novo store network store growth strategy as well. Those are proving to be outstanding uses of capital. And then to our capital allocation strategy, we've been pretty clear on our message there as well.

顯然，我們目前在銀行裡有大量現金。但正如我所說，即使僅在我們現有的美國、墨西哥和拉丁美洲其他地區的市場，我們也看到了巨大的機會。我們也正在實施相當強勁的全新門市網路商店成長策略。事實證明，這些都是出色的資本利用方式。然後對於我們的資本配置策略，我們也非常明確地表達了我們的訊息。

This is -- our core strategy is scale. We think that earnings and cash flow can be scaled significantly from here, but we're trying to balance that with returning some capital to shareholders as well. We think the stock price is materially undervalued, as I know all the analysts do as well. So we're looking to balance our capital allocation. But again, our core strategy here is scale in terms of the store base, in terms of profit and in terms of cash flow.

這就是──我們的核心策略是規模。我們認為，從現在開始，收益和現金流可以大幅擴大，但我們正試圖在向股東返還部分資本的同時實現平衡。我們認為股價被嚴重低估，我知道所有分析師也都這麼認為。因此，我們希望平衡我們的資本配置。但同樣，我們的核心策略是門市規模、利潤和現金流的規模。

And I hope over the next 12 to 18 months, we're going to be announcing more and more of these acquisitions that are done with discipline, but match our strategy of scale.

我希望在未來 12 到 18 個月內，我們將宣布越來越多的此類收購，這些收購將有紀律地進行，但符合我們的規模策略。

(Operator Instructions) Brian McNamara, Canaccord Genuity.

（操作員指示）Brian McNamara，Canaccord Genuity。

Congrats on another great quarter. So one question I have is a pretty simple one. Why aren't you guys buying back more stock? I don't want to take away from all the strong execution, but this is by far the number one question we've received recently from investors and number two isn't particularly close. So your recent acquisition of Mexico, I think, was $20 million, but given the unexpected dilution from the May 2025 convert, I think you still have roughly $80 million more in cash than you would have expected previously, even including that acquisition.

恭喜您又一個出色的季度。我有一個非常簡單的問題。你們為什麼不回購更多股票？我不想否定所有強大的執行力，但這是迄今為止我們最近從投資者那裡收到的頭號問題，而第二個問題並不特別接近。因此，我認為您最近對墨西哥的收購價值為 2000 萬美元，但考慮到 2025 年 5 月轉換的意外稀釋，我認為即使包括那次收購，您的現金仍比之前預期的多出約 8000 萬美元。

And I think your prior repurchase authorization expired May 3. So why doesn't the Board at least authorize another repurchase program? I understand you're prioritizing growth and scale here, but can't you do both simultaneously? I think $2 million to $3 million a quarter just feels like a rounding error given the huge valuation discount you guys trade at relative to both your larger peer in the market as a whole.

我認為您先前的回購授權已於 5 月 3 日到期。那麼董事會為什麼不至少批准另一項回購計畫呢？我知道您在這裡優先考慮成長和規模，但您不能同時做到這兩點嗎？我認為，考慮到你們相對於整個市場上規模更大的同行而言的巨大估值折扣，每季 200 萬到 300 萬美元只是一個四捨五入的誤差。

Yes. Look, I touched on this already, but let's start with this quarter. We're up 42% in EBITDA growth. I mean it is an enormous quarter. I don't know how many companies you cover that are delivering 42% earnings growth. But the reason I say that is that you can see what this platform is capable of doing as we scale. It's growing phenomenally strongly with a really conservative balance sheet, which gives stability for our shareholders in the long term.

是的。看，我已經談到了這一點，但讓我們從本季開始。我們的 EBITDA 成長率為 42%。我的意思是這是一個巨大的季度。我不知道您調查的有多少家公司實現了 42% 的獲利成長。但我這樣說的原因是，隨著我們規模的擴大，你可以看到這個平台能做什麼。公司在保持真正保守的資產負債表的情況下實現了驚人的強勁增長，為我們的股東帶來了長期的穩定性。

And so I've been really consistent on what we're trying to do here, and you can see it this quarter in our earnings numbers. Our priority is scale. And I actually think we are completely undercapitalized for our mission because that is the size of the acquisition opportunities and the de novo opportunities that are out there.

因此，我一直堅持不懈地致力於我們在這裡所做的事情，您可以從本季度的盈利數據中看到這一點。我們的首要任務是規模。事實上，我認為我們完全沒有足夠的資金來完成我們的使命，因為這就是現有的收購機會和新機會的規模。

Our real estate team would love to build 1,000 more stores in Mexico. Our issue is we've got to actually staff those stores. But it gives you just on the de novo side, the size of the scale opportunity. In terms of acquisitions, we're not even touching other areas of the world where you look at India and the Philippines and stuff that we're not even close to. These are multiple billion-dollar opportunities.

我們的房地產團隊希望在墨西哥再建 1,000 家商店。我們的問題是我們必須為這些商店配備實際人員。但它給你的只是從頭開始，也就是規模大小的機會。在收購方面，我們甚至沒有觸及世界其他地區，例如印度和菲律賓，以及我們尚未涉足的地區。這些都是價值數十億美元的商機。

And so while I'm really happy with our cash on the balance sheet, it's not enough to give our shareholders a chance at genuine scale. So I think in buying EZCORP shares, you should know that our number one strategy here is scaling up profit and cash flow. And so while I think it's a great return on capital buying back shares because the shares are so materially undervalued, I think it's probably less than five times this year's EBITDA consensus number or somewhere close to that. So I genuinely do understand the buyback strategy, and that's why we're doing it. But -- and we're looking for balance.

因此，儘管我對資產負債表上的現金狀況非常滿意，但這還不足以讓我們的股東有機會實現真正的規模。因此我認為在購買 EZCORP 股票時，您應該知道我們的首要策略是擴大利潤和現金流。因此，雖然我認為回購股票可以獲得豐厚的資本回報，因為股票被嚴重低估，但我認為它可能還不到今年 EBITDA 共識數字的五倍或接近這個數字。所以我確實理解回購策略，這就是我們這樣做的原因。但是——我們正在尋求平衡。

I do understand your comment that you think it's too low, but I think our cash at bank is too low because Tim and I, and our team are out there in the market looking at acquisitions that could materially change things for our shareholders. So I think this has been a very consistent message from us look for balance, but we are erring on the side of scale. But as you say, we have bought back shares. We have bought back $3 million. I don't think that's a rounding error at all.

我確實理解您認為它太低的評論，但我認為我們的銀行現金太低，因為蒂姆和我以及我們的團隊正在市場上尋找可能為我們的股東帶來實質改變的收購。所以我認為這一直是我們尋求平衡的一個非常一致的訊息，但我們在規模方面卻犯了錯誤。但正如你所說，我們已經回購了股票。我們已經回購了300萬美元。我認為這根本不是一個捨入誤差。

I think it's a good return on capital. But our priority -- and as I said, in the next 12 months, 12 to 18 months, I hope you will see us announcing some -- putting our money to work and putting our money where our mouths are into these scale opportunities. But I don't think there's a new message. I think we've been very consistent on it.

我認為這是良好的資本回報率。但我們的首要任務——正如我所說的，在未來 12 個月、12 到 18 個月內，我希望您會看到我們宣布一些計劃——將我們的資金投入到這些規模化的機會中，並將我們的資金投入到我們所說的這些機會中。但我不認為有新消息。我認為我們對此一直非常一致。

Fair enough. So is it fair to assume -- I think last year, you did $15 million -- or sorry, you did $12 million in cash paid for acquisitions the year before about $15 million, $16 million. This year, year to date, you're at $17 million. Is it fair to assume that number increases over the next 12 to 18 months, to your point?

很公平。那麼是否可以公平地假設——我認為去年你賺了 1500 萬美元——或者抱歉，你以現金支付了 1200 萬美元用於收購，而前年你支付了大約 1500 萬美元、1600 萬美元。今年截至目前為止，您的收入已達 1,700 萬美元。根據您的觀點，是否可以合理地假設該數字在未來 12 到 18 個月內會增加？

I'd love to say yes. But as you know, acquisitions are unfortunately -- you need a willing buyer and a willing seller. So I would love to say, yes, I hope that is the case. We now have the firepower to do it. As I said, the pipeline is robust, but it's still opportunistic, and we've got to land these deals.

我很樂意回答是的。但正如你所知，不幸的是，收購需要一個願意的買家和一個願意的賣家。所以我想說，是的，我希望情況確實如此。我們現在擁有完成這項任務的實力。正如我所說，管道很強大，但仍然充滿機會，我們必須達成這些交易。

But that is why we've raised this capital because we think we can deploy it into scale. So look, I can't obviously commit to the market that it's going to be more than $15 million, but my intention is absolutely to be deploying significantly more capital than we have in the last year or two now that we've got this financing behind us.

但這就是我們籌集這筆資金的原因，因為我們認為我們可以將其部署到規模上。所以，你看，我顯然不能向市場承諾它會超過 1500 萬美元，但我的意圖絕對是在我們已經獲得融資的情況下，部署比過去一兩年多得多的資本。

Fair enough. So second question, you guys loaned an additional $3 million to Founders, which was invested in Simple. I think that takes your investment there north of $60 million, correct me if I'm wrong, between preferred equity and loans. Why is that the preferred investment route? And kind of what's the end game there?

很公平。第二個問題是，你們向 Founders 額外貸款 300 萬美元，用於投資 Simple。我認為您的投資將超過 6000 萬美元，如果我錯了，請糾正我，包括優先股和貸款。為什麼這是首選的投資途徑？那麼最終結果是什麼呢？

Yes. Look, it's a good question. That management team is doing a terrific job in building out their platform. They're now the third largest pawn broker in our region behind First Cash and us. So I think that represents a fantastic opportunity for EZCORP and its shareholders.

是的。瞧，這是個好問題。該管理團隊在建立平台方面做得非常出色。他們現在是我們地區僅次於 First Cash 和我們的第三大典當經紀商。因此我認為這對 EZCORP 及其股東來說是一個絕佳的機會。

We're currently assessing exactly the question you've asked. So we're assessing what is the best structure going forward because they've now demonstrated over the last three years since we invested that they are capable of growing really well in their markets. They're in Florida, Puerto Rico, and then I think about 10 other smaller countries across the Caribbean plus Panama and Costa Rica.

我們目前正在評估您所提出的問題。因此，我們正在評估未來的最佳結構，因為自從我們投資以來的過去三年裡，他們已經證明他們有能力在自己的市場上實現良好的成長。它們位於佛羅裡達、波多黎各，然後我想到加勒比海地區還有另外 10 個較小的國家，還有巴拿馬和哥斯達黎加。

So while we are in Florida, most of those markets we're not in. So we're very excited that we've deployed capital there, I think, in a really conservative way over the last three years, while they prove up their ability to scale in markets that we're not in.

因此，雖然我們在佛羅裡達州，但我們並沒有進入大多數市場。因此，我們非常高興，我認為，過去三年我們在那裡以非常保守的方式部署了資本，而他們則證明了他們在我們沒有進入的市場中擴大規模的能力。

But I think it's very high on our Board's agenda as to what that looks like going forward because I think the management team there has proven they can do it. They built value Pawn and jewelry, which is obviously the best acquisition we ever did for over $100 million in 2008. So we know they can do it. The last three years, they proved they can do it again. And as you know, we're not recognizing the preferred equity side of that investment in our income statement.

但我認為，董事會非常重視這個問題的後續進展，因為我認為管理團隊已經證明他們可以做到這一點。他們打造了價值典當和珠寶，這顯然是我們在 2008 年以超過 1 億美元的價格進行的最佳收購。所以我們知道他們能做到。過去三年，他們證明了自己可以再次做到這一點。如您所知，我們沒有在損益表中確認該投資的優先股部分。

So I think it's high on the Board's agenda over the next 12 months or so now that we're very well capitalized, what we do with that investment. But as I said, it's the hypothesis three years ago was let's provide some early capital here and see what this team can do. And we're very happy with their plan. They've now got 99 stores and doing really well as the third force in pawn broking. So I think we've got the key seat at the table there.

因此，我認為，鑑於我們目前的資本充足，如何處理這筆投資是未來 12 個月左右董事會議程上的首要任務。但正如我所說，三年前的假設是讓我們在這裡提供一些早期資本，看看這支球隊能做什麼。我們對他們的計劃非常滿意。他們現在擁有 99 家門市，在當鋪中位居第三，業績斐然。所以我認為我們在那裡佔據了關鍵席位。

And I think you'll hear more from us over the next 12 months or so on what we're going to do.

我認為在接下來的 12 個月左右，您會聽到更多關於我們將要做什麼的消息。

Great. Maybe a couple for Tim. This is probably nitpicky, but worth asking nonetheless. In the US, I think your PLO was up 11%, similar to last year, your larger peer just reported a plus 12% on top of a plus 22%. Anything to call out competitively there?

偉大的。或許對提姆來說有一對。這可能有點吹毛求疵，但仍然值得一問。在美國，我認為你們的巴解組織上漲了 11%，與去年類似，而你們規模更大的同行報告稱，在上漲 22% 的基礎上，又上漲了 12%。有什麼可以引起競爭的嗎？

No. I think if you look at quarter by quarter, there's different wins for different companies as we go along. But on average, -- our stores do have more PLO than other competitors, and we are focused on maximizing our net revenue per store. And I think our numbers continue to prove that out.

不。我認為，如果你逐季觀察，你會發現不同的公司會取得不同的勝利。但平均而言，我們的商店確實比其他競爭對手擁有更多的 PLO，而且我們專注於最大化每家商店的淨收入。我認為我們的數據繼續證明了這一點。

I think to call it out, I think it was a truly phenomenal quarter across the business. And I think one thing to call out for everyone is the sustained momentum in Latin America in that business. It was -- Blair and his team, when we came together as a management team four years ago, Blair and the team obviously concentrated on the US to begin with, given it's roughly 70% of our business. And you can see the incredible growth in that business.

我認為，對於整個業務來說，這是一個真正非凡的季度。我認為值得大家關注的一件事是拉丁美洲在該領域的持續發展勢頭。是的——四年前，當我們組成一個管理團隊時，布萊爾和他的團隊顯然首先把重點放在了美國，因為美國約占我們業務的 70%。您可以看到該業務的驚人成長。

But once the team was able to really, truly focus on Mexico and the Latin American business, you can see now that we're kind of I think it's probably about three quarters straight now of really exceptional performance. And so I think that leadership team, starting with Blair and then into the Latin American leadership team has just done a fantastic job and where it's not just the earnings performance that you see in the income statement, you can see the balance that's come back to that business of revenue, PLO, EBITDA, or inventory.

但是，一旦團隊能夠真正專注於墨西哥和拉丁美洲業務，您現在就可以看到，我們大概已經連續三個季度取得了非常出色的表現。因此，我認為從布萊爾開始到拉丁美洲領導團隊的領導團隊都做得非常出色，而且您看到的不僅僅是損益表中的盈利表現，還可以看到收入、PLO、EBITDA 或庫存等業務的平衡。

So we're really excited about the prospects there as well. But I think it was just a fantastic quarter of -- as I said, looking at 42% EBITDA growth and 38% EPS growth, it just shows the quality of the operating leverage in this business when you get it right. Yes, we've had some tailwinds from gold and from scrap, but that is the leverage that that's available in this platform. And I think it was just a truly phenomenal quarter.

因此，我們對那裡的前景也感到非常興奮。但我認為這是一個非常出色的季度——正如我所說，EBITDA 增長 42% 和 EPS 增長 38%，這充分錶明了該業務在正確情況下的經營槓桿質量。是的，我們從黃金和廢料中獲得了一定的順風，但這就是這個平台所能提供的槓桿作用。我認為這確實是一個非凡的季度。

Great. And just the last one is on merch margins in LatAm. I think they've declined three quarters in a row despite obviously, the EBITDA has grown really nicely there after good progress on this line last year. Aged inventory is increasing in LatAm also. So what's driving that? And how much of that is just simply the impact from some of these new acquired stores?

偉大的。最後一個是關於拉丁美洲的商品利潤。我認為他們已經連續三個季度下滑，儘管去年該系列產品取得了良好進展，但 EBITDA 顯然已經大幅成長。拉丁美洲的陳舊庫存也在增加。那麼是什麼原因導致的呢？其中有多少僅僅是這些新收購的商店的影響？

Look, Tim will have a view on age. Let's really qualify how much aged inventory in GM we've got. We've just printed $45 million of EBITDA and the entire aged inventory in GM is $2 million. So in terms of materiality, it is such a small number, and that includes [ Lux age ]. So we're talking about a $45 million quarter.

瞧，蒂姆對年齡有自己的看法。讓我們真正了解通用汽車有多少陳舊庫存。我們剛剛公佈了 4500 萬美元的 EBITDA，而通用汽車的全部陳舊庫存價值為 200 萬美元。因此，從重要性角度來看，這是一個很小的數字，其中包括[ 勒克斯時代 ]。所以我們談論的是 4500 萬美元的季度。

I think consensus is that we make $170 million or $180 million of EBITDA a year. Our aged GM over 365 days is $2 million. So it is a very, very small number. Are we focused on it? Yes, of course. We -- this business used to operate at 6% or 7% AGM. It's now 2%. So it's well down. The number is small. Are we focused on it? Yes, of course. But it's a pretty small number. Tim, I don't know if you'd add anything to that.

我認為大家的共識是，我們每年的 EBITDA 為 1.7 億美元或 1.8 億美元。我們 365 天的 GM 老化值為 200 萬美元。所以這是一個非常非常小的數字。我們是否專注於此？是的當然。我們—這項業務過去的年度股東大會利率為 6% 或 7%。現在是2%。所以它已經很好了。數量很少。我們是否專注於此？是的當然。但這個數字相當小。提姆，我不知道你還有什麼要補充的。

Yes. I think the other thing to look at is the -- not just to look at inventory by itself, but look at ratios. Inventory continues to be in the -- above one, which is what you want to see prior times when age was very high, we had more inventory than PLO. That was not the way to run the business. And we found that this is -- sustainably over the last four, five years, we've done very well at running the business the way we are, and we continue to do that.

是的。我認為要看的另一件事是——不僅要看庫存本身，還要看比率。庫存繼續處於 - 上面的狀態，這是您想要看到的，當年齡很高時，我們的庫存比 PLO 還多。這不是經營企業的方式。我們發現，在過去四、五年裡，我們一直以現有的方式經營業務，並且做得非常好，而且我們還會繼續這樣做。

So very excited about the future as we continue to improve sales. I talked about a little bit in the call about other things that we're focused on for the next quarter about we're going to increase some promotions. We're going to increase some incentives for team members to drive more sales because we do want to do that. But we don't see this as a major issue in the business right now.

隨著銷售額的不斷提高，我們對未來感到非常興奮。我在電話會議中談到了我們下個季度關注的其他事情，我們將增加一些促銷活動。我們將增加一些激勵措施，以鼓勵團隊成員推動更多銷售，因為我們確實想這樣做。但我們現在並不認為這是業務中的主要問題。

(Operator Instructions) Kyle Joseph, Stephens.

（操作員指示）凱爾·約瑟夫，史蒂芬斯。

Nice quarter. Just piggyback off that last one, but just focusing on the US on the margin. Obviously, it's been strong. But just weighing -- inventory was obviously up, but it sounds like a portion of that is attributable to purchases, which obviously support your margins.

不錯的季度。只是搭上最後一個，但只專注在美國的邊緣。顯然，它很強大。但只是權衡一下——庫存顯然增加了，但聽起來其中一部分歸因於購買，這顯然支持了你的利潤率。

So just kind of how do you expect that playing out over time? Not asking you to predict gold prices, but just more on the general merchandise side of things.

那麼，您認為隨著時間的推移，情況會如何發展？並不是要求您預測黃金價格，而只是更多地了解一般商品方面的情況。

Yes. Look, inventory is clearly up, but there are reasons for that. First is PLO growth, which is exactly what we want to see. So inventory clearly grows when PLO grows. As you said in Tim's comments, we also make the points that we are purchasing more.

是的。看起來，庫存顯然增加了，但這是有原因的。首先是 PLO 的成長，這正是我們希望看到的。因此，當 PLO 成長時，庫存顯然也會成長。正如您在蒂姆的評論中所說的那樣，我們也提出了購買更多產品的觀點。

And then you've also got layaway growth. So for very good reasons, our inventory is up. Turns are down, however. And so as Tim said, we want more sales and more turns. And so we've got incentives, and we're going to spend more in marketing dollars on driving those sales.

然後你還會獲得分期付款的成長。因此，出於非常充分的理由，我們的庫存增加了。然而，回報卻下降了。正如提姆所說，我們希望有更高的銷售量和更高的周轉率。因此，我們採取了激勵措施，並將投入更多的行銷資金來推動銷售。

But I think in terms of -- as Tim just said, in terms of whether inventory is an issue, I do not think that this is a major strategic issue for EZCORP. It is growing for good reason, yet it is an opportunity to sell more. In terms of margin, Tim, do you want to comment on that?

但我認為——正如蒂姆剛才所說，就庫存是否是一個問題而言，我不認為這是 EZCORP 的重大戰略問題。它的成長是有充分理由的，但這也是一個增加銷售的機會。關於利潤，蒂姆，你想對此發表評論嗎？

Yes. I think just going back to purchases as well, the majority of purchases of the increase is really coming from jewelry and gold. People are coming into our store and not necessarily getting a loan on that gold, but actually selling that gold based on where the gold prices are. So you ask questions about not going to guess where gold is, but gold is some of the reason that this is occurring. So that plays into this margin as we go forward.

是的。我認為回到購買問題，購買量增長的大部分實際上來自珠寶和黃金。人們來到我們的商店並不一定是為了獲得黃金貸款，而實際上是根據黃金價格出售黃金。所以你問的問題不是去猜測黃金在哪裡，但黃金是發生這種情況的原因之一。因此，隨著我們不斷前進，這將發揮這一優勢。

But we continue to improve pricing at the counter on how much we lend on both -- going back to the GM, on the GM items, -- and as we get -- as that improves, we loan better. And as that happens, we also be able to sell better, which helps -- which does help margins.

但是，我們繼續在櫃檯上提高定價，以確定我們對通用汽車和通用汽車產品的貸款額度，隨著這種情況的改善，我們的貸款也會更好。這樣一來，我們的銷量也會更好，這確實有助於提高利潤率。

Got it. Very helpful. And then just shifting over to Latin America, just kind of hoping for a little bit of a market update there. Last year or in recent years, you've seen impacts of minimum wage increases, particularly in Mexico. In this quarter, it sounds like the redemption rate was really high, and it's never a bad thing to get paid back for a loan. But just talk about any sort of trends you've been seeing in those markets. And obviously, there's more than one market in that segment.

知道了。非常有幫助。然後轉向拉丁美洲，只是希望那裡的市場能夠有所更新。去年或近年來，您已經看到了最低工資上漲的影響，尤其是在墨西哥。本季度，贖回率似乎確實很高，而且償還貸款從來都不是壞事。但只需談論您在這些市場中看到的任何趨勢。顯然，該領域有多個市場。

That market has substantially increased in profitability, as you can see. So very excited about and continue to see more opportunities to improve the stores. We definitely focused when this team came together about 4 years ago, 4.5 years ago, we did focus on the US, driving where the dollars are, and we continually -- we continue to try and put best practices across all geographies. We continue to see those improvements coming through in Latin America. I think the big focus that we've been talking to about is in Mexico on the gold.

如您所見，該市場的盈利能力已大幅提高。因此非常興奮並繼續看到更多改善商店的機會。當這個團隊在大約 4 年前或 4.5 年前組建時，我們確實把重點放在了美國，關注美元所在的地方，並且我們不斷地——我們繼續嘗試在所有地區推行最佳實踐。我們繼續看到拉丁美洲正在取得這些進步。我認為我們討論的焦點是墨西哥的黃金。

You can see that we continue to increase the gold PLO, which continues to be a great driver of the business, including, obviously, the gold price increasing at the same time has definitely helped us.

您可以看到，我們繼續增加黃金 PLO，這繼續成為業務的巨大推動力，顯然，同時，黃金價格的上漲也對我們有所幫助。

And I think, Kyle, you can see on the inventory side, I think one of the analysts raised an issue last quarter that inventory was growing too quickly in Latin America. You can see this quarter how quickly you can fix that. You can see 19% sales growth on a same-store basis in Latin America and inventory coming right back into balance. So I think they're demonstrating down there that their operating practices have improved significantly, and you can see how quickly you can bring the business back into balance. So I think it's a super exciting region.

凱爾，我認為，從庫存方面來看，我認為上個季度一位分析師提出了一個問題，即拉丁美洲的庫存成長過快。本季你就能看出解決這個問題的速度有多快。您可以看到拉丁美洲同店銷售額成長了 19%，庫存也恢復了平衡。所以我認為他們在那裡證明他們的營運實踐已經有了顯著改善，你可以看到他們可以多快地讓業務恢復平衡。所以我認為這是一個非常令人興奮的地區。

As you say, we're in a bunch of different countries, but we're obviously the market leader in Guatemala by far, and that business is doing very well, but I'm particularly excited about the Mexican opportunity as well.

正如你所說，我們的業務遍及許多不同的國家，但我們顯然是危地馬拉市場的領導者，而且業務發展得很好，但我對墨西哥的機會也特別興奮。

(Operator Instructions) Raj Sharma, Texas Capital Bank.

（操作員指示）Raj Sharma，德克薩斯資本銀行。

Solid results. Congratulations. I just wanted to understand -- I know you've already addressed this. The pipeline of acquisitions you say stays robust. Is it fair to assume you're focused more on LatAm or international rather than the US?

可靠的結果。恭喜。我只是想了解一下——我知道你已經解決了這個問題。您所說的收購管道依然強勁。是否可以假設您更關注拉丁美洲或國際市場而不是美國市場？

And then any size you're likely to do or one you wouldn't do? So related questions on capital return would be -- the shareholders would be a priority? And are dividends more in the cards or not? Could you give some color on that, please, clarify.

那麼，您可能會做哪種尺寸，或者您不會做哪種尺寸？那麼有關資本回報的相關問題是──股東是優先考慮的嗎？是否有可能發放更多股息？請您對此作出一些解釋，澄清一下。

Yes, of course. So let me start on the acquisition side. So in terms of which region, we've spoken about SMG already. That's -- that's clearly a large opportunity for us that straddles both the US and Latin America.

是的當然。那麼就讓我從收購方面開始吧。因此，就哪個地區而言，我們已經討論過 SMG 了。這對我們來說顯然是一個橫跨美國和拉丁美洲的巨大機會。

So that's the third largest pawn broker in the region in which we operate, which I've already discussed. So that's clearly an opportunity. And then in terms of size, look, we look at everything, right? So this quarter, we did three, one store acquisitions in the US. So we're looking at everything from one store to much bigger chains in Mexico.

這是我們經營所在地區的第三大典當經紀商，我之前已經討論過這一點。所以這顯然是一個機會。然後就尺寸而言，看，我們看看一切，對吧？因此本季度，我們在美國進行了三次單店收購。因此，我們正在考察墨西哥的所有商店，從一家商店到更大的連鎖店。

And we've got the Max Pawn business, too. We bought a pawn shop in Miami Beach this quarter. It's the only pawn shop in Miami Beach. It's relatively small in terms of size, but we're really, really excited about that opportunity. It's the first time we've done anything in the luxury category outside of Las Vegas.

我們還有 Max Pawn 業務。本季我們在邁阿密海灘買了一家當舖。這是邁阿密海灘唯一的當舖。就規模而言，它相對較小，但我們對這個機會感到非常興奮。這是我們第一次在拉斯維加斯以外的地方開展奢華項目。

So we're going to see how that one goes, but we're excited by that. But in Latin America, you've got everything from one store to many chains that are over 100 stores. So I think it's a pretty balanced view of the markets that we're already in. We're looking -- absolutely, we look at new markets, of course. I think there's just so much to do in our existing markets.

所以我們會看看事情進展如何，但我們對此感到興奮。但在拉丁美洲，從一家商店到擁有 100 多家商店的連鎖店，應有盡有。所以我認為這是對我們已經進入的市場的一個相當平衡的看法。我們正在尋找——當然，我們也在尋找新的市場。我認為在我們現有的市場上還有很多事情要做。

So I think you'll -- I think it's pretty balanced between the US and Latin America. In terms of your last question on dividends, look, obviously, you can never say never because I think a Board of Directors has to consistently look at its capital allocation alternatives. But in terms of the dividend, I think it's back to that same thing I said earlier, which is the size of our opportunity is so large and that I think we're actually under -- the naked eye sees how much cash we've got, but I think we're actually undercapitalized for our mission. So I wouldn't expect to see any dividends, notwithstanding that the Board is always considering that.

所以我認為——美國和拉丁美洲之間的平衡相當大。關於你關於股利的最後一個問題，顯然，你永遠不能說永遠，因為我認為董事會必須持續關注其資本配​​置替代方案。但就股息而言，我認為這又回到了我之前所說的那件事，那就是我們的機會如此之大，而且我認為我們實際上還處於——肉眼可見我們有多少現金，但我認為我們實際上沒有足夠的資金來完成我們的使命。因此，儘管董事會一直在考慮這一點，但我並不期望看到任何股息。

But I think we're going to put our capital into high-return scale opportunities across the world in pawn broking because I think scale as our competitor has shown is the main game because I mean your corporate costs don't have to materially change as you scale. And so more stores means more EBITDA and more EBITDA margin. And with the opportunity set that we've got, I think that's where we're going to put our capital.

但我認為我們將把資本投入到世界各地典當業的高回報規模機會中，因為我認為，正如我們的競爭對手所表明的那樣，規模才是主要因素，因為我的意思是，隨著規模的擴大，企業成本不必發生實質性變化。因此，更多的商店意味著更多的 EBITDA 和更多的 EBITDA 利潤率。有了這樣的機會，我想我們就會把資金投入那裡。

Got it. And just a follow-on. The retail gross margins are up nicely in the US, they're down in LatAm. Any color there as to the reason? Does it -- and also, are your LTVs getting impacted in the business where the retail margins are up?

知道了。這只是後續。美國零售毛利率大幅上升，而拉丁美洲則有所下降。有什麼原因嗎？是嗎？而且，當零售利潤率上升時，您的 LTV 是否會受到影響？

Tim, do you want to take that?

提姆，你想接受這個嗎？

Yes. So we definitely -- yes, we're definitely moving LTVs all the time. We're looking at how much things are selling for, how much consumers are negotiating. And so we continually move -- we have a whole team that continually monitors every category and moves the prices and therefore, the LTVs on what we lend. So that -- because we have 30- to 90-day loans, we can affect what we do very quickly.

是的。所以我們肯定——是的，我們肯定一直在改變 LTV。我們正在關注商品的售價以及消費者的議價能力。因此，我們不斷調整——我們有一個完整的團隊，持續監控每個類別並調整價格，從而調整我們所借貸款的 LTV。因此——因為我們有 30 到 90 天的貸款，所以我們可以非常快速地影響我們的工作。

So that has helped -- that's some of the reasons that's helped the margins in the US. But obviously, gold and gold price as well is also affecting things. In Mexico, yes, it does move around a little bit as we go along some quarters, consumers are pushing a lot harder on negotiating and other quarters are a little bit easier. But no -- still running at relatively the same kind of margins as we've run before. So I think nothing unusual.

所以這有幫助——這也是幫助美國提高利潤率的一些原因。但顯然，黃金和黃金價格也對局勢產生了影響。在墨西哥，是的，情況確實有所變化，在某些方面，消費者在談判中更加努力，而在其他方面則稍微容易一些。但事實並非如此——我們仍然以與以前相對相同的利潤率運行。所以我認為沒什麼不尋常的。

Got it. And then just lastly, obviously, a lot of the performance seems to be driven by the rise in gold prices. And is there any -- can you comment on any thoughts on the sensitivity of the scrapping revenues to changes in gold prices, given gold had such a climb, if gold was to stabilize or go down, would -- do you think it seems to impact your operations?

知道了。最後，顯然，許多業績表現似乎是受到金價上漲的推動。而且，您能否評論一下報廢收入對金價變化的敏感性，考慮到金價如此上漲，如果金價穩定或下跌，您認為這會影響您的營運嗎？

Yes, gold price is -- so it depends on when we increase the -- how much we lend on gold is really the effect that really has on the short term, and that's really on -- and scrap is really the only -- the real short-term number there. So margins on scrap, if gold stays steady in FY26, we're not going to see the margins that we're making on scrap as we have in the last quarter.

是的，黃金價格是 - 所以這取決於我們何時增加 - 我們為黃金提供的貸款金額實際上對短期產生影響，而這實際上 - 廢料實際上是唯一的 - 真正的短期數字。因此，如果黃金在 26 財年保持穩定，廢料的利潤率將不會像上一季那樣。

But consumers do have a need for cash. And if they need $200 of cash today and they can bring in one gold chain and next week, they still need $200 of cash, but the gold chain is only worth $100, they're going to find another item in their house to get to $200. So there's -- you can't just take gold by itself and apply it across the business because there's a demand for cash that needs to be met. It doesn't matter what the gold price is.

但消費者確實需要現金。如果他們今天需要 200 美元現金，他們可以帶一條金鍊子來，而下週他們仍然需要 200 美元現金，但這條金鍊子只值 100 美元，他們就會在家裡找另一件物品來湊足 200 美元。因此，你不能僅僅把黃金單獨應用到整個業務中，因為需要滿足現金需求。黃金價格是多少並不重要。

Got it. So that's very helpful. And just lastly, LatAm is growing really nicely, but your competitors can't seem to grow that segment that much. Any comments on the gap?

知道了。這非常有幫助。最後，拉丁美洲地區發展確實很好，但您的競爭對手似乎無法在該領域取得如此大的成長。對於差距有什麼評論嗎？

I think everyone is growing pretty well in Mexico and the rest of Latin America. I think it's a very attractive market. It's a very large proportion of consumers don't have access to a bank. And so on broking is part of the kind of financial fabric of society. So it's a very well-accepted form of consumer credit in Mexico and beyond.

我認為墨西哥和拉丁美洲其他地區的每個人都發展得很好。我認為這是一個非常有吸引力的市場。很大一部分消費者無法獲得銀行服務。因此，經紀業務是社會金融結構的一部分。因此，它是墨西哥及其他地區非常流行的消費信貸形式。

So look, I think it's -- as I said earlier, we think that the size of the de novo opportunity is very large. There is a huge acquisition pipeline in that region. And I think as we -- as our training and development programs improve, we're teaching our teams in -- particularly in Mexico, how to be better negotiators at the counter and how to do better on jewelry. And I think even the organic growth opportunity is still very significant as well. So look, we look at acquisitions down there a lot, obviously, and most of them are growing pretty well.

所以，我認為——正如我之前所說，我們認為從頭開始創造的機會規模非常大。該地區有大量的收購管道。我認為，隨著我們的培訓和發展計劃的改進，我們正在教導我們的團隊，特別是在墨西哥，如何在櫃檯上更好地談判，以及如何在珠寶方面做得更好。我認為有機成長機會仍然非常重要。所以，我們顯然經常關注那裡的收購，其中大多數都發展得相當好。

So I think it's an industry that's growing. It is a large part of society in -- particularly in Mexico and Guatemala. You've seen three quarters in a row of pretty phenomenal growth, and we're excited about what we can still do.

所以我認為這是一個正在成長的行業。它是社會的重要組成部分——特別是在墨西哥和危地馬拉。您已經看到連續三個季度的驚人成長，我們對我們仍然可以做的事情感到興奮。

(Operator Instructions) Andrew Scutt, ROTH Capital Partners.

（操作員指示）Roth Capital Partners 的 Andrew Scutt。

Congrats on the strong results. A lot of my questions have been answered. So kind of a high-level one for me here. You guys posted another strong quarter across kind of growth metrics for your digitization efforts. Kind of where in the journey would you say you are for digitizing your storefronts?

恭喜您取得如此優異的成績。我的許多疑問都得到了解答。對我來說，這是一種高水準的。你們的數位化工作又取得了一系列強勁的成長指標。您認為您的店面數位化進度進展到哪一步了？

And then secondly, maybe more importantly, how is that kind of allowing in-store management to increase their operational efficiencies across the stores?

其次，也許更重要的是，這如何讓店內管理提高整個商店的營運效率？

Andrew, it's a good question. I would say in terms of where we're at on digitization is that we are still notwithstanding three years of work -- two or three years of work on the rewards program, I still think we're early. We're only just now rolling out our browse online pick up in store program to all of our US stores. So that's only sort of just happened where you can look at all of our inventory online.

安德魯，這是個好問題。我想說，就我們在數位化方面的進展而言，儘管我們花了三年時間——在獎勵計劃上花了兩三年——但我仍然認為我們還處於早期階段。我們現在才剛在美國所有商店推出線上瀏覽店內取貨計劃。所以這只是剛剛發生的事情，您可以在線查看我們所有的庫存。

You still have to go into a store to buy it. That's only just happened. We've got -- and that's just the US only. And then we've got this Instant Quote tool that I mentioned earlier, where you can get a quote -- an initial quote online for a product that you want to pawn.

您仍然需要去商店購買它。那隻是剛剛發生的事。我們已經得到了——而且這還只是在美國。然後我們有了我之前提到的即時報價工具，您可以透過它獲得報價——您想要典當的產品的初步在線報價。

So I think -- and that's only being tested in San Antonio. So while we've got the EZ app that's been out there for a while, I would say to you, it's still quite early. The good news for EZCORP shareholders is that pawn broking is still fundamentally a store-based business. I think online pawn broking is hard because you really do need that physical product to be stored in the store in order to be paid back. So I think we are fundamentally a physical business with digital channels that support that.

所以我認為——而且這只是在聖安東尼奧進行測試。因此，雖然我們的 EZ 應用程式已經推出一段時間了，但我想說，現在還為時過早。對於 EZCORP 股東來說，好消息是當鋪從根本上仍然是以商店為基礎的業務。我認為網路典當很難，因為你確實需要將實體產品存放在商店中才能償還。所以我認為我們從根本上來說是一家實體企業，但有數位管道來支持它。

So I think to your question on how does it support the team, look, we've got online extensions and online payments that absolutely help our store teams so that they get off the phone and can help customers with a loan or can help them with a sale. So I think those digital alternatives are growing so fast and are really helpful for our store teams. I think the rewards program is digital, and that gives our store teams a great conversation tool to talk about their rewards points. So look, I think the digital program is absolutely helping our store staff, but I would say it's still quite early.

所以我認為對於你關於它如何支持團隊的問題，你看，我們有在線擴展和在線支付，這絕對可以幫助我們的商店團隊，這樣他們就可以不用打電話就可以幫助客戶貸款或幫助他們銷售。所以我認為這些數位替代品發展得非常快，對我們的商店團隊真的很有幫助。我認為獎勵計劃是數位化的，這為我們的商店團隊提供了一個很好的對話工具來討論他們的獎勵積分。所以，我認為數位化計畫絕對有助於我們的店員，但我認為現在還為時過早。

And if we look at it from a global perspective, we started quite a lot in the US and the US is early, but in Latin America, we've done -- we've rolled out extension layaways in Mexico, but it's not in the rest of the countries yet. So this is really infancy in other countries that we operate. And so we're very excited about that opportunity.

如果我們從全球角度來看，我們在美國起步較早，但在拉丁美洲，我們已經在墨西哥推出了延期分期付款服務，但尚未在其他國家推出。因此，在我們開展業務的其他國家，這確實還處於起步階段。因此我們對這個機會感到非常興奮。

I would say that some -- we think some of the reason that the layaway programs have been so successful for us and continue to grow is because we give the customers the ability to just to pay that online. They don't have to come into in-store. And so if you're paying something over 10 months, and it's your decision whether or not to pay, you can just do it online and press a button. You don't have to come to a store. And I think that's really helped our layaway program grow.

我想說的是——我們認為分期付款計劃之所以如此成功並且持續增長，部分原因是我們讓客戶能夠在線支付。他們不必進店。因此，如果您要支付 10 個月以上的費用，並且由您決定是否付款，您只需在線完成並按下按鈕即可。您不必來商店。我認為這確實有助於我們的分期付款計劃的發展。

I'm not showing any further questions at this time. I'd like to turn the call back over to Lachie for any further remarks.

我目前沒有其他問題。我想將電話轉回給 Lachie，以便他發表進一步的評論。

Look, thank you, everyone, for joining the call. Again, I think this is -- it's been a phenomenal quarter, which showcases what this platform can achieve. So I'm very grateful to our team for delivering such a strong quarter, and we're excited about where we go from here. So thanks, everyone, for joining, and I'm sure we're going to talk to a lot of you through the course of today and tomorrow in the next few days. So thanks for joining, and we'll talk soon.

瞧，謝謝大家參加電話會議。再次，我認為這是一個非凡的季度，展示了這個平台可以取得的成就。因此，我非常感謝我們的團隊在本季取得如此強勁的業績，我們對未來的發展充滿期待。所以，感謝大家的參與，我相信我們將在今天和明天以及接下來的幾天與你們中的許多人進行交談。感謝您的加入，我們很快會再聊。

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, this does conclude today's presentation. You may now disconnect, and have a wonderful day.

謝謝。女士們、先生們，今天的演講到此結束。現在您可以斷開連接，享受美好的一天。