CGI Inc (GIB) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good morning ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to CGI's third quarter fiscal 2024 conference call. I’d now like to turn the meeting over to Mr. Kevin Linder, SVP of Investor Relations. Please go ahead, Mr. Linder.

女士們先生們早安。歡迎參加 CGI 2024 財年第三季電話會議。我現在想將會議交給投資者關係資深副總裁 Kevin Linder 先生。請繼續，林德先生。

Thank you, Julie and good morning. With me to discuss CGI's third quarter fiscal 2024 results are George Schindler, our President and CEO and Steve Perron, Executive Vice President and CFO. This call is being broadcast on cgi.com and recorded live at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. Supplemental slides as well as the press release we issued earlier this morning are available for download, along with our Q3 MD&A, financial statements and accompanying notes, all of which have been filed with both SEDAR+ and EDGAR.

謝謝你，朱莉，早安。與我一起討論 CGI 2024 財年第三季業績的有我們的總裁兼執行長 George Schindler 和執行副總裁兼財務長 Steve Perron。本次電話會議將在 cgi.com 上播出，並於東部時間 2024 年 7 月 31 日星期三上午 9:00 進行現場錄製。我們今天早上早些時候發布的補充幻燈片和新聞稿以及我們的第三季度 MD&A、財務報表和隨附說明均可下載，所有這些都已向 SEDAR+ 和 EDGAR 提交。

Please note that some statements made on the call may be forward-looking. Actual events or results may differ materially from those expressed or implied, and CGI disclaims any intent or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The complete Safe Harbor statement is available in both our MD&A and press release as well as on cgi.com.

請注意，電話會議中所做的一些陳述可能具有前瞻性。實際事件或結果可能與明示或暗示的事件或結果有重大差異，CGI 不承擔任何更新或修改任何前瞻性陳述的意圖或義務，無論是由於新資訊、未來事件或其他原因。完整的安全港聲明可在我們的 MD&A 和新聞稿以及 cgi.com 上找到。

We recommend our investors read it in its entirety. We are reporting our financial results in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards or IFRS. As always, we will also discuss non-GAAP performance measures, which should be viewed as supplemental. The MD&A contains definitions of each one used in our reporting. All of the dollar figures expressed on this call are Canadian, unless otherwise noted.

我們建議投資人閱讀全文。我們根據國際財務報告準則或國際財務報告準則報告我們的財務表現。像往常一樣，我們還將討論非 GAAP 績效指標，這應被視為補充。MD&A 包含我們報告中使用的每一項的定義。除非另有說明，本次電話會議中所使用的所有美元數字均為加幣數字。

I'll now turn it over to Steve to review our Q3 financials and then George will comment on our business and market outlook. Steve?

我現在將把它交給史蒂夫來審查我們第三季度的財務狀況，然後喬治將對我們的業務和市場前景發表評論。史蒂夫？

Thank you Kevin and good morning everyone. I'm pleased to share with you the results of our third quarter of fiscal 2024. In Q3 we delivered $3.7 billion of revenue up 1.3% year-over-year or up 0.2% when excluding the impact of foreign exchange. The strongest CGI segments were Northwest and Central East Europe at 10% constant currency growth; Asia Pacific at 5.4%; Finland, Poland and Baltics at 3.2%; and US commercial and state government at 2%.

謝謝凱文，大家早安。我很高興與您分享 2024 財年第三季的業績。第三季度，我們實現了 37 億美元的收入，年增 1.3%，排除外匯影響則成長 0.2%。最強勁的 CGI 細分市場是西北歐和中東歐，貨幣恆定成長率為 10%；亞太地區為 5.4%；芬蘭、波蘭和波羅的海國家為 3.2%；美國商業和州政府為 2%。

From an industry perspective, we continue to have the highest growth in government representing 4.1% constant currency growth this quarter. This was followed by manufacturing, retail and distribution at 2.2%, driven primarily from North America. We continue to experience softness in certain verticals within regions such as financial services and communication in both Western and Southern Europe and North America.

從產業角度來看，我們繼續擁有最高的政府成長率，即本季 4.1% 的恆定貨幣成長率。其次是製造、零售和分銷，成長 2.2%，主要來自北美。我們在西歐、南歐和北美的金融服務和通訊等地區的某些垂直領域繼續經歷疲軟。

Our IP grew at a faster pace with 5.2% constant currency growth in the quarter. As a percentage of total revenue IP represents 22.5%, up 120 basis points year-over-year. Bookings in the quarter were strong at $4.3 billion led by managed services and IP wins.

我們的 IP 成長速度更快，本季貨幣恆定成長率為 5.2%。IP佔總營收的比例為22.5%，較去年成長120個基點。本季的預訂量強勁，達到 43 億美元，其中託管服務和 IP 訂單占主導地位。

Our book-to-bill ratio in the quarter was 117% and were strongest in US federal at 209%, UK and Australia at 153% and Western and Southern Europe at 123%. On a trailing 12-month basis, book-to-bill was 112% with 118% in managed services and 104% in SI&C. Global backlog reached $27.6 billion or 1.9 times revenue, reflecting our overall business resilience.

本季我們的訂單出貨比為 117%，其中美國聯邦最高，為 209%，英國和澳洲為 153%，西歐和南歐為 123%。在過去 12 個月的基礎上，訂單出貨率為 112%，其中託管服務為 118%，SI&C 為 104%。全球積壓訂單達到 276 億美元，即營收的 1.9 倍，反映了我們的整體業務彈性。

Turning to profitability. Our performance this quarter once again demonstrated our operating discipline in navigating the ongoing dynamic macro environment. Earnings before income taxes were $594 million for a margin of 16.2% up 80 basis points year-over-year. Adjusted EBIT in the quarter was $603 million representing a margin of 16.4% up 30 basis points year-over-year. This is mainly a result of our improved mix of business and the benefits realized from our cost optimization program completed last quarter.

轉向盈利能力。我們本季的業績再次證明了我們在持續動態的宏觀環境中的營運紀律。所得稅前利潤為 5.94 億美元，利潤率為 16.2%，年增 80 個基點。本季調整後息稅前利潤為 6.03 億美元，利潤率為 16.4%，年增 30 個基點。這主要是由於我們改進了業務組合以及上季度完成的成本優化計劃所帶來的好處。

We had strong margin in the five following segments: Asia Pacific at 31%, Canada at 22%, US Federal and Finland, Poland and Baltics both at 17%, and UK and Australia at 16%. Our effective tax rate in the quarter was 25.9%, and we expect our tax rate for future quarters to be in the range of 25% to 26.5%. Net earnings were $440 million for a margin of 12%, up 50 basis points year-over-year. Diluted EPS was $1.91 representing an increase of 9% year-over-year. When excluding specific items, net earnings were $440 million. This represents a margin of 12%, up 30 basis points year-over-year.

我們在以下五個細分市場的利潤率很高：亞太地區為 31%，加拿大為 22%，美國聯邦和芬蘭、波蘭和波羅的海國家均為 17%，英國和澳洲為 16%。我們本季的有效稅率為 25.9%，我們預計未來幾季的稅率將在 25% 至 26.5% 的範圍內。淨利潤為 4.4 億美元，利潤率為 12%，年成長 50 個基點。稀釋後每股收益為 1.91 美元，較去年同期成長 9%。排除特定項目後，淨利潤為 4.4 億美元。這意味著利潤率為 12%，年比上升 30 個基點。

On the same basis, diluted EPS was $1.91, an accretion of 6% when compared to Q3 last year. In the quarter, cash provided by operating activities was $497 million representing 13.5% of total revenue. On a trailing 12-month basis, cash provided by operating activities was $2.2 billion up 12% year-over-year, representing 15.2% of total revenue. DSO was 42 days in the quarter, two days better than last year.

在同一基礎上，稀釋後每股收益為 1.91 美元，較去年第三季成長 6%。本季度，經營活動提供的現金為 4.97 億美元，佔總收入的 13.5%。過去 12 個月，經營活動提供的現金為 22 億美元，年增 12%，佔總營收的 15.2%。本季 DSO 為 42 天，比去年增加了兩天。

In Q3, we used our cash to invest $91 million into our business and invest $499 million to buy back our stock. Subsequent to the quarter, we announced two strategic acquisitions. In Canada, we acquired Celero's business serving credit unions, which consists of managed services, core and digital banking and related IT services. In the US, we announced yesterday that we entered into a definitive agreement to purchase a leader in digital transformation for the US federal government. Both mergers, these two acquisitions would add 875 consultants and professionals to CGI.

第三季度，我們用現金向我們的業務投資了 9,100 萬美元，並投資 4.99 億美元回購我們的股票。本季結束後，我們宣布了兩項策略收購。在加拿大，我們收購了 Celero 為信用合作社提供服務的業務，其中包括託管服務、核心和數位銀行以及相關 IT 服務。在美國，我們昨天宣布達成一項最終協議，為美國聯邦政府收購數位轉型領域的領導者。這兩筆收購將為 CGI 增加 875 名顧問和專業人員。

In the quarter, we continue to deliver a strong return on invested capital at 16.1%, up 40 basis points year-over-year demonstrating our proficiency and discipline on deployment of capital. At the end of the quarter, CGI had $2.7 billion of cash readily available and access to more if needed. As part of our profitable growth strategy, CGI capital allocation priorities are primarily focused on investing back in the business and pursuing accretive acquisitions.

本季度，我們繼續實現 16.1% 的強勁投資資本回報率，年增 40 個基點，證明了我們在資本部署方面的熟練程度和紀律。截至本季末，CGI 擁有 27 億美元的可用現金，並在需要時可以獲得更多現金。作為我們獲利成長策略的一部分，CGI 資本配置的優先事項主要集中在業務投資和增值收購。

Additionally, the company has the flexibility to use a portion of its free cash for the repurchase of its stock. As announced this morning, CGI Board of Directors has approved a dividend program under which the company intends to pay a quarterly cash dividend of $0.15 per share starting in the first quarter of fiscal 2025. The initiation of this program represents an additional mechanism to return value to our shareholders while continuing to maintain our financial flexibility to invest in our build and buy profitable growth strategy.

此外，該公司還可以靈活地使用部分自由現金來回購股票。正如今天上午宣布的那樣，CGI 董事會已批准一項股息計劃，根據該計劃，該公司打算從 2025 財年第一季開始支付每股 0.15 美元的季度現金股息。該計劃的啟動代表了一種額外的機制，可以為我們的股東回報價值，同時繼續保持我們的財務靈活性，以投資於我們的構建和購買盈利增長戰略。

Now I will turn the call over to George to further discuss the insights on the quarter and outlook for our business and markets. George?

現在我將把電話轉給喬治，進一步討論對本季的見解以及我們業務和市場的前景。喬治？

Thank you Steve and good morning everyone. Our team delivered third quarter results that again reflect the disciplined execution of our plan to be a partner and expert of choice for our clients and employer of choice for our consultants and professionals and investment of choice to deliver shareholder value.

謝謝史蒂夫，大家早安。我們的團隊交付的第三季業績再次反映了我們計劃的嚴格執行，即成為客戶的首選合作夥伴和專家、顧問和專業人士的首選雇主以及交付股東價值的首選投資。

In the quarter, we continued to proactively manage the fundamentals of our business. We delivered sustained margin expansion and EPS accretion, driven by the continued diversification of our business mix through growth of recurring revenue.

本季度，我們繼續積極管理業務的基本面。在經常性收入成長帶來的業務組合持續多元化的推動下，我們實現了持續的利潤率擴張和每股收益成長。

Importantly, our operational excellence actions continue to contribute to our strong earnings. Our cash from operations increased up 21% year-over-year on the strength of quality and client delivery. And as anticipated, our revenue growth and overall bookings in the quarter continue to be largely comprised of managed services and IP engagements which help clients accelerate cost savings and progress business transformation.

重要的是，我們的卓越營運行動持續為我們帶來強勁的收益。憑藉品質和客戶交付的優勢，我們的營運現金年增 21%。正如預期的那樣，我們本季的營收成長和整體預訂量繼續主要由託管服務和 IP 業務組成，這有助於客戶加速成本節約並推進業務轉型。

As such, constant currency revenue growth in IT-based services was up 5.2% year-over-year and managed services revenue was up 1.5%, offset by continued softness in systems integration and consulting.

因此，基於 IT 的服務的固定貨幣收入年增 5.2%，託管服務收入增長 1.5%，但被系統整合和諮詢的持續疲軟所抵消。

And bookings were $4.3 billion with a managed services book-to-bill of 139% and an IP book-to-bill of 129%, both of which were largely driven by government sector awards. In fact, government sector wins comprise just over half of total Q3 bookings with a book-to-bill of 164%. More clients prioritize the services and solutions necessary to implement current mission objectives and embed flexibility to support evolving policies, all in mind with the natural cycle of government.

預訂額為 43 億美元，其中管理服務預訂比為 139%，IP 預訂比為 129%，這兩者主要是由政府部門獎項推動的。事實上，政府部門的訂單佔第三季總預訂量的一半以上，預訂率達 164%。更多的客戶優先考慮實現當前任務目標所需的服務和解決方案，並嵌入靈活性以支援不斷變化的政策，所有這些都考慮到政府的自然週期。

CGI's IP solutions were at the core of driving the strong government bookings, as clients increasingly turn to CGI's proven industry-specific IP solutions to raise the operational efficiency while also gaining benefits from embedded security and innovation, including AI. In the quarter, we continued to see clients exercising caution in their spending on stand-alone consulting and system integration projects. As an end-to-end services provider with strong managed services relationships and market-leading intellectual property, our bookings in the quarter are reflective of our positioning for continued strong client interest in managed services and software-as-a-service.

CGI 的 IP 解決方案是推動政府預訂強勁的核心，因為客戶越來越多地轉向 CGI 成熟的行業特定 IP 解決方案來提高營運效率，同時從嵌入式安全和創新（包括人工智慧）中獲益。在本季度，我們繼續看到客戶在獨立諮詢和系統整合專案上的支出保持謹慎。作為一家擁有強大的託管服務關係和市場領先知識產權的端到端服務提供商，我們本季的預訂量反映了我們的定位，即客戶對託管服務和軟體即服務持續強烈的興趣。

For example, Michelin selected CGI to deliver an open and green IT ecosystem to enable business innovation and support enterprise-wide digital transformation. CGI will deliver a range of IT modernization services, including use of AI technologies through a mix of proximity teams in France and the US as well as global delivery teams in India and Morocco.

例如，米其林選擇CGI來提供開放、綠色的IT生態系統，以實現業務創新並支援企業範圍內的數位轉型。CGI 將提供一系列 IT 現代化服務，包括透過法國和美國的近距離團隊以及印度和摩洛哥的全球交付團隊使用人工智慧技術。

The US Department of State's Bureau of Affairs extended its relationship with CGI through a USD378 million award.

美國國務院事務局透過提供 3.78 億美元的獎勵擴大了與 CGI 的關係。

Under this award, we will deliver end-to-end passport application processing services in support of the issuance of more than 21 million passports and travel documents annually. Several local governments in Finland named CGI, as their partner for transforming health care service delivery through CGI's Omni 360 Patient Information platform. This will also create a foundation for broader use of AI in health care system.

根據該獎項，我們將提供端到端護照申請處理服務，支援每年簽發超過 2,100 萬份護照和旅行證件。芬蘭的幾個地方政府指定 CGI 作為合作夥伴，透過 CGI 的 Omni 360 病患資訊平台轉變醫療保健服務的提供方式。這也將為人工智慧在醫療保健系統中更廣泛的應用奠定基礎。

Harley-Davidson Financial Services selected CGI for a new engagement to modernize the company's loan origination system, replacing disparate IT platforms with a unified CGI credit studio solution. Under this agreement, CGI will deliver an AI-enabled platform that introduces greater flexibility for dealers and an intuitive buyer experience. The French Ministry of Justice extended its partnership with CGI to drive the modernization of its HR system. Our consultants will leverage their industry knowledge, as well as their expertise in SAP to implement a new platform and transform key processes.

哈雷戴維森金融服務公司選擇 CGI 進行新的合作，以實現公司貸款發放系統的現代化，以統一的 CGI 信貸工作室解決方案取代不同的 IT 平台。根據該協議，CGI 將提供一個人工智慧平台，為經銷商帶來更大的靈活性和直覺的買家體驗。法國司法部擴大了與 CGI 的合作夥伴關係，以推動其人力資源系統的現代化。我們的顧問將利用他們的行業知識以及 SAP 方面的專業知識來實施新平台並轉變關鍵流程。

And a major North American bank selected CGI to modernize its wire room, leveraging the CGI all payment solution, a modular and cloud-based platform. The solution will enable the bank to retire legacy systems, reduce operational costs and more easily adapt to new industry standards and regulatory requirements. Each of these examples are the types of recurring revenue engagements that serve as a base to enhance our resilience and stability of the fleet.

北美一家大型銀行選擇 CGI 對其電匯室進行現代化改造，利用 CGI 全支付解決方案（一個模組化的基於雲端的平台）。該解決方案將使銀行能夠淘汰舊系統、降低營運成本並更輕鬆地適應新的行業標準和監管要求。這些例子中的每一個都是經常性收入業務的類型，它們是增強我們機隊的彈性和穩定性的基礎。

CGI's third quarter results for the ongoing value that our talented consultants and professionals deliver for clients every day. In the quarter, we again saw rising levels of client satisfaction, notably for the innovation we bring to our engagements, including through the use of AI technologies.

CGI 第三季的業績歸功於我們才華橫溢的顧問和專業人員每天為客戶提供的持續價值。本季度，我們再次看到客戶滿意度不斷上升，特別是我們為業務帶來的創新，包括透過使用人工智慧技術。

I’d like to recognize CGI's 90,000 consultants and professionals for earning the trust of our clients. Through their expertise, insights and commitment they are helping clients around the world achieve tangible business and mission outcomes. This is particularly important given today's dynamic market conditions. Looking ahead now to the demand environment. We are starting to see some underlying signs of stability in the macro business environment. This is making it possible for our clients to begin solidifying their future plans.

我要感謝 CGI 的 90,000 名顧問和專業人員贏得了客戶的信任。透過他們的專業知識、洞察力和承諾，他們正在幫助世界各地的客戶實現實際的業務和使命成果。考慮到當今動態的市場狀況，這一點尤其重要。現在展望需求環境。我們開始看到宏觀商業環境出現一些穩定的潛在跡象。這使我們的客戶能夠開始鞏固他們的未來計劃。

For the past few months, we increasingly see differentiation in terms of pace and focus of key digitization investments by our clients. In short, each client is forging a unique path forward and is incumbent on partners to meet them where they are and devise the right combination of services and solutions to help them progress their individual business objectives. This evolution towards differentiated client needs matches well with CGI's greatest strengths, particularly our client relationship proximity model, our end-to-end portfolio of services and our global network and scale. While we do expect to see continuation and delays in the timing of decisions, particularly for stand-alone SI&C projects, client interest remains strong for the value proposition CGI can deliver through our end-to-end offerings. This positioning is validated by CGI's pipeline of opportunities over the next year.

在過去的幾個月裡，我們越來越多地看到客戶在關鍵數位化投資的速度和重點方面存在差異。簡而言之，每個客戶都在開闢一條獨特的前進道路，合作夥伴有責任滿足他們的需求，設計出正確的服務和解決方案組合，幫助他們實現各自的業務目標。這種向差異化客戶需求的演變與 CGI 的最大優勢相匹配，特別是我們的客戶關係鄰近模型、我們的端到端服務組合以及我們的全球網絡和規模。雖然我們確實預計決策時間會持續或延遲，特別是對於獨立的 SI&C 項目，但客戶對 CGI 可以透過我們的端到端產品提供的價值主張仍然抱有濃厚的興趣。CGI 明年的機會管道驗證了這個定位。

The IP pipeline is up from more than 15% year-over-year with significant increases in transport and logistics, manufacturing and energy. The managed services pipeline is up by more than 40% year-over-year with sharp increases in government, insurance, banking, manufacturing and retail. And the pipeline of SI&C opportunities across several commercial industry sectors is rising compared to this time last year. Importantly, we saw some green shoots in our third quarter results, further pointing to stabilization of the business environment.

IP管道年增超過15%，運輸和物流、製造和能源領域顯著增加。託管服務管道年增超過 40%，其中政府、保險、銀行、製造和零售領域大幅成長。與去年同期相比，多個商業行業領域的 SI&C 機會正在增加。重要的是，我們在第三季業績中看到了一些萌芽，進一步表明商業環境趨於穩定。

For example the number of total open billable positions picked up on a sequential quarter basis. CGI's utilization was also up on a sequential quarter basis, as we continue to align talent to those areas where we see growth, largely in the government and utility sectors and hires to support growth in Asia Pacific were up on a sequential quarter basis, as more commercial industry clients notably in banking, retail and manufacturing are leveraging CGI's offshore centers of excellence.

例如，連續季度獲得的未平倉可計費頭寸總數。CGI 的利用率也環比上升，因為我們繼續將人才分配到我們看到成長的領域，主要是政府和公用事業部門，並且支持亞太地區成長的招募人數環比上升，因為更多商業行業客戶，尤其是銀行、零售和製造業客戶正在利用CGI 的離岸卓越中心。

CGI continues to make targeted investments in our talent and our end-to-end services to best partner with clients, as they solidify and begin reaccelerating their digital initiatives. For example, we are enhancing our managed services delivery approach through the expansion of our CGI DigiOps platform, an integrated digital-first deliveries fleet. This platform delivers higher quality insights for faster client decision-making, better performance and system availability and cost savings for clients through the use of AI technologies.

隨著客戶鞏固並開始重新加速其數位化計劃，CGI 繼續對我們的人才和端到端服務進行有針對性的投資，以便與客戶建立最佳合作夥伴關係。例如，我們正在透過擴展 CGI DigiOps 平台（一個整合的數位優先交付車隊）來增強我們的託管服務交付方法。該平台透過使用人工智慧技術，為客戶提供更高品質的洞察，幫助他們更快地做出決策，提高效能和系統可用性，並為客戶節省成本。

For our SI&C services, we continue to invest in our emblematic offerings, methodologies and talent in areas such as business model transformation, change management, responsible use of AI and enterprise architecture. And we are accelerating the integration of generative AI into our IP solutions portfolio through our signature CGI Pulse AI platform which also enables clients to more easily integrate these new technologies into their existing and new base (ph).

對於我們的 SI&C 服務，我們繼續在商業模式轉型、變革管理、負責任地使用人工智慧和企業架構等領域投資於我們的標誌性產品、方法和人才。我們正在透過我們標誌性的 CGI Pulse AI 平台加速將生成式 AI 整合到我們的 IP 解決方案組合中，這也使客戶能夠更輕鬆地將這些新技術整合到他們現有和新的基礎中（ph）。

In line with the investment we announced last year and rising client interest, AI and GenAI technologies are increasingly integrated into our engagements. In Q3, the number of projects incorporating AI rose 20% on a sequential quarter basis. Third quarter bookings at integrated AI technologies remain strong, including wins with the top 50 auto parts supplier to establish a GenAI center of expertise and help evaluate and optimize ROI use cases. A European logistics company to conduct an AI maturity assessment to evaluate organizational readiness and capabilities and a space industry client to assess the creation of new digital marketplace that integrate space and AI technologies to enable a rapid response to natural disasters.

根據我們去年宣布的投資和客戶興趣的不斷增長，人工智慧和 GenAI 技術越來越多地融入我們的業務中。第三季度，納入人工智慧的項目數量較上季成長 20%。第三季整合人工智慧技術的預訂依然強勁，包括與排名前 50 的汽車零件供應商合作建立 GenAI 專業知識中心並協助評估和優化 ROI 用例。一家歐洲物流公司將進行人工智慧成熟度評估，以評估組織的準備和能力，一家航太工業客戶將評估整合空間和人工智慧技術的新數位市場的創建，以實現對自然災害的快速反應。

As Steve mentioned earlier, we are updating our use of cash strategy to incorporate a dividend program, as an additional mechanism to deliver value to our shareholders and to broaden our investor base, while maintaining financial flexibility to continuously invest in growth opportunities. With a strong balance sheet and liquidity, CGI will continue to prioritize capital allocation strategies that drive profitable growth and enhance value for shareholders through investing in our business, pursuing accretive acquisitions, ranging from metro market to large transformational opportunities repurchasing our stock and/or paying down our debt and now distributing a dividend.

正如史蒂夫之前提到的，我們正在更新現金策略的使用，納入股息計劃，作為為股東創造價值並擴大投資者基礎的額外機制，同時保持財務靈活性以持續投資於成長機會。憑藉強大的資產負債表和流動性，CGI 將繼續優先考慮資本配置策略，透過投資我們的業務、尋求增值收購（從地鐵市場到回購我們的股票和/或支付重大轉型機會），推動獲利成長並提高股東價值。

Regarding our strategic priority to pursue accretive acquisitions, I'd like to expand on the two acquisitions announced subsequent to the close of the quarter. In Canada, the acquisition of credit union business complements and expands CGI's core banking service offerings to an additional 90 Canadian credit unions nationwide. Our services and credit unions are now coast to coast covering more than two-thirds of the credit unions across Canada. I would like to warmly welcome the 150 new consultants and professionals who joined CGI from there.

關於我們追求增值收購的策略重點，我想詳細介紹本季末宣布的兩項收購。在加拿大，收購信用合作社業務補充並擴展了 CGI 的核心銀行服務產品，使其覆蓋全國另外 90 家加拿大信用合作社。我們的服務和信用合作社現已遍及加拿大全國三分之二以上的信用合作社。我熱烈歡迎從那裡加入 CGI 的 150 名新顧問和專業人士。

And in our US federal operations, we announced a definitive agreement to purchase Aeyon a leader in digital transformation for the US federal government. This acquisition, pending regulatory approvals, will further complement and expand our US federal capabilities and relationships, including with NASA, the FAA, the Office of the Secretary of Defense and multiple branches of the US military services.

在我們的美國聯邦業務中，我們宣布了一項最終協議，收購美國聯邦政府數位轉型領域的領導者 Aeyon。此次收購正在等待監管部門的批准，將進一步補充和擴大我們美國聯邦的能力和關係，包括與美國太空總署、美國聯邦航空局、國防部長辦公室和美國軍事部門的多個部門的關係。

On final closing of the acquisition, 725 Aeyon employees will join CGI, bringing deep expertise in a range of services, such as data management and analytics, logistics and supply chain and AI technologies. We are in active dialogue with additional merger targets at all stages of our pipeline and are committed to merging with like-minded companies that are complementary to our geographic footprint, client base and end-to-end portfolio of capabilities.

收購最終完成後，725 名 Aeyon 員工將加入 CGI，帶來資料管理和分析、物流和供應鏈以及人工智慧技術等一系列服務的深厚專業知識。我們正在與管道各個階段的其他合併目標進行積極對話，並致力於與與我們的地理足跡、客戶群和端到端能力組合互補的志同道合的公司進行合併。

Our operational strength, stability and financial capacity will continue to enable us to move quickly with discipline on the right opportunities of all sizes. In closing, we will continue to manage the fundamentals of our business and invest in our build and buy profitable growth strategy to further deepen our client relationship proximity model, our end-to-end portfolio of services and our global network and scale. As each client forges their unique path forward, we will continue to devise the right combination of services and solutions to deliver tangible, trusted business and mission outcomes for our clients.

我們的營運實力、穩定性和財務能力將繼續使我們能夠在各種規模的正確機會上快速、嚴格地採取行動。最後，我們將繼續管理我們業務的基本面，並投資於我們的構建和購買盈利增長策略，以進一步深化我們的客戶關係鄰近模型、我們的端到端服務組合以及我們的全球網絡和規模。隨著每位客戶開闢自己獨特的前進道路，我們將繼續設計正確的服務和解決方案組合，為客戶提供實際、值得信賴的業務和任務成果。

Thank you for your interest and support. Let's go to the questions now, Kevin?

感謝您的關注與支持。我們現在開始提問吧，凱文？

Thank you, George. Julie, can you please share the logistics for the Q&A?

謝謝你，喬治。朱莉，可以分享一下問答的後勤工作嗎？

Thank you. (Operator Instructions).

謝謝。（操作員說明）。

Daniel Chan, TD Cowen.

陳丹尼爾 (Daniel Chan)，TD 考恩 (TD Cowen)。

Hi, good morning. George, the dividend has been something that's been talked about for a while. Can you shed some color on why now is the right time to initiate the dividend?

嗨，早安。喬治，股息已經被討論了一段時間了。您能否解釋為什麼現在是啟動股利的最佳時機？

Yes. You're absolutely right. We've been discussing the dividend over the years. As I mentioned before, we review our use of cash priorities with the Board of Directors on a regular basis including the dividends, and it was determined by the Board that we could include the dividend as an added mechanism of returning value to our shareholders while maintaining our overall cash priorities to drive EPS growth. And so it is really just a matter of the maturity. Steve, I mean, maybe you can talk a little bit about the cash?

是的。你是絕對正確的。多年來我們一直在討論股息。正如我之前提到的，我們定期與董事會審查我們對現金優先事項的使用，包括股息，董事會決定我們可以將股息作為向股東回報價值的附加機制，同時保持我們的整體現金優先事項是推動每股收益增長。所以這其實只是成熟度的問題。史蒂夫，我的意思是，也許你可以談談現金的問題？

Look, thank you for your question. We have strong cash, as you said and it is pretty much stable quarter-over-quarter, year-over-year, but it will not change our strategy at all. What we want first the priority is really the investment in our business. And also we want to continue to deploy and allocate the cash to accretive acquisition. So that's why the first thing is really internal investment and also M&A. But in addition to that as George mentioned, we believe that by introducing this dividend program, we're going to attract other investors and that's pretty much the reason why we have done it now.

聽著，謝謝你的提問。正如您所說，我們擁有充足的現金，而且季度環比、同比都非常穩定，但這根本不會改變我們的策略。我們首先想要的是對我們業務的投資。我們也希望繼續部署和分配現金以進行增值收購。所以這就是為什麼第一件事是真正的內部投資和併購。但除此之外，正如喬治所提到的那樣，我們相信，透過引入這項股息計劃，我們將吸引其他投資者，這幾乎就是我們現在這樣做的原因。

Thank you. That makes sense. And maybe a related question. Maybe just any color on what you're seeing in the M&A environment? It sounds like you are still pretty active, but any color around pricing and the willingness of other companies to sell? Thank you.

謝謝。這是有道理的。也許還有一個相關的問題。也許只是您在併購環境中看到的任何顏色？聽起來你們仍然相當活躍，但是定價和其他公司的銷售意願有什麼不同嗎？謝謝。

Yes. No, thanks for the question, Dan. Yes, the more reasonable valuations are holding even with PE being slightly more active, the valuations are holding. I think there is a lot of sellers believe this is the right time to combine entities. And so we are having, as I mentioned, discussions at all stages of our pipeline including the later stages, bringing these two, we just announced over the line, but there is more behind that. So it's -- we believe it is becoming a more active environment. We are getting more inbound calls as well. Now they tend to be smaller companies on the inbound side, but we are even getting more inbound calls. So it is still a pretty active environment.

是的。不，謝謝你的提問，丹。是的，即使 PE 稍微活躍一點，估值也更合理，估值也能維持。我認為有很多賣家認為現在是合併實體的正確時機。因此，正如我所提到的，我們正在管道的所有階段進行討論，包括後期階段，我們剛剛在線上宣布了這兩個階段，但背後還有更多內容。所以我們相信它正在成為一個更活躍的環境。我們也接到了更多的來電。現在，他們的來電往往是較小的公司，但我們甚至接到了更多的來電。所以它仍然是一個非常活躍的環境。

Thanks George. I don't know if you'll be on the next earnings call, but if not best of luck, it's been a pleasure working with you.

謝謝喬治。我不知道你是否會參加下一次財報電話會議，但如果不是祝你好運，與你合作很愉快。

Thanks a lot. Appreciate it.

多謝。欣賞它。

Suthan Sukumar, Stifel.

蘇坦·蘇庫瑪，斯蒂菲爾。

Good morning Gents. Okay, great. Just wanted to touch on your comments about seeing incremental signs of stability ahead. And when you guys are thinking about the sort of the recovery in the demand environment as you look out in the quarters ahead. And really also on the growth side of things, is that largely dependent on a recovery in more discretionary IT spend or do you guys see a potential pickup in more on the managed service side and the conversion of that large backlog that you have there?

早安，先生們。好的，太好了。只是想談談您對未來穩定跡象的評論。當你們在考慮未來幾季需求環境的復甦時。實際上，在成長方面，這在很大程度上取決於更多可自由支配的 IT 支出的恢復，還是你們認為託管服務方面的潛在回升以及大量積壓訂單的轉換？

Yes, I think, Suthan, it is a combination. Obviously, as the discretionary picks up, that augments some of the growth that we are seeing or said differently, a lot of these managed services projects as they come online are offsetting the fact that we do see a slower demand environment on the SI&C. But as I've said before I do believe that clients are making decisions, future plans on their digitization. We play on both sides. We play on the cost savings side, but we also play on the growth side. I do believe that some of the green shoots that we are seeing will take hold. But it is still not consistent, still not uniform, as I mentioned on the opening, every client is looking at this a little bit differently and I would still say that caution rains even on the bigger deals.

是的，我認為，Suthan，這是一個組合。顯然，隨著可自由支配權的增加，這增強了我們所看到的或不同說法的一些增長，許多這些託管服務項目在上線時抵消了我們確實看到 SI&C 需求環境放緩的事實。但正如我之前所說，我確實相信客戶正在就其數位化做出決策和未來計劃。我們在兩邊比賽。我們著眼於節省成本，但我們也著眼於成長。我確實相信我們所看到的一些萌芽將會生根發芽。但它仍然不一致，仍然不統一，正如我在開頭提到的那樣，每個客戶對這個問題的看法都有點不同，我仍然想說，即使是在更大的交易上，也要謹慎行事。

Got you. Thank you. For my next question, I wanted to touch on the Aeyon acquisition because it looked like a pretty compelling deal in the US Fed space that obviously expands your exposure in that segment. As does Aeyon come with any IP? And with respect to what you acquired here, is this an opportunity to go deeper within existing relationships that you have within the Fed or does this open you up into newer relationships across the segment?

明白你了。謝謝。對於我的下一個問題，我想談談 Aeyon 的收購，因為它看起來在美聯儲領域是一項非常引人注目的交易，顯然擴大了您在該領域的投資。Aeyon有沒有IP？就您在這裡獲得的東西而言，這是一個深入了解您在美聯儲內部的現有關係的機會，還是這會讓您在該領域建立新的關係？

It does. There is some overlap, but it does, for sure, open up some new avenues for us, particularly in that all important national security space. And that's where a lot of the spending right now is going in the US federal government, just given everything that's going on in the world. And so they specialize though in the data analytics and the business operations, including finance and logistics and supply chain. So new avenues, but very similar and like-minded skills in those areas.

確實如此。雖然存在一些重疊，但它確實為我們開闢了一些新途徑，特別是在所有重要的國家安全領域。考慮到世界上正在發生的一切，這就是美國聯邦政府目前的大量支出。因此，他們專注於數據分析和業務運營，包括金融、物流和供應鏈。如此新的途徑，但在這些領域的技能非常相似且志同道合。

The other thing I’d add, and I think this is important to add is they have some complementary government-wide contract vehicles. They provide for maybe a more limited competition, expedited procurement pathway for certain services, and those services are those back-office automation services that we are very strong in.

我要補充的另一件事是，我認為補充這一點很重要，因為他們有一些補充性的政府範圍內的合約工具。它們可能為某些服務提供了更有限的競爭和快速採購途徑，而這些服務是我們非常擅長的後台自動化服務。

So, are they going to bring some new clients in that all important national security space, but they are going to give us some avenue to expand on our existing services with other clients. So that's a real positive. No IP, no intellectual property to speak of. So it is straight SI&C. But again, in the area that governments around the world and certainly the US government is spending on in national security.

那麼，他們是否會在所有重要的國家安全領域帶來一些新客戶，但他們將為我們提供一些途徑來擴展我們與其他客戶的現有服務。所以這是一個真正的正面因素。沒有IP，就沒有智慧財產權可言。所以這就是直接的 SI&C。但同樣，在世界各國政府，當然還有美國政府在國家安全上所投入的領域。

Okay, perfect. Thanks for the color, I’ll pass the line.

好的，完美。謝謝你的顏色，我會過線的。

Thank you Suthan.

謝謝你蘇珊。

Thanos Moschopoulos, BMO.

薩諾斯·莫斯霍普洛斯，BMO。

Hi, good morning. Starting off on margins. I won't ask if there is room for margin expansion because I know the answer is always yes. But if we think about the potential drivers of margins, if you think about some potential drivers, I mean, is it really about maybe the IP mix and the managed services mix increasing, is that what you'd expect to be the margin driver over the next while?

嗨，早安。從邊緣開始。我不會問是否有利潤擴張的空間，因為我知道答案總是肯定的。但如果我們考慮利潤率的潛在驅動因素，如果你考慮一些潛在的驅動因素，我的意思是，這是否真的與IP組合和託管服務組合的增加有關，這就是你期望的利潤驅動因素嗎？下一刻？

Yes. Well, you didn't ask me, but I'm going to say it anyway. We talked last time about kind of the improvement that was coming both from the cost optimization but also kind of that mix of business. And that's exactly what you saw this time and the adjusted margin accretion of the 30 basis points and that should continue, right?

是的。好吧，你沒有問我，但我還是要說。我們上次談到了來自成本優化和業務組合的改進。這正是您這次看到的情況，調整後的利潤率增加了 30 個基點，而且這種情況應該會持續下去，對嗎？

Because as we add more of that managed services growth, including global delivery, right? You see the margins from global delivery, so that's a piece of that mix. So it is both managed services, but also leveraging the global delivery. IP as a percentage of revenue, which did tick up again this quarter. But we still have some tailwind from the cost optimization program. And then as I always say, Thanos, there is still an opportunity for us to have a continuous improvement in some of the geographies in not just the revenue mix, but also the SG&A mix and the project execution. So it is a combination of those factors always, but yes driven by the managed services in the IP.

因為隨著我們增加更多的託管服務成長，包括全球交付，對吧？你可以看到全球交付的利潤，所以這是其中的一部分。所以它既是託管服務，也是利用全球交付。知識產權佔收入的百分比，本季確實再次上升。但我們仍然受益於成本優化計劃。然後，正如我常說的，薩諾斯，我們仍然有機會在某些地區持續改進，不僅是收入組合，還包括銷售、管理費用組合和專案執行。因此，它始終是這些因素的組合，但確實是由 IP 中的託管服務所驅動的。

And in US Federal the strength you saw in bookings, is there some election dynamic that's contributing to that or would you not attribute to that?

在美國聯邦，您在預訂方面看到了強勁的勢頭，是否有一些選舉動態促成了這一點，或者您不會將此歸因於這一點？

Yes. that's definitely a piece of that. And if you recall, we did discuss this on last quarter's call that we expected that there was a lot of RFPs last quarter, actually lighter bookings, but I mentioned that we would expect those to be adjudicated in the second half.

是的。這絕對是其中的一部分。如果您還記得的話，我們確實在上季度的電話會議上討論過這一點，我們預計上季度會有很多 RFP，實際上預訂量較少​​，但我提到我們預計這些將在下半年進行裁決。

The other though is exactly, as you said, there is some large government bridge contracts in the quarter as they prepare for an election and transition. So what the bureaucracy does is, it say okay, we don't know who's going to get elected.

另一個問題是，正如您所說，本季度有一些大型政府過渡合同，因為他們正在為選舉和過渡做準備。所以官僚機構所做的是，它說好吧，我們不知道誰會當選。

Of course, they'll come in with new policies, but we got to keep things running in the interim.

當然，他們會出台新政策，但我們必須在此期間保持一切正常運作。

And so you see a lot of these bridge contracts. And as I mentioned, they are a little bit longer than they've been in the past just because of some of the differences, let's just say in the policies that could come out. And so they're looking at making that a little bit longer because they think it will be maybe a little bit longer transition.

所以你會看到很多這樣的過渡合約。正如我所提到的，它們比過去更長一些，只是因為一些差異，我們只說可能出台的政策。因此，他們正在考慮將其時間延長一點，因為他們認為過渡時間可能會更長一點。

So that's what's going on there. Exactly as we would have anticipated, and the team is doing a great job to win those contracts through their efforts and their outstanding delivery for the US government.

這就是那裡發生的事情。正如我們所預期的那樣，該團隊透過他們的努力和為美國政府的出色交付，出色地贏得了這些合約。

Thanks George. I'll echo the congrats on your upcoming retirement and your successful tenure at CGI. I’ll pass the line.

謝謝喬治。我也對您即將退休以及您在 CGI 的成功任職表示祝賀。我會過線。

Thanks a lot, Thanos. Really appreciate it.

非常感謝，薩諾斯。真的很感激。

Surinder Thind, Jefferies.

蘇林德·辛德，傑弗里斯。

Thank you. George --.

謝謝。喬治--.

Surinder, good to have you on the call.

Surinder，很高興您接到電話。

Hey, thank you George. I appreciate that. At least I get in one call with you before your retirement. Big picture question here on the AI strategy. As you look to build solutions for clients, is there a lot of third-party integration of solutions, meaning the ChatGPTs of the world, the Gemini solutions or are there more proprietary builds of like smaller models that ultimately you'll have the IP over? Like how should we think about that or the evolution of that?

嘿，謝謝你喬治。我很欣賞這一點。至少在你退休之前我和你通過一次電話。關於人工智慧戰略的大局問題。當您希望為客戶建立解決方案時，是否有許多第三方解決方案集成，即世界各地的 ChatGPT、Gemini 解決方案，或者是否有更專有的構建（例如最終您將擁有 IP 的較小模型） ？例如我們該如何思考它或它的演變？

Yes. Well, it is a combination, it's a combination. So we have our signature intellectual property is called Pulse AI and it's a multimodal approach that allows you to leverage those large language models but also develop some of those closed-loop models that most of our clients are really looking at.

是的。嗯，這是一個組合，這是一個組合。因此，我們擁有我們的標誌性智慧財產權，稱為 Pulse AI，它是一種多模式方法，可讓您利用這些大型語言模型，同時還可以開發我們大多數客戶真正關注的一些閉環模型。

And that's why I mentioned in the last several calls that our AI work is largely helping clients prepare their data and their architectures to actually leverage the AI in a bigger way. I don't think, anybody is looking at just using the large language models that are available to ChatGPTs of the world. They are going to leverage pieces of them but not exclusively. They want to build closed-loop elements.

這就是為什麼我在最近幾次電話會議中提到，我們的人工智慧工作主要是幫助客戶準備他們的資料和架構，以便以更大的方式真正利用人工智慧。我認為，沒有人會考慮使用世界上 ChatGPT 可用的大型語言模型。他們將利用其中的一部分，但不僅僅是利用其中的一部分。他們想要建構閉環元素。

So yes, there already is CGI intellectual property to make that easier to integrate. There will be other CGI intellectual property built on top of those models that is industry specific and we're already announcing working with some of the hyperscalers on exactly that. So more to come on that. But it is still early days for that, Surinder.

所以，是的，已經有了 CGI 智慧財產權，可以使其更容易整合。將會有其他 CGI 智慧財產權建立在這些特定於產業的模型之上，我們已經宣布與一些超大規模企業就此展開合作。所以還有更多的事情要做。但蘇林德，現在還為時過早。

Thank you. And then more of a near-term question here just on the managed services backlog, obviously, continues to see good growth. But can you help us understand why maybe it's not converting fast given ultimately, these are highly beneficial projects from a client perspective?

謝謝。然後，更多的近期問題是託管服務積壓，顯然，繼續看到良好的成長。但是，您能否幫助我們理解為什麼它可能無法快速轉換，因為最終從客戶的角度來看，這些都是非常有益的項目？

Yes. Well, I kind of alluded to that a little bit. You can see the bookings and the growth profile in the SI&C. Some of that managed services is coming online. It's just being masked by the softness on the other side. And that's the goodness of the resilience model of CGI, right, having that balanced portfolio allows us to continue to move forward even in the current environment, but they are coming on board. Having said that, they are slower. It is slower to convert from pipeline to booking. It's slower to convert from booking to actually start the projects. It's slower to go from the start of the project to the actual engagement of revenue because there is always a transition.

是的。嗯，我稍微提到過這一點。您可以在 SI&C 中查看預訂量和成長情況。其中一些託管服務即將上線。它只是被另一面的柔軟所掩蓋。這就是 CGI 彈性模型的優點，對吧，擁有平衡的投資組合使我們即使在當前環境下也能繼續前進，但他們正在加入。話雖如此，他們還是慢了。從管道轉換為預訂的速度較慢。從預訂轉換到實際啟動專案的速度較慢。從專案開始到實際產生收入的過程比較慢，因為總是有一個過渡。

Clients are being cautious on all of the above. So they are being extra cautious on a lot of these managed services deals, we take on people from our clients are being very cautious in how they do that in the current environment. So it is just slower all the way around. But be that as may, yes, we are converting some of those on just offset by some of the other softness.

客戶對上述所有情況都持謹慎態度。因此，他們對許多託管服務交易都格外謹慎，我們認為客戶的人員在當前環境下如何做到這一點也非常謹慎。所以它一路上都比較慢。但無論如何，是的，我們正在轉換其中一些，只是被其他一些軟性所抵消。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Jerome Dubreuil, Desjardins.

傑羅姆·杜布勒伊，加鼎。

Congrats, George, for me as well and (Foreign Language). First question for me is looking at the margin improvement and this is very healthy, obviously, but I'm wondering if we're nonetheless in the phase of high or accelerated technological investments that maybe kind of offset your margin improvement from the cost improvement program? So is there a word being made done right now to future approved the organization that is having an impact or kind of normal investment that we are seeing right now?

恭喜喬治，也祝賀我，（外語）。對我來說，第一個問題是關注利潤率的改善，這顯然是非常健康的，但我想知道我們是否仍然處於高額或加速技術投資的階段，這可能會抵消成本改善計劃帶來的利潤率改善？那麼，現在是否有一個詞可以讓未來批准的組織產生影響或我們現在看到的正常投資？

Yes, it is a good question. As you know, we announced a pretty big investment to make sure that we are positioned for how to leverage AI. A lot of that right now is going into our and into our talent. But it's really just a shift of the investments. We're always investing in training. Now it's focused on AI. We're always investing in our IP, now it's focused less on maybe some of the generic feature functions and now it is more focused on leveraging AI into the IP.

是的，這是一個好問題。如您所知，我們宣布了一項相當大的投資，以確保我們能夠充分利用人工智慧。現在很多都進入了我們和我們的人才之中。但這其實只是投資的轉變。我們一直在培訓方面進行投資。現在它的重點是人工智慧。我們一直在投資我們的 IP，現在它不再專注於某些通用功能，而是更專注於將 AI 融入 IP 中。

So yes, there is an uptick, but we are taking some of that from the cost optimization, which is why I said that you wouldn't see all of the cost optimization to go into that. But I don't think, it prevents us from having the incremental improvements that you have come accustomed to seeing on the margin side. And we've got a number of different levers, as I mentioned earlier on that.

所以，是的，確實有所上升，但我們正在從成本優化中獲取其中的一些，這就是為什麼我說你不會看到所有的成本優化都涉及到這一點。但我不認為，這會阻止我們實現你們已經習慣在利潤方面看到的漸進式改進。正如我之前提到的，我們有許多不同的槓桿。

Yes, pretty clear. Thanks. Second question for me is more on a geographical standpoint. I mean we are looking at expected GDP growth everywhere in the world, and it's not necessarily the same, as it used to be or as it was when you took your decisions in terms of capital allocation in the past. Where do you think your best marginal dollar is invested right now? Has there been a change in terms of where you want to be operating globally going forward?

是的，非常清楚。謝謝。對我來說第二個問題更多的是從地理角度來看。我的意思是，我們正在研究世界各地的預期 GDP 成長，它不一定與過去或過去在資本配置方面做出決定時的情況相同。您認為您現在最好的邊際資金投資在哪裡？您未來希望在全球範圍內開展業務的地點是否發生了變化？

Yes. No, it is a great question. It is something we look at. We are doing our planning for fiscal year 2025 right now. Of course, it is a rolling three-year plan that we're always updating on an annual basis. But -- and of course, we use some of that input that we get from the voice of the clients. I mentioned some of the early findings there and it is kind of that dual-track agenda of both cost savings and optimization, but also some of the growth.

是的。不，這是一個很好的問題。這是我們所關注的。我們現在正在製定 2025 財年的規劃。當然，這是一個滾動的三年計劃，我們每年都會更新。但是，當然，我們會使用從客戶的聲音中獲得的一些資訊。我在那裡提到了一些早期的發現，這是一種既節省成本、優化又實現成長的雙軌議程。

But look, I don't see any big changes. We've been pretty deliberate in the markets and the clients, remember 85% of our work is for enterprise-level clients. They're global, by their very nature. We are very deliberate and where we focus our business efforts and the geographies that you see how we're organized. So I don't see any big changes in that regardless of this. I agree with you that kind of we see an elongated U from a recovery standpoint. So it's not necessarily going to be the same growth. But I think there's going to be some catalysts as companies continue to look for how they can do more with less resources, less people I think we do see some of the demographics changing, particularly in Europe, where not just from an IT perspective, but just from an overall resource perspective, I think you are going to see some pressures on just finding available talent that's all going to drive a catalyst, we believe for continued investment in digitization.

但看，我沒有看到任何大的變化。我們對市場和客戶非常謹慎，記住我們 85% 的工作是針對企業級客戶的。它們本質上是全球性的。我們非常深思熟慮，我們將業務重點放在哪裡，以及您所看到的我們的組織方式所在的地理位置。因此，無論如何，我認為這方面沒有任何重大變化。我同意你的觀點，從恢復的角度來看，我們看到了一個拉長的 U 形。因此，成長不一定會相同。但我認為，隨著公司繼續尋找如何以更少的資源和更少的人員做更多的事情，將會出現一些催化劑。從IT 角度來看，而且從僅從整體資源的角度來看，我認為您將看到一些壓力，只是尋找可用的人才，這一切都將推動催化劑，我們相信對數位化的持續投資。

And of course, tools like AI, it is not just AI, discrete AI, but tools like AI are going to allow us to make that happen. So we still see opportunities in all those areas. It doesn't really change in our capital allocation priorities.

當然，像人工智慧這樣的工具，不僅僅是人工智慧、離散人工智慧，而是像人工智慧這樣的工具將使我們能夠實現這一目標。因此，我們仍然在所有這些領域看到了機會。我們的資本配置優先事項並沒有真正改變。

Great. And good move on the dividend.

偉大的。股息方面也有良好進展。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Operator

操作員

Stephanie Price, CIBC.

史蒂芬妮·普萊斯，CIBC。

Hi, good morning. I was hoping to back on the consulting side of the business and just curious how you think about that part of the business specifically heading into fiscal 2025 and what you are thinking about in terms of a recovery in that consulting side of the business?

嗨，早安。我希望能夠支持該業務的諮詢方面，只是好奇您如何看待這部分業務，特別是進入 2025 財年，以及您對該業務諮詢方面的復甦有何看法？

Yes. It is very interesting, Stephanie. And I mentioned this before: in prior slowdowns, there is almost no activity on the consulting side. Clearly, there is been an impact and a slowdown on consulting, but it hasn't gone to nothing. And you've heard a lot of our AI efforts right now, they're actually driven by consulting; consulting on the data side, consulting on the business transformation side, consulting on the change management side as clients really think through what models they want to have for the future.

是的。這很有趣，史蒂芬妮。我之前提到過：在先前的經濟放緩中，諮詢方面幾乎沒有任何活動。顯然，諮詢業受到了影響和放緩，但並沒有消失。你現在已經聽說過我們在人工智慧方面的許多努力，它們實際上是由諮詢驅動的；數據方面的諮詢、業務轉型方面的諮詢、變革管理方面的諮詢，因為客戶真正思考他們未來想要什麼模型。

So I think that it will be a slower ramp up in recovery. And as I also mentioned, consulting is maybe embedded in a lot of our other activities even in some of those managed services deals as they look at those. So -- and also our IP some consulting is embedded in our IP sales. So it is still going to be an important element. It is smaller by it is very nature. But it still is that tip of the spear, and we will continue to invest responsibly and as I said in the opening meeting clients where they are. So -- but it is so important to us and to our clients.

因此，我認為復甦的速度將會較慢。正如我還提到的，諮詢可能嵌入到我們的許多其他活動中，甚至嵌入到他們所關注的一些託管服務交易中。因此，我們的知識產權銷售中也嵌入了一些知識產權諮詢。所以它仍然是一個重要的元素。它更小，這是很自然的。但這仍然是矛尖，我們將繼續負責任地投資，正如我在開幕會議上所說的那樣，客戶所在的地方。所以——但這對我們和我們的客戶來說非常重要。

That makes sense. And in terms of IP as a percentage of revenue and bookings, it was quite solid in the quarter. Can you talk a bit about what you are seeing in terms of just demand between geographies, verticals commercial? Anything that you want to call out there?

這是有道理的。就 IP 佔收入和預訂量的百分比而言，該季度相當穩定。您能否談談您所看到的地域間公正需求、垂直商業方面的情況？有什麼想在那裡打電話的嗎？

Yes. IP continues to be increasingly strong in Europe, which has not been are historical, and that's good. Still really focused on operations. And a lot of our IP is there. So HR payroll secure document handling, the patient information system that I mentioned, it's all more on operations focused, still a lot of growth in government and it's governments around the world, North America and Europe and utilities and health. So it is pretty widespread. But again very operational focus, which is where a lot of our IP plays. So it is nice to see.

是的。歐洲的智慧財產權繼續變得越來越強大，這在歷史上是不存在的，這是好事。仍然非常專注於營運。我們的很多知識產權都在那裡。因此，人力資源薪資安全文件處理、我提到的病患資訊系統，更多以營運為重點，政府以及世界各地、北美和歐洲的政府以及公用事業和健康部門仍然有很大的成長。所以它相當普遍。但同樣非常注重運營，這也是我們許多智慧財產權發揮作用的地方。所以很高興看到。

Yes, that makes sense. And George, I'll echo everybody's congrats on the retirement. It's been a pleasure working with you.

是的，這是有道理的。喬治，我也向大家表示祝賀，祝賀他退休。很高興與您合作。

Thanks a lot Stephanie. I appreciate it. Likewise.

非常感謝史蒂芬妮。我很感激。同樣地。

Your next question comes from Paul Treiber from RBC. Please go ahead.

您的下一個問題來自加拿大皇家銀行 (RBC) 的 Paul Treiber。請繼續。

Thanks so much. Good morning. Could you elaborate more on your comments about clients having differentiation and differentiated needs here? And then specifically, it seems to me your competitors' results have been all over the place this quarter. Do you think some of that -- some of your competitors have been negatively impacted by that evolution and that CGI is relatively better positioned for that change?

非常感謝。早安.您能否在此詳細闡述您對客戶具有差異化和差異化需求的看法？具體來說，在我看來，你們的競爭對手本季的業績表現參差不齊。您是否認為您的一些競爭對手受到了這種演變的負面影響，而 CGI 相對而言能夠更好地應對這種變化？

Yes. It is a tough one for me to mention there. But I think where you see some of those variations, exactly what I'm saying every client is kind of doing this at a different pace. And if -- so you got to meet your client where they are and you've got to work with them. So if they're needing a little more consulting and that's not as much revenue, that's what they need, that's what you're going to give them. If they are ready for that big managed services deal, you got to be there with that value proposition so they understand that. You got to be providing them that software-as-a-service, so they can spend less capital even if they ultimately want to build some surround systems around that but they are not ready to do that yet.

是的。對我來說，在那裡提及這一點很難。但我認為你會看到其中一些變化，正如我所說的，每個客戶都以不同的節奏來做這件事。如果——那麼你必須在客戶所在的地方與他們會面，並且你必須與他們合作。因此，如果他們需要更多的諮詢，而收入又不是那麼多，那麼這就是他們所需要的，這就是你要給他們的。如果他們準備好進行大型託管服務交易，您必須在那裡提出價值主張，以便他們可以理解。你必須為他們提供軟體即服務，這樣他們就可以花費更少的資金，即使他們最終想圍繞它建立一些環繞系統，但他們還沒有準備好這樣做。

And so flexibility is a key attribute and that's kind of the hallmark of CGI and working with our clients because we are so client focus, given our proximity model and our understanding. So I don't know if that's -- I'm not going to comment on others, but I can tell you that's where we're finding the biggest opportunities. It is also why I think you also see our pipeline going up because of that approach.

因此，靈活性是一個關鍵屬性，這也是 CGI 以及與客戶合作的標誌，因為考慮到我們的鄰近模型和理解，我們非常以客戶為中心。所以我不知道這是否是——我不會對其他人發表評論，但我可以告訴你，這就是我們找到最大機會的地方。這也是為什麼我認為您也會看到我們的管道因為這種方法而增加。

And secondly, can you speak to the environment in France, some others have called out a slowdown through June, that's related to the election or not, have you seen any changes to the quarter? And how are you thinking about France in the near term?

其次，您能談談法國的環境嗎？您近期對法國有何看法？

Yes. So I was just talking to our leader in France. The current situation is, it is not just causing a delay in government, as you'd expect, right as the government forms independent of the wonderful Olympics that are going on. But the commercial markets are also taking a bit of a wait-and-see approach. What's -- how is this going to shake out? And so if caution was already raining from a macro perspective, I think we're seeing the same thing that you're mentioning that France is definitely taking a wait-and-see approach or at least our clients in France are taking a little more of that wait and see approach, which does have a short-term impact.

是的。我剛剛正在與我們的法國領導人交談。目前的情況是，這不僅導致政府的拖延，正如你所期望的那樣，因為政府的組建獨立於正在進行的精彩奧運會。但商業市場也採取了觀望態度。這將如何發生？因此，如果從宏觀角度來看，謹慎情緒已經下雨，我認為我們看到了與您提到的同樣的事情，法國肯定採取觀望態度，或者至少我們在法國的客戶採取了更多的態度這種觀望態度確實會產生短期影響。

Having said that, no change in the longer-term outlook. You saw bookings were strong in Western and Southern Europe. And a lot of that, of course is dominated by France and our pipeline continues to grow there. So I think it is more just a here-and-now point in time. But yes, we are feeling it and seeing it, and you see that in our results.

話雖如此，長期前景沒有改變。您看到西歐和南歐的預訂量很強。當然，其中很大一部分是由法國主導的，我們的管道在那裡繼續增長。所以我認為這更像是此時此地的時間點。但是，是的，我們正在感受它並看到它，並且您可以在我們的結果中看到這一點。

Thanks for taking the questions. And George, enjoy your retirement.

感謝您提出問題。喬治，享受你的退休生活吧。

Thank you. I appreciate it.

謝謝。我很感激。

Steven Li, Raymond James.

史蒂文李，雷蒙詹姆斯。

Thank you. Just a couple of questions for me. Finland, Poland, Baltics big jump in margins. Is that 16%, 17%? Is that sustainable or any onetime factors there? Thanks.

謝謝。只是問我幾個問題。芬蘭、波蘭、波羅的海國家的利潤率大幅躍升。是16%、17%嗎？這是可持續的還是有任何一次性因素？謝謝。

Yes, so Finland, Poland and Baltics, so as you know, we have a lot of strong intellectual property there. And so I mentioned, I called out the fact that we had some good IP sales there. So -- is that sustainable exactly at that level? If they run a very good business there. As you know, we have a pretty good position in the marketplace which is allowing us to play into the social and health reform with this IP. So at that exact level, I don't know but you know that's where we want to be. So that's -- the team is doing a great job.

是的，芬蘭、波蘭和波羅的海國家，如你所知，我們在那裡擁有許多強大的智慧財產權。所以我提到，我指出我們在那裡有一些不錯的知識產權銷售。那麼，在這個水平上這是否可持續？如果他們在那裡經營得很好。如您所知，我們在市場上擁有相當好的地位，這使我們能夠利用該知識產權參與社會和醫療改革。所以在那個確切的水平上，我不知道，但你知道這就是我們想要達到的目標。所以說——團隊做得很好。

Got it. And then on the AI-related bookings, I just want to check, I think I heard you say up 20% sequentially. What is that in dollars? Is it like $300 million in AI bookings?

知道了。然後，關於與人工智慧相關的預訂，我想檢查一下，我想我聽到你說連續增長了 20%。換算成美元是多少？人工智慧預訂量相當於 3 億美元嗎？

Yes. Yes. No, I'm glad you asked that question because what we had was an increase of 20% in the number of engagements, but those engagements are not large. So you don't see anywhere near a 20% increase in bookings. And in fact, although we're up obviously on a trailing 12-month basis, the bookings were flattish to even down a little bit in the quarter on AI. But the number of opportunities keep increasing because it is a bit of a tip of the spear. Everybody is kind of in a different place on AI. They all recognize they want to use it, but they want to use it for business impact. And so they are really taking a very responsible approach and we’re helping them with that. So a lot more engagements, but they’re all still pretty small.

是的。是的。不，我很高興您問這個問題，因為我們的互動次數增加了 20%，但這些互動量並不大。所以你看不到預訂量增加近 20%。事實上，儘管我們在過去 12 個月的基礎上明顯上升，但本季 AI 的預訂量持平甚至略有下降。但機會的數量不斷增加，因為它有點像矛尖。每個人在人工智慧方面都處於不同的位置。他們都認識到他們想要使用它，但他們希望利用它來產生業務影響。因此，他們確實採取了非常負責任的做法，我們正在為此提供幫助。因此，參與的活動很多，但規模仍然很小。

Got it. That’s great. Thanks a lot.

知道了。那太好了。多謝。

Richard Tse, National Bank.

理查德謝 (Richard Tse)，國家銀行。

A number of your competitors have flagged recently that they're seeing price pressure becoming increasingly common occurrence in the market? Like what would CGI be seeing? And then is that kind of something that's temporary given the backdrop in the short term or is it something more structural here?

您的許多競爭對手最近表示，他們發現市場上價格壓力變得越來越普遍？CGI 會看到什麼？那麼，考慮到短期背景，這種情況是暫時的還是更具結構性的？

Yes. I think it's twos answers to this. There's some short-term pricing anytime you have [indiscernible] macro environment like we have right now. But I think the more structural is what we've been talking about on this call for a while, the ROI led. We see clients looking for innovations to improve outcomes, which does save their money; with improved efficiencies, which does save their money, without sacrificing quality. That's what they're looking for.

是的。我認為這個問題有兩個答案。只要有像我們現在這樣的[難以辨別的]宏觀環境，就會有一些短期定價。但我認為更具結構性的是我們在這次電話會議上討論了一段時間的投資報酬率。我們看到客戶尋求創新來改善結果，這確實可以節省他們的錢；提高了效率，這確實節省了資金，同時又不犧牲品質。這就是他們正在尋找的。

So it is outcomes, both short and long-term more than inputs. It's overall solution more than just price or point price. And that's why I mentioned our investments in CGI DigiOps, our investments in putting IP with our AI or investments in the global delivery approach, these are the ways that you're going to get that price competitiveness without that unit price input rate discussion that you might be thinking when somebody calls out pricing.

因此，短期和長期的結果比投入更重要。它是整體解決方案，而不僅僅是價格或點價格。這就是為什麼我提到我們對CGI DigiOps 的投資、我們對將IP 與人工智慧結合的投資或對全球交付方法的投資，這些都是您獲得價格競爭力的方式，而無需您討論單價投入率。

And I'm not saying some of that doesn't happen point in time. But structurally, I think we actually see clients being far more sophisticated in what they're looking for and how they are looking for. And I would say, that more often than not, the discussion ends up with, are you going to be able to give me the quality with those operational efficiencies, not the other way around.

我並不是說其中一些不會及時發生。但從結構上來說，我認為我們實際上看到客戶在尋找什麼以及如何尋找方面更加複雜。我想說，通常情況下，討論的結果是，你是否能夠為我提供具有營運效率的質量，而不是相反。

Okay. Helpful. And then just sort of with respect to the regulatory filings in the MD&A under the EBIT sort of margin section, within sort of U.S. Fed, you sort of cited the revaluation of costs to complete specific projects. Just kind of wondering if you may be able to elaborate on those costs?

好的。有幫助。然後，就 MD&A 中息稅前利潤類保證金部分的監管文件而言，在聯準會內部，您提到了完成特定專案的成本重估。只是想知道您是否可以詳細說明這些費用？

Yes. Well, it's a fixed price project that is taking longer. That's about as direct as I can get there. We're not -- we don't call out clients or project names, and it was really one project. But it was a big project, and we called it out because it did have an impact, but it is largely behind us, and we move forward.

是的。嗯，這是一個固定價格的項目，需要更長的時間。這就是我能到達的最直接的方式了。我們不會——我們不會說出客戶或專案的名稱，這實際上是一個專案。但這是一個大項目，我們之所以把它叫出來，是因為它確實產生了影響，但它在很大程度上已經被我們拋在了後面，我們會繼續前進。

Okay. Fair enough. And it's been great working with you; all the best in your retirement.

好的。很公平。和你一起工作真是太棒了；祝您退休生活一切順利。

Thank you so much, Richard. Julie, we have time for one more question, please.

非常感謝你，理查德。朱莉，我們還有時間再問一個問題。

Divya Goyal, Scotiabank.

迪維亞‧戈亞爾，豐業銀行。

Good morning, everyone. Thanks for taking my question. So going ahead on this geographic discussion, I actually wanted to get some more color on the variances in the growth that you're seeing across geographies. So when we look at the global technology services players, we see a lot of them benefiting from the growth across international segments. And North America seems to be picking up, but it looks like in your case, Europe was faired better than North America. So if you could provide some color on these variances? And if you could provide some color in terms of international growth potentially as some of those geographies continue to grow?

大家早安。感謝您提出我的問題。因此，在繼續這個地理討論時，我實際上想對您所看到的跨地理區域的成長差異有更多的了解。因此，當我們觀察全球技術服務參與者時，我們發現其中許多都受益於國際細分市場的成長。北美似乎正在好轉，但就你的情況來看，歐洲的情況比北美好。那麼您能否對這些差異提供一些說明呢？隨著其中一些地區的持續成長，您是否可以提供一些有關國際成長潛力的資訊？

Yes. So on the geographies in Europe, we saw the same thing. And if you really look at it, it is the largest geographies, I should say, in Europe are kind of more impact. We saw more impact to the current macro environment. And part of that is just they tend to be larger enterprise clients, so they're more impacted by the global economy. So it's not just that we're working with a company in France, that, that company in France has global operations. Same thing in Germany, same thing in the UK on the commercial side.

是的。因此，在歐洲的地理區域，我們看到了同樣的情況。如果你仔細觀察的話，我應該說，它是最大的地區，在歐洲影響更大。我們看到對當前宏觀環境的影響更大。部分原因是他們往往是較大的企業客戶，因此他們更容易受到全球經濟的影響。因此，我們不僅與一家法國公司合作，而且該法國公司在全球開​​展業務。在商業方面，德國也是如此，英國也是如此。

In some of the smaller geographies like Finland, Poland and the Baltics, we have some clients there that are more specific to the region. And so they are a little bit more nimble, they're moving a little bit faster and so you see our ability to drive some more growth there. But I think, again, and that gets back to my differentiation comment from the opening that every client is operating a little bit differently. As you know, we don't play into some of those international geographies that are growing a little faster. But I would suggest as maybe a similar situation there. They are just going to be a little more agile, more nimble and a little more faster to realize some of those green shoots. That's what I would say.

在芬蘭、波蘭和波羅的海等一些較小的地區，我們有一些針對該地區的客戶。因此，他們更加靈活，移動速度更快，因此你可以看到我們推動更多成長的能力。但我再次認為，這又回到了我從一開始就提出的差異化評論，即每個客戶的運作方式都略有不同。如您所知，我們沒有涉足一些成長較快的國際地區。但我建議那裡可能有類似的情況。他們只是會變得更加敏捷、更加敏捷、更加快速，以實現其中的一些萌芽。我就是這麼說的。

That's helpful, George. And just second question here on M&A. So over the last few quarters, you've been -- you've closed some acquisitions, announced Aeyon yesterday. I wanted to get some color in terms of what are the verticals that you as a company are targeting and some of the technologies and skill set that you're looking at going forward? Because in the past discussion we assumed IP was an important element of this M&A strategy. But it looks like Aeyon did not come with an IP here. So trying to understand what are we focused on going forward?

這很有幫助，喬治。這是關於併購的第二個問題。Aeyon 昨天宣布，在過去的幾個季度裡，您已經完成了一些收購。我想了解您作為一家公司所瞄準的垂直領域以及您未來正在考慮的一些技術和技能？因為在過去的討論中，我們假設智慧財產權是該併購策略的重要組成部分。但看起來Aeyon這裡並沒有IP。那麼試著了解我們未來的重點是什麼？

Yes. So no, it is a great question, Divya, and it gives me an opportunity to maybe restate what we're looking for primarily when we're doing M&A or new client relationships with either existing geographies where maybe we can continue to grow our scale or new metros.

是的。所以不，這是一個很好的問題，Divya，它給了我一個機會，也許可以重申我們正在尋找的東西，主要是當我們與現有地區進行併購或建立新客戶關係時，也許我們可以繼續擴大我們的規模或新地鐵。

So when we did the Momentum, it was a new metro market in the Southern US in Miami. When we do Celero, when we do an Aeyon, it's about getting new client relationships. In the Aeyon's case, it's national security. In Celero's case, it's credit unions coast-to-coast that we didn't have before. So now we get plenty, plenty of strong capabilities, whether it's core banking and Celero, whether or payments or data and AI with Aeyon, you get a lot of intelligent automation. You get a lot of capabilities there. but it's actually not about a specific vertical. It's about building out a metro market across verticals with all those capabilities. That's what we believe is the right way to continue to build the business for the longer-term. And so that is what we're looking for and all those acquisitions fit the bill.

所以當我們做 Momentum 的時候，它是美國南部邁阿密的一個新的地鐵市場。當我們做 Celero 時，當我們做 Aeyon 時，都是為了獲得新的客戶關係。就 Aeyon 而言，這是國家安全。就 Celero 而言，我們以前沒有從東海岸到西海岸的信用合作社。所以現在我們獲得了很多很多強大的功能，無論是核心銀行業務和 Celero，還是 Aeyon 的支付或數據和人工智慧，你都可以獲得很多智慧自動化。在那裡你可以獲得很多能力。但這其實與特定的垂直領域無關。這是關於建立一個具有所有這些功能的跨垂直領域的地鐵市場。這就是我們認為繼續長期發展業務的正確方法。這就是我們正在尋找的東西，所有這些收購都符合要求。

That's very helpful. If I may ask one small question, and I think I know the answer to it already, but one of your comments mentioned that the valuations are reasonable, is there a reasonable valuation multiple that the companies?

這非常有幫助。如果我可以問一個小問題，我想我已經知道答案了，但你的一則評論提到估值是合理的，公司的估值倍數是否合理？

Yes, sorry, you broke up there at the end. Do you have another --.

是的，對不起，你們最後分手了。你還有另一個嗎--.

No, no, that's all. I was just trying to understand what's a reasonable valuation multiple.

不，不，僅此而已。我只是想了解合理的估值倍數是多少。

Yes. Well, I mean, maybe I can answer it this way. I can tell you what an unreasonable valuation is, and that's where we were, where sellers were looking at multiples that didn't make any sense and would have taken 50 years for us to get a return on that investment. That makes no sense.

是的。嗯，我的意思是，也許我可以這樣回答。我可以告訴你什麼是不合理的估值，這就是我們所處的情況，賣家所考慮的倍數沒有任何意義，我們需要 50 年才能獲得投資回報。這沒有任何意義。

And that is where a lot of these sellers were. What you saw is some of these digital transformation companies just had outsized multiples that didn't make a whole lot of sense at least in the context of the CGI and our discipline. And that is not where it is. Our historic Steve, is somewhere between one-time maybe a little under one-time, a little over one-time revenue, depending on the margin the asset, but that's where we see more reasonableness there.

這就是很多賣家所在的地方。你看到的是，其中一些數位轉型公司的本益比太大，至少在 CGI 和我們學科的背景下沒有太大意義。但事實並非如此。我們歷史悠久的史蒂夫的收入介於一次性收入之間，可能略低於一次性收入，略高於一次性收入，具體取決於資產的利潤率，但這就是我們看到更合理的地方。

That sounds good for me. Thank you so much. And congratulations on the retirement. It was great working with you.

這對我來說聽起來不錯。太感謝了。並祝賀您退休。和你一起工作真是太好了。

Thanks a lot, Divya.

非常感謝，迪維亞。

And I will turn the call back over to Kevin Linder for closing remarks.

我會將電話轉回給凱文林德 (Kevin Linder) 致閉幕詞。

Thank you, Julie, and thanks, everyone, for participating. As a reminder, a replay of the call will be available either via our website or by dialing 1 (877) 674-7070 and using the passcode 875394 as well, a podcast of this call will be available for download within a few hours. Follow-up questions can be directed to me at 1 (905) 973-8363. Thanks again, everyone, and look forward to speaking soon.

謝謝朱莉，也謝謝大家的參與。謹此提醒，您可以透過我們的網站或撥打 1 (877) 674-7070 並使用密碼 875394 重播本次通話，幾小時內即可下載本次通話的播客。如有後續問題，請致電 1 (905) 973-8363 與我聯絡。再次感謝大家，並期待盡快發言。

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

今天的電話會議到此結束。您現在可以斷開連線。謝謝。