Granite Construction Inc (GVA) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good morning. My name is Andrea, and I will be your conference facilitator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the Granite Construction Incorporated 2024 third-quarter conference call. This call is being recorded. (Operator Instructions)

早安.我叫安德里亞，今天我將擔任你們的會議主持人。現在，我歡迎大家參加 Granite Construction Incorporated 2024 年第三季電話會議。此通話正在錄音。（操作員說明）

It is now my pleasure to turn the floor over to your host, Granite Construction Incorporated Vice President of Investor Relations, Mike Barker. Please go ahead.

現在我很高興將發言權交給東道主花崗岩建築公司投資者關係副總裁 Mike Barker。請繼續。

Good morning, and thank you for joining us. I'm pleased to be here today with President and Chief Executive Officer, Kyle Larkin, and Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Staci Woolsey. Please note that today's earnings presentation will be available on the Events and Presentations page of our Investor Relations website.

早安，感謝您加入我們。我很高興今天能與總裁兼首席執行官凱爾·拉金 (Kyle Larkin) 以及執行副總裁兼首席財務官斯塔西·伍爾西 (Staci Woolsey) 一起出席。請注意，今天的收益演示將在我們投資者關係網站的活動和演示頁面上提供。

We begin today with a brief discussion regarding forward-looking statements and non-GAAP measures. Some of the discussion today may include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are estimates reflecting the current expectations and best judgment of senior management regarding future events, occurrences, opportunities, targets, growth, demand, strategic plans, circumstances, activities, performance, shareholder value, outcomes, outlook, guidance, objective, committed and awarded projects, or CAP and results.

今天我們首先簡要討論前瞻性陳述和非公認會計準則措施。今天的一些討論可能包括 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》含義內的前瞻性陳述。這些前瞻性陳述是反映高階管理層對未來事件、事件、機會、目標、成長、需求、策略規劃、情況、活動、績效、股東價值、結果、前景、指導、目標的當前預期和最佳判斷的估計、承諾和授予的項目，或 CAP 和結果。

Actual results could differ materially from statements made today. Please refer to Granite's most recent 10-K and 10-Q filings for a more complete description of risk factors that could affect these forward-looking statements. The company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

實際結果可能與今天的聲明有重大差異。請參閱 Granite 最近的 10-K 和 10-Q 文件，以了解可能影響這些前瞻性聲明的風險因素的更完整描述。除法律要求外，本公司不承擔更新前瞻性陳述的義務。

Certain non-GAAP measures may be discussed during today's call and from time to time by the company's executives. These include but are not limited to, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, adjusted net income, adjusted earnings per share, and Materials segment cash gross profit. The required disclosures regarding our non-GAAP measures are included as part of our earnings press releases and in company presentations, which are available on our website, graniteconstruction.com, under Investor Relations.

公司高層可能會在今天的電話會議上不時討論某些非公認會計原則措施。這些包括但不限於調整後的 EBITDA、調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率、調整後的淨利潤、調整後的每股收益和材料部門現金毛利。有關我們的非公認會計原則措施的必要披露已包含在我們的收益新聞稿和公司演示文稿中，這些內容可在我們的網站 Graniteconstruction.com 的投資者關係下找到。

Now I'd like to turn the call over to Kyle Larkin.

現在我想把電話轉給凱爾拉金 (Kyle Larkin)。

Good morning. Thanks for joining us on our third-quarter call.

早安.感謝您參加我們的第三季電話會議。

Before reviewing our quarter results, I want to discuss our expectations for the company's growth and financial performance as we continue to execute on our strategic plan over the next several years. Almost three years ago, we shared our vision to grow our business while also delivering consistently profitable results. We said that we were going to do so by derisking our project portfolio, strengthening our home market positions, investing in our Materials business and geographically expanding our vertically integrated business platform.

在回顧我們的季度業績之前，我想討論一下我們對公司成長和財務業績的預期，因為我們將在未來幾年繼續執行我們的策略計畫。大約三年前，我們分享了發展業務的願景，同時提供持續獲利的成果。我們表示，我們將透過降低專案組合風險、加強我們的國內市場地位、投資我們的材料業務以及在地理上擴展我們的垂直整​​合業務平台來實現這一目標。

Our vision was supported by all of our teams across the company, and together, we have accomplished what we set out to do. Since adopting our new strategy in the beginning of 2022, we have produced strong top line revenue growth, gross profit and adjusted EBITDA margin expansion, healthy free cash flow generation and record-breaking CAP. As we look forward through 2027, I believe we have opportunities to grow revenue and increase margin in both the Construction and Materials segments. I expect incremental near-term Construction margin improvement and our Materials margin should improve significantly over time.

我們的願景得到了公司所有團隊的支持，我們共同完成了我們的目標。自 2022 年初採用新策略以來，我們實現了強勁的營收成長、毛利和調整後 EBITDA 利潤率擴張、健康的自由現金流產生和創紀錄的 CAP。展望 2027 年，我相信我們有機會在建築和材料領域增加收入並提高利潤。我預計近期建築利潤率將逐步提高，而我們的材料利潤率將隨著時間的推移而顯著提高。

Forecasting the macro environment, we expect the public market to remain strong. While we are at the midpoint of the five-year timeline of the infrastructure bill or the IIJA, we expect the benefits of this funding to continue to support our industry for many years to come. The IIJA does not terminate until 2026. And the American Road and Transportation Builders Association estimates only 40% of the available IIJA funds will have been spent at that time, even though 100% of the funds will have been allocated to states. As a result, we expect the IIJA to fund construction projects well beyond 2026.

預測宏觀環境，我們預期公開市場將保持強勁。雖然我們正處於基礎設施法案或 IIJA 五年時間表的中點，但我們預計這筆資金的好處將在未來許多年繼續支持我們的產業。IIJA 直到 2026 年才會終止。美國道路和交通建設者協會估計，儘管 100% 的資金將分配給各州，但屆時只有 40% 的 IIJA 可用資金將被使用。因此，我們預計 IIJA 將為 2026 年後的建設項目提供資金。

We believe the strong infrastructure funding should continue to produce opportunities to build quality CAP. In 2024, we continue the trend of the last few years by bidding more work than we did in the previous year. We are bidding more work even as we continue to maintain our discipline on project pursuits. The increased bidding opportunities reflect a strong macro environment across our geographies. We expect this tailwind to continue over the next three years.

我們相信，強大的基礎設施資金應該會繼續為建立高品質的 CAP 創造機會。2024 年，我們將延續過去幾年的趨勢，競標比前一年更多的工程。儘管我們繼續保持專案追求的紀律，但我們仍在投標更多的工作。投標機會的增加反映了我們各個地區強勁的宏觀環境。我們預計這種順風將在未來三年持續下去。

While public funding supports approximately 75% of our Construction revenue, we also performed a significant amount of private work. We believe we should be able to grow revenue in the private sector. Our private work primarily consists of water infrastructure services, drilling and infrastructure for mines, commercial site development, such as data centers, real infrastructure, including constructing intermodal facilities and infrastructure for solar facilities. These private markets have been strong over the last several years, and we expect continued near-term growth in alignment with macroeconomic trends in technology, energy and the transportation of goods.

雖然公共資金支持了我們約 75% 的建築收入，但我們也進行了大量的私人工作。我們相信我們應該能夠增加私部門的收入。我們的私人工作主要包括水利基礎設施服務、礦山鑽探和基礎設施、資料中心等商業場地開發、實際基礎設施，包括建設聯運設施和太陽能設施基礎設施。這些私人市場在過去幾年中表現強勁，我們預計近期將持續成長，與技術、能源和貨物運輸的宏觀經濟趨勢保持一致。

We believe that our recently announced organizational realignment better positions us to leverage our expertise to better serve our key clients and positions us to capitalize on the robust market. I also expect the Materials segment to benefit from the same tailwinds we are seeing in the Construction segment. While Materials volumes have been relatively flat over the last year, we expect incremental growth and price increases to produce revenue growth over the next three years.

我們相信，最近宣布的組織重組使我們能夠更好地利用我們的專業知識更好地服務我們的主要客戶，並使我們能夠利用強勁的市場。我還預計材料領域將受益於我們在建築領域看到的同樣的順風車。儘管去年材料銷量相對持平，但我們預計增量成長和價格上漲將在未來三年帶來收入成長。

Given our strong public and private outlook, we continue to expect organic revenue growth at a compounded annual growth rate of 6% to 8% through 2027. In addition to our organic revenue growth, we intend to continue to execute on our strengthen and expand M&A strategy with bolt-on acquisitions and geographical expansion. In the last year, we expanded in the Southeast via the acquisitions of Lehman-Roberts, Memphis Stone & Gravel and Dickerson & Bowen. These businesses should serve as a platform for further growth.

鑑於我們強勁的公共和私人前景，我們繼續預計到 2027 年有機收入的複合年增長率將達到 6% 至 8%。除了我們的有機收入成長外，我們還打算透過補強收購和地理擴張繼續執行我們的強化和擴大併購策略。去年，我們透過收購 Lehman-Roberts、Memphis Stone & Gravel 和 Dickerson & Bowen 在東南部擴張。這些業務應該成為進一步成長的平台。

With Granite's cash flow generation, liquidity, secured borrowing capacity and long-term leverage target of 2.5 times adjusted EBITDA, we have options to capitalize on larger M&A opportunities that would be accretive to our adjusted EBITDA margin. While we are very selective, we will pursue larger transactions that are in alignment with our vertically integrated strategy. Overall, Granite is in a great position to continue growing revenue organically and through M&A through 2027.

憑藉 Granite 的現金流產生、流動性、有擔保的借貸能力以及調整後 EBITDA 2.5 倍的長期槓桿目標，我們可以選擇利用更大的併購機會，從而增加我們調整後 EBITDA 利潤率。雖然我們非常有選擇性，但我們將尋求符合我們垂直整合策略的更大規模的交易。總體而言，Granite 處於有利位置，可以在 2027 年之前透過併購繼續有機成長收入。

Turning to our thoughts on margin improvement. We expect Granite's adjusted EBITDA margin to increase to a range of 12% to 14% in 2027. We think we can increase our gross profit margin and improve efficiency in SG&A. We have made significant strides in both the Construction and Materials segments over the past three years but we believe there is much more to come. In the Construction segment, we believe that the projects we have in our CAP today combined with our focus on quality and operational excellence will drive the improvement in higher margins.

轉向我們對利潤率改善的想法。我們預計 Granite 的調整後 EBITDA 利潤率到 2027 年將增加至 12% 至 14%。我們認為我們可以提高毛利率並提高 SG&A 效率。過去三年，我們在建築和材料領域取得了重大進展，但我們相信未來還會有更多進步。在建築領域，我們相信，我們今天在 CAP 中擁有的項目，加上我們對品質和卓越營運的關注，將推動更高利潤率的提高。

We continue to be selective in a robust market with a focus on procuring the right projects with the right owners in the right markets. We've implemented standardized processes and heightened quality measures to raise the bar across the company.

我們繼續在強勁的市場中進行選擇性，重點是在合適的市場與合適的業主採購合適的項目。我們實施了標準化流程並加強了品質措施，以提高整個公司的標準。

In the Materials segment, we believe our new organizational structure, which we announced in the first quarter of the year allows our leaders to improve financial performance through centralized functions such as sales and quality control. Our Materials experts are now better positioned to evaluate pricing in both aggregates and asphalt, and we expect materials pricing to continue to drive margin improvement. Granite's vertical integration is an asset to the materials business, and we have opportunities to further leverage our vertical integration to drive utilization and higher profitability. Lastly, our strategic investment in the Materials segment will continue with the focus on automation and other projects that should drive production costs down. Over the next three years, we expect these initiatives to drive significant margin expansion in this segment.

在材料領域，我們相信我們在今年第一季宣布的新組織結構使我們的領導者能夠透過銷售和品質控制等集中職能來提高財務表現。我們的材料專家現在能夠更好地評估骨材和瀝青的定價，我們預計材料定價將繼續推動利潤率的提高。Granite 的垂直整合是材料業務的資產，我們有機會進一步利用我們的垂直整​​合來提高利用率和更高的獲利能力。最後，我們對材料領域的策略性投資將繼續專注於自動化和其他可降低生產成本的項目。在未來三年中，我們預計這些舉措將推動該領域的利潤率大幅成長。

We are also focused on building a more efficient corporate structure that will support our organic and inorganic growth. We are investing to improve processes and procedures in order to leverage our resources more effectively. This should result in more efficient use of our SG&A expense by 2027.

我們也致力於建立更有效率的公司結構，以支持我們的有機和無機成長。我們正在投資改進流程和程序，以便更有效地利用我們的資源。這應該會導致我們到 2027 年能夠更有效地利用 SG&A 費用。

Turning to operating cash flow. This has been an area where we have significantly improved over the past three years. Granite today is a different business with a new business model when compared to the Granite of only a few years ago. Cash generation is the strength of our vertically integrated business model and has generated record operating cash flow in 2024. This improvement has been a major change, and over the next three years, we expect to generate operating cash flow in the range of 9% to 11% of revenue by 2027.

轉向經營現金流。這是我們在過去三年中取得顯著進步的領域。與幾年前的花崗岩相比，今天的花崗岩是一個不同的行業，具有新的商業模式。現金產生是我們垂直整合業務模式的優勢，並在 2024 年產生了創紀錄的營運現金流。這項改進是一項重大變化，在未來三年內，我們預計到 2027 年，營運現金流將佔收入的 9% 至 11%。

In addition, we intend to remain disciplined in our capital expenditures with ongoing focus on the Materials business. Our target for CapEx net of proceeds from sales of property and equipment is 3% of revenue, while maintenance CapEx is approximately half of the total. We believe this should result in a free cash flow margin of 6% to 8% of revenue in 2027, create significant value for shareholders and the ability to reinvest in the business. There's a lot of excitement across Granite about the opportunities in front of us. We have the market, the plan and the people to make it happen.

此外，我們打算繼續嚴格控制資本支出，持續關注材料業務。我們的目標是扣除財產和設備銷售收益後的資本支出佔收入的 3%，而維護資本支出約為總收入的一半。我們相信，到 2027 年，自由現金流利潤率將達到收入的 6% 至 8%，為股東創造巨大價值，並有能力對業務進行再投資。Granite 對我們面前的機會感到非常興奮。我們有市場、計劃和人才來實現這一目標。

Now let's jump into the quarter. In the Construction segment, revenue totaled $1.1 billion. This was a record high for the third quarter and reflected a 14% increase year over year. This increase was driven by operations across our geographies, even though there were a few profitable projects that were delayed as owners pushed work into 2025. Although it is disappointing to see some project delays, it is not unusual.

現在讓我們進入本季。建築部門的收入總計 11 億美元。這是第三季的歷史新高，年增 14%。這一增長是由我們跨地區的營運推動的，儘管有一些盈利項目因業主將工作推遲到 2025 年而被推遲。儘管看到一些項目延遲令人失望，但這並不罕見。

While the delayed work has shifted, it remains in CAP and bolsters our confidence for future revenue burn. We have made notable progress driving gross margins higher with our transformed project portfolio over the last few years. Even with this progress, our margins are not yet where I expect them to be. Our CAP portfolio is strong and we remain focused on execution and believe this should produce even higher gross margins in the segment in the future.

雖然推遲的工作已經轉移，但它仍然在 CAP 中，並增強了我們對未來收入消耗的信心。過去幾年，我們透過改造專案組合取得了顯著進展，提高了毛利率。即使取得了這些進展，我們的利潤率還沒有達到我的預期。我們的 CAP 產品組合很強大，我們仍然專注於執行，並相信這應該會在未來為該領域帶來更高的毛利率。

In addition to a strong quarter of revenue growth, we also added $44 million in CAP during the quarter to end at $5.6 billion. This is an increase of $35 million from the third quarter of 2023 and $1.5 billion in the third quarter of 2022. I'm happy to see CAP increase in what is seasonally our largest revenue quarter. Our markets continue to be robust, and our pursuit teams are winning the right projects to drive revenue growth and margin expansion. We remain selective in the projects that we bid, we are focused on building CAP in our home markets and working with partners, vendors and subcontractors that we know well.

除了強勁的季度營收成長之外，我們還在本季增加了 4,400 萬美元的 CAP，最終達到 56 億美元。這比 2023 年第三季增加了 3,500 萬美元，比 2022 年第三季增加了 15 億美元。我很高興看到 CAP 在我們季節性收入最大的季度有所成長。我們的市場持續強勁，我們的追求團隊正在贏得合適的項目，以推動營收成長和利潤擴張。我們對投標的專案保持選擇性，專注於在國內市場建立 CAP 並與我們熟悉的合作夥伴、供應商和分包商合作。

We are also continuing to prioritize best value projects where we can leverage our established relationships in our home markets to deliver larger projects while minimizing risk. Best value projects represent $2.4 billion or 42% of our total CAP at the end of the third quarter. This is an increase of $31 million from the third quarter of 2023 and $635 million from the third quarter of 2022. The collaborative delivery methods utilized in best value projects like construction manager, general contractor or progressive design build, better position us for success by allowing us to work with our clients early to identify and mitigate risk. Larger best value projects are often separated into smaller work packages to review through multiple project workshops.

我們也繼續優先考慮最有價值的項目，我們可以利用我們在國內市場建立的關係來交付更大的項目，同時最大限度地降低風險。截至第三季末，最有價值項目為 24 億美元，佔 CAP 總額的 42%。這比 2023 年第三季增加了 3,100 萬美元，比 2022 年第三季增加了 6.35 億美元。在施工經理、總承包商或漸進式設計建造等最佳價值項目中使用的協作交付方法，使我們能夠儘早與客戶合作，識別和降低風險，從而更好地為我們的成功做好準備。較大的最佳價值項目通常分為較小的工作包，以便透過多個專案研討會進行審查。

We have a history of delivering best value projects successfully and generally find that these projects are constructed more efficiently and with significantly fewer claims compared to other contracting methods. Our public and private construction markets are strong, and we are in a great position to build CAP, drive growth and expand margins.

我們擁有成功交付最有價值專案的歷史，通常發現，與其他承包方法相比，這些專案的建造效率更高，索賠也明顯減少。我們的公共和私人建築市場都很強勁，我們在建立 CAP、推動成長和擴大利潤方面處於有利地位。

Moving to the Materials segment. In August, we completed the acquisition of Dickerson & Bowen. Their Mississippi-based business expands our Southeastern home market. Growing our Materials segment through vertical integration, new markets and maximizing the benefit of vertical integration in existing markets are central to our strategy. We will continue to invest in our Materials business, both organically and through M&A as we work to drive further margin improvement.

轉向材料領域。8月，我們完成了對Dickerson & Bowen的收購。他們在密西西比州的業務擴大了我們東南部的國內市場。透過垂直整合、新市場以及最大限度地提高現有市場垂直整合的效益來發展我們的材料業務是我們策略的核心。我們將繼續透過有機方式和併購方式投資我們的材料業務，並努力推動利潤率進一步提高。

In the third quarter, we continued to realize price increases in both aggregates and asphalt in alignment with our targets of 10% in aggregates and 5% in asphalt on average for internal and external sales. We continually assess our pricing across our markets. As we look forward into 2025, we expect price increases to continue with averages of high single digits in aggregates and low single digits in asphalt. Currently, our 2025 order volumes for aggregates are flat compared to the prior year with asphalt orders well ahead of 2024.

第三季度，我們繼續實現骨材和瀝青價格上漲，實現了內部和外部銷售骨材平均上漲 10%、瀝青平均上漲 5% 的目標。我們不斷評估整個市場的定價。展望 2025 年，我們預期骨材平均價格將持續上漲，而瀝青平均價格將上漲。目前，我們 2025 年骨材訂單量與前一年持平，而瀝青訂單量則遠早於 2024 年。

Now I'll turn it over to Staci Woolsey to discuss our financial performance for the quarter. Staci has been serving as our Chief Accounting Officer since 2021 and formally assumed the role of Chief Financial Officer in September.

現在我將把它交給 Staci Woolsey，討論我們本季的財務表現。Staci 自 2021 年起擔任我們的首席會計官，並於 9 月正式就任財務長。

Thanks, Kyle. I'm excited to be here to discuss our third quarter results. In the quarter, we continued our strong year-over-year improvement. Revenue increased $159 million or 14%. Gross profit increased $36 million or 22%.

謝謝，凱爾。我很高興能在這裡討論我們第三季的業績。本季度，我們持續保持強勁的年成長。營收增加 1.59 億美元，即 14%。毛利增加了 3,600 萬美元，即 22%。

Adjusted net income improved $14 million or 18%. Adjusted EBITDA improved $23 million or 18%, and for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, operating cash flow improved $249 million.

調整後淨利潤增加了 1,400 萬美元，即 18%。調整後 EBITDA 增加了 2,300 萬美元，或 18%，截至 2024 年 9 月 30 日的九個月，營運現金流增加了 2.49 億美元。

In the Construction segment, revenue increased $135 million or 14% year over year to $1.1 billion, primarily driven by higher levels of CAP. The quarterly increase also includes approximately $42 million of incremental revenue from acquisitions. In a continuation of the gains we've seen in previous quarters, the revenue increases were driven by operations across the majority of our geographies. These increases were led by California, Alaska and Utah. Construction segment gross profit improved to $34 million with the segment gross profit margin of 16%.

在建築領域，營收年增 1.35 億美元，即 14%，達到 11 億美元，主要是由於 CAP 水準提高所致。該季度成長還包括約 4,200 萬美元的收購增量收入。在我們前幾個季度看到的成長的延續中，收入的成長是由我們大多數地區的營運所推動的。這些增長以加利福尼亞州、阿拉斯加州和猶他州為主。建築業務毛利增至 3,400 萬美元，毛利率為 16%。

The increase in gross profit margin was largely driven by our higher-quality project portfolio. We have made significant strides to improve gross profit margin, and we expect to achieve further gains in 2025 with our strong CAP and the strong market environment.

毛利率的成長主要得益於我們優質的項目組合。我們在提高毛利率方面取得了重大進展，預計憑藉強大的 CAP 和強勁的市場環境，我們將在 2025 年實現進一步的成長。

In the Materials segment, our increased pricing for asphalt and aggregates offset lower asphalt volumes. During the quarter, revenue increased $24 million year over year to $195 million, with gross profit of $3 million to $32 million. The increase in Materials revenue was primarily due to acquired businesses. Cash gross profit, which excludes depreciation, depletion and amortization increased $7 million year over year. Cash gross profit margins continue to be strong, totaling 22% as price increases in newly acquired businesses drove improvement in profitability.

在材料領域，我們對瀝青和骨材的定價上漲抵消了瀝青產量的下降。該季度營收年增 2,400 萬美元，達到 1.95 億美元，毛利為 300 萬美元至 3,200 萬美元。材料收入的增加主要是由於收購的業務。現金毛利（不包括折舊、消耗和攤提）年增 700 萬美元。由於新收購業務的價格上漲推動了獲利能力的改善，現金毛利率繼續保持強勁，總計 22%。

Turning to cash. I am pleased by our cash generation in the quarter. Through September, operating cash flow significantly improved compared to the first nine months of 2023 with operating cash flow of $284 million. This was a $249 million improvement year over year. Historically, the third and fourth quarters for Granite are when we have seen the most cash generation as our teams are fully mobilized to project sites and working hard to progress projects before year-end.

轉向現金。我對本季的現金產生感到滿意。截至 9 月份，營運現金流較 2023 年前 9 個月顯著改善，營運現金流為 2.84 億美元。這比去年同期增加了 2.49 億美元。從歷史上看，花崗岩的第三和第四季度是我們產生最多現金的時期，因為我們的團隊充分動員到專案現場並努力在年底前推進專案。

We have certainly seen that dynamic play out so far. With our performance this year, we expect to significantly exceed our target of operating cash flow of 7% of revenue for 2024. With our strong liquidity, Granite has never been in a better position to drive growth and return value to shareholders. With $472 million of cash and cash equivalents at the end of the quarter, we are evaluating acquisition opportunities and strategic capital investments, and we expect to return value to shareholders through share repurchases in the near term. These actions are in line with our capital allocation strategy, which is focused on bolstering our positions in our home markets and expanding our vertically integrated platform to new markets. With our strong cash generation, we believe we are in a good position to execute on this strategy.

到目前為止，我們確實已經看到了這種動態的發揮。根據今年的業績，我們預計將大大超過 2024 年營運現金流佔營收 7% 的目標。憑藉強大的流動性，Granite 處於前所未有的有利位置來推動成長並為股東回報價值。截至本季末，我們擁有 4.72 億美元的現金和現金等價物，我們正在評估收購機會和策略資本投資，並預計在短期內透過股票回購向股東回報價值。這些行動符合我們的資本配置策略，該策略的重點是鞏固我們在國內市場的地位，並將我們的垂直整​​合平台擴展到新市場。憑藉我們強大的現金產生能力，我們相信我們有能力執行這項策略。

Now I'll discuss updates to our guidance for 2024. Our revenue guidance for the year is unchanged at a range of $3.9 billion to $4 billion. While we expect strong performance in the fourth quarter, we saw delays of a few projects that pushed work into 2025. These delays impacted revenue in the third quarter and will also impact the fourth quarter. The fourth quarter can be weather sensitive, which is the primary risk that may cause movement within our revenue range.

現在我將討論 2024 年指南的更新。我們今年的營收指引維持在 39 億美元至 40 億美元的範圍內不變。雖然我們預計第四季度會有強勁表現，但我們看到一些項目被推遲，導致工作推遲到 2025 年。這些延誤影響了第三季的收入，也將影響第四季。第四季可能對天氣敏感，這是可能導致我們收入範圍內變動的主要風險。

We are increasing our expectation for SG&A as a percent of revenue to be in a range from 8.3% to 8.5% for the year from a range of 7.5% to 8%. The higher SG&A percentage primarily relates to increased incentive compensation and non-qualified deferred compensation expense.

我們將今年 SG&A 佔營收的百分比預期從 7.5% 至 8% 提高至 8.3% 至 8.5%。SG&A 百分比較高主要與激勵性薪酬和不合格遞延薪酬費用的增加有關。

We are narrowing our adjusted EBITDA margin guidance to 10% to 11% from a range of 9.5% to 11.5%. With our CAP going into the fourth quarter, we expect to end the year strong. Both of our segments are in position to continue the year-over-year improvement we have seen in the first nine months of the year. Also, as part of our ongoing asset optimization plan, we expect gain on sale of assets of approximately $17 million in the fourth quarter. Finally, with our spend through September, we now expect CapEx for the year to be approximately $130 million.

我們將調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率指引從 9.5% 至 11.5% 縮小至 10% 至 11%。隨著我們的 CAP 進入第四季度，我們預計今年將表現強勁。我們的兩個部門都能夠繼續今年前九個月的同比改善。此外，作為我們正在進行的資產優化計劃的一部分，我們預計第四季度資產出售收益約為 1,700 萬美元。最後，根據我們截至 9 月的支出，我們現在預計今年的資本支出約為 1.3 億美元。

With that, I'll turn it back over to Kyle for closing remarks.

至此，我將把它轉回給凱爾做總結發言。

Thanks, Staci. I'll close with the following points. In the third quarter, we continued the revenue growth for the first half of the year with our guidance range of $3.9 billion to $4 billion, we expect to finish the year with another strong quarter. Our CAP increased despite the third quarter being our busiest quarter. We continue to see many opportunities, both in the public and private markets to continue to build a CAP in the fourth quarter and in 2025.

謝謝，斯塔西。我將以以下幾點作為結束語。第三季度，我們延續了上半年的營收成長，指引範圍為 39 億美元至 40 億美元，我們預計將以另一個強勁的季度結束今年。儘管第三季度是我們最繁忙的季度，但我們的 CAP 仍有所增加。我們在公共和私人市場上繼續看到許多機會，可以在第四季和 2025 年繼續建立 CAP。

We narrowed our adjusted EBITDA margin guidance with no change in the midpoint. In 2024, we've made significant progress improving margins year over year, and I believe we will see further increases in 2025 with the work in our CAP, project opportunities ahead of us and ongoing initiatives to continue to raise the bar.

我們縮小了調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率指引範圍，中點沒有變動。2024 年，我們在利潤率逐年提高方面取得了重大進展，我相信，隨著 CAP 的工作、擺在我們面前的專案機會以及繼續提高標準的持續舉措，我們將在 2025 年看到進一步的成長。

Our cash generation in 2024 demonstrates the tremendous strides we have made over the last three years, with Granite's proven vertically integrated business strategy, I believe that we are well on our way to being an industry leader in free cash flow generation. I'm proud of all the progress we have made and expect that progress to continue through the next three years. We are now in a position to return value to shareholders, both through continued M&A and share repurchases.

我們在 2024 年的現金產生展示了我們在過去三年中取得的巨大進步，憑藉 Granite 成熟的垂直整合業務策略，我相信我們正在成為自由現金流生成領域的行業領導者。我對我們所取得的所有進步感到自豪，並期望這種進步在未來三年中繼續下去。我們現在能夠透過持續的併購和股票回購為股東回報價值。

Finally, the next three years at Granite should be really exciting. We have a great market, great businesses and great teams. We are in position to capitalize on opportunities as they become available. We believe our organic growth and margin expansion targets are achievable. We also believe that the significant cash our businesses generate when coupled with our available liquidity, will allow us to continue our strategy of pursuing bolt-on and larger transactions.

最後，Granite 的未來三年應該會非常令人興奮。我們有偉大的市場、偉大的企業和偉大的團隊。我們有能力抓住可用的機會。我們相信我們的有機成長和利潤擴張目標是可以實現的。我們也相信，我們的業務產生的大量現金加上我們可用的流動性，將使我們能夠繼續追求補充和更大交易的策略。

Our strategy of building a Materials' focused home market business remains unchanged. And over the next three years, I expect that we will continue to improve our value creation for our shareholders as we strengthen our position as America's infrastructure company.

我們建立以材料為重點的國內市場業務的策略保持不變。在接下來的三年裡，我預計我們將繼續提高為股東創造的價值，同時鞏固我們作為美國基礎設施公司的地位。

Operator, I will now turn it back to you for questions.

接線員，我現在將其轉回給您提問。

(Operator Instructions) Steven Ramsey, Thompson Research Group.

（操作員說明）Steven Ramsey，湯普森研究小組。

I wanted to ask a couple of questions on the long-term outlook. Thinking about the midpoint of 2024 EBITDA margin at 10.5%, and the midpoint is 2027 at 13%. That 250 basis points of expansion, I wanted to hear a bit more about the building blocks to get there. In the last couple of years, both segments were pretty equal contributors. I'm curious if that is the case over the next couple of years? And how much of it is SG&A leverage and just general operational improvements in the Materials segment?

我想問幾個關於長期前景的問題。考慮 2024 年 EBITDA 利潤率的中點為 10.5%，而 2027 年的中點為 13%。對於 250 個基點的擴張，我想了解更多有關實現這一目標的建置模組的資訊。在過去的幾年裡，這兩個領域的貢獻者相當平等。我很好奇未來幾年是否還會如此？其中有多少是 SG&A 槓桿以及材料部門的一般營運改善？

Steven, this is Kyle. So EBITDA margin, 2027, as you indicated, our range is 12% to 14%. And really, the primary way we're going to get there in near term is Construction. Our Construction pipeline of projects continues to improve. We're actually going to see a ramp up even in Q4 as our expectation carry into 2025. So we do expect going to '25 with this better portfolio of projects coming through that will be up about 1%, even a little bit higher on the Construction segment.

史蒂文，這是凱爾。因此，正如您所說，2027 年 EBITDA 利潤率的範圍是 12% 到 14%。事實上，我們近期實現這一目標的主要方式是建設。我們的專案建設管道不斷改善。事實上，隨著我們的預期持續到 2025 年，我們甚至會在第四季看到成長。因此，我們確實預計到 25 年，隨著這些更好的項目組合的到來，建築業將成長約 1%，甚至更高一點。

We also see margin improvement in the Materials as well. Now the Materials business, we think is going to be a longer-term progression as we continue to grow the margins on that aspect of our business through automation and asset management, continued pricing improvements and, of course, raising operational excellence in that segment of the business.

我們也看到材料的利潤率有所改善。現在，我們認為材料業務將是一個長期的發展，因為我們透過自動化和資產管理、持續的定價改進，當然還有提高該領域的卓越運營，繼續提高這方面業務的利潤率。

So I think it's across the board. I think near term, it really is our Construction business. It's going to get us really nice uplift in 2025, and our Materials business can continue to add on through 2027.

所以我認為這是全面的。我認為短期內，這確實是我們的建築業務。這將使我們在 2025 年獲得非常好的提升，並且我們的材料業務可以在 2027 年繼續成長。

Okay. That's helpful. And then I wanted to think about your home markets versus other markets. What is the margin profile gap between home markets and the other states? Maybe to put that in context, where it was a couple of years ago? And if there's some convergence implied over the next couple of years through '27?

好的。這很有幫助。然後我想考慮一下您的國內市場與其他市場。國內市場與其他州之間的利潤率差距是多少？也許把它放在上下文中，幾年前的情況？未來幾年到 27 年間是否會出現一些融合？

Well, today, I'd say all of our markets are home markets. We moved away from non-home market projects. So we have moved back into a home market strategy, that's all implemented. And I think the margin profile across the business is fairly consistent. We do have businesses, certainly, some of the acquisitions that we made have higher EBITDA margin contribution than some of the businesses we have in certain markets.

好吧，今天，我想說我們所有的市場都是國內市場。我們放棄了非本土市場項目。因此，我們又回到了國內市場策略，這一切都已實施。我認為整個業務的利潤率狀況相當一致。當然，我們確實有業務，我們進行的一些收購比我們在某些​​市場上擁有的一些業務具有更高的 EBITDA 利潤率貢獻。

But overall, we're in a home market position today. That's the way we're going to stay. And so that's why we feel really good about the performance that we have and our confidence in our ability to continue that strong performance moving forward.

但總體而言，我們今天處於國內市場地位。這就是我們要堅持的方式。這就是為什麼我們對我們所擁有的表現感到非常滿意，並且我們對我們繼續保持強勁表現的能力充滿信心。

Okay. That's excellent. And one last quick one for me. I know increased selectivity in choosing and winning projects has been a strong point in the past couple of years, channel checks point to that this is happening in the marketplace broadly. I'm curious how selectivity is part of the organic growth targets in the next couple of years? And if the environment were to turn in a way that's less robust, how you would stay selective in those times?

好的。那太好了。給我最後一個快速的。我知道在過去幾年中，選擇和贏得項目的選擇性增加一直是一個強項，渠道檢查表明這種情況正在市場上廣泛發生。我很好奇選擇性如何成為未來幾年有機成長目標的一部分？如果環境變得不那麼穩健，您將如何在那個時候保持選擇性？

Yes. Thanks, Steven. Well, I think from a selectivity perspective, we're looking at maintaining this derisked business model. So I think at the heart of the question is if it gets tougher, the market gets tougher, we go back into this design build, high-risk project portfolio. The answer is no.

是的。謝謝，史蒂文。嗯，我認為從選擇性的角度來看，我們正在考慮維持這種無風險的商業模式。所以我認為問題的核心是，如果情況變得更艱難，市場變得更艱難，我們就會回到這個設計建構、高風險專案組合。答案是否定的。

We have no intention of doing that. We're enjoying the benefits of our derisk portfolio and a new business model today. So there would be no opportunity to go back to that. Today, we are selective already. I think our teams know where we can be successful and do well in our projects.

我們無意這樣做。今天，我們正在享受去創投組合和新業務模式的好處。所以沒有機會回到那個時候了。今天，我們已經是有選擇性的了。我認為我們的團隊知道我們可以在哪些方面取得成功並在專案中做得很好。

We even -- we're being more selective, we're bidding more work year over year. So we've seen a really nice bid volume through September. October has actually been a really strong bid month and successful bid month for us, and we see a really strong bid schedule in November. So we expect that market to continue.

我們甚至——我們變得更加挑剔，我們逐年投標更多的工作。因此，整個九月我們都看到了非常好的投標量。對我們來說，10 月實際上是一個非常強勁的投標月份和成功的投標月份，我們看到 11 月的投標時間表非常強勁。因此，我們預計該市場將持續下去。

Margins are up year over year. So we continue to see that margin progression on bid day in our business, and we've seen that again since 2021. So we're seeing a really healthy market, plenty of opportunities, increased margins on bid day. As I mentioned in the prepared remarks, the IIJA money, we're still early. We're going to only be through around 40% through 2026. So we still see a really strong public market for years to come.

利潤率逐年上升。因此，我們的業務在投標日繼續看到利潤率的成長，而且自 2021 年以來我們再次看到了這種情況。因此，我們看到了一個非常健康的市場，大量的機會，投標日的利潤增加。正如我在準備好的演講中提到的，IIJA 資金，我們還處於早期階段。到 2026 年，這一比例只會達到 40% 左右。因此，我們在未來幾年仍然看到一個非常強勁的公開市場。

Brent Thielman, D.A. Davidson.

布倫特·蒂爾曼，D.A.戴維森。

Kyle, maybe you could just talk around the cause of the delays in projects into 2025. It seems somewhat odd, so I'd love if you can just maybe expand on that.

凱爾，也許你可以談談計畫推遲到 2025 年的原因。這似乎有點奇怪，所以我希望您能對此進行擴展。

Yes. Thanks, Brent. There was a small handful of projects. It's not abnormal for project delays to occur. These were all owner driven.

是的。謝謝，布倫特。有一小部分項目。工程出現延誤並不罕見。這些都是業主驅動的。

A couple were due to notice to proceed being delayed a month or two. We have one with the changing conditions, waiting for direction from the owner in terms of how to proceed, another one just slow and getting start -- started down in Texas. So again, it's not abnormal in our business to see some work get shifted to the right. The good news is as those projects are going to get us some momentum as we get into 2025. But that was really one of the primary factors is we didn't get towards that high end of our range in terms of our opportunity to raise it with the addition of Dickerson & Bowen.

一對夫婦原本應通知延後一兩個月進行。我們有一個正在不斷變化的條件，等待業主指示如何進行，另一個只是緩慢地開始 - 從德克薩斯州開始。再說一次，在我們的行業中，看到一些工作被轉移到右邊並不反常。好消息是，進入 2025 年，這些項目將為我們帶來一些動力。但這確實是主要因素之一，我們沒有達到我們範圍的高端，因為我們有機會透過加入迪克森和鮑文來提高它。

So Dickerson & Bowen will add somewhere in the neighborhood of, say, $25 million or so to our revenue for the year. We thought that in combination with the work that we had booked, and we get to that high end of our range this year or higher as a potential opportunity. But we are pleased that we're able to maintain that guidance and get to that $3.95 billion midpoint this year, despite the fact that a few projects move to the right.

因此，Dickerson & Bowen 將為我們今年的收入增加約 2500 萬美元左右。我們認為，結合我們預訂的工作，我們今年將達到我們範圍的高端或更高，作為一個潛在的機會。但我們很高興能夠維持這項指導，並在今年達到 39.5 億美元的中點，儘管有一些項目向右移動。

Michael Dudas, Vertical Research Partners.

麥可‧杜達斯 (Michael Dudas)，垂直研究合作夥伴。

Kyle, as you put forth the 6% to 8% organic revenue growth rate CAGR through '27. Could you a little more thought on private versus public? Is it a different growth rate in each? I'm assuming that the growth rate in public appears more sustainable or more, I guess, less volatile than the private side. Can you maybe share a little bit of how that dynamic is?

凱爾（Kyle），正如您提出的到 27 年的有機收入複合年增長率為 6% 至 8%。您能多考慮一下私人與公共嗎？每個的成長率不同嗎？我假設公共部門的成長率看起來比私人部門更可持續，或者說波動性更小。能分享一下這種動態嗎？

And maybe following up with Steven had asked, is there any budgeting of a slowdown, a recession or anything that might cause a bit of a wider range of outcomes as you move through the next year?

也許繼史蒂文問過之後，是否有任何針對經濟放緩、經濟衰退或任何可能在明年導致更廣泛結果的因素的預算？

Yes. Well, our revenue growth rate of 6% to 8% organic. We look at it, one, is consistent with this year. So we've been able to achieve that this year. So I think it's pretty consistent with what we're going to see moving forward, especially in line of the IIJA funding.

是的。嗯，我們的收入有機成長率為 6% 到 8%。我們看，一是和今年是一致的。所以我們今年已經實現了這個目標。因此，我認為這與我們將看到的進展非常一致，特別是在 IIJA 資金方面。

So we do have really good visibility to your point on the public side that we're going to see a healthy market through '27 and beyond that, likely through 2030 and maybe even beyond that. So we feel really good about the public market. And to your point, mean the private market, we do have a little bit less visibility and confidence in general. But our business is about 70% or so -- or 75% public, 20%, 25% private. It's actually shifted a little bit more public than private over the last year or so.

因此，我們在公眾方面確實非常清楚您的觀點，即我們將在 27 年及之後看到一個健康的市場，很可能到 2030 年甚至更久。所以我們對公開市場感覺非常好。就你而言，就私人市場而言，我們的知名度和信心總體上確實有點低。但我們的業務大約有 70% 左右——或者說 75% 是公共的，20%、25% 是私人的。實際上，在過去一年左右的時間裡，它的公共化程度比私人化程度要高一些。

But no, we still feel really good about the private markets that we're in. We're not experiencing any slowdown to date. Certainly on the Materials sales side, again, we continue to see opportunities for next year to see aggregate volumes, asphalt volumes go up. And again, we have a lot more confidence in the public market. We'll have to see how the private market plays out but things are definitely looking like there's signs of recovery on the private market, especially in certain parts of our market, say, for example, in Northern California. So we do see opportunities for improvement into 2025.

但不，我們仍然對我們所處的私人市場感覺非常好。到目前為止，我們還沒有遇到任何放緩的情況。當然，在材料銷售方面，我們仍然看到明年總銷量和瀝青銷量上升的機會。再說一次，我們對公共市場更有信心了。我們必須看看私人市場的表現如何，但看起來私人市場肯定有復甦的跡象，特別是在我們市場的某些部分，例如在北加州。因此，我們確實看到了 2025 年的改進機會。

My follow-up is as your targets in 2027 on operating cash flow improvement and free cash flow have been very impressive execution so far. And I think those are reasonable targets going forward. How should we think about allocation in the sense of assuming that 6% to 8% free cash flow target is achieved? How balanced -- I will be opportunistic on acquisition, obviously, with discipline but is it going to be more optimistic or systemic on repurchasing shares. I know acquisitions when they come through and will there be -- with the size of probably the acquisitions may be improving, is that a fair observation that might occur given the capital -- well-capitalized balance sheet and the cash flow generation you guys are anticipating?

我的後續行動是，你們 2027 年營運現金流改善和自由現金流的目標迄今為止執行得非常令人印象深刻。我認為這些都是未來合理的目標。假設實現了 6% 至 8% 的自由現金流目標，我們應該如何考慮配置？多麼平衡——顯然，我會在收購方面採取機會主義態度，並遵守紀律，但在回購股票方面會更加樂觀或系統化。我知道收購何時完成，而收購的規模可能會有所改善，考慮到資本充足的資產負債表和現金流的產生，這是一個公平的觀察期望？

So make sure we got the question correct, Mike. I mean the first part of the question is, operating cash flow, how much of that can we convert to M&A? Are the M&A sized deals going to grow? Or are they -- or is correlated to our operating cash flow performance and then how are we considering share repurchases? So maybe I'll start with the M&A side of things.

所以請確保我們的問題是正確的，麥克。我的意思是問題的第一部分是，營運現金流，我們可以將其中多少轉化為併購？併購規模交易會成長嗎？或者它們與我們的經營現金流表現有關，或者與我們的經營現金流表現有關，那麼我們如何考慮股票回購？所以也許我會從併購方面開始。

Certainly, there's a really strong pipeline in the deal space today, which -- so we should be able to convert hopefully, one to two deals per year. I would say they're going to be in similar size to Lehman-Roberts and Memphis Stone & Gravel and Dickerson & Bowen. So I think that would be a reasonable expectation. Obviously, it can be a little bit lumpy in terms of timing. We are still focused on supporting and strengthening our business, the ones -- the businesses we have today, the home markets we just talked about.

當然，今天的交易領域有一個非常強大的管道，所以我們應該能夠有希望地每年完成一到兩筆交易。我想說它們的規模將與 Lehman-Roberts、Memphis Stone & Gravel 和 Dickerson & Bowen 類似。所以我認為這是一個合理的期望。顯然，它在時間上可能有點不穩定。我們仍然專注於支持和加強我們的業務，我們今天擁有的業務，我們剛才談到的國內市場。

We are looking and still building out our Southeast platform. So that is a primary focus for us as well. And then we're also looking for other platforms that we can develop as well. So that's -- that's where we're looking at things. We have evaluated larger deals.

我們正在尋找並仍在建立我們的東南平台。所以這也是我們的主要關注點。然後我們也在尋找其他我們也可以開發的平台。這就是我們正在研究的地方。我們評估了較大的交易。

So that's something that we have looked at and we'll continue to look at but it has to be the right deal for Granite and certainly a business that we understand very, very well. I don't know if you want to add on anything regarding the share repurchases and our thoughts there.

因此，這是我們已經考慮過並將繼續考慮的事情，但這對於 Granite 來說必須是正確的交易，當然也是我們非常非常了解的業務。我不知道您是否想補充任何有關股票回購和我們的想法的內容。

Sorry, go ahead. I apologize.

抱歉，請繼續。我道歉。

That's okay. I was just going to add on, Kyle mentioned with our capital allocation strategy. We'll continue to prioritize investing in our business and M&A and, of course, our dividend. And with our current cash positions, we want to look at the potential of doing share repurchases dependent on the timing of those investment opportunities as they come along. So just to recap what we've done so far this year on share repurchases.

沒關係。凱爾在我們的資本配置策略中提到，我只是想補充一下。我們將繼續優先投資我們的業務和併購，當然還有我們的股息。憑藉我們目前的現金狀況，我們希望根據這些投資機會出現的時機來研究股票回購的潛力。回顧我們今年迄今為止在股票回購方面所做的工作。

Earlier in the year, we purchased 225,000 shares for about $13 million. And we have $218 million remaining under our Board authorized share repurchase plan. So we're looking at doing something a bit larger than that in the near term and then continuing to evaluate that as we prioritize it with the timing of M&A and other investments.

今年早些時候，我們以約 1,300 萬美元的價格購買了 225,000 股股票。董事會授權的股票回購計畫還剩 2.18 億美元。因此，我們正在考慮做一些比短期內更大的事情，然後繼續評估它，因為我們會根據併購和其他投資的時機來優先考慮它。

Excellent. And just a clarification. Kyle, you mentioned one to two transactions a year with the size of what you've done in the Southeast of Lehman-Roberts and Dixon, et cetera. What was the combined purchase prices that you -- that you for those acquisitions? Or is that the type of number we're thinking about in a similar light going forward? And is large -- how big is large relative to that type of number, just relative to --

出色的。只是一個澄清。凱爾，您提到每年一到兩筆交易的規模與您在雷曼-羅伯茨和迪克森東南部所做的交易規模相當。您對這些收購的總購買價格是多少？或者說這就是我們未來以類似的角度考慮的數字類型？而且很大——相對於該類型的數字而言，多大才算是大，只是相對於--

Yes. Mike, those two deals were ballpark around $300 million. I think that's in alignment with what we can be doing in each year, so usually continue to perform. As we mentioned, our leverage target is around 2.5x.

是的。麥克，這兩筆交易的價值約為 3 億美元。我認為這與我們每年可以做的事情是一致的，所以通常會繼續執行。正如我們所提到的，我們的槓桿目標約為 2.5 倍。

So I think that would be what I would look at in terms of what a larger deal size would be. And naturally, when we look at larger deals. Again, it'd have to be something that was really the right fit for the company, and it had to make a lot of sense, and our business that's vertically integrated, materials-focused, one we understand very well, wouldn't be something that needed to necessarily be turned around. And we'd have to look at that public-private relationship relative to that question that you asked. I mean, obviously, a larger deal comes with more risk, and we'd have to evaluate the deal very closely.

所以我認為這就是我所關注的更大交易規模的問題。當然，當我們考慮更大的交易時。再說一遍，它必須是真正適合公司的東西，而且必須具有很大的意義，而我們的垂直整​​合、以材料為重點的業務，我們非常了解，就不會是這樣的。我們必須考慮與你提出的問題相關的公私關係。我的意思是，顯然，更大的交易伴隨著更大的風險，我們必須非常仔細地評估交易。

Yes, thank you. Yes, certainly -- we're certainly excited to be in a position where we have a lot of cash and opportunities to reinvest it or distribute it.

是的，謝謝。是的，當然 - 我們當然很高興能夠擁有大量現金並有機會對其進行再投資或分配。

Yes. Certainly, better this before you came on board to run this call. So congratulations on all that success. Well done.

是的。當然，在你參與這次電話會議之前最好這樣做。祝賀所有這些成功。幹得好。

Brent Thielman, D.A. Davidson.

布倫特·蒂爾曼，D.A.戴維森。

I apologize, my line got cut off previously. I'm sure the answer was great, Kyle. Anyway, I guess, the -- on the 2027 financial target, could you clarify on the organic CAGR and I apologize if you've answered this. Should we be using 2023 or 2024 as the baseline?

抱歉，我的線路之前被切斷了。我確信答案很好，凱爾。無論如何，我想，關於 2027 年的財務目標，您能否澄清有機複合年增長率，如果您回答了這個問題，我深表歉意。我們應該使用 2023 年還是 2024 年作為基準？

Yes, we should be using 2024. So we did talk about that 6% to 8% growth rate. But yes, to clarify based on 2024 growth.

是的，我們應該使用 2024 年。所以我們確實談到了 6% 到 8% 的成長率。但是，是的，需要根據 2024 年的成長情況進行澄清。

Okay. Excellent. And then on the Materials side, Kyle, I mean the pricing expectations for aggregates into 2025 pretty consistent or maybe at the upper end of what we've heard from some of the peers here recently in terms of expectations. I mean what gives you the confidence in that realization? Is there -- and is there anything unique to your platform that you think we ought to consider this, supports that?

好的。出色的。然後在材料方面，凱爾，我的意思是對 2025 年總體的定價預期非常一致，或者可能處於我們最近從一些同行那裡聽到的預期的上限。我的意思是什麼讓你對這種認識充滿信心？您的平台是否有任何獨特之處，您認為我們應該考慮這一點，並支持這一點？

I guess I'm thinking a little bit about maybe the historical approach to pricing in the group, maybe there's some low-hanging fruit to catch up to the market. Anything else around that, that really supports that confidence in high single digits next year.

我想我正在考慮一下該集團的歷史定價方法，也許有一些容易實現的成果可以趕上市場。圍繞這一點的其他任何事情都確實支持了明年高個位數的信心。

Sure. Well, this year, we set out to have 10% price increases on aggregates, 5% on asphalt, and our teams did a really nice job. And we're in alignment with what our target was and what we set out to do in 2024. So again, for next year, we see high single digits on aggregate price increases and low single digit on asphalt. And really what gives us confidence is we have high confidence in the public market.

當然。嗯，今年，我們計劃將骨材價格上漲 10%，瀝青價格上漲 5%，我們的團隊做得非常好。我們與 2024 年的目標和計劃保持一致。因此，明年，我們將看到總價格漲幅較高，而瀝青價格漲幅較低。真正給我們信心的是我們對公共市場充滿信心。

So we get really good visibility into that with the funding that's out there. So we do have that visibility. As I mentioned, we're seeing some recovery on the private side. Certainly, some of the markets that have been softer. We've been talking about a market like Northern California for a couple of years now being softer.

因此，透過現有的資金，我們可以很好地了解這一點。所以我們確實有這樣的知名度。正如我所提到的，我們看到私營部門有所復甦。當然，有些市場已經疲軟。幾年來我們一直在談論像北加州這樣的市場，但現在卻變得更加疲軟。

We are seeing some signs of recovery. If that all holds true, then we see ag volumes going up in 2025, which is a good sign. Asphalt orders are already up for 2025. So that gives us some visibility into next year. So we believe that, that holds, then we should see asphalt volumes improve as well next year.

我們看到了一些復甦的跡象。如果這一切成立，那麼我們將看到 2025 年農業產量將會上升，這是一個好兆頭。2025 年的瀝青訂單已經增加。這讓我們對明年有了一些了解。因此，我們相信，如果這一點成立，那麼明年我們應該會看到瀝青產量也會有所改善。

So that's what gives us the confidence that we're going to see improved performance next year. And some of the efforts that we put in around automation, to this reorganization, some of our -- how we manage quality, raising the bar around operational excellence within our Materials business is going to also drive higher profitability in that segment next year as well and beyond.

這讓我們有信心明年的業績會有所改善。我們在自動化方面所做的一些努力，對於這次重組，我們如何管理質量，提高材料業務中卓越運營的標準也將在明年推動該領域更高的盈利能力以及更遠的地方。

Jerry Revich, Goldman Sachs.

傑瑞·雷維奇，高盛。

This is Adam Bubes on for Jerry Revich today. Really strong double-digit organic growth year to date and a strong outlook as well? And in end market environment, some of the data we're tracking is mixed. What would you attribute potential share gains to? And based on the order cadence, do you think there's potential for share gains going forward?

我是 Adam Bubes，今天為 Jerry Revich 演講。今年迄今為止確實實現了兩位數的強勁有機增長並且前景也很強勁嗎？在終端市場環境中，我們追蹤的一些數據是好壞參半的。您將潛在的股票收益歸因於什麼？根據訂單節奏，您認為未來份額成長的潛力嗎？

So you're thinking primarily, Adam, from a market share gain. I would say, Adam, we've done a really nice job I think across the entire portfolio. We've seen our teams have executed on certainly bid day across the board, which I think is really a testament to our CAP and our really strong record CAP despite the fact we've had two record revenue quarters in a row. So we continue to build our CAP up with that. I think that's just our teams across the board continuing to take advantage of a really nice market.

所以，亞當，你主要考慮的是市場佔有率的成長。我想說，亞當，我認為在整個投資組合中我們做得非常好。我們已經看到我們的團隊在投標日全面執行，我認為這確實證明了我們的 CAP 和我們真正強勁的 CAP 記錄，儘管我們已經連續兩個季度創紀錄的收入。因此，我們將繼續以此為基礎建立我們的 CAP。我認為這只是我們的團隊全面繼續利用一個非常好的市場。

I will say that we -- it appears as though we're gaining market share in the West, specifically in California. So we're seeing some opportunities where we've gained some market share there. But really, our growth is really tied to the market and I think getting back to this home market strategy has really allowed us to understand the markets better, understand the owners, understand what projects are coming on our way, and it's certainly driving our hit rate up in the markets that we hadn't been in those home markets, and that's helping to contribute to our success.

我想說的是，我們似乎正在獲得西方市場份額，特別是在加州。因此，我們看到了一些機會，我們在那裡獲得了一些市場份額。但實際上，我們的成長確實與市場息息相關，我認為回到本土市場策略確實讓我們能夠更好地了解市場，了解業主，了解我們即將推出的項目，這肯定會推動我們的成功我們在國內市場上沒有涉足過的市場，這有助於我們成功。

And Kyle, you talked about a strong M&A pipeline. In terms of the types of assets, are there still meaningful vertically integrated assets available?

凱爾，您談到了強大的併購管道。從資產類型來看，還有有意義的垂直整合資產可用嗎？

Yes. There's a lot, and we look at a lot. I would say that it's as healthy of a deal pipeline as we've certainly seen, since we've been looking at deals now for just over about two, three years, wholeheartedly. And that's why we have pretty good confidence we should be able to get one to two done a year, and of the size that I mentioned because there are a lot of opportunities in the space, and there's still a few larger ones out there as well.

是的。有很多，我們看了很多。我想說，正如我們所看到的那樣，這是一個健康的交易管道，因為我們現在全心全意地考慮交易已經有兩三年多了。這就是為什麼我們有很大的信心，我們應該能夠每年完成一到兩次，並且達到我提到的規模，因為這個領域有很多機會，而且還有一些更大的機會。

And then last one for me. Really attractive 2027 margin targets. Near term, what are some of the early puts and takes on outlook for 2025 margin expansion?

然後是我的最後一張。2027 年的利潤目標確實很有吸引力。近期，對 2025 年利潤率擴張前景的早期看跌期權和看跌期權有哪些？

So good question. For next year, as I mentioned, we expect at least about 1%, a little bit higher uplift in our Construction business, just as we see that pipeline of projects really improve as we get around the corner here on January 1. So we will see that in next year. So that will be a really nice uplift. We do see some margin expansion in Materials business. So we will come out with some guidance in Q1 for 2025 but I would expect we're going to be getting pretty close to the bottom end of our '27 range from an EBITDA margin perspective.

好問題。正如我所提到的，我們預計明年的建築業務將至少成長 1% 左右，略高一些，正如我們在 1 月 1 日到來時看到的專案管道確實有所改善一樣。所以我們會在明年看到這一點。所以這將是一個非常好的提升。我們確實看到材料業務的利潤率擴大。因此，我們將在 2025 年第一季發布一些指導，但我預計從 EBITDA 利潤率的角度來看，我們將非常接近 27 年範圍的底端。

This concludes our question-and-answer session. I'd like to turn the call back over to Mr. Kyle Larkin for any closing remarks.

我們的問答環節到此結束。我想將電話轉回給凱爾·拉金先生，讓他作結束語。

Okay. Well, thank you for joining the call today. As always, we want to thank all of our employees for the work they do every day. Thank you for your interest in Granite. We look forward to speaking with you all soon.

好的。好的，感謝您今天加入通話。一如既往，我們要感謝所有員工每天所做的工作。感謝您對花崗岩的興趣。我們期待盡快與大家交談。

The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation, and you may now disconnect.

會議現已結束。感謝您參加今天的演示，您現在可以斷開連接了。