好時 (HSY) 2025 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Greetings, and welcome to the Hershey Company fourth-quarter 2025 question-and-answer session. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.

大家好，歡迎參加好時公司 2025 年第四季問答環節。（操作說明）提醒各位，本次會議正在錄音。

I'd now like to turn the call over to your host, Anoori Naughton, Vice President of Investor Relations for The Hershey Company. Thank you. You may begin.

現在，我想把電話交給主持人，好時公司投資人關係副總裁阿諾裡‧諾頓。謝謝。你可以開始了。

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us today for The Hershey Company's fourth quarter 2025 earnings Q&A session. I hope everyone has had the chance to read our press release and listen to our prerecorded management remarks both of which are available on our website. In addition, we have posted a transcript of the prerecorded remarks. At the conclusion of today's live Q&A session, we will also post a transcript and audio replay of this call.

各位早安。感謝您今天參加好時公司2025年第四季財報問答會。我希望大家都有機會閱讀我們的新聞稿並收聽我們預先錄製的管理層講話，這兩項內容都可以在我們的網站上找到。此外，我們也發布了預先錄製演講的文字稿。在今天的線上問答環節結束後，我們也會發布本次通話的文字稿和音訊回放。

Please note that during today's Q&A session, we may make forward-looking statements that are subject to various risks and uncertainties. These statements include expectations and assumptions regarding the company's future operations and financial performance. Actual results could differ materially from those projected. The company undertakes no obligation to update these statements based on subsequent events. A detailed listing of such risks and uncertainties can be found in today's press release and the company's SEC filings.

請注意，在今天的問答環節中，我們可能會發表一些前瞻性聲明，這些聲明會受到各種風險和不確定性的影響。這些聲明包括對公司未來營運和財務表現的預期和假設。實際結果可能與預期結果有重大差異。本公司不承擔根據後續事件更新這些聲明的義務。有關此類風險和不確定性的詳細清單，請參閱今天的新聞稿和公司向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件。

Finally, please note that we may refer to certain non-GAAP financial measures that we believe provide useful information for investors. This information is not intended to be considered in isolation, or as a substitute for the financial information presented in accordance with GAAP. Reconciliations for the GAAP results are included in this morning's press release. Joining me today are Hershey's President and CEO, Kirk Tanner; and Hershey's Senior Vice President and CFO, Steve Voskuil.

最後，請注意，我們可能會提及某些我們認為對投資者有用的非GAAP財務指標。本資訊不應被孤立地看待，也不應被用作替代根據公認會計原則編制的財務資訊。今天早上的新聞稿中包含了 GAAP 結果的調整表。今天與我一同出席的有好時公司總裁兼執行長柯克‧坦納，以及好時公司資深副總裁兼財務長史蒂夫‧沃斯奎爾。

I will now invite Kirk to begin with a brief introduction.

現在我請柯克先生做個簡短的自我介紹。

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us. Before we get to questions, I just want to recognize our team and what they accomplished in 2025. Through skillful execution we strengthened our market position, we invested for the future, and we closed out the year with real momentum, all while navigating serious headwinds like cocoa inflation and macro volatility.

各位早安。感謝您的參與。在進入問答環節之前，我只想稱讚我們的團隊以及他們在 2025 年所取得的成就。透過巧妙的執行，我們鞏固了市場地位，為未來進行了投資，並以強勁的勢頭結束了這一年，同時克服了可可價格上漲和宏觀經濟波動等嚴峻的不利因素。

Heading into 2026, I am confident. Our portfolio is resilient. We're looking at 4% to 5% net sales growth and meaningful earnings recovery. And that gives us runway to invest in innovation, brand building and execution to drive growth, and we are going after it. Thanks for attending the call today, and we're ready to take your questions.

展望2026年，我充滿信心。我們的投資組合具有很強的抗風險能力。我們預計淨銷售額將成長 4% 至 5%，獲利也將顯著回升。這給了我們資金投入創新、品牌建立和執行，以推動成長，而我們正在朝著這個目標努力。感謝您今天參加電話會議，我們已準備好回答您的問題。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作說明）

Andrew Lazar, Barclays.

安德魯·拉扎爾，巴克萊銀行。

Great, thanks so much. Good morning, everybody.

太好了，非常感謝。各位早安。

Good morning, Andrew.

早安，安德魯。

Maybe to start, I appreciate obviously the chocolate category is typically not one that is a pass-through category, and that Hershey and others are still hedged well above where current spot rates are for cocoa at this point.

首先，我當然明白巧克力類別通常不是一個價格轉嫁的品類，而且好時和其他公司目前的可可對沖價格仍然遠高於當前的現貨價格。

But I guess just given the precipitous recent decline in the commodity, I guess, is there a risk maybe this time around that we could see some price deflation at some point, by either Hershey or competitors to sort of better match go-forward cocoa costs? And, I guess, how do you account for that sort of possibility in the guidance?

但鑑於近期可可價格的急劇下跌，我想，這次是否有可能出現價格通貨緊縮，無論是好時公司還是競爭對手，為了更好地匹配未來的可可成本而採取這種做法？那麼，我想，你們如何在指導方針中考慮這種可能性呢？

Yes. Thank you for the question. Our competitors in the category are sophisticated, and they're large like ourselves, and they likely have coverage for more certainty in their business. And private label remains small here in the US. So that's kind of the first point. But there's a big conversation around how we think about pricing and the price of cocoa, et cetera. I'd like to make a few points here.

是的。謝謝你的提問。我們在這個領域的競爭對手都很成熟，而且和我們一樣規模龐大，他們的業務可能更有保障。在美國，自有品牌市場仍然規模很小。這是第一點。但是，關於我們如何看待定價以及可可的價格等等，存在著很大的討論。我想在這裡提出幾點看法。

So first, we don't take pricing lightly, and we've been very patient and played the long game when cocoa market surged to balance consumer needs. Our actions that we've taken are anchored in consumer insights and the brands remain affordable and accessible. 75% of our portfolio is still under $4.

首先，我們非常重視定價，當可可市場價格飆升時，我們一直保持耐心，採取長遠策略來平衡消費者需求。我們採取的行動都基於對消費者的洞察，品牌價格始終保持在合理範圍內，方便消費者購買。我們產品組合中75%的產品價格仍低於4美元。

The pricing we took in '25, I think this is important, does not fully cover our cocoa cost inflation in 2026. So we are on a recovery path while also adding significant fuel to our growth with investments in marketing, innovation, R&D, really to keep that momentum on the top line going, and keeping the category exciting for consumers and keep that growth moving into '26 -- or beyond '26, into '27, '28.

我認為很重要的一點是，我們在 2025 年採用的價格並不能完全反映 2026 年可可成本的上漲。因此，我們正在走復甦之路，同時透過對行銷、創新和研發的投資，為我們的成長注入了強大的動力，真正地保持了營收成長的勢頭，保持了消費者對該品類的興趣，並保持了這種增長勢頭延續到 2026 年——甚至更遠，延續到 2027 年、2028 年。

And then recently, pricing on our snacks business, I think we're in really good shape. We had 18% growth on our snack business in Q4 -- double-digit volume growth. Let me get a drink. Sorry, Andrew.

最近，我們在零食業務的定價方面，我認為我們做得非常好。第四季度，我們的零食業務成長了 18%，實現了兩位數的銷量成長。讓我去拿杯飲料。對不起，安德魯。

No, no. Take your time. Take your time.

不，不。慢慢來。慢慢來。

Yes. So -- yes, that's kind of in a broad response to what we see in the market. Certainly, the deflationary momentum on cocoa takes future pricing pressure down. That's how I think about it.

是的。所以——是的，這算是對我們所看到的市場現象的廣泛回應。當然，可可價格的通貨緊縮勢頭會降低未來價格上漲的壓力。我也是這麼想的。

Got it. That's helpful. And then just a follow-up. I guess regarding elasticity, it's great to see that it's thus far coming in more favorably than you anticipated. I guess I'm curious as to what maybe do you owe this better outcome? And is the company building in some flexibility in the plan, should elasticity increase as we've seen maybe in some other markets for some other players?

知道了。那很有幫助。然後還有一個後續問題。就彈性而言，很高興看到目前為止它的表現比你預期的要好。我很好奇，你究竟因為什麼才獲得這樣的好結果了？如果像我們在其他一些市場對其他一些參與者一樣，市場彈性增加，那麼該公司是否在計劃中留有一定的靈活性？

Yes, let me start and I'll kick it over to Steve, so that -- I think his voice might be stronger, right. Anyway, look, we're encouraged for what we've seen so far. So we announced pricing in July. We started taking pricing mid-September. And so we've gotten information that it's informed and our information is informed on what we're seeing right now, and we're encouraged by what we're seeing right now.

是的，我先開始，然後把麥克風交給史蒂夫，這樣——我覺得他的聲音可能會更有力，對吧。總之，就目前所見，我們感到鼓舞。因此，我們在7月公佈了定價。我們從九月中旬開始接受詢價。因此，我們得到的資訊表明，它與我們目前所看到的情況相符，我們對目前所看到的情況感到鼓舞。

Yes. And I would say elasticities don't stay static. It fluctuates over time. While we're experiencing elasticities right now that's favorable to our original outlook. We continue to plan for around 0.8 to account for these fluctuations as there's still some price pack changes to roll in. There are still some channels rolling shelf tags through.

是的。而且我認為彈性並非一成不變。它會隨時間波動。雖然我們目前感受到的彈性有利於我們最初的預期。我們繼續計劃將價格調整到 0.8 左右，以應對這些波動，因為還有一些價格套餐的變化需要實施。還有一些管道仍在滾動銷售貨架標籤。

So it's going to take a little bit longer, I think, for everything to fully adjust. Of course, our goal is to do better than that. So with the strong activation calendar that we have, some of the investment that we have, our goal is to do better, but the guide allows for some of that upside to flow through.

所以我覺得，一切完全調整好還需要一段時間。當然，我們的目標是做得更好。因此，憑藉我們強大的推廣計劃和部分投資，我們的目標是做得更好，但該指南允許一些成長潛力得以釋放。

Thanks so much, see you in March.

非常感謝，三月見。

You bet. Thanks Andrew.

當然。謝謝你，安德魯。

Megan Clapp, Morgan Stanley.

梅根克拉普，摩根士丹利。

Hi, good morning, thanks so much. I'll maybe start with a question for Steve to give Kirk, maybe give you a little bit of a break. So another question on cocoa, but more related to the margin framework. So I think in the prepared remarks, you talked about stable rates across the broader, commodity input basket.

您好，早安，非常感謝。我或許可以先問史蒂夫一個問題，讓他轉告柯克，這樣或許能讓你稍微休息一下。關於可可的另一個問題，但更與邊際框架相關。所以我覺得在事先準備好的發言稿中，您談到了更廣泛的商品投入籃子的價格穩定問題。

Just given the precipitous decline we've seen in cocoa, how should we think about cocoa within the framework? Were you able to kind of capture any benefit from what we've seen over the last month? Or is this really a tailwind as we think about '27?

鑑於可可產量急劇下降，我們該如何看待可可產業？過去一個月裡，你從我們所看到的情況中獲得什麼好處了嗎？或者，當我們展望 2027 年時，這真的算是一股順風嗎？

And what I'm really just trying to get at is, I think you're implying 41% gross margins in '26, obviously, a really nice recovery from '25, but still well below where you've been historically. So based on where cocoa has gone, is it kind of reasonable to expect continued progress kind of back towards those historical gross margin levels in '27?

我真正想表達的是，我認為你的意思是 2026 年的毛利率為 41%，顯然，這比 2025 年有了非常好的恢復，但仍然遠低於你過去的歷史水平。根據可可的發展現狀，我們是否可以合理地預期，到 2027 年，可可的毛利率將繼續恢復到歷史水準？

Sure, yes. Happy to take it. We're glad to see that the cocoa financial markets have finally begun to reflect some of the fundamentals that we've been describing really for the last 18 months. As we look out, we continue to anticipate a larger supply surplus in '25 and '26, driven by supply expansion in some of those new origins we've talked about, as well as a contraction in global demand. So I'd say we're optimistic as we look to the future.

當然可以。樂意接受。我們很高興看到可可金融市場終於開始反映出我們在過去 18 個月中一直在描述的一些基本面。展望未來，我們繼續預計 2025 年和 2026 年供應過剩將更加嚴重，這主要是由於我們討論過的一些新產地的供應擴張以及全球需求的萎縮。所以，展望未來，我認為我們是樂觀的。

That said, there's market volatility still, as prices are trying to find that new equilibrium. And I think we still believe that new equilibrium is likely to be above what we've seen in historic levels. Our hedging program has been in great shape for 2026, and we're hedged above current market levels.

儘管如此，市場仍然存在波動，因為價格正試圖找到新的均衡點。而且我認為我們仍然相信，新的均衡水準可能會高於我們所見過的歷史水準。我們的 2026 年對沖計畫進展順利，我們的對沖水準高於目前市場水準。

So if you kind of extend current market levels flat, that would suggest that we still have some upside for further deflation in 2027. So we'll talk more about that as we give more 2027 and '28 perspective at the conference. But as we look ahead, we see more possibility for upside there in the future.

因此，如果將目前的市場水準維持不變，那就意味著到 2027 年我們仍有進一步通貨的上漲空間。所以，我們將在會議上就此進行更深入的探討，並展望 2027 年和 2028 年的情況。但展望未來，我們認為未來那裡還有更大的上漲空間。

Okay. Great. And maybe kind of a related question. A lot of discussion in the prepared remarks about the increased brand investment you're doing in 2026, including a double-digit increase in advertising. So as you look out to '27, how should we think about kind of the durability of the increased brand investments you're making in '26?

好的。偉大的。或許還有一個相關的問題。在準備好的發言稿中，有許多關於你們在 2026 年增加品牌投資的討論，其中包括廣告投入的兩位數成長。展望 2027 年，我們該如何看待您在 2026 年增加的品牌投資的持久性？

And as you mentioned, as gross margins hopefully kind of continue to expand as cocoa deflates, how do you think about kind of the need or desire for incremental reinvestment beyond what you're doing in '26?

正如您所提到的，隨著可可價格下跌，毛利率有望繼續擴大，您認為在 2026 年除了正在進行的投資之外，是否需要或希望進行進一步的再投資？

Sure. I mean, I think I would think about the things we're doing in '26 are, in some cases, multiyear investments, that are going to lay a foundation for not just '26, but '27 and beyond, while still delivering great growth in the present. We're really focused on fueling demand creation through things like scaling some investments in R&D and innovation, brand building, the retail sales team and the technology around that, that sets the portfolio up and really focuses on household penetration expansion and capturing new consumers, recapturing some of our lapsed consumers.

當然。我的意思是，我認為我們在 2026 年所做的事情，在某些情況下，是多年投資，不僅為 2026 年，而且為 2027 年及以後奠定基礎，同時在當下也能帶來巨大的增長。我們真正專注於透過增加研發和創新、品牌建立、零售銷售團隊以及相關技術方面的投資來刺激需求創造，從而建立產品組合，真正專注於擴大家庭滲透率，吸引新消費者，並重新吸引一些流失的消費者。

So the investments are a mix of things that are going to deliver today, but also things that are laying a foundation, a multiyear foundation. And again, as we look to '27, '27 is also going to be a year like '26 of driving growth, but also margin recovery. So that balance will be present in '27 just like it is in '26.

因此，這些投資既包括那些能夠立即產生效益的項目，也包括那些能夠奠定基礎、奠定多年基礎的項目。展望 2027 年，2027 年也將像 2026 年一樣，成為推動成長和利潤率復原的一年。因此，這種平衡在 2027 年將與 2026 年一樣存在。

Yes. We'll go into greater detail at our investor conference in March. Really unpack this brand building, our investments in R&D. The solution here is to have sustainable long-term top line growth. And those capabilities and investments that we make are really important and we'll unpack that in March.

是的。我們將在三月的投資者大會上詳細介紹。深入剖析品牌建置以及我們在研發上的投入。解決之道在於實現可持續的長期營收成長。我們所做的這些能力建構和投資都非常重要，我們將在三月詳細說明。

Great. Thanks so much, looking forward to it.

偉大的。非常感謝，我很期待。

Peter Galbo, Bank of America.

Peter Galbo，美國銀行。

Hey, good morning, guys, thanks for the question. Steve, I actually was hoping maybe we could unpack the quarter a little bit. You had some pretty nice upside in the gross margin, I think, even relative to your own expectations to the tune of like 250 basis points-plus.

嘿，各位早安，謝謝你們的提問。史蒂夫，我其實是希望我們能稍微拆開這個四分之一的包裝一下。我認為，即使相對於你自己的預期，你的毛利率也有相當大的提升空間，大約有 250 個基點以上。

I know you outlined maybe some of that in the prepared remarks of the buckets. But maybe you could just give us a little bit more detail on the upside in the quarter between kind of tariff cost saving, volume deleverage, where those kind of buckets stood?

我知道你可能在事先準備好的演講稿中提到其中的一些內容。但您能否更詳細地介紹一下本季關稅成本節約、銷售槓桿化等方面的利多因素，以及這些因素的具體情況？

Sure. Yes. You're right. We had a few hundred basis points of better performance in gross margin than we expected in the fourth quarter. And there are a couple of things in there. Obviously, volumes were strong. So we got a little bit more leverage. But probably the single biggest piece was tariffs. Now if you think about tariffs in two ways.

當然。是的。你說得對。第四季度，我們的毛利率比預期高出數百個基點。裡面還有幾樣東西。顯然，成交量很強勁。所以我們獲得了一些談判籌碼。但其中影響最大的因素可能是關稅。現在，我們可以從兩個方面來考慮關稅問題。

Tariffs on our products, which we have high visibility to, and we'll talk about that as some of that is still sitting in inventory to come out in Q1. But we also pay tariffs on some of our suppliers' items. And that was an area where we anticipated paying more tariffs on some of our suppliers' materials then we ended up paying in the fourth quarter.

我們非常清楚我們產品的關稅情況，我們會對此進行討論，因為其中一些產品仍然滯留在庫存中，並將在第一季推出。但是，我們也需要為部分供應商的產品支付關稅。而在這個領域，我們原本預計要為一些供應商的材料支付比第四季實際支付的更多的關稅。

And that was one of the, I'll say, surprises to the upside or the positive for the quarter. Offsetting that, we had a little bit of LIFO headwinds, inventory reval headwinds, but that was the biggest piece for the upside.

可以說，這是本季令人驚喜的好消息之一。抵消了部分不利因素，後進先出法和存貨重估也帶來了一些不利影響，但這仍然是上漲的最大因素。

Got it. Okay. And Kirk, the prepared remarks had a notable on kind of Hershey and Reese's having a true campaign for the first time in eight years. I was commenting to Anoori this morning, like I've seen the team USA ad, it's great ad copy. But just like the impetus kind of for why now, why this, why now on both those brands, again, given it's been some time would be helpful? Thanks very much.

知道了。好的。柯克，他事先準備好的發言稿中特別提到了好時和里斯八年來首次真正開展競選活動。今天早上我和Anoori聊到這件事，我說我看過美國隊的廣告，廣告文案寫得真好。但就像為什麼現在推出這兩個品牌一樣，考慮到已經有一段時間了，解釋一下背後的原因會很有幫助嗎？非常感謝。

Yes. Thanks for that question. This is the year of Hershey, and we're investing in Reese's as well. But when you look at the campaign, it's your happy place with Hershey's. That really builds on the connection and love that consumers have for the brand. And staying relevant with consumers on big brands is so important to fuel our growth. We've got a full year planned on both Reese's and Hershey.

是的。謝謝你的提問。今年是好時巧克力之年，我們也投資了瑞茜巧克力。但當你仔細觀察這個廣告活動時，你會發現它展現的是好時帶來的快樂。這確實能進一步增強消費者對品牌的喜愛與連結。與消費者保持對大品牌的關注度對於推動我們的成長至關重要。我們已經為 Reese's 和 Hershey 制定了一整年的計劃。

You'll see innovation on both. There's big innovation coming out on Hershey. And then of course, we have the movie celebrating Milton Hershey and really the great American story success story of the Hershey Company coming out in the fall. So it really is an action-packed year that really celebrates these two big brands, and that drives growth for us.

你會發現兩者都有創新之處。好時公司即將推出重大創新產品。當然，今年秋天還將上映一部紀念米爾頓赫爾希的電影，講述赫爾希公司偉大的美國成功故事。所以，今年真是精彩的一年，充分展現了這兩個大品牌的實力，也推動了我們的成長。

Great. Thanks very much.

偉大的。非常感謝。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Peter Grom, UBS.

Peter Grom，瑞銀集團。

Great thank you good morning, everyone. I wanted to ask on the '26 guidance and understanding a lot has changed over the last few months as it relates to cocoa, tariffs, elasticities. But I kind of wanted to bridge from the expectation last quarter of being on algorithms to maybe being a little bit above that, post tariffs to now kind of expecting 30% to 35% earnings growth? And I ask that more in context of trying to understand the degree of cushion, or flexibility in the guidance just given the expectation for such strong growth?

非常感謝，大家早安。我想詢問一下關於 2026 年的指導意見，因為在過去的幾個月裡，可可、關稅、彈性等方面發生了很多變化。但我希望能夠從上個季度對演算法的預期過渡到關稅後可能略高於預期，再過渡到現在預期獲利成長30%至35%？我提出這個問題，更多是為了了解在預期如此強勁增長的情況下，指導意見中留出的緩衝空間或靈活性程度？

Yes. Let me address just the momentum on the top line and let Steve talk about the EPS portion. But if you think about what's different between now and when we talked last, is the momentum in the business, and it's across the portfolio. So we've got real strength in our CMG business, and we continue to see that.

是的。我先談談營收成長勢頭，讓史蒂夫來談談每股盈餘部分。但如果你想想現在和我們上次談話時有什麼不同，那就是業務的發展勢頭，而且這種勢頭遍及整個投資組合。因此，我們的 CMG 業務實力雄厚，而且我們將繼續看到這一點。

And then fundamentally, how we're investing in our brands and delivering innovation, that gives us the confidence on the top line. And then our Salty portfolio has been really -- got a lot of tailwind. It's really positioned with consumers in the right places.

從根本上說，我們對品牌的投資和創新，讓我們對營收充滿信心。而且，我們的Salty投資組合也確實——獲得了巨大的順風。它的市場定位非常精準，目標客戶群也選對了地方。

Again, we saw 18% growth organic growth in quarter four in our Salty business and that's double-digit volume growth. So we see real health there. And the combination of our Salty and Sweet portfolio gives us the confidence to deliver the top line, which also, of course, helps our earnings. So that's different. And then on EPS, Steve can talk kind of through the levers there.

同樣，我們在第四季度鹹味飲料業務實現了 18% 的有機成長，銷量實現了兩位數的成長。所以我們看到那裡的健康狀況確實很好。我們的鹹味和甜味產品組合讓我們有信心實現營收目標，當然也有助於我們的獲利。所以這不一樣。然後，在 EPS 上，史蒂夫可以透過那裡的控制桿進行講解。

Sure. We're -- it's a good spot to be in for a change where we have two of our biggest risks, cocoa and tariffs fully understood, at least up to the moment for the year. So that's a good place to start. On top of that, since we last talked, we've got a better view. We get new data every day on elasticity. We feel better about what we're seeing. We haven't, as we said earlier, built all that potential upside into the plan, but we believe we've got a good balanced outlook on elasticities.

當然。我們現在處境不錯，因為我們已經充分了解了兩個最大的風險——可可和關稅，至少就目前而言，今年的情況是這樣。所以，從這裡開始是個不錯的選擇。此外，自從我們上次談話以來，我們對情況有了更清晰的了解。我們每天都會收到關於彈性的新數據。我們對所看到的景象感到更加滿意。正如我們之前所說，我們還沒有把所有潛在的上漲空間都納入計劃，但我們相信我們對彈性有一個良好的平衡展望。

We've got strong operating plans that Kirk and I have been through in detail in the last few months, and we're excited about those. And at the same time, we're balancing that with understanding the headwinds from the macros and making sure that we've got a balanced view of how those could play out for the year.

在過去的幾個月裡，我和柯克詳細研究了我們所製定的強有力的營運計劃，我們對此感到非常興奮。同時，我們也在權衡宏觀經濟帶來的不利因素，確保我們對這些因素在今年可能產生的影響有一個平衡的看法。

As we think about the gives and takes that we sometimes focus on what's in our control, and what's outside our control. In our control, as we said earlier, we want to do better on elasticities, and we've got strong programming and brand engagement to do that. We've got investments in innovation, media, in-store activation. And then the ability, which we've done a great job of delivering on productivity and cost savings.

當我們思考得失時，我們有時會關注哪些事情在我們掌控之中，哪些事情不在我們掌控之中。正如我們之前所說，在我們可控的範圍內，我們希望在彈性方面做得更好，而且我們擁有強大的專案規劃和品牌參與能力來實現這一目標。我們在創新、媒體和店內推廣活動方面都有投資。此外，我們在提高生產力和節省成本方面也做得非常出色。

So we've got very high confidence in that set of controllables. But there are things out of our control, macro headwinds, which, again, I believe we've got a prudent outlook for competitive response. Again, we're not seeing anything today that's causing concern, but these are the things that we will certainly keep an eye on. I think the key as we think about the '26 guidance is that we have flexibility to respond to what's going to change and challenge. And so we've done a good job of being agile in '25, and we will do the same in 2026.

因此，我們對這組可控因素非常有信心。但有些事情是我們無法控制的，例如宏觀經濟逆風，不過，我認為我們已經對應對競爭採取了審慎的策略。再次強調，今天我們沒有發現任何令人擔憂的情況，但這些是我們一定會密切關注的事情。我認為，在考慮 2026 年指導方針時，關鍵在於我們要有彈性來應對即將發生的變化和挑戰。因此，我們在 2025 年很好地做到了敏捷，我們將在 2026 年繼續保持敏捷。

Great. And then maybe just a follow-up on Salty. There was a competitor this week that talked about affordability, price reductions that they're seeing expanded shelf space distribution. I know there's some subcategory differences. But just curious how you see that playing out for the category and maybe any implications for your business as well?

偉大的。然後或許可以跟進 Salty 的狀況。本周有一家競爭對手談到了價格實惠、降價以及擴大貨架空間和分銷渠道的問題。我知道這其中存在一些子類別差異。但我很好奇您認為這會對整個產業產生怎樣的影響，以及這對您的業務會有哪些影響？

Yes. Our Salty business has got a lot of momentum, like we talked about, 18% double-digit growth for the full year, and really healthy volume growth. Customers reward space on performance and velocity. That's the fundamentals of the category management. And so we are -- as well, we're expanding with our customers and customers need our growth.

是的。我們的鹹味食品業務發展勢頭強勁，正如我們之前所說，全年實現了 18% 的兩位數增長，銷量也實現了非常健康的增長。客戶會根據性能和速度來評價空間。這就是品類管理的基本原理。所以我們也是一樣－我們與客戶共同發展，客戶也需要我們的發展。

If you think about the category, the Salty category was relatively flat last year, and we grew double digits. So we provided a lot of growth in the category, and we'll continue to do that with our customers, and we'll be rewarded with space gains and addition including support for the innovation that we bring out on our Salty business. So I feel really good about the fundamentals of where we are with our Salty business, and that momentum will continue.

從品類來看，鹹味食品品類去年相對平穩，而我們實現了兩位數的成長。因此，我們為該品類帶來了巨大的成長，我們將繼續為我們的客戶帶來成長，我們將獲得市場份額的成長和增加，包括對我們在Salty業務中推出的創新的支持。所以我對我們Salty業務的基本面感到非常滿意，而且這種勢頭將會繼續下去。

Great, thank you so much. I'll pass it on.

太好了，非常感謝。我會轉達的。

David Palmer, Evercore ISI.

David Palmer，Evercore ISI。

Great, thank you. Good morning, guys. I want to hit on that line of questioning you heard earlier. People right now are going to be wrestling with how to think about earnings into '27, which is ridiculously early, I know, but people are going to clearly be imagining $10 or more in earnings in '27. Just thinking through where cocoa is today and likely it could be in the 4,000s for that upcoming year just based on how you might be hedging this year into that year.

太好了，謝謝。各位早安。我想談談你之前聽到的那幾個問題。現在人們都在努力思考如何展望 2027 年的收益，我知道這時間還很早，但人們顯然會設想 2027 年的收益達到 10 美元或更多。我只是在思考可可現在的價格，根據你今年對沖明年價格的方式來看，明年的價格很可能在 4000 美元左右。

I'm just wondering like things that would maybe not make -- we don't want to get ahead of ourselves in terms of flow through, things that could hold back that flow through to get to those types of numbers, price elasticity moving over 0.8, I would imagine would be one. But other wish list types of reinvestments? Any thoughts on that would be helpful. And I have a follow-up.

我只是在想，有哪些因素可能會阻礙——我們不想在流通方面操之過急，有哪些因素可能會阻礙流通，從而無法達到那些數字，我想價格彈性超過 0.8 就是其中之一。但還有其他類型的再投資願望清單嗎？任何想法都將不勝感激。我還有一個後續問題。

Sure. As you said, we'll unpack this more in the Investor Day. I agree with you. I think we all agree the external factors as we look out seem to be improving. Cocoa, one of those, we'd agree that today, if you were to snap a chalk line, you'd probably say that looks like a potential tailwind for 2027.

當然。正如您所說，我們將在投資者日上對此進行更詳細的探討。我同意你的看法。我想我們都同意，從外部來看，各種因素似乎都在改善。可可豆就是其中之一，我們一致認為，如果今天你用粉筆畫一條線，你可能會說這看起來像是 2027 年的潛在順風。

But it's still volatile. It still hasn't found its new normal, and we continue to watch it. On the other side, we are going to, as we said earlier, continue to make investments in the portfolio and products that are going to set us up for multiyear performance. And so we feel good about what we have in the 2026 plan.

但它仍然波動不定。它尚未找到新的常態，我們將繼續關注它。另一方面，正如我們之前所說，我們將繼續投資於投資組合和產品，這將為我們未來的多年業績奠定基礎。因此，我們對2026年計畫的內容感到滿意。

Some of those are going to carry over into 2027. We are always going to balance the margin recovery and the growth. So don't think about that investment has taken away that margin recovery. But it's a balancing factor to make sure we enable long-term growth. And then as we talked about earlier, we're going to watch those macros very closely.

其中一些措施將延續到 2027 年。我們將始終在利潤率恢復和成長之間取得平衡。所以不要認為那項投資已經抵銷了利潤率的復甦。但這是一個平衡因素，以確保我們能夠實現長期成長。然後，正如我們之前討論過的，我們將密切關注這些宏觀經濟因素。

We'll get more data on SNAP. We've got a lot of data coming in on GLP-1s, just like many of you do, we have a team of people who does nothing but study and analyze these macros to understand the impact on our business. And so we have built in, what we believe is, the best information today into that guide, but that will be a place we'll watch as it develops over the course of this year and we get more data.

我們將獲取更多關於SNAP（補充營養援助計劃）的數據。和你們許多人一樣，我們也收到了很多關於 GLP-1 的數據，我們有一個團隊專門研究和分析這些宏觀數據，以了解它們對我們業務的影響。因此，我們已將我們認為目前最好的資訊納入該指南，但我們將密切關注它在今年的發展情況以及我們獲得更多數據後的變化。

Thanks for that. And just -- I don't want to front run your Investor Day. But Kirk, you obviously have been in the CPG space for a while. You have fresh eyes on this business. You obviously have a chance to -- do you have a say in the plan for '26 and '27, in terms of how we should think about the type of growth activations and the things that you're doing? The levers that we will see more of perhaps than that we've seen in the recent past. Any thoughts on that, just tease the Analyst Day a bit.

謝謝。還有——我不想搶在你們的投資人日之前發言。但是柯克，你顯然已經在消費品產業待了一段時間了。你對這個行業有全新的視角。顯然，你有機會——在 2026 年和 2027 年的計劃中，你是否有發言權，例如我們應該如何考慮增長激活的類型以及你正在做的事情？我們或許會比近期更能看到這些槓桿。對此有什麼想法嗎？稍微透露一下分析師日的資訊吧。

Yes, let's tease it out. But hey, look, first of all, we'd love to see you all on March 31 in New York. We're excited to share that. I'm excited to share the plan. So 2026 is really the first chapter of our next generation of growth. And then really -- and what we'll kind of share with you is the portfolio that we're building, the -- look, we have a terrific portfolio today. We'll continue to invest in that portfolio, and we're going to double down on our strengths.

是的，讓我們來仔細分析一下。但是，首先，我們非常希望3月31日能在紐約見到大家。我們很高興與大家分享這個消息。我很興奮能和大家分享這個計畫。所以，2026 年其實是我們下一代成長的第一篇章。然後，我們真正想和大家分享的是我們正在建立的投資組合，你看，我們現在擁有一個非常棒的投資組合。我們將繼續投資該投資組合，並加倍發揮我們的優勢。

And those strengths will fuel that top line growth while we return earnings to our shareholders, and we'll bring that to life in -- at the Investor Day. And we'll be very articulate about what investments we're making, what capabilities and what outcomes we expect, but you'll see that really come to life. We're really excited to share that with you.

這些優勢將推動營收成長，同時我們將獲利回饋給股東，我們將在投資者日上實現這一點。我們會非常清楚地說明我們正在進行哪些投資、具備哪些能力以及我們期望取得哪些成果，但你會看到這一切真正變成現實。我們非常興奮地與您分享這個消息。

Leah Jordan, Goldman Sachs.

莉亞喬丹，高盛集團。

Good morning. Thank you for taking my question. There just seems to be a lot of attention and excitement about the innovation and activation plans in a lot of your commentary today. So anything if you could provide more color on the plans you have for the coming year, key timing we should think about? And then I think ultimately, how do you think about growth and innovation versus core for the coming year?

早安.感謝您回答我的問題。從你們今天的評論來看，大家似乎對創新和推廣計畫非常關注，也感到非常興奮。如果您能詳細介紹來年的計劃，以及我們應該考慮的關鍵時間節點，那就太好了？最後，我想問的是，您認為來年成長和創新與核心業務之間應該如何平衡？

Yes. I think it's a balance. We just talked about some of the investments we're making on Hershey's and Reese's. I think that quality core growth is really important. And there's innovation in those places as well. But innovation is so important to the category, and we've had some really good innovation as of late.

是的。我認為這是一種平衡。我們剛剛談到了我們對好時和瑞茜的一些投資。我認為高品質的核心成長非常重要。這些地方也有創新。但創新對於這個類別來說非常重要，我們最近也確實取得了一些非常好的創新成果。

REESE'S OREO has been a really nice tailwind for us, and that continues through most of this year where we have -- two-third of the year we'll have that being a real positive to us. And then we have a pipeline of innovation that we're launching across our sweets and chocolate portfolio that we're excited. Plus, we have really good innovation on our Salty business. And so innovation on our Hershey brand, Dot's brand, SkinnyPop, JOLLY RANCHER, you'll see all that innovation.

REESE'S OREO 一直是我們非常有利的助力，而且這種情況將持續到今年大部分時間——今年三分之二的時間裡，這對我們來說都是一個真正的利好因素。此外，我們還將在糖果和巧克力產品組合中推出一系列創新產品，我們對此感到非常興奮。此外，我們在Salty業務方面也擁有非常優秀的創新能力。因此，在我們的好時品牌、Dot's 品牌、SkinnyPop、JOLLY RANCHER 等品牌上，您將會看到所有這些創新。

We'll share all that innovation at our upcoming Investor Day, but it is robust. And then if you think about '27 and beyond, it's important that we have a pipeline of innovation that continues through '27. And that's why we're making continued investments in R&D so that we can be -- come to the market faster with the most relevant consumer-facing ideas, and we'll share that pipeline as well.

我們將在即將舉行的投資者日上分享所有這些創新成果，但它確實非常強大。然後，如果你考慮 2027 年及以後，重要的是我們要有一條創新之路，這條路能夠延續到 2027 年。正因如此，我們不斷增加研發投入，以便更快地將最相關的面向消費者的理念推向市場，我們也會分享這些研發成果。

Okay. Great. We'll look forward to that. I think for my follow-up, I just wanted to go back to the gross margin discussion, specifically around this year and the cadence. Thank you for the color on the 400 basis points, we should expect for the full year, a little bit of pressure in 1Q and improve thereafter. But any more color on the puts and takes we should think about in the magnitude of that improvement as we go through each quarter?

好的。偉大的。我們期待著那一天的到來。我想就後續問題，再次討論毛利率，特別是今年的毛利率和毛利率的波動。感謝您對400個基點的分析，我們應該預期全年情況如此，第一季可能會有些壓力，之後會有所改善。但是，隨著每季的推進，我們應該考慮哪些因素，才能更清楚地了解改善的幅度？

Sure. You bet. I can take that one. As we kind of look through the flow of the quarters, we're going to see -- the first half is going to be -- or excuse me, Q1 will be the strongest from a top line standpoint. We're going to carry the momentum out of the fourth quarter, feel really good about our visibility in the first quarter on the top line.

當然。當然。我可以接受這個。當我們縱觀各季度的發展趨勢時，我們會發現——上半年——或者更準確地說，第一季從營收角度來看將是表現最強勁的。我們將延續第四季的良好勢頭，對第一季的營收前景非常有信心。

But margin and earnings are going to remain under pressure because we still are going to have higher cost inventory. We're still going to have tariffs in that inventory. So we'll see margin and earnings pressure in Q1. As we go to Q2, the top line growth is going to moderate slightly, but you're going to see an inflection from a gross margin standpoint. And we expect to see double-digit EPS growth for the balance of the year from there.

但是，由於庫存成本仍然較高，利潤率和收益將繼續面臨壓力。我們仍會對這批庫存商品徵收關稅。因此，我們將看到第一季利潤率和利潤面臨壓力。進入第二季度，營收成長將略有放緩，但從毛利率的角度來看，將會出現轉折點。我們預計今年剩餘時間內每股收益將達到兩位數成長。

Of course, we know we got tougher comps in the second half, but we factored that in as we think about this flow. So think about momentum carrying through the first half on the top line, second quarter inflection from a profitability standpoint. And then we'd expect to see our brand investment up double digits across the quarters, and this reflects some of those investments we talked about earlier.

當然，我們知道下半季的對手更強，但我們在考慮比賽進程時已經考慮到了這一點。因此，可以考慮上半年營收成長動能延續，以及第二季獲利能力的轉捩點。然後我們預計，各季度品牌投資將實現兩位數成長，這反映了我們之前談到的一些投資。

That's very helpful. Thank you.

那很有幫助。謝謝。

Max Gumport, BNP Paribas.

馬克斯·古姆波特，法國巴黎銀行。

Hey, thanks for the question. Clearly, elasticity so far have been encouraging. And I'm not expressing my own view here, but one that you hear from some investors. I think there's a narrative out there that once you get through this pricing cycle, you'll be unable to grow your chocolate volumes for several years.

嘿，謝謝你的提問。顯然，目前的彈性表現令人鼓舞。我在這裡表達的並非我個人的觀點，而是你從一些投資者那裡聽到的觀點。我認為目前有一種說法，認為一旦度過了這個價格週期，你的巧克力銷售將在未來幾年內無法成長。

It's similar to what we're seeing in other packaged food categories currently. I realize we're a long way away from that point in time, but I'm just curious what pushback you'd offer to that narrative? And if there's any historical precedence you're focused on? Thank you.

這與我們目前在其他包裝食品類別中看到的情況類似。我知道我們離那個時間點還很遠，但我只是好奇你會對這種說法提出什麼反駁？如果您關注任何歷史先例，那又該如何看待呢？謝謝。

Yes. Let me break it down. Look, we like where we're at with really the big categories across our Confection business and our Salty business. The Confection category has been very resilient over time and it remains resilient. It is an emotional category that consumers look for. And if you think about where the growth is right now in retail, it really is around functional and emotional brands.

是的。讓我來詳細解釋一下。你看，我們對糖果業務和鹹味食品業務的主要類別目前的狀況非常滿意。糖果類別一直以來都具有很強的韌性，目前依然如此。這是消費者所追求的情感類商品。如果你仔細想想零售業目前的成長點在哪裡，你會發現它確實集中在功能性和情感性品牌上。

And so that gives you confidence to see that continue to grow. And if you just look historically, it's been a very resilient category. It's a really good category. On the Salty side of the business, I think it's really important to be in the right places in the category. Permissible, better-for-you, portion control, those are areas that continue to leverage growth.

因此，這讓你有信心看到它繼續增長。從歷史角度來看，這是一個非常有韌性的類別。這是一個非常好的類別。在鹹味食品業務方面，我認為在品類中佔據正確的位置非常重要。允許食用、更健康、份量控制等領域將繼續推動成長。

Consumers are willing to pay for that. That's where the growth is, and that's where our brands are positioned in the category. Give you a couple of examples. SkinnyPop is doing exceptionally well, it's a real relevant. Popcorn very relevant with consumers today and will be long term as we see those consumer trends and what they're looking for. Dot's Pretzels really shows how you can reinvent a category and drive growth.

消費者願意為此付費。成長點就在那裡，我們的品牌也正是定位在這個品類中。舉幾個例子。SkinnyPop做得非常好，它真的很有影響力。爆米花如今非常受消費者歡迎，而且隨著我們觀察消費趨勢和他們的需求，這種趨勢將會持續下去。Dot's Pretzels 真正展現瞭如何重塑一個品類並推動成長。

Dot's is now the number one pretzel in the category. And it is about tying into the relevance of what consumers are looking for. That -- of course, you're going to hear more about kind of the long term at -- and I'm really plugging this Investor Day. So I hope you're all coming. But we'll walk through kind of the long-term plan and how we see the categories and how we see the sustainability of that over the long-term horizon.

Dot's 現在是該類別中排名第一的椒鹽脆餅品牌。關鍵在於要與消費者的需求緊密連結。當然，接下來你會聽到更多關於長期發展的消息——我真的非常期待這次投資者日。所以，我希望你們都能來。但我們將詳細探討長期計劃，以及我們如何看待這些類別，以及我們如何看待這些計劃在長期內的可持續性。

And I think we'll have an opportunity there, too, to talk about how we can play offense on some of the categories that are going to see more growth. So we know sweets, better-for-you, premium, some of the functional products that we're going to talk about, I think we're going to have a really good story about how they can lean into the volume story as well.

我認為我們也會有機會討論如何在一些未來成長潛力更大的領域採取進攻策略。所以我們知道，甜食、更健康的高端產品，以及我們將要討論的一些功能性產品，我認為我們將講述一個非常好的故事，說明它們如何也能幫助銷售成長。

Great. And then in Europe, where I realize you don't have much of a chocolate presence, but it's a market where we -- it's an interesting corollary because in Europe, we saw chocolate pricing get taken earlier in a sizable way. And initially, elasticities were quite encouraging as you're seeing in the US currently for your own chocolate business. But in the middle of '25, we started to see pricing elasticities ramp up meaningfully in Europe ahead of where the industry expected them to be.

偉大的。然後在歐洲，我知道你們的巧克力市場並不發達，但這是一個有趣的現象，因為在歐洲，我們看到巧克力的價格上漲速度明顯加快了。最初，市場彈性相當令人鼓舞，就像你目前在美國看到的，對你自己的巧克力業務也是如此。但到了 2025 年中期，我們開始看到歐洲的價格彈性顯著上升，超越了產業預期。

So I'm sure you're studying consumer behavior over there even if you don't have much of a presence. I'm curious what your learnings are that you've taken? And if there's any factors, you're seeing that make the consumer in Europe, and how they approach chocolate different from the US consumer? Thanks very much.

所以我相信，即使你們在那邊的業務規模不大，你們也肯定在研究消費者行為。我很想知道你都學到哪些了？那麼，您觀察到哪些因素導致歐洲消費者和美國消費者在對待巧克力的態度上有所不同呢？非常感謝。

Yes. Thanks for that question. Yes, and we are definitely studying that. Look, we've taken a very patient approach as we've -- the impact of cocoa and the pricing. So we've taken a very patient approach through the lens of the consumer. The categories, though, in the US look very different than Europe. There's more brand differentiation. If you look at the brands across the portfolio, there's a lot high level of differentiation. There's a variety across the portfolio and the top players have higher market share.

是的。謝謝你的提問。是的，我們正在研究這個問題。你看，我們一直採取非常耐心的態度，因為可可的影響和價格波動一直備受關注。因此，我們採取了非常有耐心、以消費者為導向的方法。不過，美國的分類與歐洲的分類非常不同。品牌差異化程度較高。如果你縱觀整個產品組合中的各個品牌，你會發現它們之間存在著高度的差異化。該產品組合種類繁多，其中排名前列的產品市場份額更高。

Europe has a concentration of chocolate tablet bars and private label. But there is a very distinguished difference between the brands in the US and the role of each of those brands play in the confection category. So there is a big difference. And the category skews premium in Europe, and it skews mainstream in the US. Relative affordability is still a key component of the category. Again, we mentioned that 75% of our portfolio is under $4, very accessible to consumers.

歐洲集中了大量的巧克力片和自有品牌產品。但美國的各個品牌之間存在著非常明顯的差異，而且每個品牌在糖果類別中扮演的角色也各不相同。所以兩者之間存在著很大的差異。在歐洲，此品類偏向高端市場；而在美國，該品類則偏向主流市場。相對實惠的價格仍然是該類別的關鍵組成部分。我們再次提到，我們投資組合中 75% 的產品價格低於 4 美元，消費者很容易就能買到。

Jim Salera, Stephens Inc.

吉姆·薩萊拉，史蒂芬斯公司

Hi Steve, good morning. Thanks for taking our questions.

嗨，史蒂夫，早安。謝謝您回答我們的問題。

Good morning.

早安.

I wanted to ask a little bit around SNAP as we roll into '26, there's some incremental rule changes, I think, both on work requirements and some states restricting what you can buy with SNAP dollars. Just walk us through, I guess, first, the overall percentage of your portfolio that is exposed to SNAP dollars? And maybe how you're thinking about those changes in 2026, since they're all relatively new to the program?

我想問關於 SNAP 的一些問題，因為我們已經進入 2026 年了，我認為規則會有一些逐步的變化，包括工作要求以及一些州限制可以用 SNAP 資金購買的商品。首先，請您簡單介紹一下，您的投資組合中有多少比例的資金用於購買 SNAP 福利金？鑑於這些變化對該項目來說都相對較新，您是如何看待 2026 年的這些變化的？

Yes. Thanks, Jim. The SNAP, let me just give you what we know on SNAP and this is how we're seeing it. Look, our early assessment in the states where waivers are in place is still pretty noisy. It's been just since January, and we're looking at winter storm implications. And really, the difference across retailers as they implement it. We've been proactively spending time with customers and consumers in these states to get ahead of the choices they're making. And we are readying our strategies to deliver for them.

是的。謝謝你，吉姆。關於 SNAP（補充營養援助計劃），我簡單介紹一下我們目前對 SNAP 的了解，以及我們的看法。你看，在那些已經實施豁免政策的州，我們的早期評估結果仍然相當不確定。從一月到現在，我們已經開始關注冬季風暴的影響了。事實上，不同零售商在實施過程中確實存在差異。我們一直積極主動地與這些州的客戶和消費者交流，以便提前了解他們正在做出的選擇。我們正在製定策略，以滿足他們的需求。

We have factored the SNAP waiver adoption into our outlook, and we'll continue to monitor that and provide updates over the course of the year. So to date, only two states have implemented SNAP waivers for candy of the 12 states that have waivers approved. So in total, throughout the course of the year, there will be 12 states that are impacted, two states so far. We'll gather those insights. Again, it's pretty early days. But I would tell you, it's a manageable headwind and it's contemplated in our outlook.

我們已將 SNAP 豁免的採用情況納入我們的展望，我們將繼續關注這一情況，並在今年內提供最新資訊。因此，迄今為止，在已批准豁免的 12 個州中，只有兩個州實施了 SNAP 糖果豁免。因此，今年總共會有 12 個州受到影響，目前已有 2 個州受到影響。我們會收集這些資訊。再次強調，現在下結論還太早。但我可以告訴你，這是一個可以應付的逆風，我們已經在考慮之中。

Great. And then shifting gears a little bit. You called out the 10 different cultural and seasonal events this year to boost engagement. Are you able to quantify how much of an incremental uplift we should see from kind of that more filled calendar relative to what like a normalized year would be?

偉大的。然後稍微轉換一下話題。為了提高參與度，您列出了今年的 10 個不同的文化和季節性活動。您能否量化一下，與正常年份相比，這種更密集的日程安排應該會帶來多大的增量成長？

Yes, I think it looks -- if you kind of look at our outlook, it's reflected in that outlook. Look, it continues to make our top line robust. And because some of the kind of the background on this is we have excellence in executing seasons. So we gained share across the seasons last year. What makes it so great is we have the consumer-loved brands, coupled with great execution in the marketplace with our retail sales team.

是的，我認為——如果你看看我們的前景，你會發現這一點已經反映在了我們的前景中。你看，它持續保持著我們強勁的營收成長。因為這方面的一些背景因素在於，我們在賽季執行上非常出色。因此，去年我們各賽季的市佔率都有所成長。它之所以如此成功，是因為我們擁有深受消費者喜愛的品牌，再加上我們零售銷售團隊在市場上的出色執行力。

This gave us insight is like we have the opportunity to be a part of more cultural moments and the Olympics starting this weekend, is really the first of those. But we'll show up for NCAA Final Four, then we'll show up in the summer celebrating 250-year anniversary of our country.

這讓我們意識到，我們有機會參與更多文化盛事，而本週末開幕的奧運會正是其中的第一個。但我們會到場觀看 NCAA 四強賽，然後夏天我們還會到場慶祝我們國家建國 250 週年。

Our brands are expected by consumers to show up in these big cultural moments and connecting our brands to these cultural moments gives us the license to have more activity throughout the year in these cultural moments in addition to seasons. And it has this almost always on approach where you can see our brands, our Salty and our Sweet brands together in the marketplace celebrating these moments. And kind of that's the background of that.

消費者期望我們的品牌能夠出現在這些重要的文化時刻，將我們的品牌與這些文化時刻聯繫起來，使我們除了在特定季節之外，還能在全年這些文化時刻開展更多活動。而且它幾乎一直都採取這種策略，你可以在市場上看到我們的鹹味和甜味品牌一起慶祝這些時刻。這就是事情的背景。

Great, I appreciate the color. I'll hop back in the queue.

太好了，我很喜歡這個顏色。我重新排隊。

Tom Palmer, JPMorgan.

湯姆‧帕爾默，摩根大通。

Good morning. Thanks for the questions. You discussed plans for double-digit A&C increases? And then unless I missed it, your answer to Andrew suggests that your pricing plans, some of which have not rolled out still hold. I did want to ask on promotions. How do you consider the possibility of stepped-up promotions later this year, and maybe balancing the optionality of promotions versus allocating towards marketing dollars?

早安.謝謝大家的提問。你們討論過兩位數A&C成長的計畫嗎？除非我錯過了什麼，否則你對 Andrew 的回應表明，你的定價方案（其中一些尚未推出）仍然有效。我想問一下晉升方面的情況。您如何看待今年稍後加強促銷的可能性，以及如何在促銷活動的靈活性和行銷資金分配之間取得平衡？

Yes. So let me ask -- let me answer the advertising and the investment we're making there. So we got great programming around building our big brands like we talked about, Hershey and Reese's. Plus we have these programs, these cultural tent-pole moments that we will support throughout the course of the year.

是的。那麼，請容許我問一下——請容許我回答一下關於廣告和我們在那裡的投資的問題。所以我們圍繞著打造我們的大品牌制定了很棒的計劃，就像我們之前討論過的好時和瑞茜一樣。此外，我們還有一些項目，這些文化支柱活動，我們將在全年予以支持。

It is a balance of delivering pull and push. So you think about that demand creation. We're very cognizant and we have great return on these investments to deliver that, and that delivers the top line. And then from an execution standpoint, I would tell you that the category remains very rational from a pricing standpoint.

這是拉動和推動之間的一種平衡。所以你要考慮如何創造需求。我們非常清楚這一點，而這些投資能帶來豐厚的回報，從而實現目標，最終帶來營收成長。從執行層面來看，我會告訴你，從定價角度來看，這個品類還是非常理性。

We'll continue to leverage promotion to drive excitement with consumers and deliver that right price point for them. And we'll be in concert with the execution across our seasons in these tent-pole moments throughout the year. But I would expect overall, a very rational category.

我們將繼續利用促銷活動來激發消費者的興趣，並為他們提供合適的價格。我們將與各季節目中的這些重要時刻保持同步執行。但我預計總體而言，這將是一個相當理性的類別。

Yes. And I would just say on the first part of your question, just to be clear, all the pricing has been sold in. So that's not a risk. There's nothing else pricing-wise, that's going to drop.

是的。關於你問題的第一部分，我想澄清一下，所有價格都已包含在內。所以這不是風險。價格方面，沒有其他東西會下降了。

Thanks for that. In the prepared remarks, there was a comment about expected low single-digit sales growth for international. I wondered if maybe you could provide some color on expectations in the other two segments? And then also, there was a comment about profit recovery for international. And I wondered to what extent that might reflect incremental pricing actions because they were relatively modest as we look at 2025?

謝謝。在事先準備好的發言稿中，提到預計國際市場的銷售成長將只有個位數。我想請您介紹一下另外兩個部分的預期情況？此外，也有人提到了國際市場的利潤恢復問題。我想知道這在多大程度上反映了價格調整的漸進式舉措，因為展望 2025 年，這些舉措相對溫和？

Sure. I can take maybe the segment piece first. So just to share a couple of headlines. So organic sales growth on the Confection segment, around 3%. Salty snacks mid-single digits, international down low single digits. So that's the organic top line. From an EBIT standpoint, we've got all double digit across the segments year-over-year. So that's some of the highlights on the segments.

當然。我可以先處理一下這部分。簡單分享幾個新聞標題。因此，糖果品類的有機銷售成長率約為 3%。鹹味零食銷量在個位數中段，國際銷售在個位數低段。以上就是有機產品的主要數據。從息稅前利潤（EBIT）的角度來看，我們所有業務板塊的年增幅都達到了兩位數。以上就是各部分內容的重點介紹。

On international, we've taken a lot of price this year, and that's part of what we're seeing in terms of some of the volume impact from that. We play in the premium part of the market. We've got cocoa intensive products. And so we've been, in some cases, stronger on pricing in order to make sure we're setting up a good, strong future P&L.

在國際市場，我們今年承受了極大的價格壓力，這也是我們看到銷售量受到一定影響的部分原因。我們專注於高端市場。我們有高可可含量的產品。因此，在某些情況下，我們在定價方面採取了更強硬的策略，以確保我們能夠建立一個良好、強勁的未來損益表。

We've been very thoughtful about trying to focus on the markets where we believe we have the best case to win, and making some choices on go to market to that, again, are thinking about the future and the profitability. Despite the challenges, we've had some wins in the international market.

我們一直非常認真地思考如何專注於我們認為最有希望獲勝的市場，並針對這些市場做出一些進入市場的選擇，同樣，我們也在考慮未來和獲利能力。儘管面臨挑戰，我們在國際市場上還是取得了一些成功。

And we'll talk about some of those and how we're expanding on those when we get to March. But we do have a mix of, sort of, recovering for cocoa pricing and then also optimizing the portfolio itself to make sure that as we look to the future, we're investing behind our big brand like Reese and also our core markets with a streamlined route to market.

到了三月份，我們將討論其中的一些問題，以及我們將如何擴展這些問題。但我們目前採取的措施包括：一方面要努力恢復可可價格，另一方面要優化產品組合，以確保展望未來時，我們能夠投資於像 Reese 這樣的大品牌，並透過簡化的市場管道投資於我們的核心市場。

Yes. Let me add on a couple of things on international. Look, I'm really bullish on the opportunity that we have internationally. I look at our track record right now just from how we're performing in the markets, our key markets, and we're gaining share, gaining share across Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the UK.

是的。關於國際事務，我再補充幾點。你看，我非常看好我們在國際市場上的機會。我會看看我們目前的業績記錄，就我們在市場上的表現而言，尤其是在我們的主要市場，我們正在不斷擴大市場份額，在加拿大、墨西哥、巴西、英國等地不斷擴大市場份額。

I think those are really important proof points that we have the opportunity to do that. We're going to bring a focused strategy on our international business in March that really articulates how we're going to make investments and why we have a right to win in these markets. But more to come.

我認為這些都是非常重要的證明點，表明我們有機會做到這一點。我們將於三月推出一項重點關注國際業務的策略，該策略將真正闡明我們將如何進行投資以及為什麼我們有權在這些市場取得成功。但還有更多精彩內容即將到來。

Michael Lavery, Piper Sandler.

麥可·拉弗里，派珀·桑德勒。

Thank you. Good morning. I want to come back to guidance. I know you laid out some of the flexibility or ways that you're trying to allow for risks and capture those. But curious, not to get too greedy, if there's expectations where you can point to potential upside?

謝謝。早安.我想回到指導環節。我知道你已經闡述了一些靈活性或方法，試圖允許存在風險並應對這些風險。不過我很好奇，不想太貪心，您認為有哪些預期收益可以指出潛在的上漲空間嗎？

And maybe also specifically how to think about buybacks? I know you said there weren't any in the last quarter, but you mentioned the authorization that remains. Are any of those included in the outlook for 2026?

或許還可以具體探討如何考慮股票回購？我知道你說過上個季度沒有，但你提到了剩餘的授權。2026 年的展望中是否包含了這些內容？

Sure. So I'll come on to buybacks. On the upside, we touched on some of these already. I mean if elasticities were to hold in the sort of space they're in now, that would be a potential upside. Even the macros, although our outlook is to expect the macros like SNAP and GLP-1s to have a growing impact across the quarters, which I think is reasonable.

當然。接下來我來說說回購。好的一方面是，我們已經談到了其中的一些問題。我的意思是，如果彈性能保持在目前的水平，那將是一個潛在的優勢。即使是宏觀經濟方面，儘管我們預計 SNAP 和 GLP-1 等宏觀經濟措施將在各個季度產生越來越大的影響，我認為這是合理的。

If that is slower or less impact, I think that's upside to what we've tried to prudently build into the outlook. Things like the performance on innovation, media, all these in-store activations and tent poles that we talked about. Again, our goal is to execute all those to try to beat the plan, but those would be potential upsides.

如果速度較慢或影響較小，我認為這對我們謹慎地將某些因素納入展望是有利的。例如我們在創新、媒體、所有店內活動和重點項目的表現，我們之前也討論過這些。再次強調，我們的目標是執行所有這些措施來爭取戰勝計劃，但這些都只是潛在的優勢。

And then as always, we want to exceed our productivity and cost savings goals. So we've got what I think are good challenging objectives there to go get, but our supply chain teams are fantastic, and they're going to go hard against trying to beat those. So I think those are all the kind of things we would point to.

然後，和以往一樣，我們希望超越我們的生產力和成本節約目標。所以，我認為我們設定了一些很有挑戰性的目標，但我們的供應鏈團隊非常出色，他們會全力以赴實現這些目標。所以我覺得這些都是我們應該指出的問題。

When I look at it in total, I feel like as we look at the guide, it's balanced. We're trying to recognize there are upsides and opportunities to beat in some areas, but also there are still some unknowns that we want to make sure we can contend with. And that's where the agility piece comes in.

總的來說，我覺得這份指南很平衡。我們努力認識到某些領域存在優勢和超越的機會，但同時也存在一些未知因素，我們希望確保能夠應對這些因素。這就是敏捷性發揮作用的地方。

On buybacks, I'll just maybe just say our capital allocation strategy is kind of resetting back to normal a little bit. And so without some of the pressure, cash pressure, in particular, on tariffs and cocoa. And so as you can tell from the guide, our focus in job one is to make sure we're funding the business and driving good, smart long-term investment in the organic business, maintaining a posture of agility relative to inorganic growth opportunities, and we're integrating LesserEvil, that's going very well.

關於股票回購，我只想說，我們的資本配置策略逐漸恢復正常。因此，如果沒有一些壓力，特別是現金壓力，關稅和可可方面的壓力就會減輕。因此，正如您從指南中看到的那樣，我們首要任務是確保為業務提供資金，並推動對有機業務進行良好、明智的長期投資，保持對無機增長機會的敏捷性，並且我們正在整合 LesserEvil，進展非常順利。

We're going to continue to look for those sort of opportunistic places. You see CapEx kind of normalizing again back into the space where it should be. You see us focused on working capital efficiency like we are every year, driving savings. Dividend returning to growth, which is very important to us and pleased to see that. And we feel good about leverage and where we're at and the trajectory on leverage.

我們將繼續尋找這類具有發展潛力的地方。你會看到資本支出正在逐漸恢復到應有的水準。您可以看到，我們像往年一樣，專注於提高營運資金效率，從而節省成本。股息恢復成長，這對我們來說非常重要，我們很高興看到這一點。我們對槓桿率、我們目前所處的位置以及槓桿率的發展軌跡都感到滿意。

So all that kind of comes then down to the repurchase. And as we've said in the past, share repurchase is a great way to put tension in the capital allocation equation, right? We're not going to warehouse the shareholders' money. If we can't wisely invest it for the future, we're going to give it back.

所以，這一切最終都歸結於回購。正如我們過去所說，股票回購是為資本配置方程式帶來張力的好方法，對吧？我們不會把股東的錢存放起來。如果我們不能明智地將其投資於未來，我們將把它歸還出去。

And so that conversation is now back on the table because we're going to have strong cash flow. We've got great investments supporting the business. And as the year progresses and we get a little bit more perspective on some of these macros and everything else, we'll reintroduce that conversation.

因此，由於我們將擁有強勁的現金流，這個主題現在又重新提上了日程。我們擁有雄厚的投資實力來支持業務發展。隨著時間推移，我們對一些宏觀經濟情勢和其他方面有了更深入的了解，我們會重新開啟這個主題。

That's great color. And it sounds like you might be having an Investor Day soon, but -- and I'm sure you'll get into this in obviously much more detail. But as you lay out some of the investment opportunities and the reinvestments, you're making this year, just at a high level, maybe can you give us a sense of how much we should expect a near-term impact versus longer term? And how that kind of fits into your thinking?

顏色真好看。聽起來你們可能很快就會舉辦投資者日，但是——我相信你們肯定會更詳細地介紹這一點。但是，當您介紹今年的一些投資機會和再投資時，能否讓我們大致了解一下，我們應該預期哪些投資會在短期內產生影響，哪些會在長期內產生影響？那麼，這又如何融入你的想法呢？

Yes. I'm going to punt the details of that pie to the Investor Day. What I would say is all of these investments have something to do for us now and are going to have things to do for us for the future. You can imagine investments in R&D.

是的。我打算把這個方案的細節留到投資人日再討論。我想說的是，所有這些投資現在都對我們有益，將來也會對我們有益。你可以想像一下對研發的投資。

The near term on R&D investment may not be as big as we're going to see in '27 and '28, but even so we'll get some early insights from that. And so we'll unpack that more, but think of these as multiyear investments, but they do have benefits even as we get to especially the back end of this year.

短期內研發投資可能不會像 2027 年和 2028 年那麼大，但即便如此，我們也能從中獲得一些早期見解。因此，我們將對此進行更詳細的分析，但請將這些視為多年投資，即使到了今年年底，它們也確實會帶來好處。

Yes. Let me just add. These investments are all about driving growth, top line growth, sustainable growth, modernizing our portfolio. So those are fundamentally what's backing this growth is to fuel and keep heat on our brands with consumers, launch innovations that are relevant and do the R&D so that we can continue to modernize our portfolio for the future and staying relevant is so important. So it really is about fueling growth.

是的。我再補充一點。這些投資都是為了推動成長、營收成長、永續成長以及實現投資組合現代化。因此，支撐這一成長的根本在於：為我們的品牌在消費者心中保持熱度，推出與時俱進的創新產品，並進行研發，以便我們能夠不斷更新產品組合，面向未來，保持與時俱進至關重要。所以，關鍵在於促進成長。

Okay great. Thanks so much.

好的，太好了。非常感謝。

Alexia Howard, Bernstein.

Alexia Howard，Bernstein。

Good morning, everyone. Can I start with the price elasticity in international markets versus the US. Do you have views on why the trends seem to be worse in the international markets, and why they're better over here at the moment?

各位早安。我可以先從國際市場與美國市場的價格彈性談起嗎？您認為為什麼國際市場的趨勢似乎更糟，而目前國內市場的趨勢卻更好？

Yes, let me take that question. We discussed a little bit, there's a big difference between the two categories for starters. The category in the US is highly unique. The category is very differentiated across the portfolio. There's a lot of runway by brand across the landscape in the confection category in the US versus a high chocolate tablet bar market in Europe, along with the impact of private label.

好的，讓我來回答這個問題。我們稍微討論了一下，首先，這兩個類別之間有很大的差異。美國的這一類別非常獨特。該類別在整個產品組合中差異很大。與歐洲巧克力塊市場規模龐大相比，美國糖果市場各品牌的發展空間仍大，此外，自有品牌的影響力也不容忽視。

So you think about affordability also is a real big lever. And the category is affordable. It skews mainstream. Our portfolio is still mostly under $4. That, I think, is a really big difference. But the resiliency has been really positive for the category here in the US. And what we've seen so far, we're encouraged by.

所以，價格負擔也是一個很重要的因素。而且這個價位的產品也很實惠。它偏離了主流。我們的投資組合目前大部分仍低於 4 美元。我認為，這確實是一個很大的區別。但就美國而言，這種韌性對這個品類來說確實是正面的。目前為止我們所看到的，都令我們感到鼓舞。

I would say, specific to our portfolio in international and the elasticities, keeping in mind, we are premium market positioning. So we see some more elasticity there. We're relatively limited in scale in some regions and not a market leader. So those are factors with our portfolio, in particular, that drive higher elasticity.

我想說，具體到我們在國際市場的投資組合和彈性，請記住，我們定位在高端市場。所以我們看到這方面還有一些彈性。我們在某些​​地區的規模相對有限，並非市場領導者。因此，這些因素，特別是對於我們的投資組合而言，會推高彈性。

Great. Thank you very much. I'll pass it on.

偉大的。非常感謝。我會轉達的。

Matt Smith, Stifel.

馬特史密斯，史蒂費爾。

Hi, good morning, Steve, you called out an increase in both marketing and operating costs through the year. It sounds like marketing up double digits is fairly evenly phased. But is there anything unique you'd call out on the operating costs? And with operating costs growing in line with sales, is this a level of investment that as you exit 2026, allows some future leverage from SG&A? Thank you.

嗨，早上好，史蒂夫，你提到了今年行銷成本和營運成本都有所增加。聽起來兩位數成長的行銷策略是分階段進行的，而且進展相當均勻。但就營運成本而言，您認為有什麼特別之處嗎？隨著營運成本與銷售額同步成長，這種投資水準能否在 2026 年底前為未來的銷售、管理及行政費用 (SG&A) 帶來一些槓桿作用？謝謝。

Sure. So I think across the quarters, I would guide say it's probably going to be pretty even. There are going to be some -- and again, I'll go back to things like R&D that will probably build a little bit more in the back half. And we'll unpack that more when we get to Investor Day, too. But I think overall, it should be up across the quarters.

當然。所以我認為，從各季度來看，情況可能會比較接近。肯定會有一些——而且，我還會再談到研發之類的事情，這些事情可能會在下半年增加。我們也會在投資者日上對此進行更詳細的探討。但我認為總體而言，各季度都應該有所成長。

With respect to leverage in ' 27 and beyond, again, I'll go back and say, while we're investing and some of these investments are multiyear investments to set up a future of growth, we are also aware of the margin recovery story that we need to continue in 2027. So we have always two things going on at once.

關於 2027 年及以後的槓桿問題，我再次重申，雖然我們正在進行投資，其中一些投資是多年期投資，旨在為未來的成長奠定基礎，但我們也意​​識到，我們需要在 2027 年繼續推進利潤率恢復計畫。所以我們總是同時進行兩件事。

We're looking to make smart long-term investments in the business. But at the same time, we want to fuel that investment with productivity and savings. And so we kind of say, hey, we're investing for demand creation, but we want to drive demand fulfillment efficiency as well.

我們希望對公司進行明智的長期投資。但同時，我們希望透過提高生產力和節省成本來為這項投資提供動力。因此，我們表示，我們投資是為了創造需求，但我們也希望提高需求滿足效率。

And so -- and we're very good at that. And so we're going to continue to drive supply chain efficiencies. We're going to drive efficiencies between the lines like we've done with the transformation work and continue to drive there, too. So our goal is over time, we are going to see leverage across all of those lines.

所以——而且我們非常擅長這一點。因此，我們將持續提高供應鏈效率。我們將像在轉型工作中一樣，提高各環節的效率，並繼續在這方面努力。所以我們的目標是，隨著時間的推移，我們將看到所有這些領域都得到提升。

Thank you, looking forward to seeing you in March, and I'll pass it on.

謝謝，期待三月見到你，我會轉達的。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Robert Moskow, TD Cowen.

Robert Moskow，TD Cowen。

Hi, I had a question about like just trying to understand how you forecast all of these macro factors at once. Like you have the SNAP cuts from a federal level, you have the waivers at the state level. You have the GLPs and then you have elasticity from higher pricing. And I think you've done a really good job of keeping things pretty conservative on the elasticity assumption.

您好，我有個問題，想請教一下您是如何同時預測所有這些宏觀因素的。就像聯邦政府削減了 SNAP 福利一樣，州政府也提供了豁免。你有GLP（一般定價策略），然後你也可以透過提高價格來獲得彈性。我認為你在彈性假設方面做得非常出色，保持了相當保守的態度。

But the models that your team is working on, Steve, like can you figure out the cumulative impact of all these things at once? It sounds just like a lot to put into models that probably don't have a lot of historical precedents for that.

但史蒂夫，你們團隊正在研究的模型，例如，你們能否一次計算出所有這些因素的累積影響？聽起來像是要把很多東西塞進可能沒有太多歷史先例的模型裡。

Yes. I mean it's a challenge for sure. In each one, and we said this before, we've got a small team on each of these, really trying to dig deep. And in the case, as Kirk said, in the case of SNAP, we have people on the ground working with retailers to understand exactly how this is working out on shelf, what retailers are doing, what we're doing. And so we're trying to get firsthand information to build into these models.

是的。我的意思是，這確實是個挑戰。就像我們之前說過的那樣，我們每個專案都安排了一個小團隊，真正努力深入挖掘。正如柯克所說，就 SNAP 而言，我們有人員在現場與零售商合作，以確切了解該政策在貨架上的實施情況，零售商正在做什麼，以及我們正在做什麼。因此，我們正在努力獲取第一手信息，以便將其納入這些模型中。

And then at the same time, we do try to run scenarios and come up with a risk-balanced view across these macros to try to come up with an assumption for the outlook. And I know we'll be wrong. I don't -- we've tried to be prudent and balanced in the way we look for and project these out, but taking the best information that we have.

同時，我們嘗試進行情境分析，並對這些宏觀經濟因素進行風險平衡分析，以期對前景做出假設。我知道我們一定會錯。我不這麼認為——我們一直努力以謹慎和平衡的方式尋找和預測這些情況，但始終以我們所掌握的最佳資訊為準。

We get smarter every month that goes by, we'll have more data. And I expect as some of these programs -- or excuse me, some of these things like SNAP, more states get involved, GLP-1s adoption gets easier, we're trying to predict different ways it could play out. And then again, how our portfolio can play offense against some of those challenges.

隨著時間的推移，我們會變得更聰明，我們會有更多的數據。我預計，隨著一些項目——或者抱歉，像 SNAP 這樣的項目——更多州的參與，GLP-1 的採用變得更加容易，我們正在嘗試預測它可能以不同的方式發展。那麼，我們的投資組合如何在應對這些挑戰方面發揮積極作用？

Okay. And that was kind of my follow-up. You said that you're working with retailers in a couple of states where the waivers are happening. Like can you be more specific on what playing offense means? Like what kind of things can you do?

好的。這就是我的後續跟進。您提到您正在與幾個州的零售商合作，這些州正在實施豁免政策。你能更具體地解釋一下進攻的含義嗎？你可以做哪些類型的事情？

Sure. You want me to take that one?

當然。你想讓我接那個嗎？

Yes, I can jump in. I like playing offense. So this is a bit exactly. Yes. I mean a lot of it has to do with, yes, when you work with customers, affordable price, affordability still remains a really important part in driving other channels, too. So we have a big convenience business driving our immediate consumption business, driving availability of those top SKUs are critically important.

是的，我可以加入。我喜歡打進攻。所以這有點準確。是的。我的意思是，很多時候，當你與客戶合作時，價格實惠、價格合理仍然是推動其他管道發展的一個非常重要的因素。因此，我們的大型便利商店業務正在推動我們的即時消費業務，而確保這些熱門 SKU 的供應至關重要。

But I just go back to how do we drive the insights around the affordable price points, unique packages. Those are solutions with our customers. Again, two states out of the 12 states have been implemented. It's early days. We'll continue to discuss this as we get greater insights, and we'll talk about the tools that we're leveraging to curtail this headwind.

但我始終認為，我們應該如何圍繞實惠的價格點和獨特的套餐來推動洞察。這些是我們為客戶制定的解決方案。再次強調，12 個州中只有 2 個州已經實施了該措施。現在下結論還為時過早。我們將繼續討論這個問題，隨著我們獲得更深入的了解，我們將討論我們正在利用哪些工具來克服這種不利因素。

Very good, thank you.

非常好，謝謝。

Scott Marks, Jefferies.

斯科特馬克斯，傑富瑞集團。

Hey, good morning, thanks so much for taking the questions. Two questions from me. The first one is on cocoa. I think previously, you had said that you were hedged for '26 above the rates you had locked in for '25, but that you also had some flexible hedging structures. So given the comments today around stable commodity basket, should we assume that means that your cocoa cost in '26 is actually in line with that of '25?

嗨，早上好，非常感謝您回答這些問題。我有兩個問題。第一篇是關於可可的。我認為你之前說過，你對 2026 年的利率進行了對沖，高於你為 2025 年鎖定的利率，但你也有一些靈活的對沖結構。鑑於今天關於穩定商品籃子的評論，我們是否應該假設這意味著您在 2026 年的可可成本實際上與 2025 年的成本一致？

Yes. So cocoa is up just a little versus 2025. And what we said before is it's hedged above current market levels. So it's not hedged materially above '25, just hedged above where cocoa is trading right now. When we -- just like we did last year, we've got a variety of hedging structures and some of those structures allow us to participate in downside. So even in '26, we have a little opportunity.

是的。所以可可價格比 2025 年略有上漲。我們之前說過，它的對沖水平高於當前市場水平。所以它並沒有對沖高於 25 美元的價格，只是對沖了高於目前可可交易價格的價格。當我們——就像去年一樣，我們有各種各樣的對沖結構，其中一些結構允許我們參與下行風險。所以即使到了 2026 年，我們還是有一些機會的。

It's not like it was last year to participate in downside, but there's still a little bit there that if cocoa continues to decline, we will have some potential. And then, of course, as we look to '27, placing hedges today would mean that we'd have deflation between '27 and '26. So we're watching that space. And again, we've got a very structured hedging policy to take advantage of that.

雖然不像去年那樣有機會參與下跌行情，但如果可可價格繼續下跌，我們仍然有一些獲利空間。當然，展望 2027 年，如果今天進行對沖，就意味著 2027 年到 2026 年之間會出現通貨緊縮。所以我們正在密切關注這一領域。而且，我們還有一套非常完善的避險策略來利用這一點。

Understood, thanks for that. And then second question, today, there's obviously a lot of discussion around focusing with innovation and media behind some of the largest brands. And I think over the past maybe 1 year, 1.5 years, there was maybe a little more emphasis on supporting some of the smaller brands within the chocolate portfolio as well. So wondering if you can just kind of share how you're thinking about some of those tail brands and how we should be thinking about investment in those going forward?

明白了，謝謝。第二個問題是，如今，顯然有很多關於專注於創新和媒體的討論，而這些創新和媒體正是某些最大品牌背後的驅動力。而且我認為在過去的1年到1.5年裡，我們可能會更加重視支持巧克力產品組合中的一些較小品牌。所以我想問您能否分享一下您對一些尾部品牌的看法，以及我們未來應該如何考慮對這些品牌的投資？

Yes. This is really about world-class portfolio management. And we announced obviously Hershey's and Reese's big investment across those. That gives us a lot of momentum in the business and that drives a lot of growth. We do have a beautiful portfolio across our Confection and Salty brands. And there are other tools that we're leveraging to grow those brands.

是的。這才是真正意義上的世界級投資組合管理。當然，我們也宣布了好時和瑞茜在這些領域的巨額投資。這為我們的業務發展帶來了極大的動力，也推動了業務的快速成長。我們的糖果和鹹味食品品牌擁有非常出色的產品組合。我們也利用其他工具來發展這些品牌。

So we are paying attention to the entire portfolio, and we're clear about each brand and the role it plays in our portfolio so that we can get to the consumers in a more targeted way. So it is a balance of both. It's not a trade-off between our large brands and our smaller brands that have lots of potential. We're investing across our portfolio, but it's very deliberate about the opportunity of each brand and the role it plays in our portfolio.

因此，我們專注於整個產品組合，並且清楚每個品牌及其在我們產品組合中的作用，以便我們能夠以更有針對性的方式接觸消費者。所以，這是兩者之間的一種平衡。這並非是在大品牌和那些極具潛力的小品牌之間做出取捨。我們對整個投資組合進行投資，但對於每個品牌的機會及其在我們投資組合中所扮演的角色，我們都會非常慎重地進行評估。

Yes. We'd like some of those small brands to become the next billion-dollar brands and leveraging -- we're going to continue to leverage nonworking media to support new brands and occasions as well.

是的。我們希望其中一些小品牌能夠成為下一個十億美元品牌，並且我們將繼續利用非工作媒體來支持新品牌和新活動。

Thanks very much. We'll pass it on.

非常感謝。我們會轉達。

Chris Carey, Wells Fargo Securities.

克里斯凱裡，富國證券。

Hi, good morning, everyone. I just wanted to ask one follow-up on cocoa. Just as you think about 2027, how aggressive can you be about hedging the current drop. And if I heard it correctly, did I hear that, you don't need to take pricing in 2027. That's how you're viewing current levels right now? And then I have a follow-up.

大家早安。我只是想問一個關於可可的後續問題。就像你在考慮 2027 年一樣，你能採取多積極的措施來對沖當前的下跌風險？如果我沒聽錯的話，你們不需要考慮 2027 年的價格。這就是你目前對目前水準的看法嗎？然後我還有一個後續問題。

So there's a couple of things in there. We're not going to get specific about 2027 hedging, but we will be very thoughtful. We have a program that gives us some structure in how we attack that. And -- but that's probably all we're going to share relative to that. Relative to pricing, I think where cocoa is trading today, looking ahead to '27, it probably takes some pressure off pricing in the near term.

裡麵包含好幾樣東西。我們不會具體討論 2027 年的對沖策略，但我們會非常謹慎地對待。我們有一個方案，可以為我們解決這個問題提供一些框架。但這大概就是我們能分享的關於這方面的全部了。就價格而言，我認為以可可目前的交易價格來看，展望 2027 年，這可能會在短期內緩解一些價格壓力。

We've taken price. We're going to execute and activate against that. In a broader sense, pricing is part of a long-term strategy, but it's only one part. We have mix and innovation and other ways to drive value price pack architecture. And so in the long term, we look at all of those things through the mix. It's just we happen to be in a case more recently because of cocoa to have to rely more on price.

我們已經詢價了。我們將執行並採取行動應對這種情況。從更廣義的角度來看，定價是長期策略的一部分，但它只是其中的一部分。我們擁有多元化的產品組合、創新理念以及其他方式來推動高性價比的產品包裝架構。因此，從長遠來看，我們會綜合考慮所有這些因素。只是最近由於可可價格的原因，我們恰好處於一種更依賴價格的境地。

Okay. Great. And then one quick follow-up would just be, when you think about volume, obviously, margins are recovering nicely. Do you have a view on where you want volumes to be as we look out over the next 18 months? And when you think volumes can get back to kind of flattish to positive?

好的。偉大的。然後，還有一個需要快速補充的問題是，從銷量來看，利潤率顯然正在良好復甦。展望未來18個月，您對銷售目標有何展望？你認為成交量什麼時候才能恢復到相對穩定甚至正成長的水平？

Yes. I think Kirk kind of touched on this earlier. As we get -- we're going to be digesting the price increase in 2026, activating against it. As we get further out and we look to 2027 and beyond, our goal is to get back to a more balanced mix of price and volume. And we know we've got parts in the portfolio that even with some of the macro headwinds are set up for volume growth, sweets, better-for-you, premium, the functional products.

是的。我覺得柯克之前已經稍微提過這一點。隨著我們逐漸消化 2026 年的價格上漲，我們將採取行動應對。隨著時間推移，展望 2027 年及以後，我們的目標是恢復價格和銷售量更加平衡的組合。我們知道，即使面臨一些宏觀不利因素，我們的產品組合中也有一些產品有望實現銷售成長，例如糖果、健康食品、高端食品和功能性產品。

And that's not to say we can't get volume in the core, just to say that even as you look at the macros, there are places where our portfolio can play stronger from a volume standpoint. So again, this is something we'll also unpack more when we're together in March as we look out past '26. But recovering volume, we've got equipment ready to go to make more candy. And so we're anxious to be able to deploy it against volume.

這並不是說我們不能在核心領域獲得交易量，只是想說，即使從宏觀角度來看，我們的投資組合在某些領域也可以從交易量的角度發揮更大的作用。所以，當我們在三月聚在一起展望 2026 年以後的時候，我們還會更詳細地探討這個問題。但隨著產量的恢復，我們已經準備好了設備來生產更多的糖果。因此，我們迫切希望能夠將其應用於海量資料處理。

Yes. Let me just add just a couple of things. Yes, volume unit growth, occasion growth is really important to us and we'll build on that. And that we've got plans, of course, in '27 and '28 that we'll share. But it really is coming down to delivering that consumer occasion and driving growth in that. And we'll do that in a variety of ways, but that is a really important lever for us.

是的。我再補充幾點。是的，銷售成長和單次消費成長對我們來說非常重要，我們會以此為基礎繼續努力。當然，我們在 2027 年和 2028 年也有計劃，我們會與大家分享。但歸根究底，關鍵在於能否滿足消費者的需求，並推動這方面的成長。我們將透過多種方式來實現這一點，但這對我們來說是一個非常重要的槓桿。

John Baumgartner, Mizuho Securities.

John Baumgartner，瑞穗證券。

Good morning. Thanks for the question. There was a comment this morning about investing in your protein portfolio. And it's been six years since the acquisition of ONE Bar. So I imagine Hershey has gained some decent understanding of the category by now. How do you think about participating in protein as a theme?

早安.謝謝你的提問。今天早上有人評論說要投資蛋白質投資組合。距離收購 ONE Bar 已經過了六年。所以我認為好時現在應該已經對這個品類有了相當不錯的了解。你覺得以蛋白質為主題參與活動怎麼樣？

I mean to what extent do you view protein as sort of the hedge to retain consumers gravitating to healthier snacks? And I guess especially since we've seen numerous cases already of snacking flavors applied successfully in the protein space.

我的意思是，您在多大程度上將蛋白質視為一種對沖手段，以留住那些傾向於選擇更健康零食的消費者？我想，尤其是我們已經看到許多零食口味成功應用於蛋白質領域的案例。

Yes. I think that's really a good question, really relevant for what we're talking about. Investing in our protein business. We have a really strong outlook for our protein business this year. We've invested in a lot of R&D around protein and fiber and things that our consumers are looking for. I look at the total snacking universe and functional snacking is a reality, and we have to participate in that space and we are.

是的。我覺得這確實是個好問題，跟我們正在討論的內容非常相關。投資我們的蛋白質業務。今年我們的蛋白質業務前景非常樂觀。我們在蛋白質、纖維以及消費者所需的產品方面投入了大量研發資金。我縱觀整個零食世界，功能性零食已成為現實，我們必須參與其中，而我們也正在參與其中。

And we really like what we're building with ONE and Fulfil, and we'll continue to add resources against that and see the growth coming through. Yes, that is an area that we'll focus and build on for the future.

我們非常喜歡我們與 ONE 和 Fulfil 共同打造的成果，我們將繼續為此投入資源，並期待看到成長的到來。是的，這是我們未來將重點關注和發展的領域。

And then maybe to follow up on that, Kirk. Just considering how Hershey built the Salty snacks portfolio through M&A. I guess what's the feasibility or interest level to use balance sheet to expand similarly in protein?

然後，或許可以接著說說柯克的事。想想好時是如何透過併購建立起鹹味零食產品組合的。我想問的是，利用資產負債表在蛋白質領域進行類似擴張的可行性或可行性如何？

I mean does your interest level rise to build the portfolio of brands in some categories? Or should we just think about future protein efforts really just anchored more to the ONE Bar brand?

我的意思是，您是否有興趣在某些類別中建立品牌組合？或者我們應該考慮將未來的蛋白質業務更多地與 ONE Bar 品牌聯繫起來？

Yes, it's a big white space, and there's so much traction from consumers. I think you have to really be open to two, I mean both, right? Growing organically, we see lots of potential for the brands that we have. But we're also open for those opportunities that build our portfolio.

是的，這是一個很大的空白市場，而且消費者對此非常感興趣。我認為你必須對兩者都持開放態度，對吧？我們看到旗下品牌在自然成長方面擁有巨大的潛力。但我們也對那些能夠豐富我們投資組合的機會持開放態度。

So I would say we're open for that approach. But the first thing, the things that we can control right now are, let's grow these businesses, let's innovate in these spaces, let's get thriving brands and then we'll be open for opportunities in the future.

所以我覺得我們對這種做法持開放態度。但首先，我們現在能夠控制的事情是，發展這些企業，在這些領域進行創新，打造蓬勃發展的品牌，然後我們才能在未來抓住機會。

Bingqing Zhu, Rothschild & Co Redburn.

朱冰清，羅斯柴爾德公司雷德本。

Hi, good morning, thanks for taking my question. My first one is trying to follow up on the volume question. Because your 2026 guidance, 2.5%, 3.5% organic sales and 10% pricing, that embedded quite meaningful volume mix decline. I appreciate that's still early in the year, and the elasticity is favorable so far.

您好，早安，感謝您回答我的問題。我的第一個問題是想跟進一下銷售問題。因為你們 2026 年的指導意見是 2.5%、3.5% 的有機銷售額和 10% 的價格，這其中隱含著相當大的銷售組合下降。我知道現在還只是年初，而且到目前為止彈性形勢良好。

But how much volume decline are you comfortable absorbing before you would reconsider pricing and maybe lean more towards promotion and price adjustment to support the volume? And then I have a follow-up, please.

但是，在重新考慮定價策略，並可能更傾向於促銷和價格調整以支撐銷售量之前，您能夠承受多大的銷售下降？我還有一個後續問題。

Sure. I mean the volume impact of the pricing that we have taken is embedded in the guide. And so we accept that we don't like it. We want -- as we said several times, we want more volume growth. When we're together in March, we're going to talk more about that. But the volume impact of elasticity that we have inside the plan has been factored in.

當然。我的意思是，我們採取的定價策略對銷售的影響已經體現在指導方針上了。所以我們承認我們不喜歡它。我們希望——正如我們多次說過的那樣——我們希望銷量增長更快。三月我們見面的時候，會詳細談談這件事。但是，我們已經將計劃內部存在的彈性對銷量的影響考慮在內了。

In our plan between marketing dollars, promotion dollars, investments, we believe we have the agility inside the plan to be able to deploy to protect sensitive areas and respond if we see a concern. As we sit here today, as Kirk said, the market has been rational. The kind of competitive environment is stable. So we don't have any particular pockets of concern. Elasticities are as expected and so if not a little better. And so -- but we're ready inside the plan to respond if we need to.

我們相信，在我們的行銷資金、推廣資金和投資計劃中，我們擁有足夠的靈活性，能夠在發現問題時部署資源來保護敏感領域並做出回應。正如柯克所說，就我們今天所看到的，市場一直是理性的。競爭環境類型穩定。所以我們沒有發現任何特別令人擔憂的區域。彈性符合預期，甚至略好。所以——但是，如果需要的話，我們已經做好了應對的準備。

Okay. Then I have a follow-up on the pricing. So in the prepared remarks, you mentioned pricing to be 10% in 2026. If I recall correctly, I think a few quarters back in Q2, when you announced the price increase, you expect to be mid-teens in '26. So that's a bit lower than what you previously guided. Can you provide more color on that, please? Does that mean you maybe roll back some pricing you originally planned? Or what does that mean? Thank you.

好的。接下來我想跟進定價問題。所以，在事先準備好的演講稿中，您提到 2026 年的價格將上漲 10%。如果我沒記錯的話，我想大概是幾個季度前的第二季度，當你們宣布漲價的時候，你們預計到 2026 年價格會達到十幾美元。所以比你之前指導的要低一些。能詳細說明一下嗎？這是否意味著你們可能會調整原先的定價方案？或者，那又是什麼意思呢？謝謝。

Yes. We haven't rolled back any pricing. It may be just a misunderstanding of if we're talking by segment or we're talking overall company pricing increase, that might be where the misunderstanding is. But we've realized the pricing that we had announced earlier in 2025.

是的。我們沒有調整任何價格。這可能是因為我們對價格上漲是指細分市場還是以公司整體價格上漲有誤解，誤解可能就出在這裡。但我們已經實現了先前在 2025 年宣布的價格。

As we said earlier, the more recently announced pricing is already in the market. So from a pricing standpoint, everything is on track, nothing has been rolled back, and we're all in execution mode.

正如我們之前所說，最新公佈的價格方案已經進入市場。所以從定價的角度來看，一切都在按計畫進行，沒有任何倒退，我們都在執行階段。

Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, that concludes our question-and-answer session. I'll turn the floor back to management for any final comments.

謝謝各位，我們的問答環節到此結束。我將把發言權交還給管理階層，請他們作最後的總結性發言。

Thank you all for your questions, and we look forward to catching up with you over the coming days and weeks.

感謝大家的提問，我們期待在接下來的幾天和幾週內與大家繼續交流。

Yes. Thank you very much.

是的。非常感謝。

Thank you. This concludes today's conference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

謝謝。今天的會議到此結束。您可以在此時斷開線路。感謝您的參與。