諾德斯特龍百貨 (JWN) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Greetings, and welcome to the Nordstrom third-quarter 2024 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) And as a reminder, this conference is being recorded.

您好，歡迎參加 Nordstrom 2024 年第三季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）提醒一下，本次會議正在錄音。

At this time, I'll turn the call over to Jamie Duies, Head of Investor Relations for Nordstrom. Thank you. You may begin.

現在，我將把電話轉給諾德斯特龍 (Nordstrom) 投資者關係主管 Jamie Duies。謝謝。你可以開始了。

Good afternoon and thank you for joining us. Before we begin, I want to mention that we'll be referring to slides, which can be viewed in the Investor Relations section on nordstrom.com. Our discussion may include forward-looking statements, so please refer to the slide with our Safe Harbor language.

下午好，感謝您加入我們。在我們開始之前，我想提一下，我們將參考投影片，您可以在 nordstrom.com 的投資者關係部分查看。我們的討論可能包括前瞻性陳述，因此請參閱帶有安全港語言的幻燈片。

Participating in today's call are Erik Nordstrom, Chief Executive Officer; Pete Nordstrom, President; and Cathy Smith, Chief Financial Officer, who will provide a business update and discuss the company's third-quarter performance.

參加今天電話會議的有首席執行官 Erik Nordstrom；總裁 Pete Nordstrom；以及首席財務官凱西·史密斯 (Cathy Smith)，她將提供業務更新並討論公司第三季度的業績。

Please note that when discussing our results and outlook, we will be referring to them on an adjusted basis for EBIT, EBIT margin and earnings per share. Reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP measures can be found in our Q3 2024 earnings press release, which is available on our website.

請注意，在討論我們的業績和前景時，我們將參考調整後的息稅前利潤、息稅前利潤率和每股收益。與最直接可比較的 GAAP 指標的對帳可以在我們 2024 年第三季收益新聞稿中找到，該新聞稿可在我們的網站上找到。

As we begin, I want to acknowledge the company's prior announcements regarding the Board of Directors' exploration of potential avenues to enhance shareholder value, the formation of a special committee to evaluate any proposal that might be presented by members of the Nordstrom family to take the company private, and the receipt of such proposal on September 3. We will not be commenting on this topic or speaking to this matter during our call today.

首先，我想確認公司之前發布的公告，董事會正在探索提高股東價值的潛在途徑，成立一個特別委員會來評估諾德斯特龍家族成員可能提出的將公司私有化的任何提議，並於 9 月 3 日收到了該提議。我們今天的電話會議中不會對這個主題發表評論或談論此事。

I'll now turn the call over to Erik.

我現在將電話轉給埃里克。

Thank you, Jamie, and good afternoon, everyone. Thanks for joining us today. I'll start with our third quarter performance and discuss the progress we have made against our three priorities and finish with some comments on the current retail environment.

謝謝你，傑米，大家下午好。感謝您今天加入我們。我將從我們第三季的業績開始，討論我們在三個優先事項方面的進展，最後對當前的零售環境發表一些評論。

In the third quarter, our efforts to enhance the customer experience continued to resonate, enabling growth in net and comparable sales, margin expansion, and an increase in our customer base. We delivered solid results with net sales reaching over $3.3 billion, along with earnings per share of $0.33.

第三季度，我們為提升客戶體驗所做的努力持續取得成效，推動了淨銷售額和可比較銷售額的成長、利潤率的提高以及客戶群的擴大。我們取得了穩健的業績，淨銷售額超過 33 億美元，每股收益為 0.33 美元。

Both Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack delivered 4% comparable sales growth. We're particularly encouraged that our online business sustained its momentum with digital sales growth of over 6%. Customers responded to newness in our selection of the brands that matter most to them, driving positive total company net sales growth for the fourth consecutive quarter.

Nordstrom 和 Nordstrom Rack 的同店銷售額均成長了 4%。我們尤其感到鼓舞的是，我們的線上業務保持了強勁勢頭，數位銷售額成長超過 6%。客戶對我們選擇的最受他們關注的品牌的新穎性做出了積極的反應，推動公司淨銷售額連續第四個季度實現正增長。

Moving on to our three priorities for the year of driving Nordstrom banner growth, operational optimization, and building on the momentum at the Rack.

我們今年的三大重點是推動 Nordstrom 橫幅廣告的成長、營運優化以及鞏固 Rack 的勢頭。

Driving Nordstrom banner growth is a key part of our strategy, and we continued to make progress during the third quarter. A curated selection of merchandise with greater depth in our customers' favorite brands across our fleet, and not just in our largest stores, helped drive the results.

推動諾德斯特龍橫幅廣告的成長是我們策略的關鍵部分，我們在第三季度繼續取得進展。我們不僅在我們最大的商店中，而且在我們整個商店中，對顧客最喜愛的品牌進行更深入的商品精選，有助於推動業績的成長。

As an omnichannel retailer, we have to be prepared to serve customers when, where, and how they want to shop, and service is always our number one priority. Our customers define what good service is, not us, and our teams are very focused on taking care of each and every customer who shops with us. We take this commitment to serving our customers seriously, from the initial greeting to providing assistance and a point of view at the fitting room to completing the sale. For our customers that prefer to shop online, we aim to make the experience seamless and engaging through technology.

作為全通路零售商，我們必須做好準備，在顧客希望購物的時間、地點和方式為他們提供服務，服務始終是我們的首要任務。我們的客戶而不是我們定義了什麼是優質的服務，我們的團隊非常注重照顧每位在我們這裡購物的客戶。我們認真履行為客戶服務的承諾，從最初的問候到在試衣間提供幫助和觀點，再到完成銷售。對於喜歡線上購物的客戶，我們的目標是透過科技讓他們的購物體驗變得無縫且引人入勝。

At Nordstrom.com, net sales growth in the third quarter was supported by enhancements to the search and discovery functionality on our site and in our app as well as improvements in our assortment, especially of items under $100 in price.

在 Nordstrom.com，第三季淨銷售額的成長得益於我們網站和應用程式的搜尋和發現功能的增強以及商品種類的改進，尤其是價格低於 100 美元的商品。

We continued to scale our Marketplace business in the third quarter, which now has over 300 sellers offering a wide selection to our customers. We look forward to continuing to grow this business in 2025 and beyond.

我們在第三季繼續擴大我們的市場業務，目前已有超過 300 個賣家為我們的客戶提供廣泛的選擇。我們期待在 2025 年及以後繼續發展這項業務。

Another key priority for this year is operational optimization. Given the progress our supply chain team has made on reducing operating expenses, they have expanded their focus to increasing speed, by quickly getting orders to our customers' doorsteps and moving product efficiently through our network to provide relevance and freshness. We know our customers desire speed, which can improve the customer experience as well as our financial outcome.

今年的另一個重點是營運優化。鑑於我們的供應鏈團隊在降低營運費用方面取得的進展，他們將重點擴展到提高速度，透過快速將訂單送到客戶家門口，並透過我們的網路高效地運輸產品，以提供相關性和新鮮度。我們知道客戶需要速度，這可以改善客戶體驗以及我們的財務成果。

For example, faster fulfillment and delivery of items drove an over 40% improvement in the speed of customer returns in the third quarter. Returns that come in faster mean that we can process, inspect and get the items back into our inventory in a sellable condition in less time, increasing the product's overall full price exposure.

例如，更快的物品履行和交付使第三季客戶退貨速度提高了 40% 以上。退貨速度越快，這意味著我們可以在更短的時間內處理、檢查商品並將其以可銷售的狀態放回庫存，從而提高商品的整體全價曝光率。

Throughout the year, the supply chain team's efforts have also supported our new Rack store openings successfully. More recently, they have positioned us well heading into holiday in terms of inventory flow, staffing, and shipping capacity.

全年，供應鏈團隊的努力也支持了我們新的 Rack 店的成功開幕。最近，他們在庫存流動、人員配備和運輸能力方面為我們進入假期做好了準備。

We also continue to advance our priority to build on the momentum at the Rack during the third quarter. Our strategy of offering great brands at great prices continues to give customers a reason to choose Nordstrom Rack. In the third quarter, customers responded positively to our offering, driving net sales growth higher for the fourth consecutive quarter.

我們也將繼續推進我們的優先事項，以在第三季度鞏固 Rack 的勢頭。我們以優惠的價格提供優質品牌的策略繼續為顧客提供選擇 Nordstrom Rack 的理由。第三季度，客戶對我們的產品反應積極，推動淨銷售額連續第四個季度成長。

We also opened 12 new stores during Q3, bringing the full year total to 23, which is consistent with our plans to open 20 to 25 new Racks per year. New Rack stores continue to be a great investment for us as they deliver a solid return on capital while attracting new customers.

我們還在第三季開設了 12 家新店，使全年總數達到 23 家，這與我們每年開設 20 至 25 家新店的計劃一致。新的 Rack 商店對我們來說仍然是一項巨大的投資，因為它們在吸引新客戶的同時也能帶來豐厚的資本回報。

NordstromRack.com remains a differentiator in off-price retail, enabling customers to shop when and how they want. Rack digital sales growth in the third quarter was driven by an expanded online merchandise offering, as well as focused efforts to maintain high in-stock rates in our fastest-selling items.

NordstromRack.com 在折扣零售領域保持差異化優勢，讓顧客隨時隨地以自己想要的方式購物。Rack 數位銷售在第三季的成長得益於擴大線上商品供應，以及專注於維持最暢銷商品的高庫存率。

Towards the end of the quarter, we launched store fulfillment for Rack digital orders in over 100 of our Rack stores around the country. Our efforts to improve the integrity of our inventory are enabling us to work towards optimizing that part of our store operations prior to expanding to our entire fleet of Rack stores.

在本季末，我們在全國 100 多家 Rack 商店推出了 Rack 數位訂單的門市履行服務。我們努力提高庫存的完整性，這使我們能夠在擴展到整個 Rack 商店之前優化商店運營的這一部分。

We're also excited to have launched buy online pick-up in store at those same 100-plus Rack stores for the first time ever in the third quarter. This allows NordstromRack.com shoppers to purchase select items online and pick them up same day in their nearest Rack location. We're pleased with the early results of these new services and are excited about the opportunity to better serve our customers, drive sales, and expand margins.

我們也很高興在第三季首次在這 100 多家 Rack 商店推出線上購買店內取貨服務。這使得 NordstromRack.com 的購物者可以在線購買指定商品，並在同一天到最近的 Rack 門市取貨。我們對這些新服務的早期成果感到滿意，並對更好地服務客戶、推動銷售和擴大利潤的機會感到興奮。

Looking ahead, the fourth quarter is a significant one for us and provides us with the important opportunity to serve our customers. Across the company, our teams are focused on executing an exceptional holiday shopping experience with gifts for everyone at every budget, an enhanced digital experience, convenience services, and festive events, both in stores and online.

展望未來，第四季對我們來說意義重大，為我們服務客戶提供了重要機會。在整個公司，我們的團隊致力於提供卓越的節日購物體驗，為每個人提供各種預算的禮物，增強數位體驗、便利服務和店內和網上的節日活動。

While we are excited about and well prepared for the holiday season, there was a noticeable decline in sales trends towards the end of October. As you'll hear from Cathy in a moment, we are updating our full-year guidance, which takes the slowdown into consideration.

雖然我們對假期感到興奮並做好了充分準備，但十月底的銷售趨勢卻明顯下降。正如您稍後會從 Cathy 那裡聽到的，我們正在更新全年指導，其中考慮到了經濟放緩的影響。

In advance of this holiday season, I want to thank our teams across the company for their hard work and taking care of our customers during this busy time. We're excited about the season and wish everyone a happy holiday.

在假期到來之前，我要感謝公司各個團隊在這段繁忙的時間裡的辛勤工作和對客戶的照顧。我們對這個季節感到興奮並祝大家節日快樂。

I'll now turn it over to Pete.

現在我將把發言權交給皮特。

Thank you, Erik, and good afternoon, everyone. My remarks today will focus on merchandise performance, our inventory position, and some highlights of what we have planned for holiday.

謝謝你，埃里克，大家下午好。我今天的演講將重點關注商品表現、我們的庫存狀況以及我們假期計劃的一些亮點。

We know that our customers have a lot of choices when it comes to shopping, which is why we offer a selection of their favorite brands as well as new and emerging ones, enabling the discovery of new looks and styles.

我們知道，我們的客戶在購物時有很多選擇，這就是為什麼我們提供他們最喜歡的品牌以及新興品牌的選擇，以便發現新的外觀和風格。

In stores, merchandising is all about curating an assortment of our best brands that appeal to our customers. This year, we've edited out some brands in order to amplify the best ones, to create focus and a point of view in our stores. In our digital business, we aim to serve more customers on more occasions with more choices. We're encouraged that our teams are executing well on both of these merchandising strategies.

在商店中，商品銷售就是精心挑選出一系列能吸引顧客的最佳品牌。今年，我們刪除了一些品牌，以突出最好的品牌，並在我們的商店中創造焦點和觀點。在我們的數位業務中，我們的目標是在更多場合為更多客戶提供更多選擇。我們很高興看到我們的團隊在執行這兩種行銷策略方面都表現出色。

From a total company perspective, the top-performing categories in the third quarter were women's apparel, active, shoes, and men's apparel. I'll first cover our merchandise performance at each of our banners.

從整個公司的角度來看，第三季表現最好的類別是女裝、運動服、鞋類和男裝。我將首先介紹我們每個橫幅的商品表現。

In our Nordstrom banner, we've been focused on building selection and depth in our customers' favorite brands across all stores, particularly in women's apparel this year. In the third quarter, leading brands such as Vince and Veronica Beard helped drive mid-teens growth in this category.

在我們的諾德斯特龍 (Nordstrom) 品牌下，我們一直致力於在所有商店中增加顧客最喜愛品牌的選擇和深度，尤其是今年的女裝。第三季度，Vince 和 Veronica Beard 等領先品牌推動了該類別的中段成長。

Active, which includes apparel and shoes, continued its impressive run as a top category at our Nordstrom banner. Relevant brand offerings drove low teens growth, led by some of our customers' favorites such as On Running, HOKA, and Vuori.

運動服飾（包括服裝和鞋子）繼續保持令人印象深刻的表現，成為我們諾德斯特龍旗下的頂級類別。相關品牌產品推動了低青少年成長，其中以我們客戶最喜歡的一些品牌為主導，例如 On Running、HOKA 和 Vuori。

The shoes category is an important one for us, given our company's history, and it performed well in the third quarter. One of the contributors to the growth was our Make Room for Shoes campaign, which highlights certain of our customers' favorite brands with new and unique inventory each month. The third quarter strength in women's shoes was fueled by notable sales increases from brands, including Stuart Weitzman, Veronica Beard, and Vince.

考慮到我們公司的歷史，鞋類產品對我們來說非常重要，並且它在第三季表現良好。推動成長的因素之一是我們的「為鞋子騰出空間」活動，該活動每月重點推出一些顧客最喜歡的品牌，並提供新的獨特庫存。女鞋第三季的強勁表現得益於 Stuart Weitzman、Veronica Beard 和 Vince 等品牌的銷售大幅成長。

Men's apparel, another important category for us, rounds out our top performers in the third quarter. Similar to our efforts in women's, we have focused on providing more consistent assortments and increased selection across our fleet of stores. In the third quarter, men's apparel growth was driven by dresswear and contemporary styles.

男裝是我們另一個重要的產品類別，也是我們第三季表現最好的產品之一。與我們在女裝領域的努力類似，我們專注於在我們的所有門市中提供更一致的商品組合和更豐富的選擇。第三季度，男裝的成長主要受到正裝和現代風格的推動。

At the Rack, our strategy of offering great brands at great prices resonated with customers in the third quarter, driving double-digit top line growth. From a merchandise perspective, in women's apparel, premium denim and dresses were strong performers in the third quarter. The active category sustained its double-digit growth driven by active shoes. In men's apparel, sportswear drove the largest volume game. And rounding out the top categories in Q3 is shoes, which was led by casual sneakers.

在 Rack，我們以優惠價格提供優質品牌的策略在第三季引起了客戶的共鳴，推動了兩位數的營收成長。從商品角度來看，在女裝方面，高檔牛仔布和洋裝在第三季表現強勁。在運動鞋的推動下，運動類別保持了兩位數的成長。在男裝中，運動服的銷量最大。第三季排名靠前的類別是鞋類，其中休閒運動鞋佔據主導地位。

I'd like to also make some comments about our Nordstrom private brands, which are available at both banners. We continue to be pleased with the customer response and performance. In the third quarter, Nordstrom, Zella, and Open Edit were strong performers, helping to drive double-digit growth in sales of our private brands as customers recognize the quality, style, and value of our offering.

我也想對我們的 Nordstrom 自有品牌發表一些評論，這兩個品牌都有販售。我們繼續對客戶的反應和表現感到滿意。第三季度，Nordstrom、Zella 和 Open Edit 表現強勁，隨著客戶認可我們產品的品質、風格和價值，幫助推動我們自有品牌的銷售額實現兩位數成長。

Moving on to our inventory position at the end of Q3, which grew 6% year over year versus 5% in sales. Inventory growth in the third quarter was partially driven by some seasonal categories such as boots, sweaters, and outerwear that were slower in some parts of the country.

談到我們第三季末的庫存狀況，庫存年增 6%，而銷售額成長 5%。第三季庫存成長部分受到一些季節性類別的推動，例如靴子、毛衣和外套，這些類別在該國部分地區的銷售速度較慢。

At the Nordstrom banner, our inventory is highly penetrated with our best brands and consists of lower clearance and aged inventory versus a year ago. At the Rack, inventories are higher than last year, yet also over-indexed to the best-performing brands.

在諾德斯特龍 (Nordstrom) 旗下，我們的庫存高度滲透著我們的最佳品牌，與一年前相比，清倉和陳舊庫存較少。Rack 的庫存比去年同期有所增加，但同時也過度依賴表現最佳的品牌。

Driving the growth is the inventory needed to ramp up our new Rack stores as well as an increased selection available on NordstromRack.com, where we've added over 30,000 customer choices to the site. While our inventory growth in the third quarter was slightly higher than we prefer, we continue to feel good about the content of our inventory.

推動成長的是我們新 Rack 商店擴張所需的庫存以及 NordstromRack.com 上更多可供選擇的商品，我們在網站上增加了超過 30,000 種客戶選擇。儘管第三季的庫存成長略高於我們的預期，但我們對庫存內容仍然感到滿意。

Turning to a few of the highlights of what we have planned for holiday, we're excited about the season and the opportunities that lie ahead for us in the fourth quarter. This year, we're making our customers' holiday shopping easy and fun, prioritizing a well-rounded assortment across both banners that blends relevance and inspiration at all price points. We recently launched our 2024 holiday catalog with items focused on gifting and holiday dressing.

談到我們為假期計劃的幾個亮點，我們對這個季節以及第四季度面臨的機會感到興奮。今年，我們致力於讓顧客的假期購物變得輕鬆有趣，優先在兩個品牌上提供全面的商品組合，將相關性和靈感融入各個價位。我們最近推出了 2024 年節日目錄，其中的商品主要集中在禮品和節日裝扮上。

In apparel, sweaters are a key gifting item and our teams have curated a great selection. In beauty, the teams have been focused on making Nordstrom the destination to shop for luxury fragrances this holiday season, building on momentum in this area.

在服裝中，毛衣是主要的禮品，我們的團隊精心挑選了眾多精選商品。在美容領域，團隊一直致力於將諾德斯特龍打造成今年假期季節購買奢華香水的目的地，並鞏固該領域的發展勢頭。

At the Rack, we're invested across categories and price points to offer customers a relevant selection of great brands at great prices. As Erik mentioned, we're making it easier to shop with the addition of buy online pick-up in store in over 100 of our Rack locations. We're also introducing Rush the Rack, an exclusive new app feature for Nordy Club members, notifying them about the newest in-store merchandise arrivals so they can be the first to shop.

在 Rack，我們投資於各個類別和價位的產品，以便為客戶提供價格優惠的優質品牌的相關選擇。正如 Erik 所提到的，我們在 100 多個 Rack 門市增加了線上購買和店內取貨服務，讓購物變得更加便利。我們還推出了 Rush the Rack，這是 Nordy Club 會員獨享的全新應用功能，可通知會員店內最新到貨商品，以便會員可以第一時間購物。

We're hosting experiences and events to celebrate the holiday from virtual events with fashion experts, to festive in-store experiences across the country like Letters to Santa, Holiday Glam Up Days, the one-day only Beauty Bash, and more.

我們將舉辦各種體驗和活動來慶祝這個節日，從與時尚專家的虛擬活動，到全國各地的節日店內體驗，如給聖誕老人的信、假日魅力日、僅限一天的美容盛會等等。

At our New York City flagship store, our special holiday activation includes hosting daily Santa Snow Shows, offering a holiday weekend brunch series, and starting tomorrow, we're unveiling The Blizz on 57th Street, which will feature larger-than-life talking inflatable characters throughout the store. We're excited to be providing customers with fun and engaging experiences this holiday season.

在我們的紐約市旗艦店，我們的特別節日活動包括舉辦每日聖誕雪秀、提供假日週末早午餐系列，並且從明天開始，我們將在第 57 街推出“暴風雪”活動，屆時整個商店內將出現栩栩如生的會說話的充氣人物。我們很高興能在這個假期為顧客提供有趣且引人入勝的體驗。

Before I turn it over to Cathy, I'd like to echo Erik's comments thanking our teams for the hard work that they do in providing service to our customers all year, as well as wishing them, and all of you, happy holidays.

在將時間交給 Cathy 之前，我想附和 Erik 的評論，感謝我們的團隊全年為我們的客戶提供服務所做的辛勤工作，並祝他們和大家節日快樂。

We'll now go to Cathy for an update on our financial results.

我們現在將向 Cathy 報告我們的財務業績更新。

Thanks, Pete, and thank you all for joining us. I'll begin by covering our third quarter-results, then discuss our outlook, and close with our capital allocation priorities.

謝謝，皮特，也謝謝大家加入我們。我將首先介紹我們的第三季業績，然後討論我們的前景，最後介紹我們的資本配置重點。

In the third quarter, we again delivered solid results, with growth in net sales and EBIT, as well as margin expansion. Total company net sales increased 4.6% in the third quarter, driven by positive results at both banners. The timing shift of the Anniversary Sale, with one day falling in the third quarter this year versus eight days last year, had a negative impact on net sales of approximately 100 basis points.

第三季度，我們再次取得了穩健的業績，淨銷售額和息稅前利潤均有所增長，利潤率也有所擴大。受兩大品牌業績的推動，第三季公司淨銷售總額成長了 4.6%。週年慶促銷時間的變更，今年第三季有一天的促銷，而去年有八天，對淨銷售額產生了約 100 個基點的負面影響。

Comparable sales increased 4.0% with positive comps in both banners and particular strength in digital channels. GMV increased 5.3% in the third quarter.

可比銷售額成長 4.0%，橫幅廣告和數位管道均有正面表現。第三季GMV成長5.3%。

Nordstrom banner net sales increased 1.3%, while comparable sales grew 4.0%. The difference is mainly due to the use of a realigned calendar for comparable sales, which eliminates the approximately 200 basis point negative impact from the timing of the Anniversary Sale, which is reflected in net sales.

Nordstrom 橫幅淨銷售額成長 1.3%，而可比銷售額成長 4.0%。差異主要是由於使用重新調整的日曆來計算可比銷售額，從而消除了周年促銷時間帶來的約 200 個基點的負面影響，而這反映在淨銷售額中。

Nordstrom Rack net sales increased 10.6%, with comparable sales increasing 3.9%.

Nordstrom Rack 淨銷售額成長 10.6%，可比銷售額成長 3.9%。

Digital sales grew 6.4% in Q3, representing the sixth consecutive quarter of sequential improvement. The timing shift of the Anniversary Sale had a negative impact on digital sales of approximately 100 basis points. Digital sales represented 34% of total sales during the quarter.

第三季數位銷售額成長 6.4%，這是連續第六個季度實現成長。週年慶促銷時間的改變對數位銷售產生了約 100 個基點的負面影響。本季數位銷售額佔總銷售額的 34%。

Gross profit as a percentage of net sales expanded 60 basis points to 35.6%, primarily on strong regular price sales. Ending inventory increased 5.9% versus a year ago. As Pete noted, the quality of our inventory is good, although the level is slightly higher than we want.

毛利佔淨銷售額的百分比擴大了 60 個基點，達到 35.6%，主要得益於強勁的正常價格銷售。期末庫存較去年同期增加 5.9%。正如 Pete 所說，我們的庫存品質很好，儘管水準略高於我們的要求。

Selling, general, and administrative expenses as a percentage of net sales of 36.6% increased 25 basis points compared with 36.3% in the year-ago quarter. This was primarily due to higher labor costs and a charge related to accelerated technology depreciation that were partially offset by leverage on higher sales and improvements in variable costs across the business. SG&A expenses, after excluding the $14 million in accelerated technology depreciation, decreased to 36.2%.

銷售、一般及管理費用佔淨銷售額的 36.6%，較去年同期的 36.3% 增加了 25 個基點。這主要是由於勞動成本上升和與加速技術折舊相關的費用，但被銷售額上升和整個業務變動成本改善的槓桿作用部分抵消。扣除 1,400 萬美元的加速技術折舊後，銷售、一般及行政費用下降至 36.2%。

Our EBIT margin expanded 45 basis points to 2.9%, driven by a more than 25% year-over-year increase in the EBIT dollars in the third quarter.

我們的息稅前利潤率擴大了 45 個基點，達到 2.9%，這得益於第三季息稅前利潤年增超過 25%。

Income tax expense of $11 million, or 18.9% of pretax earnings, was higher than the 14.2% recorded in the year ago quarter. Last year's income tax benefited from the wind-down of our Canadian operations.

所得稅支出為 1,100 萬美元，佔稅前收益的 18.9%，高於去年同期的 14.2%。去年的所得稅受益於我們加拿大業務的逐漸減少。

Third quarter EPS of $0.33 is favorable to last year's $0.25, largely driven by leverage on higher sales as well as the expansion of our gross margin.

第三季每股收益為 0.33 美元，高於去年的 0.25 美元，主要得益於銷售額成長以及毛利率的提高。

We ended the third quarter with $1.2 billion in available liquidity, including just under $400 million in cash. Our balance sheet and financial position remains solid.

截至第三季末，我們擁有 12 億美元的可用流動資金，其中包括近 4 億美元的現金。我們的資產負債表和財務狀況依然穩健。

Before moving to our outlook, I'd like to offer some additional commentary on our third-quarter results and the current environment. Our efforts to improve the customer experience are taking hold, as evidenced by the strength of our top line. In the third quarter, we again grew our customer count, reported an increase in customer trips, and expanded our margins.

在談到我們的展望之前，我想對我們的第三季業績和當前環境提供一些額外的評論。我們為改善客戶體驗所做的努力正在取得成效，這從我們強勁的營收表現中可見一斑。第三季度，我們的客戶數量再次增加，客戶出行次數增加，利潤率也提高。

Our credit card revenues as a percentage of total revenue declined modestly versus Q3 of last year, continuing the trend that we've experienced all year. The decline was driven by higher losses partially offset by higher balances within the portfolio. This was consistent with our expectations.

我們的信用卡收入佔總收入的百分比與去年第三季相比略有下降，延續了我們全年的趨勢。造成這一下降的原因是損失增加，但投資組合中的餘額增加部分抵消了這一損失。這與我們的預期一致。

Turning to the current environment and our outlook for the year. While we continue to be pleased with our year-to-date results, the external environment remains uncertain. As Erik mentioned earlier, we did experience softness in sales that started around the end of October. We also have a shorter holiday season by five days this year. And as a reminder, the 53rd week benefited fourth quarter net sales by 460 basis points last year.

談談當前環境和我們對今年的展望。儘管我們對今年迄今的業績感到滿意，但外部環境仍然不確定。正如艾瑞克之前提到的，從 10 月底開始，我們的銷售確實出現疲軟。今年我們的假期也縮短了五天。值得一提的是，去年第 53 週第四季淨銷售額成長了 460 個基點。

When considering the puts and takes and appreciating that we typically realize about 30% of the full year's net sales and approximately 40% of our annual EBIT in the fourth quarter, we believe it is prudent to remain appropriately cautious with our outlook. As such, we are updating and modestly increasing our outlook for revenue and comparable sales for the year.

考慮到利弊，並意識到我們通常在第四季度實現全年淨銷售額的約 30% 和年度息稅前利潤的約 40%，我們認為對我們的前景保持適當謹慎是明智之舉。因此，我們正在更新並適度提高今年的收入和可比較銷售額的預期。

Our updated guidance includes: full-year revenue in the range of flat to an increase of 1%, which includes a headwind of approximately 135 basis points from the 53rd week in 2023's results. We now expect total company comparable sales growth of 1% to 2% in 2024 versus 52 weeks in 2023. As our fiscal 2023 included a 53rd week, we calculate our 2024 comparable sales growth using a realigned 52-week 2023 period for comparability.

我們更新後的指引包括：全年營收在持平至成長 1% 的範圍內，其中包括 2023 年第 53 週業績約 135 個基點的逆風。我們現在預計，2024 年公司總可比銷售額將成長 1% 至 2%，而 2023 年為 52 週。由於我們的 2023 財年包含第 53 週，因此我們使用重新調整的 2023 年 52 週期間來計算 2024 年可比銷售額成長，以便進行比較。

Turning to profitability. We continue to expect a full year EBIT margin in the range of 3.6% to 4.0%. We continue to expect our effective tax rate to be approximately 27% for the full year. From an earnings per share perspective, we expect full-year results in the range of $1.75 to $2.05 excluding the impact of any share repurchases.

轉向盈利能力。我們繼續預計全年息稅前利潤率將在 3.6% 至 4.0% 之間。我們繼續預計全年有效稅率約為 27%。從每股盈餘的角度來看，我們預計全年業績將在 1.75 美元至 2.05 美元之間（不包括任何股票回購的影響）。

As a reminder, we continue to expect charges approximating 10 basis points to our reported SG&A expense as a percentage of net sales in the fourth quarter related to the accelerated technology depreciation we mentioned.

提醒一下，我們仍然預計，與我們提到的加速技術折舊有關的第四季度報告的銷售、一般和行政費用佔淨銷售額的百分比約為 10 個基點。

Our capital allocation priorities remain unchanged. We'll invest in the business to better serve our customers with high return projects, reduce our leverage, and return cash to shareholders. Last week, our Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.19 per share.

我們的資本配置重點維持不變。我們將投資該業務，以便透過高回報項目更好地服務我們的客戶，降低我們的槓桿率，並向股東返還現金。上週，我們的董事會宣布每股 0.19 美元的季度現金股利。

In closing, we are encouraged that our focus areas and priorities are resonating with customers, driving top line strength and expanding margins. I would also like to echo Erik and Pete's comments thanking the teams across the organization for their commitment and dedication to serving our customers, as well as wishing everyone a happy holiday season.

最後，我們很高興看到，我們的重點領域和優先事項引起了客戶的共鳴，推動了營收成長並擴大了利潤率。我也想同意艾瑞克和皮特的評論，感謝整個組織團隊對服務客戶的承諾和奉獻，並祝大家節日快樂。

We thank you for your interest in Nordstrom. Jamie, we are ready for questions.

感謝您對 Nordstrom 的關注。傑米，我們已經準備好回答問題了。

Thank you, Cathy. Before we get started with Q&A, we ask that participants please limit themselves to one question and one follow-up. We'll now move to the Q&A session.

謝謝你，凱西。在開始問答之前，我們要求參與者只提出一個問題並進行一次後續提問。我們現在進入問答環節。

(Operator Instructions) Brooke Roach, Goldman Sachs.

（操作員指示）高盛的布魯克·羅奇。

Good afternoon. Thank you for taking our question. Erik, can you speak to the health of the Nordstrom consumer by banner today? Can you elaborate on the drivers of the slowdown that you saw in late October? How have holiday sales trends been performing November quarter-to-date?

午安.感謝您回答我們的問題。艾瑞克，您今天能透過橫幅談談諾德斯特龍消費者的健康狀況嗎？能否詳細說明一下 10 月底經濟放緩的原因？十一月當季迄今的假期銷售趨勢如何？

Hi, Brooke. Yeah, let me talk about third quarter first. We saw good health for our customers across both banners and across income cohorts. We saw improved spend across all income cohorts, healthiest gains within our higher income group.

你好，布魯克。是的，我先談談第三季。我們發現，無論品牌或收入群體，我們的客戶都表現良好。我們發現所有收入群體的支出都有增加，其中高收入群體的支出增幅最為可觀。

As far as the Q4 slowdown, really don’t have a lot of information on that. It's a couple of weeks into the quarter, and we just thought that the prudent thing would be to share what we saw, which is a decline in trend there. But it's too early to pull that apart.

至於第四季經濟放緩，確實沒有太多相關資訊。本季度已經過去了幾週，我們認為謹慎的做法是分享我們所看到的情況，即趨勢正在下降。但現在就下結論還為時過早。

Great. And then as a follow-up, Cathy, as you look ahead, what do you see as the most important drivers of multiyear EBIT margin expansion? Are there any puts or takes we should be considering as you round out 2024 and move into 2025?

偉大的。然後作為後續問題，凱西，展望未來，您認為多年息稅前利潤率擴張的最重要驅動因素是什麼？在 2024 年即將結束、2025 年即將到來之際，我們該考慮哪些優缺點？

Good afternoon, Brooke. First and foremost, the top line is always going to be the best contributor for EBIT margin expansion. We're off to a good start this year. If you think we're north of 4% year-to-date in top line growth, which is great. That's going to be our biggest contributor to continuing to expand EBIT margin in the future.

下午好，布魯克。首先，營業收入始終是息稅前利潤率擴張的最佳貢獻者。今年我們有了一個好的開始。如果你認為我們今年迄今為止的營收成長率已超過 4%，那麼這很好。這將成為我們未來繼續擴大息稅前利潤率的最大貢獻者。

As we've shared in the past as well, we've got a little bit of work to do on a couple of areas that are clearly important as we moved, have moved to being an omnichannel retailer, namely supply chain and technology.

正如我們過去所分享的，隨著我們向全通路零售商轉型，我們在幾個顯然重要的領域中還需要做一些工作，即供應鏈和技術。

We want to make sure that we continue to invest there, but make sure that we start to gain the benefits of those investments as well as we move forward. Those are going to be our biggest opportunities for EBIT expansion.

我們希望確保我們繼續在那裡投資，但也要確保我們在前進的過程中開始獲得這些投資的收益。這些將是我們擴大息稅前利潤的最大機會。

And then lastly, I'll just mention it because we have each quarter, shrink remains at an all-time high. Long term, in order for us to get to substantially expanded margins, we're going to need that to come back down.

最後，我只想提一下，因為我們每季的收縮都處於歷史最高水準。從長遠來看，為了大幅提高利潤率，我們需要將這一比例降下來。

We're really pleased with what we've seen with the investments we've been making this year, we're starting to see some progress there. But as we've shared before, we're at historically high levels. I put all three of those things into EBIT margin expansion.

我們對今年的投資成果感到非常滿意，我們開始看到一些進展。但正如我們之前所分享的，我們正處於歷史最高水準。我把這三件事都納入了息稅前利潤率的擴大。

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

偉大的。太感謝了。我會傳達的。

Simeon Siegel, BMO Capital Markets.

西蒙‧西格爾 (Simeon Siegel)，BMO 資本市場。

Thanks, everyone. Good afternoon. So really great ongoing Rack growth. Great to hear about the expanding customer count as well. Just curious how we can characterize new customers versus higher spend per customer at Rack?

謝謝大家。午安.因此，Rack 的成長確實非常出色。很高興聽到客戶數量也不斷增加。我只是好奇我們如何描述 Rack 的新客戶與每位客戶的更高支出？

And then just any way to think about what percent of new customer growth at Rack or new customers to the company versus maybe anyone further pivoting from the Nordstrom banner? And then if I could just follow up, Cathy, any just quick color or context you could share on the receivable growth. Thank you.

然後，您是否可以想一想，Rack 的新客戶成長百分比或公司新客戶的百分比，以及是否有其他公司進一步從 Nordstrom 品牌轉向其他品牌？然後，如果我可以跟進的話，凱西，您可以簡單介紹一下應收帳款增長的情況或背景嗎？謝謝。

I'll start, and I'll give you a chance to chime in. We have our customer health metrics look good. We're having customer count growth, we're having purchase trips growth across both banners. Rack is certainly benefiting from having new stores. Rack new stores is our biggest source of customer acquisition.

我先開始，然後給你一個發言的機會。我們的客戶健康指標看起來很好。我們的客戶數量正在成長，兩個品牌的購買次數也在增加。Rack 確實因開設新店而受益。新店開張是我們最大的客戶獲取來源。

It continues to be that, and we get good migration from those new customers as they get to know us across both banners and both channels. So customer health is looking really good.

我們將繼續這樣做，隨著新客戶透過兩個橫幅和兩個管道了解我們，我們獲得了良好的遷移。所以客戶健康狀況看起來非常好。

And the only other thing I would add on that is we did -- as we shared, we saw positive momentum in customers trips and trips per customer, which are all great metrics to continue to watch. And then, Simeon, I'm sorry, what was your question on receivables in particular?

我唯一想補充的是，正如我們所分享的，我們看到了客戶出行次數和每位客戶出行次數的正面勢頭，這些都是值得繼續關注的重要指標。然後，西緬，抱歉，您關於應收帳款的具體問題是什麼？

I think it looked like they grew maybe a little bit quicker than typical. So just if there's any context there? Any color?

我認為它們看起來可能比一般的生長速度要快一點。那麼那裡有沒有什麼背景呢？任何顏色？

Yeah. Nothing stands out in particular.

是的。沒有什麼特別突出的。

Great. Thanks a lot, guys, and best of luck for the holidays and hope you have a nice Thanksgiving.

偉大的。非常感謝大家，祝大家節日快樂，感恩節快樂。

Thank you, you as well.

謝謝你，你也一樣。

Oliver Chen, TD Cowen.

奧利弗·陳（Oliver Chen），TD Cowen。

Hi, Erik, Pete, and Cathy. As we look ahead, how are you -- what does guidance include for promotions and merchandise margins. Also as we model inventory growth, what are your thoughts on inventory relative to sales growth?

嗨，Erik、Pete 和 Cathy。展望未來，您覺得如何？指導包括哪些促銷和商品利潤？另外，當我們模擬庫存成長時，您對庫存相對於銷售成長的看法是什麼？

And then finally, on the product execution, it sounds like a lot of things are working well, which is great. How might you compare and contrast the Rack product execution relative to full-line and opportunities you see for category improvement?

最後，關於產品執行，聽起來很多事情都很順利，這很好。您如何比較和對比 Rack 產品執行情況與全系列產品以及您看到的類別改進機會？

Oliver, there's a lot there. Good afternoon and thank you. Maybe I'll dish off a little bit. I'll start with inventory, but then maybe Pete can talk a little bit about our assortment by banner and the execution there. We're excited with the progress we keep making.

奧利佛，那裡有很多東西。下午好，謝謝。也許我會說得稍微多一點。我將從庫存開始，然後也許 Pete 可以稍微談談我們的橫幅分類和執行情況。我們對不斷取得的進步感到非常興奮。

And then we can -- the merch margin question, I think, is actually a pretty simple one. Just saw really good strength and reg price sell-through, and we shared that, I think, in the materials in the remarks.

然後我們可以——我認為商品利潤問題實際上是一個非常簡單的問題。剛剛看到了非常好的實力和常規價格銷售，我想我們在評論的材料中分享了這一點。

On inventory versus sales, maybe I can start with that one, and then I'll turn it over to Pete and/or Erik. We always strive to have the rate of sales consistent with the inventory growth. I'll just start there. We like it to be balanced or to have a positive spread of sales over inventory. That would mean then inventory is a little higher than we wanted right now.

關於庫存與銷售，也許我可以從那個開始，然後我會把它交給 Pete 和/或 Erik。我們始終努力使銷售率與庫存成長率保持一致。我就從那裡開始。我們希望保持平衡，或銷售額與庫存之間存在正向的差距。這意味著庫存比我們現在想要的要高一點。

We have shared that with you guys. We're working to make sure that we're clean as we come out of the quarter. That's really important as we bring in that spring newness coming into next year.

我們已經與你們分享了這一點。我們正在努力確保本季度結束時我們是乾淨的。當我們在明年迎來春天的新鮮氣息時，這一點非常重要。

The inventory growth that we did see is largely to support our Rack banner, consistent with last quarter. So as we think about the additional new store openings will we support that with the inventory. We have increased the choice count for Rack.com, which is helping to drive some of its success. But that, obviously, we want to support that with inventory as well.

我們確實看到的庫存成長主要是為了支持我們的 Rack 橫幅，與上一季一致。因此，當我們考慮開設更多新店時，我們是否會透過庫存來支持這一點。我們增加了 Rack.com 的選擇數量，這有助於推動其取得一定成功。但顯然，我們也希望透過庫存來支持這一點。

And then lastly, I would say the inventory quality is good. So we continue to watch the quality of the inventory and the aging and make sure that we are staying in a really good and healthy place there. All of that would say, we have inventory for the holidays, and we're excited about the next month and a half or so.

最後，我想說庫存品質很好。因此，我們將繼續關注庫存的品質和老化情況，確保我們處於真正良好和健康的狀態。所有這些都表明，我們有假期庫存，我們對接下來一個半月左右的時間感到興奮。

I'll turn it over to Pete for assortment execution.

我會將其交給 Pete 進行分類執行。

Yeah. Actually, it's been pretty darn similar in terms of the categories and how they're performing between the Rack banner and the Nordstrom banner. And while we do have nuance into how we apply our merchandise strategies there, one consistent theme has been to try to do a better job in investing more in the brands that matter most. That may seem obvious, but there's a bit of a long tail to our assortment at times if we're not on top of it.

是的。實際上，就類別和表現而言，Rack 橫幅和 Nordstrom 橫幅非常相似。雖然我們在如何應用商品策略方面確實存在細微差別，但一個始終不變的主題是努力更好地對最重要的品牌進行更多投資。這看起來很明顯，但如果我們不加以控制，我們的產品組合有時會出現長尾現象。

And we've trimmed some of the long tail to help better fund the most important brands. And there's a version of that that's played out the Rack, that's worked well. And there's a version that’s in full stores. And if you've been in our stores, you should be able to see that also in the way we're merchandising, the signing, what have you. Hopefully, those top brands are standing out a bit more, and we're seeing good performance in the best brands.

我們也削減了一些長尾，以便更好地資助最重要的品牌。還有一個版本在 Rack 上播放，效果很好。並且有一個在完整商店中銷售的版本。如果您去過我們的商店，您將從我們的商品銷售方式、標誌等等中看到這一點。希望這些頂級品牌能夠脫穎而出，我們也看到了最佳品牌的良好表現。

I would say another thing that's been consistently good across both banners is our own product label, which we carry in both places. That's been really solid for us, double-digit increases there. What we've been able to do in both instances is layer on price points that may not be as available in the market to us, lower price points than often times are more attractive to the young customers. So that's been a good thing, too.

我想說的是，兩個品牌始終如一的好東西是我們自己的產品標籤，我們在兩個地方都有銷售。這對我們來說確實很穩健，實現了兩位數的成長。在這兩種情況下，我們所能做的就是，在價格上分層設定那些在市場上可能買不到的價格點，而較低的價格點對年輕顧客來說往往更有吸引力。所以這也是一件好事。

And then the last thing I would say is, also, it's important that, we don't have this totally nailed, but we're certainly cognizant of it. And that's that the strategy for building assortments online is different than it is stores, and we know that choice count is super important for the online customer. So we're working on that as well.

最後我想說的是，同樣重要的是，我們還沒有完全搞清楚這一點，但我們肯定意識到了這一點。這就是在線上建立分類的策略與商店不同，我們知道選擇數量對於線上客戶來說非常重要。所以我們也在致力於此。

So I guess what I would say, it's a long answer to your question, is that the work that we've been doing over the last year has been paying off for us, and it's given us, I think, a lot of confidence in that strategy and you'll continue to see more of the same for us in the future.

所以我想我要說的是，對於你的問題，我要用很長的篇幅來回答，那就是我們在過去一年中所做的工作已經獲得了回報，並且我認為，這給了我們對這一戰略很大的信心，而且你將來會繼續看到我們取得更多同樣的成果。

Thanks. Happy holidays, best regards.

謝謝。節慶快樂，致以最誠摯的問候。

Thank you.

謝謝。

You as well, Oliver.

你也是，奧利佛。

Dana Telsey, Telsey Advisory Group.

達娜‧特爾西 (Dana Telsey)，特爾西顧問集團 (Telsey Advisory Group)。

Hi. Good afternoon, everyone. Given the improvement in certainly the branded results that you've seen, as you think about the categories going forward, how are you thinking about the newness in the categories, obviously, the activation in the New York store?

你好。大家下午好。鑑於您所看到的品牌業績肯定有所改善，當您考慮未來的類別時，您如何看待類別中的新穎性，顯然是紐約商店的激活？

And with BOPUS at Rack, how do you see that being additive to the top line? And lastly, just on the margin structure. How are you thinking about puts and takes for the fourth quarter and any framework for 2025, whether it's on freight rates or levels of pricing, this year versus last year? Thank you.

那麼，您認為 Rack 的 BOPUS 會對營業收入產生什麼影響呢？最後，我們來談談保證金結構。您如何看待第四季度的收益和 2025 年的任何框架，無論是運費還是定價水平，今年與去年相比如何？謝謝。

Dana, it's Pete. I would say in the categories that the thing we've really thought about most is, again, the biggest lever that has to do with the brands. But when you think about relation to categories, it's women's head to toe and it starts with women's apparel. And the women's apparel part of our business has been really healthy this year. And I think you've been following us a long time, you know that it hasn't been the case.

達娜，我是皮特。我想說，在這些類別中，我們真正考慮最多的事情是與品牌相關的最大槓桿。但是當你考慮與類別的關係時，它是從女性的頭到腳，並且從女裝開始。今年，我們女裝業務的業績非常良好。我想你已經關注我們很久了，你知道事實並非如此。

And last several years, we think we've probably given up some market share there. So there's been a real concerted effort being thoughtful about constructing our assortments there relative to price and category and what have you.

過去幾年，我們認為我們可能已經放棄了那裡的一些市場份額。因此，我們付出了真正的努力，認真考慮了價格、類別等因素來建立我們的產品組合。

I'd say probably the toughest issue relative to categories just has been somewhat to do with the unseasonably warm start to the winter time, late fall. We're not the first source to say this, but we got a bit of a slow start on the cold weather categories.

我想說，與類別相關的最棘手的問題可能與冬季開始、深秋時節異常溫暖的天氣有關。我們並不是第一個這麼說的人，但是我們在寒冷天氣類別方面的起步有點慢。

And that's picked up as you've seen the weather change but that's a big driver, as you would well know in this time of the year. So we keep our eye on that. And key to doing that well, it somewhat goes back to what Cathy talked about, that's making sure our inventories are in line with the demand.

隨著天氣的變化，這種情況有所增加，但這是一個重要的驅動因素，正如您在一年中的這個時候所了解的那樣。因此我們會密切關注這一點。要做好這件事的關鍵在於，它在某種程度上可以追溯到 Cathy 所說的內容，即確保我們的庫存符合需求。

And so there's a lot of effort to keep ourselves clean there and to be on top of promotional pricing as well so that we're competitive with the value.

因此，我們付出了很多努力來保持清潔，並保持促銷價格的領先地位，以便我們在價值上具有競爭力。

I’ll talk a little bit about margin structure to your question around the puts and takes. Obviously, we're not giving 2025 guidance, but the way I would think about the remainder of this year and then as we just, I think, holistically think about it.

針對您關於看跌期權和看漲期權的問題，我將稍微談談保證金結構。顯然，我們不會給出 2025 年的指導，而是我會考慮今年剩餘時間的情況，然後我們會全面地考慮它。

First, you specifically asked around price and freight. Freight, our teams have done a great job continuing to be back in market with our, the various freight suppliers and partners we have to get great rates. So we'll continue to manage that. They've done a great job all year long.

首先你具體詢問了價格和運費。貨運，我們的團隊做得很好，繼續與我們的各類貨運供應商和合作夥伴一起回到市場，以獲得優惠的價格。因此我們會繼續管理這一點。他們一整年都表現出色。

Price, ultimately, we do know that we would love to see a little bit of the ASP starting to come down. That's important for customers as well. And so we'll continue to work on that. But we're going to see a mix change a little bit as we continue to grow Rack. Rack has a lower average price point than the Nordstrom banner.

價格，最終，我們確實知道我們希望看到 ASP 開始下降一點。這對顧客來說也很重要。因此我們將繼續致力於此。但隨著 Rack 的不斷發展，我們將看到混合結構發生一些變化。Rack 的平均價格比 Nordstrom 低。

And that's a good thing, too, but we'll just continue to see a little bit of mix. I would say all of that I take into, we run a portfolio, and we always try to balance to make sure that we're, first and foremost, serving what our customers want.

這也是一件好事，但我們只會繼續看到一點混合。我想說的是，我考慮到了所有這些，我們經營著一個投資組合，我們總是試圖保持平衡，以確保我們首先滿足客戶的需求。

Dana, I'll take the Rack BOPUS question, turning on BOPUS and store fulfillment go together, and we've rolled that out to 100 stores to start with. For both of those services, to be good for customers, inventory accuracy is paramount and our multi-year investment in RFID is really the big enabler to us being able to open up that inventory, store inventory, for a customer that's shopping online. We've had that capabilities in our Nordstrom banner for a number of years. We've seen the impact of that. It's both sales, its margin.

達娜，我來回答關於 Rack BOPUS 的問題，開啟 BOPUS 和商店履行功能是結合在一起的，我們已經將這項服務推廣到 100 家商店。對於這兩項服務而言，為了更好地服務客戶，庫存準確性至關重要，而我們對 RFID 的多年投資確實是我們能夠向在線購物的客戶開放庫存、商店庫存的重要推動力。我們的 Nordstrom 品牌已經擁有這種能力很多年了。我們已經看到了其影響。這既是銷售額，也是利潤。

Most importantly, it's a better customer experience. And particularly in off-price, you get down to -- there's onesies and twosies of a lot of those items and to shop those onesies twosies, a lot of time it’s clearance, to be able to do it online for many customers, that's a more convenient way of shopping those clearance items. So to offer that inventory up online is we think a big deal, and it will help our sales, will help our margin, and will allow us to serve more customers.

最重要的是，它能帶來更好的客戶體驗。特別是在折扣期間，你會發現很多商品都是一兩件的，而購買這些一兩件的商品，很多時候都是清倉，對於許多顧客來說，能夠在網上購買，這是一種更方便的購買清倉商品的方式。因此，我們認為在線提供庫存是一件大事，它將有助於我們的銷售，有助於我們的利潤，並使我們能夠服務更多的客戶。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Alex Straton, Morgan Stanley.

摩根士丹利的亞歷克斯·斯特拉頓。

Thanks a lot for taking the question. Just a couple for me. One is just how your fourth quarter view has changed compared to when we spoke a few months ago. It seems like it's a little bit more negative, I think, primarily on sales, but if you could elaborate on that?

非常感謝您提出這個問題。對我來說只有一對。一是與我們幾個月前談話時相比，您對第四季的看法發生了怎樣的變化。我認為，這似乎有點負面，主要體現在銷售方面，您能詳細說明一下嗎？

And then secondly, just on the inventory levels, you noted a little bit higher than you hoped. Is that concentrated in certain categories or in certain banners? Or is there any way you can unpack that a little bit more for us? Thanks a lot.

其次，就庫存水準而言，您注意到庫存水準比您希望的要高一點。這些是否集中於某些類別或某些橫幅？或者您能為我們進一步解釋一下嗎？多謝。

Good afternoon, Alex. With regards to Q4, first, I'll start with, we're really pleased with Q3, the continued strength we've seen in the business across both banners and our year-to-date performance, so starting there. But as Erik mentioned, given the slowdown we saw at the late part of October, we just think it's prudent to take a little bit more of a cautious outlook.

下午好，亞歷克斯。關於第四季度，首先，我要說的是，我們對第三季度感到非常滿意，我們看到兩個品牌的業務繼續保持強勁，今年迄今為止的表現也很好。但正如艾瑞克所提到的，考慮到我們在 10 月下旬看到的經濟放緩，我們認為採取更謹慎的態度是明智之舉。

Q4 is big in our business, as you know, in all retail. It's almost 40% of the profits and about 30% of the sales. So we just want to be prudently cautious, the way I think about the holiday. There's a lot still in front of us.

如您所知，第四季是我們所有零售業務中最重要的季度。這幾乎占到利潤的40%和銷售額的30%左右。因此，我們只是希望謹慎小心，這就是我對假期的看法。我們面前還有很多事情要做。

And then on inventory levels, it's heavier, as I said, to support the Rack business. And then I would say I would call out cold weather categories. It's no secret that it was unseasonably warm for a little bit. The good news is that the weather has turned a little bit and that always helps the cold weather categories. And then, Pete, I don't know if you'd add anything to that?

然後就庫存水準而言，正如我所說，支援 Rack 業務的負擔更重。然後我會說我會喊出寒冷天氣類別。天氣一度異常溫暖，這不是什麼秘密。好消息是天氣已經稍微轉變，這總是有助於寒冷天氣類別。然後，皮特，我不知道你還有什麼要補充的嗎？

No, I think that's right. I mean if we look at the aging of our inventory, which is really healthy and good and improved. So it's not really that. It's just a sheer quantity thing. And I think Cathy is right, has to do with a handful of weeks where we had suppressed selling of boots, outerwear, and sweaters.

不，我認為是這樣。我的意思是，如果我們看一下庫存的老化情況，我們會發現它確實很健康、良好並且有所改善。所以事實並非如此。這只是一個數量問題。我認為凱西是對的，這與我們幾週來抑製靴子、外套和毛衣的銷售有關。

And we're trying to claw that back as best we can for the remainder of the season. And that's, at the end of the time, if there's going to be risk to any certain categories, that's probably where it's going to be.

我們正在盡力在本賽季剩餘的比賽中奪回這一優勢。也就是說，到最後，如果任何特定類別有風險，那麼風險可能就出現在那裡。

Thanks so much. Good luck.

非常感謝。祝你好運。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Tracy Kogan, Citigroup.

花旗集團的 Tracy Kogan。

Thank you. I had a question on your gross margin. I think you said it was driven by better full-price selling. And I was just wondering if that was pretty consistent across both divisions or if one really led versus the other. And then overall on gross margin, was this above your expectations for the quarter? And how are you looking at the fourth quarter in terms of the promotional environment and what you're looking at for gross margin? Thanks.

謝謝。我對您的毛利率有疑問。我認為您說這是由更好的全價銷售推動的。我只是想知道這在兩個部門中是否相當一致，或者其中一個部門是否真的領先於另一個部門。那麼就整體毛利率而言，這是否超出了您對本季的預期？您如何看待第四季的促銷環境和毛利率？謝謝。

Yeah. So for Q3 the 50 basis points that we called out, was really -- was driven by the strength of reg price selling. Nothing to call out versus banner, a little bit stronger in Nordstrom banner year over year but not anything that I would have noted in particular.

是的。因此，對於第三季度，我們所說的 50 個基點實際上是由常規價格銷售的強勁勢頭推動的。與橫幅廣告相比，沒有什麼特別之處，Nordstrom 橫幅廣告逐年走強，但我沒有特別注意到什麼。

And then on Q4, it's consistent with the guidance we've given or the holding of the guidance we have. Still, we'll see some good improvement year over year in gross margin and gross profit, and that's what you should expect, obviously, but we are expecting to see some improvement year over year.

然後在第四季度，它與我們給予的指導或我們所持有的指導一致。儘管如此，我們仍會看到毛利率和毛利同比出現一些良好的改善，這顯然是您應該期待的，但我們預計同比仍會出現一些改善。

And what's your view of the promotional environment currently, as it’s shaping up for holiday?

鑑於目前假期促銷環境的情勢，您對此有何看法？

Yeah. Q4 is always promotional for retailers. I think we'd like to pretend that it's not, but it is. And so far, it's lived up to our expectations.

是的。對零售商來說，第四季始終是促銷期。我想我們會假裝它不是，但事實確實如此。到目前為止，它已經達到了我們的期望。

Great. Thank you, guys.

偉大的。謝謝你們。

Blake Anderson, Jefferies.

布萊克·安德森，傑富瑞。

Hi. Thanks for taking our question. So I might have missed this, but I wanted to see if you could comment on just traffic at each of the banners? And then a question on Rack. So at the new Rack stores, I was curious, the customers at these stores, are you seeing any incremental type of customers show up that maybe wasn't showing up over at your previous Rack stores? Just curious how these new customers are shopping across categories and how they are versus your current Rack customers?

你好。感謝您回答我們的問題。所以我可能錯過了這一點，但我想看看您是否可以對每個橫幅的流量進行評論？然後是關於 Rack 的一個問題。所以在新的 Rack 商店，我很好奇，這些商店的顧客，您是否看到有任何增量類型的顧客出現，而這些顧客可能在您以前的 Rack 商店中沒有出現？我只是好奇這些新客戶是如何跨類別購物的，以及他們與您當前的 Rack 客戶相比如何？

I'll start with traffic and then obviously, Erik and Pete can help. With regard to traffic, traffic was up across the banners. Conversion’s about flat across both banners as well. And as Erik, I think, shared earlier, really pleased with the continued growth in transactions as well. And then customers at the Rack --

我將從交通開始，然後顯然，埃里克和皮特可以提供幫助。就流量而言，橫幅廣告的流量有所增加。兩個橫幅廣告的轉換率也基本持平。正如 Erik 之前所說，他對交易量的持續成長感到非常高興。然後是 Rack 的顧客--

Yeah, one of the real differences in our two banners of business, our Nordstrom stores can draw from a much bigger geographic area. People will drive an hour to especially our big flagship stores. In off-price, it's about 15 minutes, like convenience really matters. And that treasure hunt in person, serving customers, is really vital in off-price business.

是的，我們兩大業務部門之間的真正區別之一是，我們的 Nordstrom 商店可以從更大的地理區域吸引顧客。人們願意開車一個小時來我們的大型旗艦店。折扣價大約需要 15 分鐘，方便確實很重要。親自尋寶、為顧客服務，對於折扣業務來說確實至關重要。

So there's just a lot of opportunity for us to serve customers in geographies where we have stores or filling in and some new geographies.

因此，我們有很多機會為已有門市或正在填補空缺的地區以及一些新地區的客戶提供服務。

I would say the customers pretty similar to existing customers we have. And in particular, our space in off-price is really these brands. The offer of brands that we have and the depth of these brands, brands that customers associated with Nordstrom, the Nordstrom brand, is unique. And the more we've leaned into those brands, the better our business has been.

我想說這些客戶與我們現有的客戶非常相似。尤其是我們的折扣空間其實就是這些品牌。我們所提供的品牌以及這些品牌的深度，以及顧客與諾德斯特龍 (Nordstrom) 聯繫起來的品牌，諾德斯特龍 (Nordstrom) 品牌，都是獨一無二的。我們越依賴這些品牌，我們的業務就越好。

And certainly, price is important. When I say contrast to some other off-price retailers, we lead with brand followed by price real quickly, and I think others with price first. And so our average price point is a little higher than some of the big off-price players, but it's those brands really resonate with customers as we open new stores.

當然，價格很重要。當我說與其他折扣零售商相比時，我們首先以品牌為主導，然後是價格，而我認為其他零售商首先是價格。因此，我們的平均價格比一些大型折扣店略高，但當我們開設新店時，這些品牌確實引起了顧客的共鳴。

Very clear. Thanks so much.

非常清楚。非常感謝。

Chuck Grom, Gordon Haskett.

查克·格羅姆、戈登·哈斯凱特。

Thanks very much. Great results. I have one near-term question, one longer term. On the near term, I was hoping you could just double click on the slowdown here in the past few weeks. It's counter to what we've heard from a lot of other retailers. And I guess the question is, is it across all banners, both the Rack and the full-line stores? Is there any geographic concentrations, any categories that you could talk about?

非常感謝。效果非常好。我有一個近期問題，一個長期問題。就短期而言，我希望您可以雙擊過去幾週的放緩情況。這與我們從許多其他零售商那裡聽到的消息相反。我想問題是，它是否覆蓋所有橫幅廣告，包括 Rack 和全線商店？有沒有可以談的地理集中度或類別？

And then on the Rack, it sounds like 20 to 25 stores is how we should be thinking about the model. How do we think about the longer-term prospects for store growth and ultimately, where that can grow? Obviously, you're far underpenetrated relative to some of the off-price peers. So how are we thinking about the opportunity for the Rack? Thank you.

然後在 Rack 上，聽起來我們應該考慮 20 到 25 家商店的模式。我們如何看待商店成長的長期前景以及最終的成長方向？顯然，與一些折扣同行相比，你們的滲透率還遠遠不夠。那我們該如何看待 Rack 的機會呢？謝謝。

Chuck, again, the Q4 slowdown, it's a couple of weeks in. So tough to go deep on that. But I'd say it's been general across all of our businesses that we saw a slowing in the trends. And some of our Q3 results, we had really good sales trends across all of our businesses in Q3, and we saw a slowdown starting that last week of October. It’s noisy -- I would say it's a period that is very noisy for a few obvious reasons.

查克，第四季經濟放緩已經持續了幾週。深入探討這個問題非常困難。但我想說，我們所有業務的普遍趨勢都在放緩。從我們的第三季業績來看，我們所有業務的銷售趨勢都非常好，但從 10 月的最後一周開始，銷售勢頭有所放緩。很吵鬧——我想說這是一個非常吵鬧的時期，原因顯而易見。

One is the calendar doesn't match up with last year. So planning the business with five fewer days between Thanksgiving and Christmas is challenging. There's the weather impact, as Pete mentioned, there's no doubt we've seen some of that. Plenty of election noise that customers appear to be distracted for some time there. So you add all that together, we really haven't come to any conclusions on that. It's just we've seen a slowdown. And mostly, the majority of the holiday season is in front of us.

一是日曆與去年不符。因此，在感恩節和聖誕節之間少了五天的時間裡制定業務計劃是一項挑戰。正如皮特提到的那樣，天氣因素造成了影響，毫無疑問我們已經看到了一些影響。大量的選舉噪音似乎讓顧客在一段時間內心神不寧。所以，把所有這些加在一起，我們實際上還沒有任何結論。我們只是看到了放緩。而且，假期的大部分時間已經接近了。

We feel really great about our inventory position, our holiday plans, our gifting assortment. And there's plenty of time to deliver great results there. But so far, it's a little slower than when we exited Q3.

我們對我們的庫存狀況、假期計劃和禮品種類感到非常滿意。並且有充足的時間來取得優異的成果。但到目前為止，與我們退出第三季時相比，速度要慢一些。

Chuck, I'll answer maybe a little bit on Rack stores, to your point. We haven't necessarily guided into next year, but 20 to 25 stores in each year is a pretty good assumption, I think, for modeling purposes.

查克，針對你提出的問題，我可能會就 Rack 商店進行一些回答。我們不一定會對明年做出預測，但我認為，就建模目的而言，每年開設 20 到 25 家門市是一個相當不錯的假設。

The other thing on longer-term growth prospects, exactly, as you said, we are underpenetrated. We still see ample opportunity to continue to put some new Rack stores in areas where we have customers that would love to shop a Rack store. So we do see a fair amount of opportunity still for continued growth.

關於長期成長前景的另一件事，正如您所說，我們的滲透率還不夠高。我們仍然看到充足的機會，可以在客戶願意在 Rack 商店購物的地區繼續開設一些新的 Rack 商店。因此，我們確實看到了持續成長的大量機會。

Great. Thank you.

偉大的。謝謝。

Lorraine Hutchinson, Bank of America.

美國銀行的洛林‧哈欽森 (Lorraine Hutchinson)。

Hi. This is Melanie on for Lorraine. As we look out over the next few years, what comp will you get leverage on the SG&A line? Thank you.

你好。這是洛林的梅蘭妮。展望未來幾年，您將在銷售、一般及行政費用上獲得哪些方面的槓桿？謝謝。

It's really a mixture, Melanie. The Rack growth, obviously, is going to help for the top line growth just with the continued expansion of new stores. On the Nordstrom banner, we -- if you imagine a 2% to 3% type inflation world, you're going to need to have comps 0% to 1% or so, probably more like 1% to be able to get leverage.

這確實是一種混合體，梅蘭妮。顯然，隨著新店的不斷擴張，Rack 的成長將有助於實現營業額的成長。在諾德斯特龍的橫幅上，我們——如果你想像一個 2% 到 3% 類型的通貨膨脹世界，你將需要有 0% 到 1% 左右的可比物，可能更像 1% 才能獲得槓桿。

Thank you.

謝謝。

All right. We want to thank you for joining today's call. A replay, along with our slide presentation and prepared remarks, will be available for one year on our website. Thank you for your interest in Nordstrom.

好的。我們感謝您參加今天的電話會議。重播以及我們的幻燈片演示和準備好的發言將在我們的網站上提供一年。感謝您對 Nordstrom 的關注。

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

今天的電話會議到此結束。現在您可以斷開線路。感謝您的參與。