Kontoor Brands Inc (KTB) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Ladies and gentlemen, greetings, and welcome to the Kontoor Brands' Q3 2024 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.

女士們、先生們，大家好，歡迎參加 Kontoor Brands 的 2024 年第三季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）謹此提醒，本次會議正在錄製中。

It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Michael Karapetian. Please go ahead.

現在我很高興向您介紹主持人 Michael Karapetian。請繼續。

Thank you, operator, and welcome to Kontoor Brands third-quarter 2024 earnings conference call. Participants on today's call will make forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations and are subject to uncertainties that could cause actual results to materially differ. These uncertainties are detailed in documents filed with the SEC. We urge you to read our risk factors, cautionary language, and other disclosures contained in those reports.

謝謝業者，歡迎參加 Kontoor Brands 2024 年第三季財報電話會議。今天電話會議的參與者將發表前瞻性聲明。這些陳述是基於目前的預期，並受到可能導致實際結果存在重大差異的不確定性的影響。這些不確定性在向 SEC 提交的文件中有詳細說明。我們敦促您閱讀我們的風險因素、警告性語言以及這些報告中包含的其他揭露內容。

Amounts referred to on today's call will be in constant currency, unless otherwise noted, and often on an adjusted dollar basis, which we clearly defined in the news release that was issued earlier this morning. Our outlook is presented on an adjusted dollar basis. Additionally, participants should note that comparability with prior periods is impacted by the previously disclosed $13 million out-of-period duty charge recorded in the third quarter of 2023. Accordingly, in our following comments, comparisons to 2023 gross margin, operating income, and EPS do not include the impact of the 2023 duty charge.

除非另有說明，今天電話會議中提到的金額將以固定匯率計算，並且通常以調整後的美元為基礎，我們在今天早上早些時候發布的新聞稿中明確定義了這一點。我們的展望是在調整後的美元基礎上提出的。此外，參與者應注意，與前期的可比性受到先前揭露的 2023 年第三季記錄的 1,300 萬美元期外關稅費用的影響。因此，在我們的以下評論中，與 2023 年毛利率、營業收入和每股盈餘的比較不包括 2023 年關稅的影響。

Reconciliations of GAAP measures to adjusted amounts can be found in the supplemental financial tables included in today's news release, which is available on our website at kontoorbrands.com. These tables identify and quantify excluded items and provide management's view of why this information is useful to investors.

GAAP 衡量指標與調整後金額的對帳可在今天新聞稿中包含的補充財務表格中找到，該表格可在我們的網站 kontoorbrands.com 上找到。這些表格確定並量化了排除的項目，並提供了管理層對為什麼這些資訊對投資者有用的看法。

Joining me on today's call are Kontoor Brands President, Chief Executive Officer, and Chair, Scott Baxter; and Chief Financial Officer, Joseph Alkire. Following our prepared remarks, we will open the call for questions. We anticipate this call will last about one hour. Scott?

參加今天電話會議的還有 Kontoor Brands 總裁、執行長兼董事長 Scott Baxter；和財務長約瑟夫·阿爾基爾。在我們準備好的發言之後，我們將開始提問。我們預計這次通話將持續約一小時。史考特？

Thanks, Mike, and thank you to everybody joining us on today's call. Our third-quarter results exceeded expectations, driven by accelerating revenue growth, improving profitability, and strong cash generation. We anticipated a topline inflection starting in the third quarter, and I am pleased to share we delivered our investments in product innovation and demand creation are driving continued market share gains and a strong foundation for future growth. In what remains an uncertain environment, our strategies are working, and we are executing at a high level. With that, let's discuss highlights from the quarter.

謝謝麥克，也謝謝參加今天電話會議的所有人。在營收加速成長、獲利能力提高和強勁的現金產生的推動下，我們第三季的業績超出了預期。我們預計營收將從第三季開始出現轉折點，我很高興地告訴大家，我們在產品創新和需求創造方面的投資正在推動市場份額的持續成長，並為未來的成長奠定了堅實的基礎。在仍然充滿不確定性的環境中，我們的策略正在發揮作用，我們正在高水準執行。接下來，讓我們討論一下本季的亮點。

Wrangler revenue grew 4%, including 5% growth in the US and 10% growth in global D2C. There are several exciting wins from the quarter, but I want to start with an important milestone. In our core bottoms and shorts business, Wrangler gained 90 basis points of market share in the US according to Circana. This marks our 10th consecutive quarter of market share gains in our largest market. It takes more than one thing to drive this level of consistent performance, but it starts with our people and our incredible product stories that are resonating with our consumers.

Wrangler 營收成長 4%，其中美國成長 5%，全球 D2C 成長 10%。本季度取得了幾項令人興奮的勝利，但我想從一個重要的里程碑開始。根據 Circana 的數據，在我們的核心下裝和短褲業務中，Wrangler 在美國的市佔率獲得了 90 個基點。這標誌著我們在最大市場的市佔率連續第十個季度成長。推動這種程度的一致績效需要的不僅僅是一件事，而是從我們的員工和我們令人難以置信的產品故事開始，這些故事引起了我們的消費者的共鳴。

Let's get to a few of those now. Starting with outdoor. During the quarter, we launched our Cliffside utility pant and Outdoor Chino, and both are off to a strong start. We continue to advance our product development capabilities that are driving increased penetration in this large and growing category as well as expanded distribution opportunities within sporting goods retailers. Year-to-date, outdoor has grown 12%, and we continue to expect double-digit increases for the year.

現在讓我們來看看其中的一些。從戶外開始。本季度，我們推出了 Cliffside 實用褲和戶外斜紋棉布褲，兩者都有一個好的開始。我們不斷提高產品開發能力，推動這個龐大且不斷增長的類別的滲透率的提高，並擴大體育用品零售商內的分銷機會。今年迄今為止，戶外成長了 12%，我們繼續預計今年將實現兩位數成長。

Turning to bespoke, our new female fit innovation, as I shared in prior quarters, early market response was very encouraging. Today, I am pleased to share demand exceeded our high expectations. We launched across D2C and specialty retail with many styles quickly selling out. We will build on this momentum and look to scale this platform in '25.

談到定制，我們新的女性合身創新，正如我在前幾個季度分享的那樣，早期的市場反應非常令人鼓舞。今天，我很高興與大家分享需求超越了我們的高期望。我們在 D2C 和專業零售領域推出了多種款式，很快就銷售一空。我們將在此勢頭的基礎上再接再厲，並希望在 25 年擴大該平台的規模。

Staying within female, we also launched our collection with Lainey Wilson, and as expected, was our single largest collaboration to date. This was also a great opportunity to leverage our new e-commerce capabilities, including early access for loyalty members. In fact, we saw a 100% increase in daily sign-ups, and loyalty members accounted for a third of purchases. Lainey has been a fantastic partner, and we are excited to continue this momentum in '25. Taken together, Wrangler's female business grew double digits.

在女性領域，我們也與 Lainey Wilson 推出了我們的系列，正如預期的那樣，這是我們迄今為止最大的單次合作。這也是利用我們新的電子商務功能的絕佳機會，包括忠誠會員的早期訪問。事實上，我們看到每日註冊量增加了 100%，忠誠會員佔購買量的三分之一。Lainey 是一位出色的合作夥伴，我們很高興能夠在 25 年繼續保持這種勢頭。總的來說，牧馬人的女性業務成長了兩位數。

We also debuted the Wrangler global equity campaign late in the quarter. If you have not seen it, I encourage you to do so. This was our first campaign of this scale as a public company. With Wrangler's building momentum and strong pipeline of new innovation, the timing was right to play offense, and market response has been fantastic. We have received strong feedback from our retail partners as well as numerous accolades.

我們也在本季末推出了牧馬人全球股權活動。如果您還沒有看到它，我鼓勵您這樣做。這是我們作為上市公司的第一次如此規模的活動。憑藉牧馬人的強勁勢頭和強大的新創新管道，發動攻擊的時機恰到好處，市場反應非常好。我們收到了零售合作夥伴的強烈回饋以及許多榮譽。

And beyond the energy this has created for the brand, this campaign is a unique success story, leveraging the investments we are making as part of our new multi-brand structure, it was developed almost entirely in-house, allowing for greater potential ROI. Finally, the relaunch of Denim at Target is off to a great start.

除了為品牌創造的能量之外，該活動還是一個獨特的成功故事，利用我們作為新的多品牌結構的一部分所做的投資，它幾乎完全是內部開發的，從而實現了更大的潛在投資回報率。最後，Target 重新推出 Denim 有了一個好的開始。

While it is still early, performance has exceeded our expectations. Wrangler is closing out the year from a position of strength and will be entering '25 with great momentum. Joe will provide more detail, but we have good visibility to the front half of the year. As a result, we have provided preliminary guidance for total revenue growth of 4% in the first half of '25.

雖然現在還為時過早，但表現已經超出了我們的預期。Wrangler 將以強勁的勢頭結束這一年，並將以強勁的勢頭進入 25 年。喬將提供更多細節，但我們對今年上半年有很好的了解。因此，我們為 25 年上半年總收入成長 4% 提供了初步指引。

Turning to Lee. Revenue decreased 3% sequentially, improving from the second quarter. Uneven macro conditions in Europe and Asia have continued to pressure the international business. In the US, revenue inflected positive, driven by 2% growth in wholesale, and we were encouraged to see POS accelerate as the quarter progressed. We are seeing particular strength in our female business, which grew 10%.

轉向李。營收季減 3%，較第二季有所改善。歐洲和亞洲宏觀經濟情勢的不平衡繼續給國際業務帶來壓力。在美國，在批發業務成長 2% 的推動下，營收出現正面變化，我們很高興看到 POS 隨著本季的進展而加速發展。我們看到女性業務特別強勁，成長了 10%。

As we discussed last quarter, our consumer insights work and refreshed brand segmentation is yielding green shoots with younger and female consumers. As an example, our work led to the development of Lee Layers, which was the top-performing new program of the season, and our premium EverFit platform also drove nice growth in the quarter. We also had several successful collaborations during the quarter with Forever 21, Oliver Cabell, and Stugerheim aimed at reaching younger consumers while driving category extensions.

正如我們上季度所討論的，我們的消費者洞察工作和更新的品牌細分正在為年輕和女性消費者帶來新芽。例如，我們的工作促成了 Lee Layers 的開發，這是本季表現最好的新程序，而我們的優質 EverFit 平台也推動了本季的良好成長。本季我們也與 Forever 21、Oliver Cabell 和 Stugerheim 進行了幾次成功的合作，旨在吸引年輕消費者，同時推動品類擴展。

As a result, we are seeing increases in perceived brand equity and purchase consideration. This is translating to improved sell-through. As measured by Circana, POS for female increased mid-single digits and gained 60 basis points of market share. Over the near term, we expect Lee's US business to further accelerate in the fourth quarter.

因此，我們看到感知品牌資產和購買考慮度增加。這意味著銷售量的提高。根據 Circana 的測量，女性 POS 成長了中個位數，市佔率增加了 60 個基點。短期內，我們預計 Lee 的美國業務將在第四季進一步加速。

To support this acceleration, we are excited about the upcoming launch of Lee X. In the fourth quarter, we will be launching the Lee X Move collection of denim, non-denim, and tops. This will be followed by Lee X Light in the first half of '25. Lee X is a true platform that will provide innovation at scale and support our return to growth.

為了支持這一加速發展，我們對即將推出的 Lee X 感到非常興奮。Lee X Light 將於 25 年上半年緊追在後。Lee X 是一個真正的平台，將提供大規模創新並支持我們恢復成長。

Finally, I will provide an update on our global transformation initiative. Project Jeanius is progressing well, and we remain on track to deliver $100 million of combined gross margin and SG&A savings. We have identified three major areas for improvement. First, our global sourcing transformation, where we will optimize our business for category growth and our evolving growth strategies, drive greater efficiency in our sourced vendor network, and enhance our planning organization.

最後，我將介紹我們全球轉型計畫的最新情況。Jeanius 專案進展順利，我們仍有望實現 1 億美元的綜合毛利率和 SG&A 節省。我們確定了三個需要改進的主要領域。首先，我們的全球採購轉型，我們將優化我們的業務以促進品類成長和不斷發展的成長策略，提高我們的採購供應商網路的效率，並增強我們的規劃組織。

Second, back-end efficiencies, where we will leverage an improved share platform across both brands while standing up enhanced data capabilities; and third, commercial optimization, where we will drive increased speed to market and improved product development. As I've stated in the past, Project Jeanius is one of our most significant and important undertakings as a public company.

其次，後端效率，我們將利用兩個品牌之間改進的共享平台，同時增強數據能力；第三，商業優化，我們將加快上市速度並改善產品開發。正如我過去所說，Jeanius 計畫是我們作為一家上市公司最重要和最重要的事業之一。

The work we are doing will transform our organization to a best-in-class global multi-brand platform while unlocking significant sources of value. We will see improved decision-making, faster speed to market, and a meaningfully higher profitability ceiling. We anticipate Project Jeanius to have a modest benefit to the first half of '25 with more meaningful benefits in the second half of '25 and into '26.

我們正在做的工作將把我們的組織轉變為一流的全球多品牌平台，同時釋放重要的價值來源。我們將看到決策的改進、上市速度的加快以及盈利上限的顯著提高。我們預計 Jeanius 計畫將在 25 年上半年帶來適度的效益，並在 25 年下半年和 26 年帶來更有意義的效益。

Before I turn it over to Joe, let me provide some final perspective. Our business has great momentum, revenue and profit are accelerating. We have raised our earnings and cash flow guidance, and we have significant capital allocation optionality. We have returned $168 million to shareholders year to date and recently raised our dividend.

在我把它交給喬之前，讓我提供一些最終的觀點。我們的業務勢頭強勁，營收和利潤都在加速成長。我們提高了獲利和現金流指引，並且擁有重要的資本配置選擇權。年初至今，我們已向股東返還 1.68 億美元，最近還提高了股利。

While the environment remains dynamic, our brands are winning with the consumer, and we expect continued growth as we look to the New Year, including 4% growth in the first half. We are operating from a position of strength, and I am confident we have the team in place to continue to drive strong value creation for all stakeholders. Joe?

儘管環境仍然充滿活力，但我們的品牌正在贏得消費者的青睞，我們預計新年將持續成長，包括上半年 4% 的成長。我們的營運實力雄厚，我相信我們的團隊能夠繼續為所有利害關係人創造強大的價值。喬？

Thanks, Scott, and thank you all for joining us today. Our third-quarter results were stronger than expected as our business fundamentals continue to strengthen. As expected, revenue growth inflected positively in the third quarter, driven by new product innovation, distribution gains, and accelerating POS. We also delivered stronger profitability and returns on capital as gross margin expansion was higher than anticipated as a result of lower product costs and supply chain efficiencies. When combined with our focus on net working capital management and driving further reductions in inventory, we generated significant cash from operations, supporting our capital allocation framework, including $40 million of share repurchases and a 4% increase in our quarterly dividend.

謝謝斯科特，也謝謝大家今天加入我們。隨著我們的業務基本面持續加強，我們的第三季業績強於預期。正如預期的那樣，在新產品創新、分銷收益和 POS 加速發展的推動下，第三季營收成長出現積極變化。由於產品成本和供應鏈效率降低，毛利率擴張高於預期，我們也實現了更強的獲利能力和資本回報。結合我們對淨營運資本管理和進一步減少庫存的關注，我們從營運中產生了大量現金，支持我們的資本分配框架，包括 4000 萬美元的股票回購和增加 4% 的季度股息。

We are pleased with our strong execution and performance year to date, and momentum in the business is building as we close out the year, but more on that in a bit. Let's review our third-quarter results in more detail. Global revenue increased 2% and exceeded our expectations. Relative to our prior outlook, we saw modestly stronger results in the US with Europe and Asia performing largely as anticipated.

我們對今年迄今為止的強勁執行力和業績感到滿意，隨著今年的結束，業務勢頭正在增強，但稍後會詳細介紹。讓我們更詳細地回顧一下我們的第三季業績。全球營收成長 2%，超出我們的預期。相對於我們先前的展望，我們看到美國的業績略強，歐洲和亞洲的表現基本上符合預期。

By brand, Wrangler global revenue increased 4%. Growth was broad-based, driven by strong POS and market share gains with continued momentum in distribution and category expansion, including 10% growth in DTC, 10% growth in female, 7% growth in outdoor, and 16% growth in tops. In the US, revenue increased 5%, supported by increased investments in demand creation, product development, and our digital platform. Revenue growth was balanced as DTC increased 10%, including 13% growth in digital, while wholesale revenue increased 5%. During the quarter, we were encouraged by the strength we saw in POS with trends accelerating through the quarter, including 6% growth in September, the strongest performance we've seen all year.

按品牌劃分，牧馬人全球收入成長4%。強勁的 POS 和市場份額增長以及分銷和品類擴張的持續勢頭推動了增長的廣泛性，其中 DTC 增長 10%，女性增長 10%，戶外增長 7%，上衣增長 16%。在美國，由於需求創造、產品開發和數位平台投資增加，收入增加了 5%。營收成長保持平衡，DTC 成長了 10%，其中數位收入成長了 13%，而批發收入成長了 5%。在本季度，我們對 POS 領域的強勁勢頭感到鼓舞，整個季度的趨勢不斷加速，其中 9 月份增長了 6%，這是我們全年看到的最強勁表現。

While retailers are in a conservative posture and inventory levels are suboptimal, our sell-through remains strong, and we continue to drive consistent market share gains. Wrangler International revenue decreased 2%. High single-digit growth in DTC was more than offset by declines in wholesale. We are seeing success with the expansion of our iconic 13MWZ Cowboy Cut jean, which was our strongest selling style on our digital platform. While challenging macro conditions are pressuring our business outside the US, we are encouraged by improving order books in Europe with spring/summer '25 up at a mid-single-digit rate.

儘管零售商處於保守態度且庫存水平未達到最佳水平，但我們的銷售仍然強勁，我們將繼續推動市場份額的持續成長。Wrangler International 收入下降 2%。DTC 的高個位數成長被批發量的下降所抵消。我們看到標誌性 13MWZ 牛仔剪裁牛仔褲的擴張取得了成功，這是我們數位平台上最暢銷的款式。雖然充滿挑戰的宏觀環境給我們在美國以外的業務帶來壓力，但我們對歐洲訂單量的改善感到鼓舞，25 年春夏季訂單量以中個位數成長。

Now turning to Lee, global revenue decreased 3%, reflecting sequential improvement in the business as we work to return the brand to growth. In the US, trends unfolded as anticipated with revenue inflecting to 1% growth, driven by 2% growth in wholesale. Similar to Wrangler, POS accelerated through the quarter with September increasing at a low single-digit rate. Our female business, which has been an early beneficiary of our new consumer segmentation and insights work was particularly strong, increasing 10%. We also saw strength in category extensions, including strong growth in T-shirts.

現在轉向 Lee，全球營收下降了 3%，這反映出我們在努力讓品牌恢復成長的過程中業務較上月改善。在美國，趨勢如預期展開，在批發成長 2% 的推動下，營收成長 1%。與 Wrangler 類似，POS 在本季度加速成長，9 月以較低的個位數成長率成長。我們的女性業務是我們新的消費者細分和洞察工作的早期受益者，其表現尤其強勁，成長了 10%。我們也看到了品類延伸的優勢，包括 T 恤的強勁成長。

We expect continued improvement for the US business in the fourth quarter, supported by accelerated growth in DTC, the launch of the Lee X innovation platform and a more than 30% increase in demand creation. Lee International revenue decreased 7%. In Europe, revenue declined 10%. Growth in DTC, including more than 30% growth in digital was offset by declines in wholesale.

我們預計，在 DTC 加速成長、Lee X 創新平台推出以及需求創造成長 30% 以上的支持下，第四季度美國業務將持續改善。利國際營收下降7%。在歐洲，收入下降了 10%。DTC 的成長（包括超過 30% 的數位成長）被批發業務的下降所抵消。

Performance was consistent with our expectations as the uneven macro environment continues to pressure retailer behavior, leading to more conservative inventory management. In APAC, revenue increased 1%. Revenue growth was more modest than we expected compared to 90 days ago as the operating environment in the region became more difficult as the quarter progressed. That said, we are seeing continued momentum in digital, which increased 6% in the quarter. While brick-and-mortar retail remains soft due to weaker traffic, we are seeing strong results in our new concept stores.

業績與我們的預期一致，因為不平衡的宏觀環境繼續給零售商的行為帶來壓力，導致庫存管理更加保守。在亞太地區，收入成長了 1%。與 90 天前相比，營收成長比我們預期的要溫和，因為隨著本季的進展，該地區的營運環境變得更加困難。也就是說，我們看到數位化領域的持續成長勢頭，本季成長了 6%。儘管由於客流量疲軟，實體零售依然疲軟，但我們的新概念店取得了強勁的業績。

Compared to our fleet average, we are seeing a double-digit comp lift in our new store environments. We are encouraged by this performance in the early returns on our investment and plan to continue with the rollout of our new concept stores in 2025. However, we will be prudent and more measured with the pace of investment next year as a result of the environment. Wholesale revenue increased 5%. As we discussed last quarter, we continue to take proactive measures to improve the quality and health of our retail network in China. That said, we are taking a more conservative view of the near-term outlook for the business while remaining confident in the long-term opportunity for our brands in the region.

與我們的平均水平相比，我們在新店環境中看到了兩位數的競爭提升。我們對早期投資回報的表現感到鼓舞，並計劃在 2025 年繼續推出新概念店。但受大環境的影響，明年的投資節奏我們會更加審慎、更加審慎。批發收入成長 5%。正如我們上季度所討論的，我們繼續採取積極措施來提高我們在中國零售網路的品質和健康狀況。也就是說，我們對該業務的近期前景持較保守的看法，同時對該地區品牌的長期機會保持信心。

Moving to the remainder of the P&L. Adjusted gross margin expanded 150 basis points to 45%, driven by the benefits of lower input costs and supply chain efficiencies. This was partially offset by the targeted pricing actions included in our plan. Adjusted SG&A expense was $195 million, up 5% compared to the prior year, driven by investments in demand creation, product development and volume-related distribution and freight expenses. Adjusted earnings per share was $1.37 representing an increase of 12% compared to the prior year.

轉到損益表的其餘部分。受投入成本降低和供應鏈效率降低的推動，調整後毛利率擴大了 150 個基點，達到 45%。我們計劃中包含的目標定價行動部分抵消了這一影響。調整後的 SG&A 費用為 1.95 億美元，比上年增長 5%，主要得益於需求創造、產品開發以及與銷售相關的分銷和貨運費用方面的投資。調整後每股收益為 1.37 美元，較上年增長 12%。

Turning to the balance sheet, inventory decreased 24% to $462 million. Net working capital management remains a top priority and has contributed to our strong cash generation year to date. We expect further reductions in inventory in the fourth quarter as we approach optimal levels in our annual turnover target of approximately 3.5 times. We finished the quarter with net debt or long-term debt less cash of $476 million and $269 million of cash on hand.

資產負債表顯示，庫存下降 24%，至 4.62 億美元。淨營運資本管理仍然是重中之重，為我們今年迄今為止強勁的現金產生做出了貢獻。隨著我們接近年度營業額目標約 3.5 倍的最佳水平，我們預計第四季度庫存將進一步減少。本季末，我們的淨債務或長期債務減去現金為 4.76 億美元，手頭現金為 2.69 億美元。

Our net leverage ratio or net debt divided by trailing 12-month adjusted EBITDA was 1.2 times, trending toward the low end of our targeted range. During the quarter, we repurchased $40 million of stock under our current authorization. And as previously announced, our Board declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.52 per share, representing a 4% increase. Year to date, we have returned $168 million to shareholders through share repurchases and dividends. Finally, on a trailing 12-month basis, our adjusted return on invested capital was 30%, representing an increase of 660 basis points compared to the prior year.

我們的淨槓桿率或淨債務除以過去 12 個月調整後 EBITDA 為 1.2 倍，趨向我們目標範圍的低端。本季度，我們根據目前授權回購了 4,000 萬美元的股票。如同先前所宣布的，我們的董事會宣布定期季度現金股利為每股 0.52 美元，增幅為 4%。今年迄今為止，我們已透過股票回購和股利向股東返還 1.68 億美元。最後，在過去 12 個月的基礎上，我們調整後的投資資本報酬率為 30%，比前一年增加了 660 個基點。

Now turning to our outlook. Full year revenue is now expected to be $2.60 billion, consistent with the midpoint of our prior outlook range. In the fourth quarter, we expect revenue of approximately $695 million, representing growth of 4%. Our revenue outlook continues to embed the following assumptions. First, we continue to have good visibility to category expansion, distribution gains, and new innovation platforms in the fourth quarter, and we continue to support these programs with increased demand creation and other investments to fuel our performance and momentum into 2025.

現在轉向我們的展望。目前預計全年營收為 26 億美元，與我們先前展望範圍的中位數一致。我們預計第四季營收約為 6.95 億美元，成長 4%。我們的收入前景繼續包含以下假設。首先，我們繼續對第四季度的品類擴張、分銷收益和新的創新平台有良好的了解，我們將繼續透過增加需求創造和其他投資來支持這些計劃，以推動我們的業績和動力進入 2025 年。

Second, we continue to plan the business conservatively and assume no meaningful improvement in overall POS or retail inventory positions for the balance of the year. While the consumer has been resilient and inventory levels at retail are suboptimal, the environment is uncertain and our retail partners are in a conservative posture with regard to inventory management.

其次，我們繼續保守地規劃業務，並假設今年剩餘時間整體 POS 或零售庫存狀況不會有有意義的改善。儘管消費者一直保持彈性，零售庫存水準也未達到最佳水平，但環境不確定，我們的零售合作夥伴在庫存管理方面採取保守態度。

Moving to gross margin. We are raising our outlook to 45.1% from approximately 44.8%. Our updated outlook represents an increase of 260 basis points compared to adjusted gross margin of 42.5% in 2023 and now includes an incremental 20 basis point impact from supply chain and inventory management actions. These actions were taken proactively from a position of strength and are expected to provide a stronger foundation for the business as we close out this year.

轉向毛利率。我們將預測從約 44.8% 上調至 45.1%。我們更新後的展望與 2023 年調整後毛利率 42.5% 相比增加了 260 個基點，現在還包括供應鍊和庫存管理行動帶來的 20 個基點的增量影響。這些行動是出於優勢而積極採取的，預計將在今年結束時為我們的業務奠定更堅實的基礎。

More specifically, the supply chain actions were primarily expedited freight to secure inventory positions in support of our growth expectations for the remainder of this year and early next year. We took these actions as a precautionary measure in light of recent supply chain volatility to ensure service and support growth plans with our largest customers. Proactive inventory management actions included efforts to more aggressively clear excess inventory, further improve the composition and quality of our inventory and increase cash flow. These actions further strengthen our balance sheet, free up additional investment capacity and allow us to reinvest in more productive areas of the business. We remain pleased with the overall quality of our inventory and the progress we've made reducing inventory levels.

更具體地說，供應鏈行動主要是加快貨運，以確保庫存狀況，以支持我們今年剩餘時間和明年初的成長預期。鑑於最近供應鏈的波動，我們採取這些行動作為預防措施，以確保服務並支持我們最大客戶的成長計劃。積極的庫存管理行動包括更積極地清理過剩庫存、進一步改善庫存的組成和品質以及增加現金流。這些行動進一步增強了我們的資產負債表，釋放了額外的投資能力，並使我們能夠對業務中更俱生產力的領域進行再投資。我們對庫存的整體品質以及在降低庫存水準方面取得的進展仍然感到滿意。

For the fourth quarter, our outlook now implies 150 basis points of gross margin expansion, which compares to our prior outlook of an increase of approximately 120 basis points. SG&A is expected to increase approximately 4%, consistent with our prior outlook. Operating income is now expected to be $385 million, reflecting growth of 11% compared to the prior year. Relative to our prior outlook, adjusted operating income now includes $6 million of incremental supply chain and inventory management actions previously discussed.

對於第四季度，我們目前的預期意味著毛利率將成長 150 個基點，而我們先前的預期為成長約 120 個基點。SG&A 預計將成長約 4%，與我們先前的預期一致。目前營業收入預估為 3.85 億美元，比上年成長 11%。相對於我們先前的展望，調整後的營業收入現在包括先前討論過的 600 萬美元的增量供應鏈和庫存管理行動。

Fourth quarter adjusted operating income is expected to be $105 million, reflecting growth of more than 20%. EPS is now expected to be $4.83, including an impact of $0.08 from the incremental supply chain and inventory management actions discussed. Our updated outlook represents growth of approximately 9% compared to our prior outlook of approximately $4.80, reflecting growth of 8%. As a reminder, full year EPS growth will be negatively impacted by about 5 percentage points from a higher tax rate, including a 25 percentage point headwind in the fourth quarter.

第四季調整後營業收入預計為 1.05 億美元，成長超過 20%。目前預計 EPS 為 4.83 美元，其中包括所討論的增量供應鏈和庫存管理行動帶來的 0.08 美元的影響。我們更新後的預期成長約 9%，而先前預期的成長約 4.80 美元，成長 8%。需要提醒的是，全年每股盈餘成長將受到稅率提高約 5 個百分點的負面影響，其中包括第四季 25 個百分點的不利影響。

We expect fourth quarter EPS of $1.31, reflecting a decrease of 3%. Normalizing for the tax rate differential, fourth quarter EPS is expected to increase approximately 20%. We now expect cash from operations to exceed $360 million as a result of stronger earnings growth and further reductions in inventory. This compares to our previous outlook for cash from operations to exceed $350 million. Our increased outlook highlights the cash-generative nature of the business and provides additional capacity to pursue our capital allocation framework.

我們預計第四季每股收益為 1.31 美元，下降 3%。稅率差異正常化後，第四季每股盈餘預計將成長約 20%。由於獲利成長強勁和庫存進一步減少，我們目前預計營運現金將超過 3.6 億美元。相比之下，我們之前預計營運現金將超過 3.5 億美元。我們提高的前景凸顯了該業務的現金生成性質，並為追求我們的資本配置框架提供了額外的能力。

Finally, I'd like to provide perspective on the preliminary 2025 outlook we included in the earnings release this morning. While we are not providing the full details of our 2025 outlook at this time, we want to take the opportunity to provide an early look at how we see the business evolving next year. Our preliminary 2025 outlook reflects our current visibility of the business and the confidence we have in the momentum building into next year. First, we expect revenue growth to be driven by ongoing market share gains, category expansion, new distribution, and strong momentum in outdoor and female. Based on current visibility, we expect revenue growth to approximate 4% in the first half of the year.

最後，我想就我們今天早上發布的財報中包含的 2025 年初步前景提供一些看法。雖然我們目前沒有提供 2025 年展望的完整細節，但我們希望藉此機會儘早了解明年業務的發展。我們對 2025 年的初步展望反映了我們目前對業務的了解以及我們對明年發展勢頭的信心。首先，我們預期營收成長將由持續的市場份額成長、品類擴張、新分銷以及戶外和女性領域的強勁勢頭推動。根據目前的情況，我們預計上半年營收成長約為 4%。

For the full year, we expect 2025 revenue growth to be more weighted to the front half as we begin to anniversary category expansion and distribution gains in the second half. Second, we have a high degree of confidence in our ability to continue to expand gross margin next year, supported by Project Jeanius. Based on current visibility, we expect the benefits of Project Jeanius and our ongoing structural mix to be partially offset by modest product cost inflation and ongoing supply chain volatility. Third, we expect operating income growth to outpace revenue growth, driven by both gross margin expansion and SG&A leverage. We expect to increase our rate of investment in areas such as demand creation, product development, and DTC and international expansion while remaining prudent with regard to discretionary spending.

就全年而言，我們預計 2025 年營收成長將更集中在上半年，因為我們在下半年開始週年紀念品類擴張和分銷收益。其次，我們對明年在Jeanius計畫的支持下繼續擴大毛利率的能力充滿信心。根據目前的可見性，我們預期 Jeanius 專案和我們持續的結構組合的好處將被適度的產品成本通膨和持續的供應鏈波動部分抵消。第三，我們預期在毛利率擴張和銷售管理及行政費用槓桿的推動下，營業收入成長將超過收入成長。我們預計將增加在需求創造、產品開發、DTC 和國際擴張等領域的投資率，同時對可自由支配支出保持審慎。

Project Jeanius is expected to fuel investment capacity, and we expect to both expand operating margin and reinvest a portion of the savings to further support growth. Finally, we expect the benefits from Project Jeanius to vary by halves next year. We expect the first half of 2025 to benefit from SG&A savings, primarily related to back-end efficiencies in our shared platform. We expect the second half of the year to include the added savings from supply chain initiatives that will begin to scale and support gross margin expansion.

Jeanius 計畫預計將增強投資能力，我們預計將擴大營運利潤率並將部分儲蓄進行再投資，以進一步支持成長。最後，我們預計明年 Project Jeanius 的收益將減半。我們預計 2025 年上半年將受益於 SG&A 節省，這主要與我們共享平台的後端效率有關。我們預計今年下半年將包括供應鏈計畫帶來的額外節省，這些計畫將開始擴大規模並支持毛利率的擴張。

As we move into 2026, we expect Project Jeanius savings to mature to a full run rate, providing us with a higher level of investment capacity to further support growth and expand profitability and returns on capital. We intend to share more specific details about Project Jeanius and its evolution, along with our investment plans in the context of our 2025 outlook in February.

進入 2026 年，我們預計 Jeanius 專案儲蓄將達到滿載運轉，為我們提供更高水準的投資能力，以進一步支持成長並擴大獲利能力和資本回報率。我們打算在 2 月分享更多有關 Project Jeanius 及其演變的具體細節，以及我們在 2025 年展望中的投資計畫。

Before opening it up for questions, a few closing remarks. We are executing well and operating from a position of strength. Revenue growth is accelerating, and the momentum of the business is building. Wrangler is driving broad-based growth and the fundamentals of Lee continue to improve.

在開始提問之前，先說幾句結束語。我們執行良好，營運實力雄厚。收入成長正在加速，業務動能正在增強。Wrangler 正在推動基礎廣泛的成長，Lee 的基本面持續改善。

We expect Project Jeanius to create meaningful savings and investment capacity to support growth while improving profitability and returns on capital. The strength of our balance sheet and cash generation provide us with significant capital allocation optionality to drive additional layers of value creation.

我們預計 Jeanius 專案將創造有意義的儲蓄和投資能力，以支持成長，同時提高獲利能力和資本回報率。我們的資產負債表和現金產生能力為我們提供了重要的資本配置選擇，以推動更多層面的價值創造。

This concludes our prepared remarks, and I will now turn the call to the operator.

我們準備好的演講到此結束，現在我將把電話轉給接線生。

(Operator Instructions) Irwin Boruchow, Wells Fargo.

（操作員說明）Irwin Boruchow，富國銀行。

I guess maybe for Joe, maybe also for Scott, just wanted to kind of dig in a little bit more on the 2025 commentary and specifically just drivers of revenue that gives you the confidence in that 4% in the first half?

我想也許對於 Joe 來說，也許對於 Scott 來說，只是想深入了解 2025 年的評論，特別是讓您對上半年 4% 充滿信心的收入驅動因素？

And then just my follow-up is based on the commentary, is it fair to say that you're basically expecting the revenue growth weighted to the first half, but due to the timing of Jeanius and some saves, maybe margin expansion weighted to the back half? So just kind of curious if you could comment on the shape.

然後，我的後續行動是基於評論，可以公平地說，您基本上預計收入增長會加權到上半年，但由於 Jeanius 的時間安排和一些節省，也許利潤率擴張會加權到上半年後半部？所以只是有點好奇你是否可以評論一下它的形狀。

I'll go ahead and start and kick it over to Joe. But I think for us, really, it boils down to, as we kind of discussed a little bit, but consumers are choosing our products. And the way that we look at it is through, instance, POS. Our performance in POS has been really strong.

我會繼續開始並將其交給喬。但我認為對我們來說，實際上，這可以歸結為，正如我們所討論的那樣，消費者正在選擇我們的產品。我們看待它的方式是透過 POS 等。我們在 POS 領域的表現非常強勁。

It's been broad-based. Our performance with our own D2C has been really good. Our digital platforms across the globe have been really strong. We've had 10 consecutive quarters of growth and market share gain with Wrangler, and that is really significant. I mean, that's 2.5 years, and we continue that -- expect that to continue as we move forward.

它的基礎廣泛。我們自己的 D2C 的表現非常好。我們在全球的數位平台非常強大。我們與 Wrangler 一起實現了連續 10 個季度的成長和市場份額的成長，這非常重要。我的意思是，那是 2.5 年，我們會繼續這樣做——預計隨著我們的前進，這種情況會繼續下去。

But we're making really significant investments in our talent. We've never had a more talented team. We've upgraded the talent over the last 1.5 years significantly. You're seeing the results from that. Investments that we're making in product and innovation, they're all starting to pay off.

但我們正在對人才進行真正重大的投資。我們從未擁有過更有才華的團隊。在過去 1.5 年裡，我們顯著提升了人才水準。你正在看到結果。我們在產品和創新方面的投資都開始得到回報。

So we've got really good momentum as we head into the second half here. And as we head into next year, too, and I think the thing that's really important for us, helpful for us as we look into '25 is we know what we have out there from a new business standpoint. And we have things like outdoor, which I touched on a little bit, but a lot of tops business that we've grown, our Lee X Light, which is coming out here in the fourth quarter and then Lee X Light in the first quarter next year is exceptional. I'm really looking forward to that hitting the marketplace and see how it does. But again, we have really strong collaborations from our team and our new distribution.

因此，當我們進入下半場時，我們的勢頭非常好。當我們進入明年時，我認為對我們來說真正重要的事情是，當我們展望 25 世紀時對我們有幫助的是，我們從新的業務角度知道我們擁有什麼。我們有像戶外這樣的東西，我稍微談了一下，但我們發展了很多頂級業務，我們的 Lee X Light 將於第四季度推出，然後 Lee X Light 在第一季推出明年是特殊的一年。我真的很期待它進入市場並看看效果如何。但同樣，我們的團隊和新發行版之間有著非常緊密的合作。

So all of that kind of rolled together with the positive momentum we have right now with the team that we have behind that puts us in a really good spot. Joe?

因此，所有這些與我們現在擁有的積極勢頭以及我們背後的團隊結合在一起，使我們處於一個非常好的位置。喬？

So yeah, we're not providing the specifics of 2025 at this time. But look, we thought it would be helpful to at least provide our initial perspective on '25 and how we see the business evolving into next year and really to underscore the confidence we have in the trajectory of the business as well as highlight the strength of our fundamental profile. The profile we're delivering in the second half, low to mid-single-digit growth, gross margin expansion, strong operating earnings growth, cash generation. We see that continuing into next year and the building blocks to drive another year of strong growth and returns. So we've got Project Jeanius that will fuel the investment capacity.

是的，我們目前不提供 2025 年的具體資訊。但是看，我們認為至少提供我們對 25 年的初步看法以及我們如何看待明年的業務發展，並真正強調我們對業務發展軌蹟的信心以及強調我們的實力將是有幫助的。我們下半年的表現是，低至中個位數成長、毛利率擴張、強勁的營業收入成長、現金產生。我們看到這種情況將持續到明年，並為推動新一年的強勁成長和回報奠定基礎。因此，我們的 Jeanius 專案將推動投資能力。

We've got a strong balance sheet, a lot of dry powder and flexibility to drive additional layers. So yes, as we look into next year, we're fairly confident. We'll give you more specifics as we get to February.

我們擁有強大的資產負債表、大量的乾粉和驅動額外層的靈活性。所以，是的，當我們展望明年時，我們相當有信心。到了二月份，我們將為您提供更多具體資訊。

Jim Duffy, Stifel.

吉姆·達菲，斯蒂菲爾。

My compliments on execution across the year. I'm very interested in Project Jeanius opportunities. I'm hoping you can speak in more detail on the mechanics of Project Jeanius and how that translates to both strategic opportunities on the top line and then the P&L impact of how that plays forward in the first half and second half of '25 and then into future years.

我對這一年的執行力表示讚揚。我對 Jeanius 計畫的機會非常感興趣。我希望您能更詳細地談論 Jeanius 專案的機制，以及它如何轉化為營收的策略機會，以及它如何在 25 年上半年和下半年發揮作用對損益的影響，然後進入未來幾年。

Jim, I'll start, and then I'll kick it over to Joe. Jeanius for us has been an all-encompassing project. We've got a terrific team working across Jeanius and putting in a lot of long hard hours. So we're much appreciative of that. But it's going to break down into three very specific categories.

吉姆，我先開始，然後把它交給喬。 Jeanius 對我們來說是一個包羅萬象的專案。我們有一支出色的團隊在 Jeanius 工作，並付出了大量的努力。所以我們對此非常感激。但它將分為三個非常具體的類別。

It's our global supply chain transformation. It's the back-end efficiencies that we need to do a better job, which we're going to of capturing and also strategically thinking about moving forward. And then it's our commercial optimization. Let me take you through a little bit on how we're thinking about those and then Joe can kind of fill in the blanks. But if you think about our sourcing transformation, when we spun off, we were a complete clone and go from our parent company before.

這是我們的全球供應鏈轉型。我們需要做得更好的是後端效率，我們將抓住這一點，並策略性地思考前進的方向。然後就是我們的商業優化。讓我向您介紹我們是如何考慮這些的，然後喬可以填補空白。但如果你考慮我們的採購轉型，當我們分拆時，我們是一個完整的克隆，之前是從母公司剝離的。

So we were just a denim supply chain and just a clone from where we were and where we are and where we're trying to progress to now. So you think about our business and how it's changed and you think about the outdoor, you think about some of the different products that we have, you think about our tops, just all those different things that are making our supply chain a little bit different now, and we've got to grow and change and become more efficient when it comes to that. So we're spending a lot of time working on our product portfolio and how we can customize the supply chain for what we're going to look like in the future. We've got to drive big efficiencies with our current source vendor network, which is really important. And then one of the things that we needed to do, another example of where we needed to grow and evolve as a company is in our planning department.

因此，我們只是一條牛仔布供應鏈，只是我們過去、現在和現在正在努力發展的一個克隆。所以你會想到我們的業務以及它是如何變化的，你會想到戶外，你會想到我們擁有的一些不同產品，你會想到我們的上衣，所有這些不同的事情使我們的供應鏈有點不同現在，我們必須成長、改變，並在這方面更有效率。因此，我們花了很多時間研究我們的產品組合，以及如何根據未來的情況客製化供應鏈。我們必須利用目前的源供應商網路來提高效率，這非常重要。然後我們需要做的事情之一，我們作為一家公司需要成長和發展的另一個例子是我們的規劃部門。

So we've recently hired a planning expert who joined the company about a month ago, thrilled to have that person on board. It will help us think about as our business has gotten a little bit more complex, a little bit more global and a little bit different. We've got that team in place now to go ahead and help us kind of plan for that here going forward. And then from a back-end standpoint, we want to get to the point where we're really comfortable from the standpoint of a very similar back end for the brands, but then the front end, the brands can go and be and have their own identity on what they're going to evolve to and what they're going to be. But a little bit of a differentiation there from back end to front end, but take advantage of all the scale that we can in the back end.

因此，我們最近聘請了一位大約一個月前加入公司的規劃專家，我們很高興能有他加入。它將幫助我們思考我們的業務變得更加複雜、更加全球化、更加不同。我們現在已經組建了這個團隊，可以幫助我們制定未來的計劃。然後從後端的角度來看，我們希望從品牌的後端非常相似的角度來看，我們真的感到很舒服，但在前端，品牌可以去並擁有自己的自己的身份，關於他們將要進化到什麼以及他們將成為什麼。但從後端到前端有一點區別，但要充分利用後端的所有規模。

And one of the things that we invested in, which is really important in this process, is data analytics. So we've got a really good team. It's added -- it's been very additive here in the last 18 months and only getting better as we move forward. And obviously, everyone here on the call knows about our new ERP system. And we want to test that, put that to work and really push that because it was such a significant investment.

我們投資的事情之一，在這個過程中非常重要，就是數據分析。所以我們有一支非常優秀的團隊。它是補充的——在過去 18 個月裡，它的累積性非常強，隨著我們的前進，只會變得更好。顯然，參加電話會議的每個人都知道我們的新 ERP 系統。我們想要測試它，將其付諸實踐並真正推動它，因為這是一項如此重大的投資。

And then from a commercial standpoint, we've got to increase our speed to market, and we've got to improve product development. It's a great opportunity for us. And especially since we're getting into these new categories, it will be significant as we go forward. Joe, is there anything I missed?

然後從商業角度來看，我們必須加快上市速度，並且必須改進產品開發。這對我們來說是一個很好的機會。尤其是當我們進入這些新類別時，這對我們的前進將具有重要意義。喬，我有什麼遺漏的嗎？

Yes, Jim, just financially, we expect $100 million of savings at full run rate. We said $50 million to $100 million roughly a year ago. So we've gravitated to the high end of that range. We've got certain work streams that are in the execution phase, other work streams that are continue to move along from a planning perspective. We'll share more specifics in February, but assume we're pretty confident in that $100 million.

是的，吉姆，就財務而言，我們預計在滿載運行時可以節省 1 億美元。大約一年前我們說過 5,000 萬到 1 億美元。因此，我們傾向於該範圍的高端。我們的某些工作流程正處於執行階段，其他工作流程則從規劃的角度繼續前進。我們將在 2 月分享更多細節，但假設我們對這 1 億美元非常有信心。

The savings will be more gross profit driven versus SG&A. I think we've said that before, and I would think of it as roughly 2/3 to 1/3. So the way this will evolve, it will be a gradual build. We will start to see the SG&A savings in the first half of '25 and the gross margin savings will begin to work their way into the P&L into the back half, just given the lag of when that will start to show up. So look, overall, we're really excited about the program and what we think we can deliver in terms of freeing up investment to accelerate growth, improve profitability and returns on capital.

與 SG&A 相比，節省的費用將更多地由毛利驅動。我想我們之前已經說過了，我認為它大約是 2/3 到 1/3。因此，這將是一個漸進的發展方式。我們將在 25 年上半年開始看到 SG&A 節省，而毛利率節省將開始在下半年計入損益表，只是考慮到開始顯現的時間存在滯後。因此，總的來說，我們對該計劃以及我們認為在釋放投資以加速成長、提高獲利能力和資本回報方面可以提供的服務感到非常興奮。

Bob Drbul, Guggenheim Partners.

鮑伯‧德布爾，古根漢合夥人。

Two questions really. I think the first one, can you spend some time just on the performance improvement at Lee? I think it definitely seems like there's a step change there and just love for you if you could expand on that a little bit. And then, Joe, you talked about sort of into '25 product cost inflation. Can you expand on what you guys are seeing there and sort of when exactly it sort of flips because I think you're seeing some product cost benefits right now and sort of surprised to hear that into '25?

確實有兩個問題。我認為第一個問題，你能花一些時間來提升Lee的績效嗎？我認為這肯定看起來有一個步驟的變化，如果你能在這一點上擴展一點，我就會愛你。然後，喬，您談到了 25 年產品成本通膨。您能否詳細介紹一下您在那裡看到的情況以及具體何時發生翻轉，因為我認為您現在看到了一些產品成本效益，並且在 25 年聽到這一點感到有點驚訝？

Sure. Bob, I'll go ahead and start with Lee. I think the single most important thing for me from a Lee perspective is the leadership that we've put into the Lee team. So we've got Tom leading it, and we've got Jenny and Holly and Tom, that team working together with the Lee team right now, looking at all aspects of the business, looking at design, looking at product, looking at go-to-market, looking at all those things and bringing that kind of story together. And that started a little while back, as you know, and we've started to see some really interesting green shoots, specifically around our female business.

當然。鮑勃，我先從李開始。我認為從 Lee 的角度來看，對我來說最重要的是我們為 Lee 團隊提供的領導。所以我們有 Tom 來領導，還有 Jenny、Holly 和 Tom，這個團隊現在與 Lee 團隊一起工作，著眼於業務的各個方面，著眼於設計，著眼於產品，著眼於發展- 推向市場，審視所有這些事情並將此類故事整合在一起。如你所知，這一切始於不久前，我們已經開始看到一些非常有趣的萌芽，特別是在我們的女性業務方面。

And you heard me talk a little bit about some of the really big wins that we've had in female, whether it would be bespoke and some of the other things that we've done there. But it's been significant, and we're really happy with that. But we've got a long way to go. We've got a lot more coming. We've got Lee X, and we've got Lee X Light here coming in the men's area, which is really important.

你們聽到我談論了我們在女性領域取得的一些真正重大勝利，是否是定制的以及我們在那裡所做的其他一些事情。但這意義重大，我們對此感到非常高興。但我們還有很長的路要走。我們還有更多的事情要做。我們有 Lee X，我們有 Lee X Light 來到男士區，這非常重要。

But I want everyone to know that behind the scenes, we've really, really dug into this in a pretty significant way. It's still early on, which is fairly encouraging because of all the good things that are yet to come as we move forward. But yet we're seeing some really good things that are really helping the business. And I think the other thing, too, Bob, it's really helping the morale of the team around the globe, too, seeing these early wins, seeing that they can really contribute to the rest of the organization in a significant way. And the leadership has really brought everybody in this and everybody is in this together.

但我想讓每個人都知道，在幕後，我們確實以非常重要的方式對此進行了深入研究。現在還處於早期階段，這相當令人鼓舞，因為隨著我們的前進，所有美好的事情都尚未到來。但我們還是看到了一些真正對業務有幫助的好事情。我認為另一件事，鮑勃，這也確實有助於提高全球團隊的士氣，看到這些早期的勝利，看到他們確實可以為組織的其他部分做出重大貢獻。領導層確實讓每個人都參與其中，每​​個人都團結在一起。

So really pleased with what we're seeing here with the team, how they're thinking about it, how they've torn this whole thing apart. I think there's a lot for us to talk about going forward, and we'll spend some time. We've talked about our Investor Day. We'll get that date nailed down, and we will really dig into this at Investor Day and have some of our big leaders from the lead team there to participate and share with what they're doing. But a lot more to come, but encouraged with where we are right now, ahead of what and where I thought we would be when we made those changes and started to move this forward.

我們對團隊所看到的一切、他們的想法以及他們如何將整個事情拆散感到非常滿意。我認為我們有很多事情可以討論，我們會花一些時間。我們已經討論了投資者日。我們將確定這個日期，我們將在投資者日真正深入研究這個問題，並邀請領導團隊的一些重要領導人參與並分享他們正在做的事情。但還有更多的事情要做，但我們現在的處境受到了鼓舞，超越了我認為當我們做出這些改變並開始向前推進時我們會達到的目標。

Yes. Bob, on the product cost front, look, I mean, it's been a more volatile supply chain environment more recently, one I think that our supply chain is well suited to navigate. As we look at next year, we expect to see a neutral product cost environment overall. Certainly, there are some puts and takes to that. We're seeing increases in labor.

是的。鮑勃，在產品成本方面，我的意思是，最近供應鏈環境更加不穩定，我認為我們的供應鏈非常適合駕馭。展望明年，我們預期整體產品成本環境將保持中性。當然，這其中有一些調整和調整。我們看到勞動力的增加。

Certainly, freight rates have elevated more recently, but we've got supply chain efficiencies and some other things that will help us. You'll have a first half, second half dynamic. We are starting to anniversary the lower product costs that we started to see last year. So that benefit will become smaller and smaller as we move into the first half, and then we'll have more modest product cost inflation as we get to the back half. And then I think for us, we've got certainly our structural mix that will continue to benefit us.

當然，運費最近有所上升，但我們的供應鏈效率和其他一些因素對我們有幫助。你將擁有上半場、下半場的活力。我們即將迎來去年產品成本降低的週年紀念。因此，隨著我們進入上半年，這種好處將變得越來越小，然後當我們進入下半年時，我們的產品成本通膨將會更加溫和。然後我認為對我們來說，我們的結構組合肯定會繼續使我們受益。

And then we've got Project Jeanius. So we'll lay that out in more specifics in February, but big picture, that's how we see things evolving.

然後我們就有了Jeanius 計劃。因此，我們將在二月詳細闡述這一點，但總體而言，這就是我們看待事物發展的方式。

Mauricio Serna Vega, UBS.

毛里西奧·塞爾納·維加，瑞銀集團。

I would like to focus on your commentary about the incremental supply chain and inventory actions. I'm curious to hear like it seems like you raised the gross margin outlook by 30 basis points despite this $0.20 impact that you are highlighted in the release. Maybe could you talk about like the puts and takes there? That would be very helpful.

我想重點關注您對增量供應鏈和庫存行動的評論。我很高興聽到您似乎將毛利率前景提高了 30 個基點，儘管您在新聞稿中強調了 0.20 美元的影響。也許你能談談那裡的看漲期權和看跌期權嗎？這將非常有幫助。

Sure. Mauricio so , the actions that we talked about were worth about $6 million in terms of operating profit, about $0.08 of EPS impacting really the third quarter and the fourth quarter. These were proactive actions that we took from a position of strength really to secure inventory to support growth initiatives as we round out this year and move into next year and further improve the strength of the balance sheet as we move into next year. So on the supply chain side, really expedited freight, somewhat of a precautionary measure just given the recent supply chain volatility to ensure that we can continue to service growth with our largest accounts. Nothing material to the business, but we have seen some delays given some of the volatility, Bangladesh port strike and the like.

當然。茅利西奧，我們談論的行動價值約為 600 萬美元，營業利潤約為 0.08 美元，對第三季和第四季的每股盈餘產生實際影響。這些是我們從真正的優勢地位採取的積極行動，以確保庫存，以支持今年結束和進入明年的增長計劃，並在進入明年時進一步改善資產負債表的實力。因此，在供應鏈方面，確實加快了貨運速度，這在某種程度上是考慮到最近供應鏈波動的預防措施，以確保我們能夠繼續以最大的客戶服務成長。對業務沒有什麼重大影響，但由於一些波動、孟加拉港口罷工等原因，我們看到了一些延誤。

On the inventory side, this is really an evergreen process for us. We saw an opportunity to be more aggressive clearing excess inventory and improving the composition and quality of our inventory and freeing up cash to reinvest in other areas of the business. So absolutely the right thing for us to do. In terms of the outlook, we raised the full year gross margin guidance by 30 basis points. That does include about a 20-basis-point impact from these actions.

在庫存方面，這對我們來說確實是一個常青的過程。我們看到了一個機會，可以更積極地清理過剩庫存，改善庫存的組成和質量，並釋放現金以再投資於業務的其他領域。所以我們所做的事情絕對是正確的。展望方面，我們將全年毛利率指引上調了 30 個基點。這確實包括這些行動帶來的約 20 個基點的影響。

And from an EPS standpoint, we raised the full year by $0.03, including the $0.08 from these actions. So said differently, excluding the $0.08 impact, we would have likely raised our outlook by about $0.11.

從每股收益的角度來看，我們全年籌集了 0.03 美元，其中包括這些行動帶來的 0.08 美元。換句話說，排除 0.08 美元的影響，我們可能會將預期上調約 0.11 美元。

Got it. Very helpful. And then just on the Project Jeanius initiatives. So is it fair to assume that you're going to get like a big portion of $100 million savings in fiscal year '25 and then just the rest is in '26? Or how should we think about those savings flowing through?

知道了。非常有幫助。然後是傑尼烏斯計劃的倡議。那麼，假設您將在 25 財年節省 1 億美元，而剩下的部分則在 26 財年獲得，這樣的假設公平嗎？或者我們該如何看待這些儲蓄的流動？

Yes. This will be a gradual build. So quantitatively, we'll be back in February. Certainly appreciate the question. But we'll see modest benefits in the first half really from an SG&A perspective.

是的。這將是一個漸進的構建。所以從數量上來說，我們將在二月回來。當然很欣賞這個問題。但從 SG&A 的角度來看，我們實際上會在上半年看到適度的收益。

The gross margin benefits will start to unfold in the back half, but gradually scale. And as I said, as we move into '26, we'll be pretty much at full run rate and expect to reinvest a portion of those savings to further support growth.

毛利率效益將在下半年開始顯現，但會逐漸擴大。正如我所說，當我們進入 26 年時，我們將幾乎處於滿載運行狀態，並預計將部分儲蓄進行再投資，以進一步支持成長。

Paul Kearney, Barclays.

保羅·科爾尼，巴克萊銀行。

With the operating margin target of over 15% well in sight and an additional $100 million of savings on Project Jeanius, how are you thinking between reinvesting the savings for growth versus flowing through to earnings? And then related to that, there was an acceleration of repurchases in the quarter. How should we think about your capital allocation strategy going to next year?

鑑於超過 15% 的營業利潤率目標即將到來，並且 Project Jeanius 還可以節省 1 億美元，您如何考慮將節省的資金再投資以實現增長還是將其轉化為盈利？與此相關的是，本季回購加速。我們該如何考慮你們明年的資本配置策略？

I'll take these. So Look, Paul, we laid out financial targets in 2021 that reflected a gross margin of 46% and an operating margin of 15%. Now that was presignificant supply chain disruption, inflation, everything that you know. I'd say the incremental for us is really Project Jeanius. We're on a nice glide path to achieve the prior targets.

我會接受這些。保羅，你看，我們訂定了 2021 年的財務目標，毛利率為 46%，營業利益率為 15%。現在這就是供應鏈中斷、通貨膨脹以及你所知道的一切的預兆。我想說，對我們來說，真正的增量是「Jeanius 計畫」。我們正在順利實現先前的目標。

Where we go from here, we haven't declared. We'll do that in the context of our new long-term plan. But safe to assume with Project Jeanius, we see a path to these targets moving higher. From a capital allocation standpoint, look, the priorities are unchanged, certainly reinvest in the business. We've demonstrated the appetite to do that.

我們從這裡走向何方，我們還沒有宣布。我們將在新的長期計劃的背景下做到這一點。但可以肯定的是，透過珍尼斯計劃，我們看到了實現這些目標更高的道路。從資本配置的角度來看，優先事項並沒有改變，肯定是對業務進行再投資。我們已經表現出了這樣做的意願。

We will continue to do that. We've got a strong commitment to growing the dividend. And then you've got share repo and M&A. We've certainly been more active on the repurchase front. Cash flow for us has been really strong.

我們將繼續這樣做。我們堅定地致力於增加股利。然後就是股票回購和併購。我們在回購方面當然更積極。我們的現金流非常強勁。

Cash is building. The balance sheet is strong. Our net leverage is starting to move toward the low end of our targeted range. So we've got a lot of optionality, a lot of flexibility, and we'll be nimble here.

現金正在增加。資產負債表強勁。我們的淨槓桿率開始往目標範圍的低端移動。所以我們有很多選擇，很多彈性，我們在這裡會很靈活。

Laurent Vasilescu, BNP Paribas.

洛朗·瓦西萊斯庫，法國巴黎銀行。

This is Leah Yang on for Laurent. So on gross margin, I think you guys adjusted the gross margin by nearly 50 bps year-to-date. So could you help us to unpack what's driving those adjustments? And should we expect those adjustments to continue in 4Q?

我是勞倫特 (Laurent) 的 Leah Yang。因此，就毛利率而言，我認為你們今年迄今已將毛利率調整了近 50 個基點。那麼您能幫助我們了解推動這些調整的因素嗎？我們是否應該預期這些調整將在第四季繼續？

Yes, I'll take that. So there have been some adjustments on the gross margin side really related to the ongoing supply chain transition that's further supporting the gross margin expansion that we see. Adjustments from here will primarily be Project Jeanius related, which will lay out in the full context of our forward outlook.

是的，我會接受的。因此，毛利率方面發生了一些調整，這確實與正在進行的供應鏈轉型有關，這進一步支持了我們看到的毛利率擴張。這裡的調整將主要與 Jeanius 項目相關，這將在我們的前瞻性展望的整個背景下進行。

Got you. And then on Project Jeanius, could you provide us with some preliminary thoughts on how much the Project Jeanius will cost? And how much do you expect to reinvest?

明白你了。那麼關於 Project Jeanius，您能否向我們提供一些關於 Project Jeanius 的成本的初步想法？您預計再投資多少？

Yes, sure. So we'll provide those specifics in February. We've said previously that we do expect some onetime adjustments as we transition. The returns we see on the overall program are a multiple of the costs that will require to achieve those, but we'll get into the specifics in February.

是的，當然。因此，我們將在二月份提供這些細節。我們之前曾說過，我們確實預計在轉型過程中會進行一些一次性調整。我們在整個計劃中看到的回報是實現這些目標所需成本的倍數，但我們將在二月討論具體細節。

As there are no further questions, I would now like to hand the conference over to Scott Baxter, President, CEO and Chair of the Board, for closing comments.

由於沒有其他問題，我現在想將會議交給總裁、執行長兼董事會主席 Scott Baxter 進行總結評論。

So before I say goodbye and thank everybody for being on the call, I wanted to make sure that everyone has had a chance to see our new campaign. We kicked off a global Wrangler campaign that Holly and her team have done and real proud of the group because they did the entire campaign almost entirely in-house so that we could use more funds to go ahead and get the word out, as you can imagine. But it's really a terrific spot. You're going to see a lot more of it now as the election wanes down and then we can go ahead and be out there. We wanted to make sure that we got it at a point where we had more visibility.

因此，在我說再見並感謝大家參加電話會議之前，我想確保每個人都有機會看到我們的新活動。我們啟動了霍莉和她的團隊所做的全球牧馬人活動，並為該團隊感到非常自豪，因為他們幾乎完全在內部完成了整個活動，這樣我們就可以使用更多的資金來繼續進行宣傳，就像您可以的那樣想像。但這確實是一個很棒的地方。隨著選舉的結束，你現在會看到更多這樣的事情，然後我們就可以繼續前進了。我們希望確保我們在更能見度的時候得到它。

But if you have a chance, please go ahead and take a look or look it up or get with one of us, get with Mike, and we can send it to you, too, if that would even be easier for you. But it's just a terrific spot. And I think it has a lot to do with the fact that the brand has so much momentum. The company has momentum. But I think there's also another piece here from a cultural standpoint.

但如果你有機會，請繼續看一下或查找它或與我們中的一個人聯繫，與邁克聯繫，我們也可以將其發送給您，如果這對您來說更容易的話。但這只是一個很棒的地方。我認為這與該品牌擁有如此強大的動力有很大關係。公司有動力。但我認為從文化的角度來看，這裡還有另一件事。

I think our organization is real proud about how this company is doing, real proud about how the brands are performing. And when the entire company sees something like this in a global ad campaign, our first one as Kontoor Brands, there's a lot of pride in this and a lot of pride from all of us in the entire organization about how well we're doing and how hard we're working to make things really good for our shareholders. So I wanted to make sure that everyone had a chance to see that. So with that, thank you for your participation today. We look forward to hearing from you again in February.

我認為我們的組織對這家公司的表現感到非常自豪，對這些品牌的表現感到非常自豪。當整個公司在全球廣告活動中看到這樣的事情時，這是我們作為Kontoor Brands 的第一個廣告活動，我們對此感到非常自豪，整個組織中的所有人都對我們的表現和表現感到非常自豪我們多麼努力地為我們的股東創造真正的好處。所以我想確保每個人都有機會看到這一點。因此，感謝您今天的參與。我們期待二月再次收到您的來信。

Wishing everybody a happy and wonderful holiday season, and we'll talk to you all soon. Thanks, everybody. Take care.

祝大家有個快樂又美好的假期，我們很快就會與大家交談。謝謝大家。小心。

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

謝謝。今天的電話會議到此結束。此時您可以斷開線路。感謝您的參與。