藍威斯頓 (LW) 2026 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Please stand by. Good day and welcome to the Lamb Weston second-quarter 2026 earnings call. Today's conference is being recorded.

請稍候。大家好，歡迎參加 Lamb Weston 2026 年第二季財報電話會議。今天的會議正在錄影。

At this time, I like to turn the conference over to Debbie Hancock, Vice President of Investor relations. Please go ahead.

此時，我謹將會議交給投資人關係副總裁黛比漢考克。請繼續。

Good morning and thank you for joining us for Lamb Weston's second-quarter fiscal '26 earnings call. I'm Debbie Hancock, Lamb Weston's Vice President of Investor Relations.

早安，感謝各位參加蘭姆·韋斯頓2026財年第二季財報電話會議。我是黛比·漢考克，蘭姆·韋斯頓公司投資者關係副總裁。

Earlier today, we issued our press release and posted slides that we will use for our discussion today. You can find both on our website lambweston.com.

今天早些時候，我們發布了新聞稿和幻燈片，我們將在今天的討論中使用它們。您可以在我們的網站 lambweston.com 上找到這兩款產品。

Please note that during our remarks we will make forward-looking statements about the company's expected performance that are based on our current expectations. Actual results May differ materially due to risks and uncertainties. Please refer to the cautionary statements and risk factors contained in our SEC filings for more details on our forward-looking statements.

請注意，在我們的發言中，我們將根據我們目前的預期，對公司的預期業績做出前瞻性陳述。實際結果可能因風險和不確定因素而與預期有重大差異。有關我們前瞻性聲明的更多詳情，請參閱我們向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件中所包含的警示性聲明和風險因素。

Some of today's remarks include non-GAAP financial measures. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered a replacement for, and should be read together with our GAAP results. You can find the GAAP to non-GAAP reconciliations in our earnings release in the appendix to our presentation.

今天的部分演講內容涉及非GAAP財務指標。這些非GAAP財務指標不應被視為取代我們的GAAP業績，而應與GAAP業績一起閱讀。您可以在我們的獲利報告的附錄中找到 GAAP 與非 GAAP 的調整表。

Joining me today are Mike Smith, our President and CEO, and Bernadette Madarieta, our Chief Financial Officer.

今天與我一同出席的有我們的總裁兼執行長麥克史密斯，以及我們的財務長伯納黛特馬達里埃塔。

Let me now turn the call over to Mike.

現在我把電話交給麥克。

Thank you, Debbie. Good morning and thank you for joining us today. Our global teams are embracing and executing our focus to win strategy, strengthening customer partnerships, and driving cost savings. I want to thank the team for their ongoing dedication and solid execution.

謝謝你，黛比。早安，感謝各位今天收看我們的節目。我們的全球團隊正在積極貫徹和執行我們的致勝策略，加強客戶合作關係，並推動成本節約。我要感謝團隊的持續奉獻和紮實執行力。

As I reflect on the first half of the fiscal year, we are building momentum in the business and addressing areas of opportunity. Business turnarounds are not linear, but we are pleased with the progress we are making.

回顧上半年的財年，我們在業務上取得了長足發展，並且積極掌握各種機會。企業轉虧為盈並非一帆風順，但我們對目前的進展感到滿意。

Specifically, we are seeing top-line strength as we focus on customer relationships, which has led to share gains. Volume growth was up 8% in the second quarter and 7% for the first half of the year. To keep up with customer demand and ensure we maintain high customer fill rates, we are reopening previously curtailed capacity in North America.

具體而言，我們專注於客戶關係，從而實現了營收成長，市場佔有率也隨之提升。第二季銷售成長8%，上半年銷售成長7%。為了滿足客戶需求並確保我們保持較高的客戶訂單完成率，我們正在重新開放先前在北美地區縮減的產能。

North America, the largest segment of our business, is in a solid position. As we partner with customers and deliver on consumer insights, the team is leaning into Lamb Weston's history of quality, innovation, and value, which has resulted in several new item launches.Our cost savings plan is well on its way, and we expect to deliver our target for the year.

北美是我們業務中最大的部分，目前處於穩健的地位。在與客戶合作並根據消費者洞察提供解決方案的過程中，團隊正充分利用蘭姆·韋斯頓在品質、創新和價值方面的悠久歷史，這促成了多款新產品的推出。我們的成本節約計畫進展順利，我們預計將實現年度目標。

But equally as important, we are building a culture of continuous improvement within the organization that will unlock future opportunity and strengthen us competitively, and we are reducing volatility with customer contracting and raw procurement strategies.

但同樣重要的是，我們正在組織內部建立一種持續改進的文化，這將釋放未來的機遇，增強我們的競爭力，我們正在透過客戶合約和原材料採購策略來降低波動性。

That being said, there remains a dynamic macroeconomic and competitive environment, especially across International. But in this changing market, we have clear and accountable plans to control the controllables as we work to deliver long-term profitable growth for Lamb Weston and improve returns for our shareholders.

儘管如此，宏觀經濟和競爭環境依然充滿活力，尤其是在國際領域。但在這個不斷變化的市場中，我們有清晰且負責任的計劃來控制可控因素，努力為蘭姆韋斯頓帶來長期獲利成長，並提高股東回報。

Finally, we are managing our capital efficiently. We are delivering strong free cash flow and our capital spending is down. In addition, we repurchased $40 million of shares during the second quarter. And finally, in line with our long-standing commitment to returning cash to shareholders and in keeping with our annual dividend increase since becoming a public company, the Board approved a 3% increase to the quarterly dividend.

最後，我們正在有效率地管理我們的資金。我們實現了強勁的自由現金流，資本支出也有所下降。此外，我們在第二季回購了價值 4,000 萬美元的股票。最後，為了履行我們長期以來向股東返還現金的承諾，並與我們自上市以來每年提高股息的做法保持一致，董事會批准將季度股息提高 3%。

Five months after unveiling our Focus to Win plan, we are making solid progress. We are winning with customers as we focus on the principles that made Lamb Weston the industry gold standard, category-leading innovation, exceptional products, and customer-centric partnerships. There is meaningful opportunity ahead of us.

在推出「聚焦致勝」計畫五個月後，我們取得了實際進展。我們專注於使 Lamb Weston 成為行業黃金標準的原則，即領先的創新、卓越的產品和以客戶為中心的合作夥伴關係，從而贏得了客戶的青睞。我們面前蘊藏著意義非凡的機會。

Strengthening customer partnerships is the cornerstone of our strategy and where we have spent much of our time in the last several months. We continue to drive momentum in retention and wins. I, along with our teams are meeting with our global customers during what remains a dynamic consumer environment globally.

加強客戶合作關係是我們策略的基石，也是我們過去幾個月投入大量時間精力的領域。我們在客戶留存率和客戶轉換率方面持續保持成長動能。在全球消費環境依然瞬息萬變的當下，我和我們的團隊正在與全球客戶會面。

Our goal is to drive true partnership in service, joint business planning, menu innovation, and importantly, how we can grow together. We have line of sight to volume growth for the balance of the year. We ended the second quarter with more than 90% of our open contracted volume negotiations concluded, including all material contracts.

我們的目標是在服務、聯合業務規劃、菜單創新以及更重要的——如何共同成長方面，推動真正的夥伴關係。我們預計今年剩餘時間內銷量將持續成長。第二季末，我們已完成超過 90% 的未決合約數量談判，其中包括所有重要合約。

By the end of calendar 2025, we will have completed negotiations on the vast majority of our large chain contracts, supporting our customers with price and trade. We have gained share, including with new and growing customers. Bernadette will speak in more detail about restaurant traffic trends, but our customer success has allowed us to increase volume this year despite soft traffic.

到 2025 年底，我們將完成絕大多數大型連鎖合約的談判，在價格和貿易方面為客戶提供支援。我們擴大了市場份額，包括贏得了新客戶和不斷成長的客戶群。Bernadette 將更詳細地談論餐廳客流量趨勢，但儘管客流量疲軟，我們今年的銷售量仍然成長，這主要得益於客戶的成功。

To maintain our high service levels and customer fill rate standards, we restarted North American lines that were previously curtailed. This production began late in the second quarter and includes additional production lines to what we discussed during our first quarter call.

為了維持我們高水準的服務品質和客戶訂單滿足率標準，我們重啟了先前暫停營運的北美航線。這項生產工作於第二季末開始，除了我們在第一季電話會議上討論的生產線之外，還包括其他生產線。

With the capacity being reintroduced into our market and our network, capacity utilization rates in our North America facilities are returning to more optimal levels versus the very high utilization rates we recently experienced.

隨著產能重新投入市場和網絡，我們北美工廠的產能利用率正恢復到更優化的水平，與我們最近經歷的非常高的利用率相比，已經有所改善。

We are benefiting from our global footprint. While North America accounts for approximately 90% or more of our profitability, the international markets are estimated to represent 75% of the global industry volume growth through 2030.

我們正受益於我們的全球佈局。雖然北美市場貢獻了我們約 90% 或更多的利潤，但據估計，到 2030 年，國際市場將佔全球產業銷售成長的 75%。

This is an attractive opportunity that we are well positioned to capitalize on. Our global manufacturing footprint and supply chain network enable us to partner with existing and new customers around the world, capturing volume in fast-growing markets such as Asia and Latin America.

這是一個極具吸引力的機會，我們已做好充分準備把握它。我們遍布全球的生產佈局和供應鏈網路使我們能夠與世界各地的現有客戶和新客戶建立合作關係，並在亞洲和拉丁美洲等快速成長的市場中佔據市場份額。

Our global footprint enables us to partner with the largest customers around the world, tap into faster growing markets, and leverage global manufacturing supply chain to diversify supply and risk. In the near term, and as we discussed during our first quarter call, the international environment remains competitive.

我們的全球佈局使我們能夠與世界各地的最大客戶建立合作關係，開拓快速成長的市場，並利用全球製造供應鏈實現供應和風險多元化。短期內，正如我們在第一季電話會議上所討論的那樣，國際環境依然充滿競爭。

In Europe, a strong potato crop has coincided with softer restaurant traffic and lower export demand due to localization of recently added production in other regional markets. Our European business is also more open and less contracted, which contributes to pricing pressure. And while there has been some recent consolidation in the market, it is too early to assess its impact.

在歐洲，馬鈴薯豐收的同時，由於近期新增產量轉移到其他區域市場，導致餐飲業客流量下降，出口需求降低。我們的歐洲業務也更加開放，合約約束更少，這加劇了價格壓力。雖然近期市場出現了一些整合，但現在評估其影響還為時過早。

In Latin America, where there are a few established players, we're building a strong foundation for long-term growth. Our new facility in Argentina is already producing and qualifying product for key customers. The region's market is growing quickly. And as we scale, we expect to capture meaningful share and strengthen our position as a preferred supplier.

在拉丁美洲，雖然已有少數成熟的參與者，但我們正在為長期成長奠定堅實的基礎。我們在阿根廷的新工廠已經開始為主要客戶生產和檢驗產品。該地區的市場正在快速成長。隨著規模的擴大，我們期望能夠獲得可觀的市場份額，並鞏固我們作為首選供應商的地位。

We are actively working to rebalance supply and demand within our network, better leveraging underutilized assets, and ensuring we have the right assets globally in the right places to serve customers in our priority markets and channels.

我們正在積極努力重新平衡我們網路內的供需關係，更好地利用未充分利用的資產，並確保我們在全球合適的地點擁有合適的資產，以便為我們優先市場和通路的客戶提供服務。

Shifting to our achieving executional excellence. Our cost savings initiatives are on track. As part of these efforts, we are building a truly global supply chain with the customer at the center of everything we do. Manufacturing in the centers of excellence are working as one, delivering improvements in run rates, safety, and becoming better aligned on how we measure ourselves and how our customers measure us.

轉向實現卓越執行。我們的成本節約計畫進展順利。作為這些努力的一部分，我們正在建立一個真正的全球供應鏈，並將客戶置於我們一切工作的中心。卓越中心的製造部門齊心協力，在生產效率、安全性方面不斷改進，並且在衡量自身和客戶衡量我們的方式上也更加協調一致。

In addition, we are investing in tools that will help improve our demand and supply planning as we optimize our supply chain.

此外，我們正在投資一些工具，以幫助我們改善需求和供應計劃，從而優化我們的供應鏈。

Innovation is another core pillar of our Focus to Win strategy. Internationally, we have launched our new Snap Fries, which is our crispy fast fry, an innovation that allows for crispy and fast oven preparation. Our testing of this product is ongoing, and we've had early success expanding with airline customers. This innovative product opens additional market opportunities to sell hot, crispy, and delicious fries where we couldn't in the past.

創新是我們「聚焦致勝」策略的另一個核心支柱。在國際市場上，我們推出了全新的 Snap Fries，這是一種酥脆的快速油炸食品，這項創新使得酥脆的烤箱烹飪成為可能。我們正在對該產品進行測試，並且在拓展航空公司客戶方面已取得初步成功。這款創新產品為我們開啟了更多市場機會，讓我們能夠在以前無法銷售熱騰騰、酥脆可口的薯條的地方銷售這些薯條。

Finally, a quick update on the crop, which is consistent with the update we provided with first-quarter earnings and demonstrates the focus we have on planning our North America raw needs. We've completed the harvest, and we are processing from storage across our growing regions in both North America and Europe. Overall, yields were above average and quality was average in both North America and Europe.

最後，我們快速更新一下作物狀況，這與我們第一季財報中提供的最新情況一致，也反映了我們對規劃北美原料需求的重視。我們已經完成了收割，目前正在北美和歐洲各個種植區的倉庫進行加工。整體而言，北美和歐洲的產量均高於平均水平，品質均處於平均水平。

I will now turn the call over to Bernadette to review the quarter and our outlook.

現在我將把電話交給伯納黛特，讓她回顧本季情況並展望未來。

Thank you, Mike, and good morning, everyone. I'm starting on slide 11. Second-quarter net sales increased 1%, including a $24 million benefit from foreign currency translation. On a constant currency basis, net sales were essentially flat versus last year.

謝謝你，麥克，大家早安。我從第11張投影片開始。第二季淨銷售額成長 1%，其中包括因外匯折算而獲得的 2,400 萬美元收益。以固定匯率計算，淨銷售額與去年基本持平。

Volume rose 8%, driven by customer wins, share gains, and strong retention, especially in North America and Asia. This growth came despite softer restaurant traffic, which speaks to the strength of our customer partnerships and execution.

銷售量成長 8%，主要得益於客戶拓展、市佔率提升以及客戶留存率的提高，尤其是在北美和亞洲地區。儘管餐廳客流量有所下降，但這一增長依然實現，這反映了我們與客戶的合作關係和執行力的強大。

In the US, QSR traffic was flat over the trailing three-month period of August, September, and October. Within that, QSR chicken grew, while QSR burger traffic was down 3%, improving slightly in October. French fry volume in North America foodservice was up slightly over the same three-month period, reflecting continued demand resilience.

在美國，8 月、9 月和 10 月這三個月期間，快餐店的客流量保持穩定。其中，快餐店雞肉銷量成長，而快餐店漢堡銷量下降了 3%，10 月略有改善。與前三個月相比，北美餐飲服務業的薯條銷量略有成長，反映出市場需求持續保持韌性。

Internationally, restaurant traffic in most markets declined, including the UK, our largest international market, which was down about 3%. Even so, our teams delivered growth in this environment, which is a testament to their focus and execution.

在國際上，大多數市場的餐廳客流量都有所下降，包括我們最大的國際市場英國，英國的客流量下降了約 3%。即便如此，我們的團隊在這種環境下依然實現了成長，這證明了他們的專注和執行力。

Price/mix declined 8% at a constant currency, primarily due to the carryover and current year impact of price and trade to support customers as well as mix shifts towards lower margin sales. To summarize, we delivered strong growth and held net sales essentially flat in a tough traffic environment, positioning us well as we move into the second half.

以固定匯率計算，價格/產品組合下降了 8%，這主要是由於價格和貿易對客戶的支持以及產品組合向低利潤銷售的轉變，而這些因素又受到上年同期價格和貿易的影響。總而言之，我們在交通狀況不佳的情況下實現了強勁增長，淨銷售額基本上持平，這為我們進入下半年奠定了良好的基礎。

Looking at our segments. North America net sales were essentially flat compared with the prior year. Volume increased 8%, supported by recent customer contract wins and share gains. Price/mix declined 8%, reflecting the carryover and current year impact of price and trade to support our customers and unfavorable mix.

看看我們的細分市場。北美淨銷售額與上年基本持平。銷量成長8%，這得益於近期贏得的客戶合約和市場份額的成長。價格/產品組合下降 8%，反映了價格和貿易對客戶和不利產品組合的影響，以及去年同期的影響。

In our International segment, net sales increased 4%, including a favorable foreign currency impact of $23 million. At constant currency rates, net sales declined 1%. Volume grew 7%, while price/mix at constant currency declined 8%, primarily due to pricing actions in key international markets to support customers and unfavorable mix. Asia, including China, once again, led our volume growth in the quarter and volume also grew with multinational chain customers.

在國際業務方面，淨銷售額成長了 4%，其中包括 2,300 萬美元的有利外匯影響。以固定匯率計算，淨銷售額下降了 1%。銷量成長了 7%，而以固定匯率計算的價格/產品組合下降了 8%，這主要是由於在主要國際市場採取價格措施以支援客戶以及不利的產品組合所致。本季度，包括中國在內的亞洲市場再次引領了我們的銷售成長，跨國連鎖客戶的銷售也實現了成長。

In Europe, a strong crop and soft restaurant traffic has pressured pricing as incremental industry capacity in local regional markets has reduced exports. We have taken steps to support our customers with price and trade and expect these actions will continue through fiscal 2026.

在歐洲，農作物豐收和餐飲客流量疲軟導致價格承壓，因為當地區域市場的新增產能減少了出口。我們已採取措施在價格和貿易方面支持我們的客戶，並預計這些措施將持續到 2026 財年。

At the same time, we're actively working to rebalance supply and demand, ensuring we have the right assets in the right places to serve our customers in our priority markets.

同時，我們正在積極努力重新平衡供需，確保我們在適當的地方擁有合適的資產，為我們重點市場的客戶提供服務。

In Latin America, we continue to ramp up production at our new facility in Argentina. As we mentioned last quarter, it will take time to reach target utilization levels as we qualify lines and bring on new customers.

在拉丁美洲，我們位於阿根廷的新工廠正在持續提高產量。正如我們在上個季度提到的那樣，在完成線路認證和引入新客戶的過程中，達到目標利用率水準還需要一段時間。

During this ramp-up, fixed costs will be spread over lower production volumes resulting in higher cost per pound for the remainder of the year. While reaching optimal production will take time, we see this as a significant opportunity to drive volume growth and margin expansion over the coming years.

在產能提升期間，固定成本將分攤到較低的產量上，導致今年剩餘時間每磅成本較高。雖然達到最佳生產狀態需要時間，但我們認為這是未來幾年推動銷售成長和利潤率擴張的重要機會。

Let's now turn to profitability, where we continue to see the benefits of our cost savings initiatives and disciplined execution, even as we navigate mix and pricing headwinds. On slide 12, as expected, adjusted EBITDA declined $9 million compared to last year to $286 million. Adjusted gross profit was in line with expectations, down $16 million year over year, primarily due to unfavorable price mix.

現在讓我們來看看獲利能力，儘管我們面臨產品組合和定價方面的不利因素，但我們仍然看到了成本節約措施和嚴格執行帶來的益處。如預期，第 12 頁顯示，調整後的 EBITDA 比去年減少了 900 萬美元，至 2.86 億美元。經調整後的毛利符合預期，年減 1,600 萬美元，主要原因是價格組合不利。

This was partially offset by higher sales volumes, benefits from our cost savings initiatives, and lower total manufacturing cost per pound. Our cost-saving efforts are not only reducing costs, but also improving processes and efficiencies across our operations, positioning us well for the future. Input costs outside of raw potato prices increased in the quarter driven by tariffs, labor, fuel power and water, and transportation rates.

銷量增加、成本節約措施帶來的收益以及每磅總製造成本降低，部分抵消了上述損失。我們的節省成本措施不僅降低了成本，還提高了營運流程和效率，使我們為未來做好了充分準備。本季除馬鈴薯原料價格外的投入成本增加，主要受關稅、勞動力、燃料、電力、水和運輸費率的影響。

While agreements in principle for palm oil tariff exemptions from Indonesia and Malaysia are in place, they have not yet been finalized, so we continue to forecast these expenses. Adjusted SG&A expenses declined $8 million versus the prior year quarter, reflecting benefits from our cost savings initiatives, partially offset by compensation and benefit accruals.

雖然印尼和馬來西亞已就棕櫚油關稅豁免達成原則性協議，但尚未最終敲定，因此我們將繼續預測這些費用。經過調整後的銷售、一般及行政費用較上年同期減少了 800 萬美元，這反映了我們成本節約措施帶來的收益，但部分被薪酬和福利提列所抵消。

Adjusted equity method investment earnings was $3 million, a decline of $8 million as a result of lower production volume and an unfavorable mix of sales at our joint venture in Minnesota. Overall, while we faced headwinds from price/mix and input cost inflation outside of potatoes, we delivered solid volume growth and meaningful cost savings.

經調整的權益法投資收益為 300 萬美元，比去年同期減少了 800 萬美元，因為明尼蘇達州合資企業的產量下降以及銷售組合不利。總體而言，儘管我們面臨馬鈴薯以外的價格/產品組合和投入成本上漲的不利影響，但我們實現了穩健的銷售成長和顯著的成本節約。

Turning to segment EBITDA performance on slide 13. Adjusted EBITDA in our North America segment increased 7% or $19 million versus the prior year quarter to $288 million. This growth reflects strong execution, including higher sales volume and lower manufacturing cost per pound, driven by raw potato deflation and benefits from our cost savings initiatives. These improvements were partially offset by price and trade to support our customers.

接下來請看第 13 頁投影片，了解各業務部門的 EBITDA 績效。北美業務調整後 EBITDA 較上年同期成長 7% 或 1,900 萬美元，達到 2.88 億美元。這一增長反映了我們強有力的執行，包括更高的銷售量和更低的每磅製造成本，這得益於馬鈴薯原料價格下跌以及我們成本節約措施帶來的效益。為了支持我們的客戶，價格和貿易方面的一些改進措施被部分抵消了。

In our International segment, adjusted EBITDA declined $21 million to $27 million. This reflects price and trade to support our customers as well as higher manufacturing cost per pound. These costs include start-up expenses associated with ramping up our new Latin America production facility in Argentina, and increased factory burden and other costs in Latin America and Europe as we work to rebalance supply and demand and manage inventories. Importantly, these costs were partially offset by the benefit of our cost savings initiatives and higher sales volumes.

在國際業務板塊，調整後 EBITDA 下降 2,100 萬美元至 2,700 萬美元。這反映了價格和貿易方面的考量，旨在支持我們的客戶，同時也反映了每磅產品較高的製造成本。這些成本包括與我們在阿根廷新建的拉丁美洲生產設施相關的啟動費用，以及在我們努力重新平衡供需和管理庫存的過程中，拉丁美洲和歐洲工廠負擔增加和其他成本。重要的是，這些成本部分被我們的成本節約措施和更高的銷售量所抵銷。

Moving to liquidity and cash flows on slide 14. Our liquidity and cash position remains strong. We ended the quarter with approximately $1.43 billion of liquidity, including approximately $1.35 billion available under our revolving credit facility and $83 million of cash and cash equivalents.

第 14 頁講解流動性和現金流。我們的流動性和現金狀況依然強勁。本季末，我們的流動資金約為 14.3 億美元，其中包括循環信貸額度下的約 13.5 億美元以及 8,300 萬美元的現金和現金等價物。

Our net debt was $3.6 billion, and our adjusted EBITDA to net debt leverage ratio was 3.1 times on a trailing 12-month basis, consistent with our commitment to maintaining a solid balance sheet.

我們的淨債務為 36 億美元，過去 12 個月的調整後 EBITDA 與淨債務槓桿率為 3.1 倍，這與我們致力於維持穩健資產負債表的承諾相符。

In the first half of fiscal 2026, we generated $530 million of cash from operations. That's up $101 million versus last year, driven by favorable working capital changes, primarily lower inventories in North America and higher earnings. Free cash flow was strong at $375 million.

在 2026 財年上半年，我們從經營活動中產生了 5.3 億美元的現金。與去年相比增加了 1.01 億美元，主要得益於有利的營運資本變化，特別是北美庫存減少和利潤增加。自由現金流強勁，達到 3.75 億美元。

Capital expenditures were $156 million in the first half, down $331 million from last year as we completed major growth investments and facility expansions. Looking ahead, we expect fiscal 2026 capital expenditures to come in below the $500 million target, reflecting disciplined investment and a continued focus on sustaining performance.

上半年資本支出為 1.56 億美元，比去年同期減少了 3.31 億美元，因為我們完成了重大成長投資和設施擴建。展望未來，我們預計 2026 財年的資本支出將低於 5 億美元的目標，這反映了我們審慎的投資和對維持績效的持續關注。

Turning to slide 15. We remain committed to returning cash to our shareholders. During the first half of the year, we returned over $150 million, including $103 million in cash dividends and $50 million of stock repurchases.

翻到第15張投影片。我們始終致力於向股東返還現金。今年上半年，我們返還了超過 1.5 億美元，其中包括 1.03 億美元的現金股利和 5,000 萬美元的股票回購。

This includes approximately $40 million in stock repurchased in the second quarter. We have $308 million remaining under our current repurchase authorization. And year-to-date, we've repurchased sufficient shares to offset the expected equity plan dilution.

這其中包括第二季回購的約 4,000 萬美元股票。我們目前的回購授權額度還剩 3.08 億美元。今年迄今為止，我們已經回購了足夠的股票，以抵消預期股權計劃的稀釋。

In addition, today, we announced an increase in our quarterly dividend to $0.38 per share.

此外，今天我們宣布將季度股息提高至每股 0.38 美元。

Our capital allocation priorities remain clear. We are investing in the business and its capabilities, focusing on areas that differentiate Lamb Weston and support the execution of our strategy. At the same time, we aim to maintain a strong balance sheet and opportunistically return capital to shareholders with dividends and share repurchases.

我們的資本配置優先事項依然明確。我們正在投資於公司及其能力，重點關注使 Lamb Weston 脫穎而出並支持我們策略執行的領域。同時，我們的目標是保持穩健的資產負債表，並伺機透過股利和股票回購向股東返還資本。

Let's now turn to the outlook on slide 16. We are reaffirming our fiscal 2026 outlook, which includes the contribution of a 53rd week in the fourth quarter. For the balance of the year, we expect continued volume growth and strong sales momentum, and we are on track towards delivering the high end of our sales guidance range.

現在讓我們來看看第 16 頁的展望。我們重申 2026 財年展望，其中包括第四季第 53 週的貢獻。今年剩餘時間裡，我們預期銷售將持續成長，銷售勢頭強勁，我們有望實現銷售預期範圍的高端目標。

North America remained solid, with second half volumes expected to grow at or above first half rates, supported by strong demand and vast majority of our contract negotiations being complete.

北美市場保持穩健，在強勁的需求和絕大多數合約談判完成的支撐下，預計下半年銷售將與上半年持平或高於上半年增速。

International volumes in the second half are expected to be flat year over year as we lap prior year customer wins. As anticipated, price/mix will remain unfavorable at constant currency in the second half but to a lesser extent than the first half.

由於我們已收回上一年贏得的客戶，預計下半年國際業務量將與去年持平。正如預期的那樣，以固定匯率計算，下半年價格/產品組合仍將不利，但程度會比上半年輕。

In North America, year-over-year price declines are expected to ease compared to what we saw in the first half, while the shift towards lower-margin restaurant customers and private label retail customers is likely to persist. In our international markets, we anticipate continued headwinds from softer restaurant traffic added capacity, and a strong comp.

在北美，預計年比價格下降幅度將較上半年放緩，而向利潤率較低的餐飲客戶和自有品牌零售客戶轉變的趨勢可能會持續下去。在我們的國際市場，我們預期餐廳客流量減少、新增產能下降以及強勁的同店銷售額將持續帶來不利影響。

On margins, we expect adjusted gross margin in the second half to be flat to down versus the first half 20.4%, reflecting price/mix dynamics and higher manufacturing costs internationally, including ramp-up cost in Argentina and underutilization in Europe as we work to rebalance supply and demand.

就利潤率而言，我們預計下半年的調整後毛利率將與上半年的 20.4% 持平或下降，這反映了價格/產品組合動態和國際製造成本的上升，包括阿根廷的產能爬坡成本和歐洲的產能利用不足，因為我們正在努力重新平衡供需。

Adjusted SG&A is expected to continue to benefit from cost savings initiatives. Though in the second half, we anticipate incremental investments in innovation and advertising and promotions to support our long-term strategic plan as well as an extra week of expenses in the fourth quarter. Our full year tax rate is projected at 28% to 29%, with second half rates in the low 20%s.

調整後的銷售、一般及行政費用預計將繼續受惠於成本節約措施。儘管下半年我們預計在創新、廣告和促銷方面將增加投資，以支持我們的長期策略計劃，但第四季還將增加一週的支出。我們全年的稅率預計為 28% 至 29%，下半年的稅率在 20% 左右。

To summarize, given the price/mix dynamics and higher manufacturing costs in our International segment, we believe maintaining our adjusted EBITDA guidance range of $1 billion to $1.2 billion is the most prudent approach. We currently expect to finish closer to the midpoint. We remain confident in delivering strong results for the year, supported by strong volume performance and progress under our cost savings initiatives.

綜上所述，鑑於國際業務的價格/組合動態和較高的製造成本，我們認為維持調整後 EBITDA 指引範圍在 10 億美元至 12 億美元之間是最謹慎的做法。我們目前預計最終結果會接近中點。我們仍然有信心在今年取得強勁的業績，這得益於強勁的銷售表現和成本節約計劃的進展。

With that, I'll now turn the call back over to Mike.

接下來，我將把電話轉回給麥克。

Thank you, Bernadette. In closing, we are drivi,ng and expect to continue driving volume growth, share gains and customer momentum. Our customers are turning to Lamb Weston for the quality, innovation, and value for which we are known. Our team is embracing and executing our Focus to Win strategy, including delivering our cost savings program targets.

謝謝你，伯納黛特。最後，我們正在推動並期望繼續推動銷售成長、市場佔有率提升和客戶成長動能。我們的客戶選擇蘭姆韋斯頓，因為我們以品質、創新和價值而聞名。我們的團隊正積極貫徹執行「以致勝」策略，包括實現成本節約計畫目標。

We are optimizing our global supply chain, restarting curtailed production in North America, and working to rebalance supply and demand globally. We are generating strong free cash flow and are increasing our quarterly dividend 3%. And we are focused on executing our strategy and delivering good results for the year.

我們正在優化全球供應鏈，重啟北美地區停產的生產，並努力在全球重新平衡供需。我們產生了強勁的自由現金流，並將季度股息提高了3%。我們正專注於執行我們的策略，並力爭在今年取得良好的表現。

With that, Bernadette and I are happy to take your questions.

那麼，我和伯納黛特很樂意回答你們的問題。

(Operator Instructions) Tom Palmer, JP Morgan.

（操作說明）湯姆·帕爾默，摩根大通。

Good morning and thanks for the question. Bernardette --

早安，謝謝你的提問。貝納黛特--

Good morning, Tom.

早上好，湯姆。

You made a comment in the prepared remarks about rebalancing supply and demand. It it sounded like a temporary pullback in production is anticipated in Europe. In the US last year, there was a plant closure and lines curtailed.

您在準備好的演講稿中提到了重新平衡供需關係的問題。聽起來歐洲的產量似乎會暫時下降。去年美國有一家工廠關閉，生產線也進行了縮減。

I'm just wondering, should we start thinking about similar actions in Europe coming into play, so something more substantial than maybe reducing shifts or are there other actions that can be taken to aid this rebalance? Thanks.

我只是在想，我們是否應該開始考慮在歐洲採取類似的行動，採取比減少輪班更實質的措施，或者是否有其他措施可以幫助實現這種再平衡？謝謝。

Hey, Tom. I'll take the first part of that and then let Bernadette comment further. As we said, we've restarted some of those curtailed lines that we have previously curtailed in North America, driven by the strong volume.

嘿，湯姆。我先回答第一部分，然後讓伯納黛特再做進一步評論。正如我們所說，由於業務量強勁，我們已經重啟了先前在北美地區暫停的部分生產線。

We have also communicated to our employees that we are curtailing a single line in our European market as well. So we are looking across our our global supply chain and making sure that we're taking the right approaches to balance that supply and demand globally.

我們也告知員工，我們將削減歐洲市場的一條生產線。因此，我們正在審視我們的全球供應鏈，確保我們採取正確的方法來平衡全球的供需關係。

Okay. Thanks for that. And then, just as we think about understood the commentary, I guess, in Europe on on some of the pressures, but I did want to maybe focus on North America a bit. As we think about some of the, I guess, volume drivers in the back half and some of the less investment in price relative to the first half, should we start to see in 3Q, for instance, more of a seasonal uptick in North America or there Items may be there to consider?

好的。謝謝。然後，正如我們所理解的評論，我想，在歐洲，人們對一些壓力感到擔憂，但我確實想稍微關註一下北美。當我們考慮下半年銷售成長的一些因素，以及相對於上半年價格方面投入的減少時，例如，我們是否應該在第三季度看到北美地區出現更明顯的季節性增長，或者還有其他因素需要考慮？

Yeah. So thanks, Tom. As it relates to North America, a big piece that we need to consider is that it's not only price but it's a large component of this is mix. In North America, we are seeing a higher proportion of our business with multinational chain customers, as well as we are seeing in our retail channel, a shift from branded to more private label.

是的。謝謝你，湯姆。就北美而言，我們需要考慮的一個重要因素是，這不僅僅是價格問題，產品組合也是其中一個重要的組成部分。在北美，我們看到與跨國連鎖客戶的業務比例越來越高，同時，在我們的零售通路中，我們也看到從品牌產品轉向自有品牌產品的轉變。

And so that is the -- what we would expect to continue in the back half of the year, which it will affect gross margins as we move forward and it's also contributing to what we had shared in our prepared remarks of the 20.4% or relatively flat gross margins in the back half of the year relative to the first half.

因此，我們預計這種情況將在下半年繼續，這將影響毛利率，這也導致了我們在事先準備好的發言稿中提到的下半年毛利率為 20.4% 或與上半年相比基本持平。

Understood. Thank you.

明白了。謝謝。

Peter Galbo, Bank of America.

Peter Galbo，美國銀行。

Hey, good morning, Mike and Bernadette. Thanks for the question. Mike, I maybe wanted to actually pick up on the International side. I believe in your in your prepared remarks, you walk through the dynamics in Europe and Latin America. I didn't hear -- and maybe I missed, but I didn't hear any commentary on Asia and, in particular, some of the Asia export markets.

嗨，早上好，麥克和伯納黛特。謝謝你的提問。麥克，我可能更想關註一下國際方面。我相信您在準備好的演講稿中，會詳細闡述歐洲和拉丁美洲的動態。我沒聽到——或許是我錯過了——但我確實沒聽到任何關於亞洲，特別是亞洲一些出口市場的評論。

I think there's been a fair amount of trade press just around local competitors in the region not only getting more competitive in in home markets but in some of your export markets throughout Asia. So I would just love to to have an update from you there on what you're seeing real time and whether or not that competition has intensified since we spoke like three months ago.

我認為，關於該地區本地競爭對手的報告已經相當多了，他們不僅在國內市場，而且在亞洲的一些出口市場也變得越來越有競爭力。所以我很想了解你那邊的即時情況，以及自從我們三個月前談話以來，競爭是否有所加劇。

Yeah, let me -- thanks, Peter. Let me speak to a few of those markets that you suggested. As Bernadette talked about some of the mix shifts in our international markets, some of that is driven by strengths that we are seeing in China as well as APAC.

好的，讓我來—謝謝你，彼得。讓我來談談您提到的幾個市場。正如伯納黛特談到我們國際市場的一些組合變化時所說，其中一些變化是由我們在中國和亞太地區看到的優勢所驅動的。

When you look at Europe, there's been a really strong crop and it's resulted in lower cost raw. And that's on the backdrop of more depressed traffic in those markets.

從歐洲的情況來看，今年的作物收成非常好，因此原料成本也降低了。而且，這還是在這些市場交通流量較為低迷的背景下發生的。

When you look around the globe, there has been some added capacity in some of those developing markets, like you said, and that is putting more pressure on exports out of Europe into some of those markets, which has challenged the price there a little bit.

放眼全球，正如你所說，一些發展中市場的產能有所增加，這給歐洲向這些市場的出口帶來了更大的壓力，也對當地的價格造成了一定的挑戰。

But overall, we believe in the future of the international market. We believe that as we support our customers in those markets, we'll continue to drive growth. Argentina and Latin America is another strong area that has high growth rates. And we believe that having that asset down in that market will set us up for future success.

但總的來說，我們對國際市場的未來充滿信心。我們相信，透過支持我們在這些市場的客戶，我們將繼續推動成長。阿根廷和拉丁美洲是另一個成長速度很快的強勁地區。我們相信，在該市場擁有這項資產將為我們未來的成功奠定基礎。

Okay. Thanks, Mike for that. And Bernadette, I mean, I think the flat-to-down commentary on the second half gross margin. Does that hold for both quarters as well? If I look back at Lamb Weston -- the history of Lamb Weston as a public company, like third quarter gross margins have been down versus the second quarter, like twice than it was during COVID, so I don't even know if we count that. So just want to understand if that comment is very much a second half comment or if it also applies to the third quarter. Thanks very much.

好的。謝謝你，麥克。伯納黛特，我的意思是，我認為關於下半年毛利率持平甚至下降的評論。這兩個季度的情況也是一樣嗎？回顧蘭姆韋斯頓的歷史——蘭姆韋斯頓作為一家上市公司的歷史，比如第三季度的毛利率比第二季度下降了近一倍，比新冠疫情期間下降了近一倍，所以我什至不知道我們是否應該把這算進去。所以我想知道，這則評論主要是針對下半季的，還是也適用於第三季。非常感謝。

Yeah. Thanks, Peter. The comment that I made in my prepared remarks was definitely for the second half of the year. And then that being primarily driven by mix shifts and pricing headwinds as well as the ramp-up that we have in Argentina.

是的。謝謝你，彼得。我在準備好的發言稿中所作的評論，肯定是針對下半年的。而這主要是由產品組合變化和價格逆風以及我們在阿根廷的產能提升所驅動的。

So while the normal seasonality is still underlying the business, in the second half, we're going to see some moderation on those typical seasonal trends, particularly flattening the third quarter seasonal increase in gross margins. And then we would expect the fourth quarter to step down from there.

因此，雖然正常的季節性因素仍然是業務的基礎，但在下半年，我們將看到這些典型的季節性趨勢有所緩和，特別是第三季毛利率的季節性成長將趨於平緩。然後我們預計第四季會從那裡開始下降。

Got it. Okay. Thanks very much.

知道了。好的。非常感謝。

Matt Smith, Stifel.

馬特史密斯，史蒂費爾。

Hi. Good morning and thanks for taking my question. Bernadette, the outlook calls for moderating price/mix drag in the second half in North America. A couple of follow-up questions there. In terms of pricing on this year's contracts, is that landing in line with the performance relative to last year?

你好。早上好，感謝您回答我的問題。Bernadette，展望未來，北美下半年價格/產品組合拖累將會緩和。還有幾個後續問題。就今年的合約定價而言，是否與去年的業績表現相符？

And if I go back to the initial guidance, price/mix is expected to moderate to a low single-digit headwind in North America. Is that still the right way to think about it? Or has the mix impact caused that moderation to maybe lessen a bit? Thank you.

如果我回到最初的預期，預計北美的價格/產品組合將趨於緩和，不利因素將降至​​個位數百分比。這種思考方式現在還正確嗎？或者說，混合效應是否導致這種緩和效果減弱？謝謝。

Yeah. Thanks, Matt. So first, I just want to start off with the strong momentum that we've had in the first half of the year. And North America being our most profitable segment is strong. We expected price/mix to be down more in the first half of the year than the second, and we still expect that trend.

是的。謝謝你，馬特。首先，我想先談談我們在今年上半年取得的強勁勢頭。北美是我們獲利能力最強的市場，表現強勁。我們預期上半年價格/產品組合的下降幅度會大於下半年，我們仍然預期這一趨勢。

And as you mentioned, it's just very important to note that the combination of both price and mix is what's affecting our North America segment. And that mix impact has been more pronounced recently with the growth in more chain business as well as that mix shift from branded products to private label.

正如您所提到的，需要特別注意的是，價格和產品組合的結合正在影響我們在北美的業務。而隨著連鎖業務的成長以及品牌產品向自有品牌產品的轉變，這種組合影響最近變得更加明顯。

Thanks, Bernadette. And so when we think about that mix head win, should we -- is that a drag on performance through really this time next year just given how the balance of the business has been performing?

謝謝你，伯納黛特。因此，當我們考慮那次混音主管的勝利時，我們是否應該——考慮到公司其他業務的表現，這是否會拖累到明年這個時候的業績？

We'll need to continue to monitor that. Certainly, as it relates to our chain customers, that would continue. We'll continue to monitor whether the trend from branded to private label persists, but we would expect that to persist throughout the balance of this year.

我們需要繼續關注此事。當然，對於我們的連鎖客戶而言，這種情況還會持續下去。我們將繼續關注品牌產品向自有品牌轉變的趨勢是否會持續，但我們預計這種趨勢將在今年剩餘時間內持續下去。

Thank you. I'll pass it on.

謝謝。我會轉達的。

Robert Moskow, TD Cowen.

Robert Moskow，TD Cowen。

Hey. Thanks. I wanted to dig into the decision to reopen more of your capacity in North America. The wording was a little confusing in the prepared remarks. You said you did it because you -- because facilities are returning to more optimal levels versus the very high utilization rates recently experienced. So are you saying that utilization rates got too high in first quarter, you need to reopen more of your production lines in order to get them lower?

嘿。謝謝。我想深入了解你們決定在北美重新開放更多產能的原因。準備好的發言稿措詞有些令人困惑。你說你這樣做是因為——因為設施正在恢復到更優化的水平，而不是像最近那樣使用率非常高。所以你的意思是說第一季的產能利用率太高，需要重新開放更多生產線來降低產能利用率？

And is there any kind of negative impact to your profitability as a result of that or not? And then secondly, how long do you think this will persist? Is this a permanent decision or not?

那這樣做是否會對你的獲利能力產生任何負面影響？其次，你認為這種情況會持續多久？這是永久性決定嗎？

Yeah, Rob. I appreciate the question. We've been focused on driving customer partnerships over the last several months. When you think about where we spend our time, it's around the customer and around driving out costs. And because of that, you are seeing the results of that hard work. Volume up 8% in the quarter.

是的，羅布。感謝您的提問。過去幾個月，我們一直專注於推動與客戶的合作關係。想想我們把時間花在哪裡，都是圍繞著客戶和降低成本。正因如此，你們才看到了辛勤工作的成果。本季成交量成長8%。

As you said, yeah, utilization rates in our North American facilities were in the low 90s. As we grew that volume over the first half of the year, they got to a level where we needed to open up this additional capacity to ensure that we continue to meet our customers' expectations regarding fill rates.

正如你所說，是的，我們北美工廠的利用率在 90% 左右。今年上半年，隨著業務量的成長，我們不得不開放額外的產能，以確保我們能夠繼續滿足客戶對訂單完成率的期望。

The plants are running really well as you have those lines start to run more frequently, you start to see better run rates, better OEEs, better potato utilization, which is all positive. So we don't expect to drag from a cost basis from turning those lines back on.

隨著生產線運作頻率的增加，工廠的運作狀況也越來越好，運作率、設備綜合效率、馬鈴薯利用率都提高了，這些都是正面的訊號。因此，我們預計重新啟用這些線路不會增加成本。

Yeah, Rob. If I could just add, the second comment or question that you had was related to the impact on margins. In the first half, if you think about the results, we had higher fixed factory burden driven by North America in Q1. And then as we've restarted those lines in North America, we've seen that lessen but more in International in Q2.

是的，羅布。如果可以的話，我想補充一點，您的第二個評論或問題與對利潤率的影響有關。上半年，如果你看看業績，你會發現第一季北美地區的工廠固定成本較高。然後，隨著我們在北美重啟這些線路，我們看到這種情況有所減少，但在第二季國際市場的情況有所改善。

In the back half of the year, we would expect there to be a net positive from a factory burden perspective, led by North America as that absorption improves with restarting those lines, but International is going to remain a headwind with Latin America and Europe continuing to carry incremental costs.

預計下半年工廠負擔方面將出現淨正向變化，北美地區將率先受益，因為隨著生產線的重啟，其吸收能力將有所提高；但國際市場仍將面臨不利因素，拉丁美洲和歐洲將繼續增加成本。

Got it. And in terms of keeping these lines open, it's for the foreseeable future. There's -- it's not a temporary measure?

知道了。至於保持這些線路暢通，在可預見的未來仍將如此。這——這不是臨時措施吧？

Yeah, as we said in the prepared remarks, I think, as I look at the full year, North America's in a solid position, and we're seeing more predictability and so we plan on having these lines open as we continue to demonstrate our strength with our customers and the volume here in the North American market.

是的，正如我們在準備好的發言稿中所說，我認為，展望全年，北美市場處於穩固地位，我們看到市場更加可預測，因此我們計劃繼續保持這些生產線的開放，繼續向我們的客戶展示我們的實力以及我們在北美市場的銷量。

Great. All right. Thank you.

偉大的。好的。謝謝。

Thanks, Rob.

謝謝你，羅伯。

Alexia Howard, Bernstein.

Alexia Howard，Bernstein。

Good morning, everyone.

各位早安。

Good morning.

早安.

Good morning.

早安.

Can I ask about how you're managing to improve execution through increased discipline, more accountability, and metrics? I know you talked about how -- when capacity utilization was very high in the last few years. It was very hard to get your arms around all of that, obviously, you've taken a little bit of a pause on capacity utilization. It's now ramping up again.

請問您是如何透過加強紀律、提高問責制和引入衡量指標來提高執行力的？我知道你曾經談過——過去幾年產能利用率非常高。顯然，要完全掌握所有這些資訊非常困難，因此你們在產能利用率方面稍作了調整。現在又開始加速發展了。

But what can you manage and monitor now that you maybe couldn't do a couple of years ago? And how is that helping your ability to execute and keep everything flowing smoothly? Thank you, and I'll pass it on.

但現在你能管理和監控哪些幾年前你可能無法做到的事呢？這如何幫助你提升執行能力並保持一切順利進行？謝謝，我會轉達的。

Yeah, I appreciate it, Alexia. There's a few things that are going on. One, as we've had started our focus to win work and really focus on the executional excellence part in our cost savings program, we've put clear accountabilities in place across our supply chain. We are now measuring ourselves on certain KPIs in a number of different areas and really focused on delivering those at the plant level.

是的，謝謝你，艾莉克西亞。有幾件事正在發生。第一，由於我們已經開始專注於贏得工作，並真正專注於成本節約計劃中的執行卓越部分，因此我們在整個供應鏈中建立了明確的問責制。我們現在根據多個不同領域的某些關鍵績效指標來衡量自身表現，並真正專注於在工廠層級實現這些指標。

We've had AlixPartners who participated in some of the work with us have helped us put together the right scorecarding and the right tracking in place, and we look at that on a regular basis. We're also investing in additional support in our demand and supply planning to make sure that we execute on a better basis or a more accurate basis moving forward that reduces or adds, I should say, better predictability in the business moving forward.

AlixPartners 曾參與我們的一些工作，幫助我們建立了正確的評分卡和追蹤機制，我們會定期查看這些機制。我們也在加強對需求和供應計劃的支持力度，以確保我們能夠更好地執行計劃，或者說，能夠更準確地預測未來的業務發展，從而提高業務的可預測性。

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

太好了，非常感謝。我會轉達的。

Max Gumport, BNP.

Max Gumport，BNP。

Hey. Great. Thanks for the question. Halfway through the year, half of the year you're left, I'm curious what scenarios you're seeing that could still push you to the lower half of your adjusted EBITDA (technical difficulty) asked differently, what prevents you today from raising the low end of the range? Thanks very much.

嘿。偉大的。謝謝你的提問。一年已過半，還剩下半年時間，我很好奇你看到了哪些可能使你的調整後 EBITDA 仍處於下半部分的情況（技術難題）。換句話說，是什麼阻止了你今天提高該範圍的下限？非常感謝。

Yeah, Max, as I think about it, we're working really hard to deliver the commitments and the expectations that we've made. I think as you look at our overall business, we've delivered strong volume momentum. We've made meaningful changes to how we operate, both in our cost structure but also in our operations overall, which we've talked about.

是的，Max，仔細想想，我們正在努力履行我們所做的承諾和期望。我認為，從我們整體業務來看，我們已經實現了強勁的銷售成長勢頭。我們對營運方式進行了意義重大的改變，包括成本結構和整體營運方式，這一點我們已經討論過了。

I think restarting those curtailed lines in North America is a great sign and that volume that we're seeing come through. So we're really proud of the accomplishments that we've made in such a short amount of time.

我認為北美地區重啟那些停駛的線路是一個很好的跡象，我們看到的貨運量也在回升。因此，我們為在如此短的時間內所取得的成就感到非常自豪。

That said, turnarounds are not linear. Like I said in the prepared remarks, and we're navigating an ongoing competitive environment. We're seeing continued soft traffic. There's continued macroeconomic headwinds, like everyone's facing.

也就是說，企業轉虧為盈的過程並非線性發展。正如我在準備好的演講稿中所說，我們正處於一個持續競爭的環境。我們看到客流量持續疲軟。和所有人一樣，宏觀經濟仍面臨持續的逆風。

But I'll tell you, as I look at it for the full year, I think North America is in a really solid position, and we're seeing more predictability as I said earlier.

但就全年來看，我認為北美處於非常穩固的地位，而且正如我之前所說，我們看到了更多的可預測性。

When I think about the international markets, they remain a bit more dynamic. We got to manage through that the right way. And you've heard us say this already. There was a lot -- a good crop in Europe, which has led to lower costs in that market. There remains a soft demand around traffic in those markets.

當我想到國際市場時，我覺得它們仍然更有活力。我們必須用正確的方式應對這件事。你們之前已經聽我們說過這句話了。歐洲的收成很好，導致該市場的價格下降，所以有很多產品上市。這些市場的交通需求依然疲軟。

And then as capacity has been built in some of those regions around the globe, there's less exports from Europe, which is creating some of the pressure in that market. That's really where we're seeing the challenge in the future.

隨著全球某些地區產能的提升，歐洲的出口量減少，這給歐洲市場帶來了一定的壓力。這正是我們未來面臨的真正挑戰。

Yeah, Max, just to confirm, in the prepared remarks, we did say that we're expecting to be near the midpoint of that EBITDA range. And again, the factors being price/mix headwinds as well as start-up and ramp-up costs in Argentina, along with additional fixed factory burden from underutilization of the manufacturing capacity in Europe as we work to rebalance supply and demand.

是的，Max，我再確認一下，在準備好的發言稿中，我們確實說過，我們預計 EBITDA 將接近該範圍的中點。此外，阿根廷的價格/產品組合不利因素以及啟動和產能提升成本，以及由於我們努力重新平衡供需而導致的歐洲製造業產能利用不足帶來的額外固定工廠負擔，也是造成上述情況的原因。

Great. As a follow-up, I think, obviously, the shares are down meaningfully today. I think part of what's being reflected there is investor concern around if Lamb Weston is not able to raise the low end of the guidance today on EBITDA. What does that mean for '27?

偉大的。作為後續報道，我認為，很顯然，今天的股價大幅下跌。我認為部分原因在於投資者擔心蘭姆韋斯頓今天能否提高 EBITDA 預期下限。這對 2027 年意味著什麼？

Right now, lower half of the range is more likely than the remainder in '26, then what does that imply for '27? Does it imply further EBITDA declines next year as well.

目前來看，2026 年出現該範圍下半部的可能性比其餘部分更大，那麼這對 2027 年又意味著什麼呢？這是否意味著明年的 EBITDA 也將進一步下降？

Is there any commentary you can offer to push back against that just given how the shares are performing right now? Thanks very much.

鑑於目前股價的表現，您能否就此發表一些反駁意見？非常感謝。

Yeah. Here's what I'd say. Listen, we're working hard to deliver on our commitments and expectations. And I think we're taking prudence in our guidance to make sure that we deliver going forward.

是的。我的看法是這樣的。聽著，我們正在努力履行我們的承諾，達到我們的預期目標。我認為我們在指導方針上採取了謹慎的態度，以確保我們今後能夠取得成功。

I'd say we're still early in the innings in our Focus to Win plan. We just rolled it out five months ago. And the traffic environment remains a bit challenged. But we believe in our strategy. We've had some great improvements around our business, especially in costs and also building those customer partnerships.

我認為，我們的「聚焦勝利」計畫還處於早期階段。我們五個月前才推出這項服務。交通環境仍有些挑戰。但我們相信我們的策略。我們在業務方面取得了一些重大進步，尤其是在成本控制和建立客戶合作關係方面。

A key element of improving our margin over the long term is going to be unlocking additional cost savings. We're well on our way this year. We believe we have the right plan in place to continue to do that in the future. But we'll provide more details on what we think those margin targets will be once we're a little bit further along in our Focus to Win process.

從長遠來看，提高利潤率的關鍵在於釋放更多成本節約潛力。今年我們進展順利。我們相信我們已經制定了正確的計劃，以便將來能夠繼續這樣做。但一旦我們的「聚焦致勝」流程取得更大進展，我們將提供更多關於我們認為這些利潤率目標的具體細節。

Yeah. And just to add, as Mike has said in the prepared remarks, North America is our most profitable segment, and it's in a solid position. There are some price mix headwinds in the back half of the year and there are some incremental costs related to ramp up but underutilization and we've already provided an example of actions that we are taking to manage those costs.

是的。另外補充一點，正如麥克在準備好的演講稿中所說，北美是我們獲利能力最強的地區，而且目前處於穩固的地位。今年下半年價格組合方面存在一些不利因素，由於產能利用不足，還會產生一些額外的成本，我們已經舉例說明了我們正在採取哪些措施來控制這些成本。

So for now, we expect to be closer to the midpoint, but very important to keep in mind that our most profitable segment, the North America segment, is very strong right now and International we're working through those dynamics.

所以目前來看，我們預計會更接近中間值，但非常重要的是要記住，我們最賺錢的部門——北美部門——目前非常強勁，而國際部門我們正在努力應對這些動態。

Thanks very much.

非常感謝。

(Operator Instructions) Scott Marks, Jefferies.

（操作說明）斯科特·馬克斯，傑富瑞。

Hey. Good morning. Thanks so much for taking our questions. I wanted to ask a little bit about the pricing dynamic in North America. Specifically, you highlighted the mix impact of that headwind. As it relates to the other side of it, the trade support component, wondering maybe how you're thinking about that in terms of where your support is right now for customers and whether or not you believe there's some incremental support warranted going forward? Or are you comfortable with where levels are right now Thanks.

嘿。早安.非常感謝您回答我們的問題。我想稍微了解一下北美地區的定價動態。具體來說，你強調了這種逆風對混合市場的影響。至於貿易支援方面，我想知道您目前對客戶的支援情況如何，以及您是否認為未來需要增加一些支援？或者您對目前的水平感到滿意嗎？謝謝。

Yeah, I appreciate the question. Listen, we're really focused on driving those customer partnerships and driving the volume. You saw that in the first half of the year. As we mentioned in our prepared remarks, about 90% of those large chain contracts have been settled. We'll have the rest of our contracts to get settled here over the next couple of weeks and we feel good about where things are at.

是的，感謝你的提問。聽著，我們真正關注的是推動客戶合作和提升銷售。上半年的情況已經說明了這一點。正如我們在準備好的演講稿中所提到的，這些大型連鎖合約中約有 90% 已經結算完畢。接下來幾週我們將陸續完成剩餘的合同，我們對目前的進展感到滿意。

As we've gone through that RFP and contracting time period, there have been some customers where we have needed to defend some of the pricing to make sure that we succeed with those customers long term and keep those customers. And those are customers who are driving growth and having success in the marketplace.

在招標和合約簽訂期間，我們遇到了一些客戶，需要對某些定價進行辯護，以確保我們能夠長期成功地與這些客戶建立合作關係並留住這些客戶。而這些客戶正是推動成長和在市場上取得成功的關鍵力量。

But as you said, I mean, the thing that I want to make sure it's clear is that not all of this is price related. There is a mix component of which Bernadette talked about. And a piece of that is mix between customers within the restaurants, also mix with some of those faster-growing QSRs, and also some mix in our retail side of the business is we're seeing a shift from branded to private label.

但正如你所說，我的意思是，我想明確一點，並非所有這些都與價格有關。伯納黛特提到的混合成分確實存在。其中一部分原因是餐廳內部顧客的混合消費，一部分原因是與一些成長較快的快餐店的混合消費，還有一部分原因是我們零售業務的混合消費，我們看到從品牌產品轉向自有品牌產品的轉變。

But the predictability of our North America business is much better than it has been in the past.

但我們北美業務的可預測性比以往好得多。

And just to make sure that in the prepared remarks, you did catch that we do expect in the second half for the price/mix headwinds to moderate slightly as we lap the fiscal '25 pricing actions. So that's important to keep in mind as we look to the back half of the year.

另外，為了確保你在準備好的發言稿中註意到，我們預計在下半年，隨著 2025 財年定價措施的結束，價格/產品組合方面的不利因素將略有緩解。所以，在展望下半年時，這一點很重要。

Understood. Thanks for the answer there. Second question for me, maybe on prior calls, I think you had noted a significant amount of capacity in international markets or plans for international capacity that had been paused previously. But it sounds like, today, you're talking about there has been actually some added capacity. So wondering if you can just help us square the two in terms of what happened with those projects that were previously paused. Thanks.

明白了。謝謝你的解答。我的第二個問題是，或許在先前的通話中，您曾提到國際市場存在大量產能，或之前暫停國際產能計畫。但聽起來，今天你指的是實際上已經增加了一些產能。所以，我想請您幫我們理清一下之前暫停的那些項目究竟發生了什麼事。謝謝。

Yeah. Listen, the pace of newly announced capacity has definitely slowed. I think what we've been speaking to is some of the capacity has been added over the course of the last year or so in some of those developing markets. But we believe that the industry is going to be rational over time. Probably I'm starting to sound a little bit like a broken record.

是的。聽著，新增產能的公佈速度確實已經放緩了。我認為我們一直在討論的是，在過去一年左右的時間裡，一些新興市場增加了部分產能。但我們相信，隨著時間的推移，這個行業終將趨於理性。我可能聽起來有點像複讀機了。

And we'll continue to manage our supply chain footprint as we have in the past. We believe that when traffic returns, we're going to be well positioned to benefit from that growth. But again, we have heard and continue to hear of postponements or delays or even cancellations in this market and believe that the environment will be rational.

我們將繼續像過去一樣管理我們的供應鏈佈局。我們相信，當客流量恢復時，我們將能夠很好地掌握成長機會。但是，我們已經聽到並將繼續聽到這個市場出現延期、推遲甚至取消的情況，我們相信市場環境將會是理性的。

Understood. Thanks so much and happy holidays.

明白了。非常感謝，祝您節日快樂。

Happy holidays.

節日快樂。

Marc Torrente, Wells Fargo Securities.

馬克‧托倫特，富國證券。

Hey. Good morning and thank you for the question. First, you called out visibility to volume growth in the back half with North America at or above the front half. Just want to get a sense of how much of that is driven by the 53rd week and how the underlying momentum is against tougher laps? And I guess what that could look like entering fiscal '27?

嘿。早安，謝謝你的提問。首先，您指出下半年銷售成長前景可觀，北美地區的銷售量將達到或超過上半年的水平。我只是想了解一下，其中有多少是受第 53 週比賽的影響，以及在更艱難的賽道上，潛在的勢頭如何？那麼，我猜想進入 2027 財年後，情況會是什麼樣子呢？

Yeah. So as it relates to our volume outlook, what we're expecting to see in the second half is that it will be relatively consistent other than the 53rd week. Again, that is based on the pace of increase in volumes that we've had with some of our chain customers in the first half of the year. As it relates to international, we expect it to be flat in the second half of the year compared with the prior year as we continue to navigate those dynamic markets.

是的。因此，就我們的銷售展望而言，我們預計下半年銷售將相對穩定，第 53 週除外。同樣，這是根據我們今年上半年一些連鎖客戶的銷售成長速度得出的結論。就國際業務而言，我們預計下半年與去年同期相比將保持平穩，因為我們將繼續應對這些充滿活力的市場。

Yeah. I've already shared a little bit about where -- at the right time, we'll come back and talk about where we believe margin will be in the future, but we believe that our Focus to Win plan has us on track to deliver growth. Consumption, if you look at it, is expected to be between 2% and 4%. And over the next, call it, five years or so, and you're going to see that higher in emerging markets and lower in some of the more established markets.

是的。我已經分享了一些關於未來利潤率的看法——在合適的時機，我們會回來討論我們認為未來的利潤率會是多少，但我們相信，我們的「聚焦致勝」計劃將使我們走上實現成長的正軌。從目前的情況來看，消費量預計在 2% 到 4% 之間。接下來五年左右的時間裡，你會看到新興市場的利率上升，而一些較成熟的市場的利率下降。

But I think as we've demonstrated in the first half of the year, we're implementing a strategy that positions us to gain share and really lean into some of those premium segments of the market. So we're really confident in our ability to grow volume with our customers even in a challenged environment or a challenged traffic environment that we're seeing today.

但我認為，正如我們在今年上半年所展現的那樣，我們正在實施一項策略，該策略使我們能夠獲得市場份額，並真正專注於一些高端市場細分領域。因此，即使在當前充滿挑戰的環境或交通狀況不佳的情況下，我們也對與客戶共同提升銷售的能力充滿信心。

Okay. And then, yeah, on the traffic front, it continues to be soft. Are you seeing anything in November, December that suggests any improvement or deterioration? And what are your expectations for trends over, say, the next 12 months?

好的。是的，在交通方面，情況依然疲軟。您在11月和12月觀察到任何跡象顯示情況有所改善或惡化嗎？那麼，您對未來12個月的趨勢有何預期呢？

Yeah, I think we just saw the November data last night. I think it's very consistent to what Bernadette shared in the prepared remarks. So nothing different from that.

是的，我想我們昨晚剛看到了11月的數據。我認為這與伯納黛特在準備好的演講稿中分享的內容非常一致。所以沒什麼不同。

Great. Thank you.

偉大的。謝謝。

Carla Cassella, JPMorgan.

卡拉‧卡塞拉，摩根大通。

Thanks for the question. I was just wondering, if you could give us a little more color in terms of where you think overall industry capacity for frozen stands and if it varies dramatically by country or region.

謝謝你的提問。我只是想問一下，您能否更詳細地介紹一下您認為冷凍食品攤位的整體行業產能如何，以及它是否因國家或地區而異？

Yeah, I shared a little bit of that earlier. Like I said, we believe that the market is going to be rational over time. I probably sound like a broken record. I've said that in several calls over the last couple of quarters, but we have heard of delays and postponements.

是的，我之前也稍微提過。正如我所說，我們相信市場最終會趨於理性。我可能聽起來像個複讀機。在過去幾季的幾次電話會議中，我都提到過這一點，但我們確實聽到了一些延誤和延遲的消息。

We have seen some capacity built in some of those developing markets, which is having an impact on exports out of Europe, especially given the low cost of raw.

我們看到一些新興市場已經建立了一定的產能，這正在對歐洲的出口產生影響，尤其是在原材料成本較低的情況下。

But again, there's been some consolidation in the market, and we'll continue to see how that potentially impacts the future, but we believe that this industry is going to be rational and has been. We'll manage through it the right way as we are and as you've seen in the first half of the year.

但市場再次出現了一些整合，我們將繼續觀察這可能會對未來產生怎樣的影響，但我們相信這個產業將會是理性的，而且一直以來都是如此。我們會以正確的方式應對，就像我們一直以來所做的那樣，也正如你們在今年上半年所看到的那樣。

Okay. Great. I'm sorry. I missed part of the early part, but thank you so much for going over that again.

好的。偉大的。對不起。我錯過了前面一部分，非常感謝您再次講解。

No problem.

沒問題。

William Reuter, Bank of America.

威廉‧羅伊特，美國銀行。

Hi. Good morning. You've made some comments today about focusing on execution, working with your partners. It sounds like in some instances, maybe you're paying penalties or having to accept pricing that is lower than would be fair based upon your prior missteps, maybe some of the ERP challenges. I guess, do you believe that this is the case? And do you believe that over time, as you continue to have high fill rates that you may be able to demand greater pricing from those customers?

你好。早安.今天您發表了一些關於注重執行、與合作夥伴共同努力的評論。聽起來好像在某些情況下，你可能因為先前的失誤（也可能是因為 ERP 系統的一些問題）而受到懲罰，或者不得不接受低於合理價格的定價。我想，你認為情況就是這樣嗎？您是否認為，隨著時間的推移，當您的訂單完成率持續保持在較高水準時，您就可以向這些客戶索取更高的價格？

Yeah. I don't think that's the case at all. As we shared, we feel really good about where our North America business is at. In the current macroeconomic environment and with slower traffic or softer traffic, we're winning in the marketplace when it comes to volume. So our customers are turning to Lamb Weston because of that history of innovation, quality, consistency, and delivering on our service, and we're proving that.

是的。我完全不認為情況是這樣。正如我們之前所說，我們對北美業務的現狀感到非常滿意。在當前的宏觀經濟環境下，儘管客流量有所下降或減少，但就銷售而言，我們在市場上取得了成功。因此，我們的客戶選擇蘭姆韋斯頓是因為我們擁有創新、品質、一致性和交付服務的悠久歷史，而我們正在證明這一點。

We spend a lot of time focused on our customers. And when you have the right focus, you see results. And that's what you're seeing in the marketplace right now and believe we'll continue to do that into the future.

我們投入大量時間關注客戶。當你找準方向時，你就會看到成果。這就是你現在在市場上看到的，我們相信未來我們也會繼續這樣做。

As Bernadette mentioned, yes, price/mix was down in our North America business, but it's important to keep in mind that a large sizable portion of that is from mix, which is driven by some of those shifts from branded-to-private label and retail as well as some shifts between QSR customers or restaurant customers in the current traffic environment.

正如伯納黛特所提到的那樣，是的，我們在北美的業務價格/組合有所下降，但重要的是要記住，其中很大一部分是由於組合變化造成的，而組合變化又是由品牌產品向自有品牌和零售的轉變，以及當前交通環境下快餐店顧客和餐廳顧客之間的轉變所驅動的。

Yeah. And to be clear, all pricing has been based on competitive market conditions.

是的。需要明確的是，所有定價均基於競爭性市場條件。

Got it. That makes sense. And then with the stock down, you're still below your 3.5 times leverage target. How is this going to inform decisions on capital allocation and potential acceleration of share repurchases?

知道了。這很有道理。即使股價下跌，你的槓桿倍數仍然低於 3.5 倍的目標。這將如何影響資本配置決策以及潛在的加速股票回購？

Yeah. So our capital allocation priorities remain consistent with what I shared in my prepared remarks. We're focused on spending capital where we need to spend to deliver our strategy and our business. We will always, as we have in the recent past, look at opportunistic share repurchases. Nothing will change there, but we're focused on delivering our capital allocation strategy, which includes investing in the business and returning cash to shareholders.

是的。因此，我們的資本配置優先事項與我在事先準備好的發言稿中所述保持一致。我們專注於將資金投入我們需要投入的地方，以實現我們的策略和業務目標。我們將一如既往地關注機會性股票回購，就像我們最近一段時間所做的那樣。這一點不會改變，但我們將專注於執行我們的資本配置策略，包括投資於業務並向股東返還現金。

Great. Happy holidays. Thanks.

偉大的。節日快樂。謝謝。

Happy holidays.

節日快樂。

Happy holidays, everyone.

祝大家節日快樂。

Thank you, and that does conclude the question-and-answer session. I'll now turn the conference back over to Debbie Hancock.

謝謝，問答環節到此結束。現在我將把會議交還給黛比·漢考克。

Thank you, Justin, and thank you everyone for joining us today. The replay of the call will be available on our website later this afternoon. Have a great rest of your day and a happy holiday season. Thank you.

謝謝賈斯汀，也謝謝今天到場的各位。本次電話會議的錄音回放將於今天下午晚些時候在我們的網站上提供。祝您今天餘下的時間過得愉快，假期快樂。謝謝。

Thank you. That does conclude today's conference. We do thank you for your participation and having an excellent day.

謝謝。今天的會議到此結束。非常感謝您的參與，祝您有美好的一天。