Mattel Inc (MAT) 2024 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon. My name is Brianna, and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to Mattel's second-quarter 2024 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions)

午安.我叫布麗安娜，今天我將擔任你們的會議操作員。此時此刻，我歡迎大家參加美泰兒 2024 年第二季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）

I will now turn the call over to David Zbojniewicz, Head of Investor Relations. You may begin your conference.

我現在將把電話轉給投資者關係主管 David Zbojniewicz。您可以開始您的會議了。

Thank you, operator. Good afternoon, everyone. Joining me today are Ynon Kreiz, Mattel's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; and Anthony DiSilvestro, Mattel's Chief Financial Officer.

謝謝你，接線生。大家下午好。今天與我一起出席的還有美泰董事長兼執行長 Ynon Kreiz；和美泰財務長安東尼·迪西爾維斯特羅(Anthony DiSilvestro)。

As you know, this afternoon, we reported Mattel's second-quarter 2024 financial results. We will begin today's call with Ynon and Anthony providing commentary on our results, after which we will provide some time for questions.

如您所知，今天下午，我們報告了美泰 2024 年第二季財務業績。我們將首先由伊農和安東尼對我們的結果發表評論，然後我們將提供一些提問時間。

To help supplement our discussion today, we have provided you with a slide presentation. Our discussion, slide presentation, and earnings release may reference non-GAAP financial measures, including adjusted gross profit and adjusted gross margin; adjusted other selling and administrative expenses; adjusted operating income or loss and adjusted operating income or loss margin; adjusted earnings per share; adjusted tax rate; earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization or EBITDA; adjusted EBITDA; free cash flow; free cash flow; conversion; leverage ratio; net debt; and constant currency.

為了幫助補充我們今天的討論，我們為您提供了幻燈片簡報。我們的討論、幻燈片簡報和收益發布可能會參考非公認會計準則財務指標，包括調整後毛利和調整後毛利率；調整其他銷售和管理費用；調整後的營業收入或損失以及調整後的營業收入或損失率；調整後每股收益；調整後的稅率；息稅折舊攤提前利潤或 EBITDA；調整後的 EBITDA；自由現金流;自由現金流;轉換;槓桿比率;淨債務;和恆定貨幣。

In addition, we present changes in gross billings, a key performance indicator. Please note that we may refer to gross billings as billings in our presentation and that gross billings figures referenced on this call will be stated in constant currency, unless stated otherwise.

此外，我們也提供了一項關鍵績效指標—總帳單的變動。請注意，除非另有說明，否則我們在演示中可能將總帳單稱為帳單，並且本次電話會議中引用的總帳單資料將以固定貨幣表示。

Our slide presentation can be viewed in sync with today's call when you access it through our Investors section of our corporate website, corporate.mattel.com. The information required by Regulation G regarding non-GAAP financial measures, as well as information regarding our key performance indicator is included in our earnings release and slide presentation, and both documents are also available in the Investors section of our corporate website.

當您透過我們公司網站 Corporate.mattel.com 的投資者部分造訪我們的幻燈片簡報時，可以與今天的電話會議同步查看。 G 條例要求的有關非 GAAP 財務指標的資訊以及有關我們關鍵績效指標的資訊均包含在我們的收益發布和幻燈片演示中，這兩份文件也可在我們公司網站的投資者部分中取得。

The preliminary financial results included in the press release and slide presentation represent the most current information available to management. The company's actual results when disclosed in its Form 10-Q may differ from these preliminary results as a result of the completion of the company's financial closing procedures, final adjustments, completion of the review by the company's independent registered public accounting firm, and other developments that may arise between now and the disclosure of the final results.

新聞稿和幻燈片簡報中包含的初步財務業績代表了管理層可獲得的最新資訊。由於公司財務結算程序的完成、最終調整、公司獨立註冊會計師事務所審核的完成以及其他進展，公司在 10-Q 表格中披露的實際結果可能與這些初步結果有所不同從現在到最終結果披露之間可能會出現這種情況。

Before we begin, I'd like to caution you that certain statements made during the call are forward-looking, including statements related to the future performance of our business, brands, categories, and product lines. Any statements we make about the future are, by their nature, uncertain.

在開始之前，我想提醒您，電話會議中所做的某些陳述是前瞻性的，包括與我們業務、品牌、類別和產品線的未來業績相關的陳述。我們對未來所做的任何陳述本質上都是不確定的。

These statements are based on currently available information and assumptions, and they're subject to a number of significant risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. We describe some of these uncertainties in the risk factors section of our 2023 annual report on Form 10-K, our Q1 2024 quarterly report on Form 10-Q, our earnings release and presentation and other filings we make with the SEC from time to time, as well as in other public statements.

這些陳述是基於目前可用的資訊和假設，並受到許多重大風險和不確定性的影響，這些風險和不確定性可能導致我們的實際結果與前瞻性陳述中的預測有所不同。我們在 10-K 表 2023 年年度報告、10-Q 表 2024 年第一季季度報告、我們的收益發布和演示以及我們不時向 SEC 提交的其他文件中描述了其中一些不確定性以及其他公開聲明。

Mattel does not update forward-looking statements and expressly disclaims any obligation to do so except as required by law.

美泰不會更新前瞻性陳述，並明確表示不承擔任何更新的義務，除非法律要求。

And now I'd like to turn the call over to Ynon.

現在我想把電話轉給 Ynon。

Thank you for joining Mattel's second-quarter 2024 earnings call. This was a good quarter for Mattel, where we achieved significant gross margin expansion and growth in adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EPS. We further strengthened our balance sheet and more than doubled free cash flow in the trailing 12-month period. We are well positioned for the second half with new product innovation and increased retail support and are reiterating our full-year guidance.

感謝您參加美泰兒 2024 年第二季財報電話會議。對於美泰來說，這是一個不錯的季度，我們實現了毛利率的顯著擴張以及調整後 EBITDA 和調整後每股收益的成長。我們進一步加強了資產負債表，過去 12 個月期間的自由現金流增加了一倍以上。透過新產品創新和增加零售支持，我們為下半年做好了準備，並重申了我們的全年指導。

Looking at key financial metrics for the second quarter compared to the same period in the prior year, net sales declined 1% as reported and while comparable in constant currency. Adjusted gross margin increased 430 basis points to 49.2%. Adjusted EBITDA improved $23 million to $171 million and adjusted earnings per share increased $0.09 to $0.19.

從第二季的主要財務指標來看，與去年同期相比，報告中的淨銷售額下降了 1%，但以固定匯率計算可比。調整後毛利率成長 430 個基點至 49.2%。調整後 EBITDA 增加 2,300 萬美元，達到 1.71 億美元，調整後每股盈餘增加 0.09 美元，達到 0.19 美元。

Gross billings declined 2% with low-single-digit declines in North America, EMEA, and LATAM, partially offset by high single digit growth in APAC. POS was comparable in the quarter in first half and positive for dolls, vehicles, building sets, and games. Mattel gained share globally in the second quarter and maintained its leadership position in dolls, vehicles, and infant, toddler, and preschool with Barbie, Hot Wheels, and Fisher-Price as number one in their respective categories through Circana.

總帳單下降 2%，其中北美、歐洲、中東和非洲和拉丁美洲地區出現低個位數下降，但部分被亞太地區高個位數成長所抵銷。 POS 與上半季的情況相當，玩偶、車輛、積木和遊戲方面表現良好。美泰第二季度的全球市場份額有所增加，並在玩偶、汽車、嬰幼兒和學齡前兒童領域保持領先地位，其中芭比娃娃、風火輪和費雪公司透過Circana 在各自類別中排名第一。

Free cash flow in the trailing 12-month period was $826 million compared to $361 million in the same period a year ago. We repurchased $200 million of shares in the first half of 2024. In line with our capital allocation priorities, we expect to continue share repurchases in the second half of the year.

過去 12 個月的自由現金流為 8.26 億美元，去年同期為 3.61 億美元。我們在 2024 年上半年回購了 2 億美元的股票。

We are executing our strategy to grow Mattel's IP-driven toy business and expand our entertainment offering. And this year, we are prioritizing growth in profitability, gross margin expansion, and strong cash generation.

我們正在執行我們的策略，以發展美泰知識產權驅動的玩具業務並擴大我們的娛樂產品。今年，我們的首要任務是獲利能力成長、毛利率擴張和強勁的現金產生。

We continue to position the company for long-term growth and expect to benefit from innovation across the toy portfolio and market share gains; meaningful progress across multiple entertainment verticals, following the success of the Barbie movie; greater efficiencies and productivity improvements, primarily driven by the optimizing for profitable growth program; and a strong balance sheet with financial flexibility.

我們繼續為公司的長期成長做好準備，並期望從玩具產品組合的創新和市場份額的成長中受益；繼芭比電影的成功之後，多個娛樂垂直領域取得了有意義的進展；提高效率和生產力，主要是透過優化獲利成長計劃來推動的；以及具有財務靈活性的強大資產負債表。

On the toy side of the company, in the second quarter, dolls gross billings declined while POS was positive. Vehicles was up and POS was positive. In infant, toddler, and preschool, the Fisher-Price power brand grew double digits, reflecting the early success of our new strategy.

在公司的玩具方面，第二季度，玩偶的總銷售額下降，而 POS 則呈現正成長。車輛已到位，POS 呈陽性。在嬰兒、幼兒和學齡前兒童領域，費雪牌強效品牌實現了兩位數成長，反映出我們新策略的早期成功。

Challenger categories in total grew, led by games and the success of UNO Show Em No Mercy. Mattel gained share in games in the second quarter per Circana and Mattel Creations, our DTC channel serving adult fans and collectors, continued to increase traffic and significantly grew its subscriber base. We continue to make progress in capturing value of our IP outside the toy aisle.

在遊戲和《UNO Show Em No Mercy》的成功帶動下，挑戰者類別總數有所增加。根據 Circana 的數據，美泰在第二季度的遊戲市佔率有所增加，而我們為成年粉絲和收藏家提供服務的 DTC 頻道 Mattel Creations 繼續增加流量，並顯著擴大了其用戶群。我們在玩具領域以外的智慧財產權價值方面不斷取得進展。

In film, we announced Masters of the Universe will be released in theaters worldwide on June 5, 2026, distributed by Amazon MGM Studios. And Monster High would be co-developed with Universal Pictures and Academy Award-winning producer and screen writer, Akiva Goldsman.

在電影方面，我們宣布《宇宙大師》將於 2026 年 6 月 5 日在全球影院上映，由亞馬遜米高梅影業發行。 《Monster High》將由環球影業和奧斯卡獲獎製片人兼編劇 Akiva Goldsman 共同開發。

In television, Barney's World, a new animated series will debut this fall on Max and Cartoon Network. And Hot Wheels Let’s Race season 2 and a new Barbie animated series will premiere this fall on Netflix.

電視方面，一部新的動畫影集《巴尼的世界》將於今年秋天在麥克斯和卡通網絡上首播。 Hot Wheels Let's Race 第二季和新的芭比動畫影集將於今年秋季在 Netflix 首播。

In digital gaming, we announced a multi-year licensing agreement with video games publisher, Outright Games. And moving forward, we look to extend digital games beyond IP licensing to self-publishing of Mattel mobile games. This has the potential to significantly increase revenue and profit at low investment, and it would be complementary to our existing model.

在數位遊戲方面，我們宣布與電玩發行商 Outright Games 簽訂多年許可協議。展望未來，我們希望將數位遊戲從 IP 授權擴展到美泰手機遊戲的自助發行。這有可能以低投資顯著增加收入和利潤，並將補充我們現有的模式。

The toy industry performed better than anticipated in the first half and was comparable to the prior year periods. We expect the toy industry to decline modestly in 2024, which is an improvement from our outlook at the start of the year.

上半年玩具產業表現優於預期，與去年同期相當。我們預計 2024 年玩具業將小幅下滑，這比我們年初的預期有所改善。

Beyond 2024, we believe trends will further improve and that the industry will return to growth and continue to grow over the long term. The fundamentals are strong. Toys are an important part of consumers' lives and retailers see the category as a strategic lever.

2024 年之後，我們相信趨勢將進一步改善，產業將恢復成長並持續長期成長。基本面很強。玩具是消費者生活的重要組成部分，零售商將該類別視為策略槓桿。

For Mattel, we expect our toy business to grow in the second half and look forward to a good holiday season with new product innovation, increased retailer support, more marketing and promotions, and new content. Across our leader categories, we expect dolls to benefit from Barbie's 65th anniversary celebration, the launch of two new Barbie segments, two theatrical movies, Universal's Wicked and Disney's Moana 2, and new television content.

對於美泰來說，我們預計我們的玩具業務將在下半年實現成長，並期待透過新產品創新、增加零售商支援、更多行銷和促銷以及新內容帶來一個美好的假期。在我們的主要類別中，我們預計娃娃將受益於芭比娃娃65 週年慶典、兩個新的芭比娃娃片段的推出、兩部院線電影（環球影業的《魔法壞女巫》和迪士尼的《莫阿娜2》）以及新的電視內容。

Vehicles will grow, driven by increased distribution, new innovative product, and more content. And infant, toddler, and preschool will benefit from the global launch of Fisher-Price Wood's increased shelf space, the relaunch of Barney, and continued momentum in Little People. We expect to outpace the industry and gain market share this year in gross sales and earnings in 2025.

在分銷增加、新的創新產品和更多內容的推動下，車輛數量將會成長。嬰兒、幼兒和學齡前兒童將受益於 Fisher-Price Wood 的全球推出、貨架空間的增加、Barney 的重新推出以及 Little People 的持續發展勢頭。我們預計到 2025 年，今年的總銷售額和收益將超過該行業並獲得市場份額。

In closing., this was a good second quarter and first half of the year for Mattel, where we achieved significant gross margin expansion and continued to improve profitability. We are well positioned for the second half and are reiterating our full-year guidance. We are in a strong financial position to execute our strategy to grow our IP-driven toy business and expand our entertainment offering.

總而言之，對於美泰來說，第二季和上半年表現良好，我們實現了毛利率的顯著擴張，並持續提高了獲利能力。我們為下半年做好了準備，並重申了我們的全年指引。我們擁有強大的財務狀況來執行我們的策略，以發展我們的知識產權驅動的玩具業務並擴大我們的娛樂產品。

And now I will turn the call over to Anthony.

現在我將把電話轉給安東尼。

Thanks, Ynon. We achieved another quarter of increased profitability and remain on track to achieve our full-year sales and earnings guidance.

謝謝，伊農。我們的獲利能力又實現了一個季度的成長，並有望實現全年銷售和獲利指導。

Net sales of $1.080 billion declined 1% as reported and we're comparable to the prior year quarter in constant currency. Adjusted gross margin increased 430 basis points to 49.2%, benefiting from cost savings and cost inflation. Adjusted operating income improved $21 million to $96 million, an increase of 29%. Adjusted EPS was $0.19 compared to $0.10 in the prior year quarter, an increase of $0.09, almost doubling, and adjusted EBITDA increased $23 million to $171 million.

據報道，淨銷售額為 10.8 億美元，下降 1%，以固定匯率計算，與去年同期相當。受惠於成本節約和成本通膨，調整後毛利率成長 430 個基點至 49.2%。調整後營業收入增加 2,100 萬美元，達到 9,600 萬美元，成長 29%。調整後每股收益為 0.19 美元，較去年同期的 0.10 美元增加了 0.09 美元，幾乎翻了一番，調整後 EBITDA 增加了 2,300 萬美元，達到 1.71 億美元。

Turning to gross billings in constant currency, first by category. Overall, gross billings declined 2% in the quarter. POS was comparable in the quarter and first half. Dolls gross billings declined 5% due to Barbie as we wrap early movie-related shipments in the prior year and Disney's live-action The Little Mermaid as we ramp theatrical window shipments, partly offset by growth in Monster High. Notably, POS was positive and increased low single digits, benefiting from Monster High and Disney Princess and Frozen. Barbie gross billings declined 5%, while POS was flat. Mattel outperformed the industry and gained share in the dolls category in the second quarter and first half per Circana.

轉向以固定匯率計算的總帳單，先按類別劃分。總體而言，本季總帳單下降了 2%。 POS 本季與上半年的情況相當。由於芭比娃娃的總銷售額下降了5%，因為我們在上一年包裝了早期電影相關的出貨量，以及迪士尼真人版《小美人魚》因為我們增加了院線窗口出貨量，部分被《精靈高中》的成長所抵銷。值得注意的是，由於《Monster High》、《迪士尼公主》和《冰雪奇緣》，POS 業績呈正值並實現低個位數成長。芭比娃娃的總銷售額下降了 5%，而 POS 則持平。根據 Circana 的數據，美泰在第二季和上半年的娃娃類別中表現優於行業，並獲得了份額。

Vehicles grew 2% in line with POS. Growth was primarily driven by Hot Wheels, which increased 5% benefiting from die-cast cars and RC, partially offset by a decline in licensed entertainment properties. Infant, toddler, and preschool declined 3% due to the baby gear and Power Wheels as we strategically exit or out-license those segments in line with our stated strategy and preschool entertainment, partly offset by Fisher-Price.

車輛數量成長 2%，與 POS 持平。成長主要是由 Hot Wheels 推動的，得益於壓鑄汽車和遙控車，該公司成長了 5%，但部分被授權娛樂資產的下降所抵消。由於嬰兒用品和動力輪，嬰兒、幼兒和學齡前兒童下降了3%，因為我們根據我們既定的策略和學前娛樂，策略性地退出或淘汰了這些細分市場，但部分被費雪牌所抵消。

Fisher-Price power brand grew 11% driven by gains in newborn, Little People, and the launch of the Fisher-Price Wood line. Fisher-Price POS was down low-single digits in the quarter and flat in the first half. Matell outperformed the industry and gained share in the infant, toddler, and preschool category in the second quarter and first half per Circana. Challenger categories, in aggregate, increased 1%, driven by double-digit growth in games, partly offset by declines in action figures.

由於新生兒、Little People 和 Fisher-Price Wood 系列產品的推出，Fisher-Price 強力品牌成長了 11%。 Fisher-Price POS 本季出現低個位數下降，上半年持平。根據 Circana 的數據，第二季和上半年，美泰爾的表現優於行業，並在嬰兒、幼兒和學齡前兒童類別中獲得了份額。在遊戲兩位數成長的推動下，挑戰者類別整體成長了 1%，但部分被動作玩偶的下降所抵消。

Looking at second-quarter performance by region, gross billings were negatively impacted by a temporary shortage in shipping container availability to our direct import customers. We estimate this timing impact was approximately 2 percentage points in the quarter.

從各地區的第二季業績來看，我們的直接進口客戶的貨櫃供應暫時短缺，對總帳單產生了負面影響。我們估計該季度的時間影響約為 2 個百分點。

North America declined 3%. POS was comparable in the quarter. EMEA declined 2% in line with POS. Latin America declined 1% with POS declining low-single digits. Asia Pacific increased 7%, in line with POS driven by Australia and China. Matell maintained share in North America and gained share in EMEA in the second quarter and first half per Circana.

北美下降 3%。本季 POS 持平。歐洲、中東和非洲地區下降 2%，與 POS 一致。拉丁美洲下降了 1%，其中 POS 下降了低個位數。亞太地區成長 7%，與澳洲和中國推動的 POS 成長一致。根據 Circana 的數據，第二季和上半年，Matell 保持了北美市場份額，並增加了歐洲、中東和非洲市場份額。

Retail inventory movements were generally in line with historical patterns. We entered and ended the quarter with retail inventories down high-single digits compared to the prior year and believe we are well-positioned as we head into the second half.

零售庫存變動大致符合歷史模式。當我們在本季進入和結束時，零售庫存比去年同期下降了高個位數，並相信我們在進入下半年時處於有利地位。

Adjusted gross margin increased 430 basis points to 49.2%. The improvement was driven by several factors. The optimizing for profitable growth program added 120 basis points as we continue to generate cost savings. Cost deflation, primarily driven by lower ocean freight, contributed 110 basis points. Lower sales adjustments added 60 basis points. Lower inventory management costs, primarily obsolescence and close-outs, added 40 basis points and other factors added 100 basis points.

調整後毛利率成長 430 個基點至 49.2%。這項改進是由多個因素推動的。隨著我們繼續節省成本，優化獲利成長計畫增加了 120 個基點。主要由海運費下降推動的成本通貨緊縮貢獻了 110 個基點。較低的銷售調整增加了 60 個基點。較低的庫存管理成本（主要是過時和停產）增加了 40 個基點，其他因素增加了 100 個基點。

Moving down the P&L, advertising expense was $74 million compared to $90 million in the prior year quarter, a decline of $16 million. The reduction was primarily timing related as we are shifting support to the second half. Adjusted SG&A increased $37 million to $361 million. The increase was primarily driven by market related pay increases, upgrading information technology systems, and hiring talent to accelerate our entertainment strategy. For the full year 2024, we continue to expect advertising and adjusted SG&A to be comparable as a percent of net sales.

從損益表來看，廣告費用為 7,400 萬美元，與去年同期的 9,000 萬美元相比，減少了 1,600 萬美元。減少主要與時間相關，因為我們將支援轉移到下半年。調整後的 SG&A 增加了 3,700 萬美元，達到 3.61 億美元。這一成長主要是由於市場相關的薪資上漲、資訊技術系統升級以及招募人才以加速我們的娛樂策略。對於 2024 年全年，我們仍然預期廣告和調整後的銷售及一般費用將佔淨銷售額的百分比相當。

Adjusted operating income was $96 million compared to $75 million a year ago, an increase of $21 million or 29%. The increase was primarily driven by gross margin expansion and lower advertising, partially offset by higher SG&A. Adjusted EBITDA reflecting similar factors increased by $23 million or 15% to $171 million.

調整後營業收入為 9,600 萬美元，比一年前的 7,500 萬美元增加了 2,100 萬美元，即 29%。這一增長主要是由毛利率擴張和廣告費用減少所推動的，但部分被較高的銷售管理費用 (SG&A) 所抵消。反映類似因素的調整後 EBITDA 增加了 2,300 萬美元，即 15%，達到 1.71 億美元。

Adjusted EPS was $0.19 compared to $0.10 a year ago, an increase of $0.09, and in addition to operating income growth, benefited from a lower adjusted tax rate, higher interest income, and a lower share count reflecting our share repurchase activity. Cash used for operations in the first six months was $217 million compared to $326 million in the prior year period. The improvement of $108 million was primarily driven by higher net income.

調整後每股收益為0.19 美元，與一年前的0.10 美元相比，增加了0.09 美元，除了營業收入增長外，還受益於較低的調整稅率、較高的利息收入以及反映我們股票回購活動的較低股票數量。前六個月用於營運的現金為 2.17 億美元，而去年同期為 3.26 億美元。 1.08 億美元的成長主要是由於淨利潤增加所致。

Capital expenditures over the same period were $65 million compared to $73 million. Free cash flow was a use of $283 million compared to a use of $399 million, an improvement of $116 million. On a trailing 12 month basis, we generated significant free cash flow of $826 million compared to $361 million, an increase of $465 million. This strong improvement was primarily driven by working capital performance and gain in net income.

同期資本支出為 6,500 萬美元，而同期資本支出為 7,300 萬美元。自由現金流使用量為 2.83 億美元，比使用量 3.99 億美元增加了 1.16 億美元。在過去 12 個月的基礎上，我們產生了 8.26 億美元的大量自由現金流，比 3.61 億美元增加了 4.65 億美元。這種強勁的改善主要是由營運資本績效和淨利成長所推動的。

Consistent with our capital allocation priorities, we utilized a portion of free cash flow to repurchase shares. During the first half of 2024, we repurchased $200 million under our new $1 billion authorization. And during the trailing 12 month period, we have now repurchased over $350 million of shares.

與我們的資本配置優先順序一致，我們利用部分自由現金流來回購股票。 2024 年上半年，我們根據新的 10 億美元授權回購了 2 億美元。在過去 12 個月內，我們已回購了價值超過 3.5 億美元的股票。

Our balance sheet and financial position continue to improve. We finished the quarter with a cash balance of $722 million compared to $300 million a year ago, an increase of $422 million. The increase reflects the free cash flow generated over the past 12 months, partially offset by the use of cash to repurchase shares.

我們的資產負債表和財務狀況持續改善。本季末，我們的現金餘額為 7.22 億美元，與去年同期的 3 億美元相比，增加了 4.22 億美元。這一成長反映了過去 12 個月產生的自由現金流，部分被使用現金回購股票所抵銷。

Accounts receivables were $839 million compared to $891 million, a decline of $51 million, driven primarily by a reduction in days sales outstanding. Inventory levels remained significantly below the prior year as we continued to successfully reduce our inventory levels. We ended the quarter at $777 million, down $195 million. Our inventory is of high quality and we are well positioned for the second half of the year.

應收帳款為 8.39 億美元，較 8.91 億美元減少了 5,100 萬美元，主要是由於應收帳款週轉天數減少所致。隨著我們繼續成功降低庫存水平，庫存水平仍顯著低於去年。本季末，我們的營收為 7.77 億美元，減少了 1.95 億美元。我們的庫存品質很高，我們為下半年做好了準備。

Debt of $2.3 billion is comparable to last year with no scheduled maturities until 2026. Our leverage ratio continued to improve. Total debt to adjusted EBITDA, which excludes our cash balance of $722 million, finished the quarter at 2.3 times compared to 3.1 times. The improvement was driven by the increase in our trailing 12 month adjusted EBITDA.

債務為 23 億美元，與去年持平，預計 2026 年到期。調整後 EBITDA 的總債務（不包括 7.22 億美元的現金餘額）在本季結束時為 2.3 倍，而上一季為 3.1 倍。這項改善是由我們過去 12 個月調整後 EBITDA 的成長所推動的。

With the benefit of our improved financial position and investment grade ratings, we recently executed a new five-year $1.4 billion revolving credit facility. The new facility provides additional financial flexibility to execute our strategy. We continued to achieve significant cost savings. Under the optimizing for profitable growth program, we achieved $20 million of savings in the quarter with $12 million benefiting cost of goods sold and $8 million in SG&A.

憑藉我們改善的財務狀況和投資等級評級，我們最近執行了一項新的五年期 14 億美元循環信貸安排。新設施為執行我們的策略提供了額外的財務靈活性。我們繼續實現顯著的成本節約。根據獲利成長優化計劃，我們在本季節省了 2,000 萬美元，其中 1,200 萬美元受益於銷售商品成本，800 萬美元用於銷售管理費用。

Cost savings in the first half were $37 million, and we are on track to achieve or exceed targeted savings of $60 million in 2024 towards total program savings of $200 million by 2026. We are reiterating our guidance for 2024, including net sales in constant currency to be comparable to the prior year, adjusted gross margin to be in the range of 48.5% to 49% compared to 47.5% in 2023, adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $975 million to $1,025 million compared to $948 million in the prior year. Adjusted EPS to grow double digits to a range of $1.35 to $1.45 compared to $1.23 in 2023, and approximately, 500 million in free cash flow.

上半年節省的成本為3,700 萬美元，我們預計在2024 年實現或超過6,000 萬美元的節省目標，到2026 年專案節省總額達到2 億美元。銷售額與上年持平，調整後毛利率在 48.5% 至 49% 之間，而 2023 年為 47.5%，調整後毛利率在 9.75 億美元至 10.25 億美元之間，而上年為 9.48 億美元。調整後每股收益將達到兩位數成長，達到 1.35 至 1.45 美元，而 2023 年為 1.23 美元，自由現金流約為 5 億美元。

We expect to outpace the industry and gain global market share. The guidance considers what the company is aware of today, but remains subject to further market volatility, any unexpected disruption and other macro-economic risks and uncertainties.

我們期望超越行業並獲得全球市場份額。該指引考慮了公司目前所了解的情況，但仍會受到進一步的市場波動、任何意外中斷以及其他宏觀經濟風險和不確定性的影響。

As we've discussed, our 2024 plan prioritizes growth in profitability, gross margin expansion, and strong cash generation to position Mattel for long-term growth. With our first-half performance, we are well positioned to execute our strategy and expect to achieve our full-year guidance for 2024.

正如我們所討論的，我們的 2024 年計劃優先考慮盈利能力增長、毛利率擴張和強勁的現金生成，以使美泰實現長期增長。憑藉我們上半年的表現，我們已做好充分準備來執行我們的策略，並有望實現 2024 年全年指導。

Beyond this year, we expect to grow both top and bottom line in 2025. We have a strong balance sheet and expect to continue share repurchases in line with our capital allocation priorities. We are confident in our strategy and our ability to create long-term shareholder value.

今年之後，我們預計到 2025 年收入和利潤都會成長。我們對我們的策略和創造長期股東價值的能力充滿信心。

And now I will turn it over the operator.

現在我將把它交給操作員。

Thank you. I will now turn the call over to Dave.

謝謝。我現在將把電話轉給戴夫。

Before we begin the Q&A, I would like to state that per our company policy, we will not be commenting on recent press reports or speculation. We are very confident in Matell's strategy and our ability to create long-term shareholder value as a standalone company. And with that, we are happy to answer your questions.

在我們開始問答之前，我想聲明，根據我們公司的政策，我們不會對最近的媒體報導或猜測發表評論。我們對美泰兒的策略以及我們作為一家獨立公司創造長期股東價值的能力充滿信心。因此，我們很樂意回答您的問題。

Operator, back to you.

接線員，回到您身邊。

(Operator Instructions) Stephen Laszczyk, Goldman Sachs.

（操作員指示）Stephen Laszczyk，高盛。

Hey, great. Thanks for taking the questions. Maybe first for Ynon, and a high-level one on the consumer. Could you maybe give us an update on what you're hearing from your retail partners on the health of the consumer as we head into the back half of the year? I think we've seen some data points that maybe point to some of the consumer complex. So I'd be curious what you're hearing, and then more importantly, what you're seeing that gives you confidence in reiterating the guide?

嘿，太棒了。感謝您提出問題。也許首先是針對 Ynon，然後是針對消費者的高級別的。在我們進入今年下半年之際，您能否向我們介紹一下您從零售合作夥伴那裡聽到的關於消費者健康狀況的最新情況？我認為我們已經看到了一些可能指向某些消費者情結的數據點。因此，我很好奇您所聽到的內容，更重要的是，您所看到的內容讓您有信心重申指南？

Yes, sure, Stephen. First, the toy industry performed better than anticipated in the first half and was comparable to the prior year. We do expect the industry to decline modestly in 2024. But this is an improvement from our outlook at the start of the year. Beyond '24, we believe the trends will further improve and that the industry will return to growth and continue to grow over the long term.

是的，當然，史蒂芬。首先，上半年玩具產業表現優於預期，與前一年持平。我們確實預計該行業將在 2024 年出現小幅下滑。 24 年後，我們相信趨勢將進一步改善，產業將恢復成長並繼續長期成長。

What we're saying is that the fundamentals of the toy business are strong. Toys are an important part of consumers' lives and retailers see the category as a strategic lever. We do expect adult collectible items and product to drive demand. And this bodes well for our strategy in this area.

我們想說的是，玩具業的基本面很強勁。玩具是消費者生活的重要組成部分，零售商將該類別視為策略槓桿。我們確實預期成人收藏品和產品將推動需求。這對我們在這領域的策略來說是個好兆頭。

We do expect our toy business to grow in the second half and look forward to a good holiday season for Matell with new product innovation and increased retailer support, more marketing and promotion, and new content.

我們確實預計我們的玩具業務將在下半年實現成長，並期待美泰公司透過新產品創新、增加零售商支援、更多行銷和促銷以及新內容為美泰帶來一個美好的假期。

Great. Thanks for that. And then maybe one for Anthony on freight. You called out some of the volatility that's returned to the freight market. I think we've also seen some shipping rates tick up a good bit versus what we've seen historically.

偉大的。感謝那。然後也許是安東尼的貨運。您提到了貨運市場回歸的一些波動。我認為我們也看到一些運費比我們歷史上看到的要高一些。

Could you maybe talk about your freight position at the moment and to the extent to which some of these pricing dynamics could impact financials into the second part of the year? Thank you.

您能否談談您目前的貨運狀況以及其中一些定價動態可能在多大程度上影響今年下半年的財務狀況？謝謝。

Sure, Stephen. What I'll say is. I mean, we certainly continue to monitor the situation in the Red Sea, and we have accounted for the anticipated impacts in our guidance. For Mattel, we feel that we're well positioned with our supply chain capabilities, the relationship we have with carriers and the fact that we contract for most of our ocean freight on fixed rates. So we did see a little bit of volatility in the quarter around DI shipments, but we've seen that situation improved since beginning in the quarter. So we think we're in a good spot and I have reiterated our guidance.

當然，史蒂芬。我要說的是。我的意思是，我們當然會繼續監測紅海的局勢，我們已經在指導中考慮了預期的影響。對於美泰來說，我們認為我們的供應鏈能力、我們與承運商的關係以及我們以固定費率承包大部分海運的事實處於有利位置。因此，我們確實看到本季 DI 出貨量出現了一些波動，但自本季開始以來，我們看到這種情況有所改善。因此，我們認為我們處於有利位置，我重申了我們的指導。

Chris Horvers, JPMorgan.

克里斯霍弗斯，摩根大通。

Hi. Good Evening. Christian Carlino on for Chris. Appreciate the color on some of the power brands in the guide. But how should we think about the other, call it, 40% of gross billings, just given the restatements to last year's numbers. And could you quantify how much the sell-in ahead of the Barbie movie benefited 2Q of last year?

你好。晚安.克里斯蒂安·卡利諾替補克里斯。欣賞指南中一些電源品牌的顏色。但考慮到去年數字的重述，我們應該如何考慮另一個，即佔總帳單的 40%。您能否量化一下芭比娃娃電影上映前的銷售對去年第二季的收益有多少？

Can you repeat the first part of the question.

你能重複問題的第一部分嗎？

Yeah, you had given us some more color on how you're thinking about Barbie and Hot Wheels and Fisher-Price in context of the guide but the other bucket, which is about 40% of your gross billings, how should we think about that portion?

是的，您已經向我們提供了更多關於您在指南中如何看待芭比娃娃、風火輪和費雪牌的信息，但另一個部分（約佔您總賬單的40%），我們應該如何看待它部分？

Yeah. So I think you're referring to our challenger categories, which include action figures, building sets, games and other. And we saw significant growth in games led by UNO and the success of Show Em No Mercy, On building sets, we continue to scale the Pokémon business, which is doing well. And there's a slight offset on action figures. It's primarily Jurassic World as we comp the movie from two years ago and certainly very excited for that tie-in to come back in 2025.

是的。所以我認為你指的是我們的挑戰者類別，其中包括動作人物、建築套裝、遊戲等。我們看到了 UNO 主導的遊戲的顯著增長以及 Show Em No Mercy 的成功，在構建場景方面，我們繼續擴大神奇寶貝業務，該業務表現良好。而且動作人物也有輕微的偏差。這主要是《侏羅紀世界》，因為我們是在兩年前製作這部電影的，當然對於這一搭配在 2025 年回歸感到非常興奮。

And could you quantify how much the Barbie movie benefited the second quarter last year and sell-in ahead of the movie?

您能否量化《芭比娃娃》電影去年第二季的收益和電影上映前的銷售量有多少？

Yeah, not specifically, but we are down on Barbie, but the primary driver of that decline in Q2 is the wrap of the early movie sell-in from last year.

是的，不是特別明確，但我們對芭比娃娃感到失望，但第二季下降的主要驅動因素是去年早期電影銷售的結束。

Got it. That's helpful. And then

知道了。這很有幫助。進而

One way to think about it is that the POS for Barbie is flat.

一種思考方式是，芭比娃娃的 POS 是扁平的。

Got it. Thank you. And what drove the other 100 basis points of gross margin expansion? Is that -- are you starting to recapture some of the fixed cost absorption as you ramp up production levels? Or is there something else in there that's driving that?

知道了。謝謝。是什麼推動了毛利率另外 100 個基點的成長？隨著生產水準的提高，您是否開始重新吸收一些固定成本？或者還有其他什麼因素在推動這一點？

No. That is the key point. As we -- last year, we curtailed production to address our owned inventory situation. We're back to normal production levels. And with that comes some pretty significant inefficient efficiencies running through our supply chain. And that fixed cost absorption is one of those.

不，這是關鍵點。去年，我們削減了產量，以解決我們自有庫存的問題。我們已恢復正常生產水準。隨之而來的是我們供應鏈中一些相當嚴重的低效率效率。固定成本吸收就是其中之一。

Megan Alexander, Morgan Stanley.

梅根亞歷山大，摩根士丹利。

Hi. Thanks very much. I wanted to come back to the comment that you expect the toy industry to decline modestly, and that's an improvement from the outlook. It might be just a function of the size of the improvement, but you didn't change your guidance. So is there something else perhaps offsetting that? And then just related to that, you did say you expect your business to be up in the second half. Is that a POS comment or shipments comment? And is that a new expectation relative to quarter as well?

你好。非常感謝。我想回到您預計玩具行業將溫和下滑的評論，這從前景來看是一種改善。它可能只是改進大小的函數，但您沒有改變您的指導。那麼還有其他東西可以抵消這一點嗎？與此相關的是，您確實說過您預計下半年的業務會有所成長。這是 POS 評論還是出貨評論？這也是相對於季度的新預期嗎？

Yes. So I'll start with the second part of the question. So if you look at our guidance, which we reiterated, it does imply from a revenues perspective that on an aggregate basis, we'll be flat to slightly up. But when you decompose that, right, on the positive side, we expect to grow our toy business as an onset in the second half. All right. I look forward to a good holiday season.

是的。所以我將從問題的第二部分開始。因此，如果你看看我們重申的指導意見，它確實意味著從收入的角度來看，總體而言，我們的收入將持平或略有上升。但當你分解這一點時，從積極的一面來看，我們預計我們的玩具業務將在下半年開始成長。好的。我期待著一個美好的假期。

And then going the other way, we're up against the Barbie movie comp in the second half of this year, two-thirds of that occurring in the third quarter. So those are the pluses and minuses inside of the implied revenue for the back half.

另一方面，今年下半年我們將面臨芭比電影的競爭，其中三分之二發生在第三季。這些是後半段隱含收入的優點和缺點。

Okay. It sounds like nothing really changed there. I guess, maybe any comment on whether there's something changing, given you did take up your expectation for the industry broadly?

好的。聽起來好像沒有什麼真正改變。我想，考慮到您確實廣泛地表達了對該行業的期望，也許有人會評論是否有什麼變化？

Yeah. I think, the context of the industry, as an onset, it's performing better than we expected. A lot of that is building sets and adult fans and collectors, right? So when you look at our categories, the situation is pretty much unchanged and we've got two-thirds of annual revenue still ahead of us.

是的。我認為，從產業的背景來看，它的表現比我們預期的要好。其中很多是拼搭、成年粉絲和收藏家，對吧？因此，當你看看我們的類別時，情況幾乎沒有變化，我們仍然有三分之二的年收入。

Okay. Helpful. And maybe just to follow up on the direct import dynamics, the shipping container availability, I know you said it, of course, that worked itself out, but just how should we think about maybe the complexion of 3Q versus 4Q in the context of that, are you seeing a willingness for retailers to perhaps well forward orders again? And then maybe broadly, does that impact more one region more than another? Was that a across the board comment?

好的。有幫助。也許只是為了跟進直接進口動態、集裝箱可用性，我知道你說過，當然，這本身就解決了，但我們應該如何考慮第三季度與第四季度的情況，您是否看到零售商願意再次轉發訂單？然後，也許從廣義上講，這對一個地區的影響是否比另一個地區更大？這是一個全面的評論嗎？

It's really hard to parse that. Between the quarters, we are very focused on working with our retailers, planning for a good holiday season. So we think -- we've talked about this. Shipping patterns and consumption patterns really following more the historical norms and difficult to against between the quarter. But with respect to the DI issue and the impact on Q2, we have seen that situation improve since the end of the quarter.

確實很難解析它。在每個季度之間，我們都非常專注於與零售商合作，規劃一個美好的假期。所以我們認為——我們已經討論過這個問題。運輸模式和消費模式確實更遵循歷史規範，並且在季度之間難以對抗。但就 DI 議題及其對第二季的影響而言，我們看到自本季末以來情況有所改善。

Eric Handler, Roth Capital.

埃里克·漢德勒，羅斯資本。

Good afternoon. Thanks for the question. I guess just more for Anthony. Anthony, the gross margin improvement that we've seen in the first half of the year is pretty substantial on a year-over-year basis. Usually, the gross margin in the back half of the year is better than the gross margin in the first half of the year, but when you look at your guidance for gross margin, 48.5% to 49%, you're not -- it doesn't look like you're expecting any meaningful gross margin improvement sequentially or definitely not year over year. Are there any particular headwinds impacting gross margin in the back half of this year?

午安.謝謝你的提問。我想對安東尼來說更多。安東尼，我們在今年上半年看到的毛利率年增率相當可觀。通常，下半年的毛利率比上半年的毛利率要好，但是當你看你的毛利率指引時，48.5% 到 49%，你就不是——它看起來您並不期望毛利率會連續或絕對不會同比出現任何有意義的改善。今年下半年是否存在影響毛利率的特殊阻力？

Yeah. So I mean, obviously, we've been able to achieve on a first half some significant gross margin improvements. And on an adjusted basis, we're up 430 basis points in Q2, we're up 600 basis points in the first half. And the primary drivers of that being our optimizing for profitable growth program and cost inflation.

是的。所以我的意思是，顯然，我們在上半年已經實現了一些顯著的毛利率改善。調整後的基礎上，第二季我們上漲了 430 個基點，上半年我們上漲了 600 個基點。其主要驅動力是我們優化獲利成長計劃和成本通膨。

We just reiterated our guidance, right, which is to be up 100 to 150 basis points on a full year. Now that implies that the second half will be down slightly, and there's a couple of puts and takes, right. We're going to wrap the Barbie movie impact, which we've talked about. We expect to see some cost inflation. That will be partly offset by continued cost savings.

我們剛剛重申了我們的指導，對吧，全年增長 100 到 150 個基點。現在這意味著下半場將會略有下降，並且有一些看跌期權，對吧。我們將總結我們已經討論過的芭比電影的影響。我們預計成本會出現一定程度的上漲。這將被持續的成本節省所部分抵消。

But that said, we are tracking well on gross margin, but with two-thirds of annual revenues still ahead of us, we believe it's too early to make any changes to our annual guidance at this time, but we feel really good about the progress that we've made.

但話雖如此，我們的毛利率追蹤良好，但由於年收入的三分之二仍遙遙領先，我們認為目前對年度指導進行任何改變還為時過早，但我們對進展感到非常滿意我們所做的。

Great. Thanks.

偉大的。謝謝。

And Ynon, I'm wondering if you could talk a little bit about your comment that you're looking to self-published some mobile games. Do you have any infrastructure to develop mobile games internally? Or is that something you'd go -- you'd have to go out and buy?

Ynon，我想知道您是否可以談談您正在尋求自行發行一些手機遊戲的評論。你們有內部開發手機遊戲的基礎設施嗎？或者這是你會去的東西——你必須出去買？

Yeah, the comment relates to our strategy to capture full value from our portfolio. And what is interesting is that in mobile games, there is asymmetric risk-return profile for IP owners, whereby you can develop the games at a relatively low cost, single-digit million between, call it, $5 million to $8 million to up to $10 million per game. But you don't need to develop it yourself. It's easy to access our development capabilities in the marketplace.

是的，這項評論與我們從投資組合中獲取全部價值的策略有關。有趣的是，在手機遊戲中，IP 所有者的風險回報不對稱，因此您可以以相對較低的成本開發遊戲，在 500 萬美元到 800 萬美元之間，甚至高達 100 萬美元。 1000萬美元。但您不需要自己開發它。在市場上很容易獲得我們的開發能力。

The expensive part of that business is user acquisition, and this is where owning strong brands really help to raise awareness and reduce dramatically the investment required otherwise in user acquisition. And we believe given the appeal and strength of our brands, we're in a great position to capture that value.

這項業務成本高昂的部分是用戶獲取，而這正是擁有強大品牌真正有助於提高知名度並大幅減少用戶獲取所需投資的地方。我們相信，鑑於我們品牌的吸引力和實力，我們處於捕捉這一價值的有利位置。

The other thing is that when you develop those games, you can stage gate investment and only continue to spend money as you see that the games are progressing well. The marketing costs are also performance based where you get the results on the day, so you can decide if you continue to invest or not.

另一件事是，當你開發這些遊戲時，你可以進行階段性投資，只有當你看到遊戲進展順利時才繼續花錢。行銷成本也基於您當天獲得結果的績效，因此您可以決定是否繼續投資。

And the return can be, as I said, asymmetric relative to the investment. And we intend to do that. We have the capabilities in-house. We hired. This is just a few people. You don't need to develop a full studio setup or infrastructure. And with very limited capabilities, you can be in a position where you capture significant upside from mobile game publishing.

正如我所說，回報相對於投資可能是不對稱的。我們打算這樣做。我們內部有能力。我們僱用了。這只是幾個人。您不需要開發完整的工作室設置或基礎設施。由於能力非常有限，您可以從行動遊戲發行中獲得巨大的優勢。

Linda Bolton Weiser, D.A. Davidson.

琳達·博爾頓·韋瑟，D.A.戴維森。

Yes, hi. I was just curious, Ynon, if you had any thoughts on -- there's become a big disparity in the stock valuation between Mattel and Hasbro. I think it's the biggest gap I've seen in valuation in the years that I've been following the stocks. And yet you have executed arguably better than Hasbro in recent quarters.

是的，嗨。我只是好奇，伊農，你是否對美泰兒和孩之寶之間的股票估值存在巨大差異有什麼想法。我認為這是我多年來跟踪股票以來看到的最大估值差距。然而，最近幾季你們的執行力可以說比孩之寶更好。

Can you -- do you have any thoughts on the valuation disparity? And is there any action you can take, do you think to close that gap and create more shareholder value?

您對估值差異有什麼想法嗎？您是否認為可以採取任何行動來縮小這一差距並創造更多股東價值？

Well, thanks, Linda. You followed us closely for a few years now, so you know the numbers really well. We absolutely agree that the stock is undervalued and the stock price does not reflect the success we have had, and importantly, the future potential of the company.

嗯，謝謝，琳達。您密切關注我們幾年了，所以您非常了解這些數字。我們絕對同意該股票被低估，股價並不能反映我們所取得的成功，更重要的是，不能反映公司未來的潛力。

And just to remind everyone some key metrics since the turnaround started in 2018, we grew our top line by more than $0.5 billion. We grew our adjusted gross margin by almost 1,000 basis points. We grew our EBITDA -- adjusted EBITDA by 7.5 times, and free cash flow went from a negative $325 million to a positive $700 million. And of course, we're now investment grade.

只是為了提醒大家一些關鍵指標，自 2018 年開始轉虧為盈以來，我們的營收成長了超過 5 億美元。我們調整後的毛利率成長了近 1,000 個基點。我們的 EBITDA 成長了—調整後的 EBITDA 成長了 7.5 倍，自由現金流從負 3.25 億美元增至正 7 億美元。當然，我們現在是投資等級。

And beyond the financial metrics, if you look at progress across the enterprise, our brands are in a great position and thriving. We are gaining share in the toy business. And last year was the highest share gain we've ever achieved in the US in our history. We are winning major licenses. We're having great momentum in our entertainment strategy.

除了財務指標之外，如果你看看整個企業的進展，我們的品牌處於有利地位並且蓬勃發展。我們正在擴大玩具業務的份額。去年是我們歷史上在美國實現的最高份額增長。我們正在贏得主要許可。我們的娛樂戰略勢頭強勁。

Of course, the Barbie movie is a great showcase for that. This is one example. But it's not just about Barbie and not just about movies. And there is so much more in the works. So we feel that we are very well positioned to build on this multi-year trajectory and continue to execute our strategy and expect the share price to reflect this over time.

當然，芭比娃娃電影就是一個很好的展現。這是一個例子。但這不僅僅是關於芭比娃娃，也不僅僅是關於電影。還有更多的工作正在進行中。因此，我們認為我們處於非常有利的位置，可以在這一多年發展軌蹟的基礎上繼續執行我們的策略，並期望股價隨著時間的推移反映出這一點。

Thanks. And then I have a question on your selling and admin expenses. They were up in dollars, I think, about 11% or 12% year over year in the quarter. And you mentioned higher compensation, hiring IT, that kind of thing, but the expenses were up only 2% year over year in the first quarter. So I'm just kind of wondering about some of the timing of things and is there something in comparisons that will make that amount be down in dollars in the second half? Thanks.

謝謝。然後我有一個關於你們的銷售和管理費用的問題。我認為，本季的美元匯率年增了 11% 或 12% 左右。您提到了更高的薪酬、僱用 IT 之類的事情，但第一季的費用同比僅增長了 2%。所以我只是想知道一些事情發生的時間安排，以及比較中是否有一些事情會使下半年的美元金額下降？謝謝。

Sure, I can take that up, Linda. I mean, as we said, in the second quarter, SG&A increased $37 million, and that was in line with our expectations. And there's a couple of drivers. It was primarily driven by market-related pay increases, investments to upgrade certain IT systems, and as Ynon mentioned, we are hiring talent to accelerate our entertainment strategy. Now on a full-year basis, we expect SG&A to be comparable as a percent of sales. And what that implies for the second half is for SG&A to be down, and that's primarily related to incentive compensation. So a bit of timing going on, but still on track in terms of the full-year expectations.

當然，我可以接受，琳達。我的意思是，正如我們所說，第二季的 SG&A 增加了 3700 萬美元，這符合我們的預期。還有幾個司機。這主要是由與市場相關的薪資成長、升級某些 IT 系統的投資所推動的，正如 Ynon 所提到的，我們正在招募人才來加速我們的娛樂策略。現在，以全年為基礎，我們預期 SG&A 佔銷售額的百分比相當。這意味著下半年的銷售管理費用（SG&A）將會下降，這主要與激勵性薪酬有關。因此，雖然時間有些緊迫，但就全年預期而言，仍處於正軌。

Okay, thanks. That's helpful. And then -- go ahead.

好的謝謝。這很有幫助。然後——繼續吧。

And then just to make a comment and going back a little bit to my earlier point on the mobile game development that this doesn't change our capital-light approach. This is still within what we call capitalized. We are not looking to build a large infrastructure or investing significant capital behind these activities. These are still areas that we believe are within -- well within our SG&A envelope, and we intend to continue to be efficient in capital deployment and stay very focused on capturing the right value for these investments.

然後我想發表評論並回顧我之前關於行動遊戲開發的觀點，即這不會改變我們輕資本的方法。這仍然在我們所說的資本化範圍內。我們不打算建造大型基礎設施或在這些活動背後投入大量資金。這些仍然是我們認為屬於的領域——完全在我們的SG&A範圍之內，我們打算繼續有效率地進行資本部署，並繼續專注於為這些投資獲得正確的價值。

Okay. And then one final thing I was wondering. Can you remind us all -- I guess we're all thinking about the election coming up and can you remind us how the toy industry avoided tariffs in the first Trump administration? I can't quite recall why that was. And then how you would expect to manage through if there were some incremental tariffs imposed on the industry?

好的。然後我想知道最後一件事。您能否提醒我們所有人 - 我想我們都在考慮即將到來的選舉，您能否提醒我們玩具行業如何在川普第一屆政府中避免關稅？我不太記得為什麼會這樣。那麼，如果對該行業徵收一些增量關稅，您將如何應對？

Yeah, I would say, Linda, that without going back to the historical issues but looking ahead, we are always monitoring for potential government policy or regulatory changes that could impact the business. We certainly take a holistic view regarding our manufacturing footprint and really have designed an organization that gives us flexibility and mobility to leverage our manufacturing opportunities across the world. And as we look back over the last few years. And we have managed very, very well and demonstrated good agility in terms of our supply chain. And look, we'll continue to do that. Our job really is to design an organization that's flexible and can respond to exogenous factors, including tariffs.

是的，我想說，琳達，在不回顧歷史問題的情況下，展望未來，我們始終在監控可能影響業務的潛在政府政策或監管變化。我們當然對我們的製造足跡有一個整體的看法，並真正設計了一個組織，為我們提供靈活性和機動性，以利用我們在世界各地的製造機會。當我們回顧過去幾年。我們在供應鏈方面管理得非常非常好，並且表現出了良好的敏捷性。看，我們將繼續這樣做。我們的工作實際上是設計一個靈活的組織，能夠應對包括關稅在內的外部因素。

And the one comment I would add is that we have a much more diverse manufacturing footprint than we've had a few years ago. And that gives us more flexibility to respond to changes in both directions, by the way. There could be also opportunities, not just threats, opportunities to reduce our cost further and improve output.

我要補充的一點是，我們的製造足跡比幾年前更加多樣化。順便說一句，這使我們能夠更靈活地應對兩個方向的變化。不僅是威脅，還可能存在機會，進一步降低成本和提高產量的機會。

Arpine Kocharyan, UBS.

阿爾平‧科恰良 (Arpine Kocharyan)，瑞銀集團。

Hi. Thanks for taking my question. Most of my questions are answered. Just two quick ones. Could you give an updated view on consumer product licensing business, kind of post Barbie movie here? How many licensing partners you're looking at today? And how we should think about year-over-year comps as we get into the back half as it relates to your ability to offset tougher comps from Barbie? And then I have a quick follow-up.

你好。感謝您提出我的問題。我的大部分問題都得到了解答。就兩個快的。您能否提供消費品授權業務（例如芭比娃娃電影後）的最新看法？您今天正在尋找多少個授權合作夥伴？當我們進入後半段時，我們應該如何考慮逐年比較，因為這關係到你抵消芭比娃娃更強硬比較的能力？然後我會進行快速跟進。

Yes, sure. On the CP side, obviously, we're going to be down a little bit year on year because of the Barbie movie wrap. But we're going back to last year, the movie really was a catalyst. We entered more than 165 consumer product collaborations. And if you look at the business today, putting the Barbie movie aside, the business continues to grow and the movie really was the catalyst. We continue to invest in that area. And it's a critical component of monetizing our IP in these entertainment verticals.

是的，當然。顯然，在CP方面，由於芭比娃娃電影的殺青，我們的業績將比去年同期略有下降。但我們回到去年，這部電影確實是一個催化劑。我們達成了超過 165 項消費品合作。如果你看看今天的業務，把芭比娃娃電影放在一邊，你會發現業務持續成長，而電影確實是催化劑。我們繼續在該領域進行投資。這是我們在這些娛樂垂直領域將知識產權貨幣化的關鍵組成部分。

Okay, thank you. And just a quick housekeeping question. It seems like your tax rate guidance for the year didn't change, but Q2 effective tax rate was significantly below that range of around 17%. Does that mean that back half tax rate is higher than that rate? How should we think about that math? Thanks.

好的謝謝。只是一個簡單的內務問題。你們今年的稅率指引似乎沒有改變，但第二季的有效稅率明顯低於 17% 左右的範圍。這是否意味著後半稅率高於該稅率？我們該如何思考這個數學？謝謝。

Sure. Arpine, as you pointed out, the adjusted tax rate in Q2 was 17% compared to 34% last year. And what happens in the first half because there's seasonal small quarters, the impact of favorable discrete items has an outsized impact on the rate. As we get into the second half, this will kind of normalize out. And we continue to expect our full year tax rate to be in that 23% to 24% range. So no changes there on a full-year basis.

當然。 Arpine，正如您所指出的，第二季調整後的稅率為 17%，而去年為 34%。上半年會發生什麼，因為有季節性的小季度，有利的離散項目的影響對利率產生了巨大的影響。當我們進入下半場時，這種情況將會正常化。我們仍然預計全年稅率將在 23% 至 24% 的範圍內。因此全年沒有變化。

Alexander Perry, Bank of America.

亞歷山大·佩里，美國銀行。

Hi. Thanks for taking my questions here. I just first wanted to talk about wholesale a little bit. You mentioned increased retailer support a few times. Would that be -- maybe just give us some color on what you're referring to there and how you're working with your key retailers and what would be incremental versus last year in terms of retailer support? Thank you.

你好。感謝您在這裡提出我的問題。我首先想談談批發。您多次提到增加零售商支援。也許只是給我們一些關於您所指的內容以及您如何與主要零售商合作的信息，以及與去年相比在零售商支持方面會有哪些增量？謝謝。

Yeah, this goes back to how we operate and the relationship -- the strong relationship we have with retail partners. We do expect more shelf space in the second half. This is -- without being specific about which retailer it is, this is one of our core strengths where we work with retailers around the world selling product today in 500,000 stores globally. And this is just -- this is brick and mortar, of course.

是的，這可以追溯到我們的營運方式和關係——我們與零售合作夥伴之間的牢固關係。我們確實預計下半年會有更多的貨架空間。這是—無需具體說明是哪家零售商，這是我們的核心優勢之一，我們與世界各地的零售商合作，目前在全球 500,000 家商店中銷售產品。當然，這只是實體。

We have a large business in online, retail, and e-commerce. And with those relationships who are able to continue to expand our retail footprint and that is what we are talking about. More shelf space in the second half. And part of that, in addition to that is more promotion, more marketing, and more activities to drive the business.

我們在線上、零售和電子商務方面擁有龐大的業務。與那些能夠繼續擴大我們的零售足跡的關係，這就是我們正在談論的。下半年貨架空間更多。除此之外，還有更多的促銷、更多的行銷和更多的活動來推動業務發展。

Perfect. Really helpful. And then just following up on your commentary on the second half, can you give us some more color on how you would expect our POS to trend in 3Q and 4Q. Any comp dynamics we should be thinking about in terms of content as we're thinking about the POS and sell-through versus sell-in? Thanks.

完美的。真的很有幫助。然後，根據您對下半年的評論，您能否給我們更多關於您預計我們的 POS 在第三季度和第四季度的趨勢的資訊。當我們考慮 POS 和銷售與銷售時，我們應該在內容方面考慮任何競爭動態嗎？謝謝。

Yeah. I think it's pretty much steady as she goes, right? I mean, POS was comparable in the first half and our full-year guidance does imply POS will be comparable on a full-year basis, and therefore, in the second half as well. But as Ynon said, we do expect that toy side of the business to grow in the second half to be offset by the Barbie movie wrap and for us to continue to outpace the industry and to gain make market share as we did in Q2 and the first half.

是的。我覺得她的動作相當穩定，對吧？我的意思是，上半年 POS 具有可比性，而我們的全年指引確實意味著 POS 全年將具有可比性，因此下半年也是可比的。但正如 Ynon 所說，我們確實預計下半年玩具業務的成長將被芭比娃娃電影包裝所抵消，並且我們將繼續超越行業並獲得市場份額，就像我們在第二季度和上半場。

Kylie Cohu, Jefferies.

凱莉·科胡，傑弗里斯。

Hey. Good afternoon and thank you for taking my question. I was just wondering just broader themes about what's resonating well with the customers right now. Is it newness? Is it value? Anything that you can kind of give kind of on the category details would be helpful.

嘿。下午好，感謝您提出我的問題。我只是想知道更廣泛的主題，即目前與客戶產生良好共鳴的內容。是新鮮事嗎？它有價值嗎？您可以提供有關類別詳細資訊的任何內容都會有所幫助。

Sorry, Kylie, it's really hard to hear you. There's some disruption on the line.

抱歉，凱莉，很難聽清楚你的聲音。線路有些中斷。

I'm sorry. Can you hear me better now or not really?

對不起。現在你能聽得更清楚嗎？

Slightly better, actually. Yeah.

實際上稍微好一點。是的。

Okay, perfect. So sorry about that. I moved my location here. No, I was just kind of wondering -- I mean, obviously, the category details that you guys provide is super helpful, but I was wondering if just more broad strokes, like any current themes? Is the newness resonating really well? Is it value? Is it more broad strokes? Just anything to kind of comment there would be helpful.

好的，完美。對此感到非常抱歉。我把位置搬到這裡了。不，我只是想知道 - 我的意思是，顯然，你們提供的類別詳細資訊非常有幫助，但我想知道是否只是更廣泛的筆觸，就像任何當前的主題一樣？這種新鮮感真的能引起很好的共鳴嗎？它有價值嗎？是不是更廣泛一點？只要有任何評論都會有幫助。

As we said in our prepared remarks, we had a good first half and we expect our toy business to grow in the second half. And this is driven by new product innovation, increased retail support that we mentioned in terms of more shelf space, more marketing and promotion, and new content, part of our franchise management strategy. And this goes back to our core competence on the toy side of the company in terms of design and development capability where we are bringing out the best creativity and innovation that we invest in product, supply chain that is a competitive advantage for Mattel, being able to produce a product at the highest quality at the most competitive price, and the commercial execution that we talked about earlier.

正如我們在準備好的演講中所說，我們上半年表現良好，我們預計我們的玩具業務將在下半年成長。這是由新產品創新、增加零售支援（我們提到的更多貨架空間、更多行銷和促銷以及新內容）推動的，這是我們特許經營管理策略的一部分。這可以追溯到我們公司玩具方面在設計和開發能力方面的核心競爭力，我們在產品和供應鏈上投資的最佳創造力和創新能力是美泰的競爭優勢，能夠以最具競爭力的價格生產最高品質的產品，以及我們之前談到的商業執行力。

And bringing all of this together, we believe that our toy business is healthy, is very well-coordinated and managed, and we continue to gain share and strengthen our relationship with retailers. And this is important because as part of our strategy, when we are very focused on growing our entertainment business, this is not instead of what we do on the toy side of the company. It's toys and entertainment. And those relationships are symbiotic within category and within business across the board.

綜合所有這些，我們相信我們的玩具業務是健康的，協調和管理得很好，我們將繼續獲得份額並加強與零售商的關係。這很重要，因為作為我們策略的一部分，當我們非常專注於發展我們的娛樂業務時，這並不是我們在公司玩具方面所做的事情。這是玩具和娛樂。這些關係在品類和整個業務範圍內是共生的。

So we do expect the toy business to grow in the second half. We do expect a good holiday season and believe that we will continue to gain share this year and grow sales and earnings next year.

所以我們確實預計下半年玩具業務將會成長。我們確實預計會有一個美好的假期，並相信今年我們將繼續擴大市場份額，並在明年增加銷售和收益。

Got it. That's super helpful coloron just again more of those drivers there. Thank you.

知道了。這對更多的司機來說非常有幫助。謝謝。

Obviously, your inventory levels are looking very healthy. And that's probably one reason why we're seeing a lot of -- you've been able to expand gross margin, but just kind of wondering how are inventory levels trending across the industry and specifically kind of with your retail partners that you're in communication with?

顯然，您的庫存水準看起來非常健康。這可能是我們看到很多問題的原因之一——您已經能夠擴大毛利率，但只是想知道整個行業的庫存水平趨勢如何，特別是與您的零售合作夥伴的庫存水平趨勢如何。 ?

Yes. So commenting on Matell, I mean, our retailers, the inventory levels, we think we're in a very good position. We work very closely with our retail partners to make sure we get the right level of inventory to satisfy consumer demand as we enter the back half and the holiday season. In the quarter, retailer inventory levels have followed historical patterns and we ended Q2 down high-single digits in terms of levels.

是的。因此，在評論美泰兒時，我的意思是，我們的零售商、庫存水平，我們認為我們處於非常有利的位置。我們與零售合作夥伴密切合作，確保在進入下半年和假期季節時獲得適當的庫存水平，以滿足消費者的需求。本季度，零售商庫存水準遵循歷史模式，第二季末庫存水準出現高個位數下降。

And then with respect to our owned inventory levels, we're down almost $200 million versus the prior year. We've had good success in reducing owned inventory levels. And importantly, those inventory levels are high quality and also well positioned heading into the second half of the year. So in a good spot with respect to both retailer and owned inventory levels.

然後，就我們自有庫存水準而言，我們比前一年減少了近 2 億美元。我們在降低自有庫存水準方面取得了巨大成功。重要的是，這些庫存水準是高品質的，並且在進入今年下半年時也處於有利位置。因此，就零售商和自有庫存水準而言，處於有利位置。

Fred Wightman, Wolfe Research.

弗雷德‧懷特曼，沃爾夫研究公司。

Hey, guys. I just wanted to touch on Fisher-Price. That was up double digits in the quarter and you also alluded to some early signs of success from the strategy and reorganization there. Can you talk about where you're seeing traction and maybe how to think about that, given what looks like tougher comparisons in the back half of the year?

大家好。我只是想談談費雪牌。該季度增長了兩位數，您還提到了戰略和重組的一些早期成功跡象。考慮到下半年的比較看起來更加艱難，你能談談你在哪裡看到了吸引力，以及如何思考這一點嗎？

Yeah. Thanks, Fred. The Fisher-Price is such an incredible brand. And in fact, it will be celebrating its 94th anniversary this year. The brand did grow 11% in the second quarter. We saw this driven by newborn, Little People, and the launch of the new Wood line, which is exactly what we talked about at the investor presentation. In the second half, we expect Fisher-Price to expand the core line, launch the Wood segment globally, and add new franchises to Little People collector.

是的。謝謝，弗雷德。 Fisher-Price 是一個令人難以置信的品牌。事實上，今年它將慶祝其成立 94 週年。該品牌第二季確實成長了 11%。我們看到了這一點是由新生兒、Little People 和新 Wood 系列的推出推動的，這正是我們在投資者演示中討論的內容。下半年，我們預計 Fisher-Price 將擴大核心產品線，在全球推出 Wood 細分市場，並為 Little People 收藏品增加新的特許經營權。

The Fisher-Price is expected to grow this year and we are very confident in the long-term growth potential of this brand. And this is part of our overall strategy for the category where we continue to outperform the industry where -- and gaining more share, both in the second quarter and the first half. So still early, but good to see that the new strategy is paying off and put the Fisher-Price in the category on a good path.

費雪預計今年將會成長，我們對該品牌的長期成長潛力充滿信心。這是我們該類別整體策略的一部分，我們在第二季和上半年繼續超越行業，並獲得更多份額。雖然還為時過早，但很高興看到新策略正在取得成效，並使費雪牌在該類別中走上一條良好的道路。

Makes sense. And then, on cost saves, it looks like there was a little bit of a tweak to the language there. Now you're talking about meeting or exceeding that $60 million target for the year. Is that just run-rating the $37 million that you've seen year to date or is there something else that's going into that tweak?

說得通。然後，在節省成本方面，似乎對語言進行了一些調整。現在您談論的是達到或超過今年 6000 萬美元的目標。這只是你今年迄今為止看到的 3700 萬美元的運行評級還是還有其他的調整？

No, we feel really good about the optimizing for profitable growth program. As we've said in the past, we announced earlier this year targeting $200 million of savings by 2026, and we're off to a really good start, right? We did $20 million of savings in Q2 and $37 million for the half. So we're tracking ahead of our $60 million 2024 expectation on a run-rate basis, and we see the potential for us to exceed that $60 million in 2024, so off to a good start.

不，我們對優化獲利成長計劃感到非常滿意。正如我們過去所說，我們今年早些時候宣布了到 2026 年節省 2 億美元的目標，我們有了一個非常好的開始，對吧？我們在第二季度節省了 2000 萬美元，上半年節省了 3700 萬美元。因此，我們在運行率的基礎上追蹤了 2024 年 6000 萬美元的預期，並且我們看到了 2024 年超過 6000 萬美元的潛力，所以這是一個很好的開端。

Jim Chartier, Monness, Crespi, Hardt.

吉姆·查蒂爾、蒙尼斯、克雷斯皮、哈特。

Thanks for taking my question. I think kind of entering the year, you expected a benefit from lapping some inventory destocking in retail last year and the first half of the year and yet POS outpaced billings by a couple of percent in the first half. Is that just due to the direct import shift or has something else changed? Thanks.

感謝您提出我的問題。我認為進入今年，您預計將從去年和上半年零售業的一些庫存去庫存中受益，但上半年 POS 的賬單增長了幾個百分點。這只是由於直接進口轉移還是有其他變化？謝謝。

Yeah, that's primarily the direct import shift. And with respect to retail inventory, last year, we made significant progress getting those down. We saw a little bit more in the first quarter this year. So we feel are in a very good position and we still anticipate some tailwind from that differential but just didn't see it in the first half.

是的，這主要是直接進口的轉變。就零售庫存而言，去年我們在降低零售庫存方面取得了重大進展。今年第一季我們看到了更多。所以我們覺得我們處於一個非常好的位置，我們仍然預計這種差異會帶來一些順風，但只是在上半場沒有看到它。

Thank you. Thank you, Jim, for the question. And thank you, operator, and thank you, everyone, for your questions.

謝謝。謝謝吉姆提出的問題。謝謝接線員，也謝謝大家提出的問題。

In conclusion, this was a good second quarter for and first half for Mattel with significant gross margin expansion and improved profitability. As we said on the call, we are well positioned for the second half of 2024 and look forward to a good holiday season. We expect to outpace the industry, continue to gain more share this year, and grow sales and earnings in 2025.

總而言之，對於美泰來說，第二季和上半年表現良好，毛利率顯著擴張，獲利能力提高。正如我們在電話會議上所說，我們為 2024 年下半年做好了準備，並期待著一個美好的假期。我們預計今年將超越行業，繼續獲得更多份額，並在 2025 年實現銷售額和收益的成長。

We are successfully executing our strategy to grow our IP toy business -- IP-driven toy business and expand our entertainment offering. And now I will turn the call back over to Dave.

我們正在成功執行我們的策略，以發展我們的 IP 玩具業務——IP 驅動的玩具業務並擴大我們的娛樂產品。現在我將把電話轉回給戴夫。

Thanks, Ynon, and thank you, everyone, for joining the call today. The replay of this call will be available via webcast beginning at 8:30 PM Eastern time today. The webcast link can be found in the Events and Presentations section of our Investors section of our corporate website, corporate.mattel.com.

謝謝伊農，也謝謝大家今天加入電話會議。本次電話會議的重播將從東部時間今天晚上 8:30 開始透過網路直播進行。網路廣播連結可以在我們公司網站 Corporate.mattel.com 投資者部分的活動和演示部分找到。

Thank you for participating in today's call. And now I'll turn it back to the operator.

感謝您參加今天的電話會議。現在我會將其返還給操作員。

Thank you. This will conclude today's conference call. You may now disconnect.

謝謝。今天的電話會議到此結束。您現在可以斷開連線。