Marine Products Corp (MPX) 2024 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good morning and thank you for joining us for Marine Products Corporation fourth-quarter and year-end 2024 financial earnings conference call. Today's call will be hosted by Ben Palmer, President and CEO; and Mike Schmit, Chief Financial Officer. (Operator Instructions) I would like to advise everyone that this conference call is being recorded. I will now turn the call over to Mr. Schmit.

早上好，感謝您參加 Marine Products Corporation 2024 年第四季和年終財務收益電話會議。今天的電話會議將由總裁兼執行長 Ben Palmer 主持；以及財務長 Mike Schmit。（操作員指示）我想告知大家，本次電話會議正在錄音。現在我將電話轉給施密特先生。

Thank you and good morning. Before we begin, I want to remind you that some of the statements that will be made on this call could be forward-looking in nature and reflect a number of known and unknown risks. Please refer to our press release issued today, along with our 2023 10-K and other public filings that outline those risks, all of which can be found at www.marineproductscorp.com.

謝謝，早安。在我們開始之前，我想提醒您，本次電話會議中的一些聲明可能具有前瞻性，並反映了許多已知和未知的風險。請參閱我們今天發布的新聞稿以及我們的 2023 年 10-K 和其他概述這些風險的公開文件，所有這些文件都可以在 www.marineproductscorp.com 上找到。

In today's earnings release and conference call, we'll be referring to several non-GAAP measures of operating performance and liquidity. We believe these non-GAAP measures allow us to compare performance consistently over various periods. Our press release and our website contain reconciliations of these non-GAAP measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures. I'll now turn the call over to our President and CEO, Ben Palmer.

在今天的收益報告和電話會議中，我們將參考幾個非公認會計準則的營運績效和流動性指標。我們相信，這些非公認會計準則指標使我們能夠一致地比較不同時期的表現。我們的新聞稿和網站包含這些非 GAAP 指標與最直接可比較的 GAAP 指標的對帳。現在我將電話轉給我們的總裁兼執行長本·帕爾默。

Thank you, Mike, and thank you all for joining our call. I apologize for the issues we've had there. Fourth-quarter results were negative compared to prior year. However, we are seeing early signs of stabilization and a path to turning the corner toward growth later this year. The marine industry continues to push through a lackluster period.

謝謝你，麥克，也謝謝大家參加我們的電話會議。對於我們遇到的問題，我深感抱歉。與去年同期相比，第四季的業績表現不佳。然而，我們看到了穩定的早期跡象和今年稍後轉向成長的道路。海洋產業持續度過低迷期。

Sentiment remains cautious, but perhaps best characterized as shifting from cautious and concerned to cautiously optimistic. During this past year, we have been laser-focused on managing costs and production levels as tightly as possible without disrupting our business and jeopardizing our ability to support our dealers when industry demand picks back up.

情緒依然謹慎，但也許最好的描述是從謹慎和擔憂轉變為謹慎樂觀。在過去的一年裡，我們一直專注於盡可能嚴格地管理成本和生產水平，而不會擾亂我們的業務，也不會危及我們在行業需求回升時支持經銷商的能力。

Channel inventory has been the most acute challenge facing us and our peers in 2024. We are pleased to share that our field inventory ended the year about 15% lower than prior year. We feel we have been true partners to our dealers by conservatively managing our field inventory.

通路庫存是我們和我們的同行在2024年面臨的最嚴峻挑戰。我們很高興地告訴大家，今年年底我們的現場庫存比前一年低了約 15%。我們覺得，透過保守地管理我們的現場庫存，我們已經成為經銷商的真正合作夥伴。

While dealer inventories did increase sequentially from the end of the third quarter, it's our normal seasonal pattern as dealers position themselves for the winter boat shows and the spring selling season. The 15% field inventory decline versus last year reflects some sell-through of older models.

雖然經銷商庫存確實從第三季末開始連續增加，但這是我們正常的季節性模式，因為經銷商正在為冬季船展和春季銷售季節做準備。與去年同期相比，現場庫存下降了 15%，反映了部分舊型號的銷售疲軟。

Bottom line, this has not been an easy journey, navigating channel inventory excesses over the last 18 months. But we are pleased where we've landed and with our current position, especially relative to some of our competitors and categories where we don't compete. With respect to interest rates and dealer and consumer sentiment following the election and transition to a new presidential administration, we are encouraged by the general optimism for improved business conditions.

總而言之，這並不是一段輕鬆的旅程，過去 18 個月我們一直在解決渠道庫存過剩的問題。但我們對我們的現狀和地位感到滿意，特別是相對於我們的一些競爭對手和我們不競爭的類別。對於選舉和新總統政府過渡後的利率以及經銷商和消費者信心，我們對商業環境改善的普遍樂觀情緒感到鼓舞。

After some interest rate reductions, there are mixed signals on the near-term direction of rates, but we believe they will likely be neutral to favorable going forward. So purely anecdotal, our dealers are expressing a hopeful sentiment for consumer demand. With the election behind us and some closure to the general political uncertainty from the second half of 2024, we hope consumers will steadily come back into the market. Feedback from winter boat shows thus far is that they are well attended by credible buyers expressing renewed interest, so few buyers conveyed a sense of urgency.

在經歷了幾次降息之後，短期利率走向的訊號不一，但我們認為，未來利率可能會保持中性至有利的走勢。因此純粹是軼事，我們的經銷商對消費者需求表達了樂觀的情緒。隨著選舉的結束以及 2024 年下半年普遍的政治不確定性得到一定程度的緩解，我們希望消費者能夠穩步重返市場。到目前為止，從冬季船展的回饋來看，參加展會的可靠買家很多，並且表達了新的興趣，因此很少有買家表達出緊迫感。

We also heard some buyers who had purchased their first boat during the pandemic were already considering upgrades to a newer and/or larger model. Cash buyers will likely be the first area of strength we see, but we also heard some feedback that entry-level buyers showed interest as well, an encouraging sign for consumers looking to finance their boat purchases. Again, these are anecdotal and directional comments, but we hope they are the precursor for improved demand as the year progresses.

我們也聽說，一些在疫情期間購買了第一艘船的買家已經在考慮升級到更新和/或更大的型號。現金買家可能是我們看到的第一個強勢領域，但我們也聽到一些反饋稱入門級買家也表現出興趣，這對於尋求融資購買船舶的消費者來說是一個令人鼓舞的跡象。再次重申，這些都是軼事和方向性評論，但我們希望它們能夠成為今年需求改善的先兆。

2024 also marked some investments in our business, we expect to help improve operations and results this coming year. Higher than normal downtime, we worked on our efficiencies and streamlined some of our shop floor operations that they run more profitably, especially when production volumes increase.

2024 年也標誌著我們對業務進行了一些投資，我們希望在來年幫助改善營運和績效。停機時間高於正常水平，我們努力提高效率並簡化了一些車間操作，以提高利潤，尤其是在生產增加的情況下。

In addition, we completed the installation of solar panels at our National Georgia Manufacturing facility. We received some attractive tax incentives and expect to generate strong electricity cost savings going forward from this investment. We are also proud of the environmental benefits this project will deliver. And now Mike will provide an overview of the financial results.

此外，我們在國家喬治亞製造工廠完成了太陽能電池板的安裝。我們獲得了一些有吸引力的稅收優惠，並期望透過這項投資在未來節省大量電力成本。我們也對該項目將帶來的環境效益感到自豪。現在 Mike 將概述財務結果。

Thanks, Ben. I'll start with a few quick financial highlights for the year and then go into some more detail on the fourth quarter. For the full-year 2024, sales were $237 million, down 38% versus last year. Diluted EPS was $0.50 compared to $1.21 and EBITDA was down from $52 million to $21 million. We generated strong operating cash flow of $30 million and free cash flow of $25 million.

謝謝，本。我將先簡單介紹今年的幾個財務亮點，然後再詳細介紹第四季的情況。2024 年全年銷售額為 2.37 億美元，較去年下降 38%。稀釋每股收益為 0.50 美元，而之前為 1.21 美元，EBITDA 從 5,200 萬美元降至 2,100 萬美元。我們產生了 3000 萬美元的強勁營運現金流和 2500 萬美元的自由現金流。

CapEx was $5 million and included the investment in our solar panel project. For the year, we paid $44 million in dividends, including $24 million in the form of special dividend, and we finished 2024 with cash of $52 million and no debt. Additionally, our Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share this week, which will be payable in March.

資本支出為 500 萬美元，其中包括對我們太陽能板專案的投資。今年，我們支付了 4,400 萬美元的股息，其中包括 2,400 萬美元的特別股息，到 2024 年底，我們的現金為 5,200 萬美元，沒有債務。此外，我們的董事會本周宣布派發每股 0.14 美元的定期季度股息，並將於 3 月支付。

Shifting to the fourth quarter with year-over-year comparisons for the fourth quarter of 2023, sales were down 33% to $47.8 million, driven by a 39% decrease in the number of boats sold, price and mix net deposit 6%. We noted that quarterly sales decreases eased throughout the year. We would expect year-over-year comparisons to be fairly muted in the first half of 2025 with potential to deliver sales growth versus prior year in the second half of 2025.

與 2023 年第四季相比，第四季的銷售額下降了 33%，至 4,780 萬美元，原因是售出的船隻數量下降了 39%，價格和混合淨存款下降了 6%。我們注意到，全年季度銷售額下降趨勢有所緩解。我們預計，2025 年上半年的年比銷售額將相當低迷，但 2025 年下半年的銷售額有可能比去年同期有所成長。

Gross profit decreased to $9.2 million with a gross profit margin of 19.2%, up 20 basis points. Part of the gross margin percentage increase with a favorable comparison on promotional expenses incurred versus last year's fourth quarter when we resumed incentive programs.

毛利減少至 920 萬美元，毛利率為 19.2%，上升 20 個基點。與去年第四季我們恢復激勵計畫時相比，促銷費用有所增加，因此毛利率百分比上升。

SG&A expenses were $5.6 million in the quarter, down 28% or $2.2 million compared to last year's fourth quarter. These expenses decreased primarily due to costs that vary with sales and profitability, such as incentive compensation, sales commissions and warranty expenses. SG&A as a percentage of sales was 11.6%, up 70 basis points compared to the prior year's fourth quarter.

本季銷售、一般及行政開支為 560 萬美元，較去年第四季下降 28%（即 220 萬美元）。這些費用的減少主要是由於隨銷售額和盈利能力變化的成本，例如獎勵薪酬、銷售佣金和保固費用。銷售、一般及行政費用佔銷售額的百分比為 11.6%，比去年同期第四季上升了 70 個基點。

Of note, we generated a tax benefit of $71,000 in the fourth quarter despite having positive pretax income. We received a tax credit for our solar panel installation project, which more than offset which -- what would have been our normal tax provision. Diluted EPS was $0.12 in the fourth quarter, down from $0.16 last year. EBITDA was $4.4 million down from $6.5 million. I'll now turn it back over to Ben for a few closing remarks.

值得注意的是，儘管稅前收入為正，但我們在第四季度仍獲得了 71,000 美元的稅收優惠。我們因太陽能電池板安裝專案獲得了稅收抵免，這筆錢遠遠超過了我們的正常稅收準備。第四季攤薄每股收益為 0.12 美元，低於去年的 0.16 美元。EBITDA 從 650 萬美元下降至 440 萬美元。現在我將把發言權交還給本，請他作一些結束語。

Thanks, Mike. By the challenging year, we are proud of our ability to remain solidly profitable, generate robust cash flow and provide significant cash returns to our investors through our regular quarterly and our special dividend midyear. 2024 saw a weak end market demand, but we manage prudently through this period and believe the worst has passed. We pride ourselves on consistent and conservative financial management and emerge from 2024 with a strong balance sheet that could support investments in the business and continued dividends to our investors.

謝謝，麥克。在這充滿挑戰的一年裡，我們很自豪能夠保持穩定的盈利能力、產生強勁的現金流，並透過定期季度股息和年中特別股息為投資者提供可觀的現金回報。 2024 年終端市場需求疲軟，但我們謹慎地度過了這段時期，並相信最糟糕的時期已經過去。我們以一貫而保守的財務管理為榮，並從 2024 年開始擁有強勁的資產負債表，可以支持業務投資並繼續向投資者派發股息。

Over time, if we do not deploy substantial capital, we will look at further actions to return cash to our investors. As we wrap up the call, I'd also like to highlight two milestones. Coming up this summer, in August, we will mark the 25th anniversary of Marine Products becoming a public company. Also this past year, we marked the 60th anniversary of the Chaparral brand, celebrating with our dealers at our annual dealer conference in the Florida Keys.

隨著時間的推移，如果我們沒有部署大量資本，我們將考慮採取進一步行動向我們的投資者返還現金。在我們結束通話時，我還想強調兩個里程碑。今年夏天，也就是八月，我們將迎來 Marine Products 上市 25 週年。此外，去年，我們慶祝了 Chaparral 品牌成立 60 週年，並在佛羅裡達群島舉行的年度經銷商會議上與我們的經銷商一起慶祝。

We have many employees and dealers that have been with us for multiple decades. And on this occasion, I just want to thank everyone involved in our long-term success for their dedication, partnership and support. And with that, operator, please open up the line for questions.

我們有許多員工和經銷商已經與我們合作了幾十年。藉此機會，我只想感謝所有為我們的長期成功做出貢獻的人，感謝他們的奉獻、合作和支持。接線員，請打開熱線來回答問題。

(Operator Instructions) Griffin Bryan, D.A. Davidson.

（操作員指示） Griffin Bryan，D.A.戴維森。

So we've heard some mixed results from dealers and OEMs this morning about performance at boat shows. Can you kind of speak to your relative strength versus maybe some of your peers and then kind of like do you guys have any expectations for the upcoming Miami Show?

今天早上我們從經銷商和原始設備製造商那裡聽到了一些關於船展表現的不同結果。您能否談談您與一些同行相比的相對實力？然後，你們對即將到來的邁阿密秀有什麼期待嗎？

In general, yes, I mean, it's been mixed. But again, I think overall, there's positive under time. I think everybody is feeling some of that optimism. I think there's still trying to find some strength and build a foundation going forward. We're hopeful that things will continue to improve into the spring selling season as -- regarding any upcoming shows, including Miami, we'll be there full force, well represented by dealers and our management team.

總的來說，是的，我的意思是，它是混合的。但我再次認為，總體而言，隨著時間的推移，情況還是正面的。我想每個人都感受到了這種樂觀情緒。我認為我們仍在努力尋找一些力量並奠定前進的基礎。我們希望在春季銷售季節情況會繼續改善——對於任何即將舉行的展會，包括邁阿密展會，我們都會全力以赴，由經銷商和我們的管理團隊代表。

So we're hopeful. We know it will probably be a slow improvement in demand, but it -- we're looking forward to it. And we feel like we're well positioned once things do -- demand does pick up.

所以我們充滿希望。我們知道需求可能會緩慢改善，但我們對此充滿期待。我們覺得，一旦情況改變——需求確實回升，我們就處於有利地位。

Great. And then what have you seen from a promotional aspect at these shows so far, assuming it's still competitive, but maybe just some high-level comments on what you've seen.

偉大的。那麼到目前為止，您在這些展會的宣傳上看到了什麼？假設它仍然具有競爭力，但也許只是您所看到的內容的一些高層評論。

Sure. A lot of the incentives are similar to what we saw last year. I think we don't have a lot of older units that we're trying to push. We obviously have some, but a lot of the -- but better incentives are still trying to clear some of that back inventory that we've seen. Those are some of the stronger ones.

當然。許多激勵措施與我們去年看到的類似。我認為我們並沒有太多試圖推廣的舊單位。我們顯然有一些，但很多——但更好的激勵措施仍在試圖清除我們看到的一些積壓庫存。這些都是實力較強的。

But a lot of them, including ours, are pretty consistent to what we've seen over the last year. We've also seen some dealers and larger dealer groups starting to provide some incentives as well, but we started seeing that last year.

但其中很多，包括我們的，都與我們去年看到的情況非常一致。我們也看到一些經銷商和較大的經銷商集團也開始提供一些激勵措施，但我們去年就開始看到這種情況了。

So the best incentives are obviously those where they're trying to get rid of some old inventory, but overall, we don't see anything really slowing, but I didn't see any material differences from some of those incentives we saw kind of last year.

因此，最好的激勵措施顯然是那些試圖清理一些舊庫存的激勵措施，但總體而言，我們並沒有看到任何真正放緩的跡象，但我沒有看到與去年看到的一些激勵措施有任何實質差異。

Got it. Makes sense. And then you mentioned that you're pleased with your level of destocking. Does that imply that you guys are at optimal levels for your brands or is there more destocking that will be needed as we get into this new year?

知道了。有道理。然後您提到您對去庫存的水平感到滿意。這是否意味著你們的品牌已經達到了最佳水平，還是進入新的一年後需要進一步去庫存？

It's a good question. I mean the fact that we think field inventories are closer to normal levels. Dealers are still, I don't want to say reluctant to order, but certainly are being very thoughtful about it. So we're just working closely with them. We're trying to meet that right equilibrium between -- we're just trying to create the right equilibrium with incentives helping our dealers and providing some support to them by helping with retail incentives as well.

這是個好問題。我的意思是，我們認為現場庫存更接近正常水準。我不想說經銷商仍然不願意訂購，但肯定對此非常深思熟慮。所以我們正與他們密切合作。我們正在嘗試實現正確的平衡——我們只是嘗試透過激勵措施幫助我們的經銷商，並透過零售激勵措施為他們提供一些支持，從而創造正確的平衡。

So we'll just have to let it play out. But again, we feel good where we stand and are pleased that our dealers are feeling some degree of optimism. We'll assess further as we complete the winter boat shows and get into the spring selling season. So now is a key time to be watching their sentiment and the order flow that we expect.

所以我們只能讓它自然發生。但是，我們對自己目前的狀況感到滿意，並且很高興我們的經銷商也感到有一定程度的樂觀。冬季船展結束後，我們將進入春季銷售季節，並進行進一步評估。因此，現在是觀察他們的情緒和我們預期的訂單流的關鍵時刻。

Got it. So are there any categories specifically that are a little bit more bloated right now as compared to maybe the ones that you guys plan or some of the alternate ones that you don't necessarily plan?

知道了。那麼，與你們計劃的類別或一些你們不一定計劃的替代類別相比，具體有哪些類別現在顯得更加臃腫呢？

We've heard and observed we don't have all that information specifically and it is a little bit brand-to-brand, but in terms, obviously, we're in the fiberglass market, some of the aluminum market, I think, has had some more inventory than they would desire. And of course, any oversupply in those categories don't directly impact us, but certainly is -- it can also be a drag. So aluminum is probably one of those areas.

我們聽到和觀察到，我們並沒有具體掌握所有信息，而且信息有點因品牌而異，但就目前情況而言，顯然我們處於玻璃纖維市場，我認為部分鋁市場的庫存比他們想要的要多。當然，這些類別的任何供應過剩都不會對我們造成直接影響，但肯定會——也可能是一種拖累。鋁可能就是其中一個領域。

Got you. Last one for me. So if we can just get an update on the current M&A environment and if you're seeing any relative uptick in activity with a slightly lower rate than the new administration in office?

明白了。對我來說是最後一個。那麼，我們是否可以了解當前的併購環境，以及您是否看到任何相對上升的活動，但其速度是否比新政府執政時略低？

Sure. We have started to see some opportunities pop up, but not a lot of great brands that -- a lot of them are in distressed situations what we've seen. So we are actively looking, but we're more focused on finding a brand that would be a good fit for us and a good fit for our existing dealers and wouldn't be a direct competitor necessarily with our current brands. So there hasn't been a ton of opportunities in sort of the sweet spot we're looking for. And -- but we're hopeful that as things are now stabilizing, and as you mentioned, interest rates have come down a little.

當然。我們已經開始看到一些機會的出現，但並不是很多偉大的品牌——其中許多都處於困境中。因此，我們正在積極尋找，但我們更專注於尋找一個適合我們、適合我們現有經銷商的品牌，而且不一定會與我們現有的品牌直接競爭。所以，我們所尋找的最佳時機並不多。而且—但我們希望，隨著情況逐漸穩定，而且正如您所說，利率已經下降。

And as they come down a little more, perhaps there will be opportunities, but we are actively looking and Hopefully, we'll see some that are a better fit for us coming up this year.

隨著它們進一步下降，也許會有機會，但我們正在積極尋找，並希望今年能看到一些更適合我們的機會。

(Operator Instructions) There are no further questions at this time. That concludes our Q&A session. I will now turn the conference over to Ben.

（操作員指示）現在沒有其他問題。我們的問答環節到此結束。現在我將會議交給本。

Thank you very much. I appreciate everyone who called in to listen and again, apologize for the issues there on the front end. I appreciate your patience. Have a good rest of the day.

非常感謝。我感謝每一位打電話來傾聽的人，並再次對前端出現的問題表示歉意。感謝您的耐心。祝您今天剩餘時間愉快。

Ladies and gentlemen, that concludes today's call. We thank you for joining, and we apologize for the technical issues earlier. Please be reminded that the conference call will be replayed on marineproductscorp.com within two hours following the completion of the call. You may now disconnect.

女士們、先生們，今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的加入，對於先前出現的技術問題，我們深感抱歉。請注意，電話會議將在通話結束後兩小時內在 marineproductscorp.com 上重播。您現在可以斷開連線。