MRC Global Inc (MRC) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Greetings, and welcome to MRC Global's first-quarter 2024 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.

您好，歡迎參加 MRC Global 2024 年第一季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）提醒一下，本次會議正在錄音。

It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Monica Broughton, Vice President, Investor Relations and Treasury. Please go ahead.

現在我很高興介紹您的主持人、投資者關係和財務副總裁 Monica Broughton。請繼續。

Thank you, and good morning. Welcome to the MRC Global first-quarter 2024 conference call and webcast. We appreciate you joining us. On the call today, we have Rob Saltiel, President and CEO, and Kelly Youngblood, Executive Vice President and CFO. There will be a replay of today's call available by webcast on our website, mrcglobal.com, as well as by phone until May 23, 2024. The dial-in information is in yesterday's release.

謝謝，早安。歡迎參加 MRC Global 2024 年第一季電話會議和網路廣播。感謝您的加入我們。今天參加電話會議的有總裁兼執行長 Rob Saltiel 和執行副總裁兼財務長 Kelly Youngblood。今天的電話會議將透過我們的網站 mrcglobal.com 上的網路直播和電話重播提供，直至 2024 年 5 月 23 日。撥入訊息已在昨天的發布中。

We expect to file our quarterly report on Form 10-Q later today and will also be available on our website. Please note that the information reported on this call speaks only as of today, May 9, 2024, and therefore, you are advised that the information may no longer be accurate as of the time of replay. In our call today, we will discuss various non-GAAP measures. You are encouraged to read our earnings release and securities filings to learn more about our use of these non-GAAP measures and to see a reconciliation of these measures to the related GAAP items, all of which can be found on our website.

我們預計將於今天稍晚提交 10-Q 表格季度報告，該報告也將在我們的網站上發布。請注意，本次通話中報告的資訊僅截至今天（2024 年 5 月 9 日）有效，因此，請注意，截至重播時，該資訊可能不再準確。在今天的電話會議中，我們將討論各種非公認會計準則指標。我們鼓勵您閱讀我們的收益報告和證券文件，以了解有關我們對這些非GAAP 指標的使用的更多信息，並查看這些指標與相關GAAP 項目的對賬，所有這些都可以在我們的網站上找到。

Unless we specifically state otherwise, references in this call to EBITDA refer to adjusted EBITDA. In addition, the comments made by the management of MRC Global during this call may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States federal securities laws. These forward-looking statements reflect the current views of the management of MRC Global. However, actual results could differ materially from those expressed today. You are encouraged to read the company's SEC filings for a more in-depth review of the risk factors concerning these forward-looking statements.

除非我們另有明確說明，否則本次電話會議中提到的 EBITDA 均指調整後的 EBITDA。此外，MRC Global 管理階層在本次電話會議中所發表的評論可能包含美國聯邦證券法所定義的前瞻性陳述。這些前瞻性陳述反映了 MRC Global 管理層的當前觀點。然而，實際結果可能與今天表達的結果有重大差異。我們鼓勵您閱讀該公司的美國證券交易委員會 (SEC) 文件，以便更深入地了解與這些前瞻性陳述相關的風險因素。

And now I'd like to turn the call over to our CEO, Mr. Rob Saltiel.

現在我想將電話轉給我們的執行長 Rob Saltiel 先生。

Thank you, Monica. Good morning, and welcome to everyone joining today's call. I will begin with a high-level review of our first-quarter results and discuss a couple of notable achievements and initiatives before concluding with our 2024 outlook. I will then turn over the call to Kelly to provide a detailed review of the quarter and 2024 guidance before I deliver a brief recap.

謝謝你，莫妮卡。早安，歡迎大家參加今天的電話會議。我將首先對我們的第一季業績進行高層回顧，並討論一些值得注意的成就和舉措，最後總結我們對 2024 年的展望。然後，我將把電話轉給凱利，讓他詳細回顧本季和 2024 年的指引，然後我再做一個簡短的回顧。

Starting with our first-quarter highlights, we generated $38 million in operating cash flow in the first quarter, a great start to the year because Q1 is typically our lowest quarter for cash generation. We are on track to meet or exceed our guidance of generating $200 million of operating cash flow for the full year. We continue to be very bullish on the cash generation potential of our company going forward.

從第一季的亮點開始，我們在第一季產生了 3800 萬美元的營運現金流，這對今年來說是一個良好的開端，因為第一季通常是我們現金產生量最低的季度。我們預計將達到或超過全年產生 2 億美元營運現金流的預期。我們仍然對公司未來的現金創造潛力非常看好。

First-quarter revenue was $806 million, growing 5% over the fourth quarter, exceeding our expectations and coming out of the gate strong in the new year. We believe that our business has turned the corner, with the fourth quarter of last year representing the bottom, and we expect our revenues to expand further in the remaining quarters.

第一季的營收為 8.06 億美元，比第四季成長 5%，超出了我們的預期，並在新的一年表現強勁。我們認為，我們的業務已經走出困境，去年第四季已處於谷底，我們預計剩餘幾季的營收將進一步擴大。

This quarter, we experienced revenue increases in all sectors, led by our DIET sector, which was up 7% on refining, chemical, and mining customer projects and maintenance spend. The gas utility sector improved 5% sequentially, driven by improved project work and increased customer spending due to normalizing buying patterns, reversing the downward trend experienced in the last three quarters of 2023. And our PTI sector grew by 3%, driven by increased pipeline valve sales and stronger production infrastructure activity in the US.

本季度，我們所有部門的收入均有所增長，其中，DIET 部門的收入增長最為顯著，在煉油、化工、採礦客戶項目和維護支出方面實現了 7% 的增長。受專案工作改善和購買模式正常化導致客戶支出增加的推動，天然氣公用事業部門環比增長 5%，扭轉了 2023 年最後三個季度的下降趨勢。由於美國管道閥門銷售成長和生產基礎設施活動加強，我們的 PTI 部門成長了 3%。

Adjusted gross margins were a very healthy 21.6%. This is now our eighth quarter in a row with margins exceeding 21%. As we have highlighted previously, this represents a transformational change from the high teens level of adjusted gross margins experienced throughout most of our company's history.

調整後的毛利率達到非常健康的21.6%。這是我們連續第八個季度的利潤率超過 21%。正如我們之前所強調的那樣，這代表著一次轉型變化，與我們公司歷史上大部分時間經歷的百分之十幾的調整後毛利率相比，這一水平有所降低。

Adjusted EBITDA margins were 7.1% for the first quarter, an 80 basis point improvement over the fourth quarter. This is the result of both higher adjusted gross margins along with strong cost discipline. Our balance sheet has never been stronger, with ample liquidity and the lowest leverage ratio in our public company history at 0.6 times. We expect this metric to further improve as we continue to generate cash throughout this year. Our strong cash generation profile provides us the opportunity to repay our term loan early, which we intend to do in the current quarter. Kelly will address this in more detail later.

第一季調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 7.1%，較第四季提高 80 個基點。這是調整後毛利率上升和嚴格控製成本的結果。我們的資產負債表從未如此強勁，流動性充足，槓桿率降至上市公司史上最低的0.6倍。我們預計，隨著我們今年繼續產生現金，這項指標將進一步改善。我們強大的現金創造能力為我們提供了提前償還定期貸款的機會，我們打算在本季度償還。凱利稍後會更詳細地討論這一點。

Finally, our international revenues grew 7% year over year and 3% sequentially. This business is poised for double-digit revenue improvement for the full year, supported by a backlog that is 38% higher than a year ago. Our international team's success in landing new projects, particularly those involving the energy transition in LNG, has supported our growth in this segment.

最後，我們的國際營收年增 7%，季增 3%。得益於比去年同期高出 38% 的積壓訂單，該業務預計將實現全年兩位數的收入成長。我們的國際團隊成功獲得新項目，特別是涉及液化天然氣能源轉型的項目，支持了我們在這一領域的成長。

I would now like to highlight three important initiatives at MRC Global that illustrate what we are doing to improve our customer service, enhance our revenue growth, and maintain a disciplined cost structure.

現在，我想強調 MRC Global 的三個重要舉措，這些舉措說明了我們為改善客戶服務、提高收入成長和維持嚴格的成本結構所做的努力。

First, our digital strategy that began several years ago continues to evolve and deliver great dividends in the form of additional sales and an improved customer experience. US orders placed digitally hit a record 66% of total orders in Q1 of 2024. This is up approximately 2,100 basis points over five years ago and up 150 basis points over Q1 2023 levels. We have developed and deployed a user-friendly digital customer service platform, that, in addition to product ordering, provides self-service features such as order expediting, order documentation, and past order histories. This useful functionality drives efficiency and cost savings for our customers and for us while increasing customer loyalty and retention.

首先，我們幾年前開始實施的數位策略不斷發展，並透過增加銷售額和改善客戶體驗帶來了巨大的紅利。2024 年第一季度，美國數位化訂單佔總訂單量的 66% 創下了歷史新高。這比五年前上漲了約 2,100 個基點，比 2023 年第一季的水準上漲了 150 個基點。我們開發並部署了一個用戶友好的數位客戶服務平台，除了產品訂購外，還提供訂單加急、訂單文件和過去訂單歷史記錄等自助服務功能。這項實用功能有助於提高我們的客戶和我們的工作效率和成本，同時提高客戶忠誠度和保留率。

One exciting initiative that we have underway is development of a digital quoting tool that leverages artificial intelligence to improve the accuracy and timeliness of our quotes for customer product orders. This tool uses AI to match customer parts and descriptions to our own to expedite the quoting process. This provides multiple benefits: it saves time for our salespeople in assembling a quotation, it improves our responsiveness to urgent customer needs, and it facilitates a more accurate quote-to-cash process. We are in beta testing mode now, and we plan to roll out this quoting tool to our sales team this summer.

我們正在進行的一項令人興奮的舉措是開發一種數位報價工具，該工具利用人工智慧來提高我們對客戶產品訂單的報價的準確性和及時性。該工具使用人工智慧將客戶的零件和描述與我們自己的零件和描述進行匹配，以加快報價流程。這有多種好處：它節省了我們的銷售人員編制報價的時間，提高了我們對緊急客戶需求的回應能力，並促進了更準確的報價到現金流程。我們現在處於 Beta 測試模式，我們計劃今年夏天向我們的銷售團隊推出這個報價工具。

And finally, I want to elaborate on our North America enterprise resource planning project that we discussed on our last earnings call. We are enthusiastic about the functionality that the new Oracle cloud-based ERP system will bring to our business. We anticipate many enhancements to our current business processes, including standardized operating procedures, improved accuracy relating to the management of customer orders, increased inventory efficiency and forecasting, and enhanced monitoring and reporting of our financial performance.

最後，我想詳細說明我們在上次財報電話會議上討論的北美企業資源規劃專案。我們對新的基於 Oracle 雲端的 ERP 系統將為我們的業務帶來的功能感到非常興奮。我們預計將對目前的業務流程進行許多改進，包括標準化作業程序、提高與客戶訂單管理相關的準確性、提高庫存效率和預測，以及加強對財務績效的監控和報告。

Our customers will benefit through more streamlined systems integration that can enable trouble-free digital commerce. I am pleased to report that this ERP project remains on budget and on schedule. We expect to be fully implemented and running on the new system in the second half of 2025. We have assigned some of our best-performing team members to this ERP project, and we are excited about its potential to transform many aspects of our business.

我們的客戶將受益於更加簡化的系統集成，從而實現無故障的數位商務。我很高興地報告，該 ERP 專案仍在預算和進度之內。我們預計新系統將在2025年下半年全面實施並運作。我們已經指派一些表現最出色的團隊成員參與這個 ERP 項目，我們對它改變我們業務的許多方面的潛力感到非常興奮。

Turning now to our outlook, our strong financial performance in the first quarter provides a very encouraging start to the year and higher confidence that we will achieve the 2024 financial targets discussed on our last call. As mentioned earlier, we believe our business has stabilized from the declines we experienced in the second half of last year. We are optimistic that the first quarter will likely be the lowest revenue quarter of the year, and we will see steady growth in the coming quarters.

現在談到我們的展望，我們第一季強勁的財務業績為今年提供了一個非常令人鼓舞的開端，並且讓我們更加有信心實現上次電話會議上討論的 2024 年財務目標。正如前面提到的，我們相信我們的業務已經從去年下半年經歷的下滑中穩定下來。我們樂觀地認為，第一季很可能是今年收入最低的季度，未來幾季我們將看到穩定成長。

From a sector perspective, for our [great] gas utility sector, some of our larger customers continue to focus on their destocking efforts, but the sequential growth experienced this quarter and stabilization seen in backlog is signaling that the worst is likely behind us. The long-term market fundamentals and growth potential of our gas utilities business remain very positive, and we expect that 2025 will see improvements over 2024 revenues. We continue to expand our wallet share with existing gas utility customers while targeting new utilities and service areas to increase our market share. We are targeting new utility contracts this year that should solidify our strong market position even further.

從行業角度來看，對於我們（巨大的）天然氣公用事業行業而言，我們的一些較大的客戶繼續專注於去庫存工作，但本季度的連續增長和積壓訂單的穩定表明，最糟糕的時期可能已經過去。我們的燃氣公用事業業務的長期市場基本面和成長潛力仍然非常積極，我們預計 2025 年的收入將比 2024 年有所改善。我們將繼續擴大現有燃氣公用事業客戶的份額，同時瞄準新的公用事業和服務領域，以增加我們的市場份額。我們今年的目標是簽訂新的公用事業合同，這將進一步鞏固我們強大的市場地位。

In the DIET sector, we are optimistic that we will experience revenue growth this year from a strong level of refinery and chemical plant maintenance activities supplemented by a growing slate of projects. We remain excited about energy transition opportunities, with the majority of our 2024 revenue in this sub-sector expected to occur with renewable fuels and wind power projects in our international segment. Additionally, we are building a healthy backlog in North America for carbon capture project activity that is expected to deliver late this year and into next year.

在DIET領域，我們樂觀地認為，透過強勁的煉油廠和化工廠維護活動以及不斷增加的項目，我們今年的收入將實現成長。我們對能源轉型機會仍然感到興奮，預計 2024 年我們在該子行業的大部分收入將來自我們國際部門的可再生燃料和風電項目。此外，我們正在北美累積大量的碳捕獲項目訂單，預計今年底至明年交付。

Turning to our PTI business, we expect consistent, steady growth for the remainder of the year. We expect oil prices to remain relatively strong on the back of positive economic activity and for natural gas prices to likely improve from the currently low historical levels due to targeted production curtailments and inventory declines.

談到我們的 PTI 業務，我們預計今年剩餘時間內將實現持續、穩定的成長。我們預計，在積極的經濟活動的推動下，油價將保持相對強勁，而由於有針對性的減產和庫存下降，天然氣價格可能從目前的歷史低點回升。

Larger public E&P companies are expected to drive a higher percentage of the activity in 2024 in the US oil field, which is favorable for MRC Global as our PTI revenue is driven predominantly from this customer base. We expect less cyclicality and activity levels going forward as these larger customers tend to operate with increased levels of financial discipline.

預計大型上市公司的 E&P 將在 2024 年推動美國油田活動的更大比例，這對 MRC Global 有利，因為我們的 PTI 收入主要來自於這個客戶群。我們預計未來的周期性和活動水平將會降低，因為這些較大的客戶往往會以更高的財務紀律來運作。

We are bullish on MRC Global's ability to gain market share, especially in the Permian Basin, as larger PTI customers complete announced acquisitions and reassessed their supply chains and purchasing contracts. As we have stated previously, we generally do more business with the acquirers than we do the targets, and the quality focus that we bring is better appreciated by larger operators who adopt a longer-term perspective when purchasing PVF products for their oil and gas maintenance activities and new development projects. Another positive for the PTI sector is that our international oil and gas business is expected to expand, and we should benefit from our strong position in Europe and our growing presence in the Middle East.

隨著較大的 PTI 客戶完成宣布的收購並重新評估其供應鏈和採購合同，我們看好 MRC Global 獲得市場份額的能力，尤其是在二疊紀盆地。正如我們之前所說，我們與收購方的業務往來通常比與目標方的業務往來要多，而且我們注重質量的態度更受大型運營商的青睞，他們在購買PVF 產品用於石油和天然氣維護時會採取更長遠的眼光活動和新的開發案。PTI 部門的另一個積極因素是，我們的國際石油和天然氣業務預計將擴大，並且我們將受益於我們在歐洲的強勢地位和在中東日益增長的影響力。

We continue to focus on controlling our cost structure in an inflationary environment. As mentioned on last quarter's call, we are aiming to further optimize our SG&A costs in 2024 to maintain a minimum 7% adjusted EBITDA margin. We have made significant progress elevating our EBITDA returns over the last few years, and we are committed to not losing this momentum in 2024. Among other initiatives, we are becoming more efficient in our staffing levels, lowering our freight costs ,and optimizing our service delivery costs. We are off to a good start, as our adjusted SG&A cost for the first quarter of 2024 were $2 million lower than the prior quarter.

在通膨環境下，我們持續致力於控製成本結構。正如上個季度的電話會議上所提到的，我們的目標是在 2024 年進一步優化銷售、一般和行政費用，以保持至少 7% 的調整後 EBITDA 利潤率。過去幾年，我們在提高 EBITDA 回報率方面取得了重大進展，我們致力於在 2024 年保持這一勢頭。除其他措施外，我們還在提高人員配置效率、降低運費成本並優化服務交付成本。我們開局良好，2024 年第一季的調整後銷售、一般及行政開支比上一季低 200 萬美元。

In summary, we have started the year off significantly better than expected, and we believe the low point for our business activity is in our rearview mirror. While we continue to believe that 2024 will be a transitional year in terms of our top-line growth, we have never been a stronger company, and we have multiple opportunities for value creation ahead of us.

總而言之，我們今年的開局明顯好於預期，我們相信我們業務活動的低谷已經過去。雖然我們仍然相信 2024 年將是我們營收成長的過渡年，但我們從未像現在這樣強大，而且我們面前有多個創造價值的機會。

We remain optimistic about the fundamentals of all three business sectors and their long-term outlook given our strong market position and the expectation of growing demand for our products and services for decades to come. Importantly, for our shareholders, our recent improvements in our gross margins, our cost structure, and our working capital efficiencies have positioned us to generate more consistent earnings and cash flow across the business cycle.

鑑於我們強大的市場地位以及未來幾十年對我們的產品和服務的需求不斷增長的預期，我們對所有三個業務部門的基本面及其長期前景仍然持樂觀態度。重要的是，對於我們的股東而言，我們最近在毛利率、成本結構和營運資本效率方面的改善，使我們能夠在整個商業週期中產生更穩定的收益和現金流。

This year, we expect to generate approximately $200 million or more in operating cash flow, which will make us an even stronger company with minimal net debt going into 2025. This will allow us significant flexibility to consider various capital allocation strategies as we approach 2025, including distributing excess cash to our shareholders.

今年，我們預計將產生約 2 億美元或更多的營運現金流，這將使我們在 2025 年成為一家更強大的公司，淨債務將降至最低。這將使我們在接近 2025 年時擁有很大的靈活性來考慮各種資本配置策略，包括向股東分配多餘的現金。

And with that, I will now hand it over to Kelly.

現在我將發言權交給凱利。

Thanks, Rob, and good morning, everyone. My comments today will be primarily focused on sequential results, comparing the first quarter of 2024 to the fourth quarter of 2023, unless otherwise stated.

謝謝，羅布，大家早安。今天，我的評論將主要集中在連續結果上，將 2024 年第一季與 2023 年第四季進行比較，除非另有說明。

Total company sales for the first quarter were $806 million, a 5% sequential increase and a 9% decline compared to the same quarter last year. From a sector perspective, gas utilities sales were $266 million in the first quarter, a $13 million or 5% increase. The growth was the result of increased product sales for upcoming projects and normalization of certain customer buying patterns related to their recent destocking efforts.

第一季公司總銷售額為 8.06 億美元，季增 5%，比去年同期下降 9%。從產業角度來看，第一季天然氣公用事業銷售額為 2.66 億美元，成長 1,300 萬美元，成長 5%。成長的原因是即將開展的項目的產品銷售增加，以及最近去庫存努力導致的某些客戶購買模式正常化。

Although some customers continue to focus on reducing their levels of safety stock, we have seen a stabilization in backlog and average daily sales so far this year that is encouraging. We continue to expect 2024 to be a transition year for our gas utility customers, with lower project activity due to higher interest rates and elevated construction costs, but we are expecting increased spending as we move into next year.

儘管一些客戶繼續專注於降低安全庫存水平，但今年迄今為止，我們看到積壓訂單和每日平均銷售量趨於穩定，這是令人鼓舞的。我們仍然預計 2024 年將成為我們天然氣公用事業客戶的過渡年，由於利率上升和建設成本上升，專案活動將會減少，但我們預計隨著明年的到來，支出將會增加。

The DIET sector first-quarter revenue was $276 million, an increase of $18 million or 7% due to an increase in mining-related sales, refinery project and turnaround activity, and chemical market share growth in the US. International diet revenue also increased, primarily due to an LNG project in the Middle East as well as renewable gas and chemical projects in Europe.

DIET 部門第一季營收為 2.76 億美元，增加 1,800 萬美元或 7%，這得益於採礦相關銷售、煉油廠項目和扭虧為盈活動以及美國化學品市場份額的成長。國際飲食收入也有所增加，主要得益於中東的液化天然氣計畫以及歐洲的再生氣體和化學計畫。

The PTI sector revenue for the first quarter was $264 million, an increase of $7 million or 3%, primarily due to increased sales of valves and polyethylene pipe for well completions in the US. As mentioned by Rob, we are optimistic about the recent trends in customer consolidation and supportive commodity prices, which should be a nice tailwind for our business going forward.

第一季 PTI 部門收入為 2.64 億美元，增加 700 萬美元或 3%，主要由於美國油井完井用閥門和聚乙烯管道銷量增加。正如 Rob 所說，我們對近期客戶整合和支援性商品價格的趨勢感到樂觀，這對我們未來的業務發展來說應該是一個很好的順風。

From a geographic segment perspective, US revenue was $667 million in the first quarter, a $34 million or 5% increase as all sectors improved. Gas utilities led the growth, up $13 million; followed by the DIET sector, which increased $11 million; and the PTI sector, which was up $10 million.

從地理區域來看，第一季美國營收為 6.67 億美元，由於所有部門均有所改善，成長 3,400 萬美元或 5%。天然氣公用事業引領了成長，成長了 1,300 萬美元；其次是 DIET 領域，增加了 1,100 萬美元； PTI 部門成長了 1000 萬美元。

International revenue was $110 million in the first quarter, up $3 million or 3%, driven primarily by improvement in the DIET sector in the Middle East and Europe. The outlook for our international segment remains positive, with expectations for double-digit revenue growth in both the PTI and DIET sectors. Canada revenue was $29 million in the first quarter, up $1 million, as increases in the DIET sector revenue offset a decline in the PTI sector.

第一季國際營收為 1.1 億美元，成長 300 萬美元，增幅 3%，主要得益於中東和歐洲 DIET 領域的改善。我們的國際部門前景依然樂觀，預計 PTI 和 DIET 部門的營收都將達到兩位數成長。加拿大第一季的營收為 2,900 萬美元，成長 100 萬美元，因為 DIET 部門營收的成長抵消了 PTI 部門營收的下滑。

Now turning to margins. Adjusted gross profit for the first quarter was $174 million or 21.6%, a 40 basis point improvement over the same quarter a year ago and a 30 basis point decline sequentially. This marks the eighth consecutive quarter with adjusted gross margins exceeding 21% as we have been successful at maintaining a higher-margin product mix and a higher contribution of revenue from our international segment which is accretive to overall company gross margins.

現在轉向利潤。第一季調整後毛利為 1.74 億美元，成長率為 21.6%，較去年同期增加 40 個基點，較上一季下降 30 個基點。這是調整後毛利率連續第八個季度超過 21%，因為我們成功維持了更高利潤率的產品組合和國際部門的更高收入貢獻，從而提高了公司的整體毛利率。

Reported SG&A for the first quarter was $125 million or 15.5% of sales as compared to $125 million or 16.3% for the fourth quarter. This quarter included $3 million of pretax charges related to activism response, legal and consulting costs. Excluding these costs, our adjusted SG&A for the first quarter of 2024 was $122 million or 15.1% of sales and a $2 million sequential improvement as a result of our cost control measures.

第一季報告的銷售、一般及行政費用為 1.25 億美元，佔銷售額的 15.5%，而第四季為 1.25 億美元，佔銷售額的 16.3%。本季度包括與激進主義回應、法律和諮詢費用相關的 300 萬美元稅前費用。除這些成本外，我們 2024 年第一季的調整後銷售、一般及行政費用為 1.22 億美元，佔銷售額的 15.1%，由於我們的成本控制措施，環比改善 200 萬美元。

Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter was $57 million or 7.1% of sales, an 80 basis point increase from the fourth quarter due to higher sales, elevated gross margins, and reduced SG&A costs. Tax expense in the first quarter was $8 million, with an effective tax rate of 30% as compared to $2 million of expense and a 9% effective tax rate in the fourth quarter. The first quarter of 2024 effective tax rate was higher than the US statutory rate due to foreign losses with no tax benefit, while the fourth quarter was favorably impacted by a net reduction in a foreign valuation allowance.

第一季調整後 EBITDA 為 5,700 萬美元，佔銷售額的 7.1%，較第四季增加 80 個基點，原因是銷售額增加、毛利率提高以及銷售、一般及行政費用減少。第一季的稅費為 800 萬美元，有效稅率為 30%，而第四季的稅費為 200 萬美元，有效稅率為 9%。2024 年第一季的有效稅率高於美國法定稅率，原因是沒有稅收優惠的海外損失，而第四季則受到海外估值準備金淨減少的有利影響。

For the first quarter, we had net income attributable to common shareholders of $13 million or $0.15 per diluted share, and our adjusted net income attributable to common stockholders on an average cost basis, normalizing for LIFO adjustments and other items, was $17 million or $0.20 per diluted share.

第一季度，我們歸屬於普通股股東的淨利為1,300 萬美元，即每股攤薄收益0.15 美元；以平均成本計算的調整後歸屬於普通股股東的淨利（經後進先出法調整及其他項目標準化）為1700 萬美元，即每股攤薄收益0.20 美元。

In the first quarter, we generated $38 million in cash from operations, primarily from increased EBITDA and more efficient working capital metrics. We believe we are on track to meet or exceed our operating cash flow guidance of $200 million this year. We also expect to have continued working capital efficiency gains as we progress through the year, which will result in higher cash generation in the second half of the year.

第一季度，我們從營運活動中產生了 3,800 萬美元的現金，主要得益於 EBITDA 的成長和更有效率的營運資本指標。我們相信，我們今年預計將達到或超過 2 億美元的營運現金流預期。我們也預計，隨著時間的推移，營運資本效率將繼續提高，這將帶來下半年更高的現金創造量。

Turning to liquidity and capital structure, our current availability on the ABL is $645 million, and including cash, our total liquidity is $791 million. Our leverage ratio based on net debt of $149 million was 0.6 times, a new record low for the company. And we intend to repay our Term Loan B this quarter with a combination of cash and drawing on our ABL facility. This will also reduce our ongoing interest expense burden by 150 basis points for any balance that remains on our ABL.

談到流動性和資本結構，我們目前可用的 ABL 為 6.45 億美元，包括現金在內，我們的總流動性為 7.91 億美元。我們基於1.49億美元淨債務的槓桿率為0.6倍，創下了公司的歷史新低。我們打算在本季以現金和 ABL 貸款相結合的方式償還定期貸款 B。這也將使我們的 ABL 餘額的持續利息支出負擔減少 150 個基點。

Now, I'll cover our outlook for the second quarter and full-year 2024. For the second quarter, we expect sequential revenue to be up low single digits for the total company with increases in each of our sectors. We also expect sequential improvement in each of our geographic segments, with our international business leading the improvement with an upper single-digit increase.

現在，我將介紹我們對 2024 年第二季和全年的展望。對於第二季度，我們預計整個公司各部門的環比收入將實現低個位數成長。我們也預期各地區分部都會出現連續改善，其中國際業務將以較高的個位數增幅領先。

Our outlook for the full year remains in line with the guidance provided on our Q4 call. Although we are off to a very good start to 2024, our annual revenue guidance is weighted more heavily to the second half of the year and the current quarter is when we typically build backlog to support this growth. We also expect a quarterly revenue cadence similar to past years, with revenue growth in the second and third quarters and a seasonal decline in the fourth quarter. We continue to view 2024 as a transitional year, with total company revenue expected to be similar to or slightly lower than 2023 levels.

我們對全年的展望與第四季電話會議上提供的指引一致。儘管我們在 2024 年取得了非常好的開局，但我們的年度收入預期更多地集中在下半年，而本季度是我們通常會累積訂單以支持這一增長的時候。我們也預期季度營收節奏與往年類似，第二季和第三季營收成長，第四季出現季節性下降。我們繼續將 2024 年視為過渡年，預計公司總收入將與 2023 年的水平相似或略低。

As a reminder, we are also targeting the following key metrics for 2024. Average adjusted gross margins of 21% or better; average adjusted EBITDA margins of 7% or better; average adjusted SG&A cost as a percent of revenue below 15%; we expect to generate $200 million or more in operating cash flow; capital expenditures are expected to be in the $40 million to $45 million range in 2024, higher than our normal run rate of approximately $15 million as a result of our ERP implementation; and finally, we expect our effective tax rate in 2024 to be in the range of 26% to 28%.

提醒一下，我們也計劃在 2024 年實現以下關鍵指標。平均調整後毛利率達到或超過21%；平均調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 7% 或更高；平均調整後的銷售、一般及行政開支佔收入的百分比低於 15%；我們預計將產生2億美元或更多的營運現金流；預計 2024 年的資本支出將在 4,000 萬至 4,500 萬美元之間，高於我們實施 ERP 後的正常約 1,500 萬美元的運作率；最後，我們預期 2024 年的有效稅率將在 26% 至 28% 之間。

And with that, I would like to turn it back to Rob for closing comments.

最後，我想請 Rob 作最後評論。

Thanks, Kelly. The first quarter has started off with solid performance with a return to sequential quarterly revenue growth. It also bears repeating that our company is in a very strong financial position. We have transformed MRC Global into a more efficient and consistently profitable company with a strong balance sheet that is poised for future success.

謝謝，凱利。第一季開局表現穩健，營收恢復連續季成長。另外值得重複的是，我們公司的財務狀況非常強勁。我們已將 MRC Global 轉變為更有效率、持續盈利的公司，並擁有強勁的資產負債表，為未來的成功做好了準備。

These are the 2024 highlights I want to summarize before opening for Q&A. We continue to target $200 million of cash from operations this year, and we are on track to meet or exceed that target. We expect average adjusted gross profit to remain in the 21% range in 2024 and are targeting average EBITDA margins of 7% for the full year. We intend to pay off our Term Loan B in full in the current quarter. We expect to exit 2024 with a minimal net debt position and be in a positive net cash position in 2025.

這些是我在開始問答之前想要總結的 2024 年亮點。我們今年的目標仍然是實現 2 億美元的營運現金流，我們預計將達到或超過這一目標。我們預計 2024 年平均調整後毛利將維持在 21% 左右，全年平均 EBITDA 利潤率目標為 7%。我們打算在本季全額償還定期貸款 B。我們預計，到 2024 年，淨債務狀況將降至最低，到 2025 年，淨現金狀況將為正。

As we generate consistently strong levels of free cash flow over the coming quarters, we will have ample financial flexibility to consider various capital allocation strategies, including returning excess cash to our shareholders.

由於我們在未來幾季持續產生強勁的自由現金流，我們將擁有充足的財務彈性來考慮各種資本配置策略，包括向股東返還多餘的現金。

And with that, we will now take your questions. Operator?

現在我們開始回答你們的問題。操作員？

(Operator Instructions) Tommy Moll, Stephens.

（操作員指示）湯米·莫爾，史蒂芬斯。

Rob, I wanted to start on gas utilities. It sounds like there's some more normal buying patterns there after a few quarters where that wasn't the case. Can you just situate us in this recovery cycle? You mentioned there still appears to be some destocking by your own customers. But just anything additional you can provide there would be helpful. Thank you.

羅布，我想從燃氣公用事業開始。聽起來，在經歷了幾個季度的衰退之後，那裡似乎出現了一些更正常的購買模式。您能簡單介紹一下我們處於這一復甦週期嗎？您提到，您的客戶似乎仍在減少庫存。但只要您提供任何額外資訊都會很有幫助。謝謝。

Yes, sure. Thanks, Tommy. I think we've said before that a number of our customers are in different positions with regard to their destocking efforts. We certainly are seeing some of our customers returning to more normalized buying patterns. They've gotten through the majority of their destocking. And what they're purchasing from us and the business we're doing with them is more typical of what we would see with this part of the season. However, there are still other customers who are going to be completing their destocking efforts as they move through this year. Again, everybody's situation is slightly different.

是的，當然。謝謝，湯米。我想我們之前就說過，我們的許多客戶在去庫存方面持不同的立場。我們確實看到一些客戶恢復了更正常的購買模式。他們已經完成了大部分去庫存工作。他們向我們購買的產品以及我們與他們開展的業務更符合我們在本季所見的典型情況。不過，還有其他客戶將在今年內完成去庫存工作。再說一次，每個人的情況都略有不同。

I think what we're encouraged about is that the general trend is going the way that we thought it would, that the first half of this year, we'd certainly see the bulk of the friction on our business as it relates to destocking. And as we move to the second half of the year, we'd see, again, a more return to normal purchasing patterns, which obviously means higher revenues for our business.

我認為讓我們感到鼓舞的是，整體趨勢正按照我們想像的那樣發展，今年上半年，我們肯定會看到與去庫存相關的業務摩擦增加。隨著進入下半年，我們將再次看到購買模式恢復正常，這顯然意味著我們的業務收入將增加。

So we're encouraged by the progress being made and feeling that we'll finish the year stronger than we start, and that 2025 will even be better than 2024 based on some of the early estimates of CapEx from some of our key customers as they look to 2025.

因此，我們對所取得的進展感到鼓舞，並認為我們今年的業績將比年初更好，而且根據我們一些主要客戶對資本支出的一些早期估計，2025 年甚至會比 2024 年更好，因為他們展望2025年。

Also wanted to touch on the ERP update, which it sounds like is on budget and on schedule. Can you just refresh us there for the full scope of this implementation across this year and next? What's the total amount of CapEx -- or what I'm really trying to figure out is how much more spills into next year. And what are some of the key milestones we should be aware of just as you progress here going forward? Thank you.

還想談談 ERP 更新，聽起來是在預算和計劃之內。您能否向我們簡單介紹一下今年和明年實施這項計劃的全部範圍？資本支出總額是多少——或者我真正想弄清楚的是明年會有多少溢出。當您繼續前進時，我們應該注意哪些關鍵的里程碑？謝謝。

Yes. Tommy, this is Kelly. I'll take that one. So I think last quarter, we said the total budget would be approximately $50 million for the project, and a little bit more of that, probably 60% of that or so, will be in this year's budget. The remainder will be in next year. That's incorporated into the guidance we provided of that $40 million to $45 million in CapEx spend this year. And as Rob said on the prepared remarks, we're on schedule. We're on budget. Everything is tracking really nicely there.

是的。湯米，這是凱利。我要那個。所以我認為上個季度我們說過該項目的總預算約為 5000 萬美元，而今年的預算中會多一點這個數字，大概佔 60% 左右。剩餘部分將在明年完成。這已納入我們今年提供的 4,000 萬至 4,500 萬美元資本支出指導中。正如羅佈在準備好的演講中所說，我們的工作正在按計劃進行。我們的預算有限。那裡的一切進展都很順利。

So you asked about the different milestones. At the stage right now, we're about to wrap up the detailed design phase, kind of the blueprint of the system. We are starting to test the system live in a conference room pilot that is kind of going on as we speak right now. That's kind of the very first big user test of the functionality of the system. And then we will start converting or transitioning over to the implementation part of the project, which will be coming up here late Q2 going into Q3.

所以你詢問了不同的里程碑。目前，我們即將完成詳細設計階段，即係統藍圖的階段。我們正在會議室試點現場測試系統，測試正在進行中。這是對系統功能的首次大型用戶測試。然後，我們將開始轉換或過渡到專案的實施部分，這將在第二季末到第三季期間完成。

So we'll continue each quarter to update you guys on the progress. But so far, everything is going really well, very excited about the system and the additional functionality that we're going to get out of it.

因此，我們將每季繼續向大家通報進度。但到目前為止，一切進展順利，我們對這個系統以及我們將從中獲得的附加功能感到非常興奮。

Yes. And Tom, if I could just add. Keep in mind, we're currently on a mainframe ERP system, and I don't imagine there are many companies that you cover that are on a mainframe system. This is going to create tremendous opportunities for us to be both more efficient in terms of how we run our business, being able to see where our inventory is, making sure that that inventory is productive, making sure that our financial monitoring and assessment is up to speed. But it's also going to really give us capabilities with regard to better integration with our customers as well, and we're really excited about this.

是的。還有湯姆，如果我可以補充的話。請記住，我們目前使用的是大型主機 ERP 系統，而且我認為您所涵蓋的公司中沒有多少使用大型主機系統的。這將為我們創造巨大的機會，讓我們在經營業務方面更加高效，能夠看到我們的庫存在哪裡，確保庫存富有成效，確保我們的財務監控和評估加速。但它也將真正賦予我們更好地與客戶融合的能力，我們對此感到非常興奮。

It's obviously a major investment for the company. It's a significant change for our people. And I think we're doing a lot of good things to make sure that the change management process is fully considered as we go forward. But we're very excited about the system that we picked, the implementer and design group that we're working with, and we know it will be a success. So stay tuned as we continue to give updates on future calls.

這顯然對公司來說是一筆重大投資。對我們的人民來說這是一個重大的改變。我認為我們正在做很多好事，以確保變革管理流程在我們前進的過程中得到充分考慮。但我們對我們選擇的系統、與我們合作的實施者和設計團隊感到非常興奮，我們知道它會成功。因此請繼續關注，我們將繼續提供有關未來通話的更新。

Thank you, both. I'll turn it back.

謝謝你們兩位。我會把它轉回去。

Nathan Jones, Stifel.

內森瓊斯（Nathan Jones），斯蒂費爾（Stifel）。

Good morning, everyone. I'm going to ask a follow up on the gas utilities business and probably be a little more blunt with my question. I think 2024, with the inventory destocking that's going on, clearly indicates that the gas utilities business is going to be under-earning in 2024. It's probably over-earning in 2022, under-earning in '23 and '24. Do you guys have an estimate for what that is, what the level of inventory destocking is, the level of under-earning that the business is doing in 2024, simply because customers are correcting their inventory.

大家早安。我將詢問有關天然氣公用事業業務的後續情況，並且我的問題可能會更直白一些。我認為，2024 年，隨著庫存去化的進行，清楚地表明天然氣公用事業業務在 2024 年的獲利能力將不足。2022 年可能獲利過高，而 2023 年和 2024 年則獲利不足。你們能估計這個數字是多少嗎？

Well, good question, Nathan. I'm not sure how definitive we can be about how much it's impacting our business in terms of a precise number. But if you look at where we've been previously in this business and the consistent growth patterns we've had over the last decade, we think that there's sort of a natural 5% to 7% growth built into this business. And once we get off that trajectory, clearly something else is going on.

嗯，內森，你問得好。我無法確定它對我們的業務到底有多大影響，確切的數字是多少。但如果你看看我們以前在這個行業的表現以及過去十年的持續成長模式，我們認為這個行業自然會有 5% 到 7% 的成長率。一旦我們脫離那條軌跡，顯然就會發生其他事情。

We continue to have discussions with our customers about projects that they need to implement in order to maintain the safety and integrity of their systems. And obviously, with the opportunity for the economy to maybe get a boost from some lower interest rates, maybe we get lower mortgage rates, we get housing starts increasing, there's going to be opportunities for new infrastructure to go in as well. So we believe that we're going to get back onto a more normal cadence as we get into 2025.

我們繼續與客戶討論他們需要實施的項目，以維護其係統的安全性和完整性。顯然，較低的利率可能會為經濟帶來提振，也許我們會得到較低的抵押貸款利率，房屋開工率會上升，新的基礎建設也會有機會。因此，我們相信，到 2025 年，我們將恢復到更正常的節奏。

Again, the CapEx budgets that we've seen, these are long-term budgets. Not all the customers have put those out, but the ones that we've seen are typically in that 5% to 7% CapEx growth per year range. And that's typically what we use as a guidepost. Again, each customer is going to be slightly different. Different areas of the country see different growth rates, but that's really the cadence that we're looking for as normalized. And when we deviate from that, we attribute a lot of that to the destocking.

再一次，我們看到的資本支出預算都是長期預算。並非所有客戶都已採取這些措施，但我們看到這些客戶的資本支出年增長率一般在 5% 至 7% 之間。這通常就是我們用來當路標的東西。再次強調，每位顧客都會略有不同。全國不同地區的成長率有所不同，但這確實是我們所追求的正常節奏。當我們偏離這一水平時，我們將其很大程度上歸咎於去庫存。

Thanks for that. Another comment, I think, Kelly made in his prepared remarks was chemical market share growth. I know that's been a market that you guys have thrown some additional resources behind. It felt like you maybe weren't getting your fair share in that market. So any comments on what's been done there, the trend in market share growth, and what you think you can get there in the future?

謝謝。我認為凱利在其準備好的發言中提出的另一個評論是化學品市場份額的增長。我知道你們已經在這個市場上投入了一些額外的資源。感覺你可能沒有在那個市場獲得公平的份額。那麼，對於您在那裡所做的事情、市場份額成長的趨勢以及您認為未來可以取得的成就，您有何評論？

Yes, that's been an exciting initiative for us. I think we've mentioned a few calls ago that, in the past, we kind of took our eyes off that market. It's not all IOCs. It's a lot of smaller, more specialized chemical companies, along with the household names that you know. Some of our competition really was well positioned to get that business, and we weren't really challenging enough for it.

是的，這對我們來說是一個令人興奮的舉措。我想我們在幾次電話會議之前提到過，過去我們有點不再關注那個市場了。並非所有 IOC 都是如此。其中既有很多規模較小、更專業的化學公司，也有一些大家所熟知的家喻戶曉的公司。我們的一些競爭對手確實有能力獲得這項業務，但我們還沒有足夠的挑戰精神。

And keep in mind, the chemical space is heavy valve oriented, which is obviously margin accretive for us. There's also a lot of metallurgy requirements there, like stainless and alloys, that tend to also be accretive to margins. So for a lot of reasons, we felt like it was underserved and a great opportunity for growth.

請記住，化學領域是重型閥門導向的，這顯然可以增加我們的利潤。該行業還有很多冶金需求，例如不銹鋼和合金，這些需求也往往能夠增加利潤。因此，出於許多原因，我們覺得它尚未得到充分服務，但卻是一次巨大的成長機會。

We've done extremely well in breaking in with customers where we haven't had MRO business before. And at the same time, we feel like we're getting our fair share or better in terms of new projects. We've got a number of things that we're working on that haven't come to full fruition yet because the projects are still going through the planning and early purchasing stages. But we feel like we're very well positioned for project work in the chemical space and to continue to expand our presence with the MRO customers that have been there that we haven't traditionally served.

我們在打入之前從未有過 MRO 業務的客戶方面做得非常出色。同時，我們感覺在新項目方面我們獲得了公平甚至更好的份額。我們正在進行的一些工作尚未完全完成，因為這些項目仍處於規劃和早期採購階段。但我們覺得，我們在化學領域的專案工作方面處於非常有利的位置，並將繼續擴大我們與傳統上未曾服務過的 MRO 客戶的業務往來。

And maybe just one more on the debt payoff and capital structure. Kelly, did you say your 150 basis points lower interest rate on the ABL than on the term loan first? And second, what's your view on your ability to issue new debt given some of the blocking that's been going on of refinancing to current term loan? Just how you're thinking about your ability to issue new debt going forward.

也許還有關於債務償還和資本結構的問題。凱利，您是否先說過 ABL 的利率比定期貸款的利率低 150 個基點？其次，考慮到目前定期貸款再融資遇到的一些阻礙，您如何看待自己發行新債的能力？您如何考慮未來發行新債的能力。

Yes. So Nathan, you're exactly right. The difference between the ABL and the term loan is 150 basis points. Both of them have a SOFR as a benchmark rate. And as far as the strength of the balance sheet and -- I mean, one example, Moody's just upgraded our outlook to positive.

是的。所以，內森，你說得完全正確。ABL 和定期貸款之間的差額為 150 個基點。二者均以 SOFR 為基準利率。至於資產負債表的實力——舉個例子，穆迪剛剛將我們的展望上調至正面。

We've got some discussions going on with S&P right now. So I think even the rating agencies have recognized the strength of the company and the additional cash flow generation potential that we're going to have coming up. So we feel like we can go back out to the market when we need to, if we need to, whether that's M&A or through other things that we need to take care of. So really see no restrictions on any of that at all.

我們目前正在與標準普爾進行一些討論。因此，我認為評級機構也已經認可了公司的實力以及我們即將獲得的額外現金流創造潛力。因此，我們覺得，如果需要的話，我們可以在需要的時候重返市場，無論是透過併購還是透過其他我們需要處理的事情。因此實際上看不到任何限制。

Chris Dankert, Loop Capital Markets.

Chris Dankert，Loop Capital Markets。

First off, really nice quarter on cash generation here in 1Q, reiterating the full year. But I guess previous comments were calling for roughly neutral cash generation in the first half and the full generation in the back half. Is this still kind of the cadence you're expecting here?

首先，第一季的現金創造能力非常好，這與全年的現金創造能力一致。但我想之前的評論都是要求上半年的現金產生量大致為中性，下半年則是完全產生現金。這仍然是您所期望的節奏嗎？

That's correct. Yes. We typically always generate more cash in the second half of the year. The first half of the year, customers are locking in on what their project plans are, how much inventory needs we're going to have. Q1 was better for a couple of different reasons. We thought it was going to be kind of flattish coming into the quarter because we have bonus payouts and tax payments and things like that. But with the higher EBITDA, incremental fall-through we had on the higher revenue, that was a nice tailwind. We've been meeting our inventory targets really well, improving the efficiency of our inventory management.

沒錯。是的。我們通常總是在下半年產生更多的現金。今年上半年，客戶正在確定他們的專案計劃以及我們需要多少庫存。由於幾個不同的原因，Q1 表現得更好。我們認為本季的業績將會持平，因為我們有獎金和稅金支付等等。但隨著 EBITDA 的提高，以及收入增加帶來的增量下降，這是一個很好的順風。我們一直很好地實現庫存目標，並提高了庫存管理的效率。

And then really, the organization has been highly focused on past due receivables, and we made a significant reduction in some of our past due balances that were out there this quarter that ultimately got us to the $38 million positive cash flow that we had for the quarter. And then I would say second quarter should be at least that, if not better, but an elevated amount as we get into the second half of the year.

And then really, the organization has been highly focused on past due receivables, and we made a significant reduction in some of our past due balances that were out there this quarter that ultimately got us to the $38 million positive cash flow that we had for the四分之一.然後我想說，第二季至少應該是這樣的，如果不是更好的話，但隨著我們進入下半年，這個數字會更高。

Got it. That's great news to hear. And then I guess, just not to get too [myopical], but when we're thinking about EBITDA margin going forward here, into the second quarter, would you be expecting it to be kind of flattish versus the first quarter? Or will we see some uplift from the higher volume sequentially? Is there any comments you can give us on EBITDA margin shape for the year here?

知道了。這真是個好消息。然後我想，只是不要太過短視，但是當我們考慮未來第二季的 EBITDA 利潤率時，您是否預計它會與第一季相比持平？或者我們會看到交易量逐季上升？您對今年的 EBITDA 利潤率狀況有什麼評論嗎？

Yes, I'll take this one and let Kelly jump in. I think you should really model flattish. We've basically said for the year that our goal is a 7% EBITDA margin, and we don't really see a substantial difference between quarters to where we can cut it that finally. Obviously, we think it's extremely important that we maintain high EBITDA margins even in the year that we set as a transition year where we're not going to see the typical revenue growth that we expect, in large part due to the destocking issue that we've talked about before.

是的，我接受這個，讓凱利跳進去。我認為你應該真正塑造扁平的形象。我們基本上已經說過，我們今年的目標是實現 7% 的 EBITDA 利潤率，而且我們確實沒有看到各個季度之間出現顯著差異，最終我們可以實現這一目標。顯然，我們認為保持較高的 EBITDA 利潤率非常重要，即使在我們設定的過渡年，我們也不會看到預期的典型收入增長，這在很大程度上是由於我們去庫存的問題'之前已經談論過。

So having a 7% EBITDA margin as your model is probably the right way to go. And then as we get back on a more normal growth pattern in terms of revenue, then we can shoot back up toward the 8% level. But that's not likely to happen certainly in the second quarter. We'll hope to see those margins move up as revenue moves up, as we move through this year and into '25.

因此，以 7% 的 EBITDA 利潤率作為模型可能是正確的選擇。然後，當我們的收入恢復到更正常的成長模式時，我們就可以回升至 8% 的水平。但這種情況在第二季肯定不太可能發生。我們希望，隨著今年和2025年的到來，利潤率也會隨著收入的增加而上升。

Got it. Thank you very much and congrats on a nice start to the year here.

知道了。非常感謝您，並祝賀您今年有一個良好的開端。

Ken Newman, KeyBanc Capital Markets.

肯‧紐曼 (Ken Newman)，KeyBanc 資本市場。

Hi. This is Katie Fisher on for Ken Newman today. I'm just trying to get a sense of how much conservatism is included in your guidance for this year. It seems like outside of gas utilities, you're seeing some positive trends within these other businesses. And just given the strength in the quarter, what's kind of preventing you from raising that outlook?

你好。今天，凱蒂費雪將為肯紐曼主持節目。我只是想知道你今年的指導包含了多少保守主義。似乎除了天然氣公用事業之外，其他業務也呈現出一些正面的趨勢。鑑於本季的強勁表現，有什麼原因阻止您提高這一預期？

Yeah, good question. There's no question that, coming out of the gate, we've got a good quarter in the books, better than we had expected. Keep in mind, we're still early in the year, and we're hesitant to change guidance based on just one quarter worth of data. The other thing to keep in mind is that the quarter that we're in now is typically where we build the significant amount of our backlog that basically turns into second half revenue.

是的，好問題。毫無疑問，我們一開始就取得了不錯的成績，比我們預期的還要好。請記住，今年還處於初期階段，我們不願意只根據一個季度的數據來改變預測。要記住的另一件事是，我們現在所處的季度通常是我們累積大量積壓訂單的季度，這些訂單基本上會轉化為下半年的收入。

So we've got a situation where really through May, June, into July, that's really the backlog that is going to be turned into revenue in the second half of the year. The other thing to keep in mind is that a lot of our business is project related and projects can shift forward and backward depending on the cadence of the orders that we receive.

因此，我們面臨的情況是，實際上到 5 月、6 月到 7 月，這些積壓訂單將在下半年轉化為收入。要記住的另一件事是，我們的許多業務都與項目相關，並且項目可能會根據我們收到的訂單的節奏向前或向後移動。

So in summary, Katie, we are excited about the start to the year, but we're just not ready to raise guidance yet.

總而言之，凱蒂，我們對今年的開始感到興奮，但我們還沒有準備好提高指導。

Okay. That makes sense. In terms of those projects, have you seen any cancellations or pushouts this year?

好的。這很有道理。就這些項目而言，今年有沒有看到任何取消或延遲的情況？

Look, projects never seem to move to the left. They always seem to shift back. And I think we've talked before about the fact that the LNG projects have certainly come under some pressure because of the permitting issue that's currently underway. Some of the other projects that we've got, just because things take a little longer than you like, they tend to slide a little to the right.

看起來，項目似乎從來沒有向左邊移動。它們似乎總是會後退。我想我們之前已經談過，由於目前正在進行的許可問題，液化天然氣計畫確實面臨一些壓力。我們進行的其他一些項目，只是因為花費的時間比你想像的要長一點，所以它們往往會稍微向右滑動。

Nothing major to report there, but we just have to be conservative. We've talked before about the fact that projects, unlike our MRO business, tend to be more lumpy in character and a little bit less predictable in terms of when they occur. And obviously, if a big project slips from the fourth quarter to the first quarter of next year, obviously, that will impact full-year results. Again, nothing to report in specific, but just generally speaking, that gives you some sense of why we're conservative at this point about changing our guidance.

沒有什麼重要的事情要報告，但我們必須保守。我們之前談過，與我們的 MRO 業務不同，專案往往具有更大的不穩定性，並且發生時間也更難預測。顯然，如果一個大項目從第四季度推遲到明年第一季度，這顯然會影響全年業績。再說一次，沒有什麼具體要報告的，但一般來說，這可以讓你了解為什麼我們目前對改變指導意見持保守態度。

Okay. All right. That's good color. And then I just want to sneak one more in here, just a modeling question. Kelly, did you say that there will be a double-digit increase in DIET within the international segment?

好的。好的。這顏色真好。然後我想在這裡再偷偷問一個問題，只是一個建模問題。凱利，您是否說過國際市場的 DIET 數量將出現兩位數的成長？

Yes. Well, international overall will be a double-digit improvement. And it will also be a double-digit improvement for international PTI and international DIET.

是的。嗯，國際整體水準將會有兩位數的提高。國際 PTI 和國際 DIET 也將實現兩位數的提升。

Okay. So I'm just trying to bridge that to the full-year guide because you're saying that DIET is going to be up, sequentially low single digits next quarter. Does that imply that it's going to decrease in the second half of the year just to meet that full-year outlook?

好的。因此，我只是想將其與全年指南聯繫起來，因為您說下個季度 DIET 將會上升，連續保持個位數的低位。這是否意味著下半年產量會下降，只是為了達到全年的預期？

We are forecasting a little bit of falloff in DIET towards the end of the year, [just lumpiness] with projects. Now second quarter, specifically for international, I think I said in my prepared remarks that we'll be up high single digits sequentially. But yes, as we go through the year, Q4 specifically I think is where we're showing a little bit of a decline in DIET.

我們預測，到今年年底，DIET 將會略有下降，[只是項目數量不多]。現在是第二季度，具體來說是國際業務，我想我在準備好的發言中說過，我們的業務將連續實現個位數成長。但是的，隨著我們度過這一年，特別是在第四季度，我認為我們的飲食出現了一些下降。

Okay. Thanks for the color.

好的。謝謝你的顏色。

I would like to turn the floor over to Monica Broughton for closing remarks.

我想請莫妮卡·布勞頓作最後發言。

Thank you for joining our call today and for your interest in MRC Global. We look forward to having you join us for our second-quarter conference call in August. Have a great day.

感謝您今天參加我們的電話會議並感謝您對 MRC Global 的關注。我們期待您參加我們八月的第二季電話會議。祝你有美好的一天。

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

今天的電話會議到此結束。此時您可以斷開您的線路，感謝您的參與。