Nordson Corp (NDSN) 2023 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Hello, and welcome to the Nordson Corporation's Third Quarter Fiscal Year 2023 Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) I will now turn the conference over to Lara Mahoney. Please go ahead.

您好，歡迎參加諾信公司 2023 財年第三季度電話會議。 （操作員指示）我現在將會議轉交給 Lara Mahoney。請繼續。

Thank you. Good morning. This is Lara Mahoney, Vice President of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications. I'm here with Sundaram Nagarajan, our President and CEO; and Joseph Kelley, Executive Vice President and CFO. We welcome you to our conference call today, Tuesday, August 22, to report Nordson's fiscal 2023 3rd quarter results. You can find both our press release as well as our webcast slide presentation that we will refer to during today's call on our website at www.nordson.com/investors. This conference call is being broadcast live on our investor website and will be available there for 14 days.

謝謝。早上好。我是拉拉·馬奧尼 (Lara Mahoney)，投資者關係和企業傳播副總裁。我和我們的總裁兼首席執行官 Sundaram Nagarajan 一起來到這裡。執行副總裁兼首席財務官約瑟夫·凱利 (Joseph Kelley)。歡迎您參加今天（8 月 22 日星期二）的電話會議，報告 Nordson 2023 財年第三季度業績。您可以在我們的網站 www.nordson.com/investors 上找到我們的新聞稿以及我們將在今天的電話會議期間參考的網絡廣播幻燈片演示。本次電話會議將在我們的投資者網站上直播，為期 14 天。

There will be a telephone replay of the conference call available until Tuesday, August 29, 2023. During this conference call, references to non-GAAP financial metrics will be made. A reconciliation of these metrics to the most comparable GAAP metric was provided in the press release issued yesterday. Before we begin, please refer to Slide 2 of our presentation, where we note that certain statements regarding our future performance that are made during this call, may be forward-looking based upon Nordson's current expectations. These statements may involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors as discussed in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that could cause actual results to differ.

電話會議的電話重播將於 2023 年 8 月 29 日星期二之前進行。在此電話會議期間，將提及非 GAAP 財務指標。昨天發布的新聞稿中提供了這些指標與最具可比性的 GAAP 指標的協調表。在開始之前，請參閱我們演示文稿的幻燈片 2，其中我們注意到，根據諾信當前的預期，本次電話會議期間做出的有關我們未來業績的某些陳述可能具有前瞻性。這些陳述可能涉及公司向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件中討論的許多風險、不確定性和其他因素，可能導致實際結果有所不同。

Moving to today's agenda on Slide 3. Naga will discuss third quarter highlights. He will then turn the call over to Joe to review sales and earnings performance for the total company and the 3 business segments. Joe will also discuss the balance sheet and cash flow. Naga will then share a high-level commentary about our enterprise performance. He will conclude with an update on the fiscal 2023 full year and fourth quarter guidance. We will then be happy to take your questions. With that, I'll turn to Slide 4 and hand the call over to Naga.

轉到幻燈片 3 上今天的議程。Naga 將討論第三季度的亮點。然後，他會將電話轉給 Joe，以審查整個公司和 3 個業務部門的銷售和盈利績效。喬還將討論資產負債表和現金流。然後，Naga 將分享有關我們企業績效的高級評論。最後，他將介紹 2023 財年全年和第四季度指引的最新情況。我們將很樂意回答您的問題。接下來，我將轉到幻燈片 4，並將通話轉交給 Naga。

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining Nordson's Fiscal 2023 Third Quarter Conference Call. While sales were at the low end of our expected guidance range for the quarter, I would like to recognize the dedicated Nordson team who has actively control costs in divisions where it was necessary and leverage the NBS Next growth framework to deliver strong growth in divisions where the market demand was strong. This resulted in adjusted earnings per share of $2.35 and which was at the high end of our third quarter EPS guidance. Going into the third quarter, we expected to be pressured by the ongoing weakness in our Electronics and biopharma product lines.

大家，早安。感謝您參加諾信 2023 財年第三季度電話會議。雖然本季度銷售額處於我們預期指導範圍的低端，但我想對諾信敬業的團隊表示認可，他們在必要時積極控制部門的成本，並利用NBS Next 增長框架在有必要的部門實現強勁增長。市場需求旺盛。這導致調整後每股收益為 2.35 美元，處於我們第三季度 EPS 指導的上限。進入第三季度，我們預計電子和生物製藥產品線的持續疲軟將給我們帶來壓力。

We understand the macro factors impacting these end markets, and we have the line of sight to returning to growth. This quarter's Electronics end market softness is particularly visible when looking at our results in Asia Pacific, which declined 20%. This reflects decreased demand from semiconductor customers in our ATS segment and electronics assembly customers in our MFS segment. These markets are cyclical, and we anticipate them turning in the middle of 2024.

我們了解影響這些終端市場的宏觀因素，並且我們的目標是恢復增長。從我們在亞太地區的業績來看，本季度電子終端市場的疲軟尤為明顯，該地區下降了 20%。這反映了 ATS 部門的半導體客戶和 MFS 部門的電子組裝客戶的需求下降。這些市場具有周期性，我們預計它們將在 2024 年中期出現轉變。

The diversification of our business offset some of this pressure. From a product perspective, we continue to experience double-digit organic growth in Medical Interventional Solutions and Polymer Processing product lines as well as high single-digit growth in the test and inspection business. Regionally, we experienced mid-single digit organic growth in both Americas and Europe as our customers in both these regions are rebalancing their supply chains to be closer to the markets they serve. I'll speak more about the enterprise and our exciting new acquisition of ARAG in a few moments. But first, I'll turn the call over to Joe to provide a detailed perspective on our financial results of the quarter.

我們業務的多元化抵消了部分壓力。從產品角度來看，我們的醫療介入解決方案和聚合物加工產品線繼續實現兩位數的有機增長，以及測試和檢驗業務的高個位數增長。從地區來看，我們在美洲和歐洲都經歷了中個位數的有機增長，因為我們在這兩個地區的客戶正在重新平衡他們的供應鏈，以更接近他們所服務的市場。稍後我將詳細介紹該企業以及我們對 ARAG 的激動人心的新收購。但首先，我會將電話轉給喬，以提供有關本季度財務業績的詳細觀點。

Thank you, Naga, and good morning to everyone. On Slide #5, you'll see third quarter fiscal 2023 sales were $649 million a decrease of 2% compared to the prior year's third quarter sales of $662 million. This was driven by an organic decrease of 5%, partially offset by the favorable benefit of the CyberOptics acquisition. During the quarter, sales were negatively impacted by the end market pressures that Naga referenced. Gross profit for the third quarter of fiscal 2023 totaled $360 million. Excluding severance costs, gross profit totaled $362 million or 56% of sales, which is comparable to the prior year third quarter.

謝謝你，娜迦，祝大家早上好。在幻燈片 #5 上，您將看到 2023 財年第三季度銷售額為 6.49 億美元，與去年第三季度的 6.62 億美元銷售額相比下降了 2%。這是由 5% 的有機下降推動的，部分被 Cyber​​Optics 收購的有利效益所抵消。本季度，銷售受到 Naga 提到的終端市場壓力的負面影響。 2023財年第三季度毛利潤總計3.6億美元。不包括遣散費，毛利潤總計 3.62 億美元，佔銷售額的 56%，與去年第三季度相當。

SG&A in the third quarter was elevated to $189 million, above the $181 million we have been averaging for the last 6 quarters. Third quarter SG&A was impacted by notable nonrecurring items that I'd like to highlight. Our team's advanced to separate $1 billion global acquisition targets through the comprehensive due diligence process all the way to the final stages. As a result of these 2 significant and strategic projects, we incurred $7 million in nonrecurring costs from third-party service providers. We ultimately chose to move forward only with ARAG, which included an additional $1 million for the fairness opinion.

第三季度的 SG&A 升至 1.89 億美元，高於我們過去 6 個季度的平均 1.81 億美元。第三季度的銷售及管理費用受到我想強調的值得注意的非經常性項目的影響。我們的團隊通過全面的盡職調查流程一直到最後階段，成功分離出價值 10 億美元的全球收購目標。由於這兩個重要的戰略項目，我們從第三方服務提供商那裡產生了 700 萬美元的非經常性費用。我們最終選擇只與 ARAG 合作，其中包括額外的 100 萬美元用於公平意見。

In total, we incurred $8 million in nonrecurring costs for acquisition-related activity in the third quarter. Operating profit, excluding these nonrecurring items, was $181 million in the quarter or 28% of sales, 4% below the prior year adjusted operating profit of $188 million. Despite the lower sales volume, we held on to decremental margins on adjusted operating profit of 56%, reflective of our cost controls and improved pricing, which can be attributed to our team's dedication to the NBS Next framework. As we execute the Ascend strategy and scale through strategic acquisitions, EBITDA remains a key profitability metric. EBITDA for the third quarter was $208 million or 32% of sales, which is above our long-term profitability target.

第三季度，我們因收購相關活動總共產生了 800 萬美元的非經常性成本。不包括這些非經常性項目的營業利潤為 1.81 億美元，佔銷售額的 28%，比上年調整後的營業利潤 1.88 億美元低 4%。儘管銷量下降，我們仍保持了 56% 的調整後營業利潤的遞減利潤，這反映了我們的成本控制和定價的改進，這可歸因於我們團隊對 NBS Next 框架的奉獻。當我們執行升騰戰略並通過戰略收購擴大規模時，EBITDA 仍然是一個關鍵的盈利指標。第三季度 EBITDA 為 2.08 億美元，佔銷售額的 32%，高於我們的長期盈利目標。

However, $5 million or 2% below the prior year EBITDA of $213 million. The decrease was primarily driven by lower sales volume in the quarter. Looking at nonoperating expenses. Interest expense increased $6 million associated with higher borrowings and increased interest rates. Other net expense decreased $2 million related to a combination of changes in pension and deferred compensation plans as well as foreign exchange gains and losses. Tax expense was $34 million for an effective tax rate of 21% in the quarter, which is in line with the prior year third quarter rate and the forecasted full year rate for 2023.

然而，比上一年 2.13 億美元的 EBITDA 低 500 萬美元，即 2%。下降的主要原因是本季度銷量下降。看看非營業費用。由於借款增加和利率上升，利息支出增加了 600 萬美元。由於養老金和遞延薪酬計劃以及外匯損益的變化，其他淨費用減少了 200 萬美元。本季度的稅務費用為 3400 萬美元，有效稅率為 21%，與去年第三季度稅率和 2023 年預測全年稅率一致。

Net income in the quarter totaled $128 million or $2.22 per share. Adjusted earnings per share, excluding nonrecurring acquisition and severance costs, totaled $2.35 per share, a 6% decrease from the prior year adjusted earnings. The decrease was primarily driven by higher interest expense and lower operating profit. Now let's turn to Slide 6 through 8 to review the third quarter 2023 segment performance.

該季度淨利潤總計 1.28 億美元，即每股 2.22 美元。調整後每股收益（不包括非經常性收購和遣散費）總計為每股 2.35 美元，比上年調整後收益下降 6%。下降的主要原因是利息支出增加和營業利潤下降。現在讓我們轉向幻燈片 6 至 8 來回顧 2023 年第三季度的細分市場表現。

Industrial Precision Solutions sales of $338 million decreased 1% compared to the prior year third quarter. Driven by softness in our product assembly and nonwoven product lines in Asia. This was partially offset by continued strength in Polymer Processing product lines and growth in the Americas and Europe. Year-to-date, the IPS segment has delivered 3% organic sales growth following 2 consecutive years of double-digit growth. EBITDA for the quarter was $122 million or 36% of sales, which is a decrease of 3% compared to the prior year EBITDA of $126 million. The biggest driver of the decrease is lower sales volume and unfavorable sales mix due to the higher sales volume and Polymer Processing product lines.

工業精密解決方案銷售額為 3.38 億美元，較去年第三季度下降 1%。受到亞洲產品組裝和非織造布產品線的柔軟性的推動。這被聚合物加工產品線的持續強勁以及美洲和歐洲的增長所部分抵消。今年迄今為止，IPS 細分市場繼連續兩年實現兩位數增長後，有機銷售額增長了 3%。本季度 EBITDA 為 1.22 億美元，佔銷售額的 36%，比上年同期 1.26 億美元的 EBITDA 下降了 3%。下降的最大驅動因素是銷量下降以及由於銷量和聚合物加工產品線增加而導致的不利銷售組合。

EBITDA in the current quarter has improved compared to the prior 2 quarters of the current year and year-to-date is $4 million higher than the prior year. On Slide 7, you'll see Medical and Fluid Solutions sales of $171 million decreased 4% compared to the prior year's third quarter. The decrease was driven by continued softness in the Medical Fluid components division. Related to de-stocking in single-use plastic components for biopharma applications and Fluid Solution product lines, specifically for electronic assembly primarily in Asia Pacific. This pressure was partially offset by double-digit growth in our Medical Interventional Solutions product lines.

與今年前兩個季度相比，本季度的 EBITDA 有所改善，年初至今比去年增加了 400 萬美元。在幻燈片 7 上，您將看到醫療和流體解決方案銷售額為 1.71 億美元，與去年第三季度相比下降了 4%。這一下降是由於醫用流體組件部門持續疲軟所致。與生物製藥應用和流體解決方案產品線的一次性塑料部件的庫存減少相關，特別是主要在亞太地區的電子組裝。我們的醫療介入解決方案產品線的兩位數增長部分抵消了這種壓力。

Third quarter EBITDA was $68 million or 40% of sales, which is a decrease of $8 million compared to the prior year EBITDA of $76 million. EBITDA continued to be impacted by meaningful sales mix changes within medical product lines. It is noteworthy that the segment EBITDA margin sequentially improved 200 basis points over the second quarter of 2023. And back to the profitability levels this segment delivered in 2021 and 2022. Turning to Slide 8. you'll see Advanced Technology Solutions sales were $140 million, a 3% decrease compared to the prior year third quarter.

第三季度 EBITDA 為 6800 萬美元，佔銷售額的 40%，比上年同期的 7600 萬美元減少了 800 萬美元。 EBITDA 繼續受到醫療產品線內有意義的銷售組合變化的影響。值得注意的是，該細分市場的EBITDA 利潤率比2023 年第二季度連續提高了200 個基點。回到該細分市場在2021 年和2022 年實現的盈利水平。轉向幻燈片8。您會看到先進技術解決方案的銷售額為1.4 億美元，較去年第三季度下降3%。

During the quarter, the CyberOptics acquisition contributed 11% growth. Organic sales volume was down 13%. The organic decrease was driven by electronics dispense product line, serving semiconductor end markets, predominantly in Asia Pacific, slightly offset by continued growth in test and inspection products. The cyclical downturn of demand in the semiconductor market will anniversary in the second quarter of fiscal 2024, which aligns with the historic down cycles lasting approximately 4 to 5 quarters. Structural cost reduction actions were taken during the third quarter of fiscal 2023 to address the volume decrease in electronic dispense products. For example, they've chosen to outsource their fabrication shop to focus on more value-added precision dispense technology, resulting in a $2 million of nonrecurring severance costs. Third quarter EBITDA was $33 million or 24% of sales, which was an improvement compared to the prior year third quarter EBITDA of $30 million.

本季度，Cyber​​Optics 收購貢獻了 11% 的增長。有機銷量下降 13%。有機下降是由電子點膠產品線推動的，該產品線服務於半導體終端市場，主要是亞太地區，但測試和檢驗產品的持續增長略有抵消。半導體市場需求的周期性下滑將於 2024 財年第二季度迎來週年紀念日，這與持續約 4 至 5 個季度的歷史性下滑週期一致。 2023 財年第三季度採取了結構性成本削減行動，以解決電子點膠產品銷量下降的問題。例如，他們選擇外包製造車間，專注於更具附加值的精密點膠技術，從而產生 200 萬美元的一次性遣散費。第三季度 EBITDA 為 3,300 萬美元，佔銷售額的 24%，比去年第三季度 3,000 萬美元的 EBITDA 有所改善。

The improvement in EBITDA during the quarter was driven by favorable sales mix and continued realization of cost savings actions. Despite the double-digit organic sales volume decrease, this segment is delivering quarterly profitability only 100 basis points below 2022 levels. Finally, turning to the balance sheet and cash flow on Slide 9. We had a very strong cash flow quarter, generating $181 million in free cash flow, bringing our year-to-date cash conversion rate on net income to 126%. Cash ended the quarter at $143 million and net debt was $695 million, resulting in a 0.9x leverage ratio based on the trailing 12 months EBITDA.

本季度 EBITDA 的改善得益於有利的銷售組合和持續實施的成本節約行動。儘管有機銷量出現兩位數下降，但該細分市場的季度盈利能力僅比 2022 年水平低 100 個基點。最後，轉向幻燈片 9 上的資產負債表和現金流。我們的現金流季度非常強勁，產生 1.81 億美元的自由現金流，使我們年初至今的淨利潤現金轉換率達到 126%。本季度末現金為 1.43 億美元，淨債務為 6.95 億美元，根據過去 12 個月的 EBITDA 計算，槓桿率為 0.9 倍。

We continue to have significant available borrowing capacity to pursue organic and inorganic growth opportunities, such as our upcoming acquisition of ARAG. We expect to close the ARAG acquisition by the end of August and exit the year with a net debt-to-EBITDA leverage ratio of approximately 2x. During the third quarter, we repaid $111 million of debt, paid $37 million in dividends and spent $23 million on repurchasing approximately 107,000 shares of company stock at an average price of $217 per share.

我們繼續擁有大量可用借貸能力來尋求有機和無機增長機會，例如我們即將收購 ARAG。我們預計將在 8 月底完成對 ARAG 的收購，並以約 2 倍的淨債務與 EBITDA 槓桿比率退出今年。第三季度，我們償還了 1.11 億美元的債務，支付了 3700 萬美元的股息，並花費 2300 萬美元以每股 217 美元的平均價格回購了約 107,000 股公司股票。

Our Board approved a 5% increase in our annual dividend effective in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023. This marks the 60th consecutive year the company has increased its dividend, an impressive accomplishment only enabled by maintaining a truly differentiated precision technology portfolio and serving diverse end markets. For modeling purposes in fiscal 2023 assume an estimated effective tax rate of 20% to 22%, and capital expenditures of approximately $35 million to $40 million as several of our investment time lines have pushed out. With our upcoming acquisition of ARAG, I want to provide you with some assumptions for modeling purposes.

我們的董事會批准將年度股息增加5%，自2023 財年第四季度起生效。這標誌著公司連續60 年增加股息，只有通過保持真正差異化的精密技術組合併服務於多元化終端，才能取得令人印象深刻的成就市場。為了對 2023 財年進行建模，假設預計有效稅率為 20% 至 22%，資本支出約為 3500 萬至 4000 萬美元，因為我們的一些投資時間表已被推遲。隨著我們即將收購 ARAG，我想為您提供一些用於建模的假設。

For revenue, assume approximately $20 million to $30 million in fiscal '23. EBITDA margins are expected in the high 30% range. We expect ARAG to be slightly dilutive to GAAP, EPS in Q4 2023 due to increased amortization of acquisition-related intangibles and interest expense associated with the acquisition. Excluding acquisition costs and related intangible amortization, EPS should be neutral for the fourth quarter. Due to the expeditious nature of the close, the acquisition will initially be financed with a short-term loan and revolver borrowings.

對於收入，假設 23 財年的收入約為 2000 萬至 3000 萬美元。 EBITDA 利潤率預計高達 30%。我們預計，由於與收購相關的無形資產攤銷和收購相關的利息費用增加，ARAG 將略微稀釋 2023 年第四季度的 GAAP 和 EPS。不計收購成本和相關無形攤銷，第四季度每股收益應為中性。由於交割的速度很快，此次收購最初將通過短期貸款和循環借款進行融資。

We anticipate following up with a bond issuance in the public markets later this year, and we are currently working through the ratings process. Based on current market conditions, assume a weighted average interest rate of approximately 5.5% for total Nordson's debt in 2024. We will now turn to Slide 10, and I'll turn the call back to Naga.

我們預計今年晚些時候將在公開市場發行債券，目前我們正在完成評級流程。根據當前市場狀況，假設 2024 年 Nordson 總債務的加權平均利率約為 5.5%。我們現在轉向幻燈片 10，我將把電話轉回 Naga。

Thanks, Joe. Our team continues to execute the Ascend strategy, which is clear in the strong profitability delivered in this quarter. While we are managing the short-term sales weakness related to the biopharma end market and electronic cycle, we're getting closer to anniversarying that pressure in fiscal 2024. Related to the biopharma product lines in our Medical Fluid Components division, we believe we have seen the bottom of the customers' unique supply chain de-stocking trend and will anniversary this pressure in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

謝謝，喬。我們的團隊繼續執行 Ascend 戰略，這一點從本季度實現的強勁盈利能力中可見一斑。雖然我們正在應對與生物製藥終端市場和電子週期相關的短期銷售疲軟，但我們距離2024 財年的壓力週年紀念日越來越近。與我們的醫療流體組件部門的生物製藥產品線相關，我們相信我們已經看到了客戶獨特的供應鏈去庫存趨勢的底部，並將在 2024 財年第一季度紀念這一壓力。

Following this period, we cautiously expect the Medical Fluid Components business to return to its historical mid- to high single-digit growth rate over time. Moving on to Electronics end markets. I visited our Electronics Processing Solutions leadership team in Carlsbad, California earlier this month. Our team's expectation is that Electronics CapEx spend cycle will begin to turn in the second half of the calendar 2024. We expect to benefit from customer investments in automation, memory, AI, and Electronics new product innovation. In the meantime, this division is successfully managing costs while staying invested in profitable growth opportunities identified through the NBS Next growth framework.

此後，我們謹慎預期醫療流體組件業務將隨著時間的推移恢復到歷史中高個位數增長率。轉向電子終端市場。本月早些時候，我拜訪了位於加利福尼亞州卡爾斯巴德的電子加工解決方案領導團隊。我們團隊的預期是，電子資本支出週期將在 2024 年下半年開始轉變。我們預計將從客戶在自動化、內存、人工智能和電子新產品創新方面的投資中受益。與此同時，該部門成功地管理了成本，同時繼續投資於通過 NBS Next 增長框架確定的盈利增長機會。

In fact, the EPS division exceeded its targeted decremental margins during this low volume period. We also continue to be pleased with the growth of our test and inspection division, which mutes the volatility of the electronic cycle. Geographically, we are closely monitoring the pressure in Asia Pacific region, specifically in China. The regional sales weakness was largely related to the Electronics exposure, though there was weakness in demand across all 3 segments, some of which was due to the timing of large system orders.

事實上，在銷量低迷時期，每股收益部門超出了其目標遞減利潤率。我們還對測試和檢驗部門的發展感到滿意，這降低了電子週期的波動性。從地理上看，我們正在密切關注亞太地區，特別是中國的壓力。區域銷售疲軟很大程度上與電子業務有關，儘管所有三個細分市場的需求均疲軟，其中部分原因是大型系統訂單的時間安排。

Nordson has a well-established footprint in China with long tenured and knowledgeable employees. We will remain close to our customers and support them appropriately. Simultaneously, Nordson's business model positions us well to support customers if they decide to diversify their supply chain to other regions of Asia or into the Americas and Europe. Our customer intimate business model ensures we are prepared to fully participate as global supply chains rebalance.

諾信在中國擁有穩固的足跡，擁有長期任職、知識淵博的員工。我們將與客戶保持密切聯繫，並為他們提供適當的支持。同時，如果客戶決定將供應鏈多元化到亞洲其他地區或美洲和歐洲，諾信的業務模式使我們能夠為他們提供良好的支持。我們與客戶親密的商業模式確保我們準備好充分參與全球供應鏈的重新平衡。

Finally, I'd like to share an update on the Ascend strategy. Acquisitions are a very important part of our goal to achieve $3 billion in revenue by 2025. Of the $500 million acquired revenue target we set at our 2021 Investor Day. We are now nearly 80% of the way there. In June, we announced the acquisition of ARAG, a global market and innovation leader in precision spraying technology. Precision dispense technology is core to Nordson. Over nearly 70 years, we have expanded that expertise beyond our beginnings in industrial applications into dispense for packaging, product assembly, nonwovens, electronics, medical and more.

最後，我想分享一下 Ascend 策略的最新情況。收購是我們到 2025 年實現 30 億美元收入目標的一個非常重要的部分。其中 5 億美元的收購收入目標是我們在 2021 年投資者日設定的。目前，我們已經完成了近 80% 的工作。 6 月，我們宣布收購精密噴塗技術領域的全球市場和創新領導者 ARAG。精密點膠技術是諾信的核心。近 70 年來，我們已將專業知識擴展到工業應用以外的包裝、產品組裝、非織造布、電子、醫療等領域。

Through it all, we adhered to disciplined strategic acquisition criteria, differentiated technology generated Nordson like gross margins, high-growth end market applications and a customer-centric business model. The acquisition of ARAG meets all of these criteria and expands our technology expertise into the high-growth end market of precision agriculture and is the largest single acquisition in our history.

自始至終，我們都堅持嚴格的戰略收購標準、諾信產生的差異化技術，如毛利率、高增長的終端市場應用和以客戶為中心的業務模式。收購 ARAG 符合所有這些標準，並將我們的技術專業知識擴展到高增長的精準農業終端市場，是我們歷史上最大的單筆收購。

Today, ARAG is a market leader in precision agriculture technology in Europe and South America. ARAG fluid components are sold to implement manufacturers who in turn sell to the tractor manufacturers or OEMs. ARAG closely works with all of the customers within these channels to ensure its innovation pipeline supports the customers' goals of improving crop yields and minimizing the use of expensive fertilizers and chemicals. It is also important to note that over 40% of ARAG's revenue is recurring aftermarket sales sold through distributors.

如今，ARAG 是歐洲和南美洲精準農業技術的市場領導者。 ARAG 流體組件銷售給機具製造商，機具製造商又銷售給拖拉機製造商或 OEM。 ARAG 與這些渠道內的所有客戶密切合作，確保其創新渠道支持客戶提高作物產量和最大限度減少昂貴肥料和化學品使用的目標。還需要注意的是，ARAG 超過 40% 的收入來自通過分銷商銷售的經常性售後市場銷售。

We were attracted to the continued growth opportunity in ARAG's existing geographic markets. The opportunity to invest and grow ARAG's technology in North America presents an attractive proposition beyond the existing core market growth, upon which we valued the company. I'm very excited about the ARAG acquisition and the long-term profitable growth opportunities in our business. We have a winning team who's focused on the customer and managing through unique market headwinds while delivering solid profitability and cash flow.

我們被 ARAG 現有地域市場的持續增長機會所吸引。在北美投資和發展 ARAG 技術的機會提供了超越現有核心市場增長的有吸引力的主張，我們基於此對公司進行了估值。我對 ARAG 的收購以及我們業務的長期盈利增長機會感到非常興奮。我們擁有一支致勝的團隊，他們專注於客戶並應對獨特的市場逆風，同時提供穩定的盈利能力和現金流。

Turning to the outlook for the remainder of the year on Slide 12, we are narrowing our previously provided 2023 revenue guidance to 0% to 2% growth over record fiscal 2022 and narrowing our adjusted earnings guidance to $8.90 to $9.05. Looking specifically at the quarterly sales and earnings split on Slide 13, we expect fourth quarter sales to be the strongest of the year increasing low to mid-single digits over the prior year fourth quarter at the midpoint. This guidance includes approximately $20 million to $30 million of sales from the ARAG acquisition that we expect to close in late August. Fourth quarter earnings are forecasted in the range of $2.34 to $2.49 per share.

談到幻燈片12 上今年剩餘時間的前景，我們將之前提供的2023 年收入指導範圍縮小至較創紀錄的2022 財年增長0% 至2%，並將調整後的盈利指導範圍縮小至8.90 美元至9.05 美元。具體來看幻燈片 13 中的季度銷售額和收益分配，我們預計第四季度的銷售額將是今年最強勁的，較去年第四季度的中值增長低至中個位數。該指引包括我們預計將於 8 月底完成的 ARAG 收購帶來的約 2000 萬至 3000 萬美元的銷售額。第四季度每股收益預計在 2.34 美元至 2.49 美元之間。

Embedded in our forecast is strong profitability and cash conversion performance, which is a result of Nordson's operational excellence, a clear competitive advantage created through the execution of the Ascend strategy by winning teams with an owner mindset. As always, I want to thank our customers, shareholders and the Nordson's team for your continued support. With that, we will pause and take your questions.

我們的預測中包含了強勁的盈利能力和現金轉換績效，這是諾信卓越運營的結果，這是通過執行 Ascend 戰略、贏得具有所有者心態的團隊而創造的明顯競爭優勢。一如既往，我要感謝我們的客戶、股東和諾信團隊的持續支持。接下來，我們將暫停並回答您的問題。

(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from the line of Jeff Hammond of KeyBanc Capital Markets.

（操作員說明）您的第一個問題來自 KeyBanc Capital Markets 的 Jeff Hammond。

So just really want to unpack the guidance change. I mean I hear kind of Asia Pac and Electronics kind of weaker and then the ARAG impact. So maybe just unpack kind of what drives the lower end? And it seemed like the revenue was lighter in 3Q, but 4Q seems kind of in line, but maybe just a little more help on the moving pieces.

所以我真的很想解開指南的變化。我的意思是，我聽說亞太地區和電子行業的表現較弱，然後是 ARAG 的影響。那麼也許只是解開驅動低端市場的某種因素？第三季度的收入似乎較輕，但第四季度似乎有點符合，但可能只是對移動部件有更多幫助。

Yes. Let me take a start with that, Jeff, if I could. So at the midpoint of the guide, it's roughly 3.5% growth. And so when you think about that for Q4, the acquisition should contribute about 6%. FX will be favorable about 2.5%. And from an organic standpoint, it's negative 5%, which is consistent with what we just delivered here in Q3. And then when you think about the range, I appreciate on the ARAG acquisition, the timing of the actual close will contribute to that.

是的。如果可以的話，讓我開始吧，傑夫。因此，按照指南的中點計算，增長率約為 3.5%。因此，當你考慮第四季度的情況時，收購應該貢獻約 6%。外匯將有利約2.5%。從有機角度來看，為負 5%，這與我們剛剛在第三季度發布的數據一致。然後，當你考慮範圍時，我很欣賞 ARAG 的收購，實際完成的時間將對此做出貢獻。

And in the first 2 months post acquisition, we have that range there of $20 million to $30 million. So that drives some volatility, I would say, or flex expands the range on the revenue guidance a little bit there. The other is, as I would tell you is the timing of some large system shipments. Q4 last year was our strongest quarter of the year, as you recall, and Q4 this year is forecasted to be the same. And so they are large system deliveries in there. And so sometimes those get pushed and pulled out. So that contributes a little bit to the -- how wide the range is on revenue. And from an end market standpoint, Naga, you can comment.

收購後的前 2 個月，我們的投資範圍為 2000 萬至 3000 萬美元。因此，我想說，這會帶來一些波動，或者說彈性會稍微擴大收入指導的範圍。另一個是，正如我要告訴你的，是一些大型系統發貨的時間。您還記得，去年第四季度是我們今年最強勁的季度，預計今年第四季度也是如此。所以它們是大型系統交付。所以有時這些會被推來推去。因此，這對收入的範圍有多大貢獻。從終端市場的角度來看，Naga，你可以發表評論。

Yes. From an end market perspective, if you think about the 3 segments, IPS, we feel pretty good about where we are at in comparison to our long term as well as sequentially. We expect the system to continue to be at or above our long-term growth rate. So that's what is embedded in the growth. Certainly, Electronics and biopharma continuing at the levels they are today. We don't expect them to recover here in the fourth quarter. They certainly -- our expectation, and we'll talk a little bit more about it later. In that, Electronics, we expect sometime in middle of calendar 2024 is when we expect that to turn.

是的。從終端市場的角度來看，如果你考慮 IPS 三個細分市場，與我們的長期和連續相比，我們對自己所處的位置感到非常滿意。我們預計該系統將繼續保持或高於我們的長期增長率。這就是增長所蘊含的內容。當然，電子和生物製藥將繼續保持今天的水平。我們預計他們不會在第四季度恢復。他們當然是我們的期望，我們稍後會詳細討論。在電子領域，我們預計 2024 年中期的某個時候，我們預計這種情況會發生轉變。

And biopharma sometime in the first quarter of 2024 is when we anniversary. But the growth in biopharma is going to be, as I indicated in my initial comments, that is going to be -- we're going to be cautious here as to when that fully recovers to its high single digits kind of growth rate. But nothing in biopharma long-term secular trend have been impacted. So we fully expect we will get to it. It is just a matter of how long it takes for us to get back to it.

生物製藥公司在 2024 年第一季度的某個時候是我們的周年紀念日。但正如我在最初的評論中指出的那樣，生物製藥的增長將會是——我們將謹慎對待生物製藥何時完全恢復到高個位數的增長率。但生物製藥的長期長期趨勢並未受到影響。所以我們完全期望我們能夠做到這一點。這只是我們需要多長時間才能回到它的問題。

And then if you think about our Medical IS business, that is growing double digits. We fully expect that in the fourth quarter. We continue to do so. Our Polymer Processing businesses are doing incredibly well, and they are expected to do well in the next quarter, and we've got a couple of systems businesses that are -- that have strong backlog we expect to do well as well.

如果您考慮一下我們的醫療信息系統業務，您會發現該業務正在以兩位數的速度增長。我們完全預計第四季度會出現這種情況。我們將繼續這樣做。我們的聚合物加工業務表現非常好，預計在下個季度也會表現出色，而且我們有幾個系統業務，它們的積壓量很大，我們預計也會表現出色。

Okay. And then just some housekeeping questions on the ARAG deal one. So I think you said high 30s EBITDA margins, Just wondering what the -- if you have done the purchase accounting, what the D and the A component is that would kind of get you to a kind of ongoing operating margin for that business at least in year one?

好的。然後是關於 ARAG 交易一的一些內務問題。所以我想你說的是 30 多歲的 EBITDA 利潤率，只是想知道如果你做了採購會計，D 和 A 部分是什麼，這至少會讓你獲得該業務的持續運營利潤率第一年？

And then just a clarification on the interest expense, that 5.5% is weighted for the total company? Or is that for the ARAG deal? And if so, just kind of how to think about the interest costs associated with funding ARAG would be?

然後澄清一下利息支出，5.5% 是對整個公司的加權？還是為了 ARAG 交易？如果是這樣，那麼如何考慮與資助 ARAG 相關的利息成本呢？

Yes. So let me take a stab at that. We'll hold off, and I'll give some clear guidance on that when we do our full year 2024. And so right now, the guide with the amortization just is really looking at historical trends for acquisitions of this nature and a percentage of the purchase price, but we will firm that up. And when we issue the 2024 guide for Nordson, which will include purchase accounting assumptions on ARAG. On the interest expense, given the current market conditions when depending on where the bonds will price later this year, our estimate currently is that total Nordson interest expense will be roughly 5% to 5.5% based on current market conditions, and that's for our weighted basket of debt.

是的。那麼讓我來嘗試一下。我們會推遲，當我們完成 2024 年全年工作時，我將對此給出一些明確的指導。因此，現在，攤銷指南實際上只是著眼於這種性質的收購的歷史趨勢以及購買價格，但我們會確定這一點。當我們發布 Nordson 2024 年指南時，其中將包括 ARAG 的採購會計假設。關於利息費用，考慮到當前的市場狀況（取決於今年晚些時候債券的定價），我們目前的估計是，根據當前的市場狀況，諾信總利息費用將約為5% 至5.5%，這是我們的加權一籃子債務。

And what would that have been kind of pre the bond offering or pre-ARAG?

在債券發行或 ARAG 之前會是什麼樣子？

If you look from a year-to-date standpoint, we're slightly below 5% in terms of our weighted average interest cost.

如果從今年迄今的角度來看，我們的加權平均利息成本略低於 5%。

Your next question comes from the line of Allison Poliniak of Wells Fargo.

你的下一個問題來自富國銀行的艾莉森·波利尼亞克。

I want to go back to your comments on China. Is there any way that -- I know there's some cyclical aspects to it, but you did talk to sort of maybe potentially structural. Are you starting to see some, I would say, industry minimizing that region because you did talk about maybe the offsets in other regions for you. Just -- I don't know if there's any way to decide or what you're seeing in terms of cyclical versus structural over there at this point?

我想回到你對中國的評論。有沒有什麼辦法——我知道它有一些週期性方面，但你確實談到了可能潛在的結構性問題。我想說，你是否開始看到一些行業最小化該地區，因為你確實談到了其他地區的抵消額。只是 - 我不知道是否有任何方法可以決定，或者您目前在周期性與結構性方面看到了什麼？

Yes. If you think about China, it's off, right, a majority of our electronic businesses, if you look at our electronic business divisions, more than 75% of their revenues is in Asia, right? And a significant part of that is in China. So if you think about our China, Asia Pac impact, what you find is the majority of the China impact is due to Electronics. And so that is more cyclical, and we fully expect that it follows a cyclicality.

是的。如果你想想中國，對吧，我們大部分的電子業務，如果你看看我們的電子業務部門，他們75%以上的收入都在亞洲，對吧？其中很大一部分是在中國。因此，如果您考慮我們對中國和亞太地區的影響，您會發現中國的大部分影響來自電子行業。因此，這更具週期性，我們完全期望它遵循週期性。

What we do see is our major global customers. So if you think about our China exposure, our China exposure is following large international global customers to China. And we do have some mid-tier Chinese customers that we serve, but across the segments, mostly this global customers. What we find with most of our global customers, there is some amount of rebalancing of supply chain going on, but we don't see anybody making significant moves out of China. It seems from our work with our customers in other regions, be it in North America or be it in Europe or in other parts of Asia, we do see customers building let's say, additional capacity or new capacity in different regions other than China.

我們所看到的是我們的主要全球客戶。因此，如果你考慮一下我們在中國的業務，我們的中國業務正在跟隨大型國際全球客戶來到中國。我們確實有一些中層中國客戶為我們服務，但在各個細分市場中，主要是全球客戶。我們發現，大多數全球客戶都在進行一定程度的供應鏈再平衡，但我們沒有看到任何人採取重大舉措撤出中國。從我們與其他地區客戶的合作來看，無論是在北美、歐洲還是亞洲其他地區，我們確實看到客戶在中國以外的不同地區建設額外產能或新產能。

So that's why you begin to see in our regional numbers a nice growth in Americas and a nice growth in Europe and a decline in Asia Pac in some ways, a big part of it is China. Japan, in general, is doing really well for us. It's a smaller business, but it is doing well. So from what we can see, majority of the decline that we see today is cyclicals related to Electronics. We do see some large system misses, which are -- it could be up and down given in any quarter. So we don't see anything structurally changing, but we do see investments happening in other places if that makes sense.

因此，這就是為什麼您開始在我們的區域數據中看到美洲增長良好，歐洲增長良好，而亞太地區在某些方面有所下降，其中很大一部分來自中國。總的來說，日本對我們來說做得非常好。這是一家規模較小的企業，但經營狀況良好。因此，從我們所看到的來看，我們今天看到的大部分下跌都是與電子行業相關的周期性波動。我們確實看到了一些大型系統失誤，這些失誤在任何季度都可能會上下波動。因此，我們沒有看到任何結構性變化，但如果有意義的話，我們確實看到其他地方正在發生投資。

It does. That was helpful. And then backlog still relatively strong. There's been a lot of supply chain rebalancing this year. Do you feel like a lot of that's out of the backlog at this point and it's really just sort of backlog growth as we look forward or projects being pushed out? Just any color on that backlog number would be great.

確實如此。這很有幫助。然後積壓還是比較旺盛的。今年發生了很多供應鏈再平衡。您是否覺得目前有很多積壓的項目已經完成，而這實際上只是我們期待的積壓的增長或項目被推出？只要積壓訂單號上有任何顏色就可以了。

Yes. I'll give you some color and Joe can help me with some additional detail. But the way to think about it is our backlog is still historically high. And that historically high backlog is driven by a couple of system businesses and our medical interventional business where we get longer-term orders, which kind of go into our backlog, right?

是的。我會給你一些顏色，喬可以幫助我提供一些額外的細節。但思考這個問題的方式是我們的積壓仍然處於歷史高位。歷史上的高積壓是由幾個系統業務和我們的醫療介入業務推動的，我們在這些業務中獲得了長期訂單，這屬於我們的積壓，對嗎？

So if you think about majority, about 60%, 70% of our business, we fundamentally believe our backlogs have normalized to the pre-pandemic levels. So you could think about supply chain normalizing in 60%, 70% of the businesses, these elevated targets mainly related to large system businesses, be our Polymer Processing business or our ICS business and our Medical IS business, which is sort of our -- where customers give us blanket orders. Joe, would you add anything more to that?

因此，如果你考慮一下我們大部分業務，大約 60%、70%，我們從根本上相信我們的積壓訂單已恢復到大流行前的水平。因此，您可以考慮60%、70% 的業務實現供應鏈正常化，這些提高的目標主要與大型系統業務相關，例如我們的聚合物加工業務或我們的ICS 業務和我們的醫療IS 業務，這是我們的——客戶給我們一攬子訂單。喬，你還能補充點什麼嗎？

No. I would just -- I would be just repeating what you said. I mean if you think about our backlog worth of $1 billion, it used to be balanced across all the divisions. It has migrated over the last, I would tell you, 6 months to maybe 9 months. And today, it's disproportionately heavy weighted -- heavily weighted on the large systems businesses and Medical IS, where the remaining, which is the majority of our business, has normalized to historical levels.

不，我只是——我只是重複你所說的話。我的意思是，如果你考慮一下我們價值 10 億美元的積壓訂單，它過去在所有部門之間是平衡的。我告訴你，它過去已經遷移了 6 個月到 9 個月。如今，它的權重過大——大型系統業務和醫療信息系統業務的權重很大，而剩下的業務（我們的大部分業務）已經正常化到歷史水平。

Your next question comes from the line of Matt Summerville of D.A. Davidson.

你的下一個問題來自地方檢察官馬特·薩默維爾 (Matt Summerville)。戴維森。

A couple of questions. As we kind of think about fiscal '24 at a high level with the Electronics piece seemingly turning in the second half. Does that -- is that going to line up or coincide with continued strength in T&I? Or is there a little bit of give and take here? And I basically have the same question for the medical side of the business. Is biopharma begins to reaccelerate? Does medical interventional begin to roll over or decelerate?

有幾個問題。當我們從較高的層面思考 24 財年時，電子產品似乎在下半年出現了轉變。這是否會與運輸與工業的持續強勢相一致或一致？或者這裡有一點讓步嗎？對於醫療方面的業務，我基本上也有同樣的問題。生物製藥開始重新加速嗎？醫療介入是否開始翻車或減速？

And I guess at the end of the day, I'm trying to conclude whether or not we can see a syncing, if you will, of organic growth between all 4 of those different pieces of the business such that we see pretty good things out of Nordson towards the latter part of next year.

我想在一天結束時，我試圖得出結論，如果你願意的話，我們是否可以看到所有四個不同業務部分之間的有機增長同步，以便我們看到非常好的結果諾信將於明年下半年推出。

Yes, so let me -- I'll give you some color around the end markets and what our expectations are. And Joe, maybe you could add some numbers next to it to the extent we can. So first of all, we're not giving about '24 yet. So that's the perspective I'd give you. But in terms of end market color, Matt, that's a really good question.

是的，所以讓我——我會給你們一些有關終端市場的信息以及我們的期望。喬，也許你可以在我們可以的範圍內添加一些數字。首先，我們還沒有透露“24”的信息。這就是我給你的觀點。但就終端市場色彩而言，馬特，這是一個非常好的問題。

Our expectations -- let me start with Electronics. My expectations are that our Electronics cycle sort of rebounds calendars 2024 -- middle of calendar 2024. And at that time, our expectation is that you're going to see growth both in T&I and EPS. All along, we have talked about T&I muting the amplitude of the cycles. That's really what T&I is doing for us. It is not like T&I is not cyclical. It's just the cycle amplitudes are smaller in T&I when compared to EPS based on the businesses -- based on the customers and the end applications we serve. So clearly, ATS from a historical perspective is muted. But as it comes back, you're going to see EPS mounts back nicely like the traditional way we've done.

我們的期望——讓我從電子行業開始。我的預期是，我們的電子週期會在 2024 年中期出現反彈。到那時，我們的預期是，您將看到 T&I 和每股收益的增長。一直以來，我們一直在談論 T&I 抑制週期的幅度。這正是 T&I 為我們所做的事情。 T&I 並不是沒有周期性的。只是與基於業務（基於客戶和我們服務的最終應用）的 EPS 相比，T&I 的周期幅度較小。很明顯，從歷史角度來看，苯丙胺類興奮劑是無聲的。但當它回來時，你會看到 EPS 很好地恢復，就像我們所做的傳統方式一樣。

But T&I will benefit from it as well. So it is not that T&I not going to benefit. So that is the Electronic piece of it. If you think about our biopharma and medical, what you're going to find is, Medical has some very strong double-digit growth here for the last couple of quarters, mainly because as you're coming off of backlog and as you have elective surgery, all getting back to normal, what you find is this pretty big uptick in demand for Medical Interventional components. That certainly, as we get into '24 and later, you would expect that to start to go to its historical mid- to high single-digits growth rate.

但 T&I 也將從中受益。因此，T&I 並不是不會受益。這就是它的電子部分。如果您考慮我們的生物製藥和醫療，您會發現，醫療在過去幾個季度中出現了非常強勁的兩位數增長，主要是因為您正在擺脫積壓，並且您有選修課手術，一切都恢復正常，你會發現對醫療介入部件的需求大幅上升。當然，隨著我們進入 24 世紀及以後，您會期望開始達到歷史中高個位數增長率。

On the biopharma, we fundamentally believe that it has bottomed out and it's sort of settling in at this current levels by the end of first quarter, what you begin to see is if we anniversary the growth rates that we have enjoyed for 2 years, 2 full years of double-digit growth in Fluid components that anniversaries itself. But I would caution us in terms of how fast we get back to the high single-digit growth on biopharma.

在生物製藥方面，我們從根本上相信它已經觸底，並且到第一季度末就會穩定在目前的水平，你開始看到的是，如果我們慶祝我們享受了 2 年的增長率，2流體組件全年兩位數增長，這本身就是周年紀念。但我要提醒我們，生物製藥行業恢復高個位數增長的速度有多快。

We fundamentally believe we'll get there. what we are not sure right now is how long it takes for us to get to that high single-digit growth rate. We believe nothing is impaired, but we're also cautious in terms of how fast the ramp happens. Hopefully, that gives you color on both those questions. Joe, anything else to add on the numbers?

我們從根本上相信我們會實現這一目標。我們現在不確定的是我們需要多長時間才能達到如此高的個位數增長率。我們相信一切都不會受到損害，但我們對增長速度也持謹慎態度。希望這能讓您對這兩個問題有所了解。喬，還有什麼要補充的嗎？

Yes. I would just say, Matt, when you think about it, the Electronics, the EPS division is down like roughly 20%. When you study the T&I, given the diversity of that end market in those applications, while it may go through ups and downs, and it's been growing the last several years, I wouldn't anticipate a scenario. We don't see a scenario where that's down 20%, offsetting some recovery in EPS. And similarly, I would tell you, if you go to the medical mix, our -- the destocking going on there in the biopharma is quite unique, where it's down 30%, 40%.

是的。我只想說，馬特，當你想一想時，電子、EPS 部門下降了大約 20%。當您研究 T&I 時，考慮到這些應用中終端市場的多樣性，雖然它可能會經歷起起落落，並且在過去幾年中一直在增長，但我不會預見到這種情況。我們不認為會出現下降 20% 的情況，從而抵消每股收益的部分複蘇。同樣，我想告訴你，如果你考慮醫療組合，我們的生物製藥公司正在進行的去庫存是非常獨特的，下降了 30%、40%。

Whereas the Medical Interventional Solution, yes, it's growing nice double digits now. But if you go back during the pandemic, the COVID, that was only down, I would say, 10%, maybe 15%. So it just doesn't have the magnitude of the swings that we're seeing in the current down cycle. So I wouldn't anticipate that to offset the recovery in those in '24.

而醫療介入解決方案，是的，它現在正在以兩位數的速度增長。但如果你回到新冠病毒大流行期間，我想說，這個數字只下降了 10%，也許 15%。因此，它只是沒有我們在當前下行週期中看到的波動幅度。因此，我預計這不會抵消 24 年的複蘇。

And just in addition to that, I would say, is Medical Fluid components flattens out, maybe picks up a little bit and our Interventional component grows high single digits is sort of how I would...

除此之外，我想說的是，醫用液體成分是否會趨於平緩，也許會有所回升，而我們的介入成分會增長到高個位數，這就是我所希望的……

Got it. That's helpful. And then just as a follow-up. Can you maybe talk about -- it sounded like you were running 2 concurrent billion M&A processes over the last few months? Maybe talk about what made you kind of halt or walk away from the other deal and why ARAG maybe won out over the other potential candidate?

知道了。這很有幫助。然後作為後續行動。您能否談談——聽起來您在過去幾個月裡同時運行了 2 億個併購流程？也許可以談談是什麼讓您停止或放棄另一項交易，以及為什麼 ARAG 可能勝過其他潛在候選人？

Yes. If you look at both the deals, we were excited strategically for both those opportunities. They fit right smack dab in the middle of where we want it to be. Highly differentiated physician technologies very attractive growth rates in end markets we really like in places we really understand and do well and have a customer-centric business model. So strategically, both of them were exactly where we want it to be and we pursue both of them equally. Yes, and so what -- really when we came down to final due diligence, we exercise financial discipline. We've always talked about, look, we first go through the strategic criteria, and we like it, we get to the next step. And then when we financially makes sense for the company, has a returns we like, then we do it.

是的。如果你看看這兩筆交易，我們對這兩個機會都感到戰略上的興奮。它們恰好正好位於我們想要的位置的中間。高度差異化的醫生技術在我們真正喜歡的終端市場中具有非常有吸引力的增長率，在我們真正了解並做得很好並且擁有以客戶為中心的商業模式的地方。因此，從戰略上講，這兩者都正是我們想要的，並且我們平等地追求它們。是的，那又怎樣——實際上，當我們進行最終盡職調查時，我們會遵守財務紀律。我們總是談論，看，我們首先通過戰略標準，我們喜歡它，我們進入下一步。然後，當我們在財務上對公司有意義、獲得我們喜歡的回報時，我們就會這麼做。

So what I'm telling you is that on ARAG, we hit both of them in the other deal in the final analysis, we couldn't get there and we were financially disciplined. And so we walked away from it.

所以我要告訴你的是，在 ARAG 上，歸根結底，我們在另一筆交易中同時實現了這兩點，但我們無法實現這一目標，而且我們在財務上受到了紀律處分。所以我們就離開了它。

(Operator Instructions) Go ahead, Naga.

（操作員指示）繼續吧，納迦。

Yes. One thing I would add, as we were talking about the end markets, Matt, in your question, the end market challenges and the upside and we talk about the 2 acquisitions, I would kind of step back and think about this quarter, and if you think about this quarter, what Nordson's team really did was have an operational excellence that kind of came through in the results. That really showed there were some challenges on the top line, but the team did an incredible job and that showed through in the bottom line, right?

是的。我要補充的一件事是，當我們談論終端市場時，馬特，在你的問題中，終端市場的挑戰和上行空間，我們談論兩次收購，我會退一步思考這個季度，如果想想本季度，諾信團隊真正所做的是實現卓越運營，並在結果中體現出來。這確實表明頂線存在一些挑戰，但團隊做得非常出色，並且在底線中得到了體現，對吧？

And one to look at it and say that's operational excellence, and you could simply walk away. But what -- from my vantage point, what really shines through is the work we've been doing inside the company around Ascend strategy and the competitive advantage we're building. And this competitive advantage of Ascend strategy, really what it is, is you've got strong Winning Teams with an incredible owner mindset that are executing the NBS Next growth framework and delivery results, right? That's the competitive advantage we're building.

當你看到它並說這是卓越的運營時，你就可以直接走開。但從我的角度來看，真正引人注目的是我們在公司內部圍繞奧升德戰略所做的工作以及我們正在建立的競爭優勢。升騰戰略的競爭優勢，實際上是，您擁有強大的獲勝團隊，擁有令人難以置信的所有者心態，正在執行 NBS Next 增長框架和交付結果，對吧？這就是我們正在建立的競爭優勢。

And that shows up in 3 different ways. One, it shows up in divisions where end market conditions are challenged, the team really takes our own mindset and figures out what kind of cost actions we need to take and deliver decremental margins that we've talked about in the 55%. Then you have a set of divisions that have strong market opportunities and really fully participating in that growth through some incredible customer service and delivering really strong incremental margins, right?

這以三種不同的方式表現出來。第一，它出現在終端市場條件受到挑戰的部門中，團隊真正採取了我們自己的思維方式，並弄清楚我們需要採取什麼樣的成本行動並提供我們在 55% 中討論過的遞減利潤。然後，您擁有一組擁有強大市場機會的部門，並通過一些令人難以置信的客戶服務真正充分參與了這種增長，並提供了非常強勁的增量利潤，對吧？

And then on the third side, the company not sitting idle, certainly looking at what are the growth opportunities through acquisitions. And so the team really did 3 different things. And end of the day, that's what we're talking about here. That's, in my mind, is what is coming through in our results in the quarter.

第三方面，公司也沒有閒著，肯定會通過收購尋找哪些增長機會。所以團隊確實做了三件不同的事情。歸根結底，這就是我們在這裡討論的內容。在我看來，這就是我們本季度的業績。

Your next question comes from the line of Christopher Glynn of Oppenheimer.

你的下一個問題來自奧本海默的克里斯托弗·格林（Christopher Glynn）。

I was curious about the polymer markets, if there's any sort of interesting structural dynamics, what you're seeing in terms of typical timing around a recap cycle or market penetration momentum? Just curious for a higher-level view of that market.

我對聚合物市場很好奇，是否存在任何有趣的結構動態，您在回顧週期或市場滲透勢頭的典型時機方面看到了什麼？只是想了解該市場的更高層次的觀點。

What we're seeing is this is a set of businesses that we've gone through, some pretty good work around setting the business up for taking advantage of the growth opportunities. Really, the biggest growth opportunity that is out there that this scheme is pursuing really is the recycling. And what we find is given this whole issue around plastic usage reduction. And I don't know whether I go as far as to say, plastic ban. But in certain parts of the world, those words get thrown around. But we do find incredible demand for recycling.

我們所看到的是，這是我們經歷過的一系列業務，其中一些非常好的工作圍繞建立業務以利用增長機會進行。事實上，該計劃所追求的最大增長機會實際上是回收。我們發現的是圍繞減少塑料使用的整個問題。我不知道我是否說得那麼遠：塑料禁令。但在世界的某些地方，這些詞被到處亂說。但我們確實發現了令人難以置信的回收需求。

And we have some unique technology in our BKG business in Germany that allows us to serve that particular market. And I would highlight that as a pretty strong secular trend that is going on. And that business has some pretty strong backlog going into next year, significant part of next year.

我們在德國的 BKG 業務擁有一些獨特的技術，使我們能夠服務於該特定市場。我想強調這是一個正在發生的相當強勁的長期趨勢。該業務在明年有相當多的積壓，這是明年的重要部分。

Chris, I would add, when you think about that Polymer Processing, you go back in time and remember the divestiture of the [X-ALOY] business. The divestiture of that product line, I would tell you resulted in upgrading the quality and the degree of differentiation of the product lines that remained in the Polymer Processing division. And so I think that's what you see also flowing through some of these numbers.

克里斯，我想補充一點，當您想到聚合物加工時，您會回想起 [X-ALOY] 業務的剝離。我可以告訴你，該產品線的剝離導致了聚合物加工部門保留的產品線的質量和差異化程度的提升。所以我認為這也是你在其中一些數字中看到的。

Makes sense. And just going back to Jeff's question on the D&A for ARAG. You referenced the kind of rule of thumb metric informing the 4Q guide in terms of percentage of sales, D&A. Just curious if that rule of thumb sort of correlates around 2.5%, 3% of purchase price? Since you kind of put it in generic terms and also on ARAG, just the 40% through distribution. I know it's viewed as recurring, but stocking comes into question, particularly on the heels of a couple of years of global supply chain volatility. So just curious how you view the inventory levels, the channel kind of balances and equanimity across that stock and flow sort of business?

說得通。回到傑夫關於 ARAG 的 D&A 的問題。您引用了以銷售百分比、D&A 形式告知第四季度指南的經驗指標。只是好奇這個經驗法則是否與購買價格的 2.5%、3% 相關？因為你用通用術語以及 ARAG 來表述，所以只有 40% 通過分配。我知道這被認為是反復出現的，但庫存受到了質疑，尤其是在全球供應鏈波動了幾年之後。所以只是好奇你如何看待庫存水平、渠道平衡以及庫存和流量業務的平靜？

So maybe Joe, you want to take the D&A question first and then I can maybe make a comment around the inventory, please.

所以也許喬，你想先回答 D&A 問題，然後我可以就庫存發表評論。

Yes. The answer to your question is, yes, that typical 2.5% purchase price is our starting point in terms of the annual amortization.

是的。你的問題的答案是，是的，典型的 2.5% 購買價格是我們年度攤銷的起點。

And in terms of inventory, remember, the recurring revenue here are parts. They're not significant systems or big units that are sitting in our distributors shelves that takes a little bit longer time. These are small sprayers and that sort of component. We're still -- we still don't own the business. Obviously, we don't have a lot of detailed information around where they're at. But my expectation would be that it's not a significant issue for us in that business.

就庫存而言，請記住，這裡的經常性收入是零件。它們不是放在我們經銷商貨架上的重要係統或大型設備，需要花費更長的時間。這些是小型噴霧器之類的組件。我們仍然——我們仍然不擁有該業務。顯然，我們沒有關於它們所在位置的大量詳細信息。但我的期望是，這對於我們該行業來說並不是一個重大問題。

Your next question comes from the line of Mike Halloran of Baird.

您的下一個問題來自貝爾德 (Baird) 的邁克·哈洛蘭 (Mike Halloran)。

This is (inaudible) on for Mike. Hoping you could provide a little bit more color on the order entry comment. It looks like orders were down sequentially. You talked about pressure in China and the Asia Pacific region. And then obviously, some of the businesses are bouncing along the bottom. Can you maybe talk about some of the puts and takes that kind of got you to study? It just sounded like maybe the commentary was skewed a little bit more on to the negative side. And if you could just provide a little bit of color around order entry so far through August to be clear, that would be great.

這是邁克的（聽不清）。希望您能在訂單輸入評論中提供更多顏色。看起來訂單量連續下降。您談到了中國和亞太地區的壓力。顯然，一些企業正在觸底反彈。您能談談促使您學習的一些看跌期權嗎？聽起來也許評論偏向負面的一面。如果您能在截至 8 月份的訂單輸入周圍提供一些顏色以使其清晰，那就太好了。

All right. Let me start with where we are at in terms of the businesses, which is our Electronics business and our Fluid components biopharma business. Both of those order entry has bottomed out is the best way to put it. So where they're currently performing, they've come to a place where we feel good about that it is not any further declines. We've seen -- as the quarter progressed, we could start to see that this was at the bottom.

好的。讓我從我們的業務方面開始，即我們的電子業務和流體成分生物製藥業務。這兩個訂單錄入已經見底是最好的說法。因此，他們目前的表現已經達到了一個讓我們感覺良好的水平，因為他們沒有進一步下滑。我們已經看到，隨著本季度的進展，我們可以開始看到這是底部。

In terms of our businesses that are performing incredibly well and contributed to the growth. Medical Interventional business and our Polymer Solutions business on the other end of the spectrum have done well and the order entry remains pretty robust. And then you have a group of businesses sort of in the middle, some a little bit high, some a little bit low. In all of those cases, what we truly find is the order entry have sequentially improved. They have improved through the quarters, and that's kind of where we would say the order entry is not significantly picked up or significantly deploy. And that's really how we come to saying that it is about steady.

就我們的業務而言，它們表現得非常好並為增長做出了貢獻。另一方面，醫療介入業務和我們的聚合物解決方案業務表現良好，訂單輸入仍然相當強勁。然後有一群處於中間的企業，有些有點高，有些有點低。在所有這些情況下，我們真正發現的是訂單輸入已經連續改善。他們在幾個季度中有所改善，這就是我們所說的訂單輸入沒有顯著增加或顯著部署的地方。這就是我們所說的“穩定”的真正含義。

Got it. That's super helpful. And then following up on the question, differentiating between T&I and the dispense side within the Electronics business, Naga, you mentioned that the amplitude of the cycles is different between T&I. But can you maybe talk about the length? I know, for instance, we kind of referred to a typical 4- to 5-quarter slowdown in dispense when the paper comes for the T&I business, is it typical to think of the length of the cycle and slowdown in similar terms? Or should we be thinking about them differently as well?

知道了。這非常有幫助。然後跟進這個問題，區分電子業務中的 T&I 和分配方面，Naga，您提到 T&I 之間的周期幅度不同。但你能談談長度嗎？我知道，例如，當紙張用於 T&I 業務時，我們提到了典型的 4 到 5 個季度的分配放緩，是否通常會以類似的方式考慮週期的長度和放緩？或者我們也應該以不同的方式思考它們？

No. From what we know and based on our experience, no, it's about similar. Maybe is there an offset there could be a slight offset, but nothing significant. We don't believe so.

不。據我們所知並根據我們的經驗，不，差不多。也許存在偏移，可能會有輕微的偏移，但沒什麼大不了的。我們不這麼認為。

There are no further questions at this time. I will now turn the call back to Naga for closing remarks.

目前沒有其他問題。現在我將把電話轉回給納加，讓其致閉幕詞。

Our strong operating performance reflects the strength of our differentiated physician technology, customer-centric model and diversified end markets. Again, I want to thank Nordson employees for their commitments, which makes these results possible. The continued deployment of Ascend strategy will position us well for long-term growth. Thank you for your time and attention on today's call. Have a great day.

我們強勁的經營業績反映了我們差異化的醫師技術、以客戶為中心的模式和多元化的終端市場的實力。我要再次感謝諾信員工的承諾，正是他們的付出才使得這些成果成為可能。奧升德戰略的持續部署將為我們的長期增長奠定良好的基礎。感謝您抽出寶貴時間參加今天的電話會議。祝你有美好的一天。

This concludes today's conference call. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。您現在可以斷開連接。