Oatly Group AB (publ) (OTLY) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and welcome to the Oatly third-quarter 2024 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions)

美好的一天，歡迎參加 Oatly 2024 年第三季財報電話會議。（操作員說明）

Please note this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Brian Kearney from Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

請注意此事件正在被記錄。我現在想將會議轉交給投資者關係部門的布萊恩·科爾尼 (Brian Kearney)。請繼續。

Good morning, and thanks for joining us today. On today's call are our Chief Executive Officer, Jean-Christophe Flatin; our Chief Operating Officer, Daniel Ordonez; and our Chief Financial Officer, Marie-Jose David. Before we begin, please review the disclaimer on slide 3.

早安，感謝您今天加入我們。出席今天電話會議的是我們的執行長 Jean-Christophe Flatin；我們的營運長 Daniel Ordonez；以及我們的財務長 Marie-Jose David。在我們開始之前，請先查看投影片 3 上的免責聲明。

During this call, management may make forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding our future results of operations and financial position, industry and business trends, business strategy, market growth, and anticipated cost savings. These statements are based on management's current expectations and beliefs and involve risks and uncertainties that could differ materially from actual events or those described in these forward-looking statements.

在本次電話會議中，管理層可能會做出1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》含義內的前瞻性聲明，包括有關我們未來經營業績和財務狀況、行業和業務趨勢、業務戰略、市場成長和預期成本的聲明節省。這些陳述是基於管理階層目前的預期和信念，涉及可能與實際事件或這些前瞻性陳述中描述的事件有重大差異的風險和不確定性。

Please refer to the documents we have filed with the SEC for a detailed discussion of the risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements made today. Also, please note on today's call, management will refer to certain non-IFRS financial measures, including EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, constant currency revenue, and free cash flow.

請參閱我們向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件，詳細討論可能導致實際結果與今天所做的任何前瞻性聲明中明示或暗示的結果存在重大差異的風險。另請注意，在今天的電話會議上，管理層將參考某些非國際財務報告準則財務指標，包括 EBITDA、調整後 EBITDA、恆定貨幣收入和自由現金流。

While the company believes these non-IFRS financial measures will provide useful information, the presentation of this information is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information presented in accordance with IFRS. Please refer to today's release for the reconciliation of non-IFRS measures to the most comparable measures prepared in accordance with IFRS.

雖然公司相信這些非國際財務報告準則財務指標將提供有用的信息，但這些信息的列報並不旨在被孤立地考慮或作為根據國際財務報告準則列報的財務信息的替代品。請參閱今天發布的非國際財務報告準則衡量指標與根據國際財務報告準則制定的最具可比較衡量指標的調節表。

In addition, Oatly has posted a supplemental presentation on its website for reference. With that, I'd like to now turn the call over to Jean-Christophe.

此外，Oatly還在其網站上發布了補充介紹，以供參考。現在，我想將電話轉給讓-克里斯托夫。

Thank you, Brian, and good morning, everyone.

謝謝你，布萊恩，大家早安。

Slide 5 has the key messages I want you to take away from today's presentation. First, our third quarter results demonstrate continued solid progress toward reaching structural and consistent profitable growth.

第 5 張投影片包含了我希望您從今天的簡報中獲得的關鍵資訊。首先，我們第三季的業績表明，我們在實現結構性和持續獲利成長方面持續取得堅實進展。

I am pleased to report that each of our three operating segments drove profitable growth in the quarter. This is a significant milestone as we continue to drive the total business towards structural, consistent profitable growth. While we are pleased that we have driven improvements in our profitability, we are proud that we have driven those results in a healthy way that has strengthened our business.

我很高興地報告，我們的三個營運部門均推動了本季的利潤成長。這是一個重要的里程碑，因為我們將繼續推動整體業務實現結構性、持續的獲利成長。雖然我們很高興我們推動了盈利能力的提高，但我們也很自豪我們以健康的方式推動了這些成果，從而增強了我們的業務。

Finally, with just one quarter remaining in the year, we are refining our full-year guidance. We now expect constant currency revenue growth to be near or slightly below the low end of our previously provided range of 6% to 10%.

最後，距離今年僅剩四分之一，我們正在完善全年指導。我們現在預計貨幣收入的恆定成長將接近或略低於我們先前提供的 6% 至 10% 範圍的下限。

Adjusted EBITDA near the favorable end of our previously provided range of minus $35 million to minus $50 million and capital expenditure to be below $55 million, which is below our prior expectation of below $70 million.

調整後的 EBITDA 接近我們先前提供的負 3500 萬美元至負 5000 萬美元範圍的有利端，資本支出低於 5500 萬美元，低於我們之前低於 7000 萬美元的預期。

Turning now to our report card on slide 6. Here, you can see we continue to make progress on our journey towards profitable growth. As you can see, in the quarter, constant currency revenue growth accelerated to nearly 10% year-over-year with every segment driving volume-led growth. Similarly, we have continued to drive significant progress on our adjusted EBITDA.

現在轉向投影片 6 上的成績單。在這裡，您可以看到我們在獲利成長的道路上不斷取得進展。正如您所看到的，本季度，固定貨幣收入年增至近 10%，每個細分市場都推動了銷售主導的成長。同樣，我們繼續推動調整後 EBITDA 取得重大進展。

Today, we are reporting a quarterly loss of just $5 million and our fifth consecutive quarter of sequentially improving adjusted EBITDA. Slide 7 goes one level deeper and shows that our profitability improvements have been driven by a true strengthening of our business.

今天，我們報告的季度虧損僅為 500 萬美元，並且我們連續第五個季度調整後 EBITDA 連續改善。幻燈片 7 更深入地展示了我們盈利能力的提高是由我們業務的真正加強推動的。

Just over one year ago, on our second quarter 2023 earnings call, I shared with you my deep belief that we must have a stronger business before we are able to have a significantly bigger business. And we have grown our sales and improved our gross margin, we have also continued to invest in branding and advertising in the mid-to-high single digits as a percent of net sales.

就在一年多前，在我們的 2023 年第二季財報電話會議上，我與大家分享了我的堅定信念，即我們必須擁有更強大的業務，然後才能擁有更大的業務。我們的銷售額有所成長並提高了毛利率，我們也持續在品牌和廣告方面進行投資，佔淨銷售額的百分比為中高個位數。

We still have plenty of work to do to realize what we believe to be our full potential. But clearly, we are making good, healthy progress. I believe the data shown on this slide demonstrates that our business is much stronger than it was back then. Our volume growth has accelerated to 13% year-over-year growth with each region reporting solid growth this quarter. As our volume has grown, we have captured the absorption benefits while relentlessly driving efficiencies.

我們仍有大量工作要做，才能充分發揮我們的潛力。但顯然，我們正在取得良好、健康的進展。我相信這張投影片上顯示的數據顯示我們的業務比當時強大得多。我們的銷量成長已加速至 13%，年成長，每個地區本季均穩健成長。隨著我們產量的成長，我們在不斷提高效率的同時獲得了吸收優勢。

This has enabled our gross margin to steadily improve. In fact, our first quarter gross margin is a full 27 percentage points higher than it was just two years ago. And we have grown our sales and improved our gross margin, we have also continued to invest in branding and advertising in the mid-to-high single digits as a percent of net sales. We still have plenty of work to do to realize what we believe to be our full potential. But clearly, we are making good, healthy progress.

這使得我們的毛利率穩定提高。事實上，我們第一季的毛利率比兩年前足足高出了 27 個百分點。我們的銷售額有所成長並提高了毛利率，我們也持續在品牌和廣告方面進行投資，佔淨銷售額的百分比為中高個位數。我們仍有大量工作要做，才能充分發揮我們的潛力。但顯然，我們正在取得良好、健康的進展。

Turning now to slide 8. Here, you can see how each segment's improvement plan journey has evolved. While each segment has required a slightly different path, our ways of working have been consistent across segments and in line with what I outlined on last year's Q2 call. Specifically, these ways of working include rigorous fact-based analysis, disciplined resource allocation, increased regional accountability, and aligned incentives.

現在轉到投影片 8。在這裡，您可以看到每個細分市場的改進計劃歷程是如何演變的。雖然每個細分市場所需的路徑略有不同，但我們在各個細分市場的工作方式是一致的，並且與我在去年第二季電話會議中概述的內容一致。具體來說，這些工作方式包括嚴格的基於事實的分析、嚴格的資源分配、加強的區域責任和一致的激勵措施。

I want to share with you that I am very proud and grateful to our teams for embracing the challenge and making the necessary changes. And I'm pleased to report that each segment has a checkmark in each one of the stages, including the profitable growth column, which brings me to our next slide. On slide 9, I am pleased to present that all three of our operating segments drove profitable growth in the quarter.

我想與大家分享的是，我對我們的團隊迎接挑戰並做出必要的改變感到非常自豪和感激。我很高興地報告，每個細分市場的每個階段都有一個複選標記，包括獲利成長欄，這將我帶到下一張投影片。在投影片 9 上，我很高興地介紹，我們的所有三個營運部門都推動了本季的獲利成長。

As I said before, we still have plenty of work to do to realize our full potential, but this is a very important milestone as we continue to deliver on our commitments.

正如我之前所說，我們仍有大量工作要做才能充分發揮我們的潛力，但這是我們繼續履行承諾的一個非常重要的里程碑。

I will wrap up my section on slide 10. As we move forward, we will maintain our North Star of driving the business towards structural, consistent profitable growth. To continue fueling our growth, we will continue investing to stimulate growth.

我將在幻燈片 10 上結束我的部分。隨著我們的前進，我們將維持推動業務實現結構性、持續獲利成長的北極星目標。為了繼續推動我們的成長，我們將繼續投資以刺激成長。

To fulfill our company's mission, we know we need to recruit more consumers into our category and expand our consumer base beyond our most loyal advocates for our purpose and mission.

為了履行我們公司的使命，我們知道我們需要招募更多的消費者進入我們的類別，並將我們的消費者基礎擴展到我們最忠實的擁護者之外，以實現我們的宗旨和使命。

On our last earnings call, I said that our advertising campaigns we were going to maintain our unique voice while doubling down on substance and relevance, and this is exactly what we are doing. Daniel will share with you where we are heading with a few early examples during his presentation.

在我們上次的財報電話會議上，我說過，我們的廣告活動將保持我們獨特的聲音，同時加倍關注實質內容和相關性，而這正是我們正在做的事情。丹尼爾將在演講中透過一些早期範例與您分享我們的發展方向。

Finally, we intend to complete our work on the calibration of resources. Our previously announced SG&A cost savings program is largely complete. The exits of our US and UK manufacturing facilities remain on track. And we continue to evaluate our Asian supply chain options.

最後，我們打算完成資源校準的工作。我們先前宣布的 SG&A 成本節約計畫已基本完成。我們美國和英國製造工廠的退出仍在按計劃進行。我們將繼續評估我們的亞洲供應鏈選擇。

With that, I will turn the call over to Daniel to give you an update on each region. Daniel, over to you.

接下來，我會將電話轉給丹尼爾，為您提供每個地區的最新情況。丹尼爾，交給你了。

Thank you, JC, and good morning, everyone. I will start on slide 12 with our largest operating segment, Europe and International. This segment reported solid results in the quarter with 6% revenue growth or 4% on a constant currency basis. This revenue growth drove 46% year-on-year increase in adjusted EBITDA as we captured the benefits of fixed cost absorption and drove efficiencies in both cost of goods and SG&A while also increasing advertising investments year on year.

謝謝你，JC，大家早安。我將從投影片 12 開始介紹我們最大的營運部門：歐洲和國際部門。該部門在本季度報告了穩健的業績，收入增長 6%，按固定匯率計算增長 4%。這項營收成長推動調整後 EBITDA 年成長 46%，因為我們抓住了固定成本吸收的好處，提高了商品成本和 SG&A 的效率，同時也比去年同期增加了廣告投資。

On slide 13, you can see how we continue to see broad-based strength in the segment. In the quarter, the retail side of the business grew volume by 5% and food service by 7% year on year. As we've mentioned in the past, we continue to believe there is a significant opportunity to drive robust growth in the food service channel, where there is not only head space to grow, but it is also where consumers can experience the brand to its fullest.

在投影片 13 中，您可以看到我們如何繼續看到該細分市場的廣泛優勢。本季度，零售業務量年增 5%，餐飲業務量較去年同期成長 7%。正如我們過去所提到的，我們仍然相信食品服務管道存在著推動強勁成長的重大機會，該管道不僅有成長空間，而且也是消費者可以體驗品牌的地方最充分。

On the right side, you can see that our established markets, which represent nearly 90% of the segment volume grew by a solid 5% in the quarter. These are the markets where we have operated for many years, and they continue to drive solid mid-single-digit growth rates. The European markets where we have recently expanded drove a strong 25% volume growth in the quarter.

在右側，您可以看到佔該細分市場銷售近 90% 的成熟市場在本季度實現了 5% 的穩定成長。這些是我們經營多年的市場，它們繼續推動穩定的中個位數成長率。我們最近拓展的歐洲市場推動本季銷售強勁成長 25%。

And in many of them, we already developed leadership presence in the coffee space and number one velocities in retail. However, our international expansion markets saw a 4% volume decline in the quarter. These markets make up only 6% of the segment's volume and are primarily made up of Southeast Asia, Australia, the Arab Peninsula, Mexico, and some export markets.

在其中許多領域，我們已經在咖啡領域佔據了領先地位，並在零售領域佔據了第一的速度。然而，我們的國際擴張市場本季銷量下降了 4%。這些市場僅佔該細分市場銷量的 6%，主要由東南亞、澳洲、阿拉伯半島、墨西哥和一些出口市場組成。

While we have seen solid performance in most of these markets, Southeast Asia has become much more competitive in the recent time, and that has impacted our performance. Slide 14 shows the retail channel data for our European markets.

雖然我們在大多數這些市場都看到了穩健的表現，但東南亞最近的競爭變得更加激烈，這影響了我們的表現。投影片 14 顯示了歐洲市場的零售通路數據。

To be more representative of our business, this chart now includes both our established European markets and almost all of our European expansion markets. While we have continued to grow, the growth of the category as a whole has clearly been sluggish recently with the category-related impact most acute in the UK.

為了更能代表我們的業務，此圖表現在包括我們已建立的歐洲市場和幾乎所有歐洲擴張市場。儘管我們持續成長，但整個品類的成長最近明顯緩慢，其中與品類相關的影響在英國最為嚴重。

We have steadily taken share in nearly every one of our markets, including the UK. This continued strong share gains support our claim that there is a clear difference between plant-based milk versus oat milk and versus Oatly. But we cannot wait for others to make the category exciting. Oatly has long been the only brand that drives category growth. So we intend to use our competitive momentum to take control and reignite growth.

我們在幾乎每個市場都穩步佔據份額，包括英國。這種持續強勁的份額成長支持了我們的主張，即植物奶與燕麥奶以及燕麥奶之間存在明顯差異。但我們不能等待其他人讓這個類別變得令人興奮。Oatly 長期以來一直是唯一推動品類成長的品牌。因此，我們打算利用我們的競爭動力來控制並重新激發成長。

It starts with our not-so-secret weapon on slide 15. Our family of barista products has been a strong growth driver for us, dominating the growing coffee space. Our newly expanded lineup, which includes new formats and new concepts like organic barista or lighter-fac barista have been helping us to build that momentum.

首先是投影片 15 中我們不那麼秘密的武器。我們的咖啡師產品系列一直是我們強大的成長動力，在不斷增長的咖啡領域中佔據主導地位。我們新擴展的產品陣容，包括新形式和新概念，如有機咖啡師或輕咖啡師，一直在幫助我們建立這一勢頭。

These products have been showing positive signs of solid velocities as well an incrementality by recruiting new consumers into the category. These are terrific executions to make Oatly available to more people in more places in different channels, formats, and price points. We expect that these will continue to drive growth going forward.

這些產品已經顯示出穩定的速度以及透過招募新消費者進入該類別而實現增量的積極跡象。這些都是出色的執行，使 Oatly 能夠以不同的管道、形式和價格點為更多地方的更多人提供服務。我們預計這些將繼續推動未來的成長。

But we know not everybody drinks coffee. Slide 16 shows a campaign that we're running in the UK. We all know that Brits love their tea. In fact, tea represents over a third of all dairy milk occasions in the UK compared to a quarter of occasions for coffee. So we are reminding them that our products are a terrific addition to their daily ritual.

但我們知道不是每個人都喝咖啡。投影片 16 顯示了我們在英國開展的一項活動。我們都知道英國人喜歡喝茶。事實上，在英國，茶佔所有牛奶場合的三分之一以上，而咖啡則佔四分之一。因此，我們提醒他們，我們的產品是他們日常儀式的絕佳補充。

This is only an example of how we will continue to surprise consumers to expand how they think about Oat nut and the multiple occasions they do not consider nowadays in their repertoire, an example of our single-minded decision to recruit more consumers to the category.

這只是一個例子，說明我們將如何繼續給消費者帶來驚喜，擴大他們對燕麥堅果的看法，以及他們現在不考慮的多種場合，這是我們一心一意地決定吸引更多消費者加入該類別的一個例子。

You can also appreciate this is not just an advertising campaign, but an immersive, engaging experience with our usual disruptive tone. WhatsApp conversations will soon reach six digits, encouraging consumers one by one that Oatly works super well in their cup-up, short for cup sea in Britain.

您也可以體會到，這不僅僅是一場廣告活動，而是一種身臨其境、引人入勝的體驗，帶有我們一貫的顛覆性基調。WhatsApp 對話量很快就會達到六位數，一一鼓勵消費者，讓他們知道 Oatly 在他們的杯中效果非常好，杯杯是英國杯海的簡稱。

And slide 17 shows another example with a campaign that takes an even bolder approach to recruiting new consumers. We know that many consumers are reluctant to change, and we know the main barrier to category adoption is a preconception on taste. So we made it simple the Oatly way. We conducted a blind test.

投影片 17 顯示了另一個例子，該活動採取了更大膽的方法來招募新消費者。我們知道許多消費者不願意改變，我們也知道採用品類的主要障礙是對口味的先入為主的觀念。所以我們用 Oatly 的方式讓事情變得簡單。我們進行了盲測。

And guess what? More than half of the German consumers we sampled preferred Oatly over cow's milk. You should expect to see this campaign running across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland over the coming months. Between the UK with tea and Germany with taste, you can see that we're clearly modifying our consumer advertising without modifying the essence of our unique tone of halls. We will relentlessly provide consumers with the multiple concrete reasons why they should adopt Oatly, being true to our mission.

你猜怎麼著？我們抽樣調查的德國消費者中，超過一半喜歡燕麥勝過牛奶。您應該會在未來幾個月內看到這項活動在德國、奧地利和瑞士進行。在英國的茶和德國的品味之間，你可以看到我們明顯地修改了我們的消費者廣告，但沒有改變我們大廳獨特基調的本質。我們將堅持不懈地向消費者提供他們應該採用 Oatly 的多種具體理由，忠於我們的使命。

When paired with hyper-localized events such as the pop-up stores I brought to you last quarter as well as provocative in-store displays and strong shelf presence, we believe we have a solid recipe for improving growth trends.

當與超本地化的活動（例如我上季度為您帶來的快閃店）以及挑釁性的店內展示和強大的貨架展示相結合時，我們相信我們擁有改善成長趨勢的可靠秘訣。

Turning now to our North America segment on slide 18. This segment's solid results continue to be a direct result of a disciplined execution throughout the entire organization. we reported a very solid 18% growth in revenue and a strong $11 million year-on-year improvement in adjusted EBITDA.

現在轉向幻燈片 18 上的北美部分。該部門的堅實成果仍然是整個組織嚴格執行的直接結果。我們的營收實現了 18% 的穩健成長，調整後 EBITDA 年比大幅成長 1,100 萬美元。

Slide 19 shows that the sales growth was well balanced between channels with over 16% growth in retail and nearly 20% growth in food service. Slide 20 shows the significant retail market share gains we have driven over the past year. In fact, our share of the plant-based milk category is at an all-time high.

投影片 19 顯示，各通路的銷售成長非常均衡，零售業成長超過 16%，食品服務業成長近 20%。幻燈片 20 顯示了我們在過去一年中推動的零售市場份額的顯著增長。事實上，我們在植物奶類別中的份額處於歷史最高水平。

Our products are clearly showing up on shelves and consumers are choosing Oatly over the competition. And customers love our products since our dollar velocities per point of distribution remain nearly 3 times higher than our nearest competitor.

我們的產品清晰地出現在貨架上，消費者選擇 Oatly 而不是競爭對手。客戶喜歡我們的產品，因為我們每個分銷點的美元流通速度仍然比最接近的競爭對手高出近 3 倍。

Speaking of customers, slide 21 shows that they continue to see the benefits of having our products on their shelves. Our chilled oat milk is the largest part of our retail business, and its retail distribution points are up 45% year on year, and the ACV has increased more than 500 basis points to 44%. This is great progress, and we believe there is room to improve from here.

說到客戶，幻燈片 21 顯示他們繼續看到我們的產品上架的好處。我們的冷凍燕麥奶是我們零售業務的最大組成部分，其零售分銷點年增45%，ACV成長超過500個基點至44%。這是巨大的進步，我們相信還有改進的空間。

On the right-hand side of this slide, you can see some additional distribution we have secured in the upcoming shelf resets that are expected to occur shortly after the new year. You can see that we continue to expand our relationship with several existing customers such as Walmart and Costco. And I'm also pleased to say that our chilled Barista products will return to Kroger after two years hiatus. So good momentum in North America.

在這張投影片的右側，您可以看到我們在即將到來的貨架重置中確保了一些額外的分配，這些重置預計將在新年後不久發生。您可以看到我們繼續擴大與沃爾瑪和好市多等多家現有客戶的關係。我還很高興地說，我們的冷凍咖啡師產品將在中斷兩年後重返克羅格。北美的勢頭非常好。

Turning to the Greater China segment on slide 22. I'm pleased to report that the Greater China segment is reporting its first quarter of profitable growth. We grew sales on a constant currency basis by 12%, and we reported adjusted EBITDA of $2 million, which is an $18 million year-on-year improvement. The business is clearly in a much better position than it was over a year ago when JC and I started to operate it together with the local team.

轉向投影片 22 上的大中華區部分。我很高興地報告，大中華區業務第一季實現獲利成長。以固定匯率計算，我們的銷售額成長了 12%，調整後 EBITDA 為 200 萬美元，年增 1,800 萬美元。與一年多前 JC 和我開始與當地團隊一起運作時相比，該業務的狀況顯然要好得多。

Our decisions to execute a strategic reset as well as separating it from the rest of Asia to drive focus are clearly driving results and have strengthened the business. Slide 23 gives an update on the new oat milk momentum that seems to be building in China, even during the warmer summer months when oat milk has been less popular than in the colder months.

我們決定執行策略重置並將其與亞洲其他地區分開以推動重點，這顯然正在推動業績並增強業務。投影片 23 介紹了中國似乎正在形成的新燕麥奶勢頭的最新情況，即使在溫暖的夏季，燕麥奶的受歡迎程度也低於寒冷的月份。

Oatly-based cold drinks are currently being promoted across the segment's largest customers. We expect a good level of activity to continue as we head into the colder months. While this suggests an improved momentum, we recognize that we're still in the test phase in China's largest coffee chain, and we're mindful of the clearly challenging macro environment in the region.

目前，以燕麥為基礎的冷飲正在該領域的最大客戶中推廣。我們預計，隨著進入寒冷的月份，良好的活動水平將繼續下去。雖然這表明勢頭有所改善，但我們認識到，作為中國最大的咖啡連鎖店，我們仍處於測試階段，並且我們注意到該地區明顯具有挑戰性的宏觀環境。

Overall, our relationship with all customers remain strong, and we remain in a solid competitive position and the business is moving in the right direction.

總體而言，我們與所有客戶的關係仍然牢固，我們仍然處於穩固的競爭地位，業務正在朝著正確的方向發展。

With that, I will now turn the call over to MJ.

現在，我將把電話轉給 MJ。

Thank you, Daniel, and good morning, everyone. Slide 25 shows an overview of the quarterly P&L. We reported 10.9% year-over-year revenue growth and constant currency revenue growth of 9.6%.

謝謝你，丹尼爾，大家早安。投影片 25 顯示了季度損益的概述。我們的營收年增 10.9%，固定貨幣收入成長 9.6%。

Gross margin for the quarter was 29.8%, which is 1,240 basis points higher than a year ago. It was also 60 basis points higher than the second quarter, and this is the first time we have reported a sequential improvement in first-quarter gross margin since well before our IPO, which we believe demonstrates an increased level of operational and financial discipline.

該季度毛利率為 29.8%，比去年同期高 1,240 個基點。也比第二季度高出 60 個基點，這是我們自 IPO 之前以來首次報告第一季毛利率連續改善，我們認為這表明營運和財務紀律水平有所提高。

Adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $5 million, which is $31 million improvement compared to last year's first quarter. As a percent of revenue, our adjusted EBITDA loss was approximately 2%. Comparing that 2% to our branding and advertising investment in the mid- to high single digits as a percentage of revenue highlights that we are continuing to invest for the long term while also improving profitability in the short term.

調整後 EBITDA 虧損 500 萬美元，比去年第一季減少 3,100 萬美元。我們調整後的 EBITDA 損失佔收入的百分比約為 2%。相較之下，我們的品牌和廣告投資佔收入的比例為中高個位數，這表明我們將繼續進行長期投資，同時提高短期獲利能力。

In summary, we had a solid performance in the quarter. Slide 26 shows the bridging items of our total company quarterly revenue growth. Volume grew 13%. Price/mix was a 3.4% headwind for a 9.6% constant currency revenue growth.

總而言之，我們本季的業績表現穩健。投影片 26 顯示了我們公司季度總收入成長的過渡項目。成交量成長 13%。價格/組合對於 9.6% 的恆定貨幣收入成長是 3.4% 的阻力。

Foreign exchange was a tailwind of 1.3%, resulting in 10.9% total revenue growth for the quarter. Slide 27 shows the revenue bridge by segment. Jean-Christophe and Daniel's presentation outlined everything we are doing in each region to drive solid growth. The takeaway of this slide is that each region drove solid volume growth as our strategic initiatives and growth plans continue to work.

外匯帶來 1.3% 的推動力，導致本季總營收成長 10.9%。幻燈片 27 顯示了按細分市場劃分的收入橋。Jean-Christophe 和 Daniel 的演講概述了我們在每個地區為推動穩健成長所做的一切。這張投影片的要點是，隨著我們的策略舉措和成長計劃繼續發揮作用，每個地區都推動了銷售的穩健成長。

Europe and International continued to report solid growth with 4% constant currency revenue growth, led by 5.4% volume growth. North America's revenue growth of 18.1% was driven mainly by the strong 17.6% volume growth. Greater China's 12.4% constant currency growth was driven largely by the test with China's largest coffee chain.

歐洲和國際市場持續穩健成長，貨幣收入穩定成長 4%，銷量成長 5.4%。北美地區 18.1% 的營收成長主要得益於 17.6% 的銷售強勁成長。大中華區12.4%的恆定貨幣成長主要是由中國最大的咖啡連鎖店的測試所推動的。

As we mentioned last quarter, this customer mix has a clear impact on the segment bridge with a large volume increase and an impact on price mix. Since we are continuing to run the LTO with this large customer, we expect these bridging items to continue to be impacted at least through Q4.

正如我們上季度提到的，這種客戶組合對細分市場產生了明顯的影響，銷售量大幅增加，並對價格組合產生了影響。由於我們繼續與這個大客戶一起運行 LTO，我們預計這些過渡專案至少在第四季度將繼續受到影響。

Slide 28 shows the drivers of our 12.4% point year-over-year gross margin expansion. This biggest item is a 10.9 percentage point increase driven by absorption and supply chain improvement. Of this 10.9%, 3.2% of them are related to last year's margin being impacted by costs related to the Greater China segment strategic reset. The remaining portion was primarily driven by increased efficiencies in our supply chain.

投影片 28 顯示了我們毛利率年增 12.4% 的驅動因素。在吸收和供應鏈改善的推動下，這項最大的項目成長了 10.9 個百分點。在這10.9%中，有3.2%與去年的利潤率受到大中華區策略重置相關成本的影響有關。其餘部分主要是由我們供應鏈效率的提高所推動的。

This is the impact of our strategy to consolidate the co-packers in North America as well as improved inventory management, leading to fewer supplier penalties and inventory write-offs across our segments. It also includes better absorption benefits by optimizing our production between different facilities. Our supply chain team has been doing a very good job on driving efficiencies while supporting growth, but we do not expect efficiencies to drive this level of margin improvement going forward.

這是我們整合北美代加工商策略以及改善庫存管理的影響，從而減少了我們各部門的供應商處罰和庫存沖銷。它還包括透過優化不同設施之間的生產來獲得更好的吸收效益。我們的供應鏈團隊在提高效率和支援成長方面做得非常好，但我們預期效率不會推動未來利潤率的提高。

Our net pricing and product mix improved margin by 100 basis points, primarily driven by mix improvement in Greater China as part of its strategic reset. Foreign exchange increased our margin by 50 basis points and inflation was roughly neutral to margin.

我們的淨定價和產品組合將利潤率提高了 100 個基點，這主要是由於作為策略重置的一部分，大中華區的產品組合改善所推動。外匯交易使我們的利潤率增加了 50 個基點，通膨對利潤率的影響大致為中性。

Slide 29 shows the year-over-year improvement in our adjusted EBITDA was driven primarily by a $29.5 million improvement in gross profit. Our SG&A savings program is now largely complete. As we move forward, while we remain disciplined on SG&A cost control and will always be searching for efficiencies, we expect gross profit to be the main driver of profit improvement.

投影片 29 顯示，我們調整後 EBITDA 的年比改善主要是因為毛利增加了 2,950 萬美元。我們的 SG&A 儲蓄計畫現已基本完成。隨著我們的前進，雖然我們仍然嚴格控制銷售、管理費用成本並始終追求效率，但我們預計毛利將成為利潤改善的主要驅動力。

Slide 30 shows our adjusted EBITDA by segment. Each segment continued to report a significant improvement compared to the prior year. For the fourth quarter in a row, the sum total of the adjusted EBITDA for the three segments was positive. On top of that, each of the three operating segments reported positive adjusted EBITDA in the quarter.

投影片 30 顯示了我們按部門調整後的 EBITDA。與前一年相比，每個細分市場均持續取得顯著改善。這三個部門的調整後 EBITDA 總和連續第四季度為正。最重要的是，三個營運部門均在本季度報告了調整後的正 EBITDA。

Corporate expenses increased by $2.4 million as savings in personnel costs were more than offset by a foreign exchange headwind as well as the increased global advertising spend that is recorded in corporate that we discussed on our last quarter's call. As you can see, the strategic actions we have been taking are driving strong results.

公司支出增加了 240 萬美元，因為人事成本的節省被外匯逆風以及我們在上季度電話會議中討論的公司記錄的全球廣告支出增加所抵消。正如您所看到的，我們一直在採取的策略行動正在帶來強勁的成果。

Turning to our balance sheet and cash flow on slide 31. First, we remain fully funded. We ended the quarter with a strong liquidity position of $322 million, which is comprised of $119 million of cash and $203 million of our undrawn credit facilities, which are denominated in Swedish krona.

轉向投影片 31 上的資產負債表和現金流。首先，我們的資金仍然充足。本季末，我們擁有 3.22 億美元的強勁流動性頭寸，其中包括 1.19 億美元的現金和 2.03 億美元的未提取信貸額度（以瑞典克朗計價）。

Next, our total cash flow remains on track with our plans. Our profitability continues to improve. We continue to optimize our capital expenditures and working capital, and our exit of UK and US plants remains on track. Specific to the plant exit, we had a net $3 million cash inflow in the quarter, which brings the cumulative impact to a $10 million cash outflow.

接下來，我們的總現金流仍符合我們的計劃。我們的獲利能力持續改善。我們繼續優化資本支出和營運資本，英國和美國工廠的退出仍在按計劃進行。具體到工廠退出，我們本季的現金流量淨額為 300 萬美元，累計影響為 1000 萬美元的現金流出。

We are on track to have no more than $20 million of total net cash outflow for the exit. Finally, as you know, I have repeatedly said that improving our cash flow is a priority for me, and I'm pleased that this quarter free cash flow is the company's best quarterly performance since our IPO. We have work to do, but we are clearly improving.

我們預計用於退出的淨現金流出總額將不超過 2000 萬美元。最後，如您所知，我多次說過，改善我們的現金流是我的首要任務，我很高興本季的自由現金流是公司自 IPO 以來最好的季度業績。我們還有工作要做，但我們顯然正在進步。

Slide 32 shows our 2024 guidance. With just one quarter remaining in the year, we are refining our 2024 guidance. We expect constant currency revenue growth near or slightly below the low end of our prior range of 6% to 10%, and we continue to expect foreign exchange to have a minimal impact.

投影片 32 顯示了我們的 2024 年指引。距離今年僅剩四分之一，我們正在完善 2024 年指引。我們預計貨幣收入成長將接近或略低於我們先前 6% 至 10% 區間的低端，並且我們仍然預期外匯的影響將很小。

For adjusted EBITDA, we expect to report a loss near the favorable end of our range of between negative $35 million and negative $50 million in 2024. Finally, we expect CapEx to be below $55 million for 2024. This concludes our prepared remarks.

對於調整後的 EBITDA，我們預計 2024 年將出現接近負 3,500 萬美元至負 5,000 萬美元範圍內有利端的虧損。最後，我們預計 2024 年資本支出將低於 5,500 萬美元。我們準備好的演講到此結束。

Operator, we are now prepared to take questions.

接線員，我們現在準備回答問題。

(Operator Instructions) Max Gumport, BNP Paribas.

（操作員說明）Max Gumport，法國巴黎銀行。

This is Alex Hilsenrath on for Max. So guidance implies a slowdown in revenue growth to around 7% in 4Q '24. What is driving the deceleration? And then how should we think about the exit rate going into 2025?

我是麥克斯的亞歷克斯·希爾森拉斯。因此，指導意味著 24 年第四季營收成長將放緩至 7% 左右。是什麼導致了減速？那我們該如何考慮進入 2025 年的退出率呢？

Hi Alex, Jean-Christophe, thank you so much for the question. First, let me give you the context. As you know, we always strive to deliver on our commitments, but we think it's important to be open about the reality of the situation.

嗨，亞歷克斯，讓-克里斯托夫，非常感謝你提出這個問題。首先，讓我向您介紹一下背景。如您所知，我們始終努力兌現我們的承諾，但我們認為對現實情況持開放態度很重要。

So the main element that has changed over the past three months since we last guided is the category growth dynamics in Europe that Daniel mentioned in his prepared remarks and most notably, the recent category sluggishness in the UK. As you have heard us say multiple times, the way we work is we are really going to focus on controlling the controllables.

因此，自我們上次指導以來，過去三個月發生的主要變化是丹尼爾在他準備好的講話中提到的歐洲品類增長動態，最值得注意的是英國最近的品類低迷。正如您多次聽到我們所說，我們的工作方式是我們真正專注於控制可控因素。

In this case, what we call the controllables includes the most -- the most thoughtful and deliberate approach to consumer engagement and advertising that Daniel has discussed. So that's the way we look at it.

在這種情況下，我們所說的可控因素包括丹尼爾討論過的最深思熟慮、最深思熟慮的消費者參與和廣告方法。這就是我們看待它的方式。

And then just one more follow-up. So given the progress on EBITDA with all three segments turning positive, are there any factors to consider that prevent the company from achieving positive adjusted EBITDA in 2025?

然後還有一個後續行動。那麼，考慮到 EBITDA 的進展，所有三個部門都轉正，是否有任何因素需要考慮，阻止公司在 2025 年實現正調整 EBITDA？

Thank you again, Alex. And I'm sure there will be plenty of your colleagues that also have questions they want to ask about 2025. So let us cover that now and tell you what we can tell you at this stage. I propose I will start and then hand over to MJ if she wants to add on anything. First of all, let me remind, achieving profitable growth is, has been, and remains our unique North Star.

再次感謝你，亞歷克斯。我相信你們很多同事也會有關於 2025 年的問題。現在讓我們來介紹一下，並告訴您現階段我們可以告訴您什麼。我建議我先開始，然後如果 MJ 想補充什麼，就交給她。首先，讓我提醒一下，獲利成長現在、過去、現在仍然是我們獨特的北極星。

I am and we are fully committed to it. We are really pleased to see the significant structural progresses we have made so far. You can see it in the gross margin significant increase. You can see that in the SG&A recalibration that we highlighted in our prepared remarks.

我和我們都完全致力於此。我們非常高興看到迄今為止的重大結構性進展。你可以看到它的毛利率顯著增加。您可以在我們準備好的評論中強調的 SG&A 重新校準中看到這一點。

We are clearly moving in the right direction, and we expect to continue making progress as we move forward. The way we do that is by making the right decision day by day, one after the other to bring this business to profitable growth as quickly as possible.

顯然，我們正在朝著正確的方向前進，並且我們期望在前進的過程中繼續取得進展。我們做到這一點的方法是日復一日地做出正確的決定，使這項業務盡快實現盈利增長。

Obviously, we are not going to give you any 2025 guidance today, but you should expect that our teams will continue to drive distribution gains, market share improvement as well as category creation in expansion markets.

顯然，我們今天不會向您提供任何 2025 年指導，但您應該期望我們的團隊將繼續推動分銷收益、市場份額的提高以及擴展市場中的品類創建。

At the same time, we will also remain super disciplined on our costs and capital to ensure that all the great things we are doing to drive demand flow through to improvement in the P&L and ultimately improvement in the cash flow. MJ, Marie-Jose, anything you want to add?

同時，我們也將對成本和資本保持嚴格的紀律，以確保我們為推動需求流所做的所有偉大事情都能夠改善損益表並最終改善現金流。MJ、瑪麗-何塞，還有什麼要補充的嗎？

No. Maybe just to build, we are still going through our budget process. We will give you for sure full outlook in our next call. However, here are some high-level thoughts on how we are looking at 2025. On top line, Daniel spoke about the momentum we have been building, and we will look to build on that.

不。也許只是為了建造，我們仍在進行預算流程。我們將在下次電話會議中向您提供全面的展望。然而，以下是我們如何展望 2025 年的一些高層想法。最重要的是，丹尼爾談到了我們一直在建立的勢頭，我們將在此基礎上再接再厲。

From a model perspective, I would point out that Greater China will anniversary this first large STO starting in Q2. Our supply chain teams will continue to drive efficiencies, whether for absorption or other productivity improvements.

從模型的角度來看，我想指出，大中華區將於第二季開始慶祝第一個大型 STO。我們的供應鏈團隊將繼續提高效率，無論是吸收或其他生產力的提升。

We will continue to support our strategy to stimulate demand through healthy branding and advertising investments. We will, of course, continue to stay diligent and disciplined on SG&A. And finally, as we look forward, we will continue to embrace a rigorous fact-based analysis of our CapEx.

我們將繼續支持我們的策略，透過健康的品牌和廣告投資來刺激需求。當然，我們將繼續在 SG&A 方面保持勤勉和紀律。最後，展望未來，我們將繼續對資本支出進行嚴格的基於事實的分析。

By the way, we expect most of the majority of them to go through safety, efficiency, and sustainability projects within our existing sites. So I hope that helps. But again, we are sharing as much as we can at this stage, Alex, I hope that helps.

順便說一句，我們希望他們中的大多數人能夠在我們現有的工廠內完成安全、效率和永續性專案。所以我希望這會有所幫助。但同樣，我們現階段正在盡可能地分享，亞歷克斯，我希望這會有所幫助。

(Operator Instructions) We have no further questions, ladies and gentlemen. I would like to turn the conference back over to Brian Kearney for any closing remarks. Over to you.

（操作員說明）女士們先生們，我們沒有其他問題了。我想將會議轉回布萊恩·科爾尼 (Brian Kearney) 發表閉幕詞。交給你了。

Great. As there are no more questions in the queue, we will end the call here. Thank you, everybody, for joining us. Feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions, and we can set up some time to chat. Thanks, everybody, and have a great day.

偉大的。由於隊列中沒有更多問題，我們將在此結束通話。謝謝大家加入我們。如果您有任何疑問，請隨時與我聯繫，我們可以安排一些時間聊天。謝謝大家，祝你有美好的一天。

Thank you. The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect.

謝謝。會議現已結束。感謝您參加今天的演講。您現在可以斷開連線。