Prestige Consumer Healthcare Inc (PBH) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Prestige Consumer Healthcare Fiscal 2023 Earnings Call. (Operator Instructions) Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded.

美好的一天，感謝您的支持。歡迎參加 Prestige 消費者醫療保健 2023 財年收益電話會議。 （操作員指示）請注意，今天的會議正在錄製中。

I would now like to hand the conference over to your speaker today, Phil Terpolilli, Vice President of Investor Relations and Treasury. Please go ahead.

現在我想將會議交給今天的發言人、投資者關係和財務副總裁 Phil Terpolilli。請繼續。

Thanks, operator, and thank you to everyone who has joined today. On the call with me are Ron Lombardi, our Chairman, President and CEO; and Christine Sacco, our CFO.

謝謝運營商，也謝謝今天加入的所有人。與我通話的有我們的董事長、總裁兼首席執行官羅恩·隆巴迪 (Ron Lombardi)；以及我們的首席財務官克里斯汀·薩科 (Christine Sacco)。

On today's call, we'll review our fourth quarter and fiscal '23 results, discuss our full year outlook for fiscal '24 and then take questions from analysts.

在今天的電話會議上，我們將回顧第四季度和 23 財年的業績，討論 24 財年的全年展望，然後回答分析師的問題。

The slide presentation accompanies today's call can be accessed by visiting prestigeconsumerhealthcare.com, clicking on the Investors link and then on today's webcast and presentation.

今天的電話會議附帶的幻燈片演示文稿可以通過訪問 prestigeconsumerhealthcare.com 來訪問，單擊“投資者”鏈接，然後單擊今天的網絡廣播和演示文稿。

Remember some of the information contained in the presentation today includes non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations to the nearest GAAP financial measures are included in our earnings release and slide presentation.

請記住，今天的演示文稿中包含的一些信息包括非公認會計準則財務指標。我們的收益發布和幻燈片演示中包含了與最接近的 GAAP 財務指標的調節。

On today's call, management will make forward-looking statements around risks and uncertainties, which are detailed in a complete safe harbor disclosure on Page 2 of the slide presentation that accompanies the call. These are important to review and contemplate.

在今天的電話會議上，管理層將就風險和不確定性做出前瞻性聲明，電話會議隨附的幻燈片演示文稿第 2 頁上的完整安全港披露詳細介紹了這些聲明。這些對於回顧和思考很重要。

Business environment uncertainty remains heightened due to supply chain constraints, high inflation and various geopolitical factors, which have numerous potential impacts. This means results could change at any time, and the forecasted impact of risk considerations is the best estimate based on the information available as of today's date.

由於供應鏈限制、高通脹和各種地緣政治因素，營商環境的不確定性仍然加劇，潛在影響眾多。這意味著結果可能隨時發生變化，風險考慮因素的預測影響是基於截至目前可用信息的最佳估計。

Further information concerning risk factors and cautionary statements are available in our most recent SEC filings and most recent company 10-K.

有關風險因素和警示性聲明的更多信息，請參閱我們最新的 SEC 文件和最新的公司 10-K。

I'll now hand it over to our CEO, Ron Lombardi. Ron?

現在我將把它交給我們的首席執行官 Ron Lombardi。羅恩？

Thanks, Phil. Let's begin on Slide 5. We are very pleased with our record fiscal '23 results that delivered strong growth. Thanks to our diversified portfolio of brands that consumers know and trust.

謝謝，菲爾。讓我們從幻燈片 5 開始。我們對創紀錄的 23 財年業績感到非常滿意，該業績帶來了強勁的增長。得益於我們消費者了解和信任的多元化品牌組合。

Revenues of $1,128 million for the full year grew 3.5% organically. This was set against a record fiscal '22 that grew over 10% as well as the backdrop of a challenging macro environment. Our base business trends were strong across the majority of our portfolio, fueled by our long-term brand building efforts and solid consumer demand.

全年收入 11.28 億美元，有機增長 3.5%。這是在 22 財年創紀錄的增長超過 10% 以及充滿挑戰的宏觀環境的背景下制定的。在我們長期的品牌建設努力和穩固的消費者需求的推動下，我們大部分產品組合的基本業務趨勢都很強勁。

For the year, our International segment experienced outsized growth as well as the Cough & Cold and GI categories in North America, led by Luden's, Chloraseptic and Dramamine. Many of these categories have declined meaningfully just a few years ago at the start of COVID and the resurgence as well as our strong overall performance over the last few years is a testament to the benefits of the diversity of our portfolio.

今年，我們的國際業務以及北美的咳嗽感冒和胃腸道類別均經歷了大幅增長，其中 Luden's、Chloraseeptic 和茶苯海明領先。就在幾年前新冠疫情爆發之際，其中許多類別的銷量大幅下降，而復蘇以及我們過去幾年強勁的整體表現證明了我們投資組合多元化的好處。

We'll talk about this in further detail later on.

我們稍後會更詳細地討論這一點。

Our strong sales continued to translate to solid profitability. For the year, we generated adjusted EPS of $4.21 and free cash flow of over $220 million. We remain focused on delevering over time and achieved a year-end leverage ratio of 3.3x even after $50 million in share repurchases and significant inventory investments during the year.

我們強勁的銷售繼續轉化為穩健的盈利能力。今年，我們的調整後每股收益為 4.21 美元，自由現金流超過 2.2 億美元。隨著時間的推移，我們仍然專注於去槓桿化，即使在年內進行了 5000 萬美元的股票回購和大量庫存投資後，年末槓桿率仍達到 3.3 倍。

We are set up to continue this long-term leverage reduction in fiscal '24, while retaining flexibility. Chris will discuss this further later on.

我們準備在 24 財年繼續降低杠桿率，同時保持靈活性。克里斯稍後將進一步討論這個問題。

Now let's turn to Slide 6. Our record fiscal '23 performance driven by strong 3.5% organic growth is underpinned by our proven value creation strategy that's shown here. By executing this disciplined strategy over time, it's resulted in a resilient business model that continues to deliver value, not just in fiscal '23, but over the long term.

現在讓我們轉向幻燈片 6。在 3.5% 的強勁有機增長的推動下，我們創紀錄的 23 財年業績得到了此處所示的經過驗證的價值創造戰略的支撐。通過長期執行這一嚴格的戰略，形成了一個有彈性的業務模式，不僅在 23 財年，而且在長期內繼續創造價值。

First, we use our proven marketing strategies to leverage our leading portfolio of brands using consumer insights, we drive efficient marketing, channel development and innovation that are the cornerstones to our success.

首先，我們利用行之有效的營銷策略，利用消費者洞察來利用我們領先的品牌組合，推動高效的營銷、渠道開發和創新，這是我們成功的基石。

Second, the business model we operate leverages our leading financial profile to enable robust free cash flow. And third, the model uses the first 2 points to enable strategic capital allocation optionality that further amplifies shareholder returns. Our ability to use cash flow is both effectively and efficiently through disciplined capital deployment creates value.

其次，我們運營的業務模式利用我們領先的財務狀況來實現強勁的自由現金流。第三，該模型利用前兩點來實現戰略資本配置的選擇性，從而進一步放大股東回報。我們通過嚴格的資本部署有效利用現金流的能力創造了價值。

The result of this execution is clear in our financial performance. We've had a successful multiyear compound annual growth rate over the last 3 years. This includes organic growth above our long-term target of 2% to 3% as well as double-digit earnings growth. The performance is especially noteworthy against the backdrop of COVID-19 variance, supply chain challenges and inflation.

這一執行的結果在我們的財務業績中顯而易見。在過去的三年裡，我們取得了成功的多年復合增長率。這包括高於我們 2% 至 3% 長期目標的有機增長以及兩位數的盈利增長。在 COVID-19 變化、供應鏈挑戰和通貨膨脹的背景下，這一表現尤其值得注意。

By executing these strategic value creation strategies, we continue to position our business for long-term success and value creation.

通過執行這些戰略價值創造戰略，我們繼續將我們的業務定位為長期成功和價值創造。

So with that, let's turn to the next section and review how we've driven this growth in more detail. Slide 8 is a reminder of our distinct portfolio attributes that sets us up for success. The efficient deployment of capital and investments in our brands has both diversified our portfolio into many categories and enable leading market shares for the majority of our brands.

因此，讓我們轉向下一部分，更詳細地回顧一下我們如何推動這種增長。幻燈片 8 提醒我們獨特的投資組合屬性，這些屬性為我們的成功奠定了基礎。對我們品牌的資本和投資的有效部署既使我們的產品組合多元化至多個類別，又使我們的大多數品牌佔據了領先的市場份額。

First, on the left side of the page is the diversity of the portfolio that is further subdivided by consumer elements. With a diverse portfolio of brands across many categories, we are nimble in identifying opportunities for investment. We are also able to better mute the impact of any short-term category changes.

首先，頁面左側是按消費者元素進一步細分的產品組合的多樣性。憑藉跨多個類別的多元化品牌組合，我們能夠靈活地識別投資機會。我們還能夠更好地消除任何短期品類變化的影響。

Second, the right of the page shows many of our leading brands, which are subsegments within these platforms. Our sales most often come from #1 brands and brands with long consumer heritages, which enables us to focus on brand building, using our category leadership and proven brand building tactics. Both of these business attributes are foundational to our success.

其次，頁面右側顯示了我們的許多領先品牌，它們是這些平台內的子細分市場。我們的銷售通常來自排名第一的品牌和具有悠久消費者傳統的品牌，這使我們能夠利用我們的品類領導地位和經過驗證的品牌建設策略專注於品牌建設。這兩個業務屬性都是我們成功的基礎。

Now let's turn to Slide 9. Here, we can see the benefits of category diversity. Over the last 3 years, the disruptive and volatile environment led to a host of factors to navigate, including changes to consumers habits, supply chain and inflationary challenges. With this backdrop, any one category may face short-term challenges and fluctuations, but the power of a diverse portfolio allows us to be positioned for consistent overall long-term growth.

現在讓我們轉向幻燈片 9。在這裡，我們可以看到品類多元化的好處。在過去的三年裡，破壞性和動蕩的環境導致了許多需要應對的因素，包括消費者習慣的變化、供應鍊和通脹挑戰。在這種背景下，任何一個類別都可能面臨短期挑戰和波動，但多元化投資組合的力量使我們能夠實現持續的整體長期增長。

For example, the Summer's Eve on-the-go format of products were impacted over the last few years as consumer habits shifted at the start of COVID-19. Although this doesn't change our ability to grow the brand and category long term and we anticipate growth again in fiscal '24, it was a factor in our women's health performance over the last 3 years.

例如，隨著新冠肺炎 (COVID-19) 疫情爆發之初消費者習慣的轉變，過去幾年中夏季前夕的移動產品形式受到了影響。儘管這不會改變我們長期發展品牌和類別的能力，並且我們預計在 24 財年再次增長，但這是過去 3 年我們女性健康表現的一個因素。

Our diversity offsets these pressures. The 3 categories shown on the page, Eye & Ear Care, Skin Care and GI are embodiments of this as key contributors to growth over the last 3 years. In Eye & Ear Care, we've had success using a wide variety of tactics across Clear Eyes and TheraTears. The launch of Clear Eyes sensitive leveraged consumer insights, which captured incremental consumers who believe they have sensitive eyes.

我們的多樣性抵消了這些壓力。頁面上顯示的 3 個類別（眼耳護理、皮膚護理和胃腸道）體現了過去 3 年增長的關鍵貢獻因素。在眼耳護理領域，我們通過 Clear Eyes 和 TheraTears 等多種策略取得了成功。 Clear Eyessensitive 的推出充分利用了消費者洞察，吸引了相信自己眼睛敏感的增量消費者。

In Skin Care, gains have been fueled by our CompoundW brand, which continues to expand its #1 share with consumers by offering a broad product assortment that appeals to a range of people who suffer from warts. Marketing efforts have emphasized this in ad placements across digital and other formats.

在皮膚護理領域，我們的CompoundW品牌推動了增長，該品牌通過提供廣泛的產品種類來吸引一系列疣患者，繼續擴大其在消費者中的第一份額。營銷工作在數字和其他格式的廣告投放中強調了這一點。

Lastly, in GI, we've experienced solid growth in both our Dramamine and Hydralyte franchises. For Dramamine, we've successfully leveraged the brand's heritage and motion sickness and to nausea, where we are now the #1 brand in the category. For Hydralyte, we continued to chip away at the brand's long-term opportunity, expanding with consumers across their hydration needs for everyday health in areas such as travel, sports and exercise.

最後，在胃腸道方面，我們的茶苯海明和 Hydralyte 特許經營業務都經歷了穩健的增長。對於茶苯海明，我們成功地利用了該品牌的傳統和暈動病和噁心，我們現在是該類別中的第一品牌。對於 Hydralyte，我們繼續挖掘該品牌的長期機會，與消費者一起擴展他們在旅行、運動和鍛煉等領域日常健康的補水需求。

In summary, the benefits of category diversity are clear. By opportunistically investing in growth in each of these categories, we've helped fuel solid organic growth over the last 3 years for the total company.

總而言之，品類多元化的好處是顯而易見的。通過對每個類別的增長進行機會性投資，我們在過去三年中幫助推動了整個公司的穩健有機增長。

Now let's turn to Slide 10 for a reminder of our brand building tactics. Our numerous brand-building strategies shown here on the page, focus around driving long-term category growth. Each are executed based on opportunities identified from consumer insights that are specific to each brand. We continue to operate with leading, established brands that are well positioned to leverage these tactics for long-term growth.

現在讓我們轉向幻燈片 10，以提醒我們的品牌建設策略。我們在頁面上顯示的眾多品牌建設策略都專注於推動長期品類增長。每一項都是根據每個品牌特定的消費者洞察中確定的機會來執行的。我們繼續與領先的知名品牌合作，這些品牌能夠充分利用這些策略實現長期增長。

The end goal is long-term success across channels and growth of the categories to which we are stewards. To start, we leverage learnings from consumer insights to identify where opportunities are and providing consumer solutions that solve identified issues.

最終目標是跨渠道取得長期成功以及我們所負責的品類的增長。首先，我們利用從消費者洞察中獲得的知識來確定機會所在，並提供解決已識別問題的消費者解決方案。

Next, we remain agile marketers, investing in timely messaging to raise awareness of product efficacy and brand knowledge around the proven consumer solutions we offer. We also operate with a multiyear new product development pipeline to ensure we continue to match the needs of consumers.

接下來，我們保持敏捷的營銷人員，投資於及時的消息傳遞，以提高人們對我們提供的經過驗證的消費者解決方案的產品功效和品牌知識的認識。我們還擁有多年的新產品開發渠道，以確保我們繼續滿足消費者的需求。

And last, we use the ability to align our investments and product offerings with channels that are important to consumers, including fast-growing channels like e-commerce. This broad distribution strategy helps underpin the marketing tactics just discussed.

最後，我們利用能力將我們的投資和產品供應與對消費者重要的渠道（包括電子商務等快速增長的渠道）結合起來。這種廣泛的分銷策略有助於鞏固剛才討論的營銷策略。

In summary, each of these key marketing strategies play a valuable role in our success. They reinforce our long-term organic growth objective of 2% to 3% annually, which we continue to feel good about delivering.

總之，每一項關鍵營銷策略都對我們的成功發揮著寶貴的作用。它們強化了我們每年 2% 至 3% 的長期有機增長目標，我們繼續對實現這一目標感到滿意。

With that, I'll turn it over to Chris for a review of financials and an update on capital deployment.

這樣，我會將其交給克里斯進行財務審查和資本部署的最新情況。

Thanks, Ron. Good morning, everyone. I'll start by reviewing our fourth quarter and fiscal '23 financial results, then talk about our business attributes and resulting cash flow that have driven rapid deleveraging and capital allocation optionality.

謝謝，羅恩。大家，早安。我將首先回顧我們第四季度和 23 財年的財務業績，然後討論我們的業務屬性以及由此產生的現金流，這些現金流推動了快速去槓桿化和資本配置的選擇性。

As a reminder, the information in today's presentation includes certain non-GAAP information that is reconciled to the closest GAAP measure in our earnings release.

提醒一下，今天演示文稿中的信息包括某些非 GAAP 信息，這些信息已與我們收益發布中最接近的 GAAP 衡量標准進行了調整。

Let's turn to Slide 13 to begin with fourth quarter results. Q4 fiscal '23 revenue of $285.9 million increased 7.1% and 8% on an organic basis versus the prior year. The growth was approximately split between International and North American segments.

讓我們轉向幻燈片 13，從第四季度的業績開始。 23 財年第四季度收入為 2.859 億美元，與上年相比有機增長 7.1% 和 8%。增長大致分為國際市場和北美市場。

North America revenues were up 4%. The largest growth category in dollar terms was Skin Care, where we experienced growth across brands, including CompoundW, Boudreaux's Butt Paste and Nix.

北美收入增長 4%。以美元計算增長最大的類別是護膚品，其中我們經歷了多個品牌的增長，包括CompoundW、Boudreaux's Butt Paste 和Nix。

The International segment increased approximately 33% in Q4 after excluding the effects of foreign currency. This capped an impressive year with the segment growing over 30% on a full year basis. The record performance benefited from favorable consumer trends in many of our categories previously impacted by COVID-19 and continued strong sales for the Hydralyte brand. Despite difficult comparisons, we anticipate further growth for the International segment in fiscal '24.

排除外匯影響後，第四季度國際業務增長約 33%。這為令人印象深刻的一年畫上了圓滿的句號，該細分市場全年增長超過 30%。創紀錄的業績得益於之前受 COVID-19 影響的許多類別的有利消費趨勢以及 Hydralyte 品牌的持續強勁銷售。儘管比較困難，但我們預計 24 財年國際業務將進一步增長。

Adjusted EBITDA increased approximately 14% in Q4 and EBITDA margins remained consistent in the mid-30s. Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the quarter was $1.07, up 18% versus the prior year with higher sales being the largest driver.

第四季度調整後 EBITDA 增長約 14%，EBITDA 利潤率在 30 多歲左右保持穩定。本季度調整後攤薄每股收益為 1.07 美元，較上年增長 18%，銷售額增長是最大推動力。

Let's turn to Slide 13 for more detail around consolidated results for the full year. Record revenues of $1.13 billion for the full year fiscal '23 increased 3.8% versus the prior year and 3.5% on an organic basis. Our broad and diverse portfolio enabled this result with strong revenue growth in Cough & Cold, GI and our International segment more than offsetting a dynamic supply chain landscape.

讓我們轉向幻燈片 13，了解有關全年綜合業績的更多詳細信息。 23 財年全年收入創紀錄地達到 11.3 億美元，較上年增長 3.8%，有機增長 3.5%。我們廣泛而多樣化的產品組合實現了這一成果，咳嗽和感冒、胃腸道和國際業務部門的強勁收入增長足以抵消動態的供應鍊格局。

By channel, we continued to experience solid consumption growth in e-commerce. Total company gross margin of 55.4% for fiscal '23 compared to last year's adjusted gross margin of 57.3%, with the change attributable to cost increases, partially offset by pricing actions across our portfolio, which offset the dollar amount of inflationary cost headwinds.

從渠道來看，電商消費繼續保持穩健增長。 23 財年公司總毛利率為 55.4%，而去年調整後的毛利率為 57.3%，這一變化歸因於成本增加，部分被我們投資組合的定價行動所抵消，從而抵消了通貨膨脹成本逆風的美元金額。

For fiscal '24, we anticipate a similar focus to fiscal '23, where we have and will continue to institute pricing actions and cost-saving measures across our portfolio to offset the dollar amount of inflationary headwinds. In aggregate, we anticipate gross margin flat to up slightly versus fiscal '23 with Q1 estimated to be approximately 55%.

對於 24 財年，我們預計與 23 財年的重點類似，我們已經並將繼續在我們的投資組合中採取定價行動和成本節約措施，以抵消通脹阻力的美元金額。總體而言，我們預計與 23 財年相比，第一季度的毛利率將持平或略有上升，預計約為 55%。

Advertising and marketing came in at approximately 13% as a percent of revenue for the fiscal year as expected, owing primarily to the timing of initiatives and reduced spending around certain categories due to strong consumer demand.

廣告和營銷佔本財年收入的比例約為 13%，符合預期，這主要是由於消費者需求強勁而採取的舉措的時機以及某些類別的支出減少。

For fiscal '24, we'd anticipate an A&M rate of just over 13% of sales and up in dollars versus the prior year. G&A expenses were 9.5% of sales in fiscal '23. For fiscal '24, we anticipate G&A to decline slightly in dollars versus the prior year.

對於 24 財年，我們預計 A&M 佔銷售額的比例將略高於 13%，以美元計算，與上一年相比有所上升。 23 財年，一般管理費用佔銷售額的 9.5%。對於 24 財年，我們預計以美元計算的一般行政費用將比上一年略有下降。

Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the full year of $4.21 grew about 4% versus the prior year. Sales growth and disciplined cost-saving efforts helped offset the impact of cost increases and rising interest rates. Below the line for fiscal '24, we'd anticipate a normalized tax rate of approximately 24%, and interest expense of $67 million, including $18 million of interest in Q1.

全年調整後攤薄每股收益為 4.21 美元，較上年增長約 4%。銷售增長和嚴格的成本節約努力有助於抵消成本增加和利率上升的影響。在 24 財年的線以下，我們預計標準化稅率約為 24%，利息支出為 6700 萬美元，其中包括第一季度的 1800 萬美元利息。

Although the magnitude of increases in variable interest rate targets have begun to stabilize, we will continue to face higher year-over-year rates through the first half of our fiscal year before beginning to see the effects of a more stable rate environment as well as lower variable interest rate exposure from our ongoing debt reduction effort.

儘管可變利率目標的增長幅度已開始穩定，但我們將在本財年上半年繼續面臨同比利率上升的問題，然後才能開始看到更穩定的利率環境以及我們持續的債務削減努力所帶來的較低可變利率風險的影響。

Last, adjusted results on this page exclude the impact of $281 million net of tax, non-cash, goodwill and intangible impairments primarily related to the company's Summer's Eve, DenTek and TheraTears brand names. The charge resulted from our annual valuation assessment, which was affected by a significantly higher discount rate applied to future cash flows versus the prior year.

最後，本頁調整後的結果不包括 2.81 億美元的影響，扣除主要與公司 Summer's Eve、DenTek 和 TheraTears 品牌相關的稅收、非現金、商譽和無形減值。該費用是由我們的年度估值評估產生的，該評估受到未來現金流量與上一年相比明顯較高的貼現率的影響。

As a reminder, accounting rules do not write up to the value of brands that have a fair value that exceeds book value. Most importantly, please note these adjustments have no impact on our long-term outlook for the company as a whole.

提醒一下，會計規則不會計算公允價值超過賬面價值的品牌價值。最重要的是，請注意這些調整對我們整個公司的長期前景沒有影響。

Now let's turn to Slide 14 to discuss cash flow. For the full year fiscal '23, we generated $222 million in free cash flow as expected. As previously discussed, we strategically invested behind inventory in light of the current supply chain environment, finding opportunities to increase inventory to better support targeted service levels.

現在讓我們轉向幻燈片 14 來討論現金流。 23 財年全年，我們按預期創造了 2.22 億美元的自由現金流。如前所述，我們根據當前的供應鏈環境對庫存進行了戰略性投資，尋找增加庫存的機會，以更好地支持目標服務水平。

Our stable EBITDA margins and strong cash flow enabled us to invest behind our brands, while continuing to reduce leverage for the year and complete a $50 million share repurchase effort. We finished fiscal '23 at 3.3x leverage with approximately 75% of our debt fixed and no maturities until 2028.

我們穩定的 EBITDA 利潤率和強勁的現金流使我們能夠投資於我們的品牌，同時繼續降低今年的槓桿率並完成 5000 萬美元的股票回購工作。我們以 3.3 倍的槓桿率結束了 23 財年，大約 75% 的債務是固定的，直到 2028 年才到期。

For fiscal '24, we anticipate a more normalized free cash flow profile of at least $240 million in free cash flow and anticipate achieving around 2.7x leverage. As shown on the right side of the page, this cash generation is underpinned by our leading attributes that enable our financial profile. Our business model, where the vast majority of revenue is externally manufactured, results in low capital expenditures of 1% to 2% of sales annually. We are anticipating CapEx of approximately 1% of sales in fiscal '24.

對於 24 財年，我們預計自由現金流狀況將更加正常化，至少為 2.4 億美元，並預計實現約 2.7 倍的槓桿率。如頁面右側所示，這種現金生成是由我們的領先屬性支撐的，這些屬性使我們的財務狀況得以實現。我們的業務模式絕大多數收入來自外部製造，因此資本支出較低，每年僅佔銷售額的 1% 至 2%。我們預計 24 財年的資本支出約為銷售額的 1%。

Our products have strong margins driven by the characteristics of the categories we participate in, their importance to consumer self-care and the highly regulated nature of OTC that creates high barriers to entry. We have meaningful tax benefit from past acquisitions that result in a cash tax rate in the high teens. And we also remain focused on profitability with continuous cost saving efforts that help us maintain our strong mid-30s EBITDA margin profile.

我們的產品具有很高的利潤率，這得益於我們參與的類別的特點、它們對消費者自我保健的重要性以及非處方藥的嚴格監管性質，這造成了很高的進入壁壘。我們從過去的收購中獲得了可觀的稅收優惠，導致現金稅率高達十幾歲。我們還繼續關注盈利能力，不斷努力節約成本，幫助我們保持 30 多歲中期強勁的 EBITDA 利潤率。

The result of this model is clear. We generate best-in-class and sustainable free cash flow. And our free cash flow conversion remains strong. This attractive profile gives us the ability to continue to deploy capital in multiple ways, as shown on Page 15.

這個模型的結果是顯而易見的。我們產生一流且可持續的自由現金流。我們的自由現金流轉換仍然強勁。這種有吸引力的概況使我們能夠繼續以多種方式部署資本，如第 15 頁所示。

As Ron highlighted earlier, efficient and disciplined capital allocation is a critical third pillar to our business strategy, balancing the use of our cash generation against various priorities of investing in our brands, deleveraging, M&A and share repurchases.

正如羅恩之前強調的那樣，高效和嚴格的資本配置是我們業務戰略的第三個關鍵支柱，平衡現金生成的使用與品牌投資、去槓桿化、併購和股票回購的各種優先事項。

Thanks to our leading cash flow profile and successful long-term business growth. We now anticipate to operate at long-term leverage of less than 3x. We have confidence in our ability to achieve this lower leverage objective, while still investing behind strategic uses of capital that are shown on the page. Although these uses of capital such as strategic M&A opportunities may cause us to temporarily operate above this threshold objective, we anticipate our strong cash flows to bring us back to target levels rapidly.

得益於我們領先的現金流狀況和成功的長期業務增長。我們現在預計長期槓桿率將低於 3 倍。我們對實現這一較低杠桿目標的能力充滿信心，同時仍然投資於頁面上顯示的資本的戰略用途。儘管戰略併購機會等資本用途可能會導致我們暫時高於這一閾值目標，但我們預計強勁的現金流將使我們迅速回到目標水平。

As a result, we continue to expect disciplined M&A and other cash uses to remain an important part of our strategy to adding shareholder value while remaining cognizant of this revised leverage target.

因此，我們仍然預計，嚴格的併購和其他現金使用仍將是我們增加股東價值戰略的重要組成部分，同時仍然認識到這一修訂後的槓桿目標。

With that, I'll turn it back to Ron.

這樣，我會把它轉回給羅恩。

Thanks, Chris. As we move forward into our next fiscal year, we are confident in our business attributes that leave us well positioned for future growth. It's a proven business model that delivered value creation throughout disruptive environment, thanks to a variety of attributes.

謝謝，克里斯。隨著我們進入下一個財年，我們對我們的業務屬性充滿信心，這使我們為未來的增長做好了準備。這是一種經過驗證的商業模式，憑藉多種屬性，可以在整個顛覆性環境中創造價值。

Our brands are trusted and diverse, which gives us the ability to limit the impact from any individual category slowdowns. This diversity stretches beyond just brands but into diversity of channels, geographies and suppliers, each of which benefits our business in periods of uncertainty and volatility. This enables us to leverage our proven brand-building strategy, opportunistically that grows categories and as a byproduct, are brands.

我們的品牌值得信賴且多元化，這使我們能夠限制任何單個類別放緩的影響。這種多樣性不僅僅體現在品牌上，還體現在渠道、地域和供應商的多樣性上，每一個因素在不確定和波動時期都有利於我們的業務。這使我們能夠利用我們行之有效的品牌建設戰略，機會主義地發展品類，並作為副產品，成為品牌。

Our superior financial profile has generated consistent and increasing cash flows over the long term. And finally, the model continues to be scalable. We have the right resources to continue our disciplined capital deployment playbook, while reinforcing investments in our existing business.

我們卓越的財務狀況產生了長期穩定且不斷增長的現金流。最後，該模型繼續具有可擴展性。我們擁有適當的資源來繼續我們嚴格的資本部署策略，同時加強對現有業務的投資。

Now let's flip to the next slide to discuss our fiscal '24 financial outlook. For fiscal '24, building off a very strong prior year, we anticipate revenues of $1,135 million to $1,140 billion and organic revenue growth of approximately 1% to 2% versus fiscal '23 or organic revenue growth of 2% to 3% after excluding the planned strategic exit of non-core private label business that we have historically operated as a service for certain retailers.

現在讓我們翻到下一張幻燈片來討論我們 24 財年的財務前景。在上一年非常強勁的基礎上，我們預計 24 財年的收入將達到 11.35 億美元至 11,400 億美元，與 23 財年相比，有機收入增長約 1% 至 2%，或者在排除我們歷史上為某些零售商提供服務的非核心自有品牌業務的計劃戰略退出後，有機收入增長 2% 至 3%。

Q1 revenues are anticipated to be approximately $278 million, up slightly from the prior year. We anticipate EPS of $4.27 to $4.32 for fiscal '24. Regarding EPS, our outlook for fiscal '24 reflects the continued temporary impact of higher interest rates that accounts for an over 2 percentage point headwind to earnings.

第一季度收入預計約為 2.78 億美元，較上年略有增長。我們預計 24 財年每股收益為 4.27 美元至 4.32 美元。關於每股收益，我們對 24 財年的展望反映了利率上升的持續暫時影響，這對盈利造成了超過 2 個百分點的阻力。

Thanks to our disciplined P&L management, this is more than offset by efficient brand building and cost management efforts, leading to our outlook for earnings growth at a faster rate than sales growth. For Q1, we expect EPS of approximately $1.01.

由於我們嚴格的損益管理，有效的品牌建設和成本管理工作足以抵消這一影響，導致我們的盈利增長前景比銷售增長更快。我們預計第一季度每股收益約為 1.01 美元。

Lastly, we expect solid free cash flows of $240 million or more in fiscal '24. This will enable the mindful approach to capital deployment optionality Chris discussed. We've announced a $25 million share buyback plan today and plan to reduce leverage to below 3x during the fiscal year while continuing to invest in our brands to ensure long-term success. Our company has a track record of value creation and these anticipated uses of cash will help reinforce that.

最後，我們預計 24 財年的穩定自由現金流將達到 2.4 億美元或更多。這將使克里斯討論的資本部署選擇性成為可能。我們今天宣布了 2500 萬美元的股票回購計劃，併計劃在本財年將槓桿率降至 3 倍以下，同時繼續投資於我們的品牌，以確保長期成功。我們公司擁有創造價值的記錄，這些預期的現金用途將有助於強化這一點。

With that, we'll now open the lines up for questions. Operator?

至此，我們現在開始提問。操作員？

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from Susan Anderson of Canaccord Genuity.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自 Canaccord Genuity 的 Susan Anderson。

A nice job on the quarter. I was wondering if maybe you could talk -- give a little bit of color on the gross margin, the puts and takes there for the fourth quarter and then how we should think about it for this year and then also any cadences throughout the different quarters?

本季度的工作做得很好。我想知道您是否可以談談——對第四季度的毛利率、看跌期權和看跌期權進行一些說明，然後我們應該如何考慮今年的情況，然後還有不同季度的節奏？

Susan, this is Chris. So for Q4, as anticipated, inflationary pressures and distribution costs were just over 150 basis point headwind year-over-year for us. But our pricing and cost-saving efforts offset the dollar impact of that dollar-for-dollar. So impacted the margin, obviously, but the dollar impact was negligible. And then we had a little bit of unfavorable mix in the quarter.

蘇珊，這是克里斯。因此，正如預期的那樣，第四季度的通脹壓力和分銷成本同比略高於 150 個基點。但我們的定價和成本節約努力抵消了美元對美元的影響。顯然，這對利潤率產生了影響，但美元的影響可以忽略不計。然後我們在本季度遇到了一些不利的情況。

And we guided Q1 of fiscal '24 to about 55%, guided the year to flat to up slightly. We're calling for some additional inflationary pressures in fiscal '24. But again, we expect cost savings and pricing actions to offset those dollar-for-dollar in fiscal '24 as well. So a little bit of a negative margin impact from that, but additional cost savings enable us to call the margin flat to up slightly. So we expect some sequential gross margin improvement from this 55% in the first quarter.

我們預計 24 財年第一季度的增長率為 55% 左右，全年預測為持平到小幅上升。我們呼籲在 24 財年應對一些額外的通脹壓力。但我們再次預計，成本節約和定價行動也將在 24 財年抵消這些成本。因此，這對利潤率產生了一點負面影響，但額外的成本節省使我們能夠稱利潤率持平或略有上升。因此，我們預計第一季度的毛利率將比第一季度的 55% 有所改善。

As a reminder, we're really laser-focused on managing our EBITDA margin, right? So as we continue to progress on our march towards more normalized gross margins, we would look to invest that back into different levels of A&M and maintain our EBITDA margins in the mid-30s.

提醒一下，我們確實非常專注於管理我們的 EBITDA 利潤，對嗎？因此，隨著我們繼續朝著更加正常化的毛利率邁進，我們希望將其投資回不同級別的 A&M 領域，並將 EBITDA 利潤率維持在 30 多歲左右。

Okay. Great. That's really helpful. And then on the international business, it looks like it even picked up sequentially off of a very strong numbers this year. I'm assuming that's all Hydralyte, I guess. Is that new products or just continued growing demand for the brand in Australia?

好的。偉大的。這真的很有幫助。然後在國際業務方面，今年的數字似乎甚至連續回升。我猜這就是Hydralyte。這是新產品還是澳大利亞對該品牌的需求持續增長？

And then I'm just curious on your thoughts in the U.S., I know you guys don't have rights to the brands here, but is there maybe a potential opportunity here? It seems like the hydrating beverages are kind of picking up steam here in challenging Gatorade. So I just wanted to get your thoughts there.

然後我只是好奇你們在美國的想法，我知道你們在這裡沒有品牌的權利，但是這裡可能有潛在的機會嗎？看起來，補水飲料在挑戰佳得樂的過程中正在加速發展。所以我只是想了解一下你們的想法。

Yes. So first of all, really, we saw growth across the International portfolio, not only the Hydralyte business, the Care business in Australia. But the small business that we have in Europe as well, have all been firing on all cylinders over the last couple of years. So primarily Hydralyte drives the big dollar move, because it's the majority of the sales, but really the international business has been growing well there.

是的。首先，我們確實看到了國際業務組合的增長，不僅是 Hydralyte 業務，還有澳大利亞的護理業務。但我們在歐洲的小企業在過去幾年裡也一直在全力以赴。因此，主要是 Hydralyte 推動了美元的大幅波動，因為它佔了銷售額的大部分，但實際上，國際業務在那裡一直增長良好。

And for '24, we continue to expect strong growth more in line with our long-term outlook in the mid- to high single digits for that International business after a couple of record years. But we continue to feel good about the momentum for that business in total.

對於 24 年，我們繼續預計國際業務在經歷了幾個創紀錄的年份後將實現強勁增長，更符合我們的長期前景，即國際業務將實現中高個位數增長。但我們仍然對該業務的總體勢頭感到滿意。

In terms of the U.S., we've got a lot of other opportunities to focus on across our portfolio. We had the slide in our prepared remarks today that shows the success we've had broadly across the portfolio over the last 3 years. So we're really focused on continuing to support that momentum. So the hydration market in North America really isn't something we've got on the agenda.

就美國而言，我們的投資組合還有很多其他值得關注的機會。我們今天準備好的發言中的幻燈片顯示了過去三年來我們在整個投資組合中取得的廣泛成功。因此，我們真正專注於繼續支持這一勢頭。所以北美的水合市場確實不是我們議程上的事情。

Great. And then just one last one on the women's business. How are you thinking about that for this year? I guess do you expect it to normalize after kind of stabilizing off of those COVID numbers? And I guess, is it still consumers just not returning to the doctor's office? Or do you think they've kind of gotten back to their normal routines now?

偉大的。最後一篇是關於女性事務的。今年你對此有何看法？我猜你預計在這些新冠病毒感染人數穩定下來後，它會恢復正常嗎？我想，這仍然是消費者不回醫生辦公室嗎？或者你認為他們現在已經恢復正常生活了嗎？

Interestingly, as we sit here today and look back over the last 3 years, excluding Cough & Cold, the women's health category is the one that seems to have had the most impacted and impacted the longest during this disruptive period. Not only were shopping habits impacted, but kind of the underlying usage occasions, as we talked about, I think, last quarter as well.

有趣的是，當我們今天坐在這裡回顧過去三年（不包括咳嗽和感冒）時，女性健康類別似乎是在這一顛覆性時期受到影響最大且影響時間最長的類別。不僅購物習慣受到影響，而且潛在的使用場合也受到影響，我想，正如我們在上個季度談到的那樣。

But as we sit here today for fiscal '24, we expect our women's health businesses, both Summer's Eve and Monistat to get back to growth for fiscal '24. And we continue to feel good about their long-term growth opportunity. So despite those 2 franchises being disrupted over the last couple of years, we continue to feel good about their leading positions and their opportunities going forward.

但當我們今天坐在這裡慶祝 24 財年時，我們預計我們的女性健康業務（Summer's Eve 和 Monistat）將在 24 財年恢復增長。我們繼續對他們的長期增長機會感到滿意。因此，儘管這兩個特許經營權在過去幾年中受到了乾擾，但我們仍然對他們的領先地位和未來的機會感到滿意。

Great. If I could just maybe follow up really quick. And so, it sounds like CompoundW was strong in the quarter. If you could just remind us, was this the first quarter where you saw that strength also come back?

偉大的。如果我能盡快跟進就好了。因此，CompoundW 在本季度表現強勁。請您提醒我們，這是您看到這種力量回歸的第一季度嗎？

No. CompoundW has been performing pretty well throughout the year. So expanded usage, distribution and such so, really a great year for CompoundW. So it's not really linked to COVID. It performed well throughout the period.

不會。CompoundW 全年表現都非常好。因此，擴大了使用、分發等，對於CompoundW 來說確實是偉大的一年。所以它與新冠病毒並沒有真正的聯繫。整個期間表現良好。

Our next question comes from Mitchell Pinheiro with Sturdivant & Co.

我們的下一個問題來自 Sturdivant & Co 的 Mitchell Pinheiro。

I was curious from an A&M spend on -- and if you said this, I apologize, in the sort of the sequence throughout the year, whether there's any unusual timing? And then second, what you intend to focus the A&M spending on?

我對 A&M 支出感到好奇——如果你這麼說，我很抱歉，按照全年的順序，是否有任何不尋常的時機？其次，您打算將 A&M 支出重點用於哪些方面？

Yes, Mitch, maybe I'll take the first part of that, which is, as you know, our A&M plans are built from the ground up with our marketers and various initiatives. So as we saw in this year, the cadence was shifted -- weighted more towards the first half of the year based on certain new product launches and various marketing initiatives. As we look to fiscal '24, we would expect that to be spread more evenly throughout the year.

是的，米奇，也許我會講第一部分，正如你所知，我們的 A&M 計劃是由我們的營銷人員和各種舉措從頭開始製定的。因此，正如我們今年看到的那樣，節奏發生了變化——基於某些新產品的發布和各種營銷舉措，更多地偏向於上半年。展望 24 財年，我們預計全年的分佈會更加均勻。

Yes. And Mitch, in terms of your questions around where our focus is going to be. It's going to continue to be around our largest brands. So our Power Core brands will continue to get investments above the company average. And then as we have historically, we'll post investments to different Core brands where we have new product launches or other opportunities to support during a given year.

是的。米奇，關於你關於我們的重點將在哪裡的問題。它將繼續圍繞我們最大的品牌。因此，我們的 Power Core 品牌將繼續獲得高於公司平均水平的投資。然後，正如我們歷史上所做的那樣，我們將對不同的核心品牌進行投資，在特定年份中，我們會推出新產品或提供其他支持機會。

Again, another comment, our advertising and marketing spend over the last 3 years has fluctuated a bit and quite a bit from quarter-to-quarter, but we continue to build our plans up from the bottoms up based on our brand opportunities. And like any good CPG company, we talk about always wanting to invest more for the long-term support of our brands, but we feel good about where we've been investing and how we're set up to support growth long term and specifically for fiscal '24.

再說一次，我們過去三年的廣告和營銷支出每個季度都有很大的波動，但我們繼續根據我們的品牌機會自下而上地制定我們的計劃。與任何優秀的 CPG 公司一樣，我們總是希望投資更多資金來長期支持我們的品牌，但我們對自己的投資方向以及如何建立支持長期增長（特別是 24 財年）的方式感到滿意。

And could that end up -- so will there be any -- do you intend to launch any new line extensions in fiscal '24?

最終是否會出現這樣的情況——是否會有任何情況——您是否打算在 24 財年推出任何新的線路延伸？

Yes. We'll have a stream of some new products out in '24, like we do every year. We don't talk about them ahead of them showing up at retail. But again, new product development and an innovation pipeline is an important part of what we do here to make sure we've got a funnel of things coming in. And in this space, it takes time to get things to market. So it's more of the same for us, which is always starting with consumer insights to understand where the opportunities are and then getting them out to market.

是的。與往年一樣，我們將在 24 年推出一系列新產品。在它們出現在零售店之前我們不會談論它們。但同樣，新產品開發和創新渠道是我們在這裡所做的工作的重要組成部分，以確保我們有一個新的產品進入渠道。在這個領域，將產品推向市場需要時間。因此，對於我們來說，情況更是如此，總是從消費者洞察開始，了解機會在哪裡，然後將其推向市場。

And I think CompoundW and Dramamine are 2 great examples of the long-term success of bringing out a steady pipeline of new products. In the last year, it's also been true for Summer's Eve where we've had the SPA launch and then DenTek with New Guards. So if you look at across the portfolio of brands, you see evidence of it happening every year, Mitch.

我認為，CompoundW 和茶苯海明是推出穩定的新產品系列取得長期成功的兩個很好的例子。去年，夏夜也是如此，我們推出了 SPA，然後推出了帶有 New Guards 的 DenTek。因此，如果你縱觀整個品牌組合，你會發現每年都會發生這種情況，米奇。

Okay. And then just one last question on revenue. But do you -- how do we look at the private label exit? Is it sort of evenly -- is it sort of the first 3 quarters and then you lap some of it in the fourth quarter? And then on the foreign currency headwind, I don't know if you said it, but what type of headwind do we expect this year?

好的。最後一個問題是關於收入的。但是我們如何看待自有品牌的退出？是不是有點均勻——是不是前三個季度，然後在第四季度取得了一些成績？然後關於外匯逆風，我不知道你是否說過，但我們預計今年會出現什麼樣的逆風？

Sure. So for the private label business, it will be pretty much even for the whole year, for the most part. Chris, do you want to take the FX comment?

當然。因此，對於自有品牌業務來說，全年大部分時間都將保持平穩。克里斯，你想听聽外匯評論嗎？

Sure. So FX is expected to be a headwind for the year of about $2 million. Our exposure is largely around the Australian and Canadian dollars and the Australian in particular, really swung in fiscal '23. So we're actually going to have some headwinds, unfavorability from FX in the first half and then we expect it to shift to favorability in the back half. But netting out to about $2 million for the year.

當然。因此，外匯預計將成為今年約 200 萬美元的逆風。我們的敞口主要圍繞澳元和加元，尤其是澳元，在 23 財年確實發生了波動。因此，我們實際上會在上半年遇到一些阻力，來自外彙的不利影響，然後我們預計下半年會轉向有利的情況。但全年淨收益約為 200 萬美元。

(Operator Instructions) Our next question comes from Jon Andersen with William Blair.

（操作員說明）我們的下一個問題來自 Jon Andersen 和 William Blair。

Just wondering, it looks like in the fourth quarter, the -- you shift perhaps in North America shift ahead of consumption at least the consumption that we can see through syndicated data. Is that the case? And if so, what were some of the dynamics that kind of caused that? And I was wondering if you could give us your perspective on kind of all channel consumption both for the fourth quarter and the full year?

只是想知道，看起來在第四季度，北美的消費可能會超過消費，至少我們可以通過聯合數據看到消費。是這樣嗎？如果是這樣，導致這種情況的一些動力是什麼？我想知道您是否可以向我們介紹一下您對第四季度和全年全渠道消費的看法？

So for starters, right, those generic consumption reports you get are missing a whole bunch of our fastest-growing segments, particularly International. So if you look at it in total, it might look like it was ahead. But it wasn't too far ahead with the exception that the inventory investments that we made back in the third quarter allowed us to begin to catch up on some of the categories like Cough & Cold, where we had been kind of going hand-to-mouth all year. So there was a little bit of catch-up in some of those categories. But for the most part, it wasn't too far ahead of consumption for the majority of our categories.

因此，對於初學者來說，您獲得的那些通用消費報告缺少我們增長最快的一大堆細分市場，尤其是國際市場。所以如果你從整體上看，它可能看起來是領先的。但並沒有領先太多，除了我們在第三季度進行的庫存投資使我們能夠開始趕上一些類別，例如咳嗽和感冒，我們在這些類別上全年都在勉強糊口。因此，其中一些類別有一些追趕。但在大多數情況下，它並沒有比我們大多數類別的消費領先太多。

That makes sense. And with respect to that point on kind of catch up, because I know you have as others have been trying to catch up in certain categories. Where do you -- broadly speaking, where do you think you sit, retailers sit with respect to having kind of the pipeline and shelf stock that they want or prefer? Is there more catch up to come in fiscal '24? Or are we back to kind of more normal levels?

這就說得通了。關於追趕這一點，因為我知道你們和其他人一樣一直在努力在某些類別上追趕。從廣義上講，您認為零售商在擁有他們想要或喜歡的管道和貨架庫存方面處於什麼位置？ 24 財年還會有更多的追趕嗎？或者我們回到了更正常的水平？

Yes. So for the most part, I think inventory at retail is in good shape. A little bit of catch up in Cough & Cold still to come for us. Again, in particular, we added liquid cost capacity in late Q3, Q4 that helped us catch up a bit, but we're still catching up on the license business. But the other categories for the most part, are in pretty good shape. So as we head into fiscal '24, we don't think that retailer inventory will be much of a headwind or a tailwind in total for the whole year.

是的。因此，在很大程度上，我認為零售庫存狀況良好。我們還需要趕上咳嗽和感冒的一些情況。特別是，我們在第三季度末和第四季度增加了流動成本能力，這幫助我們趕上了一點，但我們仍在趕上許可業務。但其他類別大部分情況都相當不錯。因此，當我們進入 24 財年時，我們認為零售商庫存總體上不會對全年產生太大的不利或有利影響。

Okay. That's helpful. And then I guess, I just wanted to make sure I understand, given the kind of the gross margin trend and the absolute gross margin rate in the fourth quarter. How we kind of get back to 55% or -- excuse me, how we kind of flat to up year-over-year? What's coming that is going to drive a reversal in the trend more towards gross margin expansion going forward? Is it just a matter of more price? Or are there other things, mix or accretive new product innovation? Just trying to get a sense for how you're seeing that.

好的。這很有幫助。然後我想，考慮到第四季度的毛利率趨勢和絕對毛利率，我只是想確保我理解。我們如何回到 55%，或者——請問，我們如何同比持平？未來將會發生什麼，將推動毛利率擴張的趨勢發生逆轉？難道只是價格更高的問題嗎？或者還有其他的東西，混合或增值的新產品創新？只是想了解一下您是如何看待這一點的。

Yes. So for starters, if you look at what we expect sequentially for gross margin, we kind of hit the bottom in Q3 and Q4. And as we get into '24, we expect to lift off of those levels and be fairly static through fiscal '24. And then we expect a multiyear recovery back to the 58%. And it will be some price, but it's really going to be more cost savings and a program where we're focused on improving the margins of the product that we sell through new products at incremental gross margins and other programs over time.

是的。因此，對於初學者來說，如果你看看我們對毛利率的連續預期，我們會在第三季度和第四季度觸底。當我們進入 24 世紀時，我們預計將擺脫這些水平，並在 24 財年保持相當穩定。然後我們預計會在多年後恢復到 58%。這將是一些價格，但它確實會節省更多成本，並且是一個我們專注於提高產品利潤的計劃，我們通過新產品以增量毛利率和其他計劃隨著時間的推移銷售這些產品。

And again, as Chris has mentioned not only this, to say, but on past calls, our focus has been managing the inflationary impact dollar-for-dollar through price increases during the short term, which is how we've been able to manage our consistent EBITDA margins around 34%. And we'll step off of that over time as we recover back to 58%, Jon.

克里斯不僅提到過這一點，而且在過去的電話會議中也提到過，我們的重點一直是通過短期內的價格上漲來管理美元對美元的通脹影響，這就是我們能夠將 EBITDA 利潤率控制在 34% 左右的原因。隨著時間的推移，當我們恢復到 58% 時，我們就會擺脫這個問題，喬恩。

Okay. And last one, you mentioned looking forward operating over time, operating the business with a lower leverage ratio than you have historically, sub-3, I think you said -- does that mean you're going to be less likely or aggressive on the M&A front? Or how are you kind of thinking about changes to capital allocation than more broadly?

好的。最後一個，您提到隨著時間的推移，期待以低於歷史水平的槓桿率（低於 3）經營業務，我想您說過——這是否意味著您在併購方面的可能性或積極性會降低？或者您如何看待更廣泛的資本配置變化？

Yes. The new leverage target of operating at 3x or less over the long term really doesn't have any impact or change to the capital allocation. Either priorities or thoughts that we have about the business. You've, Jon, you've heard us say many times in the past, our job is to figure out how to get things done the right way so that the investors appreciate it. And it continues to position the business for long-term value creation.

是的。從長期來看，新的槓桿目標在 3 倍或更低，實際上不會對資本配置產生任何影響或變化。我們對業務的優先事項或想法。喬恩，您過去曾多次聽我們說過，我們的工作是找出如何以正確的方式完成工作，以便投資者欣賞。它繼續將業務定位於創造長期價值。

So talking about operating at less than 3x over the long term, doesn't put a ceiling or limit the way we think about investing for the long term. So as opportunities come up for M&A, we'll continue to evaluate them. And if they make sense, just like we have over the long term, we'll figure out how to get them done the right way. So this new less than 3x doesn't really change the way we think about running the business, and it doesn't put any limitations on what we want to do for the business.

因此，談論長期經營率低於 3 倍，並不會設定上限或限制我們考慮長期投資的方式。因此，當併購機會出現時，我們將繼續對其進行評估。如果它們有意義，就像我們從長遠來看一樣，我們將找出如何以正確的方式完成它們。因此，這個低於 3 倍的新數據並沒有真正改變我們經營業務的方式，也沒有對我們想要為業務做的事情設置任何限制。

I would now like to turn it back to Ron Lombardi for closing remarks.

現在我想請羅恩·隆巴迪 (Ron Lombardi) 發表結束語。

Thank you, operator, and thanks to everybody joining us on what I think is a busy earnings morning, and we look forward to updating you all on our continued progress at the end of the first quarter. So thanks for joining us, and have a good day.

謝謝運營商，也感謝大家在我認為繁忙的收益早晨加入我們，我們期待著在第一季度末向大家通報我們的持續進展情況。感謝您加入我們，祝您有美好的一天。

Thank you for your participation in today's conference. This does conclude the program. You may now disconnect.

感謝您參加今天的會議。這確實結束了該程序。您現在可以斷開連接。