PJT Partners Inc (PJT) 2025 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good day, everyone and welcome to today's PJT Partners' second quarter 2025 earnings call. Today's conference is being recorded. At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Ms. Sharon Pearson, Head of Investor Relations. Ms. Pearson, please go ahead, ma'am.

大家好，歡迎參加今天的 PJT Partners 2025 年第二季財報電話會議。今天的會議正在錄製中。現在，我想將會議交給投資者關係主管 Sharon Pearson 女士。皮爾森女士，請繼續，女士。

Thank you very much. Good morning and welcome to the PJT Partners' second quarter and six months 2025 earnings conference call. I'm Sharon Pearson, Head of Investor Relations at PJT Partners, and joining me today is Paul Taubman, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and Helen Meates, our Chief Financial Officer.

非常感謝。早安，歡迎參加 PJT Partners 2025 年第二季和六個月收益電話會議。我是 PJT Partners 投資者關係主管 Sharon Pearson，今天與我一起出席的還有我們的董事長兼執行長 Paul Taubman 和我們的財務長 Helen Meates。

Before I turn the call over to Paul, I want to point out that during the course of this conference call, we may make a number of forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, and there are important factors that could cause actual outcomes to differ materially from those indicated in these statements.

在我將電話轉給保羅之前，我想指出，在這次電話會議期間，我們可能會做出一些前瞻性的陳述。這些前瞻性陳述受到各種風險和不確定性的影響，並且存在可能導致實際結果與這些陳述中所示的結果有重大差異的重要因素。

We believe that these factors are described in the risk factors section contained in PJT Partners' 2024 Form 10-K, which is available on our website at pjtpartners.com.

我們認為，這些因素在 PJT Partners 2024 年 10-K 表格中的風險因素部分有所描述，該表格可在我們的網站 pjtpartners.com 上查閱。

I want to remind you that the company assumes no duty to update any forward-looking statements, and the presentation we make today contains non-GAAP financial measures which we believe are meaningful in evaluating the company's performance. For detailed disclosures on these non-GAAP metrics and their GAAP reconciliations, you should refer to the financial data contained within the press release we issued this morning, also available on our website.

我想提醒您，本公司不承擔更新任何前瞻性陳述的義務，我們今天所做的陳述包含非公認會計準則財務指標，我們認為這些指標對於評估公司績效有意義。有關這些非 GAAP 指標及其 GAAP 對帳的詳細揭露，您應該參考我們今天早上發布的新聞稿中包含的財務數據，該新聞稿也可在我們的網站上找到。

And with that, I'll turn the call over to Paul.

說完這些，我會把電話轉給保羅。

Good morning. Thank you for joining us today. This is a day that puts things like earnings calls in perspective. It's a sad and challenging day as we mourn the loss of life from yesterday's senseless act of violence in midtown Manhattan, just steps from our office. We grieve for those who lost their lives, pray for healing for those injured, and offer comfort to the families, friends, and colleagues of those impacted. And we express gratitude to our first responders, who work tirelessly to keep us all safe.

早安.感謝您今天加入我們。這一天讓我們從正確的角度看待諸如收益電話會議之類的事情。這是悲傷而又充滿挑戰的一天，我們哀悼昨天在距離我們辦公室僅幾步之遙的曼哈頓中城發生的毫無意義的暴力事件中造成的生命損失。我們為那些失去生命的人們感到悲痛，為那些受傷的人祈禱，並向那些受影響的人的家人、朋友和同事提供安慰。我們向第一響應者表示感謝，他們不知疲倦地工作以確保我們所有人的安全。

And now we'll turn to our earnings. This morning, we reported record setting results as revenues, adjusted pre-tax income, and adjusted EPS all set record highs for both the three- and six month periods. Second quarter revenues were $407 million, up 13%, adjusted pre-tax income was $80 million, up 22% and adjusted EPS was $1.54, up 29% from year ago levels.

現在我們來談談我們的收益。今天上午，我們報告了創紀錄的業績，收入、調整後稅前收入和調整後每股收益均創下了三個月和六個月的歷史新高。第二季營收為 4.07 億美元，年增 13%；調整後稅前收入為 8,000 萬美元，年增 22%；調整後每股收益為 1.54 美元，年增 29%。

For the six months, revenues increased 6%, adjusted pre-tax income increased 13%, and adjusted EPS increased 19% from year ago levels. Since our last earnings report, the market backdrop has improved appreciably. Equity valuations have come up, market volatility has come down, business confidence is rebounded, capital is more readily available.

六個月內，營收成長 6%，調整後稅前收入成長 13%，調整後每股盈餘較去年同期成長 19%。自從我們發布上一份收益報告以來，市場環境已明顯改善。股票估值上升，市場波動性下降，商業信心回升，資本更容易取得。

Last quarter's tariff uncertainty sparked concerns about the potential for such dislocations to chill investment, trigger an economic slowdown, and fan inflationary pressures. Today, market concerns regarding these risks are much diminished. Throughout all this tumult, we continue to invest for the long term.

上個季度的關稅不確定性引發了人們對此類混亂可能抑制投資、引發經濟放緩和加劇通膨壓力的擔憂。如今，市場對這些風險的擔憂已大大減弱。在所有這些動盪之中，我們仍繼續進行長期投資。

Our firm's commitment to investing is unshakable through bull and bear markets alike. Our North Star remains building the best advisory firm, period. One built on excellence, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to client service. Nearly, 10 years into this journey, we are ever closer to that goal.

無論在牛市或熊市，我們公司對投資的承諾都是堅定不移的。我們的北極星仍然是打造最好的顧問公司，僅此而已。建立在卓越、誠信和對客戶服務的堅定承諾之上。經過近十年的旅程，我們離這個目標越來越近了。

After Helen takes you through our financial results, I will review our business performance and outlook in greater detail. Helen?

在海倫向您介紹我們的財務結果之後，我將更詳細地回顧我們的業務表現和前景。海倫？

Thank you, Paul. Good morning. Beginning with revenues, total revenues for the second quarter were $407 million, up 13% year-over-year for the six months ended June 30, total revenues were $731 million, up 6% year-over-year. Revenue growth for the second quarter and first half was primarily driven by strategic advisory, which was up meaningfully for both periods.

謝謝你，保羅。早安.從營收開始，第二季總營收為 4.07 億美元，年增 13%；截至 6 月 30 日的六個月，總營收為 7.31 億美元，年增 6%。第二季和上半年的營收成長主要得益於策略諮詢業務，這兩個時期的營收均有顯著成長。

Restructuring revenues rose modestly in the second quarter and were up slightly for the first half, while PJT Park Hill revenues decreased year-over-year for both periods. Turning to expenses. Consistent with prior quarters, we've presented the expenses with certain non-GAAP adjustments, which are more fully described in our 8-K.

重組收入在第二季小幅上漲，上半年也略有上漲，而 PJT Park Hill 營收在兩個時期均較去年同期下降。談到費用。與前幾季一致，我們在費用中列出了某些非 GAAP 調整，這些調整在我們的 8-K 中有更詳細的描述。

First, adjusted compensation expense. We accrued compensation expense at 67.5% of revenues for the first half of the year compared to 69.5% for the first half of 2024. This ratio represents our current best estimate for the full year 2025.

一是調整薪資費用。我們提列的薪資費用佔今年上半年收入的 67.5%，而 2024 年上半年為 69.5%。這一比率代表了我們目前對 2025 年全年的最佳估計。

Turning to adjusted non-compensation expense. Total adjusted non-compensation expense was $52 million in the second quarter, up 18% year-over-year, and a $101 million for the first half, up 13.5% year-over-year. As a percentage of revenues, 12.8% in the second quarter and 13.9% in the first half. The main drivers of the expense increase for the first half of the year were higher occupancy costs and higher travel and related expenses. Overall, for the full year, we continue to expect that our non-comp expense will grow at a rate similar to our 2024 growth rate of 12%.

轉向調整後的非補償費用。第二季調整後非薪資支出總額為 5,200 萬美元，年增 18%；上半年調整後非薪資支出總額為 1.01 億美元，年增 13.5%。佔營收百分比，第二季為12.8%，上半年為13.9%。上半年費用增加的主要原因是入住成本和差旅及相關費用的增加。整體而言，我們預計全年非經營性支出的成長速度將與 2024 年 12% 的成長率相似。

We reported adjusted pre-tax income of $80 million in the second quarter and $136 million for the first six months. Our adjusted pre-tax margin for the second quarter was 19.7% compared to 18.2% for the same period last year and 18.6% for the first six months compared to 17.5% for the same period last year.

我們報告第二季調整後的稅前收入為 8,000 萬美元，上半年調整後的稅前收入為 1.36 億美元。我們第二季的調整後稅前利潤率為 19.7%，去年同期為 18.2%；上半年的調整後稅前利潤率為 18.6%，而去年同期為 17.5%。

Provision for taxes. As with prior quarters, we have presented our results as if all partnership units had been converted to shares and that all of our income was taxed at a corporate tax rate. Our effective tax rate for the first half of 2025 was 16.5%, and this is our current estimate for the full year.

稅務準備金。與前幾季一樣，我們呈現的業績就好像所有合夥單位都已轉換為股票，並且我們的所有收入都按公司稅率徵稅。我們 2025 年上半年的有效稅率為 16.5%，這是我們目前對全年的估計。

Our adjusted if-converted earnings were $1.54 per share for the second quarter, up 29% and $2.59 per share for the first six months, up 19% from the same period last year. For the quarter, our weighted average share count was $43.4 million shares, up 1% versus a year ago.

我們第二季的調整後每股收益為 1.54 美元，年增 29%，前六個月的調整後每股收益為 2.59 美元，年增 19%。本季度，我們的加權平均股數為 4,340 萬股，比去年同期成長 1%。

During the second quarter, we repurchased the equivalent of approximately 642,000 shares, primarily through open market repurchases. Our repurchases in the first six months of the year totaled approximately 2.1 million shares. On the balance sheet, we ended the quarter with $318 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, and $461 million in networking capital, and we had no funded debt outstanding. Finally, the Board has approved a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share.

第二季度，我們回購了約 642,000 股股票，主要透過公開市場回購。我們今年前六個月的回購總額約 210 萬股。在資產負債表上，我們在本季末擁有 3.18 億美元的現金、現金等價物和短期投資，以及 4.61 億美元的網路資本，且我們沒有未償還的債務。最後，董事會批准每股 0.25 美元的季度股息。

I'll now turn it back to Paul.

現在我將話題轉回給保羅。

Thank you, Helen. Beginning with Restructuring, we continue to experience elevated levels of liability management activity. As an expanding quantum of outstanding debt, elevated interest rates, and increasing economic and technological dislocations have increased demand for best-in-class liability management and Restructuring advice.

謝謝你，海倫。從重組開始，我們繼續經歷高水準的負債管理活動。隨著未償債務數量的不斷增加、利率的上升以及經濟和技術混亂的加劇，對一流的負債管理和重組建議的需求也隨之增加。

In this period of heightened activity, our restructuring team continued its market leadership, ranking number one in announced and completed US and global restructurings for the first half of 2025. Our restructuring team also continued its track record of exceptional financial results with first half revenues bettering last year's record performance. Our current expectation is for full year Restructuring results to at least match last year's record levels.

在這項活動高峰期，我們的重組團隊繼續保持市場領先地位，在 2025 年上半年宣布和完成的美國及全球重組中排名第一。我們的重組團隊也延續了其出色的財務業績記錄，上半年的收入超過了去年的創紀錄表現。我們目前的預期是，全年重組結果至少能達到去年的創紀錄水準。

Turning to PJT Park Hill. The primary fundraising environment remains challenged as historically low levels of capital return coupled with a market increase in first-time fund launches have contributed to a significant supply demand imbalance. In contrast, the environment for private capital solutions is far more favorable, where increased demand for alternative liquidity vehicles from GPs and LPs is better matched with investor appetite for these asset classes.

轉向 PJT Park Hill。主要的籌資環境仍然面臨挑戰，因為歷史性的低資本回報率加上首次基金發行的市場增加導致了嚴重的供需失衡。相較之下，私募資本解決方案的環境要有利得多，GP 和 LP 對替代流動性工具的需求增加與投資者對這些資產類別的興趣更加匹配。

For PJT Park Hill, both second quarter and first half revenues were below last year's results, principally due to timing of closings. However, we expect a strong pipeline in both primary and private capital solutions to result in stronger performance in the second half.

對 PJT Park Hill 而言，第二季和上半年的收入均低於去年同期，主要原因是關閉時間問題。然而，我們預計，初級資本和私人資本解決方案的強勁成長將在下半年帶來更強勁的業績。

Turning to Strategic Advisory. Our strategic advisory business delivered record performance in both the second quarter and first half as we benefited from increased transaction closings and increased fee realizations. While there are indications that M&A activity is picking up, the year-to-date data is mixed.

轉向策略諮詢。由於交易成交量增加和費用實現量增加，我們的策略諮詢業務在第二季和上半年均取得了創紀錄的業績。儘管有跡象顯示併購活動正在回暖，但今年迄今的數據好壞參半。

Although annualized global announced M&A volumes are up 20%, the annualized number of transactions is down 15%. Of greater consequence, global M&A activity remains near record lows when measured relative to total equity market capitalization or GDP. We've consistently maintained that in a world that is speeding up, companies need to respond more quickly to changes in their operating and competitive environment.

儘管全球宣布的年度併購交易量增加了 20%，但年度交易數量卻下降了 15%。更重要的是，以總股票市值或 GDP 衡量，全球併購活動仍接近歷史最低水準。我們始終認為，在這個快速發展的世界裡，企業需要對其經營和競爭環境的變化做出更快的反應。

This in turn requires companies to be more active strategically. Elevated economic and regulatory uncertainty has impeded much of this strategic interest from being acted upon. As some of this uncertainty has dissipated and the business environment has become more favorable, we now see a more constructive environment for companies to pursue their strategic ambitions, and our pre-announced strategic advisory pipeline now stands at record levels.

這反過來要求企業在策略上更加積極主動。經濟和監管不確定性的加劇阻礙了大部分戰略利益的實現。隨著部分不確定性的消散和商業環境變得更加有利，我們現在看到了企業追求其策略抱負的更具建設性的環境，我們先前宣布的策略諮詢管道現在達到了創紀錄的水平。

We continue to position ourselves for a return to more normalized levels of M&A activity. This quarter, four new strategic advisory partners will be joining. As we look ahead, reiterating our prior commentary, strategic advisory will be up strongly from 2024's record levels while Restructuring and PJT Park Hill are expected to deliver results in line with last year's record levels. As before, we remain confident in our near, intermediate and long-term growth prospects.

我們將繼續努力使併購活動恢復到更正常的水平。本季將有四位新的策略諮詢合作夥伴加入。展望未來，我們重申先前的評論，策略諮詢將比 2024 年的創紀錄水平強勁增長，而重組和 PJT Park Hill 預計將實現與去年創紀錄水平一致的業績。與以往一樣，我們對近期、中期和長期的成長前景充滿信心。

And with that we will now take your questions.

現在我們將回答您的問題。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指示）

James Yaro, Goldman Sachs.

高盛的詹姆斯·亞羅。

Hi, good morning and thanks for taking the questions. Paul, maybe I could just start with the sponsor M&A. Sponsors have remained slower in transacting, but obviously do have a lot to sell or IPO.

大家好，早安，感謝您回答問題。保羅，也許我可以從贊助商併購開始。發起人的交易速度仍然較慢，但顯然有很多東西可以出售或 IPO。

In your analysis, do many of these assets now have enough EBITDA that they can actually be sold for a gain? And maybe you could just comment based on your dialogues when you expect Sponsor sell-sides to start to come back to the market more fully?

在您的分析中，這些資產中有多少現在是否擁有足夠的 EBITDA，以至於可以實際出售以獲取收益？也許您可以根據您的對話發表評論，您預計贊助商賣方何時會開始更全面地重返市場？

Well, I think we're seeing an increase in sponsor activity across the board, and it's been challenged for a variety of reasons. And the release valves are starting to evidence themselves across the board. So while the IPO market is far from robust, it's been meaningfully more receptive to initial public offerings in recent months, which has created an opportunity to create liquidity events on portfolio companies. That's the first point. That's a necessary condition to get the return of capital right.

嗯，我認為我們看到贊助商活動全面增加，但由於各種原因，它也受到了挑戰。且釋放閥已開始全面顯現其作用。因此，儘管 IPO 市場遠非強勁，但近幾個月來，它對首次公開募股的接受度明顯提高，這為投資組合公司創造流動性事件創造了機會。這是第一點。這是實現資本正確回報的必要條件。

And what we've always said is you've got to get the return of capital right, so that there's the confidence to deploy increasing quantums of capital.

我們一直說，你必須獲得正確的資本回報，這樣才有信心部署越來越多的資本。

The second is that the credit markets have become more accommodative. There's been more evidence of dividend recap transactions, which have also been a release valve. I think the third is strategic interest in a number of portfolio companies which have been expressed, but then sort of retreated around Liberation Day because of all of the uncertainties created by the proposed tariffs.

第二，信貸市場變得更加寬鬆。有更多證據表明存在股息重整交易，這也是一種釋放閥。我認為第三點是對一些投資組合公司的戰略興趣，這種興趣已經表達出來，但由於擬議的關稅帶來的所有不確定性，在解放日前後有所消退。

As that uncertainty recedes, I think strategics are taking a fresher look at some of those portfolio companies and then continuation vehicles remain very active and effective means of creating liquidity. So we're seeing more bids, more interest from strategics, but we're also seeing that in the portfolio effect with lots of different levers to pull that sponsors are starting to be able to increase the pace of return of capital, which I do believe is going to make them buyers of additional quantums.

隨著不確定性的消退，我認為策略部門正在重新審視其中一些投資組合公司，而延續工具仍然是創造流動性的非常活躍和有效的手段。因此，我們看到了更多的競標，更多的策略利益，但我們也看到，在投資組合效應中，透過許多不同的槓桿，發起人開始能夠加快資本回報的速度，我相信這將使他們成為額外數量的買家。

And when you think about selling portfolio companies of sponsors, sometimes the buyers are strategic, sometimes there are other sponsors and being able to have robust processes where you have greater confidence that other sponsors will play, and now that some of the clouds of Liberation Day have lifted greater strategic interest, it's setting up better. It's still far from perfect, but I think that healing process has begun and it portends ever increasing levels of M&A, we believe, but slowly as we return to a more normalized cadence.

當你考慮出售贊助商的投資組合公司時，有時買家是戰略性的，有時還有其他贊助商，並且能夠擁有強大的流程，讓你更有信心其他贊助商會參與其中，現在解放日的一些陰雲已經解除，引起了更大的戰略興趣，情況變得更好了。雖然還遠遠沒有達到完美，但我認為修復過程已經開始，並且預示著併購水平將不斷提高，我們相信，但隨著我們恢復到更加正常的節奏，這個過程會很緩慢。

Makes a lot of sense. An adjacent question. The secondary or the continuation fund business, I would imagine likely slows in terms of growth with the return of regular way of sponsor M&A and IPOs. Have you given any thought to what that particular dynamic means for the growth rate of continuation funds? I guess what portion of assets should be in continuation fund vehicles versus they're being put in them right now because regular weight exit strategies are not available.

很有道理。一個相鄰的問題。我認為，隨著發起人併購和 IPO 等常規方式的回歸，二級市場或延續基金業務的成長可能會放緩。您是否考慮過這種特殊的動態對於延續基金的成長率意味著什麼？我猜想應該將多少比例的資產投入延續基金工具中，而不是現在就投入其中，因為沒有常規權重退出策略。

Yeah, I don't know if it's a substitution effect. I think it, I think every day that goes by, there's greater acceptance of continuation funds as an appropriate means to manage liquidity. I also think that there are many instances where these are assets where there's still meaningful upside and there's a desire to continue to operate and manage the asset, but there is a desire on the part of some, but by no means all of the LPs to create liquidity events.

是的，我不知道這是否是替代效應。我認為，我認為隨著時間的推移，延續基金作為管理流動性的適當手段越來越受到人們的接受。我還認為，在許多情況下，這些資產仍然具有顯著的上漲空間，並且人們希望繼續運營和管理這些資產，但有些（但絕不是所有的）LP 希望創造流動性事件。

So I think of it as a tool in the tool kit that if you go back five years was barely understood and rarely used. Now it's much better understood and used, and the biggest governor on using that as a tool today is simply that the dedicated pools of capital for continuation funds is relatively modest in the context of the interest on the part of asset managers to deploy continuation funds.

所以我認為它是工具包中的一個工具，如果你回顧五年前，它幾乎還未被人們理解和使用。現在人們對它有了更好的理解和使用，而今天使用它作為工具的最大限制僅僅是，在資產管理者部署延續基金的興趣背景下，延續基金的專用資金池相對適中。

So right now, the governor is -- there's just not enough dedicated capital to the asset class, and if you believe, as we do that the returns over time will prove to be attractive returns and that this is a class of assets, that should have appealed to a lot of investors.

因此，現在，行長認為——對該資產類別的專用資本還不夠，如果你像我們一樣相信，隨著時間的推移，回報將被證明是有吸引力的，並且這是一類資產，那麼它應該會吸引很多投資者。

One obvious advantage is, you identify the asset and you're investing in it immediately as opposed to a blind pool concept. Another advantage is, you're making the investment commit and the drawdown of the funds is happening at the same time, which is not the case with the fund structure. And I can go on, but there are other benefits. So we think that it's here to stay. It has room to grow, and probably what it does is it substitutes for some of what historically would have been regularly IPO.

一個明顯的優勢是，您可以識別資產並立即對其進行投資，這與盲池概念相反。另一個優點是，您做出投資承諾的同時，資金的提取也同時發生，而基金結構則不然。我還可以繼續說下去，但還有其他好處。因此我們認為它會繼續存在。它有成長空間，而且它可能會取代一些歷史上定期進行的 IPO。

And the problem with the regular way IPO is, there's oftentimes the IPO at considerable discounts, the funds are almost inevitably used to realign the capital structure, to pay down debt to make it a more normalized capital structure for a public company. Then you've got to wait for the expiry of lockups and it starts to be a very long goodbye. And this may in fact be something that competes more directly with the IPO alternative.

常規 IPO 方式的問題在於，IPO 通常會以相當大的折扣進行，這些資金幾乎不可避免地會用於重新調整資本結構、償還債務，從而使上市公司的資本結構更加規範。然後你必須等待鎖定期結束，這將是一段漫長的告別。事實上，這可能與 IPO 替代方案形成更直接的競爭。

That's very clear. Thanks so much, Paul.

這很清楚。非常感謝，保羅。

Thank you. Thank you, James.

謝謝。謝謝你，詹姆斯。

James Mitchell, Seaport Global Securities.

詹姆斯·米切爾，Seaport Global Securities。

Hey, good morning.

嘿，早安。

Good morning.

早安.

Hey, Paul. Just -- I know one area of focus has been leveraging kind of the Park Hill franchise to build out coverage of financial sponsors on the M&A side. Can you just give us an update on where you think you are in terms of moving along that spectrum and kind of getting more into the middle market deals with financial sponsors and leveraging that Park Hill relationships?

嘿，保羅。只是——我知道一個重點領域是利用 Park Hill 特許經營權來擴大併購方面的金融贊助商覆蓋範圍。您能否向我們介紹一下您在這方面的進展情況，以及在與金融贊助商達成更多中端市場交易以及利用 Park Hill 關係方面的進展情況？

Yeah, we're still in the early days of that, but we're -- there are many different ways in which those relationships come together. So with the best-in-class primary distribution and really being the fund placement agent of choice, what we increasingly want to do is for clients to develop a holistic relationship with our firm where there's a recognition that if we're going to do the primary raise, we're also going to be the adviser of choice on the continuation funds and the like, and that's just an adjacency where having a holistic conversation with the fund manager makes all the sense in the world.

是的，我們還處於早期階段，但是我們——有很多不同的方式可以將這些關係結合在一起。因此，憑藉一流的初級分銷和真正成為首選的基金配售代理，我們越來越希望客戶與我們公司建立一種全面的關係，這種關係中，客戶認識到，如果我們要進行初級分銷，我們也將成為延續基金等的首選顧問，而這只是一個相鄰關係，與基金經理進行全面的對話是非常有意義的。

And then on top of that, as we are increasingly sought after to do capital raises that oftentimes are difficult to raise the quantum of capital that might have been desired, but there's a recognition that we can deliver more capital than anyone else. It's to have those more holistic conversations about ways in which our strategic advisory colleagues can jointly cover that client and then also have dialogues related to how they think about the GP itself, steak sales, liquidity events and the like.

除此之外，隨著我們越來越受到資本籌集的追捧，籌集到所需的資本量往往很困難，但人們認識到我們可以比任何其他人提供更多的資本。這是為了進行更全面的對話，討論我們的策略顧問同事如何共同涵蓋該客戶，然後也討論他們如何看待 GP 本身、牛排銷售、流動性事件等。

So we're increasingly having those holistic conversations, and I think it's begun to bear fruit. But when I think about where we are, we're meaningfully advanced from when we started the firm. We still have an awful lot of ground to cover before we fully mine that opportunity. So I still think we're early days.

因此，我們越來越多地進行這些整體對話，我認為它已經開始取得成果。但當我思考我們現在的處境時，我們會發現我們比創辦公司時有了很大的進步。在我們充分挖掘這個機會之前，我們還有很多工作要做。所以我仍然認為我們還處於早期階段。

Okay, that's helpful. And maybe, obviously seeing good growth on the strategic advisory side where a lot of the hiring has been concentrated in the last few years. So does that give you a little more? I mean, I know your comp ratios set, your best guess is now 67.5%. But does it give you more confidence with the record pipeline and strategic advisory revenue growth picking up that you're sort of lapping the growth and strategic headcount with revenues and we can start to see some progress in the next year or two on the comp ratio?

好的，這很有幫助。也許，顯然策略諮詢方面出現了良好的成長，過去幾年大量的招募都集中在該領域。那麼這是否為你帶來了更多？我的意思是，我知道你的補償比率設定，你最好的猜測現在是 67.5%。但是，創紀錄的管道和策略諮詢收入成長是否會讓您更有信心，您正在將成長和策略員工人數與收入結合起來，我們可以在未來一兩年內開始看到補償比率的一些進展？

Well, I think based on the indicated ratio you're already seeing some progress. I know you'd like more on all dimensions and I've got to just constantly just ask myself, what's around the bend? And what's around the bend could be what's around the bend in terms of additional hiring opportunities or what's around the bend is competitive dynamic changing. So we're just going to be thoughtful and cautious. I've always said that as we get more productivity, we know where the direction of (technical difficulty)

嗯，我認為根據所示比例您已經看到了一些進展。我知道您希望在各方面都取得更多進步，我必須不斷地問自己，未來會怎麼樣？即將發生的變化可能是額外的招募機會，也可能是競爭動態的變化。因此，我們只會深思熟慮並謹慎行事。我一直說，隨著我們提高生產力，我們知道（技術難度）

And Mr. Taubman, it appears we have lost you on the main line. If you could switch to the backup line.

陶布曼先生，看來我們在主線上失去了您。如果您可以切換到備用線路。

And Mr. Taubman, I believe we have you back, sir.

陶布曼先生，我相信您已經回來了，先生。

Yes, thank you. Is there another question?

是的，謝謝。還有其他問題嗎？

Brendan O'Brien, Wolfe Research.

布倫丹‧奧布萊恩，沃爾夫研究公司。

I'm sorry, I was on mute. Hey, can you hear me?

抱歉，我靜音了。嘿，你聽得到我說話嗎？

Yes.

是的。

Yes. Sorry about that. I cut out. I don't know if that was everybody issue, but thanks for taking my questions, Paul. I guess to kick things off, I just wanted to get an update on the regulatory front. There's obviously a lot of optimism around the outlook for large cap M&A. Do the expectation for a lighter regulatory touch under the current administration, and it feels like that's warranted based on the recent decisions by the FCC.

是的。很抱歉。我剪掉了。我不知道這是否是每個人的問題，但還是感謝你回答我的問題，保羅。我想先了解一下監管方面的最新情況。顯然，人們對大型併購的前景充滿樂觀。是否期望現任政府會放鬆監管，根據聯邦通信委員會 (FCC) 最近的決定，這似乎是合理的。

However, just based on your conversations thus far, would you say that C-suites are now more willing to push forward with large scale transactions than they were before, or has some of the volatility and macro uncertainty been too big of a stumbling block?

但是，僅根據您迄今為止的談話，您是否認為高管層現在比以前更願意推進大規模交易，或者某些波動性和宏觀不確定性是否已成為太大的絆腳石？

I don't know if the available answer is all of the above because it might be all of the above. So let's parse that a little bit. There's no doubt that in totality, the regulatory approach of this administration is more conducive to M&A consolidation combinations than the prior administration. That's good news.

我不知道可用的答案是否是以上所有，因為它可能是以上所有。那麼讓我們稍微分析一下。毫無疑問，整體而言，本屆政府的監管方式比前政府更有利於併購整合。這是個好消息。

Number two, I think there is more willingness on the part of this administration to negotiate remedies as opposed to having an up or down approach to some combination, so there is the sense that for the right package of negotiated points, the right behavioral remedies, you can secure approval. That's a good thing.

第二，我認為本屆政府更願意透過談判來製定補救措施，而不是採取上下級協商的方式，因此，人們認為，只要談判的要點正確，行為補救措施正確，就能夠獲得批准。這是一件好事。

On the other hand, there are industries, I believe, where they are consumer-facing where they may well affect the price consumers pay, where there continues to be a very heightened sensitivity, things like certain retail consolidation and the like. I think media continues to be its own area of inquiry from the SEC, from the FCC, and the like. So it's not clear that all industries are demonstrably easier to have line of sight to consolidation transactions than before, but the direction of travel is definitely better.

另一方面，我認為，有些產業面向消費者，很可能會影響消費者所支付的價格，這些產業對某些零售整合等事情的敏感度仍然很高。我認為媒體仍然是美國證券交易委員會、聯邦通訊委員會等機構調查的領域。因此，目前尚不清楚所有產業是否都比以前更容易實現整合交易，但發展方向肯定是更好的。

The other sort of overlay here is -- until there really is a sense that the timelines from signing to closing are demonstrably shorter -- and it's difficult for this administration to really deal with that directly because in many of these situations you're dealing with many regulatory bodies around the world who have their ability to put their voice out there. You're seeing still what are by historic lenses, long closing periods.

這裡的另一個覆蓋範圍是——直到人們真正感覺到從簽署到結束的時間明顯縮短——而本屆政府很難真正直接處理這個問題，因為在許多情況下，你要與世界各地的許多監管機構打交道，這些機構有能力發出自己的聲音。從歷史的角度來看，你仍然可以看到漫長的關閉期。

And in a world that moves around quite a bit, that is volatile, having the commitment to acquire businesses where even if you have a high degree of confidence, you'll ultimately be able to complete the acquisition.

在這個瞬息萬變、動盪不安的世界裡，即使你對收購企業有很高的信心，最終也難以完成收購。

If you have elongated processes and prolonged delays, the type of business momentum that you start out with at closing may be very different than what you anticipated, and I think that, that has subtly made some of these big deals just getting the right price where there's enough risk reduction reflected in the price because of the fact that even if the acquisition makes sense, you may end up with 12- to 18 months where you're in no man's land. That does harm the health of the business that's received. I think that that's complicated things in a subtle way.

如果流程冗長且延遲時間過長，那麼在交易結束時的業務勢頭可能與你的預期大相徑庭，我認為，這巧妙地使得一些大交易只能以合適的價格成交，因為價格中已經反映了足夠的風險降低，因為即使收購是合理的，你最終也可能會在 12 到 18 個月的時間裡處於無人區。這確實會損害所獲得的業務的健康。我認為這以一種微妙的方式使事情變得複雜。

So bottom line, we're in a better place than where we were in the prior administration. We have clarity. There's a greater sense of willingness to negotiate remedies. More industries, more situations are likely to go through on an expedited basis, but it's still in certain industries or in certain politically sensitive areas that may also invite regulatory scrutiny from other areas of the globe, it still makes large transactions quite complicated to effect.

所以，總而言之，我們現在的狀況比前政府時期好。我們很清楚。人們更願意透過談判尋求補救措施。更多的行業、更多的情況可能會快速處理，但在某些行業或某些政治敏感領域，仍然可能受到全球其他地區的監管審查，這仍然使大型交易的實施變得相當複雜。

That's helpful color. And I guess for my follow up, there's been a lot of optimism on the potential for a meaningful ramp in M&A in the back half now that we seem to be heading towards a resolution on tariffs and, getting greater clarity on the macro outlook. But just wanted to get your views on what the trajectory of that recovery could look like, given It feels like there's significant pent up demands for transactions, specifically on the sponsor side, but it does feel like there's still a few big question marks out there on both trade as well as interest rates and the like.

這是很有幫助的顏色。我想就我的後續行動而言，由於我們似乎正在朝著達成關稅解決方案的方向前進，並且宏觀前景也變得更加明朗，因此人們對下半年併購交易可能出現有意義的增長抱有很大的樂觀態度。但只是想聽聽您對復甦軌蹟的看法，因為感覺交易方面存在大量被壓抑的需求，特別是在贊助商方面，但感覺在貿易、利率等方面仍然存在一些大問號。

Okay, I'm going to try and rephrase the question because you came across a little glitchy. And I think it was really just saying, look, there seems to be a general sense that the direction of travel for M&A is up and to the right, but can you sort of draw it out a little bit as to what that trajectory is likely to be?

好的，我將嘗試重新措辭這個問題，因為你遇到了一點小問題。我認為這實際上只是說，看，人們普遍認為併購的發展方向是向上和向右的，但你能否稍微描繪一下這個軌跡可能是什麼樣的？

I think it's going to be a gradual plus and gradual in the sense that I think all of these clouds are lifting slowly but surely, and that would suggest that it's going to be a prolonged period of just slow gradual improvement. The plus is, I've always said that what makes M&A different is many things, not least of which is the competitive responses and in situations where your competitor makes a bold strategic move.

我認為這將是一個漸進的過程，因為我認為所有這些陰雲都在緩慢但穩定地消散，這意味著這將是一個緩慢漸進的長期過程。優點是，我一直說，併購的不同之處在於很多方面，其中最重要的是競爭反應以及競爭對手採取大膽戰略舉措的情況。

The likelihood that there's a competitive response and a follow on transaction in an industry is high, so I kind of think that this is a gradual build as it relates to some of these storm clouds continuing to lift, and every day it seems recently there's just a little bit more clarity, a little less volatility, and a little bit more comfort.

一個行業出現競爭反應和後續交易的可能性很高，所以我認為這是一種逐漸形成的過程，因為它與一些風暴雲的持續消散有關，而且最近似乎每天都會變得更加清晰，波動性減少，舒適度增加。

But I think that plus is, I expect that in certain industries like you're not going to see one transaction that's been on the drawing board. You're going to see the second and maybe even the third as competitors were more comfortable with the status quo when no one was moving. But if there's a competitive response, the the need to to respond in kind is probably greater.

但我認為，好處是，我預計在某些行業中，你不會看到一筆只停留在繪圖板上的交易。你會看到第二次甚至第三次，因為當沒有人採取行動時，競爭對手對現狀更滿意。但如果有競爭對手，那麼採取同樣回應的必要性可能就更大。

Okay, thank you for taking my questions.

好的，感謝您回答我的問題。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Alex Bond, KBW.

亞歷克斯邦德，KBW。

Hey, good morning, everyone. Thanks for thanks for taking my questions. Maybe just moving back to Park Hill and the fundraising business. So your placement fees were up quarter-over-quarter, but you did call out that the broader fundraising backdrop remains challenging. So just curious, to what extent that you may have seen an improvement here in the recent weeks as the macro backdrop has improved there?

嘿，大家早安。感謝您回答我的問題。也許只是回到帕克希爾 (Park Hill) 並繼續籌款業務。因此，您的安置費用環比上漲，但您確實指出，更廣泛的籌款背景仍然充滿挑戰。所以我只是好奇，隨著宏觀背景的改善，您在最近幾週看到了多大程度的改善？

And then you also mentioned that you expect, both the primary and private capital contribution to improve for Park Hill in the second half, but just trying to get a sense of if you think that contribution might be more weighted towards the private capital side, given the challenging fundraising backdrop. Thanks.

然後您也提到，您預計下半年 Park Hill 的主要資本和私人資本貢獻都會有所改善，但只是想了解一下，考慮到充滿挑戰的籌資背景，您是否認為這種貢獻可能會更偏向私人資本。謝謝。

Right. I think it's both. I think we're just dealing with the fact that there is lumpiness in these capital raises, and if things get pushed out a little bit, they don't show up in Q2, they're showing up in Q3 and Q4. So we look much more at all the transactions whether they're private PCS transactions or fund placement on the primary side as to how many fundraisers are in flight, and that number continues to build on both sides, notwithstanding the challenging conditions on the primary side.

正確的。我認為兩者都有。我認為我們只是在處理這些資本籌集中存在不平衡性的事實，如果事情稍微推遲，它們不會在第二季度出現，而是在第三季和第四季出現。因此，我們更加關注所有交易，無論是私人 PCS 交易還是主要方面的基金配置，以了解有多少籌款人正在進行中，儘管主要方面的條件充滿挑戰，但這個數字在雙方都在繼續增加。

So we think that because of just the cadence of transactions and transaction closings, it's likely to be more in the back half of the year than in the first half of the year, but I also think that structurally, the secondary business is just in a better place because there is a better matching of supply and demand.

因此，我們認為，由於交易和交易結束的節奏，下半年的交易量可能比上半年更大，但我還認為，從結構上講，二級業務處於更好的狀態，因為供需匹配得更好。

And what you're seeing on the primary side continues to be that everyone wants to fundraise and in fact there are even more managers out trying to fundraise, but allocated capital to the asset class is diminished and as a result, it's made fundraising more challenging, it's taken longer to get deals done and it's less likely to have an oversubscription than it would have been before, so the opportunity for positive surprises is reduced.

而你看到的主要情況是，每個人都想籌集資金，事實上，有更多的經理試圖籌集資金，但分配給資產類別的資本卻減少了，結果，融資變得更具挑戰性，完成交易的時間更長，而且超額認購的可能性也比以前更小，因此出現意外驚喜的機會就減少了。

The flip side is, in a world where it's more difficult to raise primary capital and primary capital is the lifeblood of the alternative asset managers, then the flight to quality is greater and that's been a benefit for our PJT Park Hill team.

另一方面，在一個籌集原始資本更加困難、而原始資本又是另類資產管理公司命脈的世界裡，對優質資產的追求就會更加強烈，這對我們的 PJT Park Hill 團隊來說是一個好處。

Got it. No, thanks. That's helpful caller. I will jump back in the queue. Thanks, Paul.

知道了。不，謝謝。這位來電者很有幫助。我將重新回到隊列中。謝謝，保羅。

Devin Ryan, Citizens.

德文·瑞安（Devin Ryan），公民。

Hey, thanks. Good morning everyone.

嘿，謝謝。大家早安。

Good morning, David. How are you?

早安，大衛。你好嗎？

I'm doing great. I just got a bigger picture question, Paul, just around kind of the PJT franchise today and what you guys have built in the past handful of years. Obviously the firm looks different than in 2021 kind of the prior of peak cycle, and you know the number of groups that you have today are much bigger from an industry perspective and they were kind of (technical difficulty).

我很好。保羅，我只是想問一個更宏觀的問題，關於今天的 PJT 特許經營權以及你們在過去幾年裡所取得的成就。顯然，該公司看起來與 2021 年之前的高峰週期有所不同，而且您知道，從行業角度來看，今天擁有的團體數量要大得多，而且他們有點像（技術難度）。

So what's just, maybe give a little bit of a sense of where you feel like you're really getting some network effects on that scaling, (technical difficulty) whether it's industries or the sectors or geography is kind of where you feel like you're seeing evidence of network effects and there may be areas where you feel like there's been a lot of investments made. The momentum maybe hasn't come through yet to the public, but you're really optimistic about. Thanks.

那麼，也許您可以稍微了解一下，您覺得在擴展過程中您真正獲得了一些網絡效應，（技術難度）無論是行業、部門還是地理位置，您都感覺看到了網絡效應的證據，並且可能存在您覺得已經進行了大量投資的領域。這種勢頭可能還沒有被大眾所察覺，但你對此非常樂觀。謝謝。

Sure. The reality is every day, there's evidence for the network effect, literally every day. So I just get up and I go through my emails every single day. There is a connecting of dots, the call comes into one area. There's expertise. There's a relationship. They'd like to be introduced to partners in another part of our business. We identify situations. We're trying to connect dots. And where in the earlier days, we might have had a relationship with the C-suite. Now, we have a relationship with the C-suite and the Board, and it's more likely than we've presented to one of the companies where one of the Board members has recently experienced our advice and capabilities.

當然。事實是，每天都有網路效應的證據，確實每天都有。所以我每天起床後都會查看我的電子郵件。有一個連接點，呼叫進入一個區域。有專業知識。有關係。他們希望被介紹給我們業務其他部分的合作夥伴。我們識別情況。我們正在嘗試將各個點連接起來。在早期，我們可能與高階主管建立了關係。現在，我們與高階主管和董事會建立了關係，而且我們向其中一家公司展示的情況更有可能是，其中一位董事會成員最近體驗了我們的建議和能力。

So that network effect is in evidence every day, but like everything else, it takes time for it to fully be developed. So we see it every day in our ability to collaborate across geographies, across industries, across different touch points. And companies, we're seeing more conflict adjudication because we may have opportunities to represent a group of creditors. At the same time, we have a strong relationship with the debtor.

網路效應每天都在顯現，但就像其他事物一樣，它需要時間才能完全發展。因此，我們每天都能看到我們跨地域、跨產業、跨不同接觸點進行協作的能力。對於公司來說，我們看到了更多的衝突裁決，因為我們可能有機會代表一群債權人。同時，我們與債務人保持著牢固的關係。

We we're getting all of that benefit. But I still think we're really early days compared to what our vision for this franchise can be. And when you think about it by geography or industry, there are places where we really haven't made any effort at all, so that's just complete white space.

我們正在獲得所有這些好處。但我仍然認為，與我們對這個系列的願景相比，我們還處於早期階段。當你按地理位置或行業來考慮時，你會發現有些地方我們實際上根本沒有做出任何努力，所以那裡完全是空白。

There are areas where we have made small investments and we've gotten outsized returns, and I would just highlight as one of those examples, Japan where we've made very modest commitment of resources, but we've received outsized returns in terms of our connectivity to some of the most consequential Japanese companies and opportunities to really showcase the firm, and we're now going to follow that up with additional resources.

在某些領域，我們進行了少量投資，卻獲得了豐厚的回報。我想強調的一個例子是日本，我們投入的資源非常有限，但在與一些日本最重要的公司建立聯繫以及真正展示公司的機會方面，我們獲得了豐厚的回報，現在我們將跟進投入更多資源。

Then, we have other areas where we're in the midst and we've seen real benefits, but there's still so much more to do. And then even in our strongest areas, we're big believers that oftentimes, investing in our strongest franchises can create the greatest results. So you might look at us from the outside in and say they appear to be strategically complete in these areas. We look at it and say we can go from strong to stronger or from stronger to strongest or from strongest by a little bit to strongest by a lot. And that's why we're going to continue to invest because everywhere we look, we see two things.

然後，我們正在進行其他領域工作，並且已經看到了真正的好處，但仍有許多工作要做。即使在我們最強大的領域，我們也堅信，投資於我們最強大的特許經營權往往可以創造最大的成果。因此，您可能會從外部來看待我們，並說他們在這些領域似乎具有戰略完整性。我們看著它，說我們可以從強變得更強，或者從強變得更強，或者從最強一點點變得最強很多。這就是我們將繼續投資的原因，因為無論我們放眼何處，都會看到兩件事。

We see proof of concept that all the things we believed in 10 years ago have proved out, and we see proof of concept that no matter how much white space we've filled in, there's still white space as far as the eye can see. And as a result, we feel really good about the track we're on, but we still think we're early, early days in building out the firm and the vision that we have for this firm.

我們看到了概念證明，即我們 10 年前所相信的所有事情都已被證明，我們看到了概念證明，即無論我們填補了多少空白，目之所及之處仍然有空白。因此，我們對目前的發展軌跡感到非常滿意，但我們仍然認為，在公司建設和公司願景的實現上，我們仍處於早期階段。

Great, thanks, Paul. And then can you just touch on the restructuring opportunity outside the US and just kind of initiatives to scale the footprint and, yeah. I have to say probably don't need a lot of headcount, but just kind of where that may go over the next couple of years.

太好了，謝謝，保羅。然後，您能否談談美國以外的重組機會以及擴大影響力的舉措？是的。我必須說，可能不需要大量的員工，但未來幾年可能需要大量的員工。

Well, a lot of that -- we couldn't agree more. And if you just look at the increased investment that we've made in various European countries, the opportunity to do more in France, to do more in Germany, to do more across Europe as our footprint grows, as our strategic connectivity increases, the opportunity to do more on the liability management side in Europe increases.

嗯，很多都是這樣的——我們完全同意。如果你看看我們在歐洲各國增加的投資，你會發現隨著我們的足跡不斷擴大，隨著我們的策略連結性增強，我們在法國、德國以及整個歐洲開展更多業務的機會也隨之增加，在歐洲負債管理方面開展更多業務的機會也隨之增加。

We have significant commitment to the Gulf region. The opportunity in the Gulf to do more is considerable. We have a small but highly successful commitment to non-Japan Asia. And those opportunities have already produced great results. There's an opportunity to do more and there's an opportunity to do more in Japan.

我們對海灣地區有著重大的承諾。海灣地區有相當大的機會採取更多行動。我們對日本以外的亞洲地區做出了雖小但非常成功的承諾。這些機會已經產生了巨大的成果。有機會做更多的事情，在日本也有機會做更多的事情。

So everywhere we have had footprint and connectivity and success outside of liability management. We're now spending time trying to make sure that those opportunities were in front of and that we're bringing our teams to those opportunities. And as a result, I think there's opportunities for us to take that liability management practice that's outside the US and make it multiples the size of what it is today.

因此，我們在負債管理之外的各個地方都有足跡、有聯繫並且取得了成功。我們現在正在花時間努力確保這些機會就在我們面前，並帶領我們的團隊抓住這些機會。因此，我認為我們有機會將這種負債管理實踐帶到美國以外，並使其規模擴大數倍。

That's great. Thanks for taking my questions. Appreciate it, Paul.

那太棒了。感謝您回答我的問題。非常感謝，保羅。

Absolutely, Devin.

當然，德文。

Thank you. And ladies and gentlemen, that does conclude our question-and-answer period. I would now like to turn the call back over to Mr. Taubman for any closing comments.

謝謝。女士們、先生們，我們的問答環節到此結束。現在我想將電話轉回給陶布曼先生，請他發表最後評論。

All right. Well, hopefully you all can hear us, and we appreciate your support and your interest in our company, and we look forward to reconvening in three months when we'll report our third quarter results. So again, thank you for your support and your interest, and we wish you a good day.

好的。好吧，希望你們都能聽到我們的聲音，我們感謝你們對我們公司的支持和關注，我們期待三個月後再次召開會議，屆時我們將報告第三季的業績。再次感謝您的支持和關注，並祝您有美好的一天。