Pilgrims Pride Corp (PPC) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, and welcome to the third-quarter of 2024 Pilgrim's Pride earnings conference call and webcast. (Operator Instructions) At the company's request, this call is being recorded. Please note that the slides referenced during today's call are available for download from the Investors section of the company's website at www.pilgrims.com.

早安，歡迎來到 2024 年第三季 Pilgrim's Pride 收益電話會議和網路廣播。（操作員指示）應本公司要求，本次通話正在錄音。請注意，今天電話會議中引用的幻燈片可從公司網站 www.pilgrims.com 的投資者部分下載。

(Operator Instructions) I would now like to turn the conference over to Andrew Rojeski, Head of Strategy, Investor Relations and Sustainability for Pilgrim's Pride. Please go ahead.

（操作員說明）我現在想將會議轉交給 Pilgrim's Pride 策略、投資者關係和永續發展主管 Andrew Rojeski。請繼續。

Good morning, and thank you for joining us today as we review our operating and financial results for the third quarter ended on September 29, 2024. Yesterday afternoon, we issued a press release providing an overview of our financial performance for the quarter, including a reconciliation of any non-GAAP measures we may discuss. A copy of the release is available on our website at ir.pilgrims.com, along with slides for reference. These items have also been filed as Form 8-Ks and are available online at sec.gov. Fabio Sandri, President and Chief Executive Officer; and Matt Galvanoni, Chief Financial Officer, will present on today's call.

早安，感謝您今天加入我們，我們將回顧截至 2024 年 9 月 29 日的第三季的營運和財務表現。昨天下午，我們發布了一份新聞稿，概述了本季度的財務業績，包括我們可能討論的任何非公認會計準則指標的調節表。我們的網站 ir.pilgrims.com 提供了該新聞稿的副本以及供參考的幻燈片。這些項目也已作為表格 8-K 提交，並可在 sec.gov 上線上取得。法比奧‧桑德里 (Fabio Sandri)，總裁兼執行長；財務長馬特加爾瓦諾尼 (Matt Galvanoni) 將出席今天的電話會議。

Before we begin our prepared remarks, I would like to remind everyone of our safe harbor disclaimer. Today's call may contain certain forward-looking statements that represent our outlook and current expectations as of the day of this release. Other additional factors not anticipated by management may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements. Further information concerning these factors have been provided in yesterday's press release, our Form 10-K and our regular filings with the SEC.

在我們開始準備好的發言之前，我想提醒大家我們的安全港免責聲明。今天的電話會議可能包含某些前瞻性陳述，代表我們截至本新聞稿發布之日的前景和當前預期。管理階層未預見的其他額外因素可能會導致實際結果與這些前瞻性陳述中預測的結果有重大差異。有關這些因素的更多資​​訊已在昨天的新聞稿、我們的 10-K 表格以及我們向 SEC 提交的定期文件中提供。

I would now like to turn the call over to Fabio Sandri.

我現在想把電話轉給法比奧·桑德里。

Thank you, Andy. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us today. For the third quarter of 2024, we reported net revenues of $4.6 billion, a 5.2% increase over the same quarter last year. Our adjusted EBITDA was $660 million versus $324 million in Q3 of 2023. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 14.4% compared to 7.4% last year.

謝謝你，安迪。大家早安，感謝您今天加入我們。2024 年第三季度，我們報告淨收入為 46 億美元，比去年同期成長 5.2%。我們調整後的 EBITDA 為 6.6 億美元，而 2023 年第三季為 3.24 億美元。調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 14.4%，去年為 7.4%。

Our Q3 results demonstrates the benefit from consistent execution of our strategies. Our diversified portfolio continue to capture the upsides of positive commodity market fundamentals, whereas our key customer partnerships enable collaboration that simultaneously drove demand and unlock value for consumers. The efforts were further amplified through the growth of our brands and continued focus on operational excellence and in quality, service and innovation. In the US, Big Bird benefited from sustained improvements in production efficiencies, lower input costs and enhanced commodity cutout values. If ready, continue to reinvest with key customers, resulting in greater than category average growth.

我們第三季的業績證明了持續執行我們的策略所帶來的好處。我們的多元化投資組合繼續抓住積極的大宗商品市場基本面的優勢，而我們的主要客戶合作夥伴關係則能夠實現協作，同時推動需求並為消費者釋放價值。透過我們品牌的發展以及持續專注於卓越營運以及品質、服務和創新，我們的努力得到了進一步放大。在美國，大鳥受益於生產效率的持續提高、投入成本的降低以及商品分切價值的提高。如果準備好了，繼續對關鍵客戶進行再投資，從而實現高於類別平均的成長。

The momentum of a Small Bird increased given continued interest in chicken in the deli and among QSRs.

由於熟食店和快餐店對雞肉的持續興趣，小鳥的勢頭有所增強。

Europe expanded margins from benefits in managed manufacturing network restructuring and optimize organizational structure. Diversification efforts continue to gain traction given the growth from our leading brands and extensive industry recognition and awards from our recently launched innovation. These efforts were further amplified by incremental distribution with key customers. While Mexico experienced a decline in demand, given normal seasonality and disruptions from the hurricanes, we continue to grow our business with key customers across retail and foodservice. Our diversification and operational excellence efforts remain on track as our brands grew ahead of the market and our investments in growth and risk mitigation proceed as scheduled.

歐洲受益於管理製造網絡重組和優化組織結構，擴大了利潤。鑑於我們領先品牌的成長以及我們最近推出的創新所獲得的廣泛行業認可和獎項，多元化努力繼續受到關注。透過與主要客戶的增量分銷，這些努力得到了進一步放大。儘管由於正常的季節性和颶風的干擾，墨西哥的需求有所下降，但我們繼續發展與零售和餐飲服務領域主要客戶的業務。隨著我們的品牌成長領先於市場，以及我們在成長和風險緩解方面的投資如期進行，我們的多元化和卓越營運努力仍處於正軌。

Turning to supply. USDA indicated ready-to-cook production for the US chicken grew 2.7% compared to the third quarter of 2023. Increases in head count and average liveweight drove production growth. Throughout 2024, the industry layer flock has consistently declined year-over-year.

轉向供應。美國農業部表示，與 2023 年第三季相比，美國即食雞肉產量增加了 2.7%。頭數和平均活重的增加推動了產量的成長。整個 2024 年，產業蛋雞雞群持續逐年下降。

However, a more efficient block along with reductions in eg exports have increased exits pushing hatchery utilization to record levels. While pullet placements have grown by 0.7% year-to-date, increased mortality has muted potential production gains.

然而，更有效率的區塊以及出口等的減少增加了出口，將孵化場利用率推至創紀錄的水平。雖然今年迄今母雞投放量增加了 0.7%，但死亡率的增加削弱了潛在的產量成長。

Like trends early in the year, hatchability challenges have prevented full realization of increased sales. Based on recent trends along with projections for the remainder of 2024, USDA data suggests growth in chicken production of approximately 1.7% for the full year. This growth indicates a response to firm demand exhibit during the quarter.

與今年年初的趨勢一樣，孵化率的挑戰阻礙了銷售成長的全面實現。根據最近的趨勢以及 2024 年剩餘時間的預測，美國農業部的數據顯示全年雞肉產量增加約 1.7%。這一增長表明對本季堅定需求的反應。

As for overall protein availability, the USDA anticipates 2.3% growth as the expected increase in chicken supply is augmented by increased beef imports and additional pork production.

至於整體蛋白質供應量，美國農業部預計將成長 2.3%，因為牛肉進口增加和豬肉產量增加將增加雞肉供應的預期成長。

Domestic chicken demand was strong throughout the quarter, with inflation still a major concern. Consumers continue to shift shopping towards retail and eating patterns in food service. Chicken demand in the retail channel improved volume across all departments. In fresh, consumers continue to rely on chicken fulfilling their everyday center-of-the-plate protein needs in a challenging environment as volume roses in both white and dark meat cuts. For boneless, skinless breast, everyday retail pricing per USDA has continued to decline and fell below $4 per pound, a 5.4% reduction from last year and over 16% reduction since September 2022.

本季國內雞肉需求強勁，通膨仍是主要擔憂。消費者繼續將購物轉向零售和餐飲服務的飲食模式。零售通路的雞肉需求增加了所有部門的數量。在新鮮食品中，隨著白肉和黑肉切塊數量的增加，消費者在充滿挑戰的環境中繼續依靠雞肉來滿足日常的餐桌中心蛋白質需求。對於去骨、去皮的胸肉，美國農業部的日常零售價持續下降，跌至每磅 4 美元以下，比去年下降 5.4%，自 2022 年 9 月以來下降了 16% 以上。

In contrast, other proteins consistently rose during the quarter and throughout the past two years. As an example, the retail spread between boneless, skinless breast versus ground beef recently hit another all-time high, surpassing the previous record set in the second quarter of 2024. This coincided with the strong quarterly performance from boneless, skinless breast, which saw sales post notably year-over-year growth. The remainder of chicken at retail continued to build on the strong foundation set earlier in the year. Growth in both the deli and frozen value-added demonstrated chicken's ability to meet the needs of consumers seeking to rationalize spending without sacrificing convenience.

相比之下，其他蛋白質在本季和過去兩年中持續上漲。例如，去骨去皮胸肉與碎牛肉之間的零售價差最近再創歷史新高，超過了 2024 年第二季創下的紀錄。同時，去骨去皮雞胸肉的季度業績表現強勁，銷售額較去年同期顯著成長。剩餘的雞肉零售量繼續建立在今年早些時候奠定的堅實基礎上。熟食店和冷凍附加價值的成長表明雞肉有能力滿足消費者在不犧牲便利性的情況下尋求合理化支出的需求。

In foodservice, revenue and volume sales both grew in commercial and noncommercial distribution subchannels. The commercial distribution subchannels realized large dollar increases, while noncommercial continue to build steadily as business and industry activity increased. Breast meat, tenders and wings all continue to post positive volume growth at current prices given the relative affordability of poultry.

在餐飲服務領域，商業和非商業分銷子通路的收入和銷售量均有所成長。商業分銷子通路實現了大幅美元成長，而隨著商業和工業活動的增加，非商業分銷子通路繼續穩步發展。鑑於家禽的相對承受能力，以當前價格計算，胸肉、嫩肉和雞翅的銷量均持續出現正成長。

Within the foodservice channels, QSRs continues to drive the most volume growth, suggesting consumers continue to seek more affordable meals. Given chicken's propensity towards QSR and overall versatility, it has continued to post strong growth despite a reduction in away-from-home eating occasions. In export, US broiler volume was 11.3% lower while pricing is at strong levels. Robust demand for dark meat in US continued to shift production from local markets, limiting availability for export. We anticipate export demand will remain strong as competing protein prices continue to make chicken the most appealing global option given its relative affordability.

在餐飲服務管道中，快餐繼續推動銷售成長，這表明消費者繼續尋求更實惠的膳食。鑑於雞肉的快餐傾向和整體多功能性，儘管外出就餐的場合減少，但雞肉仍繼續強勁增長。在出口方面，美國肉雞數量下降了 11.3%，而價格卻處於強勁水平。美國對黑肉的強勁需求繼續將生產從當地市場轉移，限制了出口供應。我們預計出口需求將保持強勁，因為鑑於雞肉的相對承受能力，競爭性蛋白質價格將繼續使雞肉成為最具吸引力的全球選擇。

While the potential for a port strike in the East Coast and Gulf disrupted some shipments late in the quarter, it had a limited impact. Disruptions to the supply chain were not material to the market as shipments quickly rebounded in the beginning of Q3. And overall, cold storage remains relatively low as supplies are down 7% compared to last year and 9% below the five-year average.

雖然東海岸和海灣地區可能發生的港口罷工擾亂了本季末的部分貨運，但影響有限。供應鏈的中斷對市場來說並不重要，因為出貨量在第三季初迅速反彈。總體而言，冷庫供應量仍相對較低，與去年相比下降了 7%，比五年平均值低 9%。

Breast meat and dark meat inventories both fell year-over-year. Despite recent outbreaks of high path Avian influenza in the Western US, the majority of chicken-producing states have not been affected. Nonetheless, we continue to take the necessary precautions to safeguard our farms given seasonal changes and migratory patterns. The geographical diversification of our production facilities provide flexibility to shift the business should any isolated commercial brakes surface.

胸肉和黑肉庫存均較去年同期下降。儘管美國西部近期爆發高路徑禽流感，但大多數產雞州並未受到影響。儘管如此，鑑於季節變化和遷徙模式，我們將繼續採取必要的預防措施來保護我們的農場。如果任何孤立的商業煞車出現，我們生產設施的地理多元化提供了轉移業務的靈活性。

China remains the exception on trade restrictions, and no movement on lifting current bands has emerged. Nevertheless, the majority of US trading partners continue to reduce ban to zones or to county level with only a few banning the entire state.

中國仍然是貿易限制的例外，目前還沒有出現取消現有限制的行動。儘管如此，大多數美國貿易夥伴繼續將禁令減少到地區或縣級，只有少數貿易夥伴禁止整個州。

Turning to feed, input prices were fairly straight, stable throughout the quarter as the US realized generally favorable weather for the development of the corn and soybean crops. Given the low price of corn relative to recent years, stronger-than-expected demand for US corn exports emerged, pulling down stocks from previous years and cutting into supplies from the current year.

飼料方面，由於美國天氣普遍有利於玉米和大豆作物的生長，整個季度投入品價格相當穩定。鑑於近年來玉米價格較低，美國玉米出口需求強於預期，導致往年庫存下降，今年供應量減少。

While the US began with a smaller initial supply, record US corn yields created a still comfortable new crop carryout estimated of about 2 billion bushes. Moving forward, the core market will respond to South American weather and the magnitude of China imports.

雖然美國一開始的初始供應量較小，但創紀錄的美國玉米產量創造了仍可觀的新作物結轉量，估計約 20 億株。展望未來，核心市場將對南美天氣和中國進口量做出反應。

Both globally and in the US, soybean stocks continue to build. Despite a record US soybean crop and lower board future prices, changes in exchange rate encourage expansion in South America soybean planting. The soybean processing industry also continued to expand, leaving the soybean meal market well supplied and limiting the upside in meal prices. In wheat, '24, '25 production increased marginally, however, this was offset by a decrease in initial supply, creating expectations that global wheat ending stocks will be down slightly versus prior year.

在全球和美國，大豆庫存都在持續增加。儘管美國大豆產量創歷史新高且期貨價格走低，匯率變動仍鼓勵南美大豆播種面積擴大。大豆加工業也持續擴張，豆粕市場供應充足，限制了豆粕價格的上漲空間。就小麥而言，'24'、'25產量略有增加，但這被初始供應量的減少所抵消，因此人們預期全球小麥期末庫存將比上年略有下降。

Global import demand for wheat is lower this year, giving better crops from several traditional wheat importers in the Middle East and North African regions. As a result, wheat prices remained basically flat in Q3, reflecting balanced supply and demand.

今年全球小麥進口需求較低，中東和北非地區幾個傳統小麥進口國的收成較好。因此，第三季小麥價格基本上持平，反映出供需平衡。

While the current WASDE projections suggest growing stocks in US for all major crops and relatively narrow price ranges for feed inputs, there are still risks. As such, we will continue to monitor changes in global grain demand, production weather in South America, exchange rate changes, and geopolitical events.

雖然目前的 WASDE 預測顯示美國所有主要作物的庫存都在增加，飼料投入的價格範圍相對較窄，但仍存在風險。因此，我們將持續關注全球糧食需求變化、南美洲生產天氣、匯率變化、地緣政治事件等。

In the US, consumers are still aware and concerned about high prices and continued inflation. Within retail, grocery buyer behaviors indicate consumers are purchasing less per trip while shopping more frequently, indicated a stretched household budget. Additionally, many consumers indicated cutting foodservice spend as a top method of cost saving, reducing dining out occasions or adjusting their food habits to enable their spending to go farther.

在美國，消費者仍然意識到並擔心高物價和持續的通貨膨脹。在零售業中，雜貨購買者的行為表明，消費者每次出行的購買量減少，而購物頻率增加，這表明家庭預算緊張。此外，許多消費者表示，削減餐飲服務支出是節省成本的首要方法，減少外食次數或調整飲食習慣，以增加支出。

Given the affordability of chicken and our diversified portfolio, our team was well positioned to unlock value for the consumer. To that end, our team continued to focus on operational excellence efforts across all occasions to enhance quality, service and mix. Equally important, we overcame disruptions late in the quarter from Hurricane Helen to ensure superior fuel rates to our key customers. Case Ready benefited from increased protein demand throughout retail. Interest in chicken was amplified given the reduction in price of chicken that created new record spreads between ground beef and boneless, skinless breast.

鑑於雞肉的可承受性和我們多元化的產品組合，我們的團隊處於有利地位，可以為消費者釋放價值。為此，我們的團隊繼續專注於所有場合的卓越營運工作，以提高品質、服務和組合。同樣重要的是，我們克服了本季末颶風海倫造成的干擾，確保為我們的主要客戶提供優越的燃油價格。Case Ready 受益於整個零售業蛋白質需求的增加。由於雞肉價格下降，碎牛肉和去骨去皮雞胸肉之間的價差創下新紀錄，人們對雞肉的興趣被放大。

Furthermore, our approach with key customers adapted to reflect changes in input costs, creating opportunities for additional investments in promotional activity, generating more demand.

此外，我們與主要客戶的合作方式適應了投入成本的變化，為促銷活動的額外投資創造了機會，從而產生了更多的需求。

Our Case Ready business grew together with our key customers as increased distribution and continued consumer interest in our differentiated higher attribute offerings drove volumes ahead of fresh category averages.

隨著分銷的增加和消費者對我們差異化的高屬性產品的持續興趣，我們的開箱業務與我們的主要客戶一起成長，推動銷量超過新鮮類別的平均水平。

In Small Birds, QSR demand for chicken continue to grow with better penetration despite softening traffic throughout foodservice, whereas deli remain the fastest-growing category in retail. When these factors are combined with expansion of our key customers, along with improvements in operational excellence, Small Bird grew significantly compared to last year. In Big Bird, we continue to drive huge improvements from capital investments and team member retention and training. These efforts were further aided by mix enhancements throughout our facilities and across our customer base. When these efforts are combined with strong commodity cutout values, along with the reduction in input costs, our business improved considerably from depressed margins last year.

在小禽類中，儘管整個餐飲服務業的客流量有所疲軟，但快餐對雞肉的需求仍以更好的滲透率繼續增長，而熟食店仍然是零售業增長最快的類別。當這些因素與我們主要客戶的擴張以及卓越營運的改進相結合時，小鳥與去年相比實現了顯著增長。在 Big Bird，我們繼續透過資本投資、團隊成員保留和培訓來推動巨大改進。我們整個設施和整個客戶群的混合增強進一步促進了這些努力。當這些努力與強勁的商品切分價值以及投入成本的降低相結合時，我們的業務從去年低迷的利潤率中得到了顯著改善。

Our prepared foods continue to gain momentum. We have expanded our marketplace presence and diversification throughout retail, deli and foodservice, driven by incremental distribution and leading consumer innovation.

我們的預製食品持續保持強勁勢頭。在增量分銷和領先消費者創新的推動下，我們在零售、熟食和餐飲服務領域擴大了市場影響力和多元化。

Commerce continued to play a role as digital sales increased by 32% compared to prior year. In Europe, we have completed a variety of actions to enhance our agility and innovation capabilities to further cultivate partnerships with key customers. As part of these efforts, we have increased our integration and synergies throughout the diversified portfolio across protein and channels.

商務繼續發揮作用，數位銷售額較上年增長 32%。在歐洲，我們已經完成了各種行動來增強我們的敏捷性和創新能力，以進一步培養與主要客戶的合作關係。作為這些努力的一部分，我們增強了跨蛋白質和管道的多元化產品組合的整合和協同作用。

On fresh offerings, we have strong presence in poultry, pork, and lamb. These segments constitute roughly 1/3 of overall net sales in Europe. Poultry is the largest with approximately 2/3 of the segment's net sales. We are a major player in the retail value-added and prepared segment, with UK leading brands such as Richmond and innovative protein snacking brands with Fridge Raiders, and we are a category leader in both the chilled and frozen meals business. Taken together, this business comprises nearly half of the total net sales in Europe.

在新鮮產品方面，我們在家禽、豬肉和羊肉方面佔有重要地位。這些細分市場約佔歐洲總體淨銷售額的 1/3。家禽是最大的細分市場，約佔該細分市場淨銷售額的 2/3。我們是零售增值和預製食品的主要參與者，擁有 Richmond 等英國領先品牌和 Fridge Raiders 等創新蛋白質零食品牌，並且我們是冷藏和冷凍食品業務的類別領導者。總的來說，該業務佔歐洲總淨銷售額的近一半。

Foodservice is the third part of our business. It includes a variety of frozen and prepared offerings, designed to meet the needs for retail deli, leading QSRs and other distribution channels.

餐飲服務是我們業務的第三部分。它包括各種冷凍和預製產品，旨在滿足零售熟食店、領先的快餐店和其他分銷管道的需求。

Turning to the consumer. Confidence improved year-over-year as wage growth continues to outplace inflation, helping our branded products to continue to grow faster than category averages. Demand for offerings in poultry and chilled meals outpaced total retail growth, whereas demand in pork, both fresh and prepared, continue to lag. Within foodservice, sales have not yet returned to pre-COVID levels, nonetheless, consumers are becoming increasingly interesting food-away-from-home options as average spend frequency per week and participation rates have all increased over past year.

轉向消費者。隨著薪資成長持續超過通膨，信心逐年提高，幫助我們的品牌產品繼續以高於類別平均的速度成長。對家禽和冷鮮食品的需求超過了零售總額的成長，而對新鮮和預製豬肉的需求則持續落後。在餐飲服務領域，銷售額尚未恢復到新冠疫情前的水平，儘管如此，隨著過去一年中每周平均消費頻率和參與率均有所增加，消費者對外出就餐的選擇越來越感興趣。

Our diversified portfolio across brands, proteins and prepared items benefit from these trends. Sales of our branded offerings increased 7% from last year as Fridge Raiders and Richmond continue to grow faster than category average. Similarly, our poultry and chilled meals offering grew ahead of the market. In pork, we have secured several new awards in bacon, cooked meats and sausages across retail and foodservice. We have complemented this diversification efforts through continued expansion of our exports business in both pork, poultry and lamb.

我們跨品牌、蛋白質和預製食品的多元化產品組合受益於這些趨勢。由於 Fridge Raiders 和 Richmond 的成長速度持續快於同類產品的平均水平，我們品牌產品的銷售額比去年增長了 7%。同樣，我們的家禽和冷凍食品產品的成長領先於市場。在豬肉方面，我們在零售和餐飲服務領域的培根、熟肉和香腸領域獲得了多項新獎項。我們透過不斷擴大豬肉、家禽和羊肉的出口業務來補充這種多元化的努力。

To that end, we now have over 150 clients, opened 18 additional markets and increased our customer base by 53%.

為此，我們現在擁有 150 多個客戶，另外開闢了 18 個市場，客戶群增加了 53%。

We continue to cultivate our innovation pipeline to enhance mix and drive profitable growth. During the quarter, we launched over 280 new products, many of which received awards from various leading retailers for best product, quality and innovation. Our efforts to unlock value from our manufacturing network optimization and integration of our corporate support activities continue to remain on track as we have realized the anticipated benefits.

我們持續培育創新管道，以增強產品組合併推動獲利成長。本季度，我們推出了 280 多種新產品，其中許多產品獲得了多家領先零售商頒發的最佳產品、品質和創新獎。我們透過製造網路優化和企業支援活動整合來釋放價​​值的努力繼續保持在正軌上，因為我們已經實現了預期的效益。

Moving forward, we will continue to evaluate additional opportunities to enhance our production efficiencies and drive a more innovative, agile and responsive organization to meet customer and key customer needs.

展望未來，我們將繼續評估其他機會，以提高我們的生產效率，並推動組織更加創新、敏捷和響應迅速，以滿足客戶和關鍵客戶的需求。

In Mexico, we experienced some market volatility as chicken demand follow typical seasonal changes, combined with some disruptions from hurricanes during the late September. In fresh, we experienced significant key customer growth above category in both retail and foodservice. Our branded efforts continue to gain momentum as sales from Pilgrim's and Favoritos grew 20% and 60%, respectively. Just BARE has realized similar success as sales are up nearly 30% from previous quarter. We continue to diversify our portfolio through value-added as sales increased 7% compared to last year.

在墨西哥，我們經歷了一些市場波動，因為雞肉需求遵循典型的季節性變化，再加上九月底颶風的一些幹擾。在生鮮領域，我們在零售和餐飲服務領域的關鍵客戶成長顯著。我們的品牌努力繼續獲得動力，Pilgrim's 和 Favoritos 的銷售額分別成長了 20% 和 60%。Just BARE 也取得了類似的成功，銷售額比上一季成長了近 30%。我們持續透過增值來實現產品組合多元化，銷售額比去年增長了 7%。

Pilgrim's branded prepared offerings also had the most momentum as sales grew almost 40% compared to last year.

Pilgrim 的品牌預製產品也表現強勁，銷售額與去年相比成長了近 40%。

Our investments in operational excellence to expand capacity and mitigate operational risk remain on track. We ramp up up our production in Merida and relocation of our breeder farms continue to proceed as planned. We also supported the continued growth of our prepared business in part fry and fully cook offerings through building new capacity.

我們為擴大產能和降低營運風險而對卓越營運進行的投資仍在按計劃進行。我們提高了梅里達的產量，並且種雞場的搬遷繼續按計劃進行。我們也透過建立新產能來支持部分油炸和完全煮熟產品業務的持續成長。

Earlier this year, this week, we published our 2023 sustainability report to provide an update on our efforts to become an industry leader in environment, social and governance matters. We continue to embed sustainability as a core component to our overall business strategy as means to drive a more robust food system through industry-leading initiatives. To that end, we have decreased our absolute Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 17% since 2019, and now we use over 14% renewable electricity in our global operations.

今年早些時候，也就是本週，我們發布了 2023 年永續發展報告，提供了我們努力成為環境、社會和治理領域行業領導者的最新資訊。我們繼續將永續發展作為我們整體業務策略的核心組成部分，以此作為透過業界領先的舉措推動更強大的食品系統的手段。為此，自 2019 年以來，我們已將範圍 1 和範圍 2 的絕對排放量減少了 17%，現在我們在全球營運中使用了超過 14% 的可再生電力。

We have also certified 100% of our facilities in the United States and Europe according to the GFSI standards by independent third parties and improved our global safety index performance by 24% since 2022. Our better future programs continue to be exceptionally well received as over 1,500 team members have signed up for the program since inception.

我們還根據獨立第三方的 GFSI 標準對我們在美國和歐洲的設施進行了 100% 的認證，自 2022 年以來，我們的全球安全指數表現提高了 24%。我們的「更美好未來」計畫繼續受到熱烈歡迎，自該計畫啟動以來已有 1,500 多名團隊成員報名參加。

With that, I'd like to ask our CFO, Matt Galvanoni, to discuss our financial results.

說到這裡，我想請我們的財務長 Matt Galvanoni 討論我們的財務表現。

Thank you, Fabio. Good morning, everyone. For the third quarter of 2024, net revenues were $4.58 billion versus $4.36 billion a year ago, with adjusted EBITDA of $660.4 million and a margin of 14.4% compared to $324 million and a 7.4% margin in Q3 last year. Relative to net revenues, we experienced year-over-year sales growth of approximately 12% in the US in the quarter, driven by higher commodity chicken pricing and growth with our key customers in case-ready and Small Bird.

謝謝你，法比奧。大家早安。2024 年第三季度，淨收入為 45.8 億美元，去年同期為 43.6 億美元，調整後 EBITDA 為 6.604 億美元，利潤率為 14.4%，而去年第三季為 3.24 億美元，利潤率為 7.4%。相對於淨收入，本季我們在美國的銷售額同比增長約 12%，這得益於商品雞肉定價的上漲以及我們的主要客戶即裝即用雞肉和小鳥的增長。

Mexico's revenues were down year-over-year due to the decrease in market pricing for chicken. In Europe, year-over-year net revenues were essentially flat. As we have discussed in the past, in both the US and Europe, many of our contracts have some level of cost-plus element. As such, with declining key input costs, our top line sales number will be reduced accordingly.

由於雞肉市場價格下降，墨西哥的收入較去年同期下降。在歐洲，淨收入比去年同期基本持平。正如我們過去所討論的，在美國和歐洲，我們的許多合約都具有一定程度的成本加成因素。因此，隨著關鍵投入成本的下降，我們的營收數字將會隨之減少。

Adjusted EBITDA margins in Q3 were 18% in the US compared to 7% a year ago. For our Europe business, adjusted EBITDA margins came in at 8.6% for Q3 compared to 6.1% last year. In Mexico, adjusted EBITDA margins in Q3 were 9.7% versus 12.4% a year ago.

美國第三季調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 18%，而一年前為 7%。對於我們的歐洲業務，第三季調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 8.6%，而去年為 6.1%。在墨西哥，第三季調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 9.7%，而去年同期為 12.4%。

Moving to the US Our adjusted EBITDA for Q3 came in at $499.4 million compared to $174.1 million a year ago. Year-over-year recovery in the commodity chicken markets, along with lower grain input costs and continued operational improvements, drove strong year-over-year profitability improvement in our Big Bird business. Our case-ready Small Bird and Prepared Foods businesses have continued their momentum with increased distribution with key customers, driving both year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter profitability improvements.

轉向美國 我們第三季調整後的 EBITDA 為 4.994 億美元，去年同期為 1.741 億美元。商品雞市場的同比復甦，加上穀物投入成本的降低和營運的持續改善，推動了我們的大鳥業務同比強勁的盈利能力改善。我們的現成小鳥和預製食品業務繼續保持成長勢頭，增加了對主要客戶的分銷，推動了同比和環比盈利能力的提高。

In our US GAAP results related to specific financial impacts from Hurricane Helene in the quarter, we did incur $8 million of charges primarily related to writing down inventory lost in the store. Also, we recorded a $10.7 million charge in the quarter associated with the termination and settlement of our US pension plans. We anticipate that we will incur an additional approximate $14 million charge in the fourth quarter when the settlement of the US pension liabilities is finalized. Note that the cash outlay for this settlement is anticipated to be less than $1 million.

在我們與本季度海倫颶風的具體財務影響相關的美國公認會計準則結果中，我們確實產生了 800 萬美元的費用，主要與減記商店庫存損失有關。此外，我們在本季度記錄了與美國退休金計劃的終止和結算相關的 1,070 萬美元費用。我們預計，當美國退休金負債的結算完成後，我們將在第四季額外產生約 1,400 萬美元的費用。請注意，此次和解的現金支出預計不到 100 萬美元。

In Europe, adjusted EBITDA in Q3 was $112 million versus $80.4 million last year. Our European business took another step in its profitability growth journey through focus on key customer partnerships and innovative offerings. The business has also benefited from its network optimization programs and administrative reorganization efforts. We incurred approximately $30.8 million of restructuring charges during the quarter in support of these programs.

在歐洲，第三季調整後 EBITDA 為 1.12 億美元，而去年為 8,040 萬美元。透過專注於關鍵客戶合作夥伴關係和創新產品，我們的歐洲業務在獲利成長之旅中又邁出了一步。該業務也受益於其網路優化計劃和行政重組工作。為了支持這些計劃，本季我們產生了約 3,080 萬美元的重組費用。

We anticipate that restructuring activities will continue through at least the end of the year. Mexico generated $49 million in adjusted EBITDA in Q3 compared to $69.5 million last year. Although Mexico had strong EBITDA margins approaching 10% in the quarter, profitability decreased year-over-year primarily due to more normal seasonal trends this year. Relative to our SG&A costs, we incurred higher year-over-year advertising and marketing costs in support of our branded products in the quarter. Our effective tax rate for the quarter was 27.3%, with our year-to-date effective rate of 25%, which we expect to approximate our full year effective tax rate.

我們預計重組活動至少將持續到今年年底。墨西哥第三季調整後 EBITDA 為 4,900 萬美元，去年為 6,950 萬美元。儘管墨西哥本季的 EBITDA 利潤率接近 10%，但獲利能力較去年同期下降，主要是由於今年季節性趨勢更為正常。相對於我們的銷售管理費用，我們在本季度為支持我們的品牌產品而產生了同比更高的廣告和行銷成本。我們本季的有效稅率為 27.3%，年初至今的有效稅率為 25%，我們預計該稅率將接近全年有效稅率。

We have a strong balance sheet, and we continue to emphasize cash flows from operating activities, management of working capital and disciplined investment in high-return projects. As of the end of Q3, our net debt totaled $1.3 billion with a leverage ratio of approximately 0.65x our last 12 months adjusted EBITDA.

我們擁有強大的資產負債表，並繼續強調經營活動產生的現金流量、營運資本管理以及對高回報項目的嚴格投資。截至第三季末，我們的淨債務總額為 13 億美元，槓桿比率約為過去 12 個月調整後 EBITDA 的 0.65 倍。

Net interest expense for the quarter totaled $19.5 million. Excluding the impacts of any net gains or losses on debt repurchases that occurred during the year, we anticipate our full year net interest expense to be between $90 million and $95 million.

該季度的淨利息支出總計 1,950 萬美元。排除年內發生的債務回購淨收益或損失的影響，我們預計全年淨利息支出將在 9,000 萬美元至 9,500 萬美元之間。

At the end of the quarter, we had nearly $3 billion in total cash and available credit, driven by the strong free cash flow generation during the year. We have no short-term immediate cash requirements, with our bonds maturing between 2031 and 2034, and our US credit facility not expiring until 2028. Our liquidity position provides us flexibility during times of volatility in the US commodity markets, and allows us to pursue our growth strategy, including organic growth to meet our customers -- our key customers' needs.

截至本季末，在年內強勁的自由現金流產生的推動下，我們擁有近 30 億美元的現金和可用信貸總額。我們沒有短期即時現金需求，我們的債券將於 2031 年至 2034 年到期，而我們的美國信貸安排要到 2028 年才會到期。我們的流動性狀況為我們在美國商品市場波動期間提供了靈活性，並使我們能夠追求我們的成長策略，包括有機成長以滿足我們的客戶——我們的主要客戶的需求。

We spent $104 million in CapEx in the third quarter. This amount of cash spend in the quarter is considerably less than forecasted. However, we are continuing with our plan to pursue additional capital projects with attractive returns through the end of the year and into 2025. These projects are focused on optimizing our product mix, growing with our key customers to meet specific product attributes they require, increasing operational efficiencies and supporting our sustainability efforts. These projects are seen as growing Pilgrim's competitive advantage.

第三季我們的資本支出為 1.04 億美元。本季的現金支出遠低於預期。然而，我們將繼續執行我們的計劃，在年底和 2025 年之前尋求更多具有吸引力回報的資本項目。這些項目的重點是優化我們的產品組合，與我們的主要客戶一起成長，以滿足他們所需的特定產品屬性，提高營運效率並支持我們的永續發展努力。這些項目被視為不斷增強 Pilgrim 的競爭優勢。

Our capital project review process is very detailed. And as such, it takes time for larger projects to commence. We will remain disciplined in our capital allocation approach and our cash management and will proceed with our plan in a prudent manner.

我們的資本項目審查流程非常詳細。因此，大型專案的啟動需要時間。我們將繼續遵守資本配置方法和現金管理紀律，並以審慎的方式推進我們的計劃。

We now estimate our full year CapEx spend to approximately $475 million. We are intently focused on growth opportunities. First, over the last few years, we've invested in our plans to meet both growth targets and product attributes requested by our key customers, and we will continue to do so as we cultivate these relationships. Also, we foresee investments in additional protein conversion capacity to both upgrade our product mix and manage risk by reducing our exposure to outside protein conversion operators.

我們現在估計全年資本支出約為 4.75 億美元。我們專注於成長機會。首先，在過去幾年中，我們對計劃進行了投資，以滿足主要客戶的成長目標和產品屬性要求，並且在培養這些關係的過程中我們將繼續這樣做。此外，我們預計將投資額外的蛋白質轉化能力，以升級我們的產品組合併透過減少與外部蛋白質轉化運營商的接觸來管理風險。

Finally, as we've discussed extensively, our US prepared foods business has grown our branded portfolio through innovative and differentiated products, and we anticipate expanding our capacity to meet the growth trajectory of this of this portfolio. Also, we have a great business in Mexico and have organic growth opportunities in both fresh and prepared. These near-term growth opportunities align to our overall strategies of portfolio diversification, focus on key customers, operational excellence and our commitment to team member health and safety.

最後，正如我們廣泛討論的那樣，我們的美國預製食品業務透過創新和差異化的產品擴大了我們的品牌產品組合，我們預計將擴大我們的能力，以滿足該產品組合的成長軌跡。此外，我們在墨西哥有很好的業務，並且在新鮮和預製食品方面都有有機成長機會。這些近期成長機會與我們投資組合多元化、專注於關鍵客戶、卓越營運以及我們對團隊成員健康和安全的承諾的整體策略一致。

Operator, this concludes our prepared remarks. Please open the call for questions.

接線員，我們準備好的發言到此結束。請打開電話提問。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員說明）

Ben Theurer, Barclays.

本‧瑟雷爾，巴克萊銀行。

Congrats on another outstanding quarter here, first of all. First question really would be just around Europe and the strength that you're seeing here. I mean, obviously, the margin now adjusted EBITDA around about 8.5%, a nice improvement also versus just about a year ago, but also sequentially. Maybe help us understand what's -- what are you seeing in the market? Is it the combination of just all the restructuring that you've put in place that is helping you to get those better profitability levels?

首先，恭喜本季又取得了出色的表現。第一個問題實際上是關於歐洲以及你在這裡看到的實力。我的意思是，顯然，調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率現在約為 8.5%，與大約一年前相比，也是一個不錯的進步，而且也是連續的。也許可以幫助我們了解您在市場上看到了什麼？您所實施的所有重組是否能夠幫助您獲得更好的獲利水準？

Is it just the consumer that got better? Is it cost? What's driving it? And how should we think about it also going forward as like kind of a normalized margin environment, so Europe? That would be my first topic.

只是消費者變得更好了嗎？是成本嗎？是什麼在驅動它？我們該如何看待它的未來，就像一種正常化的利潤環境，那麼歐洲呢？這將是我的第一個主題。

And then I have a quick follow-up.

然後我會進行快速跟進。

Of course. And I think it's a combination of all of the above, of course. We are seeing consumer confidence increasing in Europe, as we mentioned, as the as the salaries are growing faster than inflation for the first time, I think in the past, over the last two years, we saw inflation growing over than the salary growth. So that was creating a compression on the spending for the consumer, especially on the utilities sector. Now we're seeing a deflation in Europe.

當然。當然，我認為這是上述所有內容的組合。正如我們所提到的，我們看到歐洲的消費者信心正在增強，因為薪資的成長速度首次超過了通貨膨脹，我認為在過去的兩年裡，我們看到通貨膨脹的成長超過了薪資的成長。因此，這壓縮了消費者的支出，尤其是公用事業部門的支出。現在我們看到歐洲出現通貨緊縮。

We're seeing utilities coming down, and we're seeing the price -- everyday prices of grocery and other spending going down. So again, we are seeing the confidence increasing. It's not at the same level as it was before, but it is increasing compared to last year.

我們看到公用事業費用下降，我們看到價格——雜貨和其他支出的日常價格也在下降。我們再次看到信心在增強。雖與去年不在同一水平，但與去年相比有所增加。

That is helping our portfolio, especially on the meals side and on the branded side. So consumers that they have more confidence, they are going back to some of the refrigerated meals where we are a leader in that market. Also, we are seeing the growth of our brands as consumers are coming back from spending more on brands and less on private label offerings.

這對我們的產品組合有幫助，特別是在餐飲方面和品牌方面。因此，消費者更有信心，他們會重新購買我們在市場上處於領先地位的一些冷藏食品。此外，我們看到我們品牌的成長，因為消費者開始在品牌上花費更多，而在自有品牌產品上花費更少。

I think also we are seeing in terms of cost and competitiveness that the chicken business, which is one of the largest components of our portfolio there, winning in the marketplace and continue to grow. And similar to everywhere in the world, we're seeing the decrease in prices of chicken because we have a lot of contracts in Europe that are connected to cost. So as we pass that advantage to the retailers, we are seeing the growth of the chicken, which is benefiting our portfolio.

我認為，就成本和競爭力而言，我們也看到雞肉業務（我們投資組合中最大的組成部分之一）在市場上獲勝並繼續成長。與世界各地類似，我們看到雞肉價格下降，因為我們在歐洲有很多與成本相關的合約。因此，當我們將這一優勢傳遞給零售商時，我們看到雞肉的成長，這有利於我們的投資組合。

And also different than in US that we will, for sure, talk about, consumers in Europe are coming back to foodservice. So we're seeing the foodservice market growing faster than what's happening or rebounding faster than what's happening in the US, and some of our key customers are experiencing some tremendous growth in the Foodservice segment.

與我們肯定會談論的美國不同的是，歐洲的消費者正在回歸餐飲服務。因此，我們看到餐飲服務市場的成長速度比美國的成長速度或反彈速度更快，而且我們的一些主要客戶正在經歷餐飲服務領域的巨大成長。

So the Foodservice segment in chicken is growing in Europe and the consumer confidence is helping with our portfolio. And of course, as we mentioned, we spent the last two years reorganizing our manufacturing network. We have some redundancies in some of our operations, especially slice cook meats some sausage production that we rationalized. And we created a structure with the central shared services that is both nimble and more efficient to help, as we said and we mentioned, more than 200 new products in terms of innovation with a lower cost to our key customers.

因此，雞肉食品服務領域在歐洲正在成長，消費者的信心正在幫助我們的產品組合。當然，正如我們所提到的，我們在過去兩年裡重組了我們的製造網絡。我們在一些業務中進行了一些裁員，特別是我們合理化的切片烹飪肉類和一些香腸生產。我們創建了一個具有中央共享服務的結構，正如我們所說和提到的，該結構既靈活又更有高效，可以幫助我們的主要客戶以更低的成本開發 200 多種新產品。

So that 8.5%, 9%, is that a good benchmark? Should we think about that could go forward as a good target level, probably?

那麼8.5%、9%是一個很好的基準嗎？我們是否應該考慮將其作為一個良好的目標水平繼續前進？

Yes, as we mentioned, I think that we always compare ourselves to the best on those regions, and that's what we're trying to do. And we see companies in Europe that could achieve that type of profitability, and we think that is what should be sustainable.

是的，正如我們所提到的，我認為我們總是將自己與這些地區最好的進行比較，這就是我們正在努力做的。我們看到歐洲的公司可以實現這種獲利能力，我們認為這應該是可持續的。

Ben, as we have said in the past that margins of 6% to 8%. And this quarter, our adjusted EBIT margin was 5.8%. So the team is really getting to those target levels.

Ben，正如我們過去所說，利潤率為 6% 到 8%。本季度，我們調整後的息稅前利潤率為 5.8%。所以團隊確實達到了這些目標水準。

Fantastic. And then on the US, and that's actually, you made a nice commentary in, and just wanted to talk about a little bit. The trends, what you're seeing with increased production, but then a little bit that foodservice weakness, as we go into the fourth quarter, that usually should be seasonally a little bit weaker, but we haven't seen much unlike pricing declines, it's holding in. Can you help us understand what you're seeing in the market? Why prices have been so stable from 3Q into 4Q so far?

極好的。然後關於美國，實際上，您做了很好的評論，只是想談一點。趨勢，你所看到的產量增加，但當我們進入第四季度時，餐飲服務會出現一些疲軟，通常應該季節性地減弱一些，但我們沒有看到與價格下降不同的情況，它正在堅持。您能幫助我們了解您在市場上看到的情況嗎？為什麼從第三季到第四季到目前為止價格一直如此穩定？

And a little bit what's your expectation on the demand side, retail versus foodservice in the nearer term 4Q and then heading into 1Q?

您對近期第四季和第一季的需求面、零售業與餐飲服務業的預期是什麼？

Sure, sure. Sure, Ben. I think the price stability that we are seeing in Q4 in relative terms, right? We always see some seasonality in the chicken prices, and we are seeing the cutout on the commodity value coming down from the levels that we had in Q3 is mostly because of the strong demand that we are seeing. I think I mentioned the foodservice and starting with foodservice, foodservice has been struggling with foot traffic.

當然，當然。當然，本。我認為我們在第四季度看到的價格穩定是相對而言的，對吧？我們總是看到雞肉價格有一定的季節性，我們看到商品價值從第三季的水平下降主要是因為我們看到了強勁的需求。我想我提到了餐飲服務，從餐飲服務開始，餐飲服務一直在與人流量作鬥爭。

But when we look at the chicken consumption in the foodservice, we've seen some increase in penetration and growth.

但當我們觀察餐飲服務中的雞肉消費時，我們發現滲透率和成長增加。

As a matter of fact, the overall foodservice growth in terms of volume of chicken is 4% higher than the same period last year. I think that 4%, there's a lot of growth in the noncommercial, as I mentioned, but even in the commercial, which is the QSRs and full-service restaurants, there is an increase of 2% in volume of chicken.

事實上，就雞肉數量而言，整體餐飲服務成長比去年同期高出 4%。正如我所提到的，我認為 4% 在非商業領域有很大增長，但即使在商業領域，即快餐店和全方位服務餐廳，雞肉數量也增長了 2%。

The segment that is really struggling is the full-service restaurants where the consumption of chicken in volume is down 0.8%. So overall, despite the struggle in foodservice in general in terms of traffic, we are seeing strong penetration of chicken, and we're seeing some strong demand there.

真正陷入困境的是全方位服務餐廳，其雞肉消費量下降了 0.8%。因此，總體而言，儘管餐飲服務在客流量方面總體上存在困難，但我們看到雞肉的強勁滲透，我們看到那裡有一些強勁的需求。

I think overall, the consumer is, as we mentioned, looking to stretch their budgets. And what's happening is the foot traffic that is lower in foodservice is moving to the retail. We're seeing more trips, albeit with smaller baskets, but we're seeing more trips to the retail. And the fresh category, I think the overall protein fresh category is winning. We saw an increase in fresh chicken of close to 3% in volume in retail.

我認為總的來說，正如我們所提到的，消費者正在尋求擴大預算。目前正在發生的情況是，餐飲服務業的客流量正在轉向零售業。我們看到更多的旅行，儘管購物籃較小，但我們看到更多的零售旅行。至於新鮮類別，我認為整體蛋白質新鮮類別正在獲勝。我們發現新鮮雞肉的零售量增加了近 3%。

And that strong retail, it is supporting the prices of breast meat in the commodity market. Because as we always have, during the summer, we have a lot of Big Bird meat commodity going to the retail market because of strong demand. And with that continuation, that is happening even during Q4.

而強勁的零售，正在支撐大宗商品市場的胸肉價格。因為一如既往，在夏季，由於需求強勁，我們有許多大鳥肉商品進入零售市場。隨著這種情況的持續，這種情況甚至在第四季也會發生。

So we're seeing some commodity products, Big Bird products going to the retail in the tray-pack area. So when you look at the jumbo cut out, it's very well supported right now despite a little bit lower than Q3, which is normal for this time of the year.

所以我們看到一些商品，大鳥產品進入托盤包裝區的零售店。因此，當你看到巨大的削減時，它現在得到了很好的支持，儘管比第三季度略低，這在一年中的這個時候是正常的。

Do you expect that to hold as into 1Q as expected and rebounding a little bit, right?

您是否預計這一情況會像預期的那樣持續到第一季並略有反彈，對嗎？

Yes. We'll also drill down into the supply, right? And I think the supply of chicken has been higher than the same period last year, but it is in line with the strong demand that we are seeing. And given the excess, the size of the layer flock, we expect to have a very balanced supply and demand. And as you mentioned, the prices over the last two weeks have been steady, which is not the seasonality we expected for this time of the year.

是的。我們還將深入研究供應情況，對吧？我認為雞肉的供應量高於去年同期，但這與我們看到的強勁需求相符。考慮到過剩的蛋雞群規模，我們預計供應和需求將非常平衡。正如您所提到的，過去兩週的價格一直穩定，這不是我們預期的每年這個時候的季節性。

Peter Galbo, Bank of America.

彼得‧加爾博，美國銀行。

Can you hear me okay?

你聽得到我說話嗎？

We can now. Thanks.

我們現在可以了。謝謝。

Fabio, just one question for me on particularly around US price realization in the quarter. I think pricing was up about 10%. You spoke about retail prices being down, I think, in the mid-single digits. Obviously, we can kind of all see what the commodity market did.

法比奧，我想問一個問題，特別是關於本季美國價格實現的問題。我認為價格上漲了約 10%。我認為你談到零售價格下降了個位數。顯然，我們都可以看到大宗商品市場的表現。

And so that implies some maybe improvement in what's happened in Small Bird pricing kind of as the fallout. So I was hoping you could expand a little bit on what you saw Small Bird in the quarter as it relates to price, just given that's probably the hardest piece of the business for us to track externally? And I know that, that ties a lot into your key customers, but any broad comments there on Small Bird pricing would be very helpful.

因此，這意味著小鳥定價方面可能會有所改善，就像其後果一樣。因此，我希望您能詳細介紹您在本季看到的 Small Bird 與價格相關的情況，因為這可能是我們外部追蹤的最困難的業務部分？我知道，這與您的主要客戶有很大關係，但是任何有關小鳥定價的廣泛評論都會非常有幫助。

Yes. Sure. On the Small Board pricing, what we are seeing, and it is connected to the trend that I mentioned on the foodservice. I think as consumers try to stretch their budgets and less trips to the foodservice, there is a component of the retail that is winning, which is the deli segment. I think if you look at the numbers in deli, the volumes are up close to 6% year-over-year.

是的。當然。關於小板定價，我們所看到的，它與我在餐飲服務中提到的趨勢有關。我認為，隨著消費者試圖擴大預算並減少前往餐飲服務的次數，零售業的一個組成部分正在獲勝，這就是熟食店領域。我想，如果你看一下熟食店的數據，你會發現銷量比去年同期成長了近 6%。

As I mentioned, our key customers are actually growing faster than that category with close to 14%. But as consumers move the traffic away from foodservice, they are going to the deli as well as a great substitute for a very convenient meal for their households. And chicken is a big portion of the deli. And the whole birds, especially for the Small Bird category, it is the largest part of this deli. So we're seeing the deli box growing really fast, and we're seeing strong demand for the Small Birds, which is translating to prices of the Small Birds or the wogs, right, as we call.

正如我所提到的，我們的主要客戶實際上成長速度比該類別更快，接近 14%。但隨著消費者將交通從餐飲服務轉移出來，他們會去熟食店，這對他們的家庭來說也是一種非常方便的膳食的絕佳替代品。雞肉是熟食店的很大一部分。而全鳥，尤其是小鳥類別，是這家熟食店最大的部分。因此，我們看到熟食店的成長非常快，而且我們看到對小鳥的強勁需求，這轉化為小鳥或我們所說的「wogs」的價格。

So I think that combined on the Small Bird category with the deboning for the QSRs, especially our key customers, that are the ones that continue to grow. We are seeing some strong demand for Small Birds. Of course, as we look into production, over the last, let's say, decade, we're seeing a reduction in the Small Bird production. For Q3, in terms of heads, the reduction was close to 4%, a little bit higher waste, but that doesn't affect too much the deli bird market. But we're seeing a reduction in supply.

因此，我認為，將小禽類與 QSR 剔骨結合，尤其是我們的關鍵客戶，將會繼續成長。我們看到對小型鳥類的強勁需求。當然，當我們研究產量時，在過去十年中，我們看到小鳥產量減少。第三季度，就頭而言，減少了接近4%，浪費稍高一些，但這並沒有對熟食鳥市場產生太大影響。但我們看到供應減少。

So the supply/demand structure for the Small Bird is very well supported.

因此，小鳥的供需結構得到了很好的支持。

That's actually super, super helpful. If I can just click in on that a bit more. So if I'm hearing you correctly, as it pertains to deli, the consumer insight that you're seeing, is essentially that rotisserie birds or small birds and the deli are a more convenient meal option maybe at that $5 price point, and that's what you're observing the consumer, at least within the box. If they're going into the grocery channel from a QSR even within the box, they're translating into deli. I just want to make sure that I understand --

這實際上非常非常有幫助。如果我能再點擊一下就好了。因此，如果我沒聽錯的話，就熟食店而言，您所看到的消費者洞察本質上是烤雞或小鳥，而熟食店可能是更方便的用餐選擇，也許在5 美元的價格點上，那就是你觀察到的消費者是什麼，至少在盒子裡。如果他們從快餐店進入食品雜貨管道，即使在盒子裡，他們也會轉化為熟食店。我只是想確保我理解--

No, that's exactly right. It is a very convenient meal, it's very avoidable, and easy fix for the family.

不，完全正確。這是一頓非常方便的飯菜，是可以避免的，而且對於家庭來說很容易解決。

Andrew Strelzik, BMO.

安德魯‧斯特雷齊克 (Andrew Strelzik)，BMO。

I was hoping you could maybe share some color on how the recent hurricanes in the Southeast and Florida are impacting supply/demand, and how you expect that to play out from here? And maybe if you could give us an update on the status or impact to your plants and operations? I know you called out some of the charges, but just specifically operationally kind of how that's playing out?

我希望您能分享一些關於最近東南部和佛羅裡達州的颶風如何影響供應/需求的信息，以及您預計這種情況將如何發展？也許您可以向我們介紹一下您的工廠和營運的最新狀況或影響嗎？我知道你提出了一些指控，但只是具體操作上是如何進行的？

And I guess, Lastly, within that, I appreciate all the color on the demand side, which sounds really great. But I was just wondering if you think some of that supply disruption from the hurricanes could be contributing to that recent stabilization or maybe I'm making too much of that?

我想，最後，我很欣賞需求方的所有顏色，這聽起來真的很棒。但我只是想知道你是否認為颶風造成的供應中斷可能有助於最近的穩定，或者也許我對此誇大了？

Yes. Okay. Thank you, Andrew. Yes. No, first of all, we will believe that all of our team members were safe.

是的。好的。謝謝你，安德魯。是的。不，首先，我們會相信我們所有的團隊成員都是安全的。

Despite that there was a direct hit from the hurricanes Helane and Milton in two of our communities, it was Liveoak, Florida, and Douglas, Georgia. So just on how we prepare for those and those -- this is not our first hurricane, right? We have many of them hitting our operations in the past especially because we have a lot of operations in the South. So we have a preparedness plan. That includes the preventive shutdowns, of course, to help our team members.

儘管海蘭和米爾頓颶風直接襲擊了我們的兩個社區，即佛羅裡達州利奧克和喬治亞州道格拉斯。那麼，關於我們如何為這些做好準備——這不是我們的第一次颶風，對吧？過去，我們的業務受到了許多影響，特別是因為我們在南方有很多業務。所以我們有一個準備計劃。當然，這包括預防性關閉，以幫助我們的團隊成員。

And in many of our locations, we have emergency generators and fuel tanks. We have (inaudible)crews, and we have several trailers of supplies located around in strategic positions to be used in case of need.

在我們的許多地點，我們都有緊急發電機和油箱。我們有（聽不清楚）工作人員，並且我們在戰略位置周圍有幾輛物資拖車，以備需要時使用。

Our facilities were not directly impacted by the hurricanes. We have minor damage from those hurricanes, but the issue has been on the partner growers. Many of them were severely impacted, especially on the Douglas, Georgia, area and many houses were totally destroyed, not only for us, but some in the industry, as I mentioned.

我們的設施沒有直接受到颶風的影響。這些颶風對我們造成了輕微損害，但問題在於合作種植者。其中許多受到嚴重影響，特別是在喬治亞州道格拉斯地區，許多房屋被完全摧毀，不僅對我們而言，而且對行業中的一些人來說也是如此，正如我所提到的。

I think also, it was really important to say that many of these growers were out of electricity for several days.

我還認為，非常重要的是，許多種植者已經停電好幾天了。

We were impacted, again, like I mentioned, especially in Douglas, but we were able to rebalance our production to other facilities. We have 23 operating facilities, and we maintain an excellent level of service to our key customers. So there was no disruption to our key customers.

正如我所提到的，我們再次受到影響，尤其是在道格拉斯，但我們能夠將生產重新平衡到其他設施。我們擁有 23 個營運設施，並為主要客戶提供卓越的服務水準。因此，我們的主要客戶沒有受到干擾。

What will take time, it is to build this grow out base back to 100% again. We believe it'll take from 9 months to 12 months for that grow out base to be rebuilt. To help it, we have engaged with the local congressmen and the Georgia Air Commissioner because these growers need financial assistance to rebuild their housing. We also put a crew together to help them with design and to building as soon as we have the financial assistance.

需要時間的是讓這個種植基地再次恢復到 100%。我們認為重建種植基地需要 9 個月到 12 個月的時間。為了幫助實現這一目標，我們與當地國會議員和喬治亞州空軍專員進行了接觸，因為這些種植者需要財政援助來重建他們的住房。一旦我們獲得財政援助，我們也會組建一個工作人員來幫助他們設計和建造。

We also helped the impact communities with basic supplies, like I mentioned on the trailers and supplies that we have. And I want to to shout out to our key retailers -- key customer retailers that they help us with those suppliers, and we were able to help the communities in need. And we are also committing to a $1 million the necessary repairs in the Douglas community. As Matt mentioned, we included a $9 million loss, mainly the loss of live birds in inventory in our financials.

我們也為影響社區提供了基本物資，就像我在我們擁有的拖車和物資中提到的那樣。我想向我們的主要零售商——主要客戶零售商大聲疾呼，他們幫助我們與這些供應商合作，我們能夠幫助有需要的社區。我們也承諾投入 100 萬美元對道格拉斯社區進行必要的維修。正如馬特所提到的，我們在財務報表中計入了 900 萬美元的損失，主要是庫存中活禽的損失。

As how much that is impacting the market, I think during that week, I think we have a little reduction in the overall production. But at the same time, we also have disruptions from the consumer, right? A lot of operations, retail, foodservice were down during that we, some even for weeks without electricity. So we saw an impact in demand as well. For the foreseeable future, let's say, for the next months, I think the industry has enough capacity to support the growth.

至於這對市場的影響有多大，我認為在那一周，我們的整體產量略有減少。但同時，我們也受到了來自消費者的干擾，對嗎？在此期間，許多業務、零售、餐飲服務都中斷了，有些甚至連續數週斷電。所以我們也看到了需求的影響。在可預見的未來，比如說接下來的幾個月，我認為該產業有足夠的能力來支持成長。

I think we will continues to rebuild those houses. So I don't expect a significant impact into the marketplace because of the hurricane. Of course, there was disruptions during that week, but we saw some companies [killing] on Saturdays to recover from the days that they were down. We were going to see a little bit of reduction in Douglas facility, but we are redirecting production from other facilities to make sure that we have -- we don't have a significant impact into our key customers and to do the community in Douglas.

我認為我們將繼續重建這些房屋。因此，我預計颶風不會對市場產生重大影響。當然，那一周確實出現了中斷，但我們看到一些公司在周六進行了裁員，以從低迷的日子中恢復過來。我們將看到道格拉斯工廠的產量略有減少，但我們正在重新調整其他工廠的生產，以確保我們不會對我們的主要客戶和道格拉斯社區產生重大影響。

And I guess, just quickly following up on that last point before I ask my other question. That would then not really -- just from a utilization rate perspective or what have you, would not really impact your margin capture either. I just want to confirm that.

我想，在我問其他問題之前，請先快速跟進最後一點。那麼，僅僅從利用率的角度來看，這也不會真正影響你的利潤獲取。我只是想確認一下。

Yes. We. I think we will redirect. Of course, Douglas will need to have lower volumes for a while. But we can redirect some chicks from and chickens from our nearby locations.

是的。我們。我想我們會重定向。當然，道格拉斯在一段時間內需要降低產量。但我們可以從附近的地點轉移一些小雞和雞。

So we'll maintain a level of utilization in Douglas that will makes sense for all team members and our production there.

因此，我們將保持道格拉斯的利用率水平，這對所有團隊成員和我們在那裡的生產都有意義。

Got it. Okay. That's extremely helpful. And then my other question on the topic of capital allocation. Can you just maybe review again how you're thinking about your capital allocation priorities?

知道了。好的。這非常有幫助。然後是我關於資本配置主題的另一個問題。您能否再次回顧一下您是如何考慮資本配置優先事項的？

Obviously, the cash balance continues to grow very nicely. How much cash do you need on the balance sheet to run the business? And maybe if you could talk about what, if I believe the CapEx number for this year comes down a little bit and you're looking at some internal growth projects, how CapEx next year might shape up?

顯然，現金餘額繼續快速成長。您的資產負債表上需要多少現金來經營業務？也許您可以談談，如果我相信今年的資本支出數字會下降一點，並且您正在考慮一些內部成長項目，那麼明年的資本支出可能會如何形成？

No, okay. And just in terms of how much cash we need to run the business is, of course, much less than what we have today. But -- so looking into all options to create shareholder value, right? I think the option that we believe can create the most in the long term is to continue to grow our company. And we can go into the details of our growth strategy.

不，好吧。當然，就我們經營業務所需的現金而言，遠遠少於我們今天擁有的現金。但是——所以要考慮創造股東價值的所有選擇，對嗎？我認為，從長遠來看，我們認為能夠創造最大價值的選擇是繼續發展我們的公司。我們可以詳細討論我們的成長策略。

I think Matt already mentioned, we are seeing a lot of opportunities with key customers. We mentioned the growth in the retail that has been phenomenal. Our growth is much higher than the industry average. While the industry increased by 3% in the fresh category, our Pilgrim's grew 17% in the retail category, which is a great statement to how much value we are creating in terms of differentiated offerings and the key customer quality and service.

我想馬特已經提到過，我們在關鍵客戶身上看到了很多機會。我們提到零售業的驚人成長。我們的成長遠高於行業平均。雖然生鮮品類產業成長了 3%，但我們的 Pilgrim's 零售品類成長了 17%，這很好地說明了我們在差異化產品以及關鍵客戶品質和服務方面創造了多少價值。

So we see tremendous opportunity there. We're also seeing the growth of the prepared foods. The frozen fully cooked area in the retail is growing close to 10% and Pilgrim's is growing close to 18%. It's once again because of the innovation, the partnership with key customers, because of the growth of our Just BARE brand. So we're seeing a lot of opportunities in organic growth in the prepared foods as well.

所以我們在那裡看到了巨大的機會。我們也看到預製食品的成長。零售業的冷凍全熟食品面積增加了近 10%，而 Pilgrim's 則增加了近 18%。這再次歸功於創新、與主要客戶的合作關係、以及我們 Just BARE 品牌的成長。因此，我們在預製食品中也看到了許多有機成長的機會。

And also, there is acquisitions. We are seeing some M&A activity, especially outside US, mainly in Mexico and Europe, where we can improve our portfolio and reduce the volatility of our results.

此外，還有收購。我們看到一些併購活動，特別是在美國以外的地區，主要是在墨西哥和歐洲，在那裡我們可以改善我們的投資組合併減少結果的波動性。

So we have a great growth strategy that can create value for the shareholders on the long run.

因此，我們有一個偉大的成長策略，長遠來看可以為股東創造價值。

Now in the short term, given the excess cash that we have, we're also looking for opportunities. We have some acquisition of debt that we did in the past because of the difference in yields. We thought that, that opportunity is not as great today. Of course, we have share buybacks. But I think given the liquidity that we have in the marketplace is also limited, and we have special dividends.

現在，從短期來看，鑑於我們擁有多餘的現金，我們也在尋找機會。由於收益率的差異，我們過去收購了一些債務。我們認為，今天的機會並不那麼好。當然，我們有股票回購。但我認為考慮到我們市場上的流動性也有限，而且我們有特別股息。

And as we have those discussions at our Board, we are seeing opportunity for dividends for the future as well.

當我們在董事會進行這些討論時，我們也看到了未來股利的機會。

Heather Jones, Heather Jones Research LLC.

希瑟瓊斯，希瑟瓊斯研究有限責任公司。

Congratulations from a great quarter. I had a couple of questions on the production side. And I guess I wanted to follow up on the Helen impact. So your US volumes were up about 1.5% during Q3.

來自偉大季度的祝賀。我在製作方面有幾個問題。我想我想跟進海倫的影響。因此，第三季你們在美國的銷量成長了約 1.5%。

But given the impact of Douglas, and I know you all are moving checks around to keep that plant running, but how should we think about your production growth in Q4 given that you're having a new check around, clearly, there's some impact on supply. So just how should we think about that for you guys in Q4? I know you're comping against an extra week, but adjusted for that?

但考慮到道格拉斯的影響，我知道你們都在進行檢查以保持工廠運行，但考慮到你們正在進行新的檢查，顯然，我們應該如何考慮第四季度的產量增長，這對供應。那麼，我們該如何在第四季為你們考慮這個問題呢？我知道你正在爭取額外一周的時間，但對此進行了調整嗎？

Yes. Like I mentioned, I think the big impact to us in Q4, we have -- in Douglas, we stay close to a week down at the beginning of the quarter, and that impacted the volumes -- will impact the volumes for the quarter, for sure. And we have some damage to the hatchery, which we lost a lot of chicks in the hatchery. So I think that is the biggest impact that we have. As we mentioned, we lost a lot of houses in that region.

是的。就像我提到的，我認為第四季度對我們的巨大影響，我們在道格拉斯，我們在季度初保持了近一周的下降，這影響了銷量，將影響本季度的銷量，一定。我們的孵化場受到了一些損壞，導致我們在孵化場失去了很多雛雞。所以我認為這是我們最大的影響。正如我們所提到的，我們在該地區失去了許多房屋。

I think the industry lost maybe close to what we lost. So we will see some reduction in Douglas total production. But as I mentioned, we will try to reduce our time first in some of the houses. We have an optimal all-time that maintain -- we can reduce. So we will gain some of this square footage back, we will rebuild the houses.

我認為這個行業的損失可能接近我們的損失。因此，我們將看到道格拉斯總產量減少。但正如我所提到的，我們將首先嘗試減少在某些房屋中的時間。我們有一個可以維持的歷史最佳水平——我們可以減少。因此，我們將收回一些面積，我們將重建房屋。

For sure, I know you're asking about the specific Q4. But I think over the long term, over the next 6, 9, 12 months, we will rebuild this housing.

當然，我知道你問的是具體的第四季。但我認為從長遠來看，在接下來的 6、9、12 個月內，我們將重建這棟房屋。

But I think more important, again, we will maintain an operation that makes the Douglas plant efficient, albeit a little bit lower by moving some birds around from nearby locations that we have. So I think, all in all, we can expect that the volumes in Q4 to be close to the same volumes we have last year. I don't think it will be a significant impact, again, because we will try to dilute the impact from one specific plant with birds that we have in all others.

但我認為更重要的是，我們將透過從附近的地點轉移一些鳥類來維持道格拉斯工廠的運營，儘管效率會降低一些。因此，我認為，總而言之，我們可以預期第四季度的銷售量將接近去年的銷售量。我認為這不會產生重大影響，因為我們將嘗試用鳥類對所有其他植物的影響來稀釋特定植物的影響。

Okay. And then I just wanted to ask about broader industry production trend. So -- and I'm sure you all have noticed the same thing, but since the very beginning of September, so we've been having this improvement in hatch. But since the beginning of September, there's been a very pronounced gap between what chicks placed would suggest versus what has actually been slaughtered. And I mean, some of that could be explained by the hurricane, but my understanding is that mortality has dramatically improved in the industry from the first half.

好的。然後我只是想問一下更廣泛的行業生產趨勢。所以——我相信你們都注意到了同樣的事情，但從九月初開始，我們在孵化方面一直在改進。但自九月初以來，所顯示的雛雞數量與實際屠宰數量之間存在著非常明顯的差距。我的意思是，其中一些可以用颶風來解釋，但我的理解是，該行業的死亡率比上半年有了顯著改善。

And yet, we've got this big gap between chicks placed and heads slaughtered. And so I was wondering what you all think is going on? And when will that resolve itself? And just any thoughts you'll have on that?

然而，我們在雛雞安置和屠宰頭之間存在著巨大的差距。所以我想知道你們都認為發生了什麼事？什麼時候這個問題會自行解決？您對此有何想法？

Okay. And this is -- it's a great discussion, right, that we're having since 2 years ago, and again, everything started with this new generic. As I mentioned, it is a great generic. It has a great feed conversion. It has great yields, but it comes with a price, let's say, and the price has been the hatchability.

好的。這是——這是一次很棒的討論，對吧，我們從兩年前就開始討論了，而且，一切都是從這個新的仿製藥開始的。正如我所提到的，它是一個很好的泛型。它具有很高的飼料轉換率。它的產量很高，但它是有代價的，比如說，這個代價就是孵化率。

And as you already mentioned, hatchability has improved, but it has been a very slow improvement. Over this year, we went from really low 77% to kind of 77.5%. And I think a part of the improvement, it is the seasonality of the weather. So we're seeing the hatchability improvement. Just like prior years, you always see an improvement during the fall coming into the winter.

正如您已經提到的，孵化率有所提高，但進步非常緩慢。今年，我們從很低的 77% 上升到了 77.5%。我認為改善的一部分是天氣的季節性。所以我們看到孵化率有所提高。就像往年一樣，在秋天進入冬季時，你總是會看到改善。

So part of this slow improvement, it's even seasonality. But nonetheless, as I mentioned, I think the industry will learn how to manage this breed. That is like I mentioned, a great conversion. But on dealing with it, on the life side in terms of fertility, it is really difficult.

因此，這種緩慢改善的部分原因在於季節性。但儘管如此，正如我所提到的，我認為該行業將學習如何管理這個品種。就像我提到的，這是一次偉大的轉變。但在處理上，在生育方面的生活方面，確實是困難的。

And again, the industry structure in the US is not prepared to take care of individual animals, just like Europe do or Brazil does. In those geographies, there is a very detail and, let's say, specific treatment, separating the birds by weight in the houses, and they have a much better hatchability than the industry in US So we know how to do it. It's just complicated and expensive.

再說一遍，美國的產業結構並不像歐洲或巴西那樣準備好照顧個別動物。在這些地區，有一個非常詳細的，可以說是特殊的處理，根據雞舍中的重量將雞分開，它們的孵化率比美國的行業好得多，所以我們知道如何做到這一點。它只是複雜且昂貴。

And that's why the industry in the US haven't figured out yet how to improve the hatchability at a faster pace.

這就是為什麼美國業界尚未找到如何更快提高孵化率的原因。

As we mentioned, I think there is the mortality staying at all. I think it's improved a little bit, but the mortality has been a big issue since this new breed was incorporated into our production. And the mortality is happening on the hatching layers. So we're seeing increased pullet placements because we need to replace the high mortality that we are seeing on this hatching layer. But also, we are seeing mortality in the the broilers.

正如我們所提到的，我認為死亡率仍然存在。我認為它有所改善，但自從這個新品種被納入我們的生產以來，死亡率一直是一個大問題。死亡發生在孵化層上。因此，我們看到小母雞的安置量增加，因為我們需要取代在該孵化層看到的高死亡率。而且，我們還看到肉雞的死亡率。

And that's what's creating this little gap between what we are placing and what is coming to production.

這就是我們正在放置的內容和即將投入生產的內容之間造成如此小差距的原因。

And if you look into the number of heads, right, Heather, we're seeing, as we mentioned, an increase in excess close to 3%. But then if you look at number of heads during Q3, we actually produce almost minus 1% in terms of heads. We compensated with weight and a little bit of mix because we're producing more big birds than small birds. As I mentioned, the production of small birds have been reducing. But in total heads, year-over-year, we're down 1% and in the quarter was close to 0.7%.

如果你看看頭的數量，對吧，希瑟，我們看到，正如我們提到的，超額增加了接近 3%。但如果你看看第三季的人頭數量，我們實際上生產的人頭數量幾乎為-1%。我們用重量和一點混合來補償，因為我們生產的大鳥比小鳥多。正如我所提到的，小型鳥類的產量一直在減少。但就總頭數而言，我們比去年同期下降了 1%，本季下降了接近 0.7%。

So it is the mortality that is impacting these birds. Of course, they convert really well, and they have great yields. So we're seeing the -- in terms of weight, we are seeing a little bit of the compensation for that. But I think that is difficult to manage, this spread. It is, like I said, a very efficient red, but really difficult.

因此，影響這些鳥類的是死亡率。當然，它們的轉換效果非常好，而且產量也很高。所以我們看到——就重量而言，我們看到了一些補償。但我認為這種傳播很難管理。正如我所說，這是一種非常高效的紅色，但確實很困難。

The industry will learn how to manage it, or there will be a new generic that it happens every three, four years. But we don't expect fast improvement in the hatchability or even the mortality in the shorter term, which is preventing the industry to increase production even more as you mentioned, right.

產業將學習如何管理它，或每三、四年就會出現一個新的通用名稱。但我們預計短期內孵化率甚至死亡率不會快速提高，這會阻礙該行業進一步提高產量，正如您所提到的那樣，對吧。

Our hatchery utilization, as Matt commented is at the highest ever. So it is really difficult for the industry to increase overall production in a significant way. And that's why the USDA is expecting the growth of chicken for next year to be close to 1.5%, 1.7%.

正如馬特所說，我們的孵化場利用率是有史以來最高的。因此，整個產業要大幅提高整體產量確實很困難。這就是為什麼美國農業部預計明年雞肉的成長率將接近 1.5%、1.7%。

Fabio, I just wanted to clarify something really quickly. So earlier in the year, the mortality was really bad and there were all these disease issues. But if we use this gap that you highlighted as a proxy for mortality, this as bad as it was earlier in the year and yet all the disease issues have abated. So do you just think that producers have just gotten worse at their husbandry, or I mean just this is a weird trend in things that should actually be improving. And so I just -- I'm not trying to belabor this, but obviously, it's important.

法比奧，我只是想盡快澄清一些事情。今年早些時候，死亡率非常高，並且存在所有這些疾病問題。但是，如果我們使用您強調的這一差距作為死亡率的代表，那麼情況與今年早些時候一樣糟糕，但所有疾病問題都已減輕。那麼，您是否認為生產者的飼養狀況變得更糟，或者我的意思是，這只是一種奇怪的趨勢，實際上應該會有所改善。所以我只是——我不想對此進行過多的闡述，但顯然，這很重要。

No, no. Of course, it has improved, but the mortality is still higher. I think that is my point. And as we start and we have some vaccination against the -- that starting against the pneumovirus. I think as you vaccinate at the beginning, it actually creates even lower or higher mortality because we vaccinate, but we should improve over time. So vaccination sometimes have actually a negative effect in the short term.

不，不。當然，情況有所改善，但死亡率仍然較高。我想這就是我的觀點。當我們開始時，我們接種了一些針對肺炎病毒的疫苗。我認為，當你一開始就接種疫苗時，它實際上會造成更低或更高的死亡率，因為我們接種了疫苗，但隨著時間的推移，我們應該會有所改善。因此，疫苗接種有時實際上會在短期內產生負面影響。

Pooran Sharma, Stephens, Inc.

普蘭夏爾馬，史蒂芬斯公司

Congrats on the strong quarter. If we could just touch base on Mexico, I think you've shared a lot of color on the US throughout the call. So just wanted to focus my attention on Mexico. If you could just kind of remind me of seasonality.

恭喜季度表現強勁。如果我們能談談墨西哥，我想你在整個電話會議中分享了很多關於美國的觀點。所以我只想把注意力集中在墨西哥。如果你能提醒我季節性的話。

I know you called it in the press release, but any color you could share in regards to Mexico? And then kind of what you're seeing so far would be helpful?

我知道你在新聞稿中這麼稱呼它，但你能分享關於墨西哥的任何顏色嗎？那麼到目前為止您所看到的內容會有幫助嗎？

Yes, sure. I think as we always talk about, Mexico is really challenging and volatile quarter-over-quarter, but year-over-year has been a great market for us. It's a growing economy. We continue to invest into growing that region. But Q3 is typically the weaker quarter for Mexico as the consumer, as the schools going to (inaudible), we have a shift in the consumer behaviors and that creates a little bit lower demand.

是的，當然。我認為，正如我們經常談論的那樣，墨西哥確實具有挑戰性，季度環比波動較大，但同比對我們來說一直是一個巨大的市場。這是一個不斷成長的經濟。我們繼續投資該地區的發展。但第三季度通常是墨西哥作為消費者的疲軟季度，隨著學校的發展（聽不清楚），我們的消費者行為發生了轉變，這導致需求略有下降。

At the same time, because of the seasonality of diseases and live production, we see more production in Mexico. That was also combined with a really strong Q2, which incentivized, especially on the live markets, a bigger production.

同時，由於疾病和活體生產的季節性，我們看到墨西哥的產量更高。這也與第二季的強勁表現相結合，刺激了更大的生產，尤其是在現場市場上。

So what we had in Mexico during Q3 this year, which happens every year, it's higher production with lower demand. And we saw prices, especially during September to be really compressed, especially on the live market, which is really volatile.

因此，今年第三季我們在墨西哥的情況每年都會發生，產量增加而需求減少。我們看到價格，特別是在 9 月份，真的被壓縮了，尤其是在實時市場上，這真的很不穩定。

I think going forward, as we see every year, we see the rebound in demand as the schools go back and the families continue to go to their normal behavior and buying more food out of home. And we are seeing also the economy doing well. I think during the Q3, we also saw some volatility in Mexico because of the local elections. So not the American elections, but the local elections in Mexico create a little bit of volatility in terms of the currency, which impacted our cost, but also in terms of the behaviors of the families. I think people trying to save more money, and we saw an impact in demand or volatile demand during that time.

我認為，展望未來，正如我們每年看到的那樣，隨著學校復課，家庭繼續恢復正常行為並從家中購買更多食物，我們將看到需求反彈。我們也看到經濟表現良好。我認為在第三季度，由於地方選舉，我們也看到墨西哥出現了一些波動。因此，不是美國選舉，而是墨西哥地方選舉在貨幣方面造成了一點波動，影響了我們的成本，但也影響了家庭的行為。我認為人們試圖存更多的錢，而我們在那段時間看到了需求的影響或需求的波動。

Now as we have more information about what the new government is going to do is a continuation of the current government, we are seeing the demand and the economy overall going back. So I think that's what -- why, despite being a good return in Mexico or good results, it was a little bit lower than the same time last year and lower than Q2, but there is normal seasonality and then we have those effects. There was a little bit of impact of the hurricane, which reached that region earlier than in the United States, which was right at the end of the quarter.

現在，隨著我們獲得更多有關新政府將繼續現任政府的信息，我們看到需求和經濟總體上正在回升。所以我認為這就是為什麼，儘管在墨西哥有良好的回報或良好的結果，但它比去年同期和第二季度要低一些，但有正常的季節性，然後我們就會產生這些影響。颶風有一點影響，它比美國更早到達該地區，美國是在本季末。

But I think we are seeing, again, a growing economy. Chicken is at a great place in Mexico, and we'll continue to invest to grow in the region.

但我認為我們再次看到經濟成長。雞肉在墨西哥佔有重要地位，我們將繼續投資在該地區發展。

Yes. I just complement is slightly just if we think back to Q3 of '23, that was a bit of a counter seasonal quarter for us in Mexico, was a little bit stronger than it normally is. And then I think we just got back to more seasonal trends here in Q3 of '24, just relative to that, but still really very happy with nearly 10% EBITDA margins for the business this quarter.

是的。我只是稍微補充一下，如果我們回想一下 23 年的第三季度，那對我們墨西哥來說是一個反季節的季度，比平常要強一些。然後我認為我們剛剛在 24 年第三季度回到了更多的季節性趨勢，只是相對於此，但仍然對本季度業務近 10% 的 EBITDA 利潤率感到非常滿意。

Okay. I appreciate the detail. I guess for the last one, if I could just kind of focus in on the US here. And just kind of honing in on the supply side here.

好的。我很欣賞細節。我想對於最後一個，如果我能專注於美國的話。只是在供應方面進行磨練。

You mentioned an improvement in your own kind of production efficiencies. I was wondering if you could kind of just share some color on that? Like what are you doing operationally? And are you seeing kind of the improvement in hatch rates that we're seeing in the public data like 0.5% that you quoted? Or are you able to kind of outpace that?

您提到了您自己的生產效率的提升。我想知道你是否可以分享一些顏色？例如你在營運方面做什麼？您是否看到孵化率有所改善，就像我們在公開數據中看到的那樣，例如您引用的 0.5%？或者你能超越它嗎？

Yes. I think as we mentioned, it is the individual attention to the animal on the breeder side that is making the difference on the hatchability. And we are testing some changes to our houses by separating the -- some of the birds by weight and changing and adapting their feed to their individual weights, let's say, a Fitbit for chicken. So we are seeing some increase in the hatchability, actually a little bit higher than what the industry is improving.

是的。我認為正如我們所提到的，飼養者對動物的個人關注正在影響孵化率。我們正在測試對我們的房屋進行的一些改變，通過將一些鳥按重量分開，並根據它們各自的體重改變和調整它們的飼料，比方說，為雞準備一個 Fitbit。因此，我們看到孵化率有所提高，實際上比產業的進步要高一些。

I think we're always look into the cost of producing the egg. And in that, we are already better than the industry. So it's the overall cost that we look, not necessarily only hatchability. So I think we're seeing some improvements over there. But as the whole industry, I think the level is still much lower than previous breeds.

我認為我們一直在研究生產雞蛋的成本。在這方面，我們已經比業界做得更好了。因此，我們關注的是整體成本，而不僅僅是孵化率。所以我認為我們在那裡看到了一些改進。但作為整個行業來說，我認為水平還是比以前的品種低很多。

Orges Asllani, Barclays.

奧格斯·阿斯拉尼，巴克萊銀行。

This is Orges asking in for Priya. And just to follow on one of the prior questions. Given that net leverage is well below your target, how are you thinking about it? And what does the current landscape for M&A in Mexico looks like?

我是奧格斯來找普莉亞。只是為了回答之前的問題之一。鑑於淨槓桿率遠低於您的目標，您對此有何看法？目前墨西哥的併購情勢如何？

Yes. I'll go back to the growth opportunities that Fabio talked about and I had talked about in our prepared remarks and as I mentioned in my prepared remarks, our CapEx spend is less than what we had -- what I had forecasted coming into the second half of the year, but that's really just timing. And we are well on our way in our plans to increase our capacity relative to our key customers, our prepared foods business. And then when you talk about Mexico, it's both looking from an organic and inorganic growth perspective. And as Fabio has mentioned in the past, some opportunities we see in the M&A side and some complementary businesses in Mexico, but it's also the growth of both our fresh and prepared business in Mexico organically.

是的。我將回到法比奧談到的成長機會，我在我們準備好的演講中談到過，正如我在準備好的演講中提到的那樣，我們的資本支出低於我們的資本支出——我對第二季的預測半年，但這確實只是時機。我們的計劃正在順利實施，以提高我們的主要客戶（我們的預製食品業務）的產能。當你談論墨西哥時，它是從有機和無機增長的角度來看的。正如法比奧過去提到的，我們在墨西哥的併購方面和一些互補業務中看到了一些機會，但這也是我們在墨西哥的新鮮和預製業務的有機增長。

So we see a lot of opportunities from a growth perspective and where that cash will be utilized. A little bit more just relative to timing right now and the amount of detail we spend on getting through our capital projects and that really disciplined approach, it just takes a little bit of time to kind of get that off the ground.

因此，從成長的角度以及現金的用途來看，我們看到了許多機會。相對於現在的時機和我們在完成資本項目上花費的細節以及真正嚴格的方法，只需要一點時間就可以開始實施。

This concludes the question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the conference over Fabio Sandri for any closing remarks.

問答環節到此結束。我想請法比奧·桑德里（Fabio Sandri）發表閉幕詞。

Thank you, and thank you, everyone, for attending today's call. Our portfolio is designed to capture these attractive market fundamentals, while mitigating the downside risks. We built on this approach through investments in our key customer partnerships that collectively grew our business and drive value for consumers. These strategies are further amplified by our consistent improvement in people and operational excellence. While we have made progress, we remain relentless in using those strategies, leaving our values and driving commitment to team member safety and wellbeing.

謝謝大家，謝謝大家參加今天的電話會議。我們的投資組合旨在抓住這些有吸引力的市場基本面，同時減輕下行風險。我們透過對關鍵客戶合作夥伴關係的投資建立在這種方法的基礎上，這些合作夥伴關係共同發展了我們的業務並為消費者創造了價值。我們對人員和卓越營運的持續改善進一步強化了這些策略。儘管我們取得了進展，但我們仍然堅持不懈地使用這些策略，保留我們的價值觀並推動對團隊成員安全和福祉的承諾。

Based on these efforts, we can achieve our vision to be the best, most respected company in our industry, creating a better future for our team members and their families. Thank you, everybody.

基於這些努力，我們可以實現成為業界中最優秀、最受尊敬的公司的願景，為我們的團隊成員及其家人創造更美好的未來。謝謝大家。

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

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。