Rite Aid Corp (RAD) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good morning. My name is Rob, and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I'd like to welcome everyone to the Rite Aid Corporation Fourth Quarter Fiscal Year 2023 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) Thank you. Byron Purcell, Vice President, Investor Relations and Treasurer, you may begin your conference.

早上好。我叫 Rob，今天我將擔任你們的會議接線員。此時，我想歡迎大家參加 Rite Aid Corporation 2023 財年第四季度收益電話會議。 （操作員說明）謝謝。投資者關係副總裁兼財務主管 Byron Purcell，您可以開始會議了。

Thank you, Rob, and good morning, everyone. We welcome you to our fiscal 2023 fourth quarter earnings call. Elizabeth "Busy" Burr, Interim Chief Executive Officer; and Matt Schroeder, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will begin the call with prepared remarks. Chris DuPaul, Chief Operating Officer of Elixir, will also join the call during the question-and-answer session.

謝謝羅布，大家早上好。我們歡迎您參加我們的 2023 財年第四季度財報電話會議。 Elizabeth “Busy” Burr，臨時首席執行官；執行副總裁兼首席財務官馬特·施羅德 (Matt Schroeder) 將以準備好的發言開始電話會議。 Elixir 首席運營官 Chris DuPaul 也將在問答環節加入電話會議。

As we mentioned in our release, we are providing slides related to the material we'll be discussing today. These slides are provided on our website, investors.riteaid.com. While management will not be speaking directly to these slides, these slides are meant to facilitate your review of the company's financial results and be used as a reference document following the call.

正如我們在新聞稿中提到的，我們提供了與我們今天要討論的材料相關的幻燈片。這些幻燈片在我們的網站 investors.riteaid.com 上提供。雖然管理層不會直接對著這些幻燈片講話，但這些幻燈片旨在幫助您審查公司的財務業績，並在電話會議後用作參考文件。

Before we start, I'd like to remind you that today's conference call includes certain forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are presented in the context of certain risks and uncertainties that can cause actual results to differ. These risks and uncertainties are described in our press release in Item 1A of our most recent annual report on Form 10-K, and in other documents we will file or furnish to the SEC.

在我們開始之前，我想提醒您，今天的電話會議包含某些前瞻性陳述。這些前瞻性陳述是在某些可能導致實際結果不同的風險和不確定性的背景下提出的。這些風險和不確定性在我們最新的 10-K 表格年度報告第 1A 項的新聞稿中以及我們將提交或提供給 SEC 的其他文件中進行了描述。

Also, we'll be using certain non-GAAP measures in our release in the accompanying slides. The definition of the non-GAAP measures, along with the reconciliation to the related GAAP measures, are described in our press release and the slides.

此外，我們將在隨附幻燈片的發布中使用某些非 GAAP 措施。我們的新聞稿和幻燈片中描述了非 GAAP 措施的定義，以及與相關 GAAP 措施的調節。

And with that, let me turn it over to Busy.

有了這個，讓我把它交給忙碌。

Welcome, everyone, and thank you for joining our Q4 earnings call. I realized that this is the first time that many of you are hearing from me as the Rite Aid Interim CEO, appointed by the Board on January 9. I'm thankful to the Board for choosing me to manage the business during a critical time when urgency and focus is needed, and happy to serve until such time as the permanent CEO is hired.

歡迎大家，並感謝您加入我們的第四季度財報電話會議。我意識到這是你們中的許多人第一次聽到我作為董事會於 1 月 9 日任命的 Rite Aid 臨時首席執行官的消息。我感謝董事會在關鍵時刻選擇我來管理業務需要緊迫感和專注力，並且樂於服務，直到聘請永久 CEO 為止。

As a Board member for the last 3 years, this assignment is especially important to me. I'm singularly focused on making progress and ensuring we do not lose any time while conducting our search for permanent CEO. Rite Aid, as you know, is a long-standing, trusted U.S. brand in the retail pharmacy space, as is Elixir in the PBM space. We've been a highly leveraged company for many years, which has limited our ability to invest in the business and keep up with our competitors.

作為過去 3 年的董事會成員，這項任務對我來說尤為重要。我特別專注於取得進展，並確保我們在尋找永久 CEO 時不會浪費任何時間。如您所知，Rite Aid 是零售藥店領域歷史悠久、值得信賴的美國品牌，PBM 領域的 Elixir 也是如此。多年來，我們一直是一家高槓桿公司，這限制了我們投資業務和跟上競爭對手的能力。

Before I share more on what we are doing to return our business to growth, I'll briefly cover Q4. Q4 adjusted EBITDA of $129 million was above the midpoint of our guidance and better than analyst expectations of $101 million and prior year Q4 of $106 million. The main drivers were: Front-end sales comps, excluding cigarettes and tobacco products of 2.8%; SG&A improvements from cost reduction initiatives and store closures; and script comps of 5.2% or 9.7%, excluding COVID, demonstrating share gains over the last 5 quarters for a total of 50 basis points to 11.2% according to IQVIA. As pleased as we are as of Q4, our focus is on the future and what lies ahead.

在我更多地分享我們為使業務恢復增長所做的工作之前，我將簡要介紹一下第四季度。第四季度調整後的 EBITDA 為 1.29 億美元，高於我們指引的中點，也好於分析師預期的 1.01 億美元和去年第四季度的 1.06 億美元。主要驅動因素是：前端銷售收入，不包括 2.8% 的香煙和煙草產品； SG&A 因成本降低計劃和商店關閉而得到改善；根據 IQVIA 的數據，不包括 COVID 在內的腳本 comps 為 5.2% 或 9.7%，表明過去 5 個季度的份額增長了 50 個基點，達到 11.2%。儘管我們對第四季度感到高興，但我們的重點是未來和未來。

We anticipate many headwinds for fiscal year '24, none of which are a surprise, but we need to plan for them. As in the past several years, we expect reimbursement rates to be under pressure, cycling COVID's benefits to add to the challenge and wage inflation and shrink to eat into earnings. We've also lost ground in the PBM market from a loss of a large health plan account and the planned shrinking of our Med D business.

我們預計 24 財年會遇到許多不利因素，這些都不足為奇，但我們需要為它們做好計劃。與過去幾年一樣，我們預計報銷率將面臨壓力，循環 COVID 的好處會增加挑戰和工資通脹，並縮減收入。由於失去了一個大的健康計劃賬戶和計劃縮減我們的 Med D 業務，我們在 PBM 市場也失去了優勢。

I know that litigation faced by us and many others in the industry is on your minds. We are actively managing those matters and defending ourselves. We've engaged excellent legal counsel, and the anticipated cost to defend ourselves is factored into our guidance. But as you all know, litigation is a process that takes time.

我知道您會想到我們和業內許多其他公司所面臨的訴訟。我們正在積極處理這些問題並為自己辯護。我們聘請了優秀的法律顧問，我們的指南中考慮了為自己辯護的預期成本。但眾所周知，訴訟是一個需要時間的過程。

That being said, there are great opportunities for us to be very successful. There is a fundamental consumer need for pharmacy services for both individuals and companies. At Rite Aid, we serve these needs through both our retail and PBM businesses, respectively. We have a trusted and iconic brand, an attractive retail footprint and a long history of serving millions of customers built over the years largely through our pharmacists.

話雖如此，我們有很大的機會取得成功。個人和公司對藥房服務都有基本的消費者需求。在 Rite Aid，我們分別通過零售和 PBM 業務滿足這些需求。我們擁有值得信賴的標誌性品牌、極具吸引力的零售足跡以及多年來主要通過我們的藥劑師為數百萬客戶提供服務的悠久歷史。

Specifically, the role of the pharmacist has become an increasingly important, trusted, ubiquitous and efficient option for the delivery of health care services to consumers, and this is part of our core value proposition. We augment this with digital and remote capabilities to support customers in their preferred channels.

具體而言，藥劑師的角色已成為向消費者提供醫療保健服務的越來越重要、值得信賴、無處不在且高效的選擇，這是我們核心價值主張的一部分。我們通過數字和遠程功能增強了這一點，以支持客戶在他們喜歡的渠道中。

We have a lot of work to do to seize the opportunity given the pressures I mentioned. There is a sense of urgency that the Board and I have brought to Rite Aid. Simply put, we need to grow the core, prescriptions and retail, and grow the PBM, all while continuing to make the company more efficient. We will not be chasing long shots, but rather, we are immediately focusing on the core areas of our business with initiatives that have high and nearer-term ROIs. We also need to do this while carefully managing our capital structure.

鑑於我提到的壓力，我們還有很多工作要做才能抓住機會。董事會和我給 Rite Aid 帶來了緊迫感。簡而言之，我們需要發展核心業務、處方藥和零售業務，並發展 PBM，同時繼續提高公司效率。我們不會追求長遠目標，而是通過具有高短期投資回報率的計劃立即關注我們業務的核心領域。我們還需要在謹慎管理我們的資本結構的同時做到這一點。

On a macro level, last fall, Rite Aid started the implementation of an established turnaround model that has been used at numerous companies to successfully turn around their business. While you have heard the term turn around used before, this is different. We are partnering with a leading consulting firm that has worked with several Fortune 150 companies to execute a highly prescriptive and programmatic model that has a rapid cadence and analytical rigor and currently engages associates from across the Rite Aid enterprise.

在宏觀層面上，去年秋天，Rite Aid 開始實施已建立的周轉模型，該模型已被許多公司用來成功扭轉業務。雖然您以前聽過術語轉身，但這是不同的。我們正在與一家領先的諮詢公司合作，該公司已與多家財富 150 強公司合作，執行高度規範和程序化的模型，該模型具有快速的節奏和嚴格的分析，目前聘請了來自 Rite Aid 企業的員工。

We believe that this model, that is geared to drive performance and acceleration across the enterprise, will enable us to organize effectively and efficiently to capture value and drive growth. I am also well aware we need to prove it.

我們相信，這種旨在推動整個企業的績效和加速發展的模式將使我們能夠有效和高效地組織起來，以獲取價值並推動增長。我也很清楚我們需要證明這一點。

It begins with leadership. And as you have seen, we are not afraid to make changes and significant ones as needed. To execute our turnaround, we have both eliminated some positions with top-level talent and capabilities by adding new positions and bringing in new perspectives. In addition to a new CEO, we've added a new head of marketing, a new head of merchandising, a new head of procurement, a new head of transformation and a new head of FP&A to bring in new discipline and expertise to our operations and business.

它始於領導力。正如您所看到的，我們不怕根據需要進行更改和重大更改。為了實現我們的轉變，我們都通過增加新職位和引入新觀點來消除一些具有頂級人才和能力的職位。除了一位新的 CEO 之外，我們還增加了一位新的營銷主管、一位新的銷售主管、一位新的採購主管、一位新的轉型主管和一位新的 FP&A 主管，為我們的運營帶來新的紀律和專業知識和業務。

The turnaround model has given us visibility to the profitability opportunities we believe we drive -- we can drive over the next 3 years, by focusing on improvements and growth in our core businesses.

扭虧為盈的模式讓我們看到了我們認為我們推動的盈利機會——我們可以在未來 3 年內通過專注於核心業務的改進和增長來推動。

Many of the opportunities are simply catching up to things our peers do better than us today. We believe this effort will position the core business for growth longer term. Here are a few examples of turnaround initiatives in the 3 core areas of the business. In our pharmacy business, we're continuing to invest in Med Adherence. For example, we've seen a nearly 150 basis point increase in Adherence from our currency refill programs. For industry benchmarking, we believe continued investment in this program has the potential to bring significant upside.

許多機會只是趕上我們的同行今天比我們做得更好的事情。我們相信這一努力將使核心業務定位於長期增長。以下是業務的 3 個核心領域的幾個轉型計劃示例。在我們的藥房業務中，我們將繼續投資於 Med Adherence。例如，我們發現貨幣充值計劃的依從性提高了近 150 個基點。對於行業基準，我們認為對該計劃的持續投資有可能帶來顯著的上行空間。

We are scaling a successful Q4 pilot initiative that produced a 60 basis point reduction in abandoned scripts through enhanced message timing and content. At scale, just a 1% improvement could drive a material impact on adjusted EBITDA.

我們正在擴大一項成功的 Q4 試點計劃，該計劃通過改進消息時間和內容將廢棄腳本減少了 60 個基點。從規模上看，僅 1% 的改善就可能對調整後的 EBITDA 產生重大影響。

In the front end, we're optimizing inventory to improve our in-store experience and increased working capital. Initiatives include space productivity efforts and replacing categories that are over-spaced with faster-growing categories. We were able to reduce inventory by 40 million in fiscal year '23, and we will be deploying further inventory controls this year.

在前端，我們正在優化庫存以改善我們的店內體驗並增加營運資金。舉措包括空間生產力努力和用增長更快的類別替換空間過大的類別。我們能夠在 23 財年將庫存減少 4000 萬，今年我們將部署進一步的庫存控制。

We're implementing a store-clustering initiative to enable regional assortments and improve our product relevancy based on the success of the regionally focused product assortments at Bartell's. We're improving our pricing analytics and capabilities by increasing the number of price zones and creating a variable price zone structure. We began to realize gross margin benefits from the initial pricing tests.

我們正在實施商店集群計劃，以實現區域分類並根據 Bartell's 以區域為重點的產品分類的成功提高我們的產品相關性。我們正在通過增加價格區的數量和創建可變價格區結構來改進我們的定價分析和功能。我們開始從最初的定價測試中意識到毛利率的好處。

In Elixir, we're continuing to focus on client retention through things like improved reporting and pricing competitiveness. We have already secured 3 of our top 5 renewals. We're continuing our efforts to improve procurement economics, specifically through contributions from plan design administration, formulary and rebate management services and network performance.

在 Elixir 中，我們繼續通過改進報告和定價競爭力等方式關注客戶保留。我們已經獲得了前 5 名續約中的 3 名。我們正在繼續努力提高采購經濟性，特別是通過計劃設計管理、處方和回扣管理服務以及網絡性能的貢獻。

We're taking steps to optimize our specialty and mail pharmacies with expanded access to networks and new limited distribution drugs. We've already gained access to 2 of the 4 largest Medicare networks.

我們正在採取措施優化我們的專業和郵寄藥房，擴大對網絡的訪問和新的有限分銷藥物。我們已經可以訪問 4 個最大的 Medicare 網絡中的 2 個。

Last year -- lastly, we are working on efficiency, productivity and of course, cost reductions across the business. Examples include: Rebuilding our indirect buying process and renegotiating better contracts, tackling and reducing our lease burden through extensive lease renegotiations; driving down prescription brand inventory by implementing new controls and deploying just-in-time ordering models. This is just a small selection of the initiatives in our turnaround program.

去年——最後，我們致力於提高效率、生產力，當然還有降低整個企業的成本。示例包括： 重建我們的間接購買流程並重新談判更好的合同，通過廣泛的租賃重新談判解決和減輕我們的租賃負擔；通過實施新的控制措施和部署即時訂購模型來降低處方品牌庫存。這只是我們周轉計劃中的一小部分舉措。

So what does this mean for financial performance? In fiscal year '24, this means a down or reset year in profitability. We expect to see positive improvements in prescriptions and retail and cost savings, but these could be more than offset by the pressures I mentioned earlier, in reimbursement rates, lower COVID benefits, the loss of the Elixir lives, a shrink wage inflation and the investments we need to make in the turnaround program.

那麼這對財務業績意味著什麼呢？在 24 財年，這意味著盈利能力下降或重置的一年。我們希望看到處方藥和零售以及成本節約方面的積極改善，但這些可能被我之前提到的壓力、報銷率、較低的 COVID 福利、Elixir 生命的損失、收縮的工資通脹和投資所抵消我們需要製定周轉計劃。

We estimate the net result to be an adjusted EBITDA dropping by approximately $75 million, which may put free cash flow slightly negative for the year. However, we have $1.5 billion in liquidity at the end of fiscal year '23, which we believe is more than enough to get us through fiscal '24. And we expect increased adjusted EBITDA and working capital benefits in fiscal year '25 and '26 to drive an improvement in our liquidity position.

我們估計淨結果是調整後的 EBITDA 下降約 7500 萬美元，這可能會使今年的自由現金流略為負數。然而，我們在 23 財年結束時擁有 15 億美元的流動資金，我們認為這足以讓我們度過 24 財年。我們預計 25 和 26 財年調整後的 EBITDA 和營運資本收益的增加將推動我們流動性狀況的改善。

In the fourth quarter of fiscal year '23, we started the first phase of initiatives of our turnaround program. These delivered approximately $10 million in adjusted EBITDA, and our turnaround program is not yet at scale, and we have more initiatives in progress. The turnaround model anticipates bringing more significant value starting in Q3 and Q4 of this year. We are targeting adjusted EBITDA double-digit percentage growth in fiscal year '25 and '26 as initiatives begin to scale. Acquired investments are no longer needed to offset the improvements and we're no longer cycling COVID headwinds.

在 23 財年第四季度，我們啟動了扭虧為盈計劃的第一階段舉措。這些帶來了大約 1000 萬美元的調整後 EBITDA，我們的扭虧為盈計劃尚未形成規模，我們還有更多計劃正在進行中。周轉模型預計從今年第三季度和第四季度開始帶來更大的價值。隨著計劃開始擴大，我們的目標是在 25 和 26 財年調整後的 EBITDA 實現兩位數百分比增長。不再需要獲得的投資來抵消這些改進，我們也不再循環使用 COVID 逆風。

We anticipate some slippage on our near-term leverage ratio. We do, however, believe that by year-end fiscal '26, our leverage ratio will come down into the low 5 range, with improvements in adjusted EBITDA. We are also in the process of developing specific plans to address our '25 and '26 bond maturities, more to come as these plans develop.

我們預計近期槓桿率會有所下滑。但是，我們確實相信，到 26 財年年底，我們的槓桿率將降至 5 的低位範圍，調整後的 EBITDA 也會有所改善。我們還在製定具體計劃來解決我們的 25 年和 26 年債券到期問題，隨著這些計劃的製定，還會有更多計劃。

I know it has been challenging for you all as the company has faced the uncertainties of COVID and lackluster financial results. We have not, until now, applied an analytical programmatic approach to turning the business around. What I commit to you is this: We have urgency; rigor; a rapid cadence; and an intense focus on those opportunities that we believe will bring us value in the near term.

我知道這對你們所有人來說都是一個挑戰，因為公司面臨著 COVID 的不確定性和低迷的財務業績。直到現在，我們還沒有應用分析程序化方法來扭轉業務。我向您承諾的是：我們有緊迫感；嚴格;節奏快；並高度關注那些我們認為會在短期內為我們帶來價值的機會。

There are areas that have presented opportunities but have not been prioritized previously. There are things that our competitors do well that we just simply have not implemented until now. We appreciate all the support from our bondholders, shareholders, analysts, associates, customers and leaders as we take this incredible brand and bring it back to where it should be.

有些領域已經提供了機會，但以前沒有被優先考慮。有些事情我們的競爭對手做得很好，而我們只是直到現在才實施。我們感謝債券持有人、股東、分析師、員工、客戶和領導者的所有支持，因為我們將這個令人難以置信的品牌帶回了它應該出現的位置。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Matt with more Q4 -- with more Q4 and on our outlook.

有了這個，我會把電話轉給馬特更多的第四季度——更多的第四季度和我們的前景。

Thanks, Busy, and good morning, everyone. I'm going to take just a few minutes to review our fourth quarter results before jumping into guidance for fiscal 2024.

謝謝，忙碌，大家早上好。在進入 2024 財年的指引之前，我將花幾分鐘時間回顧一下我們的第四季度業績。

Our fourth quarter fiscal '23 adjusted EBITDA was $128.6 million versus $106.1 million for last year's fourth quarter, giving us total adjusted EBITDA of $429.2 million for the fiscal year. Both our fourth quarter and full year results benefited from an extra week in fiscal 2023, which contributed approximately $10 million in adjusted EBITDA. The company also reported net loss of $241.3 million, or $4.39 per share, and adjusted net loss of $68.2 million, or $1.24 loss per share.

我們第四季度的 23 財年調整後 EBITDA 為 1.286 億美元，而去年第四季度為 1.061 億美元，使我們本財年的調整後 EBITDA 總額為 4.292 億美元。我們的第四季度和全年業績都受益於 2023 財年的額外一周，這為調整後的 EBITDA 貢獻了約 1000 萬美元。該公司還報告淨虧損 2.413 億美元，即每股虧損 4.39 美元，調整後的淨虧損為 6820 萬美元，即每股虧損 1.24 美元。

Included in our net loss for the fourth quarter was an impairment charge for goodwill at Elixir of $119 million. We performed an impairment assessment as part of our year-end closing procedures. The calculation performed to determine if an impairment is necessary includes valuation based upon discounted cash flows, as well as an assessment of market value.

我們第四季度的淨虧損中包括 1.19 億美元的 Elixir 商譽減值費用。作為年終結算程序的一部分，我們進行了減值評估。為確定是否需要進行減值而進行的計算包括基於貼現現金流量的估值以及市場價值評估。

Our projections for the business have not changed since our last assessment, but assumptions around external factors such as discount rates and market multiples have, which caused the impairment charge. As a reminder, this is a noncash charge.

自我們上次評估以來，我們對該業務的預測沒有改變，但圍繞貼現率和市場倍數等外部因素的假設發生了變化，這導致了減值費用。提醒一下，這是一筆非現金費用。

Revenues for the quarter were $6.09 billion, bringing our total year revenues to $24.1 billion. Now I'll discuss the key drivers of operating results in our business segments. In the retail segments, revenues increased 8.2% over the prior year, driven by the extra week and increase in comparable store sales, partially offset by the impact of store closures.

本季度的收入為 60.9 億美元，使我們全年的總收入達到 241 億美元。現在我將討論我們業務部門經營業績的主要驅動因素。在零售領域，收入比上年增長 8.2%，這得益於額外的一周和可比商店銷售額的增加，部分被商店關閉的影響所抵消。

Same-store sales for the fourth quarter increased 8.9% over the prior year period, consisting of an 11.4% increase in pharmacy sales and a 2.3% increase in front-end sales. Front-end same-store sales, excluding cigarette and tobacco products, increased 2.8%, driven by strong results in our beauty, seasonal and consumable categories.

第四季度同店銷售額同比增長 8.9%，其中藥店銷售額增長 11.4%，前端銷售額增長 2.3%。前端同店銷售額（不包括香煙和煙草產品）增長 2.8%，這得益於我們的美容、季節性和消費品類別的強勁業績。

Same-store prescriptions adjusted to 30 days increased 5.2%, and excluding COVID immunizations and testing, increased 9.7%, with same-store maintenance prescriptions increasing 8.2% and other same-store acute prescriptions increasing almost 15%. Our script growth comes from continued adherence initiatives, growth within our market access contracts and capturing fair share of our scripts from the ESI-Kroger dispute.

調整為 30 天的同店處方增加了 5.2%，不包括 COVID 免疫和測試，增加了 9.7%，同店維護處方增加了 8.2%，其他同店急性處方增加了近 15%。我們的腳本增長來自於持續的遵守舉措、市場准入合同的增長以及從 ESI-Kroger 糾紛中獲得我們腳本的公平份額。

Rite Aid's front end margin rate improved due to a reduction in markdowns resulting from our previously discussed change to our loyalty program, as well as improved planning around seasonal, less discounted prices and proactive price changes related to inflation. Pharmacy gross profit declined due to a reduction of gross profit from COVID vaccines and testing. This was partially offset by our strong non-COVID script growth and reduced drug purchasing costs driven by a reduction in brand prescription inventory.

Rite Aid 的前端保證金率有所提高，這是由於我們之前討論過的忠誠度計劃變更導致降價減少，以及圍繞季節性、折扣較少的價格和與通貨膨脹相關的主動價格變化的改進計劃。由於 COVID 疫苗和測試的毛利減少，藥房毛利下降。這部分被我們強勁的非 COVID 腳本增長和品牌處方庫存減少導致的藥品採購成本降低所抵消。

Adjusted EBITDA SG&A improved by $75 million on a comparable 13-week basis, driven by: A reduction in work payroll, we continued good expense control in stores, which we began in the beginning of the fiscal year; reductions in indirect spend, including advertising, repair and maintenance, supplies and security, resulting from initiatives to improve our spend control discipline and rebidding processes; and also driven by lower occupancy due to store closures.

調整後的 EBITDA SG&A 在可比的 13 週基礎上增加了 7500 萬美元，其驅動因素是：工作工資的減少，我們在本財年年初開始繼續對商店進行良好的費用控制；間接支出減少，包括廣告、維修和保養、供應和安全，這是由於改進我們的支出控制紀律和重新招標流程的舉措；並且由於商店關閉導致入住率下降。

I'll now shift to our Pharmacy Services segment, Elixir. Revenues were $1.3 billion for the quarter, a decrease of 20.8% compared to the prior quarter. For the fiscal year, Pharmacy Services segment revenues were $6.5 billion, a decrease of 10.9% compared to the prior year. Revenues decreased as we are cycling through our membership losses, which are consistent with our expectations.

我現在將轉到我們的藥房服務部門 Elixir 。本季度收入為 13 億美元，比上一季度下降 20.8%。本財年，藥房服務部門的收入為 65 億美元，比上年下降 10.9%。由於我們正在經歷會員流失，這與我們的預期一致，因此收入有所下降。

In our individual Part D insured business, we continue to adjust our pricing strategy to reflect the underlying risk in each geography. Adjusted EBITDA was $27.3 million compared to -- for the fourth quarter, compared to last year's fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA of $3.7 million. For the fiscal year, adjusted EBITDA was $141.1 million compared to prior year adjusted EBITDA of $113.3 million.

在我們單獨的 D 部分保險業務中，我們繼續調整我們的定價策略以反映每個地區的潛在風險。第四季度調整後的 EBITDA 為 2730 萬美元，而去年第四季度調整後的 EBITDA 為 370 萬美元。本財年，調整後的 EBITDA 為 1.411 億美元，上年調整後的 EBITDA 為 1.133 億美元。

Gross profits were better due to improved procurement economics, a more favorable mix to higher-margin business, the absence of prior year rebate receivable write-downs and improvement in the medical loss ratio at Elixir Insurance.

由於採購經濟性的改善、對利潤率較高的業務更有利的組合、沒有上一年的應收退稅減記以及 Elixir Insurance 醫療損失率的改善，毛利潤有所提高。

Additionally, Elixir's SG&A improved due to reductions in cost structure to support the lower membership base.

此外，Elixir 的 SG&A 因成本結構的降低而有所改善，以支持較低的會員基礎。

I'll now turn to our cash flows and the balance sheet. Our cash flow statement for the quarter shows operating cash of $266 million due to the sale of the remainder of our calendar 2022 CMS receivable and reductions in inventory levels, offset by timing and other liabilities. Cash used in investing activities was $14.2 million for the quarter.

我現在將轉向我們的現金流量和資產負債表。我們本季度的現金流量表顯示，由於出售了 2022 年日曆 CMS 應收賬款的剩餘部分以及庫存水平的降低，運營現金為 2.66 億美元，被時間安排和其他負債所抵消。本季度用於投資活動的現金為 1420 萬美元。

We completed a few store sale leaseback transactions that generated total proceeds of $17.5 million and also generated proceeds of $18.6 million from the sale of prescription files from closed stores.

我們完成了一些商店售後回租交易，產生了 1750 萬美元的總收益，還從關閉的商店出售處方文件中產生了 1860 萬美元的收益。

Our net debt was approximately $2.8 billion at the end of fiscal year with a leverage ratio of 6.5x. We ended the fiscal year with approximately $1.5 billion in liquidity, which gives us plenty of flexibility to execute our turnaround. During the quarter, we completed a tender offer for $165 million of our 2025 notes.

截至財年末，我們的淨債務約為 28 億美元，槓桿率為 6.5 倍。我們在本財政年度結束時擁有大約 15 億美元的流動資金，這使我們有足夠的靈活性來執行我們的扭虧為盈。在本季度，我們完成了對 2025 年票據中 1.65 億美元的要約收購。

Over the past year, we have reduced the amount of our outstanding 2025 notes, which is our nearest term maturity from $600 million to $320 million. We are assessing options to address the remainder of these maturities. More to come as we progress throughout the year.

在過去的一年裡，我們已將我們最近到期的 2025 年到期票據的金額從 6 億美元減少到 3.2 億美元。我們正在評估解決剩餘期限問題的方案。隨著我們全年的進步，還會有更多。

Now turning to guidance. As Busy outlined earlier in the call, we are investing in a proven turnaround model to drive growth and value for our stakeholders. Adjusted EBITDA is expected to be between $340 million and $370 million. Adjusted EBITDA in the Retail Pharmacy segment is expected to be between $240 million and $260 million, while adjusted EBITDA at Elixir is expected to be between $100 million and $110 million.

現在轉向指導。正如 Busy 早些時候在電話會議中概述的那樣，我們正在投資一個經過驗證的周轉模型，以推動利益相關者的增長和價值。調整後的 EBITDA 預計在 3.4 億美元至 3.7 億美元之間。零售藥房部門的調整後 EBITDA 預計在2.4億美元至2.6億美元之間，而 Elixir 的調整後 EBITDA 預計在1億美元至1.1億美元之間。

Following are some key assumptions in preparing our guidance range. We expect COVID vaccines and testing demand to decline, with our COVID vaccine administration to decline from about 5.1 million in fiscal 2023 to approximately 3 million in fiscal 2024. However, we expect to see continued growth in comp sales and scripts in our core business. We expect the script growth initiatives that Busy outlined earlier this year to drive a 6% increase in non-COVID comparable scripts in fiscal 2024.

以下是準備我們的指導範圍時的一些關鍵假設。我們預計 COVID 疫苗和測試需求將下降，我們的 COVID 疫苗管理將從 2023 財年的約 510 萬減少到 2024 財年的約 300 萬。但是，我們預計我們的核心業務的銷售和腳本將持續增長。我們預計 Busy 今年早些時候概述的腳本增長計劃將在 2024 財年推動非 COVID 可比腳本增長 6%。

While it's very early in the year, we are seeing this level of increase so far. The benefits from script increases will be partially offset by reimbursement rate pressures. With wage pressures and cost inflation, as well as investments that we're making in our turnaround initiatives, we expect our retail SG&A to increase during the fiscal year.

雖然現在還很早，但到目前為止我們已經看到了這種增長水平。腳本增加帶來的好處將部分被報銷率壓力所抵消。由於工資壓力和成本通脹，以及我們在扭虧為盈計劃中進行的投資，我們預計我們的零售 SG&A 將在本財年增加。

However, we expect these increases to be partially offset by rigorous demand management, rebidding of key indirect vendor services and active negotiations of lease terms.

然而，我們預計這些增長將被嚴格的需求管理、關鍵間接供應商服務的重新招標和租賃條款的積極談判所部分抵消。

Included in our guidance for Elixir is the cycling of the full impact of the loss of lives over the past 2 years, which results in a headwind to adjusted EBITDA. With the reduction in lives, we will continue to closely manage our expense levels. We also expect to improve Elixir EBITDA margin through procurement economics and favorable membership mix.

我們對 Elixir 的指導意見包括過去兩年生命損失的全面影響的循環，這導致調整後的 EBITDA 出現逆風。隨著生命的減少，我們將繼續密切管理我們的費用水平。我們還希望通過採購經濟和有利的會員組合來提高 Elixir EBITDA 利潤率。

Total revenues are expected to be between $21.7 billion and $22.1 billion. The reduction from prior year is due to the impact of store closures and a reduction of lives at Elixir. Capital expenditures are expected to be approximately $225 million. In addition to regular maintenance spend, this includes investments to grow our digital business, improve our member support systems and client service at Elixir, add technology to make our distribution centers more productive, and to aggressively pursue the prescription file purchases.

總收入預計在 217 億美元至 221 億美元之間。與上一年相比減少是由於商店關閉和 Elixir 生命減少的影響。資本支出預計約為 2.25 億美元。除了常規維護支出外，這還包括投資以發展我們的數字業務、改善我們在 Elixir 的會員支持系統和客戶服務、增加技術以提高我們的配送中心的生產力，以及積極尋求處方文件購買。

Cash interest expense is projected to be approximately $250 million. We expect to generate a significant working capital benefit in fiscal 2024 from reductions in prescription brand inventory, SKU rationalization and reductions in seasonal merchandise. We're also taking steps to move more of our products to scan-based trading and to work with various partners to improve turns.

現金利息支出預計約為 2.5 億美元。我們預計將在 2024 財年通過處方品牌庫存的減少、SKU 合理化和季節性商品的減少產生顯著的營運資金收益。我們還正在採取措施將更多產品轉移到基於掃描的交易，並與各種合作夥伴合作以改進交易。

As Busy said, we expect our free cash flow to be slightly negative, which will leave us with strong liquidity throughout the year. We have the ability to reduce spending on capital expenditures, if need be. The initiatives that are intended to drive significant value in our turnaround process will take time to take traction -- gain traction. As a result, we expect to generate between 60% and 70% of our adjusted EBITDA in the back half of the year.

正如 Busy 所說，我們預計我們的自由現金流會略微為負，這將使我們全年擁有強勁的流動性。如果需要，我們有能力減少資本支出。旨在在我們的周轉過程中推動重大價值的舉措將需要時間來獲得牽引力——獲得牽引力。因此，我們預計下半年將產生調整後 EBITDA 的 60% 至 70%。

As we look to our fiscal '25 and fiscal '26, we expect to grow both Elixir PBM membership in our core retail business in both front end and pharmacy. Although adjusted EBITDA takes a step down in fiscal '24, we believe our programmatic approach to turning around the business, combined with the absence of a COVID-related headwind in 2025 and a reduction in turnaround investments will enable us to grow adjusted EBITDA by double digits in both fiscal '25 and '26.

在我們展望 25 財年和 26 財年時，我們希望在前端和藥房的核心零售業務中增加 Elixir PBM 成員。儘管調整後的 EBITDA 在 24 財年有所下降，但我們相信我們扭轉業務的程序化方法，再加上 2025 年沒有與 COVID 相關的逆風以及扭轉投資的減少，將使我們能夠將調整後的 EBITDA 增長一倍25 和 26 財年的數字。

We expect this growth to lead to a reduction in our leverage ratio to somewhere in the low 5x range by the end of fiscal 2026. This completes our prepared remarks. Rob, could you please open the phone lines for questions.

我們預計，到 2026 財年末，這種增長將導致我們的槓桿率降低至 5 倍的低水平。這完成了我們準備好的評論。 Rob，你能打開電話線提問嗎？

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員說明）

And your first question comes from the line of Elizabeth Anderson from Evercore ISI.

你的第一個問題來自 Evercore ISI 的 Elizabeth Anderson。

I have a couple of sort of housekeeping questions to help understand better the core profitability improvement in the fourth quarter and then maybe a broader one after that. If we think about -- thanks for the update on the COVID contribution, can you just run through sort of like the PCR OTC tests and flu shots just in the quarter, just so that we can get a better idea for the run rate underlying profitability of the core business and that improvement sequentially, please?

我有幾個內務管理問題，以幫助更好地理解第四季度核心盈利能力的改善，然後可能是更廣泛的問題。如果我們考慮——感謝 COVID 貢獻的更新，你能不能在本季度進行類似 PCR 的非處方藥測試和流感疫苗注射，這樣我們就可以更好地了解潛在盈利能力的運行率核心業務和改進順序，好嗎？

Sure, Elizabeth. So we did about 600 -- we administered about 600,000 COVID vaccines in the fourth quarter, met about 500,000 flu shots. And on the PCR testing, pretty much nothing. PCR testing demand has completely dried up. Antigen test, we sold about 3.5 million of antigen tests during the quarter.

當然，伊麗莎白。所以我們做了大約 600 次——我們在第四季度接種了大約 600,000 次 COVID 疫苗，接種了大約 500,000 次流感疫苗。而在 PCR 測試中，幾乎沒有。 PCR檢測需求已經完全枯竭。抗原測試，我們在本季度售出了約 350 萬份抗原測試。

Okay. Super helpful. Any changes to how you think about the profitability of those types of items in the vaccines and once the PHE ends?

好的。超級有幫助。您對疫苗中這些類型項目的盈利能力的看法有何變化，一旦 PHE 結束？

Yes. The change is going to -- is not necessarily related to the PHE, Elizabeth, but what we expect to happen for the majority of the vaccines -- COVID vaccines we fill in fiscal '24, is that it'll move to a model where we purchased the vaccines from manufacturers and have been a reimbursement remodel that's based upon kind of funding those purchase vaccines.

是的。改變將要——不一定與 PHE 相關，Elizabeth，但我們預計大多數疫苗會發生什麼——我們在 24 財年填寫的 COVID 疫苗，是它將轉向一個模型，其中我們從製造商那裡購買疫苗，並根據購買疫苗的資金類型進行報銷改造。

So think of the gross profit per vaccine next year to be a lot more like a flu shot, as opposed to getting a dispensing fee from the government, which is how it's worked for the last couple of years.

因此，明年每種疫苗的毛利更像是流感疫苗，而不是從政府那裡收取配藥費，這就是過去幾年的運作方式。

Okay. That's very helpful. And then I think you sort of talked about it at a high level, but I wanted to just dig in a little bit more into what you and Busy were saying about the mid-single-digit non-COVID comparable prescription growth. Can you talk about sort of the initiatives and where you think those will come through? Because I mean that's obviously a key part of the thesis. So I just want to make sure we have that down correctly?

好的。這很有幫助。然後我認為你有點在高層次上談論它，但我想更深入地了解你和 Busy 所說的中個位數非 COVID 可比處方藥增長。您能否談談一些舉措以及您認為這些舉措將在何處實現？因為我的意思是這顯然是論文的關鍵部分。所以我只是想確保我們正確地把它放下了嗎？

Yes. So if you think about kind of the drivers outside of COVID, it's really focused on a few things. One is working on continued efforts to improve our adherence. We expanded Courtesy Refill this year, which is a big part of that. We're expanding our -- we're making changes in our systems to give the pharmacists tools to do better medication and therapy management and drive adherence that way.

是的。因此，如果你考慮 COVID 之外的驅動因素，它實際上集中在幾件事上。一個是繼續努力提高我們的依從性。我們今年擴大了 Courtesy Refill，這是其中很大一部分。我們正在擴展我們的系統——我們正在對我們的系統進行更改，以便為藥劑師提供更好的藥物和治療管理工具，並以此方式推動依從性。

We're improving our messaging that we're doing to customers who haven't picked up scripts to reduce the abandoned scripts, and we've increased the amount of limited and preferred networks that we're in this year. All of those things we expect to drive that mid-single-digit script growth.

我們正在改進我們對尚未選擇腳本的客戶所做的消息傳遞，以減少被放棄的腳本，並且我們增加了今年我們所處的有限和首選網絡的數量。我們希望所有這些因素都能推動中等個位數的腳本增長。

Got it. And one last one for me. Can you talk about the progression of shrink and where you think that goes going forward?

知道了。最後一張給我。你能談談收縮的進展以及你認為它會向前發展嗎？

Yes. I mean, shrink is something that kind of plagues our entire industry. It's a challenge for all of us. But I think we continue to work on this. We -- in various areas, we work with local law enforcement. But also we're continuing to sort of evaluate new solutions that might be out there that are -- that can be effective, but there's an ongoing work. We expect shrink to be this year roughly what it was last year.

是的。我的意思是，收縮是一種困擾我們整個行業的事情。這對我們所有人來說都是一個挑戰。但我認為我們會繼續為此努力。我們 - 在各個領域，我們與當地執法部門合作。但我們也在繼續評估新的解決方案，這些解決方案可能是有效的，但正在進行中。我們預計今年的收縮率與去年大致相同。

Exactly.

確切地。

Your next question comes from the line of Lisa Gill from JPMorgan.

你的下一個問題來自摩根大通的 Lisa Gill。

Matt, I wanted to start my first question around the turnaround initiative. You talked about that it will ramp going into the third and fourth quarter of fiscal '24, and Busy talked about the fact that it was roughly 10 million here in this quarter.

馬特，我想圍繞周轉計劃開始我的第一個問題。你談到它將進入 24 財年的第三和第四季度，而 Busy 談到了一個事實，即本季度這里大約有 1000 萬。

Can you talk about the specific number that you have, number one, in 2024? And then secondly, if you think about that progression, you talked about EBITDA be back half loaded 60% to 70%. How much visibility do you have to that EBITDA in the back half of the year? And how do we think about the first part of the year? Anything you would call out as we think about the first quarter?

你能說說2024年的具體數字，第一嗎？然後其次，如果你考慮這個進展，你談到 EBITDA 回到一半負載 60% 到 70%。您對下半年的 EBITDA 有多了解？我們如何看待今年上半年？當我們考慮第一季度時，您有什麼要說的嗎？

Thanks, Lisa. So first of all, I really can't break out like turnaround versus a plan. This turnaround process and programmatic approach is the way we're driving our plan initiatives and how we're going to get to our overall planned numbers. So splitting those out, I think, is really nothing as productive.

謝謝，麗莎。所以首先，我真的不能像周轉與計劃一樣突圍。這種周轉過程和程序化方法是我們推動計劃舉措的方式，也是我們實現總體計劃數量的方式。因此，我認為將它們分開實際上沒有什麼成效。

From the standpoint of the ramp in the numbers during the second half of the year, we are making investments in technology and talent that we need to drive a lot of these initiatives forward and those investments are going to happen in the first half of the year, which is going to be some of the weight that happens on the quarter. And that's really what drives the level of increase in the back half of the year.

從今年下半年數字上升的角度來看，我們正在對技術和人才進行投資，我們需要推動這些舉措向前發展，而這些投資將在今年上半年進行，這將是本季度發生的一些重量。這才是推動今年下半年增長水平的真正原因。

As far as line of sight, Lisa, the way this program works is building up business cases and in sequencing the amount of investment and laying out very specific milestones for literally hundreds of initiatives.

就視線而言，Lisa，該計劃的工作方式是建立業務案例，對投資金額進行排序，並為數百個計劃制定非常具體的里程碑。

And what that does is it gives us a much better line of sight and way to track initiative value development that we've ever had process-wise before. So that gives me confidence and a lot more line of sight in kind of into the build of the plan than we've had just systemically in prior years.

這樣做的目的是，它為我們提供了更好的視線和方式來跟踪我們以前在流程方面進行過的主動價值開發。因此，與前幾年我們系統地進行的相比，這給了我信心，讓我對計劃的構建有了更多的了解。

And then just one other question. I guess maybe a question for you and then a follow-up for Busy, and that's around your PBM when we think about Elixir. So as we think about heading into the calendar '24 selling season, which should be starting right about now, there's a lot of scrutiny right now around the PBM industry, a lot of different legislative initiatives.

然後是另一個問題。我想可能是你的問題，然後是 Busy 的後續行動，當我們考慮 Elixir 時，這就是你的 PBM。因此，當我們考慮進入日曆上的“24 銷售季”時，現在應該開始了，目前圍繞 PBM 行業進行了大量審查，許多不同的立法舉措。

If I remember correctly, your PBM is primarily a transparent PBM. So my first question is, are you seeing an increased interest in Elixir just given all of the scrutiny around the PBM industry?

如果我沒記錯的話，您的 PBM 主要是透明的 PBM。所以我的第一個問題是，鑑於對 PBM 行業的所有審查，你是否看到人們對 Elixir 的興趣增加了？

And then my second question for Busy as a Board member, how do you think about the PBM? And do you think that the PBM as part of Rite Aid going forward is important?

然後我的第二個問題是作為董事會成員很忙，你如何看待 PBM？你認為 PBM 作為 Rite Aid 的一部分很重要嗎？

So I'm going to -- I'll answer the second question first. And then sort of regarding the changes in the PBM industry, I'll hand that over to Chris DuPaul since he's here, and he can help you answer specifics on the regulatory environment he is doing for Elixir.

所以我要——我會先回答第二個問題。然後關於 PBM 行業的變化，我會把它交給 Chris DuPaul，因為他在這裡，他可以幫助你回答他為 Elixir 所做的監管環境的細節。

So I think it's -- Elixir has a very strong mid-market PBM with great assets. We're actively working on growing it, grow the revenue and continuing to work on expanding the margins. We really believe in the future of the business. And there's a lot of untapped synergies that we are working on to have this -- to sort of realize that value between owning the retail and PBM businesses. So we are actively working on doing the business.

所以我認為它是 - Elixir 擁有非常強大的中端市場 PBM 和豐富的資產。我們正在積極致力於發展它，增加收入並繼續努力擴大利潤率。我們真的相信企業的未來。我們正在努力實現許多未開發的協同作用——以實現擁有零售和 PBM 業務之間的價值。因此，我們正在積極開展業務。

And then Lisa, I appreciate the question. Regarding the level of interest in the PBM business model, as you know, we've been around for over 20 years in the PBM space. And we have a legacy of business where the majority of that business is pass-through, but we also have a significant part of our business that is -- that operates on a traditional spread model.

然後麗莎，我很欣賞這個問題。關於對 PBM 業務模型的興趣程度，如您所知，我們在 PBM 領域已經存在了 20 多年。我們擁有大部分業務都是直通的業務傳統，但我們也有很大一部分業務是——在傳統的傳播模式下運營。

And regarding what's happening in Washington and in different debates around the state, we do think it's extremely important to be able to preserve the choice of which model to operate under for clients. There are benefits to both of those structures. We offer both of those structures, and we think it's very important that clients continue to have the ability to queue it whether they want to operate on a pass-through or on a spread model.

關於華盛頓正在發生的事情以及圍繞該州的不同辯論，我們確實認為能夠為客戶保留在哪種模式下運營的選擇權是極其重要的。這兩種結構都有好處。我們提供這兩種結構，我們認為客戶繼續能夠對其進行排隊是非常重要的，無論他們是想在直通模式還是傳播模式上進行操作。

We are seeing very good interest in the PBM in the selling season. I mean, it's very early on. And most of the business, particularly in the parts of the market where we compete most strongly happens in the middle to the back part of the selling season. But at this point of the year, we are seeing greater interest. And we're getting really good feedback from the consulting community and others about the offering that we can bring relative to other players in the space.

我們看到銷售旺季對 PBM 非常感興趣。我的意思是，現在還很早。大多數業務，特別是在我們競爭最激烈的市場部分，都發生在銷售季節的中後期。但在今年的這個時候，我們看到了更大的興趣。我們從諮詢社區和其他人那裡得到了非常好的反饋，關於我們可以相對於該領域的其他參與者提供的產品。

I think we do have a very strong reputation around being transparent with our clients in terms of how we price, how we keep our commitments and how we work in partnership with our clients in managing their drug spend. And we're looking forward to this on season.

我認為，在我們如何定價、如何履行承諾以及如何與客戶合作管理他們的藥物支出方面，我們在對客戶保持透明方面享有很高的聲譽。我們期待著這個季節。

Your next question comes from the line of George Hill from Deutsche Bank.

你的下一個問題來自德意志銀行的喬治希爾。

Yes. I guess, Matt, I have a couple of questions. First, could you talk about what's embedded in the guidance COVID for fiscal '24? I would imagine, given the roll-off, the expectations are pretty de minimis. But given the expectation in '23, would just kind of like to know what you guys are expecting to see as it relates to that?

是的。我想，馬特，我有幾個問題。首先，您能否談談 24 財年 COVID 指南中包含的內容？我想，鑑於滾降，期望值是微乎其微的。但是考慮到 23 年的期望，是否想知道你們期望看到與此相關的內容？

Yes. So George, we have included in the guidance for '24 as an assumption, we'll fill about 3 million COVID vaccines next year. And really, the underlying basis for that assumption is the idea that there'll be one shot administered some time in the fall or winter as part of an annual immunization update.

是的。所以喬治，我們已經將 24 年的指南作為假設包含在內，明年我們將接種大約 300 萬支 COVID 疫苗。實際上，該假設的潛在基礎是，作為年度免疫更新的一部分，將在秋季或冬季的某個時間注射一針。

We also expect, as I said earlier, that the profitability of those COVID vaccines is going to decrease as the industry moves to a model where you purchase the vaccines as opposed to being government-funded with the dispensing fee.

正如我之前所說，我們還預計，隨著行業轉向購買疫苗而不是由政府支付配藥費的模式，這些 COVID 疫苗的盈利能力將會下降。

On the antigen test side, expecting the antigen tests demand to drop off pretty dramatically given that it's no longer going to be covered as a government benefit in May. We're still seeing strong demand, but some of that I think is people kind of rushing to get those done while still being covered. And in the latter part of the year, we expect the antigen testing demand to be relatively minor.

在抗原檢測方面，預計抗原檢測需求將大幅下降，因為它在 5 月份將不再作為政府福利覆蓋。我們仍然看到強勁的需求，但我認為其中一些是人們在仍然被覆蓋的情況下急於完成這些工作。而在今年下半年，我們預計抗原檢測需求將相對較小。

Great. And a quick follow-up, I guess. Before heading into fiscal '24, you guys had outlaid a cost savings program as it related to things like store closures, the loyalty savings program, cost savings in the PBM business. I was wondering if you could just kind of be able to update us on the outlook for those savings initiatives, kind of what was achieved in '23 and kind of what the expectation should be in '24?

偉大的。我猜是快速跟進。在進入 24 財年之前，你們已經制定了一項成本節約計劃，因為它與商店關閉、忠誠度節約計劃、PBM 業務的成本節約等相關。我想知道您是否可以向我們介紹這些儲蓄計劃的最新前景，23 年取得的成就以及 24 年的期望值？

Yes, George, we had, I think, an expectation of about $190 million in savings for things related to those programs, and we met and probably slightly exceeded those numbers. Store closures, expect a lot less next year. We're looking -- we always look at the fleet, but we did about 190 store closures this year, do not expect anywhere close to that number next year. It's not part of the program.

是的，喬治，我認為，我們曾期望為與這些計劃相關的事情節省大約 1.9 億美元，我們達到並可能略微超過了這些數字。商店關門，預計明年會少很多。我們正在尋找 - 我們一直在關注車隊，但今年我們關閉了大約 190 家商店，預計明年不會接近這個數字。它不是程序的一部分。

From a payroll standpoint, we'll continue to actively manage labor in stores, but we're actually as part of initiatives to grow our scripts and grow our business are going to be investing in -- doing some investments in talent and investments in technology. And we do expect to drive a pretty significant cost savings from better management of indirect spend, which is going to be a focus for '24.

從薪資的角度來看，我們將繼續積極管理商店的勞動力，但實際上我們是發展我們的腳本和發展我們的業務的舉措的一部分，我們將投資於 - 對人才和技術進行一些投資.我們確實希望通過更好地管理間接支出來節省相當可觀的成本，這將成為 24 世紀的重點。

Okay. And then the last one for me is, I know it's early, but the macro reimbursement environment in pharmacy has been challenging. I don't know if you guys have any early thoughts on what the impact of reimbursement changes will be in calendar '24.

好的。最後一個對我來說是，我知道現在還早，但藥房的宏觀報銷環境一直充滿挑戰。我不知道你們是否對報銷變化對 24 年日曆的影響有任何早期想法。

Too early to tell. Yes, to early to tell.

現在下結論還為時過早。是的，要早點說。

Your next question comes from the line of William Reuter from Bank of America.

你的下一個問題來自美國銀行的 William Reuter。

I just have a couple. The first is, I think you said you realized $17 million of proceeds from the sale of scripts. Can you talk about what the price per script was that you achieved on those sales?

我只有一對。首先，我想你說過你從腳本銷售中獲得了 1700 萬美元的收益。你能談談你在這些銷售中獲得的每個劇本的價格嗎？

Thanks, Bill, it's Matt. We -- both on the buy side and the sell side where we're either purchasing scripts from us from independent pharmacies or when we're selling scripts as a result of closing the store, the average is somewhere usually between $10 and $20 per script, varies dramatically based upon the specific transaction you're doing and the specific demand in the marketplace.

謝謝，比爾，我是馬特。我們——無論是在買方還是賣方，我們要么從獨立藥店購買腳本，要么當我們因關閉商店而銷售腳本時，平均每個腳本通常在 10 美元到 20 美元之間，根據您正在進行的特定交易和市場中的特定需求而有很大差異。

That's very helpful. And then the last time we had heard regarding the lives under management at Elixir, you were expecting about $1.7 million for this calendar year. I don't think I saw an update unless it was in the slides, and I missed it. Do you know what that number is right now?

這很有幫助。上次我們聽說 Elixir 管理的生命時，你預計本日曆年的收入約為 170 萬美元。我認為我沒有看到更新，除非它出現在幻燈片中，但我錯過了。你知道現在這個數字是多少嗎？

It's a net debt quote. Probably a little less like $1.6 million when you -- overall.

這是淨債務報價。總的來說，可能會少一點，比如 160 萬美元。

Okay. And then just lastly for me, you reduced inventory by 40 million last year. I think you said you expect more this year. Is there any sense of magnitude for the reduction this year?

好的。最後對我來說，你去年減少了 4000 萬庫存。我想你說你今年期望更多。今年的降幅有沒有量級感？

Yes. Without giving a precise number, I'd say it should dramatically exceed that 40 million. We're really working pretty hard at kind of inventory sets in the front end, the ability to do a better job of doing our merchandising on a more regional basis, which enables us to get sharper on inventory ordering. We're going to reduce the amount of seasonal inventory we do in the front end.

是的。沒有給出確切的數字，我會說它應該大大超過 4000 萬。我們在前端的庫存集方面非常努力，能夠在更區域的基礎上更好地進行商品銷售，這使我們能夠在庫存訂購方面更加敏銳。我們將減少前端的季節性庫存量。

And then on the prescription side, we still have a lot of opportunity to reduce the amount of brand prescription inventory that we have in the stores, while still providing great service to our customers because we get deliveries multiple times a week from McKesson, our delivery partner.

然後在處方方面，我們仍然有很多機會減少我們在商店中的品牌處方庫存量，同時仍然為我們的客戶提供優質服務，因為我們每週從 McKesson 獲得多次交付，我們的交付夥伴。

Your next question comes from the line of Karru Martinson from Jefferies.

你的下一個問題來自 Jefferies 的 Karru Martinson。

You talked to being overlevered and that had restricted your business investments in the core. I'm just trying to understand, given the $225 million of CapEx, what is the hindrance here? And how do you get out from under this overlevered state?

你談到過度槓桿化，這限制了你對核心業務的投資。我只是想了解，考慮到 2.25 億美元的資本支出，這裡的障礙是什麼？你如何擺脫這種過度槓桿化的狀態？

Yes. part of the $225 million is thinking hard, Karru, about where we make those investments. And we're making -- we're awaiting those investments a lot more this year into technology, investments that we believe are going to drive pretty rapid payback from the standpoint of being able to execute things like better script adherence, sharpening front-end, inventory ordering and better service delivery at Elixir and winning in the marketplace, and less on investments in the physical stores themselves.

是的。 Karru，2.25 億美元的一部分正在認真考慮我們在哪裡進行這些投資。我們正在 - 我們正在等待今年對技術的更多投資，我們認為從能夠執行諸如更好的腳本依從性、銳化前端等事情的角度來看，這些投資將推動相當快速的回報、庫存訂購和 Elixir 更好的服務交付並在市場上取勝，減少對實體店本身的投資。

Keeping the stores, obviously, at a base level investment is important. But just from the standpoint of thinking about quick payback, that's really where we're focusing that $225 million. And this year, despite the leverage ratio being at 6.5x, we need to make these investments to really grow EBITDA significantly in '25 and '26. And basically, grow EBITDA to a point where we get that leverage ratio more stable. That -- those are -- that's what we really need to do to get ourselves back to a leverage position where we would be more comfortable.

顯然，將商店保持在基本水平的投資很重要。但僅從考慮快速回報的角度來看，這才是我們真正關注 2.25 億美元的地方。今年，儘管槓桿率為 6.5 倍，但我們需要進行這些投資，以在 25 年和 26 年真正顯著增長 EBITDA。基本上，將 EBITDA 增長到使槓桿率更加穩定的程度。那 - 那些 - 這就是我們真正需要做的，以使我們自己回到我們會更舒服的槓杆位置。

And is the plan still here to attack the front-end bonds to chip away at that maturity and take that off the table?

攻擊前端債券的計劃是否仍然存在，以削弱到期日並將其從談判桌上拿下來？

Well, certainly, the '25 bonds are the things that we're the most focused on, Karru, just given that they're the earliest ones to mature. I think broader plans to be talked about as we kind of sharpen our thinking here over the next few months.

嗯，當然，'25 債券是我們最關注的東西，Karru，只是因為它們是最早成熟的債券。我認為隨著我們在接下來的幾個月裡在這裡加強我們的思考，我們將討論更廣泛的計劃。

Okay. And just lastly, I realize that, as you said, opioid litigation is, shall we say, a long process. But could you help guide us in terms of where does that process play out with the states, with the DOJ, just from a big picture of what your expectations are, both from a cost and from a timing perspective?

好的。最後，我意識到，正如您所說，阿片類藥物訴訟是一個漫長的過程。但是，您能否從成本和時間的角度，從您的期望的全局角度，幫助指導我們了解該過程在各州、司法部的哪些方面發揮作用？

Yes. I think it's very difficult, as you can imagine, to predict litigation. And all we can tell you is that what we're facing is very consistent with everybody else in the industry is facing. We are in the process of vigorously defending ourselves, and we've included all the costs into our guidance in SG&A. So -- and then we just -- obviously, we can't comment on any specific matters beyond what we've got out there probably.

是的。正如您所想像的，我認為預測訴訟非常困難。我們只能告訴你的是，我們所面臨的與業內其他人所面臨的非常一致。我們正在積極捍衛自己，我們已將所有成本納入我們在 SG&A 的指導中。所以 - 然後我們只是 - 顯然，我們不能對超出我們可能已經得到的任何具體問題發表評論。

And we have time for one last question. Your final question comes from the line of Carla Casella from JPMorgan.

我們還有時間回答最後一個問題。你的最後一個問題來自摩根大通的 Carla Casella。

You mentioned $10 million of EBITDA savings from the turnaround. Was that in fourth quarter? Or if that was achieved in first quarter '24 already?

你提到了 1000 萬美元的 EBITDA 節省。那是在第四季度嗎？或者如果這已經在 24 年第一季度實現了？

Yes, Carla, it's Matt. The $10 million in the fourth quarter. And I would say it's not just savings. Some of it is actually initiatives that we did to drive prescription growth. So some of that $10 million is up in our pharmacy -- gross profit numbers coming from the steps that we did, that we undertook to drive increased adherence, as well as some generic drug purchasing benefits and some SG&A savings.

是的，卡拉，我是馬特。第四季度的 1000 萬美元。我會說這不僅僅是儲蓄。其中一些實際上是我們為推動處方增長所做的舉措。因此，這 1000 萬美元中有一部分是在我們的藥房——毛利潤數字來自我們所做的步驟，我們承諾推動提高依從性，以及一些仿製藥購買利益和一些 SG&A 節省。

And did you say the number that you're expecting for '24?

您是否說了 24 年的預期數字？

We did not. We did not.

我們沒有。我們沒有。

Okay. But should that $10 million, should that grow going forward or is that going to add?

好的。但這 1000 萬美元應該繼續增長還是會增加？

It's going to grow significantly, Carla. I mean we're -- Q4, we were literally still building the base plan for '24 and kind of finishing the process to really size the overall initiative opportunity.

它會顯著增長，卡拉。我的意思是我們 - 第 4 季度，我們實際上仍在為 24 年制定基本計劃，並在某種程度上完成了真正確定整體倡議機會的過程。

Yes. I think the way to think about it is Q4 was just sort of testing our ability to execute this model and trying a few initiatives to sort of start to put the model in place.

是的。我認為考慮它的方式是第四季度只是測試我們執行這個模型的能力，並嘗試一些舉措來開始將模型放到位。

And with that effort, that's where the $10 million came from now. We are scaling that turnaround model across the enterprise. And so I think, to Matt's point, is that we expect far more than $10 million.

通過這種努力，這就是現在 1000 萬美元的來源。我們正在整個企業中擴展這種周轉模型。所以我認為，就 Matt 的觀點而言，我們期望的金額遠遠超過 1000 萬美元。

Okay. And then you mentioned reducing SKUs and reducing seasonal merchandise. Can you just give us a sense for what percentage of your sales in the past year was seasonal merchandise and kind of what the impact of that. Is it the lower gross margin? Is it the higher volatility segment? And how do you think about the scaling back of Seasonal?

好的。然後你提到減少 SKU 和減少季節性商品。您能告訴我們去年您的銷售額中有多少百分比是季節性商品，以及它的影響是什麼？是毛利率較低嗎？它是波動率較高的部分嗎？你如何看待季節性的縮減？

Yes. Carla, Seasonal is not a material part of our front-end sales. But -- this year in Seasonal, I would say we over-ordered. And so what happened was we had to mark down a lot of this merchandise and in some cases, these were returned to get it cleared out. And so -- not only do we have too much -- negative having too much inventory is to get it out of the stores, we had to get rid of it, I'd put in some cases, below cost.

是的。卡拉，季節性不是我們前端銷售的重要組成部分。但是 - 今年在季節性中，我會說我們訂購過多。所以發生的事情是我們不得不對很多商品進行降價，在某些情況下，這些商品被退回以將其清理乾淨。因此——我們不僅有太多——負面的庫存太多是為了把它從商店裡拿出來，我們不得不把它處理掉，在某些情況下，我會以低於成本的方式處理它。

So Seasonal merchandise normally, if you order it right and you order the right amount and manage the demand right can actually be very profitable. But it wasn't for us in this past year because of the overall ordering.

因此，通常情況下，季節性商品，如果您訂購正確，訂購正確的數量並正確管理需求，實際上可以非常有利可圖。但由於整體訂購，在過去的一年裡它不適合我們。

Okay. And then one last one. Just you mentioned that you did 2 sale leasebacks. Do you have any further sale-leaseback opportunities? I mean where do you stand now in terms of owned assets or real estate? And is there also an impact -- a significant impact to your rent expense or lease based on the sale-leasebacks you've done using the...

好的。然後是最後一個。剛才您提到您進行了 2 次售後回租。您還有其他售後回租機會嗎？我的意思是，就自有資產或房地產而言，您現在處於什麼位置？是否也有影響——根據您使用...完成的售後回租，對您的租金支出或租賃產生重大影響。

The sale-leasebacks we did this year will have a kind of a minor impact of rent, but not something I would call a material headwind. We still have roughly, I think, 60 to 70 owned stores in the portfolio, and we are still evaluating the ability to sale leaseback some of them.

我們今年進行的售後回租會對租金產生輕微影響，但我不會稱之為重大逆風。我認為，我們的投資組合中仍有大約 60 到 70 家自有商店，我們仍在評估售後回租其中一些商店的能力。

I would expect some level of sale-leaseback proceeds in fiscal '24, but not as much as what we saw in fiscal '23.

我預計 24 財年會有一定程度的售後回租收益，但不會像我們在 23 財年看到的那樣多。

And I will now turn the call back over to Mr. Matt Schroeder for some final closing remarks.

我現在將把電話轉回 Matt Schroeder 先生，聽取一些最後的結束語。

Just want to thank everybody for joining us on the call today. We appreciate the questions and the interest. We also look forward to speaking to many of you on May 9 at the Bank of America Healthcare Conference in Las Vegas. Until then, take care and have a good day.

只想感謝大家今天加入我們的電話會議。我們感謝您的問題和興趣。我們也期待 5 月 9 日在拉斯維加斯舉行的美國銀行醫療保健會議上與你們中的許多人交談。在那之前，保重，祝你有美好的一天。

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與。您現在可以斷開連接。