Roper Technologies, Inc. (ROP) 2020 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good morning. The Roper Technologies conference call will now begin. Today's call is being recorded. (Operator Instructions)

各位早安。Roper Technologies 的電話會議現在開始。今天的電話會議將被錄音。（接線員指示）

I would now like to turn the call over to Zack Moxcey, Vice President, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

現在我想把電話交給投資人關係副總裁 Zack Moxcey。請開始。

Good morning. Thank you all for joining us as we discuss the fourth quarter and full year financial results for Roper Technologies. We hope everyone is doing well. Joining me on the call this morning are Neil Hunn, President and Chief Executive Officer; Rob Crisci, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; Jason Conley, Vice President and Controller; and Shannon O'Callaghan, Vice President of Finance.

各位早安。感謝各位加入我們，一同討論 Roper Technologies 第四季與全年財務結果。希望大家都一切安好。今天早上與我一同參與電話會議的有：總裁兼執行長 Neil Hunn；執行副總裁兼財務長 Rob Crisci；副總裁兼主計長 Jason Conley；以及財務副總裁 Shannon O'Callaghan。

Earlier this morning, we issued a press release announcing our financial results. The press release also includes replay information for today's call. We have prepared slides to accompany today's call, which are available through the webcast and are also available on our website.

今天稍早，我們發布新聞稿公布財務結果。新聞稿也包含今天電話會議的重播資訊。我們已準備投影片搭配今天的電話會議，可透過網路直播取得，亦可在我們的網站上查閱。

Now if you please turn to Slide 2. We begin with our safe harbor statement. During the course of today's call, we will make forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks and uncertainties as described on this page, in our press release and in our SEC filings. You should listen to today's call in the context of that information.

現在請翻到投影片第 2 頁。我們先進行安全港聲明。在今天電話會議過程中，我們將作出前瞻性陳述，這些陳述受本頁、我們的新聞稿以及向 SEC 申報文件中所述之風險與不確定性影響。請在該等資訊的脈絡下收聽今天的電話會議。

And now please turn to Slide 3. Today, we will discuss our results for the quarter and year primarily on an adjusted non-GAAP basis. Reconciliations between GAAP and adjusted measures can be found in our press release and in the appendix of this presentation on our website. For the fourth quarter, the difference between our GAAP results and adjusted results consists of the following items: amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets; purchase accounting adjustments to acquire deferred revenue and related commission expense; and lastly, transaction-related expenses for completed acquisitions.

接著請翻到投影片第 3 頁。今天我們將主要以調整後的非 GAAP 基礎來討論本季與全年的結果。GAAP 與調整後衡量指標之間的調節表可在我們的新聞稿以及本簡報網站版本的附錄中找到。就第四季而言，我們 GAAP 結果與調整後結果的差異包含以下項目：併購相關無形資產攤銷；收購遞延收入及相關佣金費用的購買會計調整；以及最後，已完成併購的交易相關費用。

And now if you please turn to Slide 4, I'll hand the call over to Neil. After our prepared remarks, we will take questions from our telephone participants. Neil?

現在請翻到投影片第 4 頁，我將把電話交給 Neil。在我們的準備發言之後，將開放電話與會者提問。Neil？

Thanks, Zack, and good morning, everyone. Thanks for joining us, and we hope everyone is doing well.

謝謝 Zack，各位早安。感謝大家加入我們，也希望大家都一切安好。

For today's agenda, we'll walk through our 2020 financials and operational highlights. Then we'll turn to our 2020 segment detailed results and discuss our '21 segment-by-segment outlook and end with our '21 enterprise guidance prior to discussing your questions. Next slide, please.

今天的議程，我們將先回顧 2020 年的財務與營運重點。接著我們會說明 2020 年各事業部門的詳細結果，並討論 2021 年逐部門展望，最後在回答各位問題之前，提供 2021 年整體企業指引。請看下一頁。

As we look back on 2020, it was quite a year. Our businesses performed at a very high level during this period. Revenues grew 3% with organic revenue declining a single percent. EBITDA also grew 3%, and free cash flow grew 16%. This cash flow performance, $1.7 billion, is just astounding. This is a testament to many things, notably our asset-light business model, the intimacy we have with our customers and the high level of skill and execution of our field teams. This cash flow is just simply a great result.

回顧 2020 年，確實是非常特別的一年。我們的各項業務在此期間表現維持在非常高的水準。營收成長 3%，其中有機營收小幅下滑 1%。EBITDA 也成長 3%，自由現金流成長 16%。這樣的現金流表現——17 億美元——令人驚嘆。這反映了許多因素，尤其是我們的輕資產商業模式、我們與客戶之間緊密的互動關係，以及前線團隊高度的專業能力與執行力。這樣的現金流結果確實非常出色。

Perhaps more important, 2020 was a year of forward progress for our company. We exit 2020 as a better company, a company with higher-quality revenue streams, a company with improved future innovation prospects and a company with whose portfolio was enhanced with $6 billion of capital deployment. To this end, we saw our software recurring revenues increase mid-single digits in 2020 and were benefited by high levels of retention and an acceleration to the cloud.

更重要的是，2020 年是公司持續向前邁進的一年。我們在 2020 年結束時，成為一家更好的公司：擁有更高品質的營收來源、未來創新前景更佳，且透過 60 億美元的資本部署強化了投資組合。為此，我們在 2020 年看到軟體經常性收入以中個位數成長，並受惠於高留存率以及加速上雲的趨勢。

We continue to be benefited by having close intimate relationships with our customers. Most often, our software is mission-critical to our customers' operations.

我們持續受惠於與客戶之間緊密且深入的關係。多數情況下，我們的軟體對客戶的營運而言屬於關鍵任務系統。

In addition, we continue to strategically invest throughout our portfolio during the year. Based on our historical experience, we find times of market disruption the best time to double down on innovation and market investments which, in turn, will drive market share gains in the years to come. Finally, we were able to deploy $6 billion to further enhance Roper's group of companies, headlined by our Vertafore acquisition.

此外，我們在一年中持續於整體投資組合進行策略性投資。依據我們過往經驗，市場出現擾動時往往是加碼創新與市場投資的最佳時機，進而在未來幾年帶動市占率提升。最後，我們也得以部署 60 億美元，進一步強化 Roper 的企業群，其中以收購 Vertafore 最為亮眼。

So when we look back on 2020, we highlight 2 key themes. First, we grew. Cash flow increased 16% in the middle of a pandemic. And second, the quality of our enterprise continued to improve during the year. Net-net, we got bigger and better during 2020. Let's turn to the next slide.

因此回顧 2020 年，我們強調兩個關鍵主題。第一，我們成長了。在疫情期間，現金流仍成長 16%。第二，我們企業的品質在一年中持續提升。總結來說，2020 年我們變得更大也更好。請看下一頁。

Over the past 5 years, we highlight that our revenue grew at a 9% compounded rate, EBITDA at 10% and cash flow at 13%. We continue to grow and compound through macroeconomic cycles. Also, during the time period, the quality of our enterprise meaningfully improved. We are more software focused with nearly 2/3 of our EBITDA coming from software with higher levels of recurring revenue. Conversely, we are much less tied to cyclical end markets today, a little over 15% of our portfolio.

過去 5 年，我們的營收以 9% 的複合成長率成長，EBITDA 以 10% 成長，現金流以 13% 成長。我們持續在不同的總體經濟循環中成長並複利累積。同時，在此期間，我們企業的品質也顯著改善。我們更聚焦於軟體，近 2/3 的 EBITDA 來自軟體，且具備更高比例的經常性收入。相對地，我們如今與景氣循環型終端市場的連動性大幅降低，該類市場僅占我們投資組合略高於 15%。

Given our long-term strategy and these factors, we are a low-risk enterprise. We compound cash flow through cycle and do so with multiple growth drivers across both organic and inorganic fronts. As we look to '21, we will continue our long-term string of revenue and EBITDA and cash flow compounding.

基於我們的長期策略與上述因素，我們是一家低風險的企業。我們能在景氣循環中持續複利累積現金流，且在有機與非有機兩方面都具備多元成長動能。展望 2021 年，我們將延續長期以來營收、EBITDA 與現金流的複利成長。

So with that, let's turn to the next page and discuss the macro backdrop for '21. As we look to 2021, we are set up for a strong year. We expect revenue and EBITDA will grow well into the double digits, likely in the mid-teens range, with organic revenue growth in the mid-single-digit plus range. This is on top of growth in 2020. The compounding continues.

接著請翻到下一頁，討論 2021 年的總體環境背景。展望 2021 年，我們已為強勁的一年做好準備。我們預期營收與 EBITDA 將成長至雙位數的高檔，可能落在中十位數區間；有機營收成長則預期在中個位數以上。這是在 2020 年成長的基礎之上，複利成長仍將持續。

Breaking it down. Our software businesses, both in our Application Software and network segments, are well positioned heading into '21. These businesses entered the year with momentum from strong retention and recurring revenue gains. They'll be further aided by growth in perpetual license as pipeline and customer activity are anticipated to recover to some extent.

進一步拆解來看，我們的軟體業務——包括應用軟體與網路事業部門——在邁入 2021 年時具備良好態勢。這些業務在年初即受惠於強勁的留存率與經常性收入提升所帶來的動能。隨著銷售管線與客戶活動預期在一定程度上回升，永久授權（perpetual license）的成長也將提供額外助力。

Our non-Verathon medical product businesses are expected to return to a more normalized pattern of customer activity as health care facilities loosen restrictions. But since 2020 was well below trend, we expect above-trend growth here. Of note, Verathon has a challenging comp. However, the reoccurring revenue base will remain strong given the large volume of capital placements in 2020 and continued growth of their new single-use bronchoscope business.

我們的非 Verathon 醫療產品業務，預期將隨著醫療機構放寬限制而回到較正常的客戶活動模式。但由於 2020 年明顯低於趨勢水準，我們預期此處將出現高於趨勢的成長。值得注意的是，Verathon 面臨較具挑戰性的比較基期。不過，鑑於 2020 年大量資本設備的裝機（capital placements）以及其新的一次性支氣管鏡業務持續成長，其經常性收入基礎仍將維持強勁。

We expect Neptune to recover and grow nicely as our customers especially in the Northeast U.S. and Canada gain access to residential locations. We expect our industrial and process tech businesses to continue their quarterly improvements and return to growth after 2 years of macro headwinds.

我們預期 Neptune 將隨著客戶——特別是美國東北部與加拿大——重新取得進入住宅地點的機會而復甦並有不錯的成長。我們也預期工業與製程技術業務將延續各季改善，在經歷 2 年的總體逆風後重回成長。

Finally, 2021 will be meaningfully aided by the contribution from our 2020 cohort of acquisitions. To this end, we continue to work with a very full and high-quality M&A pipeline. We are committed to deleveraging, but we also remain active in building and maturing our pipe.

最後，2021 年將顯著受惠於我們 2020 年一批收購案的貢獻。為此，我們持續維持非常充實且高品質的併購（M&A）案源。我們致力於降低槓桿，但同時也會持續積極建立並培育我們的案源管線。

So as I think back over the nearly 10 years I've been with Roper, I cannot think of a better set of tailwinds heading into a year. Clearly, lots to do and lots of execution in front of us, but we have a strong momentum heading into '21.

回想我在 Roper 將近 10 年的時間，我想不出有哪一年在年初能擁有比現在更好的順風因素。顯然，我們仍有許多工作要做、也有許多執行工作在前方，但我們在邁入 2021 年時具備強勁動能。

So now let me turn the call over to Rob. Rob?

接下來我把電話交給 Rob。Rob？

Thanks, Neil. Good morning, everyone.

謝謝 Neil。各位早安。

Turning to Page 8, looking at our Q4 income statement performance. Total revenue increased 8% as we eclipsed $1.5 billion of quarterly revenue for the first time. Organic revenue for the enterprise declined 2% versus prior year.

請看第 8 頁，先看我們第四季損益表表現。總營收成長 8%，我們季度營收首次突破 15 億美元。企業整體的有機營收較去年同期下滑 2%。

EBITDA grew 7% in the quarter to a record $552 million. EBITDA margin was down 40 basis points versus prior year at 36.6%. Tax rate came in at 19.9%, a little lower than last year's 21.6%. So all in, this resulted in adjusted diluted earnings per share of $3.56, which is above our guidance range.

本季 EBITDA 成長 7%，達到創紀錄的 5.52 億美元。EBITDA 利潤率為 36.6%，較去年同期下降 40 個基點。稅率為 19.9%，略低於去年的 21.6%。綜合以上，調整後稀釋每股盈餘為 3.56 美元，高於我們的指引區間。

Next slide. Turning to Page 9 and reviewing the Q4 results by segment. Neil will discuss the full year 2020 segment performance in more detail later so just touching on some of the Q4 highlights here by segment.

下一頁。請看第 9 頁，回顧第四季按事業部門劃分的結果。Neil 稍後會更詳細討論 2020 全年各部門表現，因此這裡僅先簡要提及各部門第四季的一些重點。

Application Software grew 35% with the addition of Vertafore. Organic for the segment was minus 2% with mid-single-digit recurring revenue growth continuing. Sharp declines in our CBORD and Horizon businesses serving K-12 and higher education impacted the segment as many schools unfortunately remain closed.

應用軟體因新增 Vertafore 而成長 35%。該部門的有機成長為負 2%，其中經常性收入仍持續呈現中個位數成長。由於許多學校不幸仍維持關閉，服務 K-12 與高等教育的 CBORD 與 Horizon 業務大幅下滑，進而影響了該部門。

For Network Software & Systems, plus 2% organic growth with our software businesses, putting up a very solid plus 4% organic. And TransCore was flat versus prior year.

在網路軟體與系統方面，我們的軟體業務帶來有機成長正 2%，使軟體業務本身繳出相當穩健的有機成長正 4%。而 TransCore 與去年同期持平。

For Measurement & Analytical Solutions, plus 1% organic growth as we start to see some sequential recovery in Neptune and our industrial businesses. Segment margins were impacted a bit by the acceleration of some product and channel investments at Verathon, as we discussed, coming into the quarter, and it's really been an exceptional year for Verathon overall.

在量測與分析解決方案方面，有機成長正 1%，因為我們開始看到 Neptune 與工業業務出現一些連續性的復甦。正如我們在進入本季時所討論的，Verathon 加速部分產品與通路投資，對部門利潤率造成些許影響；而整體而言，這一年對 Verathon 來說確實是非常出色的一年。

Lastly, for Process Technologies, a 21% organic decline, with margins holding up well at 31.3%. And once again, here, we started to see some early signs of improvement after a couple of years of declines.

最後，在製程技術方面，有機下滑 21%，但利潤率仍維持在 31.3% 的良好水準。而且同樣地，在這裡，我們在經歷數年的下滑後，開始看到一些早期改善跡象。

Next slide. So turning to Page 10, looking at net working capital. Honestly, the slide mostly speaks for itself, ending the quarter with negative 8% net working capital as a percentage of Q4 annualized revenue.

下一張投影片。接著看第 10 頁，檢視淨營運資本。坦白說，這張投影片大多不言自明：本季結束時，淨營運資本占第四季年化營收的比重為負 8%。

While there are certainly some seasonal trends, primarily around timing of software renewals, they do typically benefit our Q4 performance. You can see here a meaningful improvement versus 2018, improving from negative 3.4% to negative 8% in 2020. Our asset-light negative net working capital model drives our sustainable high cash conversion and fuels our cash flow compounding.

雖然確實存在一些季節性趨勢，主要與軟體續約時點有關，但通常會有利於我們第四季的表現。你可以看到，相較於 2018 年有顯著改善，從 2020 年的負 3.4% 改善至負 8%。我們的輕資產、負淨營運資本模式，推動可持續的高現金轉換率，並促進現金流的複利成長。

Our people focus on what we all believe matters, and our culture is built around growing the right way. Top line growth converts to cash flow, and we are always mindful of impacts to our balance sheet.

我們的同仁專注於我們都相信重要的事情，而我們的文化是圍繞著以正確的方式成長而建立。營收成長會轉化為現金流，我們也始終留意對資產負債表的影響。

Next slide. So turning to cash flow. Cash flow performance, as Neil mentioned, was really pretty spectacular no matter how you look at it. Q4 free cash flow of $558 million was 23% higher than last year and represented 37% of revenue. This excellent result was driven by the great working capital performance I just discussed, which is really across the enterprise, along with meaningful cash contributions from Vertafore and the other recent acquisitions.

下一張投影片。接著看現金流。如 Neil 所提到的，無論從哪個角度看，現金流表現都相當驚人。第四季自由現金流為 5.58 億美元，較去年成長 23%，並占營收的 37%。這項優異成果來自我剛才談到的出色營運資本表現（確實是全企業範圍的成果），以及 Vertafore 與其他近期收購案帶來的可觀現金貢獻。

So for the full year 2020, we generated $1.72 billion of operating cash flow and $1.67 billion of free cash flow. So to repeat, that's $1.7 billion of free cash flow in 2020, truly a great year. Full year free cash flow growth was 16%, and our free cash flow conversion from EBITDA was a robust 84%. So really tremendous cash flow performance, and it was broad-based and very durable.

因此，2020 全年我們產生 17.2 億美元的營業現金流，以及 16.7 億美元的自由現金流。再重申一次，2020 年自由現金流約 17 億美元，確實是非常出色的一年。全年自由現金流成長 16%，自由現金流由 EBITDA 轉換的比率強勁達 84%。因此，現金流表現非常卓越，且是廣泛且相當具持久性的。

Next slide. So turning to Page 12, updating on our balance sheet. As Neil mentioned earlier, we ended the year with total capital deployment of approximately $6 billion, which included the EPSi acquisition that closed during the fourth quarter on October 15. We were able to take advantage of attractive market conditions to complete and opportunistically fund these acquisitions with a combination of internally generated cash flow, proceeds from our 2019 Gatan divestiture and investment-grade leverage. Overall cost of financing was approximately 1%.

下一張投影片。接著看第 12 頁，更新我們的資產負債表。如 Neil 先前提到，我們在年底的資本部署總額約 60 億美元，其中包含於第四季 10 月 15 日完成交割的 EPSi 收購案。我們得以利用具吸引力的市場條件，並以內部產生的現金流、2019 年 Gatan 出售所得，以及投資級槓桿的組合，完成並在有利時機為這些收購案提供資金。整體融資成本約為 1%。

Thanks to our excellent Q4 cash performance, we are off to a great start on our plan to quickly reduce leverage, paying down to around $500 million since we closed the EPSi deal. Looking ahead, we plan to rapidly reduce leverage throughout 2021, taking advantage of our prepayable revolver, which has a current balance of approximately $1.6 billion. Our solid investment-grade balance sheet supports long-term cash flow compounding, which we are well positioned to continue.

受惠於第四季優異的現金表現，我們在快速降低槓桿的計畫上有了很好的開局；自 EPSi 交易完成以來，我們已償還約 5 億美元。展望未來，我們計畫在 2021 年持續快速降低槓桿，並利用可提前償還的循環信貸（revolver），其目前餘額約為 16 億美元。我們穩健的投資級資產負債表支撐長期現金流的複利成長，而我們也具備良好條件持續推進。

So with that, I'll pass it back over to Neil for the remainder of our prepared remarks.

那麼，我就把接下來的預先準備講稿交回給 Neil。

Thanks, Rob. Let's turn to our recap for 2020. To help orient you to this page, we're comparing our full year outlook from last April to that of what actually happened.

謝謝，Rob。讓我們回顧 2020 年。為了協助你理解這一頁，我們將去年 4 月提出的全年展望與實際發生的結果進行比較。

It's worth reminding everyone that we felt our businesses and our business model had the level of recurring revenue, customer intimacy and the business leadership required to guide in the face of the COVID uncertainty, both in terms of supply and demand. In aggregate, we thought our full year organic revenues to be plus or minus flat, and we came in at down minus 1%. The TransCore New York project is the primary reconciling item between being down a touch and being flat or slightly up, and more on this in a minute.

值得提醒大家的是，我們認為我們的業務與商業模式具備足夠的經常性收入、客戶黏著度，以及所需的業務領導力，能在 COVID 不確定性下（無論供給或需求面）仍可提供指引。整體而言，我們當時預期全年有機營收大致持平（正負為零），而實際結果為下滑 1%。TransCore 的紐約專案是造成「小幅下滑」與「持平或小幅成長」之間差異的主要調節項目，稍後我會再多談一些。

We guided DEPS to be between $11.60 and $12.60 and came in at $12.74. Looking back on this, we are very proud of our team's ability to look forward and operate through the uncertainty of last year. Also, there is no better example of the durability of our model than this past year.

我們當時指引 DEPS 介於 11.60 至 12.60 美元之間，而實際為 12.74 美元。回頭看，我們對團隊能夠前瞻思考並在去年不確定性中持續營運的能力感到非常自豪。此外，過去一年也最能體現我們模式的韌性。

With that, let's walk through the macro drivers across each of our 4 segments. Relative to Application Software, this segment played out as anticipated and was up 1% on an organic basis for the year. Specifically, we saw recurring revenue up mid-single digits, aided by very strong retention rates as well as an acceleration to the cloud. As a reminder, recurring revenue in this segment is about 70% of our revenue stream.

接著，讓我們逐一檢視四個部門的總體驅動因素。就應用軟體而言，該部門的發展如預期，全年有機成長 1%。具體來說，我們看到經常性收入成長中個位數，受惠於非常強勁的續約／留存率以及雲端加速。提醒一下，該部門的經常性收入約占我們營收來源的 70%。

Perpetual revenues, about 10% of this segment's revenue, were under pressure as expected. We saw this revenue stream down mid-teens as new logo opportunities and wins were pushed and delayed. That said, cross-selling activity remained active for much of 2020.

永久授權收入約占該部門營收的 10%，如預期承受壓力。我們看到這部分收入下滑約十幾個百分點，因為新客（new logo）機會與贏單被推遲與延後。不過，2020 年大部分時間的交叉銷售活動仍維持活躍。

Relative to services revenue, we anticipated some pressure tied to shifting to remote installs and having fewer new implementations, which are tied to new perpetual transactions. For 2020, we saw mid-single-digit declines here, principally tied to fewer new deals. Our teams did a wonderful job shifting to remote installs, a trend we anticipate will continue in large part on the backside of the pandemic.

至於服務收入，我們預期會因轉向遠端安裝以及較少的新導入案而承壓，而這些新導入通常與新的永久授權交易相關。2020 年我們在此看到中個位數下滑，主要與新交易較少有關。我們的團隊在轉向遠端安裝方面做得非常出色；我們預期在疫情後期（後疫情時期）這一趨勢在很大程度上仍將延續。

As it relates to our network segment, we expected organic revenue for the year to be up mid-singles to double digits when, in fact, we grew 3% for the full year. Our network software businesses performed as anticipated with recurring revenues growing low single digits, again benefited by high retention rates and high levels of recurring revenue. This segment underperformed our expectations primarily due to TransCore's New York congestion infrastructure project timing.

就網路部門而言，我們原先預期全年有機營收將成長中個位數到雙位數，但實際上全年成長 3%。我們的網路軟體業務表現符合預期，經常性收入成長低個位數，同樣受惠於高留存率與高比例的經常性收入。該部門未達我們預期，主要是因 TransCore 紐約擁堵（congestion）基礎設施專案的時程所致。

In April, we expected approximately $75 million more in revenue from this project than actually occurred in 2020. More on this when we turn to the segment overview, but we expect this $75 million of pushed revenue to be recognized in '21. It's also worth noting that the number of toll tags shipped last year were at historic lows given the lower traffic volumes, but this was anticipated.

在 4 月時，我們預期該專案在 2020 年的收入會比實際多約 7,500 萬美元。當我們切換到部門概覽時會再多談一些，但我們預期這 7,500 萬美元被遞延的收入將在 2021 年認列。也值得注意的是，由於交通量下降，去年出貨的收費標籤（toll tags）數量處於歷史低點，但這是我們事先預期的。

For our MAS segment, we've talked all year about this being the tale of 4 situations: Verathon, other medical products, Neptune and industrial. For the year, again, back in April, we felt this group would be flat to up mid-single digits on an organic basis. We posted 1% growth. We feel very good about the execution across this group of companies. The primary reconciliation factor is a slower recovery ramp tied to our non-Verathon medical product businesses and Neptune.

至於 MAS 部門，我們整年都在談這是一個由四種情境構成的故事：Verathon、其他醫療產品、Neptune，以及工業。回到 4 月時，我們認為該組合全年有機表現將持平至中個位數成長；而我們實際繳出 1% 成長。我們對這組公司整體的執行表現感到非常滿意。主要的差異因素在於：非 Verathon 的醫療產品業務與 Neptune 的復甦速度較慢。

Specifically, we anticipated unprecedented demand for Verathon's innovation product family. For the year, Verathon grew substantially as COVID accelerated the further adoption of video intubation as the preferred technology. Our other medical product businesses, which grow mid-single digits like clockwork, were down mid-single digits for the year, tied directly to lower elective procedure volumes and limited hospital capital spending.

具體而言，我們預期 Verathon 的創新產品系列會出現前所未有的需求。全年來看，Verathon 大幅成長，因為 COVID 加速了影像插管（video intubation）作為首選技術的進一步採用。我們其他醫療產品業務一向穩定以中個位數成長，但全年下滑中個位數，直接與選擇性手術量下降以及醫院資本支出受限有關。

Interestingly for Neptune, we highlighted municipal budget uncertainty in April. This proved generally to be a nonfactor as municipalities budgets were approved and available. However, the impact of the lockdowns, especially in the Northeast U.S. and Canada, had a prolonged impact on our customers' ability to do routine meter replacements. As a result, Neptune was down low double digits for the year, slightly worse than our initial expectations.

有趣的是，對於 Neptune，我們在 4 月曾強調市政預算的不確定性。然而，這大致上並未造成影響，因為各市政預算仍獲核准並可動用。不過，封鎖措施的影響，特別是在美國東北部與加拿大，對客戶進行例行水表更換的能力造成較長時間的衝擊。因此，Neptune 全年下滑低雙位數，略差於我們最初的預期。

Finally for this segment, we expected sharp industrial declines, and that is what happened with these businesses being down low double digits for the year. That said, we are seeing sequential quarterly improvements across both Neptune and our industrial businesses.

最後就本段而言，我們原本預期工業業務會出現大幅下滑，而實際情況確實如此，這些業務全年下滑達低雙位數百分比。儘管如此，我們看到 Neptune 與我們的工業業務在季度間呈現連續改善。

Finally and as it relates to our process tech segment, we expected it to be down 20% to 25%, and we were, logging in at down 21%. This played out as we anticipated with much lower energy-related spending, project timing pushes and the inability to get field service resources into customer locations. So this is the play-by-play rewind for 2020. Now let's turn to the segment pages for a bit more detail.

最後，至於我們的流程技術（process tech）部門，我們預期會下滑 20% 至 25%，而實際結果為下滑 21%。這與我們的預期一致，主要因能源相關支出大幅降低、專案時程延後，以及無法將現場服務資源派駐至客戶據點。因此，以上就是 2020 年的逐項回顧。接下來我們轉到各部門頁面，提供更多細節。

Next slide, please. For Application Software, revenues here were $1.81 billion, up 1% organically, with EBITDA of $772 million. The broad macro activity for this segment has remained quite consistent for much of 2020. Specifically, we continue to see accelerating demand for our cloud solutions. This bodes well for our long-term recurring revenue growth and customer intimacy.

下一張投影片，謝謝。就應用軟體（Application Software）而言，本部門營收為 18.1 億美元，有機成長 1%，EBITDA 為 7.72 億美元。2020 年大部分時間，本部門的整體宏觀活動維持相當一致。具體而言，我們持續看到對雲端解決方案的需求加速。這對我們長期的經常性收入成長與客戶黏著度而言是正向訊號。

At a business-unit level, Deltek's GovCon business continues to be super solid and grow very nicely. But we did see some headwinds relative to their offerings that target the consulting, marketing services and AEC space. That said, recent customer activity and top-of-funnel activity suggest some market falling is occurring.

在事業單位層級，Deltek 的 GovCon 業務依然非常穩健，且成長表現相當不錯。但我們確實看到其針對顧問、行銷服務與 AEC 領域的產品面臨一些逆風。儘管如此，近期客戶活動與漏斗頂端（top-of-funnel）活動顯示市場正在出現一些回升。

Aderant and PowerPlan delivered flat EBITDA in the year with nice recurring revenue gains. We experienced very nice growth across our lab software group, again doing our part to help fight the COVID war. Strata delivered double-digit organic growth and completed a strategic acquisition in EPSi. Notably, the combined business will annualize roughly half of the U.S. hospital spend.

Aderant 與 PowerPlan 全年 EBITDA 持平，但經常性收入有不錯的增長。我們的實驗室軟體團隊也實現了相當亮眼的成長，再次盡一份力協助對抗 COVID。Strata 實現雙位數的有機成長，並完成對 EPSi 的策略性收購。值得注意的是，合併後的業務年化規模將約涵蓋美國醫院支出的一半。

Finally, our 2 businesses that serve the education space, CBORD and Horizon, declined double digits in the year simply due to having a customer base that was shutdown. A decent amount of revenues in these businesses are tied to student volumes. Importantly, we acquired Vertafore last year. They're off to a great start with strong earnings and very strong cash flow in the fourth quarter. Looking to Q1, we see flat to low single-digit organic growth based on continued mid-single-digit recurring revenue growth, offset slightly by lower perpetual and services revenues given last year's non-COVID comp.

最後，我們服務教育領域的兩項業務 CBORD 與 Horizon，全年下滑達雙位數，原因很單純：其客戶基礎處於停擺狀態。這些業務相當一部分收入與學生人數（student volumes）相關。重要的是，我們去年收購了 Vertafore；他們開局表現非常好，第四季獲利強勁且現金流非常強勁。展望第一季，基於經常性收入持續中單位數成長、但因去年非 COVID 的比較基期使永久授權與服務收入略低，我們預期有機成長介於持平至低單位數。

Now let's turn to our Network segment. Here, revenues were $1.74 billion, up 3% on an organic basis with EBITDA of $732 million. Our network software businesses performed well during last year, growing low single digits. Specifically, DAT was strong, growing double digits. DAT's network scale and innovation focus continues to enable very solid organic gains.

接著看我們的網路（Network）部門。本部門營收為 17.4 億美元，有機成長 3%，EBITDA 為 7.32 億美元。我們的網路軟體業務去年表現良好，成長為低單位數。具體而言，DAT 表現強勁，達到雙位數成長。DAT 的網路規模與創新聚焦持續帶來非常穩健的有機增長。

ConstructConnect grew based on network utilization tied to a tighter construction labor market. iTrade, MHA and Foundry had some headwinds tied to their end markets being disrupted due to COVID. That said, each of these businesses had high retention rates and the networks remain very strong. iPipeline also performed well during their first year being with Roper and completed 2 bolt-on acquisitions.

ConstructConnect 的成長來自於網路使用率提升，與更緊俏的建築勞動市場相關。iTrade、MHA 與 Foundry 因其終端市場受 COVID 擾動而面臨一些逆風。儘管如此，這些業務的留存率都很高，網路依然非常強健。iPipeline 在加入 Roper 的第一年也表現良好，並完成兩項補強型收購（bolt-on acquisitions）。

Our non-software businesses struggled a bit during the year. Specifically, RF IDeas, our multi-protocol credential reader business, did well in their health care applications but was hampered by meaningful declines in their secure print market. For the full year, TransCore pushed about $100 million of revenue out of 2020 into '21 associated with our New York project. In addition, EBITDA margins were pressured due to lower tag shipments and a few non-New York project pushouts.

我們的非軟體業務去年表現稍顯吃力。具體而言，多協議憑證讀卡器業務 RF IDeas 在醫療照護應用方面表現良好，但其安全列印市場出現顯著下滑，拖累整體表現。就全年而言，TransCore 因紐約專案相關因素，將約 1 億美元營收自 2020 年遞延至 2021 年。此外，由於標籤（tag）出貨量較低以及若干非紐約專案延後，EBITDA 利潤率也受到壓力。

As we look to the first quarter of 2021, we see organic revenue, as you can see in the lower right-hand box, to be down 3% to 5% for the quarter. An important distinction to highlight, our software businesses will continue to grow in the low single-digit range but our non-software businesses, driven by TransCore, will decline in the high-teens range in the first quarter due to much lower anticipated tag shipments and timing of revenue associated with the New York projects. As a reminder, the first quarter of this year is coming off a mid-teens growth comp from a year ago.

展望 2021 年第一季，如右下方方框所示，我們預期本季有機營收將下滑 3% 至 5%。需要強調的一個重要差異是：我們的軟體業務將持續以低單位數成長；但在 TransCore 帶動下，我們的非軟體業務第一季將下滑至高十位數百分比，原因是預期標籤出貨量大幅降低，以及與紐約專案相關的營收認列時點影響。提醒一下，今年第一季的比較基期為去年同期中十位數的成長。

Now let's turn to our MAS segment. Revenues for the year were $1.47 billion, up 1% on an organic basis with EBITDA of $508 million. Verathon was awesome in 2020. The business grew substantially based on unprecedented demand for their video intubation product line. Demand was global.

接著看我們的 MAS 部門。全年營收為 14.7 億美元，有機成長 1%，EBITDA 為 5.08 億美元。Verathon 在 2020 年表現非常出色。該業務因其影像插管（video intubation）產品線出現前所未有的需求而大幅成長，且需求遍及全球。

Given Verathon's ability to fulfill this demand, we expect our meaningfully expanded installed base of GlideScopes to generate increased levels of reoccurring consumables pull-through in the years to come. In addition, the first year of their single-use bronchoscope release was successful. We believe we gained a substantial foothold in the market during the inaugural year of this product category.

鑑於 Verathon 具備滿足此需求的能力，我們預期大幅擴張的 GlideScope 裝機基礎（installed base）將在未來幾年帶來更高水準的經常性耗材拉動（reoccurring consumables pull-through）。此外，其一次性使用支氣管鏡（single-use bronchoscope）上市的第一年也相當成功。我們相信在此產品類別的首發年度，我們已在市場上取得相當可觀的立足點。

Our other med product businesses declined, but they started to see more normalized patient volumes towards the end of the year. Further, customer interactions are starting to resemble more normal levels of engagement. Neptune declined low double digits tied exclusively to our customers in the Northeastern U.S. and Canada not having access to indoor meters. Other regions were flat during 2020. Neptune's market share remains strong throughout the year.

我們其他醫療產品業務雖然下滑，但在年底前後開始看到病患量趨於正常化。此外，與客戶的互動也開始更接近正常的參與程度。Neptune 下滑低雙位數，完全是因美國東北部與加拿大的客戶無法進入室內水表（indoor meters）所致；2020 年其他地區則持平。Neptune 全年市占率仍維持強勁。

Finally, our industrial businesses were down but have shown sequential improvements throughout the year. For Q1, we expect low single-digit organic growth for this segment with similar patterns to that of the fourth quarter.

最後，我們的工業業務雖然下滑，但全年呈現逐季改善。就第一季而言，我們預期本部門有機成長為低單位數，走勢與第四季相近。

Now let's turn to our final segment, process tech. Revenues for the year were $519 million, down 21% on an organic basis with EBITDA of $156 million or 30% of revenue. Compared versus 2 years ago, these businesses are down about $90 million in EBITDA and yet maintained 30% EBITDA margins. Congrats and thanks to our leadership team for their continued exceptional execution. As a side note, Roper continued to compound despite these cyclical headwinds.

接著看我們最後一個部門：流程技術（process tech）。全年營收為 5.19 億美元，有機下滑 21%，EBITDA 為 1.56 億美元，約占營收 30%。相較兩年前，這些業務的 EBITDA 約減少 9,000 萬美元，但仍維持 30% 的 EBITDA 利潤率。恭喜並感謝我們的領導團隊持續展現卓越的執行力。順帶一提，儘管面臨這些景氣循環逆風，Roper 仍持續複利成長。

That said, this segment is pretty straightforward and has been the same story all year. COVID has negatively impacted our oil and gas and short-cycle businesses. Certainly, low oil prices did not help either. That said, we have seen some green shoots across this group as capital spending started to improve as we exited 2020.

儘管如此，這個部門相當直觀，且全年故事一致。COVID 對我們的油氣與短週期業務造成負面影響；當然，低油價也無助於改善。不過，隨著我們在 2020 年底走出低谷，我們已在此業務群看到一些復甦跡象（green shoots），因資本支出開始改善。

As we look to the first quarter, we expect declines to moderate in the first quarter to be in the 10% range. Importantly, we have easing comps as we enter the second quarter. Also, over the last couple of years, these businesses continue to make product and channel investments to be best positioned to fully capture this cyclical upswing. The next few years here should be pretty good.

展望第一季，我們預期下滑幅度將趨緩，約在 10% 左右。重要的是，進入第二季後比較基期將轉為有利。此外，過去幾年這些業務持續進行產品與通路投資，以在景氣循環上行時取得最佳定位、充分掌握此波上升循環。接下來幾年應該會相當不錯。

Now let's turn to our guidance and the associated framework. While this slide is somewhat busy, we wanted to line up for you the key macro differences between our 2021 full year outlook on a segment basis versus our actual 2020 results. In aggregate, we expect total revenue to increase in the mid-teens range with organic growth being in the mid-single-digit-plus area.

接著看我們的財測（guidance）與相關框架。雖然這張投影片資訊較多，但我們希望為各位對齊：以部門為基礎，我們 2021 年全年展望相較於 2020 年實際結果的關鍵宏觀差異。整體而言，我們預期總營收將以中十位數百分比成長，有機成長則落在中單位數以上的區間。

As we look across the revenue streams for our Application Software segment, we expect mid-singles growth. Specifically, we expect a slightly improved recurring revenue growth rate aided by last year's recurring momentum and an increased mix towards SaaS. We expect flat services revenues and mid-single-digit-plus growth in perpetual as we expect a modest market recovery and easing second half comps.

就應用軟體部門的各項收入來源來看，我們預期中單位數成長。具體而言，在去年經常性收入動能以及 SaaS 組合占比提升的帶動下，我們預期經常性收入成長率將略有改善。我們預期服務收入持平；永久授權（perpetual）則預期中單位數以上成長，因我們預期市場將溫和復甦，且下半年比較基期趨於有利。

Similarly, we expect mid-single-digit organic growth in our network segment with our network software businesses growing mid-single digit plus. We expect TransCore to complete the New York project and see recovering tag sales. When combined, TransCore should grow mid-singles for the year.

同樣地，我們預期網路部門有機成長為中單位數，其中網路軟體業務成長將達中單位數以上。我們預期 TransCore 將完成紐約專案，並看到標籤銷售回升。合併來看，TransCore 全年應可達中單位數成長。

We expect MAS to grow mid-single digits as well. Our medical product businesses were exceptional last year, up 20%. Importantly, the quality of our medical products revenue stream will continue to improve as Verathon's reoccurring revenue streams tied to GlideScope and BFlex continue to gain momentum. As we look to 2021, our medical product businesses are expected to grow low single digits as elective procedures and hospital capital spending return to more normalized levels throughout 2021, this return being partially offset by our difficult 2020 COVID comp.

我們也預期 MAS 將以中單位數成長。我們的醫療產品業務去年表現卓越，成長 20%。重要的是，隨著 Verathon 與 GlideScope 及 BFlex 相關的經常性收入來源持續累積動能，我們醫療產品收入流的品質將持續提升。展望 2021 年，隨著選擇性手術與醫院資本支出在 2021 年逐步回到較正常水準，我們預期醫療產品業務將以低單位數成長；但此回升將部分被 2020 年 COVID 造成的艱難比較基期所抵銷。

Neptune should be up high single digits plus with easing restrictions and more access to indoor meter replacements. And finally, our industrial businesses should recover and grow in the high single-digit plus range after 2 years of declines.

隨著限制放寬以及室內水表更換的可及性提高，Neptune 應該會有高個位數以上的成長。最後，我們的工業業務在經歷 2 年下滑後，應可恢復並在高個位數以上的區間成長。

Our PT businesses are expected to be up high single digits through the year based on the resumption of deferred projects and field maintenance as well as modest improvements in these end markets. So all in all, we expect organic revenues to increase mid-single digits plus and total revenue to grow in the mid-teens range.

我們預期 PT 業務全年將成長高個位數，主要基於先前延後專案的恢復與現場維護的回升，以及這些終端市場的溫和改善。因此整體而言，我們預期有機營收將成長中個位數以上，而總營收將在中十位數區間成長。

Let's turn to our guidance slide. Based on what we just outlined, when you roll everything together, we're establishing our 2021 full year adjusted DEPS guidance to be in the range of $14.35 and $14.75. Our tax rate should be in the 21% to 22% range.

接著看我們的財測投影片。根據剛才的說明，綜合所有因素後，我們建立 2021 全年調整後 DEPS 指引區間為 14.35 美元至 14.75 美元。我們的稅率應在 21% 至 22% 的區間。

For the first quarter, we're establishing adjusted DEPS guidance to be between $3.26 and $3.32. Of note, our guided Q1 adjusted DEPS is roughly 22% to 23% of our full year guidance range and is consistent with our long-term historical DEPS seasonality.

就第一季而言，我們建立調整後 DEPS 指引為 3.26 美元至 3.32 美元。值得注意的是，我們所指引的 Q1 調整後 DEPS 約為全年指引區間的 22% 至 23%，並且符合我們長期歷史的 DEPS 季節性。

Now let's turn to our summary and get to your questions. What a year. None of us will ever forget 2020.

現在讓我們進入總結並回答各位的問題。多麼的一年。我們沒有人會忘記 2020 年。

Our business performed so very well last year. We grew revenue 3% in aggregate and only declined a single percent on an organic basis. EBITDA margins were steady at 35.8%, and cash flow grew 16% to $1.7 billion. This means we had cash flow margins of 30%. Just amazing.

我們的業務在去年表現非常出色。整體營收成長 3%，以有機口徑僅下滑 1 個百分點。EBITDA 利潤率維持在 35.8%，現金流成長 16% 至 17 億美元。這代表我們的現金流利潤率為 30%。真的令人驚嘆。

Given this performance, our business model's ability to foresee this performance, we stayed focused on executing our capital deployment strategy, which resulted in $6 billion of deployment on high-quality, niche-leading vertical software companies. There is no doubt the quality of our enterprise improved during 2020, something we're incredibly proud to be able to say. Our recurring revenue grew mid-single digits, we increased innovation investments and increased the quality of our portfolio with our capital deployment spend.

基於這樣的表現，以及我們商業模式對於達成此表現的可預見性，我們持續專注於執行資本部署策略，最終在高品質、各自垂直領域領先的軟體公司上部署了 60 億美元。毫無疑問，我們的企業品質在 2020 年有所提升，能夠這麼說我們感到非常自豪。經常性收入成長中個位數，我們提高了創新投資，並透過資本部署支出提升了投資組合的品質。

So as we look to 2021, we feel we are incredibly well positioned. We expect strong organic growth that will be further augmented by contributions from our recent acquisitions. In 2021, we expect about 2/3 of our EBITDA to come from our software businesses, which provides us all the virtues of an increased mix towards recurring revenues. We will continue to focus on deleveraging our balance sheet, but we remain committed and focused on our long-term capital deployment strategy. To this end, our pipeline of M&A candidates is active, robust and has many high quality opportunities.

展望 2021 年，我們認為自身處於極佳的位置。預期有機成長強勁，並將進一步受惠於近期收購的貢獻。2021 年，我們預期約 2/3 的 EBITDA 將來自軟體業務，這讓我們享有提高經常性收入占比所帶來的各項優勢。我們將持續專注於降低資產負債表槓桿，但仍致力並專注於長期資本部署策略。為此，我們的併購（M&A）候選標的管線活躍、強勁，且有許多高品質機會。

So as we look back over 2020, we are proud of our business model's durability and our leaders' ability to successfully navigate last year's uncertainties. We are proud that we continue to be forward-leaning and strategic. We are proud that we improved our business last year with an increasing mix of growing recurring revenue and continued innovation focus. In short, we got bigger and better during 2020.

回顧 2020 年，我們為商業模式的韌性以及領導團隊成功因應去年不確定性的能力感到自豪。我們也為自己持續前瞻、具策略性而自豪。我們為去年透過提高成長型經常性收入占比並持續聚焦創新而改善業務感到自豪。簡言之，2020 年我們變得更大也更好。

As we turn to your questions, I'll remind everyone that at Roper, we operate a low-risk model whose strategy centers on acquiring fantastic businesses and then providing them with an environment where they can get even better over the long arc of time. This was certainly the case in 2020.

在進入提問之前，我想提醒大家，在 Roper，我們採用低風險模式，策略核心是收購優秀的企業，並為其提供一個能在長期時間軸上持續變得更好的環境。2020 年確實如此。

So with that, let's turn to our first question.

那麼，讓我們進入第一個問題。

(Operator Instructions) The first question today comes from Deane Dray of RBC Capital Markets.

（接線員指示）今天的第一個問題來自 RBC Capital Markets 的 Deane Dray。

I really appreciate all the new disclosures you're providing here, especially Pages 14 and 20. Those bridges between your original guidance, what you delivered and then the organic bridge on 20 is really helpful. A lot of granularity there.

我非常感謝你們在這裡提供的所有新揭露，尤其是第 14 頁和第 20 頁。你們原始指引、實際達成，以及第 20 頁的有機橋接，真的很有幫助。細節非常多。

And if we were to start, just because the New York City contract is such a high profile and it did have a swing factor, can you give us a sense of how much -- just remind us the revenue you're expecting for the year, how much of it could land in the first quarter. And just confirm there's been no change in scope.

如果我們從這裡開始，因為紐約市合約的能見度很高，而且確實有擺動因素，你們能否讓我們了解一下——請提醒我們今年預期的營收是多少，其中有多少可能落在第一季？另外也請確認範疇沒有變更。

Yes. So Deane, it's about $100 million for the full year, and in the first quarter, we only have about $10 million to $15 million in there. As we mentioned, there's a bit of a pause, but now it's started up and running again. The scope is unchanged.

好的。Deane，全年大約是 1 億美元，而第一季我們只有大約 1,000 萬到 1,500 萬美元。如同我們提到的，中間有一段暫停，但現在已經重新啟動並在運作中。範疇沒有改變。

Got it. And if you were to highlight all the areas where you're seeing improvement in licenses and the services pipeline, what's at the high end in terms of the businesses today?

了解。那如果要你們點出目前在授權（licenses）以及服務管線看到改善的所有領域，就今天的業務而言，哪些是在高端表現最突出的？

Deane, maybe I can ask you to sort of rephrase the question. I want to make sure that we fully understand the question.

Deane，也許我請你稍微換個方式表述問題。我想確保我們完全理解你的問題。

Yes. Just in terms of the licenses revenues that you're seeing today, you've taken us through where some of the challenges have been. What's on the upper end of your guidance where you would see potentially the -- how it would play out on the positive side?

好的。就你們目前看到的授權收入而言，你們已帶我們了解一些挑戰所在。在你們指引的上緣，你們會在哪些地方看到潛在的——也就是正向情境下可能如何發展？

Sure. Yes. Okay. So appreciate the question. I think we understand it now. So the total perpetual revenue for our core businesses, the software businesses that have been in the portfolio for a while was down obviously in 2020. We expect about -- the recovery in '21 to be about half of what we are down.

當然。好的。謝謝你的問題。我想我們現在理解了。我們核心業務中、在投資組合裡已經有一段時間的軟體業務，其永久授權（perpetual）收入在 2020 年顯然是下滑的。我們預期 2021 年的回升大約會是下滑幅度的一半左右。

We're seeing strength. We've seen continued strength all year in the -- in 2020 in the perpetual book of business, in Deltek's GovCon business. As I talked about in the prepared remarks, we're seeing thawing and some activity in their professional services end markets that's encouraging. These are the architects, the engineers, the contractors, the marketing services firms, the consulting firms, those -- that book of business.

我們看到強勁表現。2020 年全年我們在 Deltek 的 GovCon 業務之永久授權業務量上持續看到強勁。如同我在準備好的發言中提到的，我們看到其專業服務終端市場正在解凍並出現一些令人鼓舞的活動，包括建築師、工程師、承包商、行銷服務公司、顧問公司等——那一塊業務。

In addition, the other large parts of the perpetual book are at Aderant and PowerPlan. Aderant has its own unique set of competitive factors where the customers have to -- the customers that have not upgraded their software from -- the competitive customers who have not upgraded their software have to upgrade, and we're winning a large percentage of those. And so all that activity just got pushed to the right a bit, and that's somewhat encouraging. And pipeline activity is positive there.

此外，永久授權業務量的其他大型部分在 Aderant 和 PowerPlan。Aderant 有其獨特的一組競爭因素：客戶必須——那些尚未升級其軟體的競爭對手客戶必須升級，而我們贏得了其中很大比例。因此，這些活動只是被稍微往後推遲了一些，這點多少令人鼓舞。而且那裡的管線活動是正向的。

And then PowerPlan's pipeline activity is full. It has a handful of large opportunities in it, which are obviously hard to predict the exact timing. But we actually like the pipeline build across the companies that have the primary book of perpetual business.

接著 PowerPlan 的管線活動也很充實，裡面有少數幾個大型機會，當然很難精準預測確切時點。但我們其實喜歡那些擁有主要永久授權業務量的公司，其管線在各公司之間的累積情況。

Okay. That's helpful. And just as -- my follow-up question would be for Rob.

好的，這很有幫助。那麼——我的追問會是給 Rob。

Do you have specific deleveraging plans for the year that you could share with us in terms of where and how? You said you'd be paying down the revolver, but just are there specific goals that you can share for 2021?

你們今年是否有具體的去槓桿計畫可以分享，例如在哪裡、如何進行？你提到會償還循環信貸（revolver），但 2021 年是否有可以分享的具體目標？

Sure. So it will be -- as you know, when we're in deleveraging mode, all the free cash flow goes towards deleveraging. So we pay a dividend. That will continue. But essentially, the rest of the free cash flow goes towards deleveraging. So that's a rough -- probably after paying a dividend, roughly $1.5 billion in deleveraging is probably a good ballpark number.

當然。你也知道，當我們處於去槓桿模式時，所有自由現金流都會用於去槓桿。我們會支付股利，這會持續。但基本上，其餘的自由現金流都會用於去槓桿。所以大致上——在支付股利之後，約 15 億美元用於去槓桿，應該是一個不錯的概略數字。

The next question comes from Christopher Glynn of Oppenheimer.

下一個問題來自 Oppenheimer 的 Christopher Glynn。

Yes. So congrats on all the capital allocation last year. I'm just curious. You're getting a lot of inbounds after some of your subsegment divisions. Given you had some real emphasis on the quality and fullness of the pipeline, there's certainly liquidity in the markets. So wondering if your calculus has shifted towards any nonoperating cash flow to fund the deleverage and trade back into the pipeline a little sooner.

是的。恭喜你們去年做了很多資本配置。我只是好奇，你們在一些次分部（subsegment）拆分之後收到很多主動接洽。鑑於你們非常強調管線的品質與充實度，市場上也確實有流動性。所以想問你們的盤算是否已轉向：透過任何非營運現金流來資助去槓桿，並更早一些回到管線中進行布局。

Yes. Appreciate the question. We -- it's very routine for us to get inbounds. I've been here almost 10 years, and there's a handful of what I would say meaningful and credible inbounds in any given year.

是的，謝謝你的問題。我們——收到主動接洽對我們來說很常見。我在這裡將近 10 年了，每一年都會有少數幾個我認為是有意義且可信的主動接洽。

Like we said for years though, it's just very difficult to make the math work because when we sell a business -- just look back at Gatan. You sell a business to a strategic buyer, we leak taxes, then you have to redeploy it. It's just hard with a compounding orientation to make that math work.

不過就像我們多年來所說的，數學上很難成立，因為當我們出售一項業務——回頭看看 Gatan 的例子。你把業務賣給策略買家時，我們會因稅負而流失一部分，接著你還得再部署資金。以複利成長的導向來看，要讓這個數學成立確實很難。

Certainly, the lower tax rate sort of helped in the Gatan timing.

當然，較低的稅率在 Gatan 的時點安排上多少有些幫助。

So yes, we get inbounds. I would not say the activity in the last few quarters has ramped up more than it's been over the decade I've been here. But yes, there's always inbound inquiry.

所以是的，我們確實有收到主動上門的洽詢。我不會說過去幾個季度的活動量比我在這裡這十年來的平均水準更明顯升溫。但沒錯，一直都會有外部主動詢問。

Any appetite to entertain that was the other part of that question.

至於是否有意願去考慮，那是這個問題的另一部分。

Yes. I think it's -- the appetite, we've never not had the appetite. It just comes down to the math and doing what's best in our view according to our math for our shareholders. So it's -- the appetite has remained unchanged.

有。我認為——意願方面，我們從來沒有不願意。只是回到數學計算，依照我們的模型，做出我們認為對股東最有利的決定。所以——我們的意願一直沒有改變。

The next question is from Steve Tusa of JPMorgan.

下一題來自摩根大通（JPMorgan）的 Steve Tusa。

The free cash was pretty strong in the fourth quarter, like almost 95% of EBITDA. Last couple of fourth quarters, it's been around 80%. What was the kind of overdrive there? And then when it comes to cash and EBITDA, how much did -- roughly did Vertafore add?

第四季的自由現金流相當強勁，幾乎達到 EBITDA 的 95%。前幾個第四季大概在 80% 左右。這次是什麼因素讓它「超速」？另外，就現金與 EBITDA 而言，Vertafore 大概貢獻了多少？

Vertafore was around 90% or so of both cash and EBITDA. And yes, as I mentioned earlier, Steve, just great working capital performance across the portfolio, very broad-based. You're getting your software renewals, which were very strong in the fourth quarter.

Vertafore 在現金與 EBITDA 兩者上大約都占了 90% 左右。是的，如我先前提到的，Steve，整個投資組合的營運資金表現非常出色，而且是相當廣泛的改善。你也看到軟體續約在第四季非常強勁。

There certainly is some benefit, right, from those more cyclical businesses being a little bit softer, right? And that lowers working capital overall. But just great working capital performance. Our cash taxes year-over-year were about flat, so it really was all on working capital.

當然也確實有一些好處，對吧？來自那些較具循環性的業務稍微疲弱一些，對吧？這會讓整體營運資金需求下降。但主要還是營運資金表現非常好。我們的現金稅款年對年大致持平，所以真的全部都來自營運資金。

Got it. And then within the guidance, I guess, you didn't really quite -- you don't usually guide for free cash flow for next year. I think you said $1.5 billion.

了解。那在指引裡，我想你們其實不太會對明年的自由現金流給指引。我記得你說是 15 億美元。

Is that -- is the $1.5 billion after the dividend? And then does that include any of the tax benefit that you guys bought with Vertafore, the benefit of that?

那 15 億美元是扣除股利之後的數字嗎？另外，這裡面有包含你們透過 Vertafore 取得的稅務利益嗎？就是那個稅務效益。

Yes. So the $1.5 billion is a deleveraging number, so that's an estimate. That's after paying dividends. So for next year -- yes, you're right, we don't guide free cash flow. We always have very strong conversion, as you know. We expect that very high conversion to continue.

是的。這 15 億美元是用於去槓桿的數字，所以是一個估計值，而且是在支付股利之後的數字。至於明年——沒錯，你說得對，我們不會對自由現金流給指引。我們一向有非常高的轉換率，你也知道。我們預期這種非常高的轉換率會持續。

As I mentioned, those working capital trends are very sustainable, right? It's the culture, it's the type of businesses we buy. As the software businesses grow, their working capital continues to go down. So that all should continue.

如我提到的，這些營運資金的趨勢非常可持續，對吧？這是文化，也是我們收購的企業類型所致。隨著軟體業務成長，它們的營運資金會持續下降。所以這些都應該會延續。

In terms of the tax attributes, yes, there are some tax attributes related to Vertafore, which we disclosed, a little over $100 million. So there'll be some benefit from that coming in '21. There's also -- like many other multi-industry and really all companies, right, we benefited some from deferral of payroll taxes. So that will go back the other way next year as you're starting to pay those payroll taxes again.

就稅務屬性而言，是的，Vertafore 確實有一些相關的稅務屬性，我們也已揭露，略高於 1 億美元。因此在 2021 年會帶來一些效益。另外——像許多其他多元產業公司、其實幾乎所有公司一樣，我們也從薪資稅遞延中獲得一些好處。所以明年當你開始再次繳納那些薪資稅時，這部分會反向影響。

So those are sort of -- those will sort of counter to it a little bit. But we feel great about cash flow next year, but we don't guide, as you know.

所以這些因素大概——會在某種程度上彼此抵銷一點。但我們對明年的現金流感覺非常好，只是如你所知，我們不提供指引。

Next question comes from Allison Poliniak of Wells Fargo.

下一題來自富國銀行（Wells Fargo）的 Allison Poliniak。

Just want to talk to you -- obviously, the theme of reopening seems pretty pervasive in a number of your businesses. Could you help me understand maybe the progression of some of those businesses that you're thinking about if we, in fact, do start to reopen here? Is it sort of an outsized bump as things start to get back to work? Or is it more of a progression out of that? Any thoughts?

我想跟你談談——顯然，「重啟」這個主題在你們不少業務中都很普遍。如果我們確實開始重啟，你能否幫我理解一下你們對其中一些業務的進展路徑的看法？是隨著復工出現一個特別大的跳升？還是比較像逐步改善的過程？有什麼想法嗎？

Well, I'll give you the -- this is Neil. I'll give you the headline, and I'll let Rob sort of add his color on the back end.

好，我先給你一個——我是 Neil。我先講重點，然後讓 Rob 在後面補充一些看法。

So it's not like a step-function bump up. It is a sort of sequential improvement throughout the year. Obviously, when you roll past Q1, the comps get a whole lot easier. So that's part of what the last 3 quarters of the year will look like as well.

所以它不會像階躍式（step-function）那樣突然跳升，而是全年逐季改善。顯然，當你走過第一季之後，同比基期會容易很多。所以這也是今年後三個季度大致會呈現的樣子。

When you look at it on a company by -- or sort of segment-by-segment basis, just rolling through, basically, it's the perpetual book of business and the associated services that come with that for Application Software that ramps back up. In network, they're really -- for the network businesses, it's a little bit of ramp back at Foundry, it's a little bit of ramp back at iTrade. But the other businesses were pretty steady as she goes, DAT, ConstructConnect, et cetera.

如果以公司——或分部逐一來看，基本上，應用軟體（Application Software）會是既有的持續性業務量（perpetual book of business）以及隨之而來的相關服務逐步回升。在網路（network）方面——對網路業務來說，Foundry 會有一些回升，iTrade 也會有一些回升。但其他業務大致維持穩定，例如 DAT、ConstructConnect 等等。

TransCore stands by itself. It's tied principally to 2 things. One is the New York project completing; and second, the return of traffic volumes and the associated tags that go with them.

TransCore 則相對獨立。它主要與兩件事相關：第一是紐約專案的完工；第二是交通流量回升以及隨之而來的標籤（tags）需求。

For the MAS segment, it's Neptune just sequentially coming back and importantly, getting the access to the indoor meters in Northeast U.S. and Canada. I said in the prepared remarks, market share was super steady, maybe plus a little bit in that business last year. It's just access -- our customers getting access to do retain/replacements.

在 MAS 分部方面，Neptune 會逐季回升，更重要的是，能重新取得進入美國東北部與加拿大室內水表的權限。我在準備好的講稿裡提到，去年該業務的市占非常穩定，甚至可能還略有提升。關鍵只是進入權限——我們的客戶能進去做保留/更換（retain/replacements）。

Verathon will have a difficult headwind because of the capital placement we talked about. But the other medical product businesses just rotate up in a sequential basis. And then finally, the industrial businesses do the same.

Verathon 會因為我們談到的資本設備投放而面臨不利逆風。但其他醫療產品業務則會以逐季的方式回升。最後，工業類業務也會如此。

Process is much like industrial, just a cyclical rebound. Modestly higher oil prices help. But you have all this -- in the energy businesses, you have all this deferred maintenance that's got to get done. There's a lot of -- there's sort of -- there were some restocking orders in the fourth quarter there and then some pipeline activities like we got to get in and do the maintenance in a handful of these important customers.

流程（Process）業務的情況很像工業類，就是景氣循環的反彈。油價小幅走高有幫助。但在能源業務裡，你有大量延後的維護必須完成。有很多——有點像——第四季出現了一些補庫存訂單，然後也有一些管線活動，例如我們必須進去替幾個重要客戶做維護。

So that would be sort of the color of the ramp, but no step function. But Rob, what would you add, if anything?

所以這大概就是回升的輪廓，但不會是階躍式跳升。Rob，如果要補充的話，你會加什麼？

No, I think that's right. We're assuming Q1 is very much clearly still the middle of the pandemic and then things improve from there.

沒有，我覺得你說得對。我們的假設是第一季很明顯仍在疫情中段，之後情況會逐步改善。

Got it. And then in line with that, obviously, we've been under this closure for a significant amount of time. Any concerns of the financial impact of some of your existing customers that you would anticipate that ramp from or not at this point?

了解。那順著這點，顯然我們已經處於關閉狀態相當長一段時間。對於你們現有客戶可能帶來的財務影響，你們是否有任何擔憂？你們預期會從哪些客戶那邊看到回升，或目前看起來不會？

I would say no. And I think the -- I mean obviously, there's going to be small pockets here and there. We're very -- most of our customers across the portfolio, most are enterprise level. A very small percentage of our software companies would be in the small, medium size where it may be more subject to some sort of macro sort of headwinds or business uncertainty.

我會說沒有。我認為——當然，這裡那裡會有一些小區塊。我們非常——我們投資組合中的大多數客戶，多數是企業級客戶。我們軟體公司中只有非常小的比例是小型或中型客戶，那些可能更容易受到某種宏觀逆風或商業不確定性的影響。

I think the data point we point to is just the incredible cash flow. I mean we got paid by our customers, right? And so -- last year. And so what we do is just critical to what they do. And no, I don't think there's going to be...

我認為我們可以指向的一個數據點就是驚人的現金流。我的意思是，我們確實從客戶那裡收到了款，對吧？所以——在去年。而且我們所做的事情對他們所做的事情至關重要。所以不，我不認為會有……

The pockets of areas that are hit as we talked about, right, colleges and universities. Most of those customers -- we tend to have larger customers there. So we're not too worried about our schools being in financial trouble overall.

至於我們談到的那些受衝擊的區塊，對吧，比如大學與學院。那些客戶多數——我們在那裡通常是較大型的客戶。所以我們不太擔心整體而言學校會陷入財務困境。

And then on like the iTrade network side, they have customers that are in the food area. So there certainly could be an impact from some smaller restaurants and some of those issues in that market. But overall, not really a meaningful impact to us.

另外像 iTrade 的網路端，他們有一些客戶在食品領域。所以小型餐廳以及該市場的一些問題，確實可能帶來影響。但整體而言，對我們不會是實質性的影響。

The next question comes from Joe Giordano of Cowen.

下一題來自 Cowen 的 Joe Giordano。

On the net working capital, obviously, that keeps getting more and more negative and more interesting. But with the current portfolio, like where is that -- where is like the maximum that, that can get to without doing more deals to -- that further push it that way?

關於淨營運資金，顯然它一直變得越來越負、也越來越有意思。但以目前的投資組合來看，在不做更多併購、也不透過交易進一步把它往那個方向推的情況下——它的上限大概會到哪裡？

Yes. So I think if you go to our working capital page, Page 10, you'll see all the benefit here Q4-to-Q4 was on the liability side, right? We're basically equal to -- on the asset side, which is that's -- that indicates to us, and we go business by business, it's structural and driven by an increasing mix towards software. So that's the first thing I'd say.

是的。所以我想如果你看我們的營運資金頁面，第 10 頁，你會看到這裡第四季對第四季的所有改善都在負債端，對吧？我們在資產端基本上持平，而這——這向我們顯示，而且我們也逐一檢視各個業務——這是結構性的，並且是由於組合持續朝向軟體比重提高所驅動。所以這是我首先要說的。

Second is when you look at the art of the possible, if you think about a business that is 100% SaaS recurring revenue that's prepaid a year ahead, let's say that you bill on January 1 and you take 90 days to get paid, that company is going to have 75% of its revenue. That's negative net working capital, right? And we certainly have a couple of businesses that don't quite get to 75% but they approach 40% or 50%.

第二點是，當你從「可行性的藝術」來看，如果你想像一家企業是 100% SaaS 的經常性收入，而且是提前一年預付的，假設你在 1 月 1 日開立帳單，並且需要 90 天才能收款，那家公司將會有 75% 的收入。那就是負的淨營運資本，對吧？而我們確實有幾個業務雖然不到 75%，但接近 40% 或 50%。

So as we become more software and our legacy perpetual business becomes more SaaS, you're going to see this number get higher. Will it ever get to 40% to 50%? No, it won't. But it will keep inching higher, it should, over the next 5 to 10 years.

因此，隨著我們變得更偏軟體、而我們傳統的永久授權業務也逐步轉向更多 SaaS，你會看到這個數字變得更高。它會不會到 40% 到 50%？不會，不會到。但在未來 5 到 10 年，它會持續一點一點往上升，理應如此。

We don't have a target. It's not that we're trying to drive the business to be X percent negative. We just have an incentive system and a culture that we get a little bit better every year on this metric.

我們沒有設定目標。不是說我們想把業務推到負的 X% 之類。我們只是有一套激勵制度和文化，讓我們在這個指標上每年都能進步一點點。

That's definitely helpful to frame that up. A follow-up would be on Vertafore. How is that business doing since you've been there? Have you noticed anything like -- kind of what kind of initial changes have been instituted, if any?

這樣的說法確實有助於理解。接著我想追問 Vertafore。自從你們接手以來，那個業務表現如何？你有沒有注意到任何像是——有沒有導入一些初期的變革？如果有的話，是哪些？

And like when we did our diligence, that was definitely a market like where -- that business was a leader, but there was -- that whole market seemed right for some change there. And how are you guys approaching that? Are there upstarts that you look at? Is it an internal change that drives the market forward? Like how are you just approaching that business now?

而且像我們在做盡職調查時，那確實是一個市場——那個業務是領導者，但整個市場看起來都很適合出現一些變革。你們現在是怎麼切入的？你們會關注新創挑戰者嗎？還是由內部變革來推動市場往前？你們現在到底是怎麼看待並經營那個業務的？

Yes. So the most important thing that I think we can say in regards to Vertafore and for that matter, any acquisition is that -- if we had to summarize what we do is we buy these amazingly great businesses and then provide them environment to get better over a long period of time. So as a result, there is not a short-term "we've got to do these 5 things to improve the business." That's not in our strategic M&A strategy.

是的。我認為，關於 Vertafore——以及任何併購案——我們能說的最重要的一點是：如果要總結我們在做什麼，就是我們買下這些非常優秀的企業，然後提供它們一個能在長期持續變得更好的環境。因此，並不存在短期的「我們必須做這 5 件事來改善業務」。那不是我們策略性併購（M&A）策略的一部分。

That said, the business is -- as in the piece of research you did, we thought, was quite good and reflective of ours. It's basically a duopoly. We share a market with 1 principal competitor on the agency side. Fortunately for us, just after the business -- we acquired the business and closed, we won the largest deal in the market in the last 3 or 4 years in assured partners. There was a press release that went out a handful of weeks ago. So we're delighted about that.

話雖如此，這個業務——就像你們做的那份研究所指出的，我們認為相當不錯，也與我們的看法一致——基本上是一個雙頭壟斷。我們在代理商端與 1 個主要競爭對手共享市場。對我們而言幸運的是，在我們收購並完成交割後不久，我們就拿下了該市場過去 3 到 4 年最大的一筆交易，客戶是 Assured Partners。幾週前也發布了新聞稿。所以我們對此非常高興。

It's a slow ramp over a couple of years, a couple, 3 years. I think that's just an indication of the quality of the business that Vertafore and the products they have. But also the customer, in that case, was reassured by being -- by Vertafore being owned by Roper who is just a long-term owner that's not going to look to sell the business in a handful of years, and therefore, you can make the right investments.

這會是一個需要幾年、兩三年的緩慢爬坡。我認為這正反映了 Vertafore 這門生意以及其產品的品質。不過同時，那位客戶在那個案例中也因為——因為 Vertafore 由 Roper 持有而感到更安心；Roper 是一個長期持有者，不會在幾年內就想把業務賣掉，因此你可以做出正確的投資。

If there is one thing that we're, if you will, doing in the short run, based on our diligence and similar to work you did, it's we wanted to allocate a little bit more to R&D, which we have done. That's reflected in the numbers we've given you from the very beginning. And so that's going to take a few years to play out, just continuing to add functionality and add features and ways to monetize their customer base.

如果要說我們在短期內做的一件事——基於我們的盡職調查，也和你們做的研究類似——那就是我們希望在研發（R&D）上多投入一點，而我們也確實這麼做了。從一開始我們給你們的數字就已經反映出來。因此，這需要幾年時間才能看到成果，主要是持續增加功能、增加特性，以及增加把其客戶基礎變現的方式。

And Joe, just on the -- obviously, the company has performed very, very well since we owned it. But just to clarify my last answer, the $90 million of EBITDA, that's since we owned the business. There's a month in there as well. It wasn't all in the fourth quarter. But it was $90 million of cash in the fourth quarter.

另外，Joe，關於——顯然自從我們持有以來，公司表現非常、非常好。但為了澄清我剛才的回答，那 9,000 萬美元的 EBITDA 是指我們持有期間的數字，其中也包含了一個月份；並不是全部都在第四季。但第四季的現金是 9,000 萬美元。

The next question comes from Blake Gendron of Wolfe Research.

下一個問題來自 Wolfe Research 的 Blake Gendron。

I want to follow up on that R&D comment actually, kind of in the broader context of your portfolio. So COVID was disruptive for a number of reasons structurally with the end markets and I would imagine competitively. In addition to Vertafore and maybe ramping R&D there, are there any opportunities to ramp R&D across some of the other business units simply because there's new market opportunities as a result of the pandemic moving forward?

我其實想追問你剛才關於研發的評論，並把它放到你們整體投資組合更廣的脈絡下來看。COVID 在終端市場結構上、我想也在競爭面上，因多種原因造成了擾動。除了 Vertafore、以及你們可能在那裡提高研發投入之外，是否也有機會在其他一些事業單位提高研發投入，原因是疫情之後出現了新的市場機會？

I know it's hard for us to really fully appreciate all the changes that will stick structurally across all your business units. But I'm just wondering if we should expect R&D to ramp a little bit across the portfolio and not just Vertafore.

我知道我們很難完全掌握在你們所有事業單位中，哪些變化會在結構上長期留下來。但我想問的是，我們是否應該預期研發投入會在整個投資組合中略為上升，而不只是 Vertafore？

Yes. So a few things I'd say there to begin with. First is when we engage with each of our businesses strategically, we talk to them broadly about how to grow sustainably with CRI-accretive growth over a long arc of time, answering the 2 questions of where to play and how to win. But then when you get into how to win, it is -- sometimes it's a product answer. A lot of times, it's a go-to-market or market -- go-to-market effective sort of answer. So it's not -- our strategic orientation of each business doesn't narrow into innovation from the get-go.

是的。首先我會說幾點。第一，當我們與各個業務進行策略性討論時，我們會更廣泛地談如何在長期時間軸上，以 CRI 增益（CRI-accretive）的成長來實現可持續成長，回答兩個問題：在哪裡競爭（where to play）以及如何取勝（how to win）。但當你深入到「如何取勝」時，有時答案是產品；很多時候答案是市場進入策略（go-to-market）或更有效的 go-to-market 方式。因此，我們對每個業務的策略取向，從一開始並不會直接聚焦到創新。

That said, obviously, innovation and R&D, we're mostly a D shop, mostly development across our software and product businesses. You have seen and likely will continue to see a modest increase in R&D spend as a percent of revenue for years to come. In '19, it was about 7.5%. Last year, it's about a little over 8%. This coming year, we're probably going to add about 100 basis points to be a little over 9%. There's Vertafore mix in there that they have a little bit higher percentage as compared to some of our other businesses. But I think you will see and are seeing an increase in innovation there.

話雖如此，顯然創新與研發——我們大多是 D shop，主要是開發（development），涵蓋我們的軟體與產品業務。你已經看到、而且很可能會持續看到，研發支出占營收比重在未來幾年會有溫和上升。2019 年大約是 7.5%。去年大約略高於 8%。接下來這一年，我們可能會再增加約 100 個基點，達到略高於 9%。其中也包含 Vertafore 的組合影響，因為他們的比重相較我們其他一些業務略高。但我認為你會看到、也正在看到那方面的創新投入增加。

The -- so I'd sort of stop there. I mean if you have any follow-ups, we're happy to do it. But the short answer is yes.

所以——我大概先說到這裡。如果你還有任何追問，我們很樂意回答。但簡短的答案是：是的。

I guess there's one other thing. If you compare Roper's 8% or 9% of revenue that we spend in R&D compared to other software companies, it appears low. When you look at our software businesses, we're right in line with the peers. We're between 10% and 15%, 17% depending on the company. The application businesses tend to be on the higher side of that. The network businesses tend to be on the lower side of that.

我想還有一點。如果你把 Roper 在研發上花的營收 8% 或 9% 跟其他軟體公司相比，看起來會偏低。但當你只看我們的軟體業務時，我們其實與同業相當一致。我們大約在 10% 到 15%、或依公司不同到 17% 的區間。應用軟體（application）業務通常在該區間的較高端；網路（network）業務通常在較低端。

And the reason the mix for Roper is low is because we have quite a bit of revenue in TransCore, MHA and others that effectively don't have any R&D in our business model. So it's always important to point it out when we get asked a question about R&D.

而 Roper 的整體研發占比之所以看起來偏低，是因為我們在 TransCore、MHA 等業務上有相當多的營收，而那些在我們的商業模式中基本上沒有研發。因此，當我們被問到研發問題時，指出這一點總是很重要。

That's helpful to think about the framework there. I wanted to shift to Deltek. I thought it was interesting when you mentioned GovCon's stability versus maybe some of the professional services being impacted by COVID. The GovCon, I would imagine you're dealing with large enterprise customers so we should expect it to be kind of stable, in addition to just general government spending being stable.

這樣的框架很有幫助。我想把話題轉到 Deltek。我覺得你提到 GovCon 的穩定性、相較之下某些專業服務可能受到 COVID 影響，這點很有意思。GovCon 我想你們面對的是大型企業客戶，所以除了政府支出本身穩定之外，我們也應該預期它會相對穩定。

On the professional side, is it just a matter of reopening? Or is there anything we can think about with respect to customer size, large versus SMB? And then maybe end markets specifically that we should be looking at for the recovery, is it just non-residential construction on the AEC side? How should we think about Deltek improvement in 2021 and beyond?

在專業服務那一端，是不是只要重新開放就會改善？或者就客戶規模（大型 vs. 中小企業 SMB）而言，有沒有什麼我們可以思考的？另外，就復甦而言，有沒有特定終端市場是我們應該關注的——在 AEC 端是否就是非住宅建築？我們應該如何看待 Deltek 在 2021 年及之後的改善？

I give you a gold star for getting like 7 questions into 1 question. So I'm going to do our best to try to come -- tick through these.

我給你一顆金星，因為你把大概 7 個問題塞進 1 個問題裡。所以我們會盡力把這些逐一回答。

So on Deltek, it is -- it's important to note, it is a combination of large enterprise and the smaller end of the GovCon space that's been super strong throughout the year. It's not just been at the high end. And yes, we expect that to just continue as the -- it's not tied to infrastructure per se. These government contractors go toward the fast currents of where government spend is. It's gone from military to education, maybe infrastructure. They just go to where it is. That might drive some M&A activity, by the way, which is generally good for us.

關於 Deltek，需要注意的是：它同時涵蓋大型企業，以及 GovCon 領域中較小端的客群，而這兩端在今年都非常強勁；不只是高端表現好。是的，我們預期這種態勢會持續——它不一定與基礎建設支出直接綁定。這些政府承包商會跟著政府支出的主流方向走，可能從軍事轉到教育、也可能轉到基礎建設；他們就是往資金流向的地方去。順帶一提，這可能會帶動一些併購活動，而這通常對我們是有利的。

On the professional services side, the book of business here is broad. But if there are pockets of concentration, it's in architects, engineers and contractors. Obviously, the contractors, mostly non-res contractors in this case, they are the ones that are a little bit worried, and they've sort of tightened up a little bit more. It's the architects and engineering firms that have shown some green shoots here in Q4.

在專業服務方面，這裡的業務組合相當廣泛。但如果有一些集中區塊，主要是在建築師、工程師與承包商。很明顯地，承包商——在這個案例中多為非住宅承包商——他們是比較擔心的一群，也稍微收緊了一些。反而是建築師與工程顧問公司在第四季（Q4）展現出一些回溫的跡象。

In addition, marketing services firms is a leading niche for Deltek, and those businesses also have started to thaw. So I think that checked off your questions. If we missed 1 or 2, we're happy to follow up with you after the call.

此外，行銷服務公司是 Deltek 的一個領先利基領域，而這些業務也開始解凍回溫。所以我想這已經回答了你的問題。如果我們漏掉了 1、2 個問題，我們很樂意在會後再跟你追蹤。

The next question comes from Julian Mitchell of Barclays.

下一個問題來自 Barclays 的 Julian Mitchell。

This is Joao on for Julian. Maybe to start with, could we get your thoughts on maybe margin expectations for the segment? Obviously, a lot of movement in the software margins in 2020, kind of a lot of mix shift you guys are calling out on that Slide 20. So I just wanted to get your thoughts there.

我是 Joao，代 Julian 提問。也許先從這裡開始，你們能否談談該事業部的利潤率展望？很明顯 2020 年軟體利潤率有很多變動，你們在第 20 頁投影片也提到不少組合移轉（mix shift）。所以我想聽聽你們對這部分的看法。

Yes. I mean we can go through the segments in detail later on. But I mean overall, our margins are relatively flat year-over-year in the guide. I think there's a little bit of a core decline in the margins given a lot of the costs will come back post COVID, travel and things that didn't happen, very modest decline there.

好的。我的意思是，我們稍後可以更詳細地逐一說明各事業部。不過整體而言，我們在指引中預期利潤率年對年大致持平。我認為核心利潤率會有些微下滑，因為許多成本在 COVID 之後會回來，例如差旅等去年沒有發生的支出，這部分會有非常溫和的下降。

And then the Vertafore revenue comes in at a higher margin, so overall, margins are relatively flat. And then we'd expect some improvement in the bottom, sort of the more cyclical type stuff in process, which should get some nice bounce back as that starts to grow in margins.

另外，Vertafore 的營收以較高的利潤率進來，所以整體利潤率相對持平。然後我們也預期在流程（process）中一些較具循環性的項目會改善，隨著它開始成長，利潤率應該會有不錯的反彈。

And if I could just add one thing there, sort of piggybacking your question with the last one. Core EBITDA margins are going to be down a bit because, as Rob said, these costs are coming back in. It's hard to spend money on travel and customer meetings, for instance, last year, and we expect some of that to come back in this year.

如果我可以再補充一點，算是把你的問題和上一個問題串在一起。核心 EBITDA 利潤率會下降一些，因為如 Rob 所說，這些成本會回來。舉例來說，去年很難花錢在差旅和客戶會議上，而我們預期今年其中一部分會恢復。

That said, I sort of call it like a trap of leadership. We're increasing our R&D as a percent of revenue by about the same amount that we expect the core margins to come down. So there's going to be -- some teams and some companies may choose to hold margins and they're going to have to -- because there's opportunity cost inside the business somewhere. In our case, we're very specifically and intentionally not doing that as we come into that trap. And then obviously, we get the benefit of the Vertafore mix coming in. So on -- in aggregate, margins should be flat to up a touch.

不過，我把這稱作一種「領導力的陷阱」。我們把研發（R&D）占營收比重提高的幅度，大約等同於我們預期核心利潤率下滑的幅度。所以會出現——有些團隊或公司可能會選擇維持利潤率，但他們就必須——因為企業內部某處會有機會成本。在我們的情況下，當我們走進這個陷阱時，我們非常明確且有意識地不這麼做。然後很顯然，我們也會受惠於 Vertafore 組合的挹注。因此整體而言，利潤率應該會持平到小幅上升。

Perfect. And then maybe on the services piece of Application Software, you guys talked about kind of rebuilding that pipeline. What does that process look like? And any thoughts on some of the cadence or just kind of expectations beyond that sort of flat growth you guys guided for?

很好。那再問一下應用軟體（Application Software）的服務部分，你們提到正在重建那個管線。這個過程看起來是怎麼進行的？以及對於節奏（cadence）或是除了你們指引所說的大致持平成長之外，是否有其他看法或預期？

Yes. I think -- so what you have here is a dynamic where the most -- first, as a precursor, most -- the vast majority, I should say, of our services work in the applications segment are tied to new implementations, whether they're SaaS or on premise. So if you look back and think through what happened sequentially in 2020, very quickly in the shutdown, the license activity, the perpetual activity slowed down. So you had low license activity basically through Q4.

好的。我想——你這裡看到的是一種動態：首先先說明一下，應用事業部的服務工作絕大多數都與新導入（implementation）綁在一起，不論是 SaaS 或是地端部署（on premise）。所以如果你回頭看 2020 年逐季發生的情況，在封鎖初期很快地，授權（license）活動、永久授權（perpetual）活動就放緩了。因此基本上直到第四季（Q4）授權活動都偏低。

The services book of business had a little bit of a backlog, right? So the services were continued in Q2, continued a little bit in Q3, completed the in-flight projects. And then it sort of slowed down a handful of months behind the license activity.

服務的業務量有一點積壓（backlog），對吧？所以第二季（Q2）服務仍在進行，第三季（Q3）也持續了一段時間，把進行中的專案完成。然後它在授權活動之後延遲了幾個月才開始放緩。

So when you come back on this side, the license activity will pick up sooner, but then you got to -- and the services work will follow back behind it. So you've essentially had a slower ramp down and a slower ramp-up for services. So that's why you see it flattish where you can see growth in the perpetual book.

所以當你回到這一側時，授權活動會先回升，但接著——服務工作會在後面跟上。因此服務的下滑斜率較慢、回升斜率也較慢。這就是為什麼你會看到它比較持平，即使你在永久授權業務中可以看到成長。

The next question comes from Alex Blanton of Clear Harbor Asset Management.

下一個問題來自 Clear Harbor Asset Management 的 Alex Blanton。

I wanted to ask -- could you characterize your acquisition intentions for 2021? You had said earlier that you'd be -- primarily you'd be deleveraging for 12 to 18 months. But today, you mentioned that you had a very active, robust pipeline of potential acquisitions with many opportunities.

我想問——你們能否描述一下 2021 年的併購意圖？你們先前提到，主要會在 12 到 18 個月內去槓桿（deleveraging）。但今天你們又提到，你們有一個非常活躍、強健的潛在併購管線，機會很多。

So has there been a change in your intentions there in terms of deleveraging? How would you characterize the acquisition outlook for this year?

所以你們在去槓桿方面的意圖是否有改變？你會如何描述今年的併購展望？

Thank you, Alex, for the question. So I would share 2 things with you. First is we are -- maybe more than a couple of things.

謝謝你，Alex，這個問題。我會跟你分享兩點——也許不只兩點。

So we are active. The pipeline is active. We are spending time with learning businesses, spending time with all the sponsors that we have relationships with to understand what the cohort of opportunities looks like.

我們確實很積極。管線是活躍的。我們正在花時間去了解企業，並與我們有合作關係的所有出資方（sponsors）交流，來理解這一批機會的樣貌。

Importantly, every sizable transaction that we've completed since 2016, we have had a chance to meet the management teams at least once, if not multiple times, anywhere between 6 and 18 months before we completed the transaction. So the work that we're doing now is principally focused on that. These are getting to understand businesses well before they're ready to be transacted, right? So businesses we're meeting this month are likely going to be businesses that we may acquire at the end of this year or into the first half of next year. So it's -- the early pipeline work is the first thing I would say.

重要的是，自 2016 年以來我們完成的每一筆較大型交易，在完成交易前至少都有機會與管理團隊見過一次，若不是多次，通常是在交易完成前 6 到 18 個月。因此我們現在做的工作主要聚焦在這一點：在企業準備交易之前就先充分了解它們，對吧？所以我們這個月接觸的企業，很可能是我們在今年底或明年上半年可能收購的標的。因此——我會說，早期管線工作是第一點。

Second is we're absolutely committed to deleveraging. We're unwavering on that.

第二點是，我們絕對致力於去槓桿。我們在這點上毫不動搖。

Third thing, if the right deal came through, there's always a way to figure that out. But that's not our primary focus. Our primary focus is the early part of the pipeline build as well as the deleveraging.

第三點，如果有合適的交易出現，總是有辦法把它安排好。但那不是我們的主要重點。我們的主要重點是管線建置的早期階段，以及去槓桿。

Okay. And secondly, how would you characterize the makeup of these companies that you're getting to know? What industries? Is it still primarily software? Are you still going in that direction?

好的。第二個問題，你會如何描述你們正在認識的這些公司的組成？哪些產業？是否仍以軟體為主？你們是否仍朝那個方向前進？

Absolutely. It's -- again, we're characterized -- our M&A pipeline and process is characterized by buying businesses that are better than us through the -- our quantitative cash return lens. So that yields mostly software, informatics types businesses. They're a combination of a wide variety of end markets, a wide variety of SaaS versus perpetual business models. But yes, essentially what the capital deployment over the last 7 to 10 years is what -- our pipeline is characterized by that same type of business.

當然。再說一次，我們的併購（M&A）管線與流程的特徵，是透過我們的量化現金回報視角，去收購在這個標準上比我們更好的企業。因此這通常會導向以軟體、資訊分析（informatics）類型的企業為主。它們涵蓋各式各樣的終端市場，也涵蓋各種 SaaS 與永久授權（perpetual）的商業模式組合。但沒錯，基本上過去 7 到 10 年我們的資本部署方向是什麼——我們的管線就呈現同樣類型的企業。

This concludes our question-and-answer session. We will now return back to Zack Moxcey for any closing remarks.

我們的問答環節到此結束。接下來我們將把時間交還給 Zack Moxcey，請他做結語。

Thank you, everyone, for joining us today. We look forward to speaking with you during our next earnings call.

謝謝各位今天的參與。我們期待在下一次財報電話會議中與各位交流。

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

本次會議到此結束。感謝各位出席今天的簡報。您現在可以中斷連線。