羅斯百貨 (ROST) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon, and welcome to the Ross Stores First Quarter 2024 Earnings Release Conference Call. The call will begin with prepared comments by management, followed by a question-and-answer session. (Operator Instructions)

下午好，歡迎參加 Ross Stores 2024 年第一季財報發布電話會議。電話會議將首先由管理層準備好評論，然後進行問答環節。 （操作員說明）

Before we get started, on behalf of Ross Stores, I would like to note that the comments made on this call will contain forward-looking statements regarding expectations about future growth and financial results, including sales and earnings forecasts, new store openings and other matters that are based on the company's current forecast of aspects of its future business. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical performance or current expectations. Risk factors are included in today's press release and the company's fiscal 2023 Form 10-K and fiscal 2024 Form 8-Ks on file with the SEC.

在我們開始之前，我謹代表 Ross Stores 指出，在本次電話會議中發表的評論將包含有關未來增長和財務業績預期的前瞻性陳述，包括銷售和盈利預測、新店開業和其他事項這些數據基於公司目前對其未來業務各方面的預測。這些前瞻性陳述存在風險和不確定性，可能導致實際結果與歷史績效或當前預期有重大差異。風險因素包含在今天的新聞稿以及公司向 SEC 備案的 2023 財年 10-K 表格和 2024 財年 8-K 表格中。

And now I'd like to turn the call over to Barbara Rentler, Chief Executive Officer.

現在我想將電話轉給執行長芭芭拉·倫特勒 (Barbara Rentler)。

Good afternoon. Joining me on our call today are Michael Hartshorn, Group President, Chief Operating Officer; Adam Orvos, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; and Connie Kao, Group Vice President, Investor Relations. We'll begin our call today with a review of our first quarter 2024 results, followed by our outlook for the second quarter and fiscal year. Afterwards, we'll be happy to respond to any questions you may have.

午安.今天參加我們電話會議的還有集團總裁兼營運長 Michael Hartshorn； Adam Orvos，執行副總裁兼財務長；以及投資者關係集團副總裁 Connie Kao。我們今天將先回顧 2024 年第一季的業績，然後展望第二季和財年。之後，我們將很樂意回答您的任何問題。

As noted in today's press release, though we had hoped to do better, first quarter sales were still in line with our guidance despite macroeconomic headwinds that continue to pressure our customers' discretionary spending. Earnings results for the period were better than expected, primarily due to lower expenses relative to our plan. Total sales grew 8% to $4.9 billion, up from $4.5 billion last year, while comparable store sales rose 3%. Earnings per share were $1.46 on net earnings of $488 million for the 13 weeks ended May 4, 2024. These results compare to earnings per share of $1.09 on net income of $371 million for the 13 weeks ended April 29, 2023.

正如今天的新聞稿中所指出的，儘管我們希望做得更好，但儘管宏觀經濟逆風繼續給客戶的可自由支配支出帶來壓力，但第一季的銷售額仍符合我們的指導。該期間的獲利結果優於預期，主要是由於相對於我們的計劃而言費用較低。總銷售額成長 8%，達到 49 億美元，高於去年的 45 億美元，而同店銷售額成長 3%。截至2024年5月4日的13週，每股收益為1.46美元，淨利為4.88億美元。為3.71億美元。

Accessories and children's were the strongest merchandise areas during the quarter while California and the Pac Northwest were the top-performing regions. dd's DISCOUNTS sales trends in the first quarter were ahead of Ross as shoppers responded favorably to its improved value offering. In the newer markets, we are in the process of updating the assortments to better address the different tastes and preferences of this diverse customer base. We will continue to make ongoing adjustments over time to better position dd's for the future.

配件和兒童商品是本季表現最強勁的商品領域，加州和太平洋西北地區是表現最好的地區。 dd 第一季的折扣銷售趨勢領先於 Ross，因為購物者對其改進的價值產品反應良好。在新市場中，我們正在更新產品種類，以更好地滿足不同客戶群的不同品味和偏好。隨著時間的推移，我們將繼續不斷進行調整，以便為未來更好地定位 dd。

At quarter-end, total consolidated inventories were up 10% versus last year while average store inventories were up 4% at the end of the quarter due to the 53rd week calendar shift. Packaway merchandise represented 41% of total inventories versus 42% last year.

季度末，由於第 53 週日曆輪班，綜合庫存總額比去年同期增長 10%，而季度末平均商店庫存增長 4%。包裝商品佔總庫存的 41%，而去年為 42%。

Turning to store growth. We opened 11 new Ross and 7 dd's DISCOUNTS locations in the first quarter. We continue to plan for approximately 90 new stores this year, comprised of about 75 Ross and 15 dd's. As usual, these numbers do not reflect our plans to close or relocate about 10 to 15 older stores.

轉向商店增長。我們在第一季新開了 11 家 Ross 店和 7 家 dd's DISCOUNTS 店。今年我們繼續計劃開設約 90 家新店，其中約 75 家 Ross 店和 15 家 dd 店。像往常一樣，這些數字並不反映我們關閉或搬遷約 10 至 15 家老店的計劃。

Now Adam will provide further details on our first quarter results and additional color on our outlook for the remainder of fiscal 2024.

現在，Adam 將提供有關我們第一季度業績的更多詳細信息，以及我們對 2024 財年剩餘時間的展望的更多信息。

Thank you, Barbara. As previously mentioned, our comparable store sales were up 3% for the quarter, primarily driven by an increase in traffic. First quarter operating margin of 12.2% was up 205 basis points from 10.1% in 2023. This improvement was due to lower distribution, incentive and freight costs that were partially offset by the planned merchandise margin decline.

謝謝你，芭芭拉。如前所述，本季我們的可比較商店銷售額成長了 3%，這主要是由於客流量的增加。第一季營業利潤率為 12.2%，較 2023 年的 10.1% 上升 205 個基點。 這一改善是由於分銷、激勵和貨運成本下降，但計劃中的商品利潤率下降部分抵消了這一改善。

Cost of goods sold during the period improved by 140 basis points. Distribution costs levered by 75 basis points while buying improved by 50 basis points. Domestic freight improved by 30 basis points, and merchandise margin declined by 15 basis points as pressure from offering more sharply priced brands was partially offset by lower ocean freight costs.

期內銷售成本改善了 140 個基點。分銷成本槓桿提高了 75 個基點，而購買成本則提高了 50 個基點。國內運費提高了 30 個基點，商品利潤率下降了 15 個基點，因為提供價格更高的品牌帶來的壓力被較低的海運成本部分抵消了。

SG&A for the period levered by 65 basis points, mainly due to higher sales. In addition, SG&A benefited from lower incentives versus last year when we significantly outperformed our plans. During the first quarter, we repurchased 1.9 million shares of common stock for an aggregate cost of $262 million under the new 2-year $2.1 billion authorization approved by our Board of Directors in March of this year. We remain on track to buy back a total of $1.05 billion in stock during 2024.

該期間的 SG&A 槓桿增加了 65 個基點，主要是由於銷售額增加。此外，與去年相比，SG&A 受益於較低的激勵措施，去年我們的業績顯著超出了計劃。根據今年 3 月董事會批准的新的 2 年期 21 億美元授權，我們在第一季回購了 190 萬股普通股，總成本為 2.62 億美元。我們仍有望在 2024 年回購總計 10.5 億美元的股票。

Now let's discuss our outlook for the remainder of 2024. Ongoing uncertainty in today's macroeconomic and geopolitical environments, including prolonged inflation, continue to squeeze our low to moderate income customers' purchasing power. As a result, we will remain especially focused on delivering a wide assortment of branded values throughout our stores. For the 13 weeks ending August 3, 2024, comparable sales are forecast to be up 2% to 3%. Second quarter 2024 earnings per share are projected to be $1.43 to $1.49 versus $1.32 for the 13 weeks ended July 23, 2023.

現在讓我們討論一下我們對 2024 年剩餘時間的展望。因此，我們將繼續特別專注於在我們的商店中提供各種各樣的品牌價值。截至 2024 年 8 月 3 日的 13 週，可比銷售額預計將成長 2% 至 3%。 2024 年第二季每股收益預計為 1.43 至 1.49 美元，截至 2023 年 7 月 23 日的 13 週每股收益為 1.32 美元。

Our guidance assumptions for the second quarter of 2024 include the following. Total sales are forecast to increase 5% to 7% versus the prior year. We expect to open 24 locations in the second quarter, including 21 Ross and 3 dd's locations. If same-store sales perform in line with our forecast, operating margin for the second quarter is projected to be in the 11.5% to 11.8% range compared to 11.3% in 2023. Higher sales and lower incentive and distribution costs are expected to be partially offset by a decline in merchandise margin as we build on our efforts to offer more sharply priced brands. We expect net interest income to be approximately $37 million. The tax rate is projected to be about 25%, and diluted shares outstanding are expected to be approximately 332 million.

我們對 2024 年第二季的指導假設包括以下內容。預計總銷售額將比上年增長 5% 至 7%。我們預計第二季將開設 24 家門市，其中包括 21 家 Ross 門市和 3 家 dd's 門市。如果同店銷售表現符合我們的預測，第二季的營業利潤率預計將在11.5% 至11.8% 之間，而2023 年為11.3%。同店銷售的表現。我們預計淨利息收入約為 3700 萬美元。稅率預計約25%，攤薄後流通股預計約3.32億股。

Now turning to the full year. Based on our first quarter results and forward guidance, comparable store sales for the 52 weeks ending February 1, 2025, remain unchanged at up 2% to 3%. We now project earnings per share for the 52 weeks ending February 1, 2025, to be in the range of $5.79 to $5.98 compared to $5.56 for the 53 weeks ended February 3, 2024. This guidance range includes an approximate $0.02 per share favorable impact from the timing of expenses that benefited the first quarter. As a reminder, fiscal 2023 earnings per share included a benefit of approximately $0.20 from the 53rd week.

現在轉向全年。根據我們第一季的業績和前瞻性指引，截至 2025 年 2 月 1 日的 52 週內，可比商店銷售額保持不變，成長 2% 至 3%。我們現在預計截至2025 年2 月1 日的52 週每股收益將在5.79 美元至5.98 美元之間，而截至2024 年2 月3 日的53 週每股收益為5.56 美元。約0.02 美元的有利影響第一季受益的支出時間。提醒一下，2023 財年每股收益包括從第 53 週開始約 0.20 美元的收益。

Now I will turn the call back to Barbara Rentler for closing comments.

現在我將把電話轉回芭芭拉·倫特勒 (Barbara Rentler) 以徵求結束意見。

Thank you, Adam. While overall sales were respectable in the first quarter, there remains uncertainty in the external environment, including prolonged inflation, that continue to pressure discretionary spending from our low to moderate income customers. As a result, it's more important than ever that we remain focused on delivering the best branded values that we can possibly offer. In addition, we'll continue to manage inventory expenses tightly in order to maximize sales and earnings growth over the balance of the year.

謝謝你，亞當。儘管第一季的整體銷售相當可觀，但外部環境仍然存在不確定性，包括長期的通貨膨脹，這繼續對我們的中低收入客戶的可自由支配支出造成壓力。因此，我們比以往任何時候都更加專注於提供我們所能提供的最佳品牌價值。此外，我們將繼續嚴格管理庫存費用，以便在今年剩餘時間內最大限度地提高銷售額和獲利成長。

At this point, we'd like to open up the call and respond to any questions you may have.

此時，我們想打開電話並回答您可能提出的任何問題。

(Operator Instructions) And the first question comes from the line of Lorraine Hutchinson with Bank of America.

（操作員說明）第一個問題來自美國銀行的 Lorraine Hutchinson 線。

Barbara, I wanted to follow up on the efforts to offer more sharply priced products to your customers. Were you pleased with the initial results in the first quarter? Do you think it led to market share gain? And what's the margin implication of your plans to build on this initiative?

芭芭拉，我想跟進為您的客戶提供價格更優惠的產品的努力。您對第一季的初步結果滿意嗎？您認為這會帶來市場佔有率的增加嗎？您的計劃對此舉措的利潤影響是多少？

So let me start with, just on the whole, our progress. We feel like in the first quarter, we made progress on our initiatives. And so we're still at the early stages of it, but we feel like it's a good place to be.

讓我從總體上講我們的進展開始。我們覺得第一季我們的舉措取得了進展。所以我們仍處於早期階段，但我們覺得這是一個好地方。

In terms of do we think we gained market share from that, at this point, I don't really think we could determine whether we think that's the case.

就我們是否認為我們從中獲得了市場份額而言，目前，我真的認為我們無法確定我們是否認為情況如此。

And in terms of the sharply priced initiatives, we feel like -- well, Lorraine, just say that piece again so I make sure I answer that piece of that sharply priced correctly.

就價格昂貴的舉措而言，我們覺得——好吧，洛林，請再說一遍這句話，這樣我確保我正確地回答了價格昂貴的那一部分。

I just wanted to hear about the go-forward margin implication of your plans to build on the initiative.

我只是想聽聽你們的計劃對未來利潤的影響。

Yes. Lorraine, this is Adam. I'll jump in on that. So higher-quality branded merchandise will typically carry lower margins relative to lower quality, less recognizable brands. So as we move through the year, this will be pressured throughout the year, but will be even more so in the back half of fiscal 2024 as we continue to make further progress on this, as Barbara talked about. We really feel like long term, this is the right thing for us to do to position us to capture market share going forward.

是的。洛林，這是亞當。我會立即介入。因此，相對於品質較低、較不知名的品牌，較高品質的品牌商品通常利潤率較低。因此，隨著我們進入這一年，這一點將全年面臨壓力，但正如芭芭拉所說，隨著我們繼續在這方面取得進一步進展，2024 財年後半段的壓力會更大。我們真的覺得從長遠來看，這對我們來說是正確的事情，可以讓我們在未來佔據市場份額。

And the next question comes from the line of Michael Binetti with Evercore ISI.

下一個問題來自 Evercore ISI 的 Michael Binetti。

Congrats on a great quarter. And I don't know if Michael is in the room, but Michael or Adam jump ball. Is 3% same-store sales growth, 200 basis points of EBIT margin the new normal algorithm? And if not, can you walk us through -- you mentioned lower expenses relative to plan. Can you just help us think about the puts and takes on gross margin and SG&A for the rest of the year? I'm assuming you'll -- I'm assuming we're not levering 200 basis points on 3% going forward. So maybe just help us understand within the context of the 2% to 3% guidance, what base that was so helpful in the quarter and what rolls off a little bit.

恭喜您度過了一個出色的季度。我不知道邁克爾是否在房間裡，但邁克爾或亞當跳球。 3%的同店銷售成長、200個基點的息稅前利潤率是新的正常演算法嗎？如果沒有，您能否向我們介紹一下—您提到相對於計劃的費用較低。您能幫我們考慮一下今年剩餘時間的毛利率和銷售管理費用（SG&A）嗎？我假設你會——我假設我們未來不會在 3% 的基礎上使用 200 個基點的槓桿。因此，也許只是幫助我們在 2% 到 3% 的指導背景下了解什麼基礎在本季度如此有幫助，什麼基礎有所下降。

And then maybe -- it seems like dd's improved a lot more than you thought if it was above Ross, just 90 days after you telling us you had to make some adjustments to the assortment there and some of the stores performing below what you thought. Maybe just some thoughts on dd's and what's going on with the lower-income consumer.

然後，也許——在你告訴我們你必須對那裡的品種進行一些調整以及一些商店的表現低於你的想法之後的90 天，如果它高於羅斯，那麼dd 的改進似乎比你想像的要多得多。也許只是關於 dd 以及低收入消費者的一些想法。

I'll take the first part, Mike. I appreciate the spirit of your question, but you're right. So domestic -- so let me just kind of walk through all the parts, right? So the EPS beat and operating margin benefit, lower distribution costs.

我會講第一部分，麥克。我很欣賞你提問的精神，但你是對的。那麼國內——所以讓我簡單介紹一下所有部分，對嗎？因此，每股收益擊敗和營業利潤率受益，分銷成本降低。

So we had higher productivity in our distribution centers. We opened a new facility in Houston a couple of years ago. So that's getting fully ramped up. So that's providing productivity benefits. I would say on the DC cost front, the hiring environment and the retention environment is favorable. And we've also made investments in productivity in the distribution centers. And then lastly on that front, I'd say that the $0.02 of benefit that we talked about in timing is largely packaway benefit that kind of impacts the DC cost.

因此，我們的配送中心的生產力更高。幾年前，我們在休士頓開設了一家新工廠。所以這正在全面加強。這提供了生產力優勢。我想說，在 DC 成本方面，招募環境和留任環境都是有利的。我們也對配送中心的生產力進行了投資。最後，在這方面，我想說的是，我們在時間安排中討論的 0.02 美元的收益很大程度上是打包收益，會影響 DC 成本。

We had better -- as expected, we had better domestic freight costs in the quarter. I would expect that to continue through the balance of the year at somewhat -- it'll be a little bit choppy, but at somewhat similar levels. We went through a bidding process, felt good about those results. As we sit here today, fuel slightly helping us versus last year.

正如預期的那樣，我們在本季的國內貨運成本有所改善。我預計這種情況會在今年餘下的時間裡持續下去——會有點波動，但水平有些相似。我們經歷了招標過程，對這些結果感到滿意。當我們今天坐在這裡時，與去年相比，燃料對我們略有幫助。

And then as we've talked about for some time, incentives. Some good news in Q1, that'll be winded our back through the balance of the year. So even though we had strong profitability into Q1, we're still up against 2023 where we significantly outperformed our plans.

然後，正如我們已經討論了一段時間的激勵措施。第一季的一些好消息將在今年餘下的時間為我們帶來幫助。因此，儘管我們在第一季擁有強勁的盈利能力，但我們仍比 2023 年的業績要好得多，我們的表現明顯超出了我們的計劃。

Michael, there's one other nuance in the first quarter. The -- because your sales are based on a fiscal basis, your comps are on a restated. There's an outsized impact between your total sales and your comp sales because of that disconnect that corrects itself through the year. So we actually get higher leverage in the first quarter. Longer term, though, we would still expect the leverage at 3% to 4%.

邁克爾，第一季還有一個細微差別。 - 因為您的銷售額是基於財務基礎的，所以您的比較是重述的。您的總銷售額和比較銷售額之間存在巨大影響，因為這種脫節會在一年中自行修正。因此，我們實際上在第一季獲得了更高的槓桿率。但從長遠來看，我們仍預期槓桿率為 3% 至 4%。

On dd's, as we said in the commentary, sales trends were ahead of Ross. That's due, in part, to the easier prior year comparisons, but also shoppers responded favorably to our improved value offerings. I would say we're just at the beginning stages of making merchandise adjustments there to improve the value offerings. And while we're encouraged by the initial customer response, it's still very, very early.

在 dd 方面，正如我們在評論中所說，銷售趨勢領先於羅斯。這在一定程度上是由於去年的比較更容易，而且購物者對我們改進的價值產品反應良好。我想說，我們正處於進行商品調整以提高產品價值的開始階段。雖然我們對客戶最初的反應感到鼓舞，但現在還為時過早。

One point of clarification. Is that -- did the efficiencies from the DC costs ramping, does that continue with us after first quarter through the year?

澄清一點。是不是——資料中心成本提高的效率是否會在今年第一季之後持續下去？

Likely stays with us through the balance of the year. But not -- just clarifying, not at the level we saw in Q1, right? So the Q1 number that we reported is -- it has the benefit of the packaway timing right? So that's -- step back that in a tangible way.

可能會在今年剩下的時間裡留在我們身邊。但不是——只是澄清一下，不是我們在第一季看到的水平，對吧？所以我們報告的第一季數據是——它有打包時間的好處，對嗎？所以這就是──以切實的方式退一步。

And the next question comes from the line of Matthew Boss with JPMorgan.

下一個問題來自摩根大通的馬修·博斯（Matthew Boss）。

Congrats on another nice quarter. So Barbara, could you speak to current health of your core consumer today? Or any changes in your view relative to 3 months ago?

恭喜又一個美好的季度。芭芭拉，您能談談您今天的核心消費者目前的健康狀況嗎？或者與三個月前相比，您的看法有什麼改變嗎？

And then just on cadence, could you speak to traffic versus basket trends as the quarter progressed? And just your confidence in similar performance in the second quarter and the back half of the year.

然後就節奏而言，您能否談談隨著季度的進展，流量與購物籃趨勢？您對第二季和下半年的類似表現充滿信心。

Matthew, that's a lot to take in, but I'll start with the health of the consumer. I would say it's hard to say on the health of the consumer. There's clearly a lot of uncertainty in the macro economy. The silver lining for our business is the customer is seeking value more than ever, and we're in a position to deliver that.

馬修，有很多事情需要考慮，但我將從消費者的健康開始。我想說這對消費者的健康來說很難說。宏觀經濟顯然存在著許多不確定性。我們業務的一線希望是客戶比以往任何時候都更加尋求價值，而我們有能力實現這一點。

In terms of cadence, as you know, we typically do not get into what the monthly cadence is. I would say that the performance during the quarter was choppy throughout the quarter with weather, the Easter calendar shift and tax refund timing. For us, even though weather was choppy during the quarter, it was relatively neutral for the entire quarter.

就節奏而言，如您所知，我們通常不會了解每月的節奏是什麼。我想說的是，由於天氣、復活節日曆變化和退稅時間，整個季度的表現都不穩定。對我們來說，儘管本季天氣波動較大，但整個季度的天氣相對中性。

And on the comp components, average basket was up slightly. So we had higher AUR driven by a higher mix of brands and is partially offset by lower units per transaction.

就比較組成部分而言，平均籃子略有上升。因此，我們的 AUR 較高，這是由更多品牌組合推動的，但每筆交易單位數的減少部分抵消了這一影響。

And on the health of the consumer go forward, look, our low to moderate income consumer is still being squeezed, I mean, prolonged deflation, macroeconomic environment. I think our job to drive sales is for us to continue to offer really the best possible branded bargains that we can. The value that she really wants because she really does want to buy a brand, better quality, better product, but she needs to have it at a price that she really can afford.

就消費者的健康而言，看看，我們的中低收入消費者仍然受到擠壓，我的意思是，長期的通貨緊縮，宏觀經濟環境。我認為我們推動銷售的工作就是繼續提供盡可能最好的品牌特價產品。她真正想要的價值是因為她確實想買一個品牌、更好的品質、更好的產品，但她需要以她真正負擔得起的價格購買。

And I think if we continue to deliver on that as our strategy progresses, as we go throughout the year, I think we'll probably define. I think that's an important component for her because she does want to continue to shop and do things, but she's got to find a place where she can get -- really get what she needs because I don't foresee anyone thinking that the pressure on that customer is going to be any different.

我認為，如果我們隨著我們的策略的進展，隨著我們全年的進展，繼續實現這一目標，我認為我們可能會定義。我認為這對她來說是一個重要的組成部分，因為她確實想繼續購物和做事，但她必須找到一個她可以得到的地方——真正得到她需要的東西，因為我預見沒有人會認為壓力那個客戶將會有所不同。

So it's really the pressure is more on us to execute at a higher level. And I -- so far, we're, I would say, happy with the progress that we've made on the brand offerings, but we still have a long way to go. So if we continue to execute at a high level, again, I think the health of the customer, which will be challenging, I think we'll still be able to service her.

因此，我們確實面臨更大的壓力，需要在更高的水平上執行。我想說的是，到目前為止，我們對我們在品牌產品方面的進展感到滿意，但我們還有很長的路要走。因此，如果我們繼續以高水準執行，我認為客戶的健康狀況將具有挑戰性，我認為我們仍然能夠為她提供服務。

(Operator Instructions) Our next question comes from the line of Mark Altschwager with Baird.

（操作員說明）我們的下一個問題來自 Mark Altschwager 和 Baird 的對話。

Maybe following up on that last comment. You delivered at the high end of your guidance, but you did comment that you hoped to do better. Have you identified any low-hanging fruit from an execution standpoint in the quarter? Or is the delta versus what you may have hoped for more a function of the external environment being kind of less accommodating for you?

也許是在跟進最後一則評論。您的表現達到了指導的最高水平，但您確實表示希望做得更好。從本季執行的角度來看，您是否發現了任何容易實現的目標？或者，與您可能想要的情況相比，Delta 值是否更多是由於外部環境不太適合您而導致的？

And then separately, I was hoping you could speak to the current buying environment, generally, availability across the good, better, best. And as you continue to lean into this value strategy, are the merchants finding any greater ability to offset the margin pressure than maybe you initially thought a few months ago?

然後，我希望您能單獨談談當前的購買環境，一般來說，好、更好、最好的可用性。當您繼續採用這種價值策略時，商家是否發現抵銷利潤壓力的能力比您幾個月前最初想像的更大？

Sure. In terms of the sales, our apparel business in Q1 did not perform below the chain. So as we go forward, if we continue to execute at a higher level and continue with our brand strategy, our apparel business, as we go forward, should improve as it historically improves as you get to quarters 2, 3 and 4. So that's the one piece of our business that, in Q1, we were not as happy with and recognize that we have more progress to make, more things to accomplish, and that's a focus for us.

當然。從銷售額來看，第一季我們的服裝業務表現並未低於季比。因此，隨著我們的前進，如果我們繼續在更高的水平上執行並繼續我們的品牌策略，我們的服裝業務隨著我們的前進，應該會像歷史上那樣隨著第二、第三和第四季的改善而改善。 所以這就是在第一季度，我們對我們的業務不太滿意，並認識到我們還有更多進步要做，還有更多事情要做，這是我們的重點。

So in terms of everything working perfect, I don't believe there's, I would call, low-hanging fruit. I think the whole thing with sales is really going to be about how we execute and how we make the strategic moves we want to make, because the strategies by business of where we are on the brand increases and the penetration is not the same within the company. So some areas have more opportunity as we increase our brands, and some areas, much further along in that strategy because some of those strategies really started at the back end of '23, which is what drove a lot of our '23 business and gave us the courage to go forward and to expand on the strategy. So as we go again, as we go along, we would think that, that would help to improve our sales.

因此，就一切完美運作而言，我不相信有（我稱之為）唾手可得的成果。我認為銷售的整個問題實際上取決於我們如何執行以及我們如何採取我們想要採取的戰略行動，因為我們在品牌上的業務戰略不斷增加，並且滲透率在不同領域內並不相同。因此，隨著我們品牌的增加，有些領域有更多的機會，而有些領域則在該策略中走得更遠，因為其中一些策略實際上是在23 世紀末開始的，這推動了我們23 世紀的許多業務，並為我們帶來了機會。因此，當我們再次前進時，當我們繼續前進時，我們會認為這將有助於提高我們的銷售額。

In terms of the buying environment, there's absolutely this merchandise availability, as it usually is, and it's pretty broad-based. As usual, there are some businesses that have more availability than others. That's just the natural kind of ebb and flow of the entire scenario.

就購買環境而言，一如既往，商品供應絕對存在，而且基礎相當廣泛。像往常一樣，有些企業的可用性比其他企業更高。這只是整個場景的自然潮起潮落。

And then just repeat the part about the value. What's the part about value part of your question?

然後重複有關值的部分。您的問題的價值部分是什麼？

Yes. Are you finding any -- are the merchants finding any greater opportunity to kind of offset the margin pressure than maybe you thought a few months ago?

是的。您是否發現了任何東西——商家是否找到了比您幾個月前想像的更大的機會來抵消利潤壓力？

Well -- look, if the merchants are getting better deals, we're passing it along to the customer because we really believe that offering her good quality, branded products at sharp prices is very important for us to be able to really satisfy the customer when she's really under -- she's under pressure. So we would pass that along to the consumer. So that's really what -- that's really how we're thinking about it at this point.

嗯，看，如果商家獲得更好的優惠，我們會將其傳遞給客戶，因為我們確實相信，以合理的價格向他們提供優質的品牌產品對於我們能夠真正滿足客戶而言非常重要當她真正處於壓力之下時。所以我們會將其傳遞給消費者。這就是我們目前正在思考的問題。

The next question comes from the line of Chuck Grom with Gordon Haskett.

下一個問題來自查克·格羅姆和戈登·哈斯克特的台詞。

Curious what you'd attribute to the dd's outperformance to, clearly, a nice surprise today. And then just as a quick follow-up, any thoughts on the home category performance?

很好奇你會把 dd 的出色表現歸因於今天的一個驚喜。作為快速跟進，您對家庭類別的表現有什麼想法嗎？

Chuck, on the -- on dd's, as I said, part of the performance was against easier prior year comparisons than Ross. But we do believe that we've started making adjustments, and the customer is responding. And I'll just repeat, we think we're at the very early stages of making the merchandise adjustments we need to make. So we'll see how it progresses through the year.

查克，在 dd 上，正如我所說，部分錶現是與比羅斯更容易的前一年進行比較。但我們確實相信我們已經開始做出調整，並且客戶正在做出回應。我再說一遍，我們認為我們正處於進行必要的商品調整的早期階段。所以我們將看看這一年的進展如何。

At a high level, the merchants improved the value offerings that they had, whether it's different assortments, broader assortments, better quality, better products. So I think we've taken our first step forward there. And to Michael's point, we feel like there's room for us to improve. And if we continue to improve, even this low-income customer, if we can satisfy her, we should define.

在高水準上，商家改善了他們所提供的價值，無論是不同的品種、更廣泛的品種、更好的品質、更好的產品。所以我認為我們已經邁出了第一步。對麥可來說，我們覺得我們還有進步的空間。而如果我們持續改進，即使是這個低收入的客戶，如果我們能夠滿足她，我們就應該定義。

And in terms of the home category, home outperformed the company. So there are puts and takes in the home business right now with some businesses that are stronger than others. And -- but overall, it outperformed, and we still see a lot of opportunity in our home business based on the size of it and the categories that we're in. But overall, there are some businesses that are softer than others.

就家居類別而言，家居表現優於公司。因此，目前家庭業務中存在一些看跌期權和買入期權，其中一些業務比其他業務更強大。但總體而言，它的表現優於大盤，而且根據其規模和我們所處的類別，我們仍然在我們的家庭業務中看到了很多機會。

And the next question comes from the line of Alex Straton with Morgan Stanley.

下一個問題來自亞歷克斯·斯特拉頓 (Alex Straton) 與摩根士丹利 (Morgan Stanley) 的對話。

Great. Maybe for Barbara, what KPIs are you focused on as you're assessing if some of these value initiatives are working or if they're worth rolling out more across the chain?

偉大的。也許對於 Barbara 來說，當您評估其中一些價值舉措是否有效或是否值得在整個鏈條中推廣更多時，您會關注哪些 KPI？

The way we're thinking about this is we are actually building the margins the way we see them. We have a merchandise strategy. We've developed a value strategy by type of product, and we then went in and figured out what the margins would be. So at this stage of the game, as you know, we've lowered our margins to be able to get those values on the floor to satisfy the customer and to gain market share. This whole thing is about us gaining market share. So at this point in time, where our strategy is to pass along the values as we get them. And so I wouldn't say it's quite as rigid as, last year, my margin was X and I've got to plan to Y. It's not. It's a strategy we want to execute.

我們思考這個問題的方式是，我們實際上是按照我們所看到的方式來建立利潤的。我們有一個商品策略。我們根據產品類型製定了價值策略，然後我們開始計算利潤率是多少。因此，如您所知，在遊戲的這個階段，我們降低了利潤，以便能夠實現這些價值，以滿足客戶並獲得市場份額。整件事都是為了我們獲得市場佔有率。因此，在這個時候，我們的策略是傳遞我們所獲得的價值觀。所以我不會說它像去年那樣嚴格，我的利潤是 X，我必須計劃 Y。這是我們想要執行的策略。

And so we've put together, again, all the metrics based off of what we want, the products we want on the floor, the values we want on the floor, and so that we're satisfying the customer because that is the gains to market share. So right now, it's built up bottom up.

因此，我們再次將所有基於我們想要的指標、我們想要的產品、我們想要的價值放在一起，這樣我們就能滿足客戶，因為這就是收益到市場份額。所以現在，它是自下而上建構的。

And the next question comes from the line of Paul Lejuez with Citi.

下一個問題來自花旗銀行的 Paul Lejuez。

It's Tracy Kogan filling in for Paul. I just wanted to clarify if -- was anything within cost of good meaningfully favorable to your plan? Or was it primarily an SG&A beat?

崔西·科根 (Tracy Kogan) 接替保羅。我只是想澄清一下——是否有任何在良好成本範圍內的事情對你的計劃有意義？或主要是SG&A 節拍？

And then I know you mentioned you expect lower margins on these more recognizable brands. But I'm wondering if you build in any benefit from having faster inventory turns or lower markdowns because the customers -- these are brands that customers want?

然後我知道您提到您預計這些更知名的品牌的利潤率會較低。但我想知道你是否可以透過更快的庫存週轉或更低的降價來獲得任何好處，因為客戶——這些是客戶想要的品牌？

Within the cost of goods sold, Tracy, freight is included in our cost of goods sold, and we did see favorability.

在銷售成本中，特蕾西，運費包含在我們的銷售成本中，我們確實看到了優惠。

Yes, and the DC cost.

是的，還有 DC 成本。

And in terms of what we've built in because they're recognizable brands, they turn quickly. But quite frankly, we turn everything quickly. So in terms of a benefit just purely out of turn, I don't see that as one of our levers in terms of markdowns. I think the markdowns will be reasonable based on the brands that they are, the value they are, the retailers they are. And so again, we have gone in and we built that bottom up.

就我們內建的內容而言，因為它們是知名品牌，所以變化很快。但坦白說，我們把一切都轉變得很快。因此，就純粹不合時宜的好處而言，我不認為這是我們降價的槓桿之一。我認為，根據品牌、價值和零售商，降價是合理的。我們再一次投入並自下而上地建構了這個系統。

So we didn't go in and say that we have any expectations that certain things are going to turn a certain weeks of supply because, remember, we're in a process here. So we're learning, right? So we're -- as we're going, it's evolving, and we're fine-tuning what we're doing. Our expectation would be, yes, that our turns will continue to improve. But with that, we didn't build with a specific turn expectation. And again, the company turns everything very quickly. So our expectations on this would be level set based off of what we think the customer will accept.

因此，我們並沒有說我們對某些東西將在特定幾週內實現供應有任何期望，因為請記住，我們正處於一個過程中。所以我們正在學習，對嗎？因此，隨著我們的發展，它正在不斷發展，我們正在微調我們正在做的事情。是的，我們的期望是，我們的轉彎將繼續改善。但這樣一來，我們就沒有建立特定的回合期望。再說一遍，公司的一切都非常迅速。因此，我們對此的期望將根據我們認為客戶會接受的水平來設定。

And the next question comes from the line of Adrienne Yih with Barclays.

下一個問題來自 Adrienne Yih 與巴克萊銀行的對話。

Great, and nice quarter. Barbara, my question is on the packaway. The 41%, I believe, was this quarter. Typically, if I'm correct, that's typically short stay, I think. Can you comment on if you were being impacted by weather events as with TJX than most frontline retailers also would be? Are you seeing that short stay opportunity? And have you taken advantage of it to deploy in the second quarter, perhaps?

很棒，很棒的季度。芭芭拉，我的問題是關於包裝袋的。我認為 41% 是在本季。通常，如果我是對的，我認為這通常是短暫停留。您能否評論一下您是否像 TJX 一樣受到天氣事件的影響，而大多數一線零售商也會受到影響？您看到這個短暫停留的機會了嗎？您是否利用它在第二季進行了部署？

Adrienne, just on -- before the packaway, packaway usually stays in about -- the average is about 4 months. That said, you could obviously use it for short stay if you needed to.

艾德麗安，在打包之前，打包通常會停留大約 - 平均約為 4 個月。也就是說，如果需要的話，您顯然可以將其用於短期停留。

So in terms of you're asking are there closeout opportunities out there based off of tough weather across the country and as vendors move goods. I think some vendors are starting to move goods, and some vendors, depending upon what your cash flows look like, are still holding on to those goods because of everything that you're saying. The weather was a little bit tougher across the country, and they don't really need to move those goods today. If we were at June 15th, I might tell you something different. So I really think that goes back to who the vendor is, what their needs are, what their cash flow is, if they're a public -- it is a variety of things.

因此，就您所問的問題而言，由於全國各地的惡劣天氣以及供應商轉移貨物，是否存在清倉機會。我認為一些供應商開始轉移貨物，而一些供應商，根據你的現金流情況，仍然保留這些貨物，因為你所說的一切。全國各地的天氣都比較惡劣，他們今天確實不需要搬運這些貨物。如果我們在 6 月 15 日，我可能會告訴你一些不同的事情。所以我真的認為這可以追溯到供應商是誰，他們的需求是什麼，他們的現金流是什麼，如果他們是公眾——這是各種各樣的事情。

But at this point in time, have there been some closeouts? Yes, there's been some closeouts. But what you're saying, were there a big [jugs] of goods that we would short stay but was a great deal, absolutely, we would do that. But at this moment in time, we're a little early in the game. I don't think vendors are feeling that anxious about those products yet.

但此時此刻，是否有一些停產的情況發生？是的，有一些關閉。但你的意思是，如果有一大堆貨物我們會短暫停留，但數量很大，我們絕對會這樣做。但目前，我們還處於起步階段。我認為供應商還沒有對這些產品感到那麼焦慮。

And the next question comes from the line of Bob Drbul with Guggenheim.

下一個問題來自鮑勃·德布爾（Bob Drbul）與古根漢（Guggenheim）的關係。

Great quarter. I was just wondering if you could talk more on the geographic differences and -- within both Ross and dd's, if there was a big variation within your store base in terms of (inaudible).

很棒的季度。我只是想知道您是否可以更多地談論地理差異，以及在 Ross 和 dd 中，您的商店基礎在（聽不清楚）方面是否存在很大差異。

Sure, Bob. I would only talk on a consolidated basis. But as we said in the commentary, the geographic performance was strongest in California and the Pacific Northwest. Both of those are areas that were impacted by poor weather last year, so easier compare perhaps. For our other largest markets, Texas was above the chain while Florida was just slightly below.

當然，鮑伯。我只會在綜合基礎上談論。但正如我們在評論中所說，加州和太平洋西北地區的地理表現最為強勁。這兩個地區都是去年受到惡劣天氣影響的地區，因此也許更容易比較。對於我們其他最大的市場，德克薩斯州高於環比，而佛羅裡達州略低於環比。

And the next question comes from the line of Simeon Siegel with BMO Capital Markets.

下一個問題來自蒙特婁銀行資本市場部門的西蒙‧西格爾 (Simeon Siegel)。

Just so recognizing the goal for the sharper prices, what is the implied AUR embedded within the comp guides that you've given?

正是認識到價格上漲的目標，您給出的比較指南中隱含的 AUR 是多少？

And then just higher level, as you think about the challenges of the environment, but also perhaps the potential trade down into your business as you think about the market share, I guess how do you assess prioritizing the assortment of sharply priced brands versus maybe some better brands that are a little bit higher priced but still great value to bring people in?

然後是更高的層面，當你考慮環境的挑戰時，當你考慮市場份額時，也可能考慮到你的業務的潛在交易，我想你如何評估價格昂貴的品牌與某些品牌的優先順序更好的品牌，價格稍高一些，但仍具有吸引人的價值？

On AUR, I'd say we don't plan or focus on driving a specific price point. While it was up in the first quarter, our focus is on delivering the most compelling value as possible, which, as we said, we believe will drive sales and market share gains.

對於 AUR，我想說我們不計劃或專注於推動特定的價格點。雖然第一季有所上升，但我們的重點是盡可能提供最具吸引力的價值，正如我們所說，我們相信這將推動銷售和市場份額的成長。

And in terms of the sharper prices, I just want to be clear, the sharper prices are necessarily just in a goods -- in the goods. Sharper prices, I really should probably used word stronger values on the floor. So that's tiered up in all different -- each one of those tiers. It's not just we're looking for an opening. It's not an opening price point strategy. It's a value strategy, but the values, let's say, we offer perhaps 4, a type of product or 1 of those 3 buckets, we may have sharpened so that the customer is getting an even better deal, an even better value. So that's really how we're thinking about the strategy. I probably shouldn't be using the word price because I think everyone is finding that a little bit confusing. But is that the answer to your question?

就價格上漲而言，我只是想澄清，價格上漲必然只是在商品中——在商品中。價格更高，我真的應該在地板上使用“更強的價值”這個詞。因此，它分為不同的層次──每一層。我們不僅僅是在尋找空缺。這不是開盤價策略。這是一種價值策略，但我們可能會提高價值，例如我們提供 4 種產品或這 3 類產品中的一種，以便客戶獲得更好的交易、更好的價值。這就是我們思考戰略的方式。我可能不應該使用“價格”這個詞，因為我認為每個人都覺得這個詞有點令人困惑。但這是你問題的答案嗎？

Yes, that makes a lot of sense. Good clarification. So is that -- do you see that as an opportunity for a trade down for customers that were -- that you didn't otherwise have, not in your core, but in those that'll come lower, that'll trade down into you?

是的，這很有意義。很好的澄清。那麼，您是否認為這是一個對客戶進行降級交易的機會，這些客戶是您本來沒有的，不是在您的核心中，而是在那些會降級的客戶中，會降級到你？

I mean, I think that's hard for us to measure. But I think the more brand that we get and the broader assortments we can offer, the more customers we'll get. We gain the -- our purpose here is to gain market share, right? And so gaining market share, you like to gain different customers. And so if we get more branded, have unbelievable values and get broader in assortments, that I would imagine would be the combination we need to gain more market share.

我的意思是，我認為這對我們來說很難衡量。但我認為我們獲得的品牌越多，我們提供的產品種類越多，我們就會獲得越多的客戶。我們的目的是獲得市場份額，對吧？為了獲得市場份額，您希望獲得不同的客戶。因此，如果我們獲得更多的品牌，擁有令人難以置信的價值並擴大品種，我想這將是我們獲得更多市場份額所需的組合。

And the next question comes from the line of Ike Boruchow with Wells Fargo.

下一個問題來自艾克·博魯喬 (Ike Boruchow) 與富國銀行 (Wells Fargo) 的對話。

This is [Julianna] on for Ike. On dd's specifically, given some improvements seen there, if perhaps that continues throughout the rest of the year, are there any thoughts on revising the real estate opportunity there, whether that's closures and more opening?

這是艾克的[朱莉安娜]。具體來說，鑑於那裡看到的一些改進，如果這種情況在今年剩餘時間內持續下去，是否有任何想法修改那裡的房地產機會，無論是關閉還是開放更多？

It's a good question. I think right now, as you know, we slowed down growth specifically in the new markets. I think we'll have to see sustained trends before we reaccelerate growth in those newer markets. But if we see it, then we would do so.

這是一個好問題。我認為，正如您所知，我們現在特別放緩了新市場的成長速度。我認為，在我們重新加速這些新市場的成長之前，我們必須看到持續的趨​​勢。但如果我們看到它，我們就會這麼做。

And the next question comes from the line of Brooke Roach with Goldman Sachs.

下一個問題來自布魯克·羅奇（Brooke Roach）與高盛的對話。

Barbara, I wanted to follow up on your comments about the opportunity that you see to improve the execution of apparel. Do you believe that the performance of the category is a function of weather or fashion execution? Or is this simply a function of being in the earlier stages of your sharper value-price strategy versus other categories? Just curious how you're thinking about implementing that, especially given some other companies that have invested more heavily in price in the full-price sector.

芭芭拉，我想跟進您對改善服裝執行力的機會的評論。您認為該品類的表現是天氣因素還是時尚執行力的函數？或者這只是因為與其他類別相比，您處於更清晰的價值價格策略的早期階段？只是好奇你是如何考慮實施這一點的，特別是考慮到其他一些公司在全價領域投入了更多的價格。

Sure. Look, weather, we didn't think of weather as a major component. It's always part of the component. And in Q1, our business in apparel, historically, has been very challenging. So we go into the quarter with a conservative plan, seeing how it works and then chase. That's what we've done for years. The early sharpened prices and in the assortment, our new strategy, I think we're at the beginning apparel, particularly in the ladies apparel, we're at the very early stages of that.

當然。看，天氣，我們不認為天氣是一個主要組成部分。它始終是組件的一部分。從歷史上看，第一季我們的服裝業務一直非常具有挑戰性。因此，我們以保守的計劃進入本季度，看看它如何運作，然後追逐。這就是我們多年來所做的。早期銳化的價格和品種，我們的新策略，我認為我們正處於服裝的起步階段，特別是在女裝方面，我們正處於非常早期的階段。

So I think in terms of an opportunity to improve, I think it's there because I think we -- the customer wants -- our apparel business has been challenging over the last few quarters, and the customer wants something different. And this is what she's voting on, and we can see -- although particularly in ladies at the beginning of the journey, we can see what she's voting on and what we need to build on. So I think there are opportunities to improve. I think there are some things that are tangible. I don't think it will be an overnight thing in ladies. As we know, ladies is naturally a challenging business, but I feel like there's things that we can build on at this point.

因此，我認為就改進的機會而言，我認為它的存在是因為我認為我們——客戶想要——我們的服裝業務在過去幾個季度一直面臨挑戰，而客戶想要一些不同的東西。這就是她投票的內容，我們可以看到——儘管特別是在旅程開始的女性中，我們可以看到她投票的內容以及我們需要建立的基礎。所以我認為還有改進的機會。我覺得有些東西是看得見摸得著的。我不認為這對女士們來說是一朝一夕的事。眾所周知，女士行業自然是一項具有挑戰性的行業，但我覺得目前我們可以在某些事情上再接再厲。

And the next question comes from the line of Dana Telsey with the Telsey Advisory Group.

下一個問題來自特爾西諮詢小組的達納·特爾西。

As you think about the offering of value in both concepts, Ross and dd's, is the magnitude of what you're working to do, does it differ by category in terms of the more intensified value, whether home or apparel? And does it differ at all by concept in terms of what you expect to change?

當您考慮羅斯和 dd 這兩個概念中的價值提供時，您正在努力做的事情的大小，它是否因類別而異，在更強化的價值方面有所不同，無論是家居還是服裝？就您期望改變的內容而言，它在概念上有什麼不同嗎？

Okay. Let's start with -- so with Ross, the magnitude is different by category. Some businesses, by the nature of what they are, are more branded. Like shoes, for example, that's a highly branded business. Handbags is a highly branded business. Naturally, it's the highly branded business. And then I think as we go into different categories, we've set different targets of what that looks like based off of what's in the outside world, the brand -- just the brand strategies of everyone else and what that looks like and what we think that percent should be for us. So that is built with a strategy of what we believe it should be.

好的。讓我們從羅斯開始，不同類別的影響程度是不同的。有些企業，就其本質而言，更加品牌化。例如，就像鞋子一樣，這是一個高度品牌化的行業。手袋是一個高度品牌化的行業。當然，這是高度品牌化的業務。然後我認為，當我們進入不同的類別時，我們根據外部世界的情況、品牌設定了不同的目標——只是其他人的品牌策略以及它的樣子以及我們的目標認為這個百分比應該屬於我們。因此，這是根據我們認為應該採取的策略建立的。

Now I will tell you, as we're going through this, as you would expect and imagine, it evolves, right? So we learn and the customer is telling us, and we're going to keep learning and keep evolving. And so some of these businesses will take longer to go on. But some of the business naturally are different. If we move over to the home bucket, as you know, there are certain parts of the home that can be branded and then certain parts of homes that are not branded. So housewares is a very branded business. Bed and bath can be very branded. If you go into room decor and furniture and things like that, they're not necessarily branded.

現在我會告訴你，當我們正在經歷這個過程時，正如你所期望和想像的那樣，它正在演變，對嗎？所以我們學習，客戶告訴我們，我們將繼續學習並不斷發展。因此，其中一些業務將需要更長的時間才能持續下去。但有些業務自然是不同的。如果我們轉向家居桶，如您所知，房屋的某些部分可以打上品牌，而房屋的某些部分則不能打上品牌。因此，家居用品是一個非常品牌化的行業。床和浴室可以非常品牌化。如果你仔細觀察房間的裝飾和家具之類的東西，你會發現它們不一定是品牌的。

So again, we built the entire company strategies by business, by -- in a good, better, best, what do we think it should look like? Where are we today? And where do we think we want to get to in our first path until the customer votes and really tells us? In which case, I'm sure that some things will accelerate more than what we originally expected, and maybe some things will be a little bit less than we originally expected. So that's kind of where we are on the Ross side.

再說一次，我們透過業務建立了整個公司策略，透過——以良好、更好、最好的方式，我們認為它應該是什麼樣子？我們今天在哪裡？在客戶投票並真正告訴我們之前，我們認為我們的第一條路徑應該到達哪裡？在這種情況下，我確信有些事情會比我們最初預期的加速，也許有些事情會比我們最初預期的慢一點。這就是我們站在羅斯這邊的情況。

On the dd's side, the dd's customer, that assortment isn't quite -- is not as -- it's not as branded as the Ross customer. But even in that assortment, you want to make sure that you're offering the customer different tiers. Their version of what might be best is a different tier than what the best at Ross. But what is stretched for that customer? And again, we want to make sure that the quality is good. The fashion's right, and the prices are sharp. So it's different -- the thought process is similar, but it's not the same in terms of execution because the models are not the same. The brands are not the same. Customer is not exactly the same. But thinking through it, as you would think that the value is the best bucket at dd's would not be as big as the best bucket at Ross could be.

在 dd 方面，即 dd 的客戶，該品種並不完全 - 不 - 它不像羅斯客戶那樣品牌化。但即使在這種分類中，您也希望確保為客戶提供不同等級的產品。他們的最佳版本與羅斯的最佳版本不同。但對該客戶來說，什麼是捉襟見肘的呢？再次強調，我們要確保品質良好。時尚感十足，價格也很實惠。所以它是不同的——思考過程是相似的，但在執行方面並不相同，因為模型不一樣。品牌不一樣。客戶並不完全相同。但仔細想想，你會認為 dd 的最佳桶的價值不會像羅斯的最佳桶那麼大。

But again, dd's, we're at the very beginning of where we're going with that. The performance, with improved value offerings this quarter, shows we're getting ourselves kind of back on track. We're up against easier compare. I understand that. But the merchants are now moving in a direction, and that, too, will have to seek its own level.

但再說一遍，dd，我們正處於我們的目標的開始階段。本季度的業績以及價值產品的改進表明我們正在回到正軌。我們面臨著更容易的比較。我明白那個。但商人現在正朝著一個方向前進，而這個方向也必須尋求自己的水平。

But the Ross side of the strategy is much more structured than on the dd's side since we also have other work, consumer work, that's going on about other things we need to do in that assortment, more broader in terms of satisfying some of her needs more necessarily than on the tiering of good, better, best.

但羅斯方面的策略比 dd 方面更加結構化，因為我們還有其他工作，消費者工作，這些工作涉及我們在該類別中需要做的其他事情，在滿足她的一些需求方面更廣泛比好、更好、最好的分級更必要。

And the next question comes from the line of Aneesha Sherman with Bernstein.

下一個問題來自阿尼莎謝爾曼和伯恩斯坦的對話。

So your comp guidance of 2% to 3% through the year is an acceleration versus this quarter and whether you look at it on a 1-year basis or a 2-year stack or even versus 2019. Can you talk about what drives your confidence in that acceleration? Is it about these changes you're making to assortment in pricing? Or is it around macro or something else?

因此，與本季相比，您全年的薪酬指引為2% 至3%，無論您是從1 年基礎還是2 年堆疊甚至2019 年來看，都是加速成長。您的信心嗎？與您對定價品種所做的這些改變有關嗎？或者是圍繞著宏觀還是其他什麼？

And then a quick follow-up for Adam. You didn't mention wages as a headwind. Are you happy with where you are on wages at stores and DCs? And do you see that being a continued area of investment? Or are you good where you are now?

然後是亞當的快速跟進。你沒有提到工資是一個不利因素。您對商店和配送中心的工資水平滿意嗎？您認為這是一個持續的投資領域嗎？或者你現在的處境還好嗎？

Aneesha, on the guidance, I mean I would say it's our best assessment of where the business is and the merchandising plans we have to further increase the branded bargains we offer as we progress through the year. As you know and as you look at the stack comps, we have, for many years now, had stronger comps beyond the first quarter. So we believe we plan the business appropriately based on what we know.

Aneesha，關於指導，我的意思是，我想說這是我們對業務狀況和銷售計劃的最佳評估，隨著我們在這一年的進展，我們必須進一步增加我們提供的品牌特價商品。如您所知，當您查看堆疊比較時，我們多年來一直擁有比第一季更強勁的比較。因此，我們相信我們根據我們所知道的情況適當地規劃業務。

On wages, I would say, generally speaking, wages on our stores and DCs are relatively stable. In fact, part of the productivity improvements in the DCs in the first quarter is lower turnover, which mean we had more tenured associates and they were more productive. So I think we feel good about the -- where we are with wages. And like we always have, we'll take a market-by-market approach. And where we need to raise wages, we will.

關於薪資，我想說，整體來說，我們門市、配送中心的工資是比較穩定的。事實上，第一季資料中心生產力提高的部分原因是人員流動率降低，這意味著我們擁有更多的終身員工，而且他們的生產力更高。所以我認為我們對工資狀況感覺良好。就像我們一直以來所做的那樣，我們將採取逐個市場的方法。哪裡需要提高工資，我們就會提高工資。

But the pressure is still there from where we have to take statutory increases, right? And that's where we're -- as Michael said and as I said earlier, that's where we're working hard, to try to find offsets to them.

但我們必須採取法定加價的壓力仍然存在，對嗎？這就是我們現在的處境——正如邁克爾所說，正如我之前所說，這就是我們正在努力工作的地方，試圖找到抵消它們的方法。

And the next question comes from the line of Laura Champine with Loop Capital Markets.

下一個問題來自 Loop Capital Markets 的 Laura Champine。

I wanted to check in on inventory as it grew faster than sales despite packaway actually being a little bit lower as a percentage of the mix. Is there some spring product in areas that had negative weather trends that maybe you're looking to sell through? Or if you could give us some thoughts there.

我想檢查庫存，因為它的增長速度快於銷售額，儘管包裝實際上佔組合的百分比有點低。您是否希望在天氣趨勢不佳的地區出售某些春季產品？或者您能給我們一些想法嗎？

In terms of inventory, part of the increase, Laura, was that with the fiscal calendar, restated calendar at fiscal year-end, we were 1 month closer to Mother's Day where we tend to drive receipts. So that's why you see in-store inventory position up 4%. I'd say the other factor is we do have more goods in transit. Part of that is due to the Suez Canal, and we're going around the Horn of Africa. So that creates a little bit more of in-transit inventory coming into the country.

就庫存而言，勞拉，增加的部分原因是，根據財政日曆，在財政年度結束時重述了日曆，我們距離母親節又近了 1 個月，我們往往會在這一天增加收入。這就是為什麼您會看到店內庫存增加了 4%。我想說的另一個因素是我們確實有更多的貨物在運輸途中。部分原因是蘇伊士運河，我們將繞行非洲之角。因此，這會導致更多的在途庫存進入該國。

Is that like -- sorry. Sorry, Barbara.

是這樣嗎——抱歉。對不起，芭芭拉。

Go ahead. No, go ahead, Laura.

前進。不，繼續吧，蘿拉。

I don't want to cut you off on that one.

我不想打斷你的談話。

No, no, no. I was going to -- I was going to pivot, so go back -- go back to Michael.

不不不。我打算——我打算轉向，所以回去——回到邁克爾。

Okay. The Suez Canal issue, does that create a reversal in your positive freight costs as we move through the year? Or do you think that is going to be a benefit all year long?

好的。蘇伊士運河問題是否會導致今年以來你們的正貨運成本出現逆轉？或者你認為這會是全年的好處嗎？

It's actually relatively flat for the rest of the year in terms of ocean freight, and we do have the -- we do have our contracts locked in at this point, including the Suez Canal shipments.

就海運而言，今年剩餘時間實際上相對持平，而且我們確實已經鎖定了合同，包括蘇伊士運河的運輸。

We think ocean freight will be neutral the balance of the year and it's more of a transit time issue than a cost.

我們認為今年餘下時間海運費將保持中性，這更多的是運輸時間問題而不是成本問題。

And our next question comes from the line of Marni Shapiro with Retail Tracker.

我們的下一個問題來自 Marni Shapiro 與 Retail Tracker 的合作。

Nice quarter with traffic up again. And I'm curious if there's anything you could point to that's driving the increases in traffic. And also, I've noticed you guys -- that Ross stores, in general, has been a little bit more active on social media. You are showing -- or maybe you're just showing up in all my feeds. You're showing up on my For You page in TikTok actually. So I was curious if -- are the 2 things related potentially? Are you getting a younger shopper coming in? If you could just talk a little bit about that.

美好的季度，流量再次增加。我很好奇您是否能指出什麼因素推動了流量的增加。而且，我注意到你們——總的來說，羅斯商店在社交媒體上更加活躍。你正在展示——或者也許你只是出現在我所有的提要中。實際上，您出現在 TikTok 的「為您推薦」頁面上。所以我很好奇這兩件事是否有潛在的關聯？您有年輕的購物者進來嗎？如果你能談談這一點就好了。

Marni, we're just showing up in your feeds. No, our marketing strategy has stayed fairly consistent. We have -- like everybody else over the years, have shifted more of our media to digital from broadcast, and maybe that's what you're seeing because we have more of our marketing in digital channels.

Marni，我們剛剛出現在您的動態中。不，我們的行銷策略一直相當一致。與多年來其他所有人一樣，我們已經將更多的媒體從廣播轉向數字，也許這就是您所看到的，因為我們在數位管道中進行了更多的行銷。

Maybe. And the fact that I'm talking about you, my phone is listening to me. But are you getting -- are you seeing younger shoppers coming into the store? And are you getting new shoppers into the stores?

或許。事實上，當我在談論你時，我的手機正在聽我說話。但是您是否看到年輕的購物者進入商店？您是否正在吸引新的購物者進入商店？

I would say it's -- we've always done well with the younger customer, and we continue to do well with the younger customer. When we look at the performance, say, Q4 and Q1, it's been fairly broad-based across trade area demographics, and that includes income. So from an income standpoint, it's hard to pinpoint whether there's increasingly a trade-down customer. But what it does say is we're attracting a very broad customer base, which is good for us.

我想說的是——我們一直在年輕客戶方面做得很好，而且我們將繼續在年輕客戶方面做得很好。當我們觀察第四季和第一季的表現時，會發現整個貿易區域的人口統計數據相當廣泛，其中包括收入。因此，從收入的角度來看，很難確定降價客戶是否越來越多。但它確實表明我們正在吸引非常廣泛的客戶群，這對我們有利。

And the next question comes from the line of John Kernan from TD Cowen.

下一個問題來自 TD Cowen 的 John Kernan。

This is Alex on for John. So I had one on gross margin. So how should we think about the quarterly sequencing of gross margin through fiscal '24 and any puts and takes there?

這是亞歷克斯替約翰發言。所以我有一個關於毛利率的數據。那麼，我們應該如何考慮 24 財年毛利率的季度排序以及其中的任何看跌期權和賣出期權？

And then also related to that, it looks like you guys are still running a little below your pre-COVID gross margin run rate of 28%, 29%. Is that just due to the focus on sharper values? Or is there anything else that we should be thinking about there?

與此相關的是，看起來你們的毛利率仍略低於新冠疫情前 28%、29% 的水平。這只是因為關注更清晰的價值觀嗎？或者還有什麼我們應該考慮的嗎？

Alex, so domestic freight, it was favorable in Q1; expected to be favorable, the balance of the year, assuming fuel stays where it is. We talked about distribution cost. Feel good about productivity levels, the hiring environment, we'd expect that to continue the balance of the year. Merchandise margin is probably the big call-out, that we were below last year in Q1 and expect that to get -- to be further below last year as we move through the quarter, as we get further into the branded strategy that Barbara spoke of.

Alex，那麼國內貨運，第一季是有利的；假設燃料保持不變，預計今年剩餘時間將是有利的。我們討論了分銷成本。對生產力水平和招聘環境感覺良好，我們預計這一情況將持續到今年。商品利潤率可能是最大的亮點，我們第一季的利潤率低於去年，隨著我們進一步深入實施芭芭拉提到的品牌策略，本季商品利潤率將進一步低於去年。

I think back to the -- I guess, your pre-COVID question, still bullish on our ability to drive leverage, so again, anywhere between a 3% and a 4% comp. We believe we'll have operating margin leverage. It'll take -- to get back to pre-COVID levels, it'll take outsized comp sales growth. That's the most important variable. And I think the kind of the biggest variables are where fuel prices over time and assuming that wages continue to stabilize.

我想回到——我想，你在新冠疫情之前的問題，仍然看好我們提高槓桿率的能力，所以再說一遍，在 3% 到 4% 之間的任何地方。我們相信我們將擁有營業利潤槓桿。要回到新冠疫情爆發前的水平，需要大幅的銷售成長。這是最重要的變數。我認為最大的變數是燃料價格隨著時間的推移和假設工資繼續穩定的情況。

The biggest difference is, though, in gross margin between pre-COVID levels are freight costs that spiked during COVID. They're still pretty sticky with driver wages, but we made progress last year. We're going to make progress again. And then the other big factor is in our distribution center with wages, and you see that at least in the first quarter, we had good productivity gains. So both of those, we believe, we can track back over time, again, depending on the macro economy when it comes to fuel prices on freight.

不過，最大的差別在於，新冠疫情前的毛利率水準是在新冠疫情期間飆升的貨運成本。他們對司機薪資的要求仍然相當嚴格，但我們去年取得了進展。我們將再次取得進步。另一個重要因素是我們的配送中心的工資，你會看到至少在第一季度，我們的生產力得到了良好的提升。因此，我們相信，我們可以根據貨運燃油價格的宏觀經濟情況，隨著時間的推移對這兩者進行追蹤。

There are no further questions at this time. I would like to turn the floor back over to Barbara Rentler for any closing comments.

目前沒有其他問題。我想將發言權交還給芭芭拉·倫特勒（Barbara Rentler）以徵求結束意見。

Thank you for joining us today and for your interest in Ross Stores.

感謝您今天加入我們以及您對羅斯商店的興趣。

And ladies and gentlemen, this does conclude today's teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

女士們、先生們，今天的電話會議到此結束。此時您可以斷開線路。感謝您的參與。