Republic Services Inc (RSG) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon, and welcome to the Republic Services first quarter 2026 investor conference call. Republic Services is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol RSG. (Operator Instructions) Please note, this event is being recorded.

下午好，歡迎參加 Republic Services 2026 年第一季投資人電話會議。Republic Services 於紐約證券交易所上市，股票代號為 RSG。(接線員指示) 請注意，本活動將被錄音。

I would now like to turn the conference over to Aaron Evans, Vice President of Investor Relations.

現在我想把會議交給投資人關係副總裁 Aaron Evans。

Good afternoon. I would like to welcome everyone to Republic Services first quarter 2026 conference call. Jon Vander Ark, our CEO; and Brian DelGhiaccio, our CFO, are on the call today to discuss our performance.

下午好。我想歡迎各位參加 Republic Services 2026 年第一季電話會議。今天 Jon Vander Ark（我們的執行長）以及 Brian DelGhiaccio（我們的財務長）將在電話會議中討論我們的營運表現。

I'd like to remind everyone that some information discussed on today's call contains forward-looking statements, including forward-looking financial information, which involve risks and uncertainties and may be materially different from actual results.

我想提醒各位，今天電話會議中討論的部分資訊包含前瞻性陳述（包括前瞻性財務資訊），其中涉及風險與不確定性，實際結果可能與之有重大差異。

Our SEC filings discuss factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The material that we discuss today is time sensitive. If in the future, you listen to a rebroadcast or recording of this conference call, you should be sensitive to the date of the original call, which is May 7, 2026.

我們的 SEC 申報文件討論了可能導致實際結果與預期出現重大差異的因素。我們今天討論的內容具有時效性。若您日後收聽本電話會議的重播或錄音，請留意原始會議日期為 2026 年 5 月 7 日。

Please note that this call is the property of Republic Services, Inc. Any redistribution, retransmission or rebroadcast of this call in any form without the express written consent of Republic Services is strictly prohibited.

請注意，本電話會議為 Republic Services, Inc. 的財產。未經 Republic Services 明確書面同意，以任何形式重新散布、轉傳或重播本電話會議內容，均嚴格禁止。

Our SEC filings, earnings press release, which includes GAAP reconciliation tables and a discussion of business activities, along with a recording of this call, are available on our website at republicservices.com. In addition, Republic's management team routinely participates in investor conferences. When events are scheduled, the dates, times and presentations are posted on our investor website.

我們的 SEC 申報文件、財報新聞稿（其中包含 GAAP 調節表及業務活動說明），以及本電話會議錄音，均可於我們網站 republicservices.com 取得。此外，Republic 管理團隊也會例行參與投資人會議。當相關活動排定時，日期、時間與簡報將公布於我們的投資人網站。

With that, I'd like to turn the call over to Jon.

接下來，我想把電話會議交給 Jon。

Thanks, Aaron. Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us. We are pleased with our first quarter results, which position us well to achieve the full year guidance that we provided in February. We delivered strong earnings growth and expanded margins, all overcoming lower commodity prices and the impact of higher fuel prices during the quarter. Our results reflect our disciplined pricing execution, effective cost management and the value created from ongoing investments in the business.

謝謝你，Aaron。各位下午好，感謝各位加入我們。我們對第一季的結果感到滿意，這使我們有良好基礎達成我們在 2 月提供的全年指引。我們實現了強勁的獲利成長並擴大了利潤率，並克服了較低的商品價格以及本季較高燃料價格的影響。我們的成果反映了我們嚴謹的定價執行、有效的成本管理，以及持續投資業務所創造的價值。

During the quarter, we achieved revenue growth of 2.6%, generated adjusted EBITDA growth of 4.3%, expanded adjusted EBITDA margin by 50 basis points, delivered adjusted earnings per share of $1.70 and produced $984 million of adjusted free cash flow. We continue to secure new growth opportunities by leveraging our differentiating capabilities, customer zeal, digital and sustainability.

本季我們達成營收成長 2.6%，調整後 EBITDA 成長 4.3%，調整後 EBITDA 利潤率擴大 50 個基點，調整後每股盈餘為 1.70 美元，並產生 9.84 億美元的調整後自由現金流。我們持續運用我們的差異化能力、客戶熱忱、數位化與永續發展，來掌握新的成長機會。

With respect to customer zeal, our customer retention rate remained high at 94%. Our Net Promoter Score remains strong, reflecting our team's commitment to delivering exceptional customer value. First quarter organic revenue growth was driven by solid pricing across the business. Average yields on related revenue was 4.1% and average yield on total revenue was 3.4%. Organic volume decreased related revenue by 1% or total revenue by 80 basis points.

就客戶熱忱而言，我們的客戶留存率仍維持在 94% 的高水準。我們的淨推薦值（Net Promoter Score）依然強勁，反映團隊致力於提供卓越客戶價值。第一季的有機營收成長主要由全公司穩健的定價所帶動。相關營收的平均單價（yield）為 4.1%，總營收的平均單價為 3.4%。有機量（volume）使相關營收下降 1%，或使總營收下降 80 個基點。

Volume performance improved sequentially, most notably in the landfill, large container and small container verticals. Importantly, we delivered year-over-year revenue growth in the temporary large container business this quarter for the first time in over two years. Combined average yield and volume growth grew 1.2%. Organic revenue in the Environmental Solutions business decreased total revenue by 1.3% in the first quarter, which was in line with our expectations.

量的表現較前一季改善，最明顯的是在掩埋場、大型容器與小型容器等垂直領域。重要的是，本季我們在臨時大型容器業務實現了年對年營收成長，這是兩年多來的首次。平均單價與量的合計成長為 1.2%。第一季環境解決方案（Environmental Solutions）業務的有機營收使總營收下降 1.3%，符合我們的預期。

More than on third of this decrease in the environmental solutions business related to an emergency response job in 2025 that did not repeat. Our environmental solutions sales pipeline continues to build with increased activity across multiple end markets. We expect year-over-year revenue growth in this business in the second half of the year.

環境解決方案業務的這一下降中，超過三分之一與 2025 年的一項緊急應變專案在本期未再重複有關。我們的環境解決方案銷售管線持續擴大，並在多個終端市場的活動增加。我們預期該業務在今年下半年將實現年對年營收成長。

Turning to digital. Our ongoing investments in technology and AI are strengthening how we operate and compete. Over time, these capabilities are expected to drive additional growth, expand margins and support continued operating leverage. We are actively deploying AI-based predictive technology that supports optimized pricing decisions across markets with varying customer and competitive dynamics. This approach is expected to reinforce price retention and reduce customer attrition over time. Enhancements to our RISE digital platform are progressing with initial deployment focused on the large container business.

接著談數位化。我們持續在科技與 AI 的投資，正在強化我們的營運方式與競爭力。隨著時間推進，預期這些能力將帶動額外成長、擴大利潤率，並支持持續的營運槓桿。我們正積極部署以 AI 為基礎的預測技術，以支援在不同客戶與競爭動態的各市場中做出最佳化的定價決策。預期此作法將強化價格留存，並隨時間降低客戶流失。我們對 RISE 數位平台的強化正持續推進，初期部署聚焦於大型容器業務。

The integration of AI and advanced routing algorithms is expected to improve safety outcomes, strengthen service execution and increased route efficiency. Activation of digital tools in our call centers are enhancing the customer experience and unlocking value in our business by optimizing the 11 million inbound calls we receive each year. We believe that these investments in digital will deliver at least $100 million of annual benefit by 2028.

AI 與先進路線規劃演算法的整合，預期將改善安全成果、強化服務執行並提升路線效率。我們在客服中心啟用數位工具，正在提升客戶體驗，並透過最佳化我們每年接到的 1,100 萬通來電，為業務釋放價值。我們相信，這些數位化投資到 2028 年將帶來至少每年 1 億美元的效益。

Within sustainability, we continue to believe that our sustainability innovation investments in the plastic circularity and decarbonization position us for growth and long-term value creation. Production volume has increased across our polymer center network as we optimize processing operations. Customer demand for our domestic post-consumer plastic remains strong. We continue to advance renewable natural gas projects with our partners. We brought nine projects online throughout 2025. We expect four additional RNG projects to begin operations in 2026 which would bring our total landfill gas-to-energy portfolio to 82 projects.

在永續發展方面，我們仍相信在塑膠循環（plastic circularity）與去碳化（decarbonization）的永續創新投資，使我們具備成長與長期價值創造的有利定位。隨著我們最佳化處理作業，我們的聚合物中心（polymer center）網路整體產量已提升。客戶對我們國內的消費後回收塑膠（post-consumer plastic）需求依然強勁。我們持續與合作夥伴推進再生天然氣（RNG）專案。我們在 2025 年全年共有 9 個專案上線營運。我們預期 2026 年將有另外 4 個 RNG 專案開始營運，屆時我們的掩埋場沼氣發電（landfill gas-to-energy）組合將達到 82 個專案。

We continue to execute against our industry-leading commitment to fleet electrification. We had more than 200 electric collection vehicles in operation at the end of the first quarter. We expect to exit this year with more than 300 EV collection trucks in our fleet to support the continued growth of this differentiated service offering. We recently celebrated with the City of San Pablo who partnered with us to become the first city in California to operate an all-electric recycling and waste collection fleet. As part of our commitment to sustainability, we strive to be the employer where the best people want to work.

我們持續落實業界領先的車隊電動化承諾。截至第一季末，我們已有超過 200 輛電動收運車投入營運。我們預期今年年底車隊中的電動收運卡車將超過 300 輛，以支持這項差異化服務持續成長。我們近期與 San Pablo 市共同慶祝；該市與我們合作，成為加州第一個營運全電動回收與廢棄物收運車隊的城市。作為我們對永續發展承諾的一部分，我們致力於成為最優秀人才最想加入的雇主。

Our employee engagement score consistently exceeds national benchmarks, and we continue to experience record low turnover rates. Our comprehensive sustainability performance continues to be widely recognized as Republic services was named The Fortune's World's Most Admired Companies list and Ethisphere's World's Most Ethical Companies list.

我們的員工敬業度分數一貫高於全國基準，且我們持續維持創紀錄的低離職率。我們全面的永續績效也持續獲得廣泛肯定，Republic Services 入選《財富》（Fortune）「全球最受讚賞公司」名單，以及 Ethisphere「全球最具道德企業」名單。

Regarding capital allocation, we have invested more than $700 million in value-creating acquisitions to date, which includes $433 million of investment in the first quarter. Our acquisition pipeline remains supportive of continued activity in both the recycling and waste and environmental solutions businesses. We expect to exceed $1 billion of acquisition investment this year. As part of our balanced approach to capital allocation, we returned $507 million to shareholders in the quarter, including $314 million of share repurchases.

關於資本配置，我們迄今已在創造價值的併購上投資超過 7 億美元，其中第一季投資 4.33 億美元。我們的併購管線仍支持在回收與廢棄物以及環境解決方案兩大業務持續推進相關活動。我們預期今年的併購投資將超過 10 億美元。作為我們平衡資本配置策略的一部分，本季我們向股東回饋 5.07 億美元，其中包含 3.14 億美元的庫藏股回購。

I will now turn the call over to Brian, who will provide additional details on the quarter.

我現在把電話交給 Brian，他將提供本季的更多細節。

Thanks, Jon. Core price on total revenue was 5.7%. Core price on related revenue was 6.8%, which included open market pricing of 8.4% and restricted pricing of 4.4%. The components of core price on related revenue included small container of 8.2%, large container of 7.1% and residential of 6.5%. Average yield on total revenue was 3.4% and average yield on related revenue was 4.1%.

謝謝，Jon。總營收的核心價格為 5.7%。相關營收的核心價格為 6.8%，其中包含公開市場定價 8.4% 與受限定價 4.4%。相關營收核心價格的組成包括：小型容器 8.2%、大型容器 7.1% 以及住宅 6.5%。總營收的平均收益率為 3.4%，相關營收的平均收益率為 4.1%。

First quarter volume decreased total revenue by 80 basis points and related revenue by 1%. Volume results on related revenue included a decrease in large container of 2.5%. This represents a sequential improvement of 130 basis points compared to our fourth quarter performance. Volume results also included a decrease in residential of 5.2%. The sequential change in residential volume was primarily due to known contract losses, which was contemplated in our full year guidance.

第一季的量（volume）使總營收下降 80 個基點，相關營收下降 1%。相關營收的量表現包括大型容器下降 2.5%。相較於第四季表現，這代表序列性改善 130 個基點。量表現也包括住宅下降 5.2%。住宅量的序列性變化主要來自已知的合約流失，這已納入我們全年指引的考量。

Landfill volumes improved during the quarter as MSW volumes increased 1.4% and special waste revenue increased 9.9%. We estimate severe weather negatively impacted volume performance by approximately $30 million during the quarter which was reflected in our full year revenue guidance provided in February.

本季掩埋場量有所改善，MSW（市政固體廢棄物）量增加 1.4%，特殊廢棄物營收增加 9.9%。我們估計惡劣天氣在本季對量表現造成約 3,000 萬美元的負面影響，該影響已反映在我們 2 月提供的全年營收指引中。

Moving on to recycling. Commodity prices were $120 per ton during the first quarter. This compared to $155 per ton in the prior year. Recycling processing and commodity sales were flat compared to the prior year. Increased volumes at our polymer centers offset the revenue impact of lower recycled commodity prices. Current commodity prices are approximately $125 per ton. Total company adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 50 basis points to 32.1%.

接著談回收業務。第一季商品價格為每噸 120 美元。相較之下，去年同期為每噸 155 美元。回收處理與商品銷售較去年同期持平。我們聚合物中心的量增加，抵銷了再生商品價格較低對營收的影響。目前商品價格約為每噸 125 美元。全公司調整後 EBITDA 利潤率擴張 50 個基點至 32.1%。

Margin performance during the quarter included margin expansion in the underlying business up 90 basis points and a net benefit of 20 basis points from nonrecurring items, primarily due to a favorable legal settlement. This was partially offset by a 20 basis points decrease from net fuel, a 20 basis points decrease from recycled commodity prices and a 20 basis points decrease from acquisitions. The sharp increase in diesel prices in March negatively impacted EBITDA performance by $8 million in the first quarter. Our fuel recovery fee tends to lag changes in fuel expense by approximately one month. We expect fuel recovery fees to offset higher fuel costs beginning in the second quarter.

本季利潤率表現包括：基礎業務利潤率擴張 90 個基點，以及非經常性項目帶來淨利 20 個基點，主要來自有利的法律和解。上述部分被以下因素抵銷：淨燃料下降 20 個基點、再生商品價格下降 20 個基點，以及併購帶來的下降 20 個基點。3 月柴油價格大幅上升，使第一季 EBITDA 表現受到 800 萬美元的負面影響。我們的燃料回收費通常會落後燃料費用變動約一個月。我們預期自第二季起，燃料回收費將抵銷較高的燃料成本。

With respect to environmental solutions, first quarter revenue decreased $44 million compared to the prior year. Approximately $15 million of this decrease related to an emergency response job in 2025 that did not repeat. Adjusted EBITDA margin in the environmental solutions business was 19.2%. Adjusted free cash flow of $984 million, an increase of more than 35% compared to the prior year. This increase was driven by EBITDA growth in the business and the timing of working capital and capital expenditures.

就環境解決方案而言，第一季營收較去年同期減少 4,400 萬美元。其中約 1,500 萬美元的減少與 2025 年的一項緊急應變專案未再重複發生有關。環境解決方案業務的調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 19.2%。調整後自由現金流為 9.84 億美元，較去年同期增加超過 35%。此增幅主要由業務 EBITDA 成長，以及營運資金與資本支出的時點所驅動。

Year-to-date capital expenditures of $249 million represents 12% of our projected full year spent. Total debt was $14 billion, and total liquidity was $1.8 billion. Our leverage ratio at the end of the quarter was approximately 2.6 times. With respect to taxes, our combined tax rate and impact from equity investments in renewable energy resulted in an equivalent tax impact of 24.9% during the first quarter.

年初至今資本支出為 2.49 億美元，約占我們預估全年支出的 12%。總負債為 140 億美元，總流動性為 18 億美元。本季末的槓桿比率約為 2.6 倍。就稅務而言，我們的合併稅率以及再生能源股權投資的影響，使第一季的等效稅負影響為 24.9%。

With that, operator, I would like to open the call to questions.

接下來，接線員，我想開放提問。

We will now begin the question-and-answer session. (Operator Instructions)

我們現在開始問答環節。(接線員指示)

Noah Kaye.

Noah Kaye。

Good afternoon. Thanks for taking the questions. I hope you all are well. You all can hear me?

下午好。謝謝讓我提問。希望大家都一切安好。你們聽得到我嗎？

Yes.

聽得到。

Okay. Great. Thank you. So AI and digital productivity, definitely a strong theme for the sector and for you this quarter. You called out you expect $100 million, I think, of annual benefits from investments by 2028. I guess first, can you sort of benchmark where that benefit might be penciling out for '26? And how to think about it flowing in a couple of years? And then maybe just to unpack a little bit the buckets of benefit that you're getting here.

好的。很好。謝謝。所以，AI 與數位生產力顯然是本產業以及你們本季的一個強勁主題。你們提到預期到 2028 年，這些投資每年可帶來 1 億美元的效益。我想先請教，能否大致對標一下，這項效益在 2026 年可能會估算到什麼程度？以及未來幾年應如何看待其逐步反映？另外，也請你們再拆解一下目前取得效益的幾個類別。

Yeah. We mentioned on the latter part of your question, we mentioned three areas of the benefit, routing, the RISE pricing and then customer service. And I would list those in terms of the priority of the impact or the scale of the impact over time. Pricing will come first, and we'll see some benefit in 2026, and that will build over '27, '28. We're going to see very little, probably no benefit of that in 2026 on RISE just because we're doing all the work, and that will scale. You'll start to see that benefit come in '27 and then that will really scale in '28 and that, again, will be the largest impact.

可以。就你問題的後半段，我們提到效益的三個面向：路線規劃（routing）、RISE 定價，以及客戶服務。我會依照影響的優先順序或隨時間推移的影響規模來排列。定價會最先反映，我們在 2026 年會看到一些效益，並在 2027、2028 年逐步擴大。至於 RISE，我們在 2026 年可能只會看到非常少、甚至沒有的效益，因為我們正在完成所有相關工作，之後才會放大。你會在 2027 年開始看到效益，並在 2028 年大幅擴張；而且同樣地，這將是影響最大的一項。

And then on the customer service, I think you'll see ratable improvement across the three years. Right now, that's the smallest of the three categories I mentioned. And those aren't the only three. I mean, we're looking at AI in every area of the business, back office, legal, HR, all kinds of places. These are the three where we see the most immediate benefit to scale, but it will have profound impact across the business.

至於客戶服務，我認為你會在這三年看到較為平均、逐步的改善。目前在我提到的三個類別中，這是最小的一項。而且也不只這三項。我的意思是，我們正在把 AI 應用到業務的各個領域：後台、法務、人資，以及各種地方。這三項是我們認為最能在短期內看到可規模化效益的領域，但它將對整個業務帶來深遠影響。

That's very helpful, Jon. Maybe we could talk a little bit about the price/cost performance this quarter. To get 90 bps underlying margin expansion when you had the headwinds from fuel -- from a weather rather and some of the cost pressures it's impressive. Maybe you can talk a little bit about what you've seen so far on price retention. Was that better than you expected? Did you maybe get a little bit better operating leverage off of cost savings initiatives. Just help us understand the quarter and how you see it trending as we look at margin profile for the next couple of quarters?

這很有幫助，Jon。也許我們可以談談本季的價格/成本表現。在受到燃料——更正，是天氣因素，以及一些成本壓力的逆風下，仍能達到 90 個基點的基礎利潤率擴張，令人印象深刻。你能否談談目前看到的價格留存（price retention）情況？是否比你們預期更好？你們是否也因成本節省措施而取得更好的營運槓桿？請協助我們理解本季表現，以及展望未來幾季利潤率走勢時，你們如何看待接下來幾季的趨勢？

Yeah. I lead with costs. Our cost performance has been really strong for a number of years now. Inflation has come down, but we've done a lot of self-help there. The underlying rise benefits, you're seeing that through labor productivity. You're seeing MPower and our maintenance cost be very strong on that. And we're doing a good job of balancing pricing, again, primarily playing a long game.

好的。我先從成本談起。我們的成本表現多年來一直非常強勁。通膨已經下降，但我們也做了很多自助改善（self-help）。你正在看到 RISE 的基礎效益，反映在勞動生產力上。你也看到 MPower，以及我們的維修保養成本在這方面表現非常強。而且我們在平衡定價方面做得不錯，再次強調，主要是在打一場長期戰。

We want to understand even in a volume challenged environment to retain customers over time. And so we've had to find our place in different markets, both to retain and to compete for new work just given the challenging macro and the team is doing a great job of finding that right mix to still get that underlying margin expansion.

我們希望了解，即使在量能承壓的環境下，仍能隨時間推移留住客戶。因此，鑑於具挑戰性的總體環境，我們必須在不同市場中找到自身定位，既要留住客戶，也要競爭新業務；團隊在找出恰當的組合方面做得非常好，讓我們仍能實現那種基礎性的利潤率擴張。

Bryan Burgmeier, Citi.

Bryan Burgmeier，花旗。

Hi, good afternoon. Thanks for taking the question. Brian, can you maybe just provide some details on how you're thinking about 2Q. I just want to be mindful of the wildfire comps, the fuel impacts, M&A integration, but then conversely, you'd have some seasonal step-up, recycled commodities doing a little better. I mean, we were thinking margins would still probably be down kind of slightly year-on-year, but any details you can add on that would be helpful.

嗨，午安。謝謝讓我提問。Brian，你能否提供一些你們對第二季（2Q）的看法細節？我想留意野火的比較基期、燃料影響、併購整合，但反過來，你們也會有一些季節性上升、回收商品表現稍微好一些。我的意思是，我們原本認為利潤率可能仍會年對年小幅下滑，但你能補充的任何細節都會很有幫助。

Yeah, that's still what we're expecting for the second quarter. I would say from -- starting with -- from a margin perspective, somewhat flat to slightly down on a year-over-year basis, largely due to some of the project-related landfill volumes that you mentioned. That's the biggest driver of that, ex that, we would have anticipated margin expansion. So margin expansion in the underlying business, excluding the impact of those volumes.

是的，這仍是我們對第二季的預期。我會說，從——先從——利潤率角度來看，年對年大致持平到小幅下滑，主要是因為你提到的一些專案相關的掩埋場進場量。那是最大的驅動因素；若排除這點，我們原本會預期利潤率擴張。所以，排除那些量的影響後，基礎業務是有利潤率擴張的。

Overall, it's obviously going to have an impact on the top line as well, when you think that's going to have a negative impact on volume performance which is exactly what we thought when we entered the year negative in both Q2 and Q3, flipping to positive then in the fourth quarter. So largely the same as what we thought when we provided the guidance in February. And again, nothing's really changed based on our performance in the first quarter.

整體而言，當你想到這會對量的表現造成負面影響時，顯然也會影響營收端；這正是我們在進入今年時的預期——第二季與第三季都為負，然後在第四季轉為正。因此大致與我們2月提供指引時的想法相同。而且再說一次，基於我們第一季的表現，基本上沒有任何改變。

Got it. Got it. Thanks for that detail. That's really helpful. One just quick follow-on for me, and I'll turn it over. Just a kind of point of clarification. So are you expecting or forecasting any impact to EBITDA in 2Q from fuel? And then can you just help us frame maybe the margin impact as you pursue the surcharges and pricing associated with that. Thanks a lot.

了解。了解。謝謝你提供這些細節。真的很有幫助。我這邊再快速追問一個，然後我就交給下一位。算是釐清一下。所以你們是否預期或預測第二季燃料會對EBITDA造成任何影響？另外，能否協助我們理解，當你們推動燃料附加費與相關定價時，對利潤率的影響大概會是什麼樣子？非常感謝。

Yeah. As I mentioned in the prepared remarks, we tend to lag from a fuel recovery fee perspective, the increased cost of fuel expense. So as prices have been rising, right, we've been chasing that month-on-month. Now we expect that fuel recovery fee to start kicking in, in the second quarter. Our overall objective is to sit there and recover the cash impact, the full cash impact of those rising fuel prices. There's both direct impacts as well as indirect.

是的。如我在事先準備的發言中提到，從燃料回收費（fuel recovery fee）的角度來看，我們通常會落後於燃料費用上升所帶來的成本增加。因此當價格上升時，我們會逐月去追趕。現在我們預期燃料回收費會在第二季開始發揮作用。我們的整體目標是回收燃料價格上升所帶來的現金影響——完整的現金影響。其中既有直接影響，也有間接影響。

So the sensitivity that we provide in our disclosures is more of a direct type concept. There are going to be other impacts like potentially increased transportation expenses. There's increased CapEx as well that goes along with that. So again, if we achieve that recovery from a holistic or comprehensive cash perspective that is the overall objective.

因此，我們在揭露中提供的敏感度，較偏向直接影響的概念。還會有其他影響，例如運輸費用可能增加。同時也會伴隨資本支出（CapEx）增加。所以再說一次，如果我們能從整體或全面的現金角度達成回收，那就是我們的總體目標。

Adam Bubes, Goldman Sachs.

Adam Bubes，高盛。

I just had a -- first one on the volume line. I think you called out weather as a $30 million headwind in the quarter and then you were lapping maybe $12 million of event-related volumes. If I have it right, I think it implies volumes are tracking flattish year-over-year underlying volumes. How did that compare with your initial expectations? And can you just talk about what you're seeing in volumes in March and April and expected cadence throughout the year?

我有——第一個問題是關於量的那一行。我想你提到天氣在本季造成3,000萬美元的不利因素，然後你們也在比較基期上承接了大約1,200萬美元的事件相關量。如果我理解正確，這似乎意味著在排除這些因素後，基礎量年對年大致持平。這和你們最初的預期相比如何？另外，你能談談你們在3月與4月看到的量的情況，以及全年預期的節奏嗎？

I think we're starting to see some underlying momentum, and I wouldn't put a word of caution on that given the macro uncertainty we're facing around two wars and oil prices and all the other things that you guys see and read. But I'd say some green shoots are starting to emerge in terms of the underlying demand signal. Special waste has been particularly strong, and we're seeing some momentum month over month in the first quarter. And so we're going to look for that to build. And again, at what rate that builds, we'll talk more about in the next quarter. But I'd say, versus the three months ago, I'd say we're slightly more positive on where the macro is looking.

我認為我們開始看到一些基礎動能；不過考量到我們面臨的總體不確定性——兩場戰爭、油價以及你們所看到與讀到的其他所有事情——我會稍微保留一些。但我會說，就基礎需求訊號而言，一些「綠芽」開始浮現。特殊廢棄物（special waste）表現特別強勁，我們在第一季看到月對月的動能。因此我們會期待這種趨勢持續累積。至於累積的速度，我們會在下個季度再多談一些。但我會說，相較三個月前，我們對總體環境的走向稍微更正面一些。

And then I think the spread between core price and yield was a little wider this quarter at 2.7% versus I think 2% last year. Is that just a mix impact? Or what's driving that? And can you talk about how you think about that spread going forward as you continue to leverage AI to implement more surgical pricing tools?

另外我注意到，本季核心價格（core price）與平均收益率（yield）之間的差距似乎更大，為2.7%，而去年我記得大約是2%。這只是組合（mix）影響嗎？或是什麼在驅動？以及，隨著你們持續運用AI來導入更精準的定價工具，你們如何看待未來這個差距的走勢？

Yeah, it predominantly is mix. You're spot on there. And in part, I would say it's driven by the relatively better performance we're seeing in the temporary large container business, which is predominantly construction-related activity. So sequentially, the volume performance improved 500 basis points. And so that's where you tend to see that impact because we don't capture price on a temporary unit. You'll see it in that churn mix and other, which is the difference between the core price and the average yield. The good news is that as those units return, right, you're getting that incremental volume, but it's what it ultimately leads to. It's that permanent unit of service. It's the temporary units leading to that household formation, which ultimately leads to that small business formation, which is extraordinarily important to us.

是的，主要就是組合因素。你說得很準。部分原因我會說，是由於我們在臨時大型容器（temporary large container）業務上看到相對較好的表現，而這主要與建築相關活動有關。因此按季來看，量的表現改善了500個基點。而這就是你通常會看到該影響的地方，因為我們不會在臨時單位上捕捉到價格。你會在「流失/組合及其他」（churn mix and other）中看到它，也就是核心價格與平均收益率之間的差異。好消息是，當那些單位回收時，你會得到額外的量，但更重要的是它最終導向什麼。那就是永久性的服務單位。臨時單位帶動家庭形成，最終帶動小型企業形成，而這對我們極其重要。

Kevin Chiang, CIBC.

Kevin Chiang，加拿大帝國商業銀行（CIBC）。

Kevin, you may be on mute.

Kevin，你可能在靜音。

I'm on mute. Thanks for that. I apologize if I missed this. You called out the $12 million or $15 million headwind in ES in terms of the year-over-year comp. But did weather impact ES as well? And maybe if I think of sequential margin performance, if it did, would we expect to see a more outsized margin cadence from Q1 into Q2 within ES, just given if it dipped below 20% in the first quarter here?

我在靜音。謝謝提醒。如果我漏聽了先說抱歉。你提到ES在年對年比較上有1,200萬或1,500萬美元的不利因素。但天氣也有影響ES嗎？另外，如果我看按季的利潤率表現，若確實有影響，那麼考量到第一季這裡跌破20%，我們是否應該預期ES從第一季到第二季的利潤率節奏會更明顯地改善？

Yeah. I'd say weather was a factor. I wouldn't say it was the dominant factor, more of the year-over-year comp we talked about, but weather was certainly a factor. And I think we talked about this last quarter. I think the first couple of quarters here, we're in finding the bottom, which we have, and we're building off of that. We have a tough comp in Q2 as well. You'll see in the back half kind of momentum both in the top line and margin expansion into the business.

是的。我會說天氣是一個因素。我不會說它是主導因素，更多是我們談到的年對年比較基期因素，但天氣確實也是一個因素。而且我想我們上季也談過。我認為前幾個季度，我們是在尋找底部——而我們已經找到了——並在此基礎上往上建立。第二季我們也有一個艱難的比較基期。你會在下半年看到營收端與利潤率擴張的動能逐步進入業務。

But we feel really good about what momentum that team has. I think we talked about probably missing the market a bit as volume declined, right? We were still pretty aggressive on price. And I think we found our footing there on a price volume standpoint. And that can be a little longer sales cycle. So a lot of the great activities we see won't show up into the P&L until the second half.

但我們對那個團隊目前的動能感到非常有信心。我想我們談過，隨著量下滑，我們可能在某種程度上有點落後於市場，對吧？我們在價格上仍然相當積極。我認為我們在價格與量的平衡上已經站穩腳步。而那可能會帶來稍微更長的銷售週期。所以我們看到的許多很好的活動，要到下半年才會反映在損益表上。

That's great color. And just my second question, just wondering, just given where virgin plastic pricing is, just does that impact the economics of the polymer centers or the Blue Polymer JV?

這些說明很有幫助。我第二個問題是，考量目前原生塑膠的價格水準，這是否會影響聚合物中心或 Blue Polymer 合資企業的經濟性？

Yeah, a lot of moving pieces right now on plastics. We've had some pre-Iran war certainly some global challenges with a glut of virgin PET out of Asia, flooding the US market, some of which is coming in as rPET and working with our industry stakeholders and the government to address that issue. The war itself has been helpful in that because we're starting to see those -- that production go down as they've had to rationalize supply and get it to primary use versus secondary use like plastics. And so the net impact is we're seeing our spreads increase, both in the polymer centers and Blue Polymer JV and feel really good about the demand profile there and the momentum we have in that business.

是的，現在塑膠市場有很多變動因素。在伊朗戰爭之前，我們確實面臨一些全球性的挑戰：亞洲原生 PET 供給過剩，湧入美國市場，其中一部分以 rPET 的名義進口；我們也正與產業利害關係人及政府合作來處理這個問題。而戰爭本身在這方面反而有所幫助，因為我們開始看到那些——那部分產量下降，因為他們必須合理化供給，將供應優先配置到主要用途，而不是像塑膠這類的次要用途。因此整體影響是，我們看到利差擴大，無論是在聚合物中心或 Blue Polymer 合資企業；我們對那裡的需求輪廓以及我們在該業務的動能都感到非常樂觀。

Jerry Revich, Wells Fargo.

Wells Fargo 的 Jerry Revich。

Yes, hi. Good afternoon. I'm wondering if we could talk about the electric collection vehicles as you folks are ramping up towards 300. Can you just talk about where you're deploying them, what the unit profitability looks like compared to conventional trucks on an all-in basis? And as we look at what proportion of your footprint could you ultimately see EVs operating in? How meaningful part of the fleet could it be in terms of where there's actual availability of power and economics? Thanks.

是的，你好。下午好。我想請教電動收運車輛的情況，因為你們正逐步擴增到 300 輛。能否談談你們把它們部署在哪些地方、與傳統卡車相比（以全成本口徑）單位獲利能力如何？以及從長期來看，你們的營運版圖中，最終有多大比例可能會由電動車來運行？就實際電力供應可得性與經濟性而言，它在車隊中可能會占到多有意義的一部分？謝謝。

Yeah. We feel good about the deployment and the rollout. We've had really good partners in that space. And it's concentrated in markets that you would expect that have local and state environments that are supportive, right? Places, municipalities that are willing to pay, states that might have incentives to support that because it is a different OpEx, CapEx trade-off. The truck is going to be more expensive, but then cheaper to operate. We're beating our assumptions in the pro forma on that so far.

好的。我們對部署與推進進度感到滿意。我們在這個領域有非常好的合作夥伴。而部署主要集中在你會預期的市場，也就是地方與州層級環境較為支持的地區，對吧？例如願意付費的城市／地方政府，以及可能提供誘因支持的州，因為這牽涉到不同的營運支出（OpEx）與資本支出（CapEx）取捨。卡車本身會更貴，但營運成本更低。到目前為止，我們在這方面的預估模型（pro forma）表現優於原先假設。

Again, still, we'll learn more every year that we drive those trucks, but feel good about the operational performance. And you're going to see us deploy. Now we did lose a little bit in terms of federal incentive with the administration change. And so that's probably slowed the rollout modestly. But in residential, this is continuing to be where we're focused on buying the trucks, and we're moving to small container next. I don't think large containers in the cards in the short term, but this will end up being a meaningful portion of our buy here as we approach the end of the decade.

同樣地，我們每年實際運行這些車後都會學到更多，但我們對營運表現感到滿意。而你們也會看到我們持續部署。不過，隨著政府更迭，我們在聯邦層級的補貼誘因確實少了一些。因此推進速度可能略為放緩。但在住宅端，這仍是我們購買車輛的重點，接下來我們會轉向小型容器（small container）。我認為短期內大型容器（large container）不太可能，但隨著我們接近本十年末，這將會成為我們採購中相當有意義的一部分。

Super. And then can I ask on RNG, thank you for the update on the facility counts? Can you talk about the operating performance on the facilities? Are you expecting an equity income contribution this year? What's the profitability cadence as they ramp up? And if you could comment on expected royalty contributions this year versus planned, I would appreciate it.

很好。接著我想問 RNG（可再生天然氣），謝謝你更新設施數量。能否談談這些設施的營運表現？你們預期今年會有權益法收益貢獻嗎？隨著產能爬坡，獲利節奏會是如何？另外若能評論一下今年預期的權利金（royalty）貢獻相較於原先規劃的差異，我會很感謝。

Yeah, Jerry, the total contribution that we're expecting from the RNG portfolio is $10 million of incremental revenue, $10 million of EBITDA this year, which is consistent with what we thought in the beginning of the year as well. That is going to ramp up as we move forward. It kind of is $10 million in '27, $15 million in '28, $15 million in '29 and ultimately $20 million by 2030. So that's how that ramps up to that $100 million of incremental revenue by the end of the decade.

好的，Jerry，我們預期 RNG 投資組合今年的總貢獻是新增營收 1,000 萬美元、EBITDA 1,000 萬美元，這也與我們年初的預期一致。隨著時間推進，這會逐步爬升。大致上是：2027 年 1,000 萬美元、2028 年 1,500 萬美元、2029 年 1,500 萬美元，最終在 2030 年達到 2,000 萬美元。因此，這就是它如何在本十年末爬升到新增 1 億美元營收的路徑。

Trevor Romeo, William Blair.

William Blair 的 Trevor Romeo。

Hi, good afternoon. Thank you for taking the questions. I have a couple of quick ones here. First one, I wanted to ask on your organics processing business. I think there was some press lately around a couple of new facilities you opened up in California and Colorado recently. So maybe I would love if you could speak to kind of how you're thinking about investing in the organics business, what you're seeing from a regulatory perspective and maybe the overall growth opportunity there?

你好，下午好。謝謝讓我提問。我這裡有幾個簡短問題。第一個是關於你們的有機物處理（organics processing）業務。我想最近有一些報導提到你們在加州與科羅拉多州新開了幾座設施。所以想請你談談你們如何看待對有機物業務的投資、從法規角度看到的趨勢，以及整體的成長機會？

That ends up being very regional or state specific. So where there's support either from a state regulation or a community willingness to pay, we are investors and operators, both on the collection side and then the processing on the back end. The price of that technology needs to come down on the processing side overall to make that more scalable. But longer term, it's going to be a growth driver. 25% of what goes through our landfill is organic and some capacity that ultimately could come out and be processed in a different way. So continue to pursue opportunities. And again, as the regulatory environment evolves, you'll see that business scale.

這最終會非常因地區或州而異。因此在有州法規支持或社區願意付費的地方，我們會作為投資者與營運者，同時涵蓋收運端以及後端的處理。在處理端，整體而言這項技術的成本需要下降，才能更具規模化擴張的可行性。但長期來看，這會是一個成長驅動因素。我們掩埋場進料中有 25% 是有機物，其中一部分產能最終可以被分流出來，用不同方式處理。所以我們會持續尋找機會。同樣地，隨著法規環境演進，你會看到這項業務擴大規模。

Okay, thank you for that. And then maybe just going back to ES, I think you talked about the sales pipeline building. So I was just wondering if you could give maybe an update on your cross-selling initiatives there. It's something maybe you talked about more a few years ago. But just what are you seeing in terms of customer demand for kind of the broader set of solutions across your two segments and how you're executing on that opportunity?

好的，謝謝你的說明。接著回到 ES（環境解決方案），我想你提到銷售管線正在建立。所以我想請你更新一下你們在交叉銷售方面的推動情況。這可能是你們幾年前談得比較多的主題。但就客戶對你們兩個事業部更廣泛解決方案組合的需求而言，你們目前看到什麼趨勢？以及你們如何執行這個機會？

Yeah. Our most profitable customers want an integrated offering, and we're uniquely positioned given that we can offer them broad suite of services, recycling, waste, special waste and then all the various services that are underneath environmental solutions. To unlock the opportunity further, we're really working on some of the IT and sales opportunities to get the information in the right hands of the sellers so that in local customers, we can unlock exactly what we offer, including things as tactical as a single contract, a single bill, ways to make it really easy for our customers to do business with us, and we're making great progress on that, but you'll see that build over the next 18 to 24 months as some of those initiatives get fully deployed.

是的。我們獲利能力最高的客戶希望得到整合式的方案；而我們具備獨特優勢，因為我們能提供廣泛的服務組合：回收、廢棄物、特殊廢棄物，以及環境解決方案底下的各種服務。為了進一步釋放這個機會，我們正著力於一些 IT 與銷售面的工作，讓資訊能交到正確的銷售人員手上，如此在地方客戶端，我們就能清楚釋放我們能提供的內容；也包括一些很戰術性的做法，例如單一合約、單一帳單，讓客戶與我們往來更容易。我們在這方面進展很好。

Seth Weber, BNP Paribas.

Seth Weber，法國巴黎銀行。

Great, thank you and good afternoon. I'm Wondering if you could just give us your updated thoughts on the cadence for the shedding into the residential contracts. Just how we should think about that potentially moderating through the balance of the year? Thank you.

很好，謝謝，下午好。我想請教您對於住宅合約流失（shed）的節奏是否有更新的看法。我們應該如何看待這種情況在今年剩餘時間可能會趨於緩和？謝謝。

I think you'll see it pretty consistent across the year. The big driver there in residential was three larger contracts that we lost. And regrettable in the sense that we'd love to have those contracts and serve those communities at the right price and cost, but we're going to be very returns focused as we deploy capital and have our people do work in communities, we need to get a fair price for the work that we do.

我認為你會看到它在全年都相當一致。住宅端的主要驅動因素是我們失去了三個較大的合約。這確實令人遺憾，因為我們很希望能以合適的價格與成本保有這些合約並服務那些社區，但在我們配置資本、讓同仁在社區提供服務時，我們會非常以報酬為導向；我們需要為我們所做的工作取得合理的價格。

And still seeing more challenges in that vertical than we are in the other verticals in the market of people willing to do work for very, very low returns. So you'll see those numbers pretty consistent across the year, slight improvement in the second half. And then I think a different outlook in 2027.

而且在這個垂直領域，我們仍然看到比市場上其他垂直領域更多的挑戰，因為有人願意以非常、非常低的報酬去做這些工作。所以你會看到這些數字在全年都相當一致，下半年會略有改善。然後我認為到2027年會是不同的展望。

Got it. Okay. And then just on your comments around M&A, it sounds like you're now talking about $1 billion plus, which I think is a little bit stronger than what you mentioned last quarter. Is that a function of do you feel better about your free cash flow outlook or just more deals kind of presenting themselves to you? Or just any nuances there as to why you're taking that number up at this point?

了解。好。另外關於您對併購（M&A）的評論，聽起來您現在談的是10億美元以上，我覺得這比您上季提到的稍微更強一些。這是因為您對自由現金流展望更有信心，還是只是有更多交易案出現在您面前？或是有任何細節能說明為什麼您此時把這個數字往上調？

Yeah. It's just the opportunities of both what we've already closed and what we have in the pipeline. We're rarely financially constrained. It's always opportunity constrained. A deal has got to meet 2 screens for us. One, it has to have the right financial returns. And then it's got to be the right strategic fit. We've got to be the owner for it and be able to take that asset and do something more productive with it. And we just had a really positive year in terms of what we've already locked up and closed and then what we see coming forward in the next six to nine months.

是的。主要就是我們已經完成交割的案子，以及管線中的機會。我們很少會受到資金面的限制。通常限制我們的是機會本身。對我們而言，一筆交易必須通過兩道篩選。第一，它必須具備合適的財務報酬。第二，它必須是正確的策略契合。我們必須是最適合的擁有者，並且能夠接手該資產後把它做得更有效率、更具生產力。而今年我們在已鎖定並完成交割的案子，以及未來六到九個月看到的機會方面，都非常正面。

Tony Kaplan, Morgan Stanley.

Tony Kaplan，摩根士丹利。

Thank you. I wanted to start out on free cash flow. Really strong quarter. It sounded like maybe it was because of CapEx timing. You talked about it being roughly 12% of the full year CapEx spend in the first quarter. So I was wondering if there was sort of a reason like why CapEx was lower this quarter and what you -- what was lower and what you're planning to spend it on for the rest of the year?

謝謝。我想先從自由現金流談起。這一季非常強勁。聽起來可能是因為資本支出（CapEx）的時點因素。您提到第一季大約只占全年CapEx支出的12%。所以我想請教，為什麼這一季CapEx會比較低？哪些項目比較低？以及您計畫在今年剩餘時間把資金花在哪些地方？

Yeah. Actually, most of it from a timing perspective is really within working capital, right? And you can see that -- and much of it has to do with just the number of AP payments that were made as well as payroll payments. So that's something that will flip over the balance of the year.

是的。其實從時點角度來看，大部分是在營運資金裡面，對吧？你也看得到——其中很大一部分與應付帳款（AP）付款筆數以及薪資付款有關。所以這件事在今年剩餘時間會反轉。

So we called out that timing piece. The CapEx, that's not abnormal for us to sit there and spend below 25% of our full year spend in the first quarter. You can go back over several years and that's the case. But we do expect to spend that full year CapEx that we guided to in the beginning of the year.

所以我們特別點出了那個時點因素。至於CapEx，我們第一季花費低於全年支出的25%並不罕見。你回頭看過去幾年都是如此。但我們確實預期會把年初所指引的全年CapEx花完。

Yeah. Okay. Got it. And then one other question on M&A. I just wanted to tackle it a little bit differently. I guess, are there -- and it was sort of a $700 million to date, I believe. And so were you trying to strengthen current markets that you're already in, entering new ones? Just trying to understand what opportunities you're able to find and how you're thinking about sort of what targets you're approaching? Thanks.

好的。了解。明白。另外還有一個關於併購（M&A）問題。我想用稍微不同的角度來問。我想目前累計大約是7億美元，沒記錯的話。所以你們是在強化既有市場，還是進入新市場？我想了解你們能找到哪些機會，以及你們如何思考、鎖定並接觸哪些標的？謝謝。

Yes and yes. So we look in recycling and waste, both the markets that we're already in to strengthen those, and that's the bread and butter, I'd say, what we do acquisition-wise. And then expanding geographies is also an opportunity for us, and those become great platforms for further tuck-in acquisitions over time. And then as well as environmental solutions, right, same opportunities there, strengthening markets we're already in and expanding into new markets. The balance of the spend so far this year of what's already closed and what's signed and going to close has really been 90% plus recycling and waste. That balance will probably rotate just a little throughout the rest of the year, but pretty strong on both ends.

是，也都是。所以我們在回收與廢棄物領域，會同時看我們已經在的市場以強化布局；這算是我們併購上最核心、最常做的事情。另外，擴張地理版圖對我們也是機會，而這些也會成為未來持續進行小型補強式併購（tuck-in acquisitions）的很好的平台。同樣地，在環境解決方案方面也是一樣的機會：強化既有市場並擴展到新市場。截至目前，今年已完成交割以及已簽約、即將交割的支出中，實際上有90%以上是在回收與廢棄物。這個占比在今年剩餘時間可能會稍微輪動一些，但兩端都會維持相當強勁。

Tami Zakaria, JP Morgan.

Tami Zakaria，摩根大通。

Hey, good morning. Sorry, good afternoon or evening. Thanks for the time. So a question on CPI. The March reading accelerated sequentially. Just wondering if you could remind us how much of your portfolio is indexed to the CPI? Should it continue to go higher? And what's the typical lag?

嗨，早安。抱歉，下午好或晚上好。謝謝撥冗。我有一個關於CPI的問題。3月的讀數較前期加速。想請您提醒一下，你們的合約組合中有多少比例是與CPI連動指數化的？如果CPI持續走高會如何？以及一般的落後期（lag）是多久？

Yeah. So the -- of our portfolio of contracts that we call restricted, which have some sort of pricing restriction embedded in the contract itself, just shy of 20% are directly linked to headline CPI, 35% are linked to some sort of alternative index, water sewer trash, garbage trash, with the balance about 45% some sort of fixed rate that's embedded in the contract itself or a rate review. The lag tends to be 12 months, call it, on average, there's a look-back period. And then the implementation period tends to be about 12 months after the fact.

好的。在我們稱為「受限制」（restricted）的合約組合中——也就是合約本身內含某種定價限制的合約——接近20%是直接連結整體CPI（headline CPI），35%是連結某種替代指數，例如水務、污水、垃圾/廢棄物等相關指數；其餘約45%則是合約內嵌的某種固定費率或費率審查機制。落後期平均大約是12個月，因為通常會有一段回溯期（look-back period）。而實際導入/生效期通常是在那之後再約12個月。

That's very helpful. And I wanted to double click on residential volumes. I know you're not speaking to 2027 specifically, but are we -- do you expect residential volumes to turn positive at some point next year?

非常有幫助。我想再追問一下住宅端的量。我知道你們不特別談2027年，但你們是否預期住宅量會在明年某個時間點轉為正成長？

No, I think the rate of decrease will certainly improve, whether that is flat next year or not probably still declines just given some of the rollover effect of those larger contracts that we lost, some of which started on January 1 and some of which are midyear conventions on that front. And listen, we're going to continue to put upward pressure on price and be returns focused and get paid for the work we do. And to the extent that customers are not willing to pay, then we'll put our resources into other verticals and other opportunities.

不，我認為下滑的幅度當然會改善；至於明年是否能持平，可能仍會下滑，主要是因為我們失去的那些較大合約帶來的續約/轉換（rollover）效應，其中一些是從1月1日開始，另一些則是在年中到期/切換。而且你看，我們會持續對價格施加上行壓力、以報酬為導向，並確保我們做的工作能獲得合理報酬。如果客戶不願意支付，那我們就會把資源投入到其他垂直領域與其他機會上。

Konark Gupta, Scotia Capital.

Konark Gupta，Scotia Capital。

Thanks. Just following up on the residential business. I understand the volumes are declining and why. But if you can talk about the underlying business, how is it performing from a profitability and return standpoint?

謝謝。我想追問一下住宅業務。我理解量在下滑以及原因。但如果您能談談基本面，從獲利能力與報酬的角度來看，表現如何？

Yes. No, profitability in that business is improving. And again, I think for a couple of reasons. One, when you have a contract that's underperforming and you look to get it to an acceptable level of return and if you don't retain that because someone is willing to take that at that relatively lower price, you're going to improve your overall performance. Coupled with the fact that you look at the remainder of the portfolio and you look at the level of price that we've had in the residential system itself, very strong and well in excess of our cost inflation. So the combination of the 2 have driven margin expansion in that business.

是的。不，那塊業務的獲利能力正在改善。而且我想主要有幾個原因。第一，當你有一份表現不佳的合約，你會設法把它拉回到可接受的報酬水準；如果你最後沒有續留，因為有人願意用相對較低的價格接手，那你的整體表現就會改善。再加上你看剩餘的投資組合，以及我們在住宅系統本身的定價水準，非常強勁，且遠高於我們的成本通膨。因此兩者結合推動了該業務的毛利擴張。

And when we bid these residential contracts, we never bid them to lose money. We bid them with the assumptions of profitability, but then things change over the course of a five-year term of the contract, which is maybe we didn't have a good pricing escalator on the contract and our cost inflated faster. Maybe our assumptions in terms of number of trucks we needed to cover the community wasn't quite right. It turned out to be a little more expensive to deliver or operate that truck. So we're being very disciplined across each one of those contracts to make sure that we are returns driven and pricing that accordingly when the contract comes up.

而且我們在投標這些住宅合約時，從來不是以虧錢為前提。我們投標時是基於獲利的假設，但在合約五年期的過程中情況會改變，例如合約可能沒有良好的價格調整機制，而我們的成本上漲更快。也可能我們對於覆蓋該社區所需卡車數量的假設不夠準確。結果證明，交付或營運那台車的成本更高。因此我們在每一份合約上都非常自律，確保以報酬為導向，並在合約到期重新招標時據此訂價。

Thanks. And if I can follow up on the employee turnover side of things. Are you seeing any implications whatsoever direct or indirect from the CDL regulations that are going through in the U.S. right now? I mean I understand your drivers may not be CDL necessarily, but some of them, but do you see any impact of the shortage of drivers that's going on in the industry?

謝謝。我想再追問一下員工流動率的部分。你們是否看到美國目前正在推進的 CDL 規範，對你們有任何直接或間接的影響？我的意思是我理解你們的司機不一定都需要 CDL，但其中一些需要；那麼你們是否看到產業司機短缺帶來的任何影響？

Yes. Our drivers do have CDLs, and I'd say the impact has been de minimis. There's been a few individual cases. But overall, we set the turnover record two years in a row, and we may break it again for a third year. The team is doing a great job of finding talented technicians and drivers and customer service agents and all of our other frontline colleagues and retaining those colleagues at an increasingly high rate.

是的。我們的司機確實有 CDL，我會說影響微乎其微。有少數個案。但整體而言，我們已連續兩年創下最低流動率紀錄，第三年可能還會再破紀錄。團隊在招募有才華的技術人員、司機、客服人員以及其他第一線同仁方面做得非常好，並以愈來愈高的留任率留住這些同仁。

Shlomo Rosenbaum, Stifel.

Shlomo Rosenbaum，Stifel。

Hi, thank you very much for taking my questions. You mentioned that you're starting to see some green shoots in the solid waste business. And I was wondering if you're seeing similar type of green shoots in the ES business as well. Are you seeing maybe some of the turnarounds happen a little bit faster? What signs are you seeing over there in that business?

嗨，非常感謝讓我提問。你提到你們開始在固體廢棄物業務看到一些復甦跡象。我想知道在 ES 業務方面是否也看到類似的復甦跡象。你們是否看到某些改善進程更快一些？在那塊業務你們看到了哪些訊號？

Yeah. I'd certainly say it's improving, maybe not improving quite as quickly as we're seeing on the special waste side of the business in the recycling and waste business. And you've got some moving pieces. So listen, as oil price is spiking and people are kind of trying to blow out demand, right, that's delaying some of the underlying project work, which can't be delayed forever, but can be suspended for 3 to 6 months. So there's puts and takes there, but the trend line is definitely up, and we'll see what kind of momentum we build here in the second quarter.

是的。我肯定會說正在改善，只是可能沒有我們在回收與廢棄物業務中、特別廢棄物那一側看到的改善那麼快。而且其中有一些變動因素。所以你看，當油價飆升、大家試圖把需求拉高時，這會延後一些基礎專案工作；這些工作不可能永遠延後，但可以暫停 3 到 6 個月。因此有利有弊，但趨勢線確實向上，我們會看看第二季能累積出什麼樣的動能。

Okay. And then what was driving the volumes down in the C&D business? Was there a tough comp issue over there with some of the stuff that you were talking about? Or it just kind of stood out over there?

好的。那 C&D 業務的量下滑是什麼原因？那邊是否有你剛提到的一些因素造成的比較基期偏高問題？還是只是那邊看起來特別突出？

Yeah. It was more of a comp issue. So in the prior year, we had some hurricane cleanup efforts in the Southeast.

是的。主要是比較基期的問題。因為前一年我們在美國東南部有一些颶風清理工作。

Toby Sommer, Truist.

Toby Sommer，Truist。

No, can you hear me?

不，你們聽得到我嗎？

Yeah, we can hear you.

是的，我們聽得到。

Okay. Great. I just wanted to ask a question about volume in Environmental Services. How do you expect the cadence of that to change throughout the balance of the year?

好的。太好了。我想問一個關於環境服務（Environmental Services）業務量的問題。你們預期今年剩餘期間的節奏會如何變化？

Well, there, we don't report on a specific volume metric just because there's so many different product and service lines there that it'd be really, really tough from a mix standpoint. But as I mentioned earlier, we see momentum really building in the second half of the year, I think you'll see incremental progress quarter-to-quarter, right? The year-over-year comp is tougher in the second quarter, but the second half, you'll definitely see the volume picture build.

嗯，在那邊我們不會揭露單一特定的量的指標，因為那裡有太多不同的產品與服務線，從組合角度來看會非常、非常難。但如我先前提到的，我們看到動能會在下半年明顯建立，我想你會看到逐季的增量進展，對吧？第二季的年對年比較基期較嚴峻，但下半年你肯定會看到量的態勢逐步建立。

Thank you. And with respect to your acquisition program, are you seeing opportunities on the ES side as readily as you are on the municipal solid waste side?

謝謝。另外，關於你們的併購計畫，在 ES 端你們看到的機會是否像在市政固體廢棄物端一樣多？

Plenty of opportunities. I'd say there's a little more momentum right now in recycling and waste, not because of activity on our side, but just timing of market. We know that these things ebb and flow, lots of opportunities we have in the recycling and waste side. We've had discussions with the sellers for over a decade. And it's really timing and event-driven on their side that drives the sale.

機會很多。我會說目前回收與廢棄物那邊的動能稍微更強一些，並不是因為我們這邊的活動差異，而是市場時點的關係。我們知道這些事情會有起有落；在回收與廢棄物端我們有很多機會。我們和賣方的討論已經持續超過十年。真正驅動出售的是他們那邊的時機與事件因素。

Environmental solutions, obviously, we don't have the relationship profile that long, but still some of the same things. We maintain a significant dialogue for every acquisition we close that we probably had 7 fall out of the system at some point in the pipeline. So we're very discriminating in terms of what we actually buy, but the activity level there is very strong as well.

至於環境解決方案（Environmental solutions），顯然我們沒有那麼長的關係基礎，但仍有一些相同的情況。我們維持大量對話；基本上每完成一筆併購，我們的管線中可能曾有 7 筆在某個時間點退出。因此我們在實際收購標的的選擇上非常嚴格，但那邊的活動水準也同樣非常強。

Stephanie Moore, Jefferies.

Stephanie Moore，Jefferies。

Great. Good afternoon. Thank you. I wanted to circle back on some of the commentary that you provided on your RISE digital platform. I think some of your peers have talked about leveraging technology for more dynamic pricing discussions. And I wanted to see if that's an area that you guys have tackled as of late. And at the same time, I think you've talked in the past about some opportunity with AI and algo-based routing. So I wanted to get an update there as well. Thank you.

很好。午安。謝謝。我想回到你先前對 RISE 數位平台的一些評論。我想你們的一些同業談到利用科技來進行更動態的定價討論。我想了解你們最近是否也在這方面有所著墨。同時，我記得你們過去也談過 AI 與以演算法為基礎的路線規劃（routing）方面的一些機會。也想請你更新一下那邊的進展。謝謝。

Yes, on both sides. So pricing today, we're using dozens of variables through AI to build bespoke prices to existing customers when we send them our annual price increase. And so we're trying to get that as surgical as possible to give them a price that maximizes both what they'll pay and incent them to stay over a long period of time. And that is a game of inches in terms of dialing that in, but small basis points across individual customers adds up quickly across the system and feel really encouraged. And that will just continue to get better and better over time. It kind of builds in a more linear fashion.

是的，兩邊都是。所以就今天的定價而言，我們在寄送年度漲價通知給既有客戶時，會透過 AI 使用數十個變數來建立客製化價格。因此我們正努力把它做得盡可能精準，給客戶一個能同時最大化其願意支付的金額、並激勵他們長期留存的價格。在把這件事調校到位的過程中可說是「寸進」的遊戲，但在單一客戶層級上小幅的基點改善，放到整個系統很快就會累積起來，我們對此非常受鼓舞。而且這只會隨著時間推移變得越來越好。它有點像是以較線性的方式逐步建立起來。

Where the routing, there's a lot of upfront work, particularly around data and data accuracy and data management that you need to have in place so that when you start routing dynamic -- building dynamic routes through AI and then routing dynamically through the day, you get it right. And what we won't do is sacrifice customer service to pursue short-term gains. We're going to get it right with the customer first and then drive all of the operational efficiency through the system while improving customer service. And that's why you'll start to see some of that benefit in the second half of next year, but that's really 2028 where we think we scale.

至於路線規劃，前期需要做很多工作，特別是在資料、資料準確性與資料管理方面，你必須先把這些建置到位，這樣當你開始透過 AI 進行動態路線建構，並在一天之中動態派遣時，才能做對。而我們不會為了追求短期收益而犧牲客戶服務。我們會先把客戶端做到位，然後在提升客戶服務的同時，推動整個系統的營運效率。這也是為什麼你會在明年下半年開始看到一些效益，但我們認為真正能規模化是在 2028 年。

That's it for me guys. Thank you.

我這邊就到這裡，各位。謝謝。

David Manthey, Baird.

David Manthey，Baird。

Thank you. Good afternoon. How much of the environmental solutions weakness is that self-inflicted pricing that you mentioned as opposed to end market softness? And if some of it is market related, what exposures by service or customer type leads you to your view of an improvement in the second half of '26, just so we can sort of track that.

謝謝。下午好。環境解決方案的疲弱，有多少是你提到的自我造成的定價因素，而不是終端市場走弱？如果其中一部分與市場相關，那麼按服務或客戶類型來看，哪些曝險讓你們認為 26 年下半年會改善？這樣我們也好追蹤。

Yes. To answer the last part of your question, we see the sales pipeline and just understand the activities, both on our side and then work that is contracted and slated to begin. Some of those are longer-term things that happen over the course of many months and some of those could be shorter, but we know the start date happens later in the second quarter or into the third quarter on that front.

是的。先回答你問題的最後一部分，我們看到銷售管線，也理解各項活動——包括我們這邊以及已簽約、排定要開始的工作。其中有些是跨好幾個月的長期事項，也有些可能較短，但我們知道在這一塊的開工日期會落在第二季後段或進入第三季。

The split between what is market, what is our own activity is hard to identify. I'd say, certainly, it was more self-inflicted in the second half of last year. And I'd say as we increase and go forward, it's more market-driven, which is we think we got market pricing very dialed in here. We're not going to get it perfect every time, but much improved on that dimension.

市場因素與我們自身作為之間的拆分很難精準辨識。我會說，去年下半年確實比較偏自我造成。而隨著我們提高並往前推進，會更偏市場驅動；也就是我們認為目前市場定價已經調得很到位。我們不可能每次都做到完美，但在這個面向已經改善很多。

And some of this is things like ER, which is hard to predict, right? We just had a soft kind of 18 to 24 months on emergency response other than a single job. And going forward, we would expect that to resume to normal levels, but we'll see where that progresses. And then there's -- it's a mixed picture on the underlying verticals. I mentioned petrochemical and that being a little slower or we're seeing some of the biotech being a little slower where some of the other verticals are moving a little quicker.

另外有些事情像是 ER（緊急應變），很難預測，對吧？除了單一案子之外，我們在緊急應變上經歷了大概 18 到 24 個月的偏弱期。往前看，我們預期會回到正常水準，但還要看後續發展。此外，底層各垂直領域的情況也很混合。我提到石化稍微慢一些，或我們看到部分生技也慢一些，而其他一些垂直領域則推進得更快。

And given that you have visibility on these projects as they're coming down, we should assume these are what, turnarounds, remediation, hazardous C&D. How should we think about what types of work that is?

既然你們對這些即將落地的專案有能見度，我們應該假設這些是什麼類型——停工檢修（turnarounds）、整治（remediation）、危險 C&D（建築與拆除）？我們應該如何理解這些工作的類型？

Yes, it's a full mix. It can be both recurring things where we've won the opportunity to take all of the integrated waste out of a plant, a plant produces recycling, solid waste, special waste and hazardous liquids, hazardous water, we can handle all of that or it could be events where we know we're projected to do a big remediation opportunity. And again, that could produce special waste and hazardous waste solids, and that event could be as short as two weeks or could last as long as eight or nine months.

是的，類型非常多元。可能是經常性業務，例如我們贏得機會，為某座工廠處理所有整合式廢棄物：工廠會產生回收物、一般固體廢棄物、特殊廢棄物與危險液體、危險廢水，我們都能處理；也可能是事件型工作，例如我們知道預計會承接一個大型整治機會。同樣地，那可能會產生特殊廢棄物與危險廢棄物固體，而該事件可能短至兩週，也可能長達八到九個月。

At this time, there appear to be no further questions. Mr. Vander Ark, I'll turn the call back over to you for closing remarks.

目前看來沒有其他問題。Vander Ark 先生，我把電話交回給您做結語。

Thank you, Kim. I want to thank the Republic Services team for the great start to the year. Their continued focus on safety, sustainability and exceeding customer expectations positions us for success and another year of strong results. Have a good evening and be safe.

謝謝你，Kim。我要感謝 Republic Services 團隊在今年有個很好的開局。他們持續專注於安全、永續，以及超越客戶期望，讓我們具備成功的條件，並迎來又一年強勁的成果。祝各位晚上愉快，並請注意安全。

Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes the conference call. Thank you for attending. You may now disconnect.

各位女士先生，本次電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與。您現在可以掛線。