Sezzle Inc (SEZL) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Welcome to Sezzle Inc's fourth-quarter financial results conference call.

歡迎參加 Sezzle Inc 第四季財務業績電話會議。

(Operators Instructions) Please note this event is being recorded.

（操作員說明）請注意此事件正在被記錄。

I would now like to turn the conference over to Charlie Youakim.

我現在想把會議交給查理尤金 (Charlie Youakim)。

Please go ahead.

請繼續。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to Sezzle's 2023 fourth-quarter earnings call.

大家下午好，歡迎參加 Sezzle 的 2023 年第四季財報電話會議。

My name is Charlie Youakim.

我叫查理尤金。

I'm the CEO and Executive Chairman of Sezzle.

我是 Sezzle 的執行長兼執行主席。

I'm joined today by my Co-Founder and President, Paul Paradis; our Chief Financial Officer, Karen Hartje, and our Head of Corp Dev and IR, Lee Brading.

今天我的共同創辦人兼總裁 Paul Paradis 也加入了我的行列。我們的財務長 Karen Hartje 以及我們的公司開發和 IR 主管 Lee Brading。

In conjunction with this conference call, we filed an earnings announcement and presentation with SEC and posted them to our investor website on sezzle.com. Additionally, if you sign up with our IR email distribution list, you can get these releases prior to our presentations at each quarterly release, so please do so if you haven't already.

結合本次電話會議，我們向 SEC 提交了收益公告和演示文稿，並將其發佈到我們的投資者網站 sezzle.com 上。此外，如果您註冊了我們的 IR 電子郵件分發列表，您可以在我們每個季度發布的演示之前獲取這些版本，因此，如果您還沒有這樣做，請這樣做。

Please go to either the sec.gov website or find our presentation on our website if you'd like to follow along.

如果您想繼續了解，請造訪 sec.gov 網站或在我們的網站上尋找我們的簡報。

Before we get started, I just want to touch on what I feel is an important landmark in our company history.

在開始之前，我只想談談我認為我們公司歷史上的一個重要里程碑。

This earnings call is our first since completing our Nasdaq listing and ASX delisting.

這次財報電話會議是我們完成納斯達克上市和澳洲證券交易所退市以來的第一次財報電話會議。

It really does feel like the beginning of a new chapter for the company, one in which we'll focus on profitable growth, increasing margins, and OpEx reduction, all while pleasing our key stakeholders.

這確實感覺像是公司新篇章的開始，我們將專注於獲利成長、提高利潤率和降低營運支出，同時取悅我們的主要利害關係人。

We operate this company with a sole proprietor mindset to produce returns for our shareholders.

我們以獨資經營者的心態經營這家公司，為股東創造回報。

If that aligns with your investment philosophy, please stand in line.

如果這符合您的投資理念，請排隊。

Now let's dive into the presentation starting with slide 3.

現在讓我們從投影片 3 開始深入了解簡報。

At Sezzle, we're helping a great number of people on their financial journey and our historical numbers speak to this.

在 Sezzle，我們正在幫助許多人踏上財務之旅，我們的歷史數據證明了這一點。

Since our launch, we've had over 18 million consumers sign up, processed over 6 billion in volume, and initiated over 63 million transactions.

自推出以來，已有超過 1,800 萬消費者註冊，處理量超過 60 億，並發起了超過 6,300 萬筆交易。

Additionally, our subscription service that was initially launched in June of 2022 at Sezzle Premium and then expanded in June of 2023 with Sezzle Anywhere has grown to over 300,000 members.

此外，我們的訂閱服務最初於 2022 年 6 月在 Sezzle Premium 推出，隨後於 2023 年 6 月透過 Sezzle Anywhere 進行擴展，現已擁有超過 30 萬名會員。

The use of our company can be compared to the use of our users who are just getting started on a financial journey.

我們公司的使用可以與剛開始財務之旅的用戶的使用進行比較。

Keeping with that comparison, Sezzle continues to grow up.

與此比較，Sezzle 繼續成長。

We're now at a stage of the company's history where we're focused heavily on profitable growth.

我們現在正處於公司歷史的一個階段，我們專注於獲利成長。

We're incredibly proud of that transition, and if you look back at our historical numbers, you can see why.

我們對這一轉變感到無比自豪，如果您回顧一下我們的歷史數據，您就會明白原因。

In 2021, we booked just under $115 million in revenue and a net loss of over $75 million.

2021 年，我們的營收略低於 1.15 億美元，淨虧損超過 7,500 萬美元。

We have improved both numbers dramatically in two years.

我們在兩年內顯著改善了這兩個數字。

For 2023, we booked over $159 million in revenue and a net income of over $7 million.

2023 年，我們的收入超過 1.59 億美元，淨利超過 700 萬美元。

That is an $82 million improvement in net income in two years.

這意味著兩年內淨利潤增加了 8,200 萬美元。

Many companies point to the Rule of 40 as a successful benchmark and we agree with them.

許多公司將 40 法則視為成功的基準，我們也同意他們的觀點。

If you use the looser definition of profit margin in the Rule of 40 as EBITDA margin, then we would have achieved the Rule of 40 in 2023 with an EBITDA margin of over 18% and a revenue growth rate in excess of 26%.

如果你使用40條規則中較寬鬆的利潤率定義作為EBITDA利潤率，那麼我們將在2023年實現40條規則，EBITDA利潤率超過18%，營收成長率超過26%。

But we plan to hold ourselves to a higher standard and plan to use net income margin as our standard instead of EBITDA margin.

但我們計劃對自己提出更高的標準，並計劃使用淨利潤率而不是 EBITDA 利潤率作為我們的標準。

We're not quite there yet holding the higher standard in play with a net income margin of 4.5%.

我們還沒有達到 4.5% 淨利潤率的更高標準。

But it's that higher standard for the Rule of 40 that we will strive for in 2024 and beyond.

但我們將在 2024 年及以後努力爭取 40 法則的更高標準。

Last but not least, from a shareholder standpoint, we delivered a return on equity of 46% in 2023.

最後但並非最不重要的一點是，從股東的角度來看，我們在 2023 年實現了 46% 的股本回報率。

I'm not aware of any other pure play, Buy Now, Pay Later that can say the same.

我不知道有任何其他純粹的“立即購買，稍後付款”可以說同樣的話。

Our success did not happen overnight, nor was it easy, but it occurred through creativity, dedication, and hard work from each employee at Sezzle.

我們的成功不是一蹴而就的，也不是一蹴而就的，而是透過 Sezzle 每位員工的創造力、奉獻精神和辛勤工作取得的。

It also could not have happened without a strong connection to the consumer, evidenced by having received 4.9 out of 5 stars on the Apple App Store and 4.6 out of 5 stars on Google Play.

如果沒有與消費者的緊密聯繫，這一切也不可能發生，在 Apple App Store 上獲得 4.9 顆星（滿分 5 顆星）和在 Google Play 上獲得 4.6 顆星（滿分 5 顆星）就證明了這一點。

Those customer review metrics really speak to the stakeholder approach we have of the company.

這些客戶評論指標確實反映了我們對公司的利害關係人的態度。

When we see negative reviews come through, we actively think about what we need to do to improve, which is why you continue to see strong review metrics from our user base.

當我們看到負面評論時，我們會積極思考需要做些什麼來改進，這就是為什麼您繼續從我們的用戶群中看到強大的評論指標。

Sezzle is also the only Buy Now, Pay Later company that is a certified B Corp, which shows how strongly we feel about the stakeholder approach to doing business and our mission of financially empowering the next generation.

Sezzle 也是唯一一家獲得共益企業認證的「先買後付」公司，這表明我們對利益相關者開展業務的方式以及我們為下一代提供財務支持的使命有多麼強烈的感受。

This approach also includes four areas of emphasis, as shown on slide 4.

這種方法還包括四個重點領域，如幻燈片 4 所示。

By giving consumers the opportunity to spread payments out, avoid interest payments, and build credit, Sezzle fills an important need for our younger prime to be consumers.

透過為消費者提供分散付款、避免利息支付和建立信用的機會，Sezzle 滿足了我們年輕一代成為消費者的重要需求。

Since our inception, we have been committed to driving change to empower our consumers on their financial journeys.

自成立以來，我們一直致力於推動變革，為消費者的金融之旅提供支持。

As shown on slide 5, there are a number of reasons consumers and merchants are turning to buy-now-pay-later and to Sezzle in particular.

如投影片 5 所示，消費者和商家轉向先買後付（尤其是 Sezzle）的原因有很多。

Merchants are choosing us because they see our product drive incremental sales and because we can introduce millions of consumers to their business.

商家選擇我們是因為他們看到我們的產品可以推動銷售增量，並且因為我們可以向數百萬消費者介紹他們的業務。

Meanwhile, consumers face a number of challenges to find credit and buy-now-pay-later assists those that often face challenges in accessing traditional credit options and serves as a tool for managing their cash flows.

同時，消費者在尋找信貸方面面臨許多挑戰，先買後付可以幫助那些在獲得傳統信貸選擇方面經常面臨挑戰的人，並作為管理現金流的工具。

Our long-term goal is to build an all-encompassing financial services platform with a focus on increasing the lifetime value of the customer, as shown on slide 6.

我們的長期目標是建立一個全方位的金融服務平台，重點是提高客戶的終身價值，如投影片 6 所示。

We started with direct integration with merchants back in 2017, and we have expanded our consumer's universe to anywhere Visa is accepted.

早在 2017 年，我們就開始與商家直接整合，並將我們的消費者範圍擴展到任何接受 Visa 的地方。

We are incredibly excited about the future and the next set of financial products and services we launch for consumers with some launches coming out in 2024.

我們對未來以及我們為消費者推出的下一組金融產品和服務感到非常興奮，其中一些產品和服務將於 2024 年推出。

Consumers are voting for us with their feet as we have surpassed 300,000 members in our subscription-based products, Sezzle Premium and Sezzle Anywhere, as showed on slide 7.

消費者正在用腳投票給我們，因為我們的訂閱產品 Sezzle Premium 和 Sezzle Anywhere 的會員數量已超過 300,000 名，如幻燈片 7 所示。

The amount of engagement has been phenomenal.

參與度是驚人的。

Compared to non-subscribers, our Anywhere customers shop more in-store and purchase more frequently.

與非訂閱者相比，我們的 Anywhere 客戶在店內購物的次數更多，購買的頻率也更高。

Our Anywhere members are shopping at a broad array of locations and are making everyday purchases at general merchandise retailers, grocery stores, and restaurants to meet their discretionary needs.

我們的 Anywhere 會員在廣泛的地點購物，並在百貨零售商、雜貨店和餐廳進行日常購物，以滿足他們的隨意需求。

Again, going back to our mission, through these subscription services, we continue to financially empower the next generation on their journey through life.

再次回到我們的使命，透過這些訂閱服務，我們繼續在經濟上為下一代的人生旅程提供支援。

To gauge the satisfaction of our users, we track Net Promoter Scores closely through a random survey implemented by a third-party tool.

為了衡量用戶的滿意度，我們透過第三方工具實施的隨機調查密切追蹤淨推薦值。

In case you aren't familiar with Net Promoter Scores or NPS, anything above 50 is fantastic.

如果您不熟悉淨建議值或 NPS，任何高於 50 的值都很棒。

And if you're above 70, well, that's the holy grail.

如果你超過 70 歲，那麼，這就是聖杯。

So to have Sezzle Premium sitting at an NPS of 53 and Sezzle Anywhere at 71 means we're doing something right.

因此，Sezzle Premium 的 NPS 為 53，Sezzle Anywhere 的 NPS 為 71，這意味著我們正在做正確的事情。

In the early stages of Sezzle's history, our marketing efforts were completely targeted toward the merchant.

在Sezzle歷史的早期階段，我們的行銷工作完全是針對商家的。

And while the majority of our spend still is targeted toward merchants, we are expanding our efforts with the consumer as shown on slide 8.

雖然我們的大部分支出仍然針對商家，但我們正在擴大針對消費者的努力，如幻燈片 8 所示。

If you haven't viewed our YouTube live session, you should check them out.

如果您還沒有觀看過我們的 YouTube 直播，您應該查看一下。

We just launched the channel late last year, and we now have over 64,000 followers.

我們去年年底剛推出了該頻道，現在擁有超過 64,000 名追蹤者。

Our latest marketing campaigns have featured a new character, Cash, and his journey towards financial freedom.

我們最新的行銷活動以新角色卡什（Cash）為特色，以及他邁向財務自由的旅程。

We are also testing a number of alternative consumer marketing tactics such as direct mail, mall banners, and streaming ads.

我們也正在測試許多替代消費者行銷策略，例如直郵、商場橫幅和串流廣告。

Our marketing team is an extremely creative bunch.

我們的行銷團隊是一支極具創意的團隊。

I'm looking forward to seeing what they will come up with next.

我很期待看到他們接下來會想出什麼。

Please keep in mind that investors don't have to worry about unnecessary spending with these campaigns though, as all of these efforts are made with a very mindful eye on short payback periods and low CAC to LPV ratios.

請記住，投資者不必擔心這些活動帶來不必要的支出，因為所有這些努力都是在短期投資回收期和較低的 CAC 與 LPV 比率的情況下進行的。

Slide 9 provides a snapshot of our past initiatives and the positive impact they have had on our results.

投影片 9 簡要介紹了我們過去的舉措以及它們對我們的成果產生的正面影響。

All parts of the company have been involved in these efforts.

公司各部門都參與了這些努力。

Through new product initiatives and launches and by tying into affiliate systems, we've increased our revenue.

透過新產品計劃和發布以及與聯盟系統的聯繫，我們增加了收入。

And we also went through our operating expenses with a magnifying glass to remove numerous costs throughout the business.

我們還用放大鏡仔細檢查了營運費用，以消除整個業務中的大量成本。

We are excited about our plans for 2024, and we are scheduled to finalize our bank partnership and launch a number of new products.

我們對 2024 年的計劃感到興奮，我們計劃敲定與銀行的合作夥伴關係並推出許多新產品。

We're also focused on minimizing operational costs while we use this.

在使用此功能時，我們也致力於最大限度地降低營運成本。

Our upcoming product marketplace is one of those product initiatives.

我們即將推出的產品市場就是這些產品計劃之一。

The idea there is quite simple.

這個想法很簡單。

Serve up relevant products to our consumers through the app and let them directly shop through us for products.

透過應用程式向我們的消費者提供相關產品，讓他們直接透過我們購買產品。

With the idea that every purchase can be financed through Sezzle.

理念是每次購買都可以透過 Sezzle 進行融資。

We tested this concept in our app in the past holiday season and noticed incredible engagement from our users throughout the test.

我們在過去的假期期間在我們的應用程式中測試了這個概念，並注意到在整個測試過程中我們的用戶的參與度令人難以置信。

The result of that test led to the rapid decision to launch the product marketplace as a full-scale product.

該測試的結果導致我們迅速決定將產品市場作為全面的產品推出。

Another upcoming product initiative is payment streaks.

另一個即將推出的產品計劃是連續付款。

Payment streaks will allow our shoppers to gamify their experience in Sezzle through proper repayment.

連續付款將允許我們的購物者透過適當的還款將他們在 Sezzle 的體驗遊戲化。

The more consistently a customer pays us back, the more levels they rise in the system.

客戶對我們的回報越一致，他們在系統中的層級就越高。

We'll be tying some nice benefits to those tiers over time as we learn more about the LTVs of each specific behavioral group.

隨著時間的推移，當我們更多地了解每個特定行為群體的 LTV 時，我們將把一些不錯的好處與這些層次聯繫起來。

We believe that by gamifying repayment, we'll also have more ways to teach our typically younger customers about the additional benefits you get in life from good repayment behavior.

我們相信，透過遊戲化還款，我們還將有更多方式向我們通常年輕的客戶傳授良好的還款行為在生活中獲得的額外好處。

It seems these days everyone's bragging about their AI capabilities, so we wanted to make sure investors were aware that we are also embracing such capabilities and that we have been for years.

如今，似乎每個人都在吹噓自己的人工智慧能力，因此我們希望確保投資者意識到我們也在擁抱這種能力，而且我們多年來一直在擁抱這種能力。

We're big believers in embracing technology to improve productivity and results.

我們堅信採用科技來提高生產力和成果。

We are embracing AI through our own proprietary models, and in some areas, buying from third parties instead of building where it's more efficient to do so and less of a core function.

我們正在透過自己的專有模型來擁抱人工智慧，在某些領域，我們從第三方購買，而不是在效率更高、核心功能更少的地方進行建構。

For example, underwriting and fraud are core areas to Sezzle where we have built neural network models.

例如，承保和詐欺是 Sezzle 的核心領域，我們在其中建立了神經網路模型。

The profit score is one of those examples.

獲利評分就是其中之一。

Future proprietary models include models that optimize payment processing and models that optimized products and merchants presented to our customers to personalize their shopping experiences.

未來的專有模型包括優化支付處理的模型以及優化向客戶展示的產品和商家以個性化他們的購物體驗的模型。

Meanwhile for an area such as customer support we have found it makes more sense to engage an outside third-party provider to help us utilize AI to the fullest.

同時，對於客戶支援等領域，我們發現聘請外部第三方提供者來幫助我們充分利用人工智慧更有意義。

Our engineering teams have also been given a green light to maximize their performance through the leveraging of generative AI tool sets, such as Co-Pilot.

我們的工程團隊也獲得了透過利用生成式人工智慧工具集（例如 Co-Pilot）來最大限度地提高績效的許可。

We want our teams to try to connect their capabilities, even if they can, through these tools.

我們希望我們的團隊嘗試透過這些工具連結他們的能力，即使他們可以。

Turning to slide 11, it's quite clear that our initiatives have made a positive difference.

轉向投影片 11，很明顯我們的措施產生了正面的影響。

There's a lot of green on the screen.

螢幕上有很多綠色。

A couple of items to point out.

有幾點需要指出。

We went from a negative EBITDA margin of 16% in fiscal 2022 to a positive margin of 18.8% in 2023.

我們的 EBITDA 利潤率從 2022 財年 16% 的負利潤率變為 2023 年 18.8% 的正利潤率。

We achieved this by improving our unit economics and reducing our operational construction.

我們透過提高單位經濟效益和減少營運建設來實現這一目標。

In fiscal 2023, our gross margin improved to 50.8% of total income from 37.5%.

2023 財年，我們的毛利率佔總收入的比例從 37.5% 提高到 50.8%。

And our non-transaction related OpEx, as a percentage of total income, declined to 46.9% from 75.5% the year prior.

我們的非交易相關營運支出佔總收入的百分比從上年的 75.5% 下降至 46.9%。

Similarly, as you can see on slide 12, our annual engagement scorecard reflects a number of positive trends.

同樣，正如您在投影片 12 中看到的，我們的年度敬業度記分卡反映了許多正面的趨勢。

We have been winning where it matters most.

我們一直在最重要的地方獲勝。

Increasing repeat usage, growing subscribers, increasing consumer order frequency, and diversifying our revenue streams.

提高重複使用率、增加訂閱者、提高消費者訂單頻率、多元化收入來源。

With our launch of Sezzle Anywhere in June 2023, shoppers are taking us everywhere.

隨著我們於 2023 年 6 月推出 Sezzle Anywhere，購物者將帶我們去任何地方。

In fiscal 2023, shoppers use this at over 250,000 different merchants, as consumers are moving us toward the top of their wallets.

到 2023 財年，購物者將在超過 250,000 家不同的商家使用此服務，因為消費者正在將我們推向他們的錢包最高點。

In the past, we showed an integrated merchant count.

過去，我們展示了綜合商戶數。

But we don't believe that tells the complete story, as many of the integrated merchants are micro merchants that don't drive our business.

但我們認為這並不能說明全部情況，因為許多綜合商戶都是微型商戶，無法推動我們的業務。

The only red on the screen relates to the annual change in active consumers.

螢幕上唯一的紅色與活躍消費者的年度變化有關。

I think the active consumer metric dropping over the last two years shows you just how seriously we took the path to profitability.

我認為過去兩年活躍消費者指標的下降表明我們對獲利之路有多認真。

As the company makes that transition, it has to decide which consumers are good and which are not.

當公司進行這種轉變時，它必須決定哪些消費者是好的，哪些是不好的。

We've made the tough decisions in the past and we've improved our business dramatically in the process.

我們過去曾做出過艱難的決定，但在過程中我們的業務得到了顯著改善。

Despite all that, I'm happy to note that we believe the drop in active consumers has bottomed out as it is slightly up when compared to Q3 of 2023.

儘管如此，我很高興地註意到，我們認為活躍消費者的下降已經觸底，因為與 2023 年第三季相比略有上升。

With that, I'm happy to turn the call over to our CFO, Karen Hartje, who will go over our quarterly and annual financial results in greater detail.

至此，我很高興將電話轉給我們的財務長 Karen Hartje，她將更詳細地討論我們的季度和年度財務表現。

Karen?

凱倫？

Thank you, Charlie, and hello to all.

謝謝你，查理，大家好。

On to slide 13, seasonally, the fourth quarter is our strongest UMS quarter due to the holiday period.

轉到投影片 13，從季節性來看，由於假期，第四季是 UMS 表現最強勁的季度。

But we also had a strong quarter on a year-over-year basis as UMS increased 33%.

但與去年同期相比，我們的季度表現也很強勁，UMS 成長了 33%。

The increase in our UMS led to total income for the quarter increasing 28% year over year to 48.9 million.

UMS 的增加導致本季總營收年增 28% 至 4,890 萬。

The annual results tell a similar story for total income growth as it increased 27% year over year driven by subscription and UMS growth.

年度業績也講述了總收入成長的類似情況，在訂閱和 UMS 成長的推動下，總收入年增了 27%。

On slide 14, 2023 transaction expense, which is primarily payment processing costs, improved by 18 basis points year over year to 2.1%.

在投影片 14 上，2023 年交易費用（主要是支付處理成本）年減 18 個基點，達到 2.1%。

We believe we can further lower our payment processing expenses as we continue to push for consumers to use ACH, renegotiate terms with network partners as our volumes grow, expand products such as Pay-in-2 and pay-in-full, and as noted earlier, introduce AI into the process.

我們相信，隨著我們繼續推動消費者使用 ACH、隨著業務量的成長與網路合作夥伴重新協商條款、擴展 Pay-in-2 和 pay-in-full 等產品，我們可以進一步降低支付處理費用。早些時候，將人工智慧引入流程中。

As discussed on previous earnings conference calls, we expected our provision for credit losses, as shown on slide 15, to increase throughout the year, but still outperform for fiscal 2023 compared to 2022.

如同先前的收益電話會議所討論的，我們預期我們的信貸損失撥備（如投影片 15 所示）全年都會增加，但與 2022 年相比，2023 財年的表現仍優於大盤。

Going forward, we will continue to evaluate the balance of growth versus losses with what makes the most sense.

展望未來，我們將繼續以最有意義的方式評估成長與損失的平衡。

Turning to slide 16, we can't emphasize this enough.

轉到投影片 16，我們再怎麼強調這一點都不為過。

Our unit economics measured by total income less transaction related costs put us in a strong financial position.

我們的單位經濟效益以總收入減去交易相關成本來衡量，這使我們處於強大的財務狀況。

Our total income less transaction related costs is now around 50% of total income.

我們的總收入減去交易相關成本現在約為總收入的 50%。

A significant improvement compared to 37.5% in 2022.

與 2022 年的 37.5% 相比，有了顯著改善。

The key to our success has not only been the improvement in unit economics, but our ability to reduce non-transaction-related operating expenses.

我們成功的關鍵不僅在於單位經濟效益的提高，還在於我們減少非交易相關營運費用的能力。

Without both, we would not have become profitable.

如果沒有兩者，我們就不會獲利。

As shown on slide 17, non-transaction-related operating expenses declined by $20 million in 2023 and fell to 46.9% of total income compared to 75.5% of total income in 2022.

如投影片 17 所示，2023 年非交易相關營運費用減少了 2,000 萬美元，佔總收入的比例從 2022 年的 75.5% 降至 46.9%。

We believe we can continue to leverage our infrastructure as we remain vigilant on costs.

我們相信，在對成本保持警惕的同時，我們可以繼續利用我們的基礎設施。

As noted, without these dynamics of improving unit economics and managing down operating expenses, we wouldn't have accomplished the profitability shown on slide 18.

如前所述，如果沒有這些改善單位經濟效益和管理降低營運費用的動力，我們就不會實現投影片 18 所示的獲利能力。

I must admit this is a fun slide to look at.

我必須承認這是一張有趣的幻燈片。

We have net income every quarter with a significant annual change in net income from positive -- negative to positive.

我們每季都有淨利潤，每年淨利潤都有顯著的變化，從正數變成正數。

Not to mention the significant flip in adjusted EBITDA.

更不用說調整後 EBITDA 的顯著變化。

To say that we are excited about the future is an understatement.

說我們對未來感到興奮是輕描淡寫的。

Slide 19 displays select balance sheet metrics.

投影片 19 顯示了選定的資產負債表指標。

Bottom line liquidity remains healthy, and we continue to add to stockholders' equity.

底線流動性保持健康，我們繼續增加股東權益。

Our capitalization is stable, healthy, and continues to show improvement each quarter.

我們的資本穩定、健康，每季都在持續改善。

We are in discussions with lenders to refinance our current line of credit.

我們正在與貸方討論為我們目前的信貸額度再融資。

We expect the result will be to improve availability and lower our borrowing costs.

我們預計結果將是提高可用性並降低借貸成本。

We are not at liberty to disclose more at this time.

目前我們無法透露更多資訊。

Turning to slide 20, we are providing guidance for 2024.

轉向幻燈片 20，我們正在提供 2024 年的指導。

We will continue to innovate with an eye on bottom line profitability as we expect to more than double net income in 2024 to $20 million.

我們將繼續創新，著眼於獲利能力，預計 2024 年淨利將增加一倍以上，達到 2,000 萬美元。

We expect to get there through a combination of growth and expense management.

我們希望透過成長和費用管理的結合來實現這一目標。

With that, I would like to turn the call back over to Charlie.

有了這個，我想把電話轉回給查理。

Charlie?

查理？

Thanks, Karen.

謝謝，凱倫。

With that, we're happy to take your questions.

因此，我們很樂意回答您的問題。

Operator, will you please open up the lines for Q&A?

接線生，請開問答線好嗎？

(Operator Instructions) Nico Sacchetti, RBC.

（操作員說明）Nico Sacchetti，RBC。

Can you guys hear me?

你們聽得到我說話嗎？

Yeah.

是的。

Hey, Nico.

嘿，尼可。

Hey, Charlie.

嘿，查理。

How are you?

你好嗎？

Good.

好的。

How are you?

你好嗎？

I'm good.

我很好。

So I saw that I was prompted the send in some e-mail questions here.

所以我看到系統提示我在這裡發送一些電子郵件問題。

But would you rather just take them over the phone here?

但您願意在這裡透過電話與他們聯繫嗎？

Yeah, that works.

是的，那行得通。

You guys are knocking it out of the park.

你們正在把它從公園裡敲出來。

So I'm just curious if there's any way that you can walk us through how you've been able to achieve profitability at such a small scale compared to some of your competitors that are out there?

所以我很好奇，您是否可以透過任何方式向我們介紹一下，與您的一些競爭對手相比，您是如何在如此小的規模下實現盈利的？

I really think it's vigilant attack on both sides of the equation, Nico.

我真的認為這是對等式兩邊的警惕攻擊，尼科。

I mean we didn't sit on our laurels.

我的意思是我們並沒有固步自封。

We've innovated on the product side quite a bit over the last two years, which has helped us dramatically, and the subscription services are a big part of that, Sezzle Premium, Sezzle Anywhere.

過去兩年，我們在產品方面進行了相當多的創新，這對我們幫助很大，訂閱服務是其中的重要組成部分，Sezzle Premium、Sezzle Anywhere。

But there are a number of other initiatives we've taken throughout the last two years in the company to really push on the revenue side.

但在過去的兩年裡，我們公司還採取了許多其他措施來真正推動營收成長。

But I'd say even bigger than the revenue side or maybe equally as big is how vigilant we've been on the cost side.

但我想說，比收入方面更重要或同樣重要的是我們在成本上的警覺程度。

I wouldn't say that Elon Musk is like my disciple.

我不會說伊隆馬斯克就像我的弟子。

I'm more of a Jeff Bezos's fan.

我比較像是傑夫·貝佐斯的粉絲。

But when you see what Elon Musk did with Twitter, cutting the staff by 75% and still running that company, I think it speaks to how he can run a company pretty lean and really accomplish a lot of things.

但當你看到埃隆馬斯克(Elon Musk) 對Twitter 所做的事情，裁員75% 並仍在運營該公司時，我認為這說明了他如何能夠相當精簡地運營一家公司，並真正完成很多事情。

We had to make some tough decisions over the past two years.

過去兩年我們不得不做出一些艱難的決定。

We exited a lot of markets, Europe, India, Brazil, but really kept to our core in North America.

我們退出了很多市場，歐洲、印度、巴西，但真正保留了北美的核心。

And even though we're sticking to that core, we also were really cost conscious about all our operating expenses.

儘管我們堅持這一核心，但我們對所有營運費用也非常關注成本。

And between the two of those things, we've really pulled off what I think is an impressive feat over the last few years.

在這兩件事之間，我們確實在過去幾年中取得了我認為令人印象深刻的壯舉。

And we're, I think, just getting warmed up at this point.

我認為我們現在才剛剛熱身。

We really understand how to run the business and how to run it really efficiently.

我們真正了解如何經營業務以及如何真正有效地經營業務。

We've got a Whipsmart team that's really hard working, and we're happy with where we are, and we just want to keep them marching forward now.

我們有一支非常努力工作的 Whipsmart 團隊，我們對目前的處境感到滿意，我們只想讓他們繼續前進。

So is there some costs coming down the pike here that would lead to just a reduction in the profitability?

那麼，是否存在一些成本下降而導致獲利能力下降？

Or is it something that as you continue to grow, you'll continue to scale, and as profitable as you are now, it should improve in an ideal situation?

或者，隨著您的不斷發展，您將繼續擴大規模，並且像現在一樣盈利，在理想情況下應該會有所改善？

Yeah, I think this business scales incredibly well.

是的，我認為這項業務的規模非常好。

I still talk about our first holiday season when we we're little [run] to the company.

我仍然會談論我們的第一個假期，當時我們還沒有去公司。

And we basically have the software run the systems without the team doing in the office during the holiday season.

我們基本上讓軟體運行系統，而團隊在假期期間無需在辦公室工作。

That just showed me firsthand how powerfully the product can scale.

這直接向我展示了該產品的擴展能力有多強大。

So I think we plan to continue to show the operational scaling effects by growing top line while trying to keep our operational expenses down throughout this time period.

因此，我認為我們計劃透過增加收入來繼續展示營運規模效應，同時努力在這段時間內保持營運支出下降。

Is it worth?

這值得嗎？

I mean, it's such a stark difference from looking at some of the valuation metrics around what I would say quote, unqote is your peer group.

我的意思是，這與我所說的引用的一些估值指標有很大的不同，取消引用是你的同行群體。

Do you think it's fair to say that there are competitors of yours to try to draw parallels to your business?

您認為可以公平地說您的競爭對手試圖與您的業務進行比較嗎？

The Affirm, the PayPals of the world, do you view them as competitors?

The Affirm，世界上的 PayPal，你認為他們是競爭對手嗎？

Are they competing for the same customers as you?

他們是否與您競爭相同的客戶？

I think some are closer than others.

我認為有些人比其他人更親近。

Affirm is closer than PayPal as a competitor, even though PayPal has a similar product set.

儘管 PayPal 擁有類似的產品集，但作為競爭對手，Affirm 仍比 PayPal 更接近。

Our closer competitors are probably Afterpay, Klarna, Zip, probably even more closely aligned to what we do.

我們更接近的競爭對手可能是 Afterpay、Klarna、Zip，甚至可能與我們的業務更加一致。

And yeah, we've noticed what you are saying.

是的，我們注意到你在說什麼。

But I'm a big believer in the Benjamin Graham, Warren Buffet approach that just over time -- in the short term, the market is a voting machine.

但我非常相信班傑明·葛拉漢和華倫·巴菲特的方法，隨著時間的推移——在短期內，市場就是一台投票機。

In the long term, it's a weighing machine.

從長遠來看，它是一台稱重機。

And we're going to put the pressure on the weighing machine.

我們將給稱重機施加壓力。

Just had a couple of clarification questions.

只是有幾個澄清問題。

So you put the stock buyback in place, or you approved it.

所以你實施了股票回購，或者你批准了它。

Did you buy back any stock in the quarter?

您在本季回購了任何股票嗎？

I can't disclose that at this time.

我現在不能透露這一點。

The first update, you'll see for that will be in our May release after the first quarter.

您將在第一季之後的五月版本中看到第一個更新。

Sure.

當然。

Okay.

好的。

The other one, you put out a term total income.

另一個，你提出一個術語「總收入」。

Is that just a reference to your revenue, correct?

這只是您收入的參考，對嗎？

Yeah, that's just because of GAAP dynamics.

是的，這只是因為 GAAP 動態。

That's traditional revenue top line.

這是傳統的收入頂線。

So when I'm looking at these numbers, 2023 revenue was $159.4 million, and your guide for 2024 is 20% year-over-year growth of revenue growth.

因此，當我查看這些數字時，2023 年的收入為 1.594 億美元，而您對 2024 年的指導是收入同比增長 20%。

That's correct, right?

這是正確的，對吧？

Exactly.

確切地。

Exactly.

確切地。

Okay.

好的。

And then net income for the trailing 12 months was $7.1 million, and you're expecting -- so you gave an exact guidance of $20 million of net income for 2024?

過去 12 個月的淨利潤為 710 萬美元，您預計 2024 年的淨利潤為 2000 萬美元？

That's correct.

這是正確的。

And so if my math is right, you're looking at close to $3.60 a share in earnings based on those numbers in the share count?

因此，如果我的計算正確的話，根據股票計數中的這些數字，您認為每股收益接近 3.60 美元？

My math is not as quick as yours, but I'm going to go through a calculator.

我的數學沒有你那麼快，但我會用計算機。

Okay.

好的。

All right.

好的。

I think that's -- last one was you talked about EBITDA percentage, EBITDA margin expansion being up around 18%, 19%.

我認為，上一篇您談到了 EBITDA 百分比，EBITDA 利潤率擴張約 18%、19%。

Do you have a target in place for where you think you can achieve?

您是否有一個您認為可以實現的目標？

You mentioned such a stark turnaround there.

你提到瞭如此明顯的轉變。

Is this the run rate that you're expecting?

這是您期望的運行率嗎？

Or is there a number above and beyond this high-teens level?

或者是否有一個數字高於這個高青少年水準？

No, we want to keep on improving.

不，我們想繼續改進。

I'll give you an example like we mentioned the Rule of 40.

我舉個例子，就像我們提到的 40 法則一樣。

Internally, we've started to talk about an idea of like related to the Rule of 40, but more it's 20, 60, 20. 20% revenue growth, 60% gross margins, and 20% profit margins, net income margins, which is the goals.

在內部，我們已經開始討論與 40 規則相關的想法，但更多的是 20、60、20。20% 的收入增長，60% 的毛利率，20% 的利潤率，淨利潤率，這是目標。

That's not the guidance; those are the goals.

這不是指導；而是指導。這些就是目標。

That's what we want to hit as a company.

這就是我們作為一家公司想要實現的目標。

I mean, my personal view is if you have those numbers as a company, you're doing a great job.

我的意思是，我個人的觀點是，如果你作為一家公司擁有這些數字，那麼你就做得很好。

I want to get the company to those metrics.

我想讓公司達到這些指標。

Well, I appreciate the time and the questions.

嗯，我很感謝您的時間和問題。

I mean, it's a great story.

我的意思是，這是一個很棒的故事。

Thanks, Charlie.

謝謝，查理。

Thanks, Nico.

謝謝，尼科。

(Operator Instructions) This concludes our question-and-answer session.

（操作員說明）我們的問答環節到此結束。

I would like to turn the conference back over to the management for closing remarks.

我想將會議轉回管理階層進行閉幕致詞。

Thank you.

謝謝。

In closing, a big thank you to the Sezzle squad, not only has the team pulled off this massive two-year improvement, but it's also stuck together through a difficult market with many smiles and laughs along the way.

最後，非常感謝 Sezzle 團隊，該團隊不僅在兩年內取得了巨大的進步，而且在困難的市場中團結一致，一路上充滿了微笑和歡笑。

I don't think there's a smarter, harder working group out there right now.

我認為目前還沒有比這更聰明、更努力的工作團隊。

I really feel like we can take on just about anything with his team, kudos to the team.

我真的覺得我們可以和他的團隊一起承擔任何事情，向團隊致敬。

And thank you to the investors on the call and have a great day.

感謝參加電話會議的投資者，祝您有美好的一天。

The conference has now concluded.

會議現已結束。

Thank you for attending today's presentation.

感謝您參加今天的演講。

You may now disconnect.

您現在可以斷開連線。