J M Smucker Co (SJM) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good morning and welcome to The J.M. Smucker Company's Fiscal 2024 First Quarter Earnings Conference -- Question-and-Answer Session. This conference call is being recorded (Operator Instructions).

早安，歡迎參加 J.M. Smucker 公司 2024 財年第一季業績發表會－問答環節。本次電話會議正在錄音中（請依操作員指示）。

I'll now turn the conference call over to Aaron Broholm, Vice President, Investor Relations. Please go ahead, sir.

現在，我將電話會議交給投資者關係副總裁Aaron Broholm。先生，請講。

Good morning and thank you for joining our fiscal 2024 first quarter earnings question-and-answer session. I hope everyone had a chance to review our results as detailed in this morning's press release and management's prepared remarks, which are available on our corporate website at jmsmucker.com. We will also post an audio replay of this call at the conclusion of this morning's Q&A session.

早安，感謝您參加我們2024財年第一季業績問答環節。希望大家有機會回顧今天早上新聞稿中詳述的業績以及管理層的準備發言稿，這些內容可在我們公司網站jmsmucker.com上查閱。我們也將在今天上午問答環節結束時發布本次電話會議的音訊回放。

During today's call, we may make forward-looking statements that reflect our current expectations about future plans and performance. These statements rely on assumptions and estimates, and actual results may differ materially due to risks and uncertainties. Additionally, we use non-GAAP results to evaluate performance internally. I encourage you to read the full disclosure concerning forward-looking statements and details on our non-GAAP measures in this morning's press release.

在今天的電話會議中，我們可能會做出前瞻性陳述，以反映我們目前對未來計劃和業績的預期。這些陳述基於假設和估計，實際結果可能因風險和不確定性而存在重大差異。此外，我們使用非公認會計準則 (Non-GAAP) 結果進行內部績效評估。建議您閱讀今天早上新聞稿中有關前瞻性陳述的完整披露以及我們非公認會計準則 (Non-GAAP) 指標的詳細資訊。

Participating on this call are Mark Smucker, Chair of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer; and Tucker Marshall, Chief Financial Officer. We will now open up the call for questions. Operator, please queue up the first question.

本次電話會議的參與者包括董事會主席、總裁兼執行長馬克‧史馬克 (Mark Smucker) 和財務長塔克‧馬歇爾 (Tucker Marshall)。現在我們將開始提問環節。接線員，請排隊提問第一個問題。

(Operator Instructions) Our first question is coming from Andrew Lazar from Barclays.

（操作員指示）我們的第一個問題來自巴克萊銀行的 Andrew Lazar。

I guess to start off, Mark, on the last earnings call, I think you mentioned that if we strip out Jif contract manufacturing and divestiture impacts, company expected about 4% organic sales growth, 3 points of which were expected to be volume on sort of a truly underlying basis for the full year. And I'm curious if this is broadly where you still see it today. And if so, maybe why the company is not necessarily seeing the same sort of volume weakness the industry seems to be dealing with currently and as other sort of peer companies have discussed?

首先，馬克，在上次財報電話會議上，我記得您提到過，如果我們剔除Jif合約製造和資產剝離的影響，公司預計全年有機銷售額將增長約4%，其中3個百分點預計是銷量增長，某種程度上是真正的基礎增長。我很好奇，您現在是否仍然大致保持這種增長勢頭。如果是這樣，那麼為什麼公司沒有像其他同行公司討論的那樣，經歷行業目前面臨的銷售疲軟呢？

Andrew, this is Tucker. You are correct. As you began to break down our 9% comparable growth guidance, that 4% does have 3 points of volume/mix growth, largely driven by Uncrustables, coffee, Milk-Bone and Meow Mix and then the 1 point of pricing as you have noted.

安德魯，我是塔克。你說得對。正如你開始分析我們9%的可比增長預期時發現，這4%確實有3個百分點的銷量/產品組合增長，主要由Uncrustables、咖啡、Milk-Bone和Meow Mix推動，然後還有1個百分點的價格增長，正如你提到的。

Yes, Andrew, it's Mark. Thanks for the question. I think as you look at our categories, we are in the right categories, which are resilient ones. And as we continue to share our story, we've gotten way more focused. We participate in categories that are growing, and we participate across the breadth of those categories, all the while still investing in our brands.

是的，安德魯，我是馬克。謝謝你的提問。我認為，從我們的產品類別來看，我們處於正確的領域，而這些領域都具有韌性。隨著我們不斷分享我們的故事，我們也變得更加專注。我們參與的是正在成長的產品類別，我們參與的範圍非常廣泛，同時我們仍在持續投資於我們的品牌。

So we actually had, as you saw, a very good quarter of both sales and volume growth, and we expect the momentum to continue as we continue to invest, as we continue to execute with excellence, and I can cite multiple areas. I mean, just peanut butter as an example of an affordable protein, continuing to grow, getting Jif back into its #1 share position. Milk-Bone as an example, where you've got products that span value to premium, really meeting the consumer where they need. And then last bit, of course, not least, Uncrustables continues to be a strong growth engine for the company. So just very pleased with the results this quarter and our outlook for the future.

如您所見，我們本季的銷售額和銷售成長都非常可觀。隨著我們持續投入，持續卓越執行，我們預計這一成長動能將持續下去。我可以列舉多個領域。例如，花生醬就是一種價格實惠的蛋白質，其銷售量持續成長，使Jif重回市佔率第一的位置。 Milk-Bone也是一個例子，其產品涵蓋了從平價到高端的各種產品，真正滿足了消費者的需求。當然，最後一點，同樣重要的是，Uncrustables仍然是公司強勁的成長引擎。我們對本季的業績以及未來的展望感到非常滿意。

Got it. And then just lastly, pet sales growth was a bit below what we'd modeled. I guess I'm curious, how did it compare to your expectations? And if sales were a bit slower, I guess, what's driving the weakness? And was it contract manufacturing-related or something else?

明白了。最後，寵物銷售成長略低於我們的模型預測。我很好奇，與您的預期相比如何？如果銷售略有放緩，那麼是什麼原因導致了疲軟？是與合約製造有關還是其他原因？

Andrew, we continue to see positive momentum in our pet portfolio. And any shortfall to expectations for the quarter would be attributable to the co-manufacturing agreement. And as we noted on our prepared remarks, we have revised our outlook for co-manufacturing for the full year to be $160 million, which is a $25 million decline than what we expected coming into the year. And that would have been the driver for the quarter.

安德魯，我們看好的投資組合繼續保持積極勢頭。本季業績低於預期的部分將歸因於聯合生產協議。正如我們在準備好的演講稿中所提到的，我們已將全年聯合生產業務的預期調整為1.6億美元，比年初的預期下降了2500萬美元。這原本是本季業績的驅動因素。

Got it. And just the decline is -- what would drive the decline in the co-man sales?

明白了。那麼，導致合作銷售下滑的原因是什麼呢？

Yes. It would be what Post Holdings would need from their production standpoint as we support relocating products between manufacturing facility and supporting volumes. So it would just be what their expectation is in their network.

是的。從生產角度來看，這正是Post Holdings所需要的，因為我們支持在製造工廠之間轉移產品，並支持大量生產。所以，這正是他們對網路的期望。

Next question is coming from Peter Galbo from Bank of America.

下一個問題來自美國銀行的 Peter Galbo。

Maybe we could just start, I think there's a bit of confusion this morning just around your reported comparable sales growth number, Tucker or Mark, of the 21%. And then I believe on Slide 4 of the supplement, it shows closer to 16%. So I just wanted to be able to bridge that for folks.

也許我們可以先從這個開始。我覺得今天早上大家對你們報告的可比銷售額成長數字有點困惑，是塔克還是馬克說的21%。我記得在補充資料的第4張投影片上，顯示的數字更接近16%。所以我只是想為大家解釋一下。

And maybe, Tucker, if you could just help, I think in the press release, you actually have the GAAP to non-GAAP reconciliation at the 21%. So if we can talk through those as well as just where that comes in relative to what your expectations were, I think, for the quarter of the plus 20% that you would put out last quarter?

塔克，你能幫忙嗎？我記得在新聞稿裡，你的 GAAP 與非 GAAP 的對帳比例是 21%。那麼，我們能否詳細談談這些，以及這與你上個季度預期的 20% 成長相比如何？

Peter, we delivered our quarter in line with our expectations. And let me break this down for you. On a reported basis, we were down 4%. But as you isolate the impact of the pet food divestiture, on a comparable sales basis, we would be up 21%.

彼得，我們本季的業績符合預期。我來給你分析一下。報告顯示，我們的銷售額下降了4%。但如果撇開寵物食品業務剝離的影響，以可比銷售額計算，我們的銷售額將成長21%。

Embedded in that 21% is 11 points of Jif growth or restoration, primarily due to lapping the peanut butter recall. The second component would be the required co-manufacturing agreement or growth of 3 points. That leaves base business growth of 6.5 points for the quarter. And within that 6.5 points, we saw approximately 2.5 from a volume mix standpoint and 4 points from net pricing.

這21%的增幅中，包含11個百分點的Jif成長或恢復，主要得益於花生醬召回事件的解決。第二個因素是必要的聯合生產協議或3個百分點的成長。這使得本季基礎業務成長6.5個百分點。在這6.5個百分點中，我們看到銷售組合成長了約2.5個百分點，淨定價增加了4個百分點。

Okay. And just on the 16%, sorry, that's on Slide 4, Tucker, just again between that versus the 21% that you printed. Just trying to understand the delta.

好的。關於16%，抱歉，那是在投影片4上，塔克，請再說一下這個數字和你印出來的21%之間的差異。只是想了解這個差異。

Yes. It's the math associated with the divestiture impact on a reported basis year-over-year.

是的。這是與報告期間內的逐年剝離影響相關的計算。

Got it. Okay. That's helpful. And then, Mark, I think in your prepared comments, you spoke a bit about a reacceleration or planned reacceleration on Uncrustables growth from the quarter. Can you just kind of speak through the cadence of some of that over the course of the year and maybe just what we might be seeing from a track standpoint versus untracked as you push into some other channels like Canada?

明白了。好的。這很有幫助。然後，馬克，我想在你準備好的評論中，你提到了從本季度開始Uncrustables的增長將重新加速或計劃重新加速。你能否簡單談談今年的成長節奏，以及隨著你進軍加拿大等其他管道，從常規管道和非常規管道的角度來看，我們可能會看到什麼？

Yes, sure, Peter. It's -- first of all, we're really pleased with the Uncrustables growth. Keep in mind that we had -- we're lapping a really strong Q1 last year as well as we had a very strong prior quarter, which happened as a result of us really getting completely off allocation. So the momentum on Uncrustables is actually really strong, and we expect growth to continue to be around that 20-ish percent for the full year.

是的，當然，彼得。首先，我們對 Uncrustables 的成長感到非常滿意。要知道，我們去年第一季的業績非常強勁，上一季也表現非常出色，這得益於我們完全超額完成了分配。所以，Uncrustables 的勢頭實際上非常強勁，我們預計全年成長率將繼續保持在 20% 左右。

And what's driving it is, of course, some expansion into new channels. I mean Canada is so far very, very relatively small but great customer acceptance there, some other expansion into Away From Home. But I think probably most notably is the fact that we have just a lot of runway on household penetration.

當然，推動這項進程的因素是一些新管道的擴張。我的意思是，加拿大目前規模相對較小，但消費者接受度很高，還有一些其他管道的擴張。但我認為最值得注意的是，我們在家庭滲透方面還有很大的發展空間。

If you look in my prepared remarks, just talking about peanut butter and jams and jellies being 3x to household penetration of Uncrustables. So there's plenty of runway there. And we're turning on advertising and other in-store activations. They are really, for the first time, going to start driving demand and pulling through the network. So just very positive on Uncrustables still and expect to hit around $800 million for the year in sales.

如果你看一下我準備好的演講稿，上面提到花生醬、果醬和果凍的家庭滲透率是Uncrustables的3倍。所以這方面還有很大的發展空間。我們正在增加廣告和其他店內活動的力度。這些活動將首次真正開始拉動需求，並拉動整個網路。所以，我對Uncrustables仍然非常樂觀，預計今年的銷售額將達到8億美元左右。

Next question is coming from Ken Goldman from JPMorgan.

下一個問題來自摩根大通的肯‧戈德曼。

Just following up on your commentary that for the second quarter, like-for-like sales should be up mid-single digits and EPS up low single. Just as we think about modeling the quarter, are there any unusual tailwinds or headwinds to consider? I guess, how do we think about the specific cadence of your contract sales on pet in the quarter? Are there any lingering benefits from lapping the Jif recall that may bleed into 2Q? Just wanted to get a sense of anything we should think about just -- as we're modeling as precisely as we can.

剛才您提到，第二季同店銷售額應該會成長中等個位數，每股盈餘應該會成長低個位數。當我們考慮對本季進行建模時，是否有任何異常的順風或逆風需要考慮？我想，我們如何考慮本季寵物合約銷售的具體節奏？ Jif 召回事件的後續收益是否可能延續到第二季​​？只是想了解我們應該考慮哪些因素——因為我們正在盡可能精確地進行建模。

As you think about the second quarter, just reinforcing mid-single-digit top line, and that's squarely in mid-single digits, low single-digit bottom line. The first component that I would just acknowledge is that we did have a $0.16 over-delivery in the first quarter, which was largely SD&A-driven. So the predominance of those expenses will begin to come back in the second quarter and then throughout the remainder of the fiscal year.

回顧第二季度，我們的營收只是在中個位數水準上有所鞏固，而我們的利潤也基本上在中個位數水平，低個位數水平。首先我要承認的是，我們第一季的交付量確實超額了0.16美元，這主要是由銷售、行政和管理費用（SD&A）造成的。因此，這些費用的主導地位將在第二季以及本財年剩餘時間內開始回升。

And then as you think through the balance of the portfolio, continued momentum of spreads with some Jif recovery coming into the second quarter, momentum on Uncrustables, the coffee category will continue to perform. And then in the pet segment, there's -- the co-manufacturing sales, you probably could just make a little bit more equally across the second and third quarters with a slight slowdown in the fourth.

然後，當你考慮投資組合的平衡時，你會發現利差的勢頭持續，Jif在第二季度有所復甦，Uncrustables的勢頭也將繼續，咖啡類別也將繼續表現良好。然後，在寵物領域，聯合製造銷售，你可能會在第二季和第三季的利潤更加均衡，而第四季的利潤會略有放緩。

Got it. That's helpful. And then just to follow up on your comment about SD&A. You previously guided, I think, to roughly even expense on that line item each quarter this year. Obviously, 1Q came in light. As we think about the next few quarters, should each of them be roughly the same? I guess it's around $355 million implied. Or there will be -- might there be a little bit more lumpiness as they sometimes do?

明白了。這很有幫助。然後，我想跟進一下您關於銷售、管理及攤銷（SD&A）的評論。我認為，您之前曾指導今年每季該項目的支出大致持平。顯然，第一季的情況有所改善。當我們考慮接下來的幾季時，每季的支出應該大致相同嗎？我猜隱含的金額大約是3.55億美元。或者可能會有－可能會像有時那樣，出現一些波動？

Ken, I'm just verifying, but I think your assumption is fair around the $355 million over the next 3 quarters.

肯，我只是在驗證，但我認為你對未來 3 個季度 3.55 億美元的假設是合理的。

And should we just model that evenly barring any other information?

我們是否應該只均勻地建模而不考慮其他資訊？

Correct.

正確的。

Next question is coming from Matt Smith from Stifel.

下一個問題來自 Stifel 的 Matt Smith。

I wanted to ask about the pricing and inflation dynamic in U.S. Consumer Foods. I believe you said that on an underlying basis, pricing continued to lag inflation. So can you talk about the outlook there and when you expect that dynamic to inflect in your pricing to more than offset current inflation?

我想問美國消費食品產業的定價和通膨動態。我記得您說過，從根本上講，定價仍然落後於通膨。您能否談談該行業的前景，以及您預計這種動態何時會影響定價，從而超過當前的通膨水平？

Yes. I think, Matt, we are seeing pricing offset inflation in our consumer foods business. I think generally, across our entire business, pricing is relatively stable. We would consider ourselves still in an inflationary environment. We have had some -- we've sharpened our price points on coffee and passed some of that through to customers and consumers. And so that will help coffee in our future quarters as well. But generally speaking, whether it's consumer or the business in total, we have recovered inflation.

是的。馬特，我認為我們的消費食品業務的定價抵消了通貨膨脹的影響。我認為總體而言，我們整個業務的定價相對穩定。我們認為我們仍然處於通膨環境。我們已經降低了咖啡的價格，並將部分通膨轉嫁給了客戶和消費者。這也將有助於我們未來幾季的咖啡銷售。但總體而言，無論是消費者還是整個業務，我們都已經恢復了通膨水準。

Okay. And then you mentioned coffee -- lower coffee prices passing on to the consumer. Are there other areas of the business, maybe not directly commodity-related where you're seeing competitors already lowering their pricing, not necessarily related to the underlying commodity, things getting a little more competitive perhaps?

好的。然後您提到了咖啡——咖啡價格降低會轉嫁給消費者。您是否發現其他業務領域，可能與商品沒有直接關係，競爭對手也已經開始降低價格，但不一定與商品本身有關，或許競爭會變得更加激烈？

There's a -- a pretty short answer is generally no. We have not seen significant deflation across the industry.

答案很簡單，一般來說是否定​​的。我們還沒有看到整個產業出現明顯的通貨緊縮。

Next question is coming from Pamela Kaufman from Morgan Stanley.

下一個問題來自摩根士丹利的帕梅拉‧考夫曼。

Just wanted to dig into the coffee outlook a bit more. Can you talk about your strategy for coffee pricing this year given the favorability in coffee costs and how to think about the outlook for promotions versus potential list price changes? And I guess, generally, what are your expectations for segment growth? And how should we think about pricing versus volumes for the balance of the year?

我想進一步探討一下咖啡的前景。考慮到咖啡成本的有利因素，您能否談談今年咖啡的定價策略？您如何看待促銷前景與潛在的定價變化？總的來說，您對細分市場的成長預期是什麼？今年剩餘時間裡，我們該如何看待定價與銷售的關係？

Pam, maybe I'll start and maybe Tucker probably has a comment here. We did see some -- a little bit of relief in the commodity, and that's what drove us to sharpen our price points in a few of our coffee brands. That has really took place in this month. So that will start to impact and help the business going forward.

帕姆，我先說，塔克可能也想說。我們確實看到了一些——商品價格略有回落，這促使我們提高了一些咖啡品牌的價格。本月確實有所提升。所以，這將開始對未來的業務產生影響，並有所幫助。

Just a reminder that as we manage price, we really try to be prudent. We do feel that it's important to pass along both increases and decreases, but we do, do that with multiple levers. Sometimes, it's list price, sometimes it's trade or just getting a little bit more surgical on pricing, and that's really what we've done here. And so we do expect that to support the coffee business going forward. But beyond what I shared, we don't -- we probably cannot speculate on any future movements at this time.

需要提醒的是，我們在管理價格時，確實力求謹慎。我們確實認為，價格上漲和下跌都應同時傳導，但我們會透過多種手段來實現。有時是標價，有時是貿易價，或只是稍微精打細算地定價，我們目前的做法就是這樣。因此，我們確實希望這能支持咖啡業務的未來發展。但除了我之前分享的內容之外，我們目前無法——我們可能無法推測任何未來的走勢。

Great. And then just on the Pet segment. Can you talk a bit about what you're seeing in the consumer behavior in the pet category? We've heard from some of your competitors that consumers are exhibiting increasing demand elasticity and some trade-down in pet, particularly when it comes to treating. Obviously, Milk-Bone sales were still strong in the quarter. So just curious to hear what you're seeing in the dynamics in the category?

太好了。接下來談談寵物細分市場。能談談寵物品類的消費者行為嗎？我們從一些競爭對手那裡聽說，消費者的需求彈性正在增強，寵物食品的消費有所下降，尤其是在零食方面。顯然，本季牛奶骨的銷量依然強勁。所以，我很好奇您觀察到的寵物品類的動態是怎麼樣的呢？

Yes, sure. I mean, what I can speak to is largely pet snacks, specifically dog snacks. We did have a strong quarter on Milk-Bone and did see some good growth there. Part of the reason that we continue to have good growth is, as I've said before, the brand plays in that entire range of value from premium to more value-oriented or mainstream products. We have seen a little bit of a shift to more of this -- the standard Milk-Bone biscuit, if you will.

是的，當然。我的意思是，我能談的主要是寵物零食，特別是狗狗零食。 Milk-Bone 本季表現強勁，確實實現了良好的成長。我們持續保持良好成長的部分原因是，正如我之前所說，該品牌涵蓋了從高端產品到更注重價值或主流產品的整個價值鏈。我們已經看到一些品牌轉向了這類產品——也就是標準的 Milk-Bone 餅乾。

Our premium offerings continue to do well, but there may have been just a little bit of shift there. And then with -- as we've improved our supply chain on Meow Mix and gotten the original blend item back into sort of the #1 volume position, that also would speak to the fact that our mainstream consumers are continuing to buy that product. So we feel very good about where our total pet portfolio plays at this point.

我們的高端產品繼續表現良好，但可能只是略有變化。此外，隨著我們改進了喵喵混合產品的供應鏈，並將原味混合產品重回銷售第一的位置，這也說明我們的主流消費者仍在繼續購買該產品。因此，我們對目前寵物產品組合的整體表現感到非常滿意。

(Operator Instructions) Our next question is coming from Rob Dickerson from Jefferies.

（操作員指示）我們的下一個問題來自 Jefferies 的 Rob Dickerson。

Tucker, just first question for you. In the prepared remarks, you talked about the derivative instruments for the shares that are being divested. And it sounds like that cash inflow comes in Q3. And it seems like kind of where your leverage is now and then with your incremental cash coming in, you could potentially be at 2x net or lower maybe by the end of the fiscal year. That's, by far, the lowest you've been in like almost 10 years, I think. So I'm just curious kind of how you're thinking about potential incremental capital deployment. And I realize you buy back stock, increase the dividend. But once you're hitting 2x or less, seems like there could be incremental appetite, let's say, for acquisitions. So just curious how you're thinking about that?

塔克，我先問你一個問題。在準備好的演講稿中，你談到了正在剝離的股票的衍生性商品。聽起來這筆現金流入是在第三季。現在看來，隨著增量現金流入，你的槓桿率似乎處於目前的水平，到本財年末，你的淨利潤率可能會達到2倍或更低。我想，這是近10年來的最低水準。所以我很好奇，你是如何考慮潛在的增量資本配置的。我知道你會回購股票，增加股利。但一旦你的淨利率達到2倍或更低，似乎可能會有增量需求，比如說，收購。我很好奇你是怎麼考慮的？

Rob, it's Mark. Yes, we feel very good about our balance sheet right now. And obviously, this has been our intent all along. As you know, we have over the last couple of years been really focused in terms of refining our portfolio. But it does not mean that we're not interested in acquisitions. We remain very interested. And as you know, the industry as a whole has been somewhat quiet on the M&A front, but it's not for lack of investigating and looking, keeping lines in the water. And so we hope that M&A will continue or acquisition specifically will continue to play an important part of our growth story over time.

Rob，我是Mark。是的，我們對目前的資產負債表非常滿意。顯然，這一直是我們的目標。如你所知，過去幾年我們一直專注於完善投資組合。但這並不代表我們對收購不感興趣。我們仍然非常感興趣。如你所知，整個產業在併購方面一直比較平靜，但這並不是因為缺乏調查和觀察，也並非因為缺乏規劃。因此，我們希望併購能夠繼續下去，或者說，收購能夠繼續在我們的成長故事中扮演重要角色。

Next question is coming from Jason English from Goldman Sachs.

下一個問題來自高盛的 Jason English。

Congrats on a strong start to the year.

恭喜您今年有一個好的開始。

Thank you.

謝謝。

A couple of questions for you. So the SD&A favorability looks like it was really corporate expense-related. What drove it? And why shouldn't we take that to the bank and assume it's going to be lower for the remainder of the year?

問您幾個問題。所以，SD&A 的受歡迎程度看起來確實與企業費用有關。是什麼導致了這項變化？我們為什麼不應該根據這個情況假設今年剩餘時間的銷售額會更低？

Jason, we saw some favorability within SD&A on the marketing line of some of our distribution and operations support lines and then also within our traditional corporate functions of administrative support. And really what we have made the decision to do is to continue to support our brands. So we have some incremental marketing that we're contemplating in the next 3 quarters. And also some of the expenses were timing-related. And so those are coming back in the second quarter. So we are not seeing SD&A favorability at this point in our fiscal year despite having seen it in our first quarter.

傑森，我們發現，SD&A 在我們部分分銷和營運支援線的行銷線上，以及我們傳統的行政支援等企業職能部門中，都存在一些利好因素。我們真正決定要做的是繼續支持我們的品牌。因此，我們正在考慮在未來三個季度進行一些增量行銷。此外，一些費用與時間安排有關，這些費用將在第二季重新計算。因此，儘管在第一季我們曾看到 SD&A 的利好，但在本財年目前階段，我們並沒有看到 SD&A 的利多。

So I assume the timing was that corporate line because distribution is distribution. Marketing, that looks like it's timing, right, because you're holding the full year. Within corporate, what was the timing benefit this quarter? Because it was chunky. Your corporate was much lower than we expected.

所以我假設時機是公司層面的，因為分銷就是分銷。行銷，看起來是時機，對吧，因為你持有的是全年數據。在公司層面，本季的時機優勢是什麼？因為它很豐厚。你的公司業績比我們預期的要低得多。

Yes. Just it had to do with various corporate items around accruals, incentives, timing of spend through various projects, so on and so forth.

是的。只是它與各種公司項目有關，包括應計項目、激勵措施、各種項目的支出時間等等。

Okay. That's helpful. And then turning back to some of the segments. Looking at coffee, the price was weaker than we expected, and it sounds like it's going to get even a little more -- and it sounds like it's going to turn deflationary based on the comments you made around the investment just this month.

好的。這很有幫助。然後回到一些細分市場。看看咖啡，價格比我們預期的要弱，而且聽起來還會進一步上漲——根據你本月就投資發表的評論，聽起來咖啡價格將進入通貨緊縮階段。

A, is that right? B, do you expect the segment to still post organic growth if price is deflating? Given there's really no volume growth in the industry, it actually looks like it's contracting. And sorry, 3-part question. In light of the price investment, should we view a return to low 30s EBIT margins as (inaudible) for this year?

A，是這樣嗎？ B，如果價格下跌，您預期該部門仍會實現有機成長嗎？鑑於該行業銷量實際上沒有成長，實際上看起來是在萎縮。抱歉，這個問題分成三個部分。考慮到價格投資，我們是否應該將今年的息稅前利潤率（EBIT）回升至30%左右的低點視為（聽不清楚）？

So Jason, maybe breaking this down, we -- on a year-over-year basis, coffee should be flat to slightly down just due to deflation in the underlying green coffee. We are expecting a level of volume momentum for the portfolio on a year-over-year basis.

所以傑森，或許我們可以這樣細分——與去年同期相比，咖啡價格應該持平或略有下降，這僅僅是由於基礎生咖啡價格的通貨緊縮。我們預期投資組合的成交量將維持一定的年成長動能。

We do see gross profit margin improvement year-over-year, as you have noted. And from a segment profit standpoint, we are spending back some of that gross profit improvement in the form of marketing and investments in liquid coffee and sustainability. And so we would expect the segment profit margin to sort of be in the high 20s.

正如您所說，我們的毛利率確實比去年同期增長了。從分部利潤的角度來看，我們將部分毛利率的成長以行銷、液體咖啡和永續發展投資的形式進行回籠。因此，我們預期分部利潤率將達到20%左右。

Next question today is coming from Max Gumport from BNP Paribas.

今天的下一個問題來自法國巴黎銀行的馬克斯‧甘波特 (Max Gumport)。

With regard to gross margin, you took up your full year guidance. It sounds like it was due to incremental cost favorability. I was wondering if you could give us any color on some of the drivers of that capability you're seeing and what the sources of the change were and how that might impact your assumptions around cadence for the next 3 quarters as well?

關於毛利率，您保留了全年預期。聽起來這似乎是由於成本優勢的提升。請問您能否詳細介紹您觀察到的毛利率變化的一些驅動因素，以及這種變化的根源，以及這將如何影響您對未來三個季度的節奏的假設？

Max, as you noted, we came into our fiscal year with a gross profit margin guidance of 36.5% to 37%. We have now guided to a 37% outlook for the balance of the year. So on average, we've come up about 25 basis points. What gave us conviction in doing that was just seeing some cost favorability within total cost of goods sold.

馬克斯，正如您所說，我們進入本財年時的毛利率預期為36.5%至37%。現在，我們已將本財年剩餘時間的毛利率預期調整為37%。因此，平均而言，我們提高了約25個基點。我們之所以有信心這樣做，是因為我們看到總銷售成本中存在一些成本優勢。

In areas where you have a level of commodities, you have a level of transportation, you may have some in the manufacturing and distribution environment. But it's not significant. It's just some level of cost improvement. As we think about the outlook for the balance of the year, that gross profit margin will improve in each of the next 3 quarters in order to get you to the 37% outlook for the full year, and it will be pretty consistent over Q2, 3 and 4.

在商品、運輸以及製造和分銷領域，毛利率可能會有所提升。但這並不顯著，只是一定程度的成本改善。展望今年餘下的業績，我們預期毛利率將在接下來的三個季度持續提升，最終達到全年37%的預期目標，並且在第二、三、四季將保持相當穩定的成長。

And turning back to the commentary on trade-down in pet. We've also been hearing some chatter about this dynamic and seeing it in the data as well. I'm curious what you think is driving this increased value-seeking behavior and how long you think it can persist?

回到關於寵物降價的評論。我們也聽到了一些關於這種動態的討論​​，並且也在數據中看到了這一點。我很好奇，您認為是什麼推動了這種價值追求行為的增加，以及您認為這種行為會持續多久？

Max, it's Mark. I won't speculate on how long. I do think as we have refined our portfolio to fit our strategy, obviously, pet snacks is really our crown jewel there. And I answered a little bit of that question earlier.

馬克斯，我是馬克。我不會猜測會持續多久。我確實認為，隨著我們不斷優化產品組合以適應我們的策略，寵物零食顯然是我們真正的主打產品。我之前已經回答過這個問題。

Keep in mind that we all as pet owners feed our pets, obviously, pet food. Pet snacks are a little bit more discretionary. But nonetheless, keep in mind that consumers oftentimes treat their pets better than their children. And so we do believe that the pet snacks and particularly our dog snacks portfolio, will continue to perform as we continue to meet the needs of consumers wherever they may be at from value to premium. So we really feel good about where our portfolio is positioned there.

請記住，作為寵物主人，我們都會給寵物餵食寵物食品。寵物零食的選擇則更加隨興。但無論如何，請記住，消費者對待寵物往往比對待孩子更好。因此，我們相信，隨著我們繼續滿足消費者從平價到高端的各種需求，寵物零食，尤其是我們的狗零食產品組合將繼續保持良好的表現。因此，我們對目前的產品組合定位感到非常滿意。

Next question is coming from Steve Powers from Deutsche Bank.

下一個問題來自德意志銀行的史蒂夫鮑爾斯。

Just a question on -- as it relates to free cash flow. Given that you've raised your outlook $0.25, which implies a decent -- I mean, if that is a cash EPS increase, I would expect a little bit of flow through, maybe $25 million or so, to free cash flow that we don't seem to be seeing. So maybe you can just talk about what's driving that?

就自由現金流而言，我只想問一個問題。鑑於您上調了每股收益預期 0.25 美元，這意味著相當可觀的——我的意思是，如果這是現金每股收益的增長，我預計會有少量資金流入自由現金流，大概 2500 萬美元左右，而我們似乎並沒有看到這樣的情況。您能否談談是什麼推動了這項成長？

Steve, we are seeing some incremental cash taxes as we had a strong finish to our last fiscal year as we continue to look through certain activities through this fiscal year. And that has really been the driver of the change of why we didn't raise our free cash flow guidance.

史蒂夫，由於我們上一財年業績強勁，現金稅有所增加，而我們本財年仍在繼續關注某些業務。這才是我們沒有上調自由現金流指引的真正原因。

Next question is coming from Robert Moskow from TD Cowen.

下一個問題來自 TD Cowen 的 Robert Moskow。

Can you hear me better?

你聽清楚我的話嗎？

Yes, Rob, welcome back.

是的，羅布，歡迎回來。

Yes. Slow start, for sure. In the prepared remarks, you said that Meow Mix continues -- the demand continues to exceed your capacity, and you're beginning to replenish inventory. What's the plan for improving your capacity for Meow Mix? You say in second quarter that you -- it looks like you're going to grow above consumption in second quarter. What are you doing at the plants to stretch your capacity to make that happen?

是的。確實起步緩慢。在準備好的演講中，你說Meow Mix仍在繼續——需求持續超過你們的產能，你們正在開始補充庫存。你們有什麼計劃來提高Meow Mix的產能？您在第二季說過－看起來你們的產量成長將超過消費量。你們在工廠裡做了哪些工作來擴大產能，以實現這個目標？

Rob, it's Mark. We're already in process, of course, on those efforts. And it's all around productivity and making sure that the plants themselves are operating at their highest capacity. There's some nominal capital investments to make sure that the equipment is running as best as it can. And so it's really -- it's fundamentally around those types of things. And we do expect the improvement to continue through the second quarter and support the demand.

Rob，我是Mark。當然，我們已經在進行這些努力了。這一切都圍繞著生產力，確保工廠本身以最高產能運作。我們進行了一些名義上的資本投資，以確保設備以最佳狀態運作。所以，這真的——從根本上來說，都是圍繞著這些事情進行的。我們確實預計這種改善將持續到第二季​​度，並支持需求。

Okay. Any unusual impact in the back half of the year? Will this be an easy comparison in the back half? Or will it be kind of like normal ship-to-consumption?

好的。下半年會有什麼不尋常的影響嗎？下半年的情況容易比較嗎？還是會像正常的從出貨到消費一樣？

It should be normal.

應該是正常的。

We reached the end of our question-and-answer session. I'd like to turn the floor back over for any further or closing comments.

我們的問答環節已經結束。現在，請大家繼續提問或發表結束語。

Thank you. Thank you all for your time today for joining the call. We are really pleased with the positive start to our fiscal year. And of course, as we always say, our results were really made possible by our outstanding employees. So I'd like to just take a moment to thank them for their hard work and dedication to the company.

謝謝大家！感謝大家今天抽空參加電話會議。我們對財年開局良好感到非常高興。當然，正如我們常說的，我們的業績很大程度上歸功於我們優秀的員工。因此，我想藉此機會感謝他們的辛勤工作和對公司的奉獻。

We hope that many of you will be able to join us in Boston at the Barclays Conference next week. A live webcast of our presentation on September 5 at 12:45 can also be accessed from our Investor Relations website. So I hope to see you all there in person or virtually. Thank you.

我們希望各位能夠參加下週在波士頓舉行的巴克萊會議。 9月5日12:45的演講網路直播也可以在我們的投資者關係網站上觀看。希望各位能夠親臨現場或透過線上平台與我們見面。謝謝！

Thank you. That does conclude today's teleconference and webcast. You may disconnect your lines at this time, and have a wonderful day. We thank you for your participation today.

謝謝大家。今天的電話會議和網路直播到此結束。現在您可以掛斷電話了，祝大家有個美好的一天。感謝您今天的參與。