Standard Motor Products Inc (SMP) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good day, everyone, and welcome to the Standard Motor Products' third-quarter 2024 earnings call. (Operator Instructions)

大家好，歡迎參加標準電機產品公司 2024 年第三季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）

Please note today's call will be recorded and I will be standing by should you need any assistance. It is now my pleasure to turn the conference over to Tony Cristello, Vice President of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

請注意，今天的通話將被錄音，如果您需要任何幫助，我將隨時待命。現在我很高興將會議交給投資者關係副總裁 Tony Cristello。請繼續。

Thank you, Britney, and good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us on Standard Motor Products Third Quarter 2024 Earnings Conference Call. With me today are Larry Sills, Chairman Emeritus; Eric Sills, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; Jim Burke, Chief Operating Officer; and Nathan Iles, Chief Financial Officer.

謝謝布蘭妮，大家早上好，謝謝您參加標準汽車產品公司 2024 年第三季財報電話會議。今天與我在一起的有榮譽主席拉里·希爾斯 (Larry Sills)；希爾斯（Eric Sils），董事長兼執行長；吉姆·伯克，營運長；和財務長內森‧艾爾斯 (Nathan Iles)。

On our call today, Eric will give an overview of our performance in the quarter, and Nathan will then discuss our financial results. Eric will then provide some concluding remarks and open the call up for Q&A. Before we begin this morning, I'd like to remind you that some of the material that we'll be discussing today may include forward-looking statements regarding our business and expected financial results.

在今天的電話會議上，艾瑞克將概述我們本季的業績，然後內森將討論我們的財務表現。然後埃里克將提供一些總結性評論並開始問答環節。在今天早上開始之前，我想提醒您，我們今天將討論的一些資料可能包括有關我們業務和預期財務業績的前瞻性陳述。

When we use words like anticipate, believe, estimate or expect, these are generally forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, they are based on information currently available to us and certain assumptions made by us, and we cannot assure you that they will prove correct.

當我們使用「預期」、「相信」、「估計」或「期望」等字眼時，這些通常是前瞻性陳述。儘管我們認為這些前瞻性聲明中反映的預期是合理的，但它們是基於我們目前掌握的資訊和我們所做的某些假設，我們不能向您保證它們將被證明是正確的。

You should also read our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a discussion of the risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ from our forward-looking statements.

您還應該閱讀我們向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件，以了解可能導致我們的實際結果與前瞻性陳述不同的風險和不確定性的討論。

I'll now turn the call over to Eric Sills, our CEO.

現在我將把電話轉給我們的執行長 Eric Sills。

Well, thank you, Tony, and good morning, everyone, and welcome to our third quarter earnings call. I'd like to start by thanking all of our employees around the world, recognizing them for the outstanding efforts in driving our company forward. They continue to do a fantastic job for us.

好吧，謝謝托尼，大家早上好，歡迎參加我們的第三季財報電話會議。首先，我要感謝我們世界各地的所有員工，認可他們為推動我們公司前進所做的傑出努力。他們繼續為我們做了出色的工作。

Overall, we are very pleased with the quarter posting a 3.3% increase over last year's record-setting quarter, putting us up almost 6% year to date. And this included revenue gains in all three operating segments, which I'll discuss in greater detail.

總體而言，我們對本季比去年創紀錄的季度增長 3.3% 感到非常滿意，使我們今年迄今增長了近 6%。這包括所有三個營運部門的收入成長，我將對此進行更詳細的討論。

We are also pleased with the ongoing rebound of our profitability. Adjusted diluted EPS was up over 15% from last year's third quarter, and we are now nicely ahead on a year-to-date basis. While we continue to face elevated costs across a host of inputs, we were able to overcome some of it through our various cost reduction initiatives.

我們也對獲利能力的持續反彈感到高興。調整後的攤薄每股收益比去年第三季增加了 15% 以上，我們現在在年初至今的基礎上大幅領先。雖然我們持續面臨大量投入成本上升的問題，但我們能夠透過各種降低成本的措施克服其中的一些問題。

Let me discuss the segments starting with vehicle control. Sales were up 5% in the quarter against a relatively easy comparison and up 3% on a year-to-date basis. Our customers continue to invest in our lines as they enhance their assortments, expand their footprint and recognize the benefits of strong stocking positions in this largely nondiscretionary category.

讓我從車輛控制開始討論各個部分。該季度銷售額與相對簡單的比較相比增長了 5%，與年初至今相比增長了 3%。我們的客戶不斷投資我們的產品線，因為他們增強了產品種類，擴大了業務範圍，並認識到在這一非自由裁量品類中強大的庫存優勢所帶來的好處。

Turning to temperature control. We are pleased to see continued strong demand in the quarter. I think it's always helpful to remind people of the sales cadence of this highly seasonal category as it can vary substantially year to year. 2023 had a slow start, but then in the third quarter, it got quite hot across the country, and we had a record-setting period.

轉向溫度控制。我們很高興看到本季需求持續強勁。我認為提醒人們這種季節性很強的品類的銷售節奏總是有幫助的，因為它每年都會有很大的變化。 2023年開局緩慢，但到了第三季度，全國變得相當炎熱，我們迎來了創紀錄的時期。

This year, it got hot earlier, and we were up 16% at the half. We knew the third quarter comp would be difficult, so we are quite pleased to see sales remain robust, allowing us to beat last year's strong numbers by nearly 2%, and year-to-date, we are up now nearly 10%. As we head into the last few months of the year, it's worth reminding people that the fourth quarter is the lowest sales quarter and thus can be the most volatile.

今年熱得比較早，半年就漲了16%。我們知道第三季的業績會很困難，因此我們很高興看到銷售保持強勁，使我們能夠比去年的強勁數字增長近 2%，而今年迄今為止，我們的成長接近 10%。當我們進入今年的最後幾個月時，值得提醒人們的是，第四季度是銷售最低的季度，因此可能是最不穩定的。

Next, I'll address engineered solutions, our non-aftermarket segment selling products to vehicle and equipment manufacturers across multiple end markets. We continue to do well here, up nearly 1% in the quarter against a tough comparison as last year's third quarter was up more than 8% over 2022.

接下來，我將討論工程解決方案，也就是我們的非售後部門，向多個終端市場的車輛和設備製造商銷售產品。我們在這方面繼續表現出色，本季成長了近 1%，而去年第三季比 2022 年成長了 8% 以上。

Here, we do see some challenging market dynamics. The majority of our sales in this segment are geared towards new vehicle production and, therefore, are at the mercy of our customers' production schedules. Certain of these customers' end-to-end markets are beginning to show a slowdown, creating a headwind for us.

在這裡，我們確實看到了一些具有挑戰性的市場動態。我們在該領域的大部分銷售都用於新車生產，因此受到客戶生產計劃的影響。其中某些客戶的端到端市場開始出現放緩，為我們帶來了阻力。

We have always said that our success in this segment will be on achieving new contracts as we get known by these various global customers as a capable and committed supplier, and we are pleased that we have been more than able to offset the production slowdowns with the ramp up of some new business wins. However, we do expect some market softness to continue and face another tough comp in the fourth quarter.

我們一直說，我們在這一領域的成功將取決於獲得新合同，因為我們被這些全球客戶視為有能力和忠誠的供應商，我們很高興我們能夠通過以下方式抵消生產放緩的影響：增加一些新業務的成功。然而，我們確實預計市場將繼續疲軟，並在第四季度面臨另一場艱難的競爭。

Lastly, I want to spend a moment on a major acquisition announced in July. To remind you, we reached a definitive agreement to acquire Europe-based to Nissens Automotive pending regulatory approval. We have now achieved this approval, and as such, we expect to complete the transaction soon. Let me provide you with a thumbnail sketch of the company and our plans. If you wish to dig deeper, please review the materials and transcript from our investor call on July 10.

最後，我想花點時間談談 7 月宣布的一項重大收購。謹此提醒您，我們已達成最終協議，收購歐洲的 Nissens Automotive，目前正在等待監管部門的批准。我們現已獲得批准，因此，我們預計很快就能完成交易。讓我為您提供公司和我們計劃的縮圖。如果您想深入了解，請查看我們 7 月 10 日投資者電話會議的資料和記錄。

Headquartered in Denmark, Nissens is a leading aftermarket supplier of both thermal management and engine efficiency products with annual sales of approximately $260 million and EBITDA in the mid-teens. Both sides are eager to get started working on the synergies, which we believe will fall in three main buckets.

Nissens 總部位於丹麥，是熱管理和發動機效率產品的領先售後市場供應商，年銷售額約為 2.6 億美元，稅息折舊及攤銷前利潤 (EBITDA) 約為 15%。雙方都渴望開始發揮協同效應，我們認為這將分為三個主要面向。

First is growth. We have overlapping product categories, though with differing weights and strengths. We believe we can expand each other's portfolios and grow sales in our respective markets.

首先是成長。我們有重疊的產品類別，儘管重量和強度不同。我們相信我們可以擴大彼此的產品組合併增加各自市場的銷售。

Second is cost reduction. While there are many areas for cost savings across all functional areas for both Nissens and SMP, we believe this biggest areas for savings is likely product cost as we leverage our purchases with third-party suppliers and in-source production where applicable.

二是降低成本。雖然 Nissens 和 SMP 的所有職能領域都有很多可以節省成本的領域，但我們認為最大的節省領域可能是產品成本，因為我們利用了與第三方供應商的採購以及適用的內部生產。

The third area for synergies is in helping each other become better companies and thus better suppliers to our customers. We can see best practices across common functions. We can combine resources to tackle new technologies and pursue many other benefits through collaboration.

綜效的第三個領域是幫助彼此成為更好的公司，從而成為我們客戶更好的供應商。我們可以看到常見功能的最佳實踐。我們可以整合資源來應對新技術，並透過合作追求許多其他利益。

We've been extremely impressed with the talent of the Nissens team, with the energy and excitement that they have demonstrated and truly believe we have matching cultures. So again, we are very eager to get started, and we'll keep you posted on our progress.

尼森團隊的才華、他們所展現的活力和興奮給我們留下了深刻的印象，他們堅信我們擁有匹配的文化。再說一次，我們非常渴望開始，我們將隨時向您通報我們的進展。

With that, I will turn it over to Nathan to dive into the numbers.

有了這個，我將把它交給內森來深入研究數字。

All right. Thank you, Eric, and good morning, everyone. As we go through the numbers, I'll first give some color on results by segment in the consolidated level, then cover some key balance sheet and cash flow metrics and finally provide a brief update on our financial outlook for the full year of 2024.

好的。謝謝你，艾瑞克，大家早安。當我們瀏覽這些數字時，我將首先對合併層級中按部門劃分的結果進行一些說明，然後介紹一些關鍵的資產負債表和現金流量指標，最後簡要介紹我們 2024 年全年的財務前景。

First, looking at our vehicle control segment, you can see on the slide that net sales of $200.9 million in Q3 were up 5.2% and for the first nine months are now up 2.8% with the increase driven by solid demand for our products and new business wins. Vehicle controls adjusted EBITDA of 13.2% for the third quarter is up from last year, driven by a higher gross margin rate and better leverage of operating expenses. The gross margin rate was helped by higher sales and favorable cost absorption and operating expense leverage also benefited from the higher sales volume.

首先，看看我們的車輛控制部門，您可以在幻燈片上看到，第三季的淨銷售額為2.009 億美元，成長了5.2%，前9 個月的淨銷售額成長了2.8%，成長的推動因素是對我們產品和新產品的強勁需求。由於較高的毛利率和更好的營運費用槓桿，車輛控制第三季調整後的 EBITDA 為 13.2%，較去年同期成長。毛利率得益於較高的銷售額和有利的成本吸收，而營業費用槓桿也受益於較高的銷售量。

Vehicle control's adjusted EBITDA of 11.4% for the first nine months is down from last year, mainly as a result of higher operating and factoring expenses. SG&A expenses increased mainly due to inflationary increases, which I'll touch more on later and factoring expenses increased due to higher sales and timing of cash collections.

Vehicle control 前 9 個月的調整後 EBITDA 為 11.4%，低於去年同期，主要是由於營運和保理費用增加。 SG&A 費用的增加主要是由於通貨膨脹的增加（我稍後會詳細討論），而保理費用的增加是由於銷售額的增加和現金收款的時機增加。

Turning to temperature control. Net sales in the quarter for that segment of $126 million were up 1.9%. And for the year so far, sales are now up 9.9% as we had another year of favorable weather patterns that started early in the season and continued into the third quarter, helping the segment turn in higher sales against a difficult comparison.

轉向溫度控制。該部門本季的淨銷售額為 1.26 億美元，成長 1.9%。今年到目前為止，銷售額成長了9.9%，因為我們又迎來了有利的天氣模式，從季節初開始並持續到第三季度，幫助該細分市場在艱難的比較中實現了更高的銷售額。

Temperature control's adjusted EBITDA increased in Q3 to 14.7% and for the first nine months, increased to 11.7% as higher sales volumes led to higher gross margin rates and improved operating expenses as a percent of sales for both the quarter and year-to-date periods.

溫度控制的調整後 EBITDA 在第三季度增長至 14.7%，前 9 個月增長至 11.7%，因為銷量增加導致毛利率提高，營運費用佔本季和年初至今銷售額的百分比有所改善期間。

Looking at engineered solutions, sales in that segment in the quarter were up 0.8%, and for the first nine months were up 3.8%. We were pleased to see our sales continue to increase in this segment as new business wins with both existing and new customers support growth here despite some slowing of production in certain end markets.

就工程解決方案而言，本季該細分市場的銷售額成長了 0.8%，前 9 個月成長了 3.8%。我們很高興看到我們在這一領域的銷售額繼續成長，儘管某些終端市場的生產有所放緩，但現有和新客戶的新業務贏得了支持，支持了該領域的成長。

Adjusted EBITDA for engineered solutions in the quarter of 11.9% was down from last year but was up against a difficult comparison in the third quarter last year where the gross margin rate benefited from favorable customer mix.

本季工程解決方案的調整後 EBITDA 為 11.9%，較去年有所下降，但與去年第三季的艱難比較相比，去年第三季的毛利率受益於有利的客戶組合。

While gross margin was lower due to a more normal sales mix, it also continued to see cost pressures and was partly offset by operating expenses that were lower as a percentage of sales. Engineered solutions' adjusted EBITDA for the first nine months is down from last year mainly due to lower gross margin as a result of cost pressures and partly offset by good control of our operating expenses.

雖然由於銷售組合更加正常，毛利率較低，但成本壓力仍然存在，並被營業費用佔銷售額百分比較低所部分抵消。 Engineered Solutions 前 9 個月的調整後 EBITDA 較去年有所下降，主要是由於成本壓力導致毛利率下降，但我們對營運費用的良好控制部分抵消了這一影響。

Turning to our consolidated numbers. The change in our net sales and gross margin for the quarter and first nine months versus last year was the result of the changes in our segments I just highlighted. Regarding consolidated SG&A, excluding factoring, which is shown separately on the page, expenses were up for both the quarter and first nine months.

轉向我們的綜合數字。我們本季和前九個月的淨銷售額和毛利率與去年相比的變化是我剛才強調的部門變化的結果。關於綜合銷售管理費用（SG&A），不包括頁面上單獨顯示的保理業務，該季度和前九個月的費用均有所增加。

As a percentage of net sales, SG&A was flat with last year at 16.9% in the quarter given strong sales volume but was up a little to 17.9% for the first nine months. Start-up costs related to our new distribution center were $1.1 million in the quarter and $3.5 million year to date.

由於銷售強勁，SG&A 佔淨銷售額的百分比與去年同期持平，為 16.9%，但前 9 個月小幅上升至 17.9%。本季與新配送中心相關的啟動成本為 110 萬美元，年初至今為 350 萬美元。

And without these costs, SG&A would have been 16.6% in Q3 and for the first nine months would have been 17.6% and flat with last year. I noted earlier in the year that increases in SG&A costs were driven by general inflation, but also elevated distribution expenses across a number of inputs and that we would be looking at ways to reduce costs going forward.

如果沒有這些成本，第三季的 SG&A 將為 16.6%，前 9 個月將為 17.6%，與去年持平。我在今年稍早指出，SG&A 成本的增加是由整體通貨膨脹推動的，但也增加了許多投入的分銷費用，我們將尋找未來降低成本的方法。

To that point, we continue to execute the retirement program we announced at the beginning of the quarter, and we were pleased to see that benefit our expenses. As a reminder, we anticipate the savings of about $10 million from this program will be realized over time, phasing in starting in the second half of this year running through December 2025.

到目前為止，我們繼續執行我們在本季度初宣布的退休計劃，我們很高興看到這有利於我們的支出。提醒一下，我們預計隨著時間的推移，該計劃將實現約 1000 萬美元的節省，從今年下半年開始分階段實施，一直持續到 2025 年 12 月。

We incurred a charge of $3 million related to this program in Q3 and $5.6 million year-to-date. We expect to incur an additional smaller charge of $1.3 million in the remainder of the year as people retire. We'll also continue to review other levers to pull to reduce costs overall.

我們在第三季支付了 300 萬美元與該計劃相關的費用，今年迄今支付了 560 萬美元。隨著人們退休，我們預計在今年剩餘時間內將額外產生 130 萬美元的小額費用。我們也將繼續審查其他手段來降低整體成本。

On our consolidated bottom line, we were pleased to see a combination of sales growth, margin improvement and operating expense leverage helped us achieve a 15% increase in non-GAAP diluted earnings per share in the quarter and also put earnings ahead of last year for the first nine months.

在我們的綜合利潤方面，我們很高興看到銷售成長、利潤率改善和營運費用槓桿的結合幫助我們在本季度實現了非 GAAP 攤薄每股收益增長 15%，並且也使收益超過去年同期。九個月。

Turning now to the balance sheet. Accounts receivable were $217.1 million at the end of the quarter, higher than last year due to higher sales. Inventory levels finished Q3 at $503 million, up versus September last year, mainly due to levels needed to satisfy higher sales volumes.

現在轉向資產負債表。本季末應收帳款為 2.171 億美元，因銷售額增加而高於去年同期。第三季的庫存水準為 5.03 億美元，高於去年 9 月，主要是因為需要滿足更高的銷售量。

Our cash flow statement reflects cash generated in operations for the first nine months of $78.2 million as compared to cash generated of $132.9 million last year. Cash generated in operations last year was aided by a reduction in inventory balances that did not recur this year after bringing inventory back down to normal levels.

我們的現金流量表反映了前 9 個月營運產生的現金為 7,820 萬美元，而去年則為 1.329 億美元。去年營運中產生的現金得益於庫存餘額的減少，而今年在將庫存恢復到正常水平後並沒有再次出現這種情況。

Investing activities show capital expenditures increasing this year to $34.1 million, which includes $16.5 million of investment related to our new distribution center. Financing activities showed a payment of $19 million of dividends and $10.4 million of share repurchases in the first nine months as well as repayments of debt of $13.4 million.

投資活動顯示，今年的資本支出增加至 3,410 萬美元，其中包括與我們的新配送中心相關的 1,650 萬美元投資。融資活動顯示，前 9 個月支付了 1,900 萬美元的股息、1,040 萬美元的股票回購以及 1,340 萬美元的債務償還。

Regarding share repurchases, while we had $19.6 million of authorization remaining from our Board, we have paused repurchases in anticipation of closing on the acquisition of Nissens soon. Our net debt of $116.5 million at the end of Q3 was lower than last year, and we finished the quarter with a leverage ratio of 0.9 times.

關於股票回購，雖然我們董事會還剩 1,960 萬美元的授權，但我們已暫停回購，預計很快就會完成對 Nissens 的收購。第三季末我們的淨負債為 1.165 億美元，低於去年同期，本季末我們的槓桿率為 0.9 倍。

As we noted in July, we do expect our leverage ratio to increase to 3 to 3.5 times on a pro forma basis once the acquisition of Nissens has closed, and we'll then use cash flows to work our debt balances down to lower levels.

正如我們在 7 月指出的那樣，一旦完成對 Nissens 的收購，我們的槓桿率預計將增加至 3 至 3.5 倍，然後我們將利用現金流將債務餘額降至較低水平。

And speaking of closing the Nissens acquisition, we were extremely pleased to enter into a new five-year, $750 million credit facility during the quarter. The new facility gives us the ability to complete the acquisition and allows for continued flexibility to grow our business. I'd like to thank our team and banking partners for helping us get this new facility in place in the quarter.

談到完成對 Nissens 的收購，我們非常高興在本季獲得了一項新的五年期 7.5 億美元信貸安排。新設施使我們能夠完成收購，並允許持續靈活地發展我們的業務。我要感謝我們的團隊和銀行合作夥伴幫助我們在本季落實這項新設施。

Before I finish, I want to give an update on our sales and profit expectations for the full year of 2024, which are unchanged from our previous outlook. Regarding our top line sales, we expect to see low to mid-single-digit percentage growth in sales for the full year.

在結束之前，我想更新我們對 2024 年全年銷售和利潤的預期，這與我們先前的展望沒有改變。就我們的營收而言，我們預計全年銷售額將出現低至中個位數的百分比成長。

We also continue to expect adjusted EBITDA to be in a range of 9% to 9.5%. This estimate includes cost pressures, which continue to be a headwind for our vehicle control and engineered solutions segments and factoring expenses of $48 million to $50 million as sales are expected to be higher than last year. We also have some costs related to our new distribution center in Shawnee, Kansas, which in total will be $7 million to $8 million in 2024.

我們也繼續預計調整後 EBITDA 將在 9% 至 9.5% 之間。這項估計包括成本壓力，這仍然是我們車輛控制和工程解決方案領域的阻力，由於銷售額預計高於去年，保理費用為 4800 萬至 5000 萬美元。我們還有一些與堪薩斯州肖尼的新配送中心相關的成本，到 2024 年，這些成本總計將達到 700 萬至 800 萬美元。

As a reminder, we incurred about $2 million of costs for this warehouse last year, which means we had incremental costs in 2024 of $5 million to $6 million, of which we estimate $3 million to $5 million is startup related.

提醒一下，去年我們這個倉庫的成本約為 200 萬美元，這意味著 2024 年我們的增量成本為 500 萬至 600 萬美元，其中我們估計其中 300 萬至 500 萬美元與啟動相關。

In connection with our adjusted EBITDA outlook, we expect our interest expense on outstanding debt to be about $10 million for the full year and our income tax rate to be 25%.

根據我們調整後的 EBITDA 前景，我們預計全年未償債務利息支出約為 1,000 萬美元，所得稅率為 25%。

Regarding operating expenses, please keep in mind these expenses are incurred more rateably across the year but do have some variability with sales and as such, will fluctuate in the seasonality in the business.

關於營運費用，請記住，這些費用在全年中的發生率更高，但確實會隨銷售額而變化，因此會隨著業務的季節性而波動。

Given this dynamic, expenses in Q4 will be lower than Q3, and we anticipate total operating expenses for the year, inclusive of factoring, will be in the range of $314 million to $318 million.

鑑於這種動態，第四季度的支出將低於第三季度，我們預計今年的總營運支出（包括保理）將在 3.14 億美元至 3.18 億美元之間。

Finally, please note that our 2024 outlook does not include any impact from the Nissens acquisition as exact timing of closing is not yet known. We are eager to get Nissens onboard and begin working through the many opportunities to grow and improve our businesses together. As we do, we'll plan to present the Nissens business as a new segment for SMP, and we'll share more information on our outlook for 2025 on our next quarterly call.

最後，請注意，我們的 2024 年展望不包括收購 Nissens 的任何影響，因為收購的確切時間尚不清楚。我們渴望讓尼森加入，並開始利用許多機會共同發展和改善我們的業務。同時，我們將計劃將 Nissens 業務作為 SMP 的新部門進行介紹，並將在下一個季度電話會議上分享有關 2025 年前景的更多資訊。

To wrap up, we are very pleased with our sales growth in both the quarter and first nine months of the year as well as our earnings, which are now ahead of last year. I want to thank everyone at SMP for helping us achieve these results.

總而言之，我們對本季和今年前九個月的銷售成長以及我們的收入感到非常滿意，目前我們的收入超過了去年。我要感謝 SMP 的每個人幫助我們取得這些成果。

Thank you for your attention. I'll turn the call back to Eric for some final comments.

感謝您的關注。我會將電話轉回給埃里克，徵求一些最終意見。

All right. Thank you, Nathan. So to close, let me just spend a moment on how we're thinking about the future. There's obviously a great deal of external factors at play right now that it can impact things in ways that are difficult to predict, yet the markets that we are in have always demonstrated their resilience.

好的。謝謝你，內森。最後，讓我花一點時間談談我們如何思考未來。顯然，現在有很多外部因素在起作用，它可能會以難以預測的方式影響事物，但我們所處的市場始終表現出其彈性。

The North American aftermarket has proven time and again that it does well both in good times and in bad and during difficult economic times, while discretionary products can come under pressure, our products are largely nondiscretionary repair items that consumers must purchase to keep their vehicles operating safely.

北美售後市場一再證明，無論在經濟繁榮時期還是在經濟蕭條和困難時期，它都表現良好，雖然非必需產品可能會面臨壓力，但我們的產品主要是消費者必須購買才能保持車輛運行的非非必需維修物品安全。

We recognized that certain engineered solutions end markets can demonstrate some volatility yet we have demonstrated that our strength here is in gaining market share in this enormous global market where our new business awards can absorb temporary downturns.

我們認識到某些工程解決方案終端市場可能會出現一些波動，但我們已經證明，我們的優勢在於在這個巨大的全球市場中獲得市場份額，我們的新業務獎項可以吸收暫時的低迷。

And as we have repeatedly said, while we can expect some lumpiness along the way, we believe the long-term trends to be very favorable. And lastly, we believe that Nissens is truly a game changer for us for all the reasons described earlier. So again, while anything can happen quarter to quarter, the future is certainly bright.

正如我們一再說過的，雖然我們預計一路上會出現一些波動，但我們相信長期趨勢非常有利。最後，基於前面所述的所有原因，我們相信 Nissens 確實是我們的遊戲規則改變者。再說一遍，雖然每個季度都有可能發生任何事情，但未來肯定是光明的。

So that concludes our prepared remarks. At this point, we'll turn it over to the moderator, and we'll open it up for your questions.

我們準備好的發言就到此結束。此時，我們會將其移交給主持人，並開放供您提問。

(Operator Instructions) Scott Stember, ROTH MKM.

（操作員說明）Scott Stember，ROTH MKM。

Within vehicle control, two of your bigger customers had been reporting sluggish DIFM or professional business still up, but just sluggish and you guys put up a really good number. Just trying to get a sense of what you guys are seeing, what's the POS was for the quarter in vehicle control? And just in general, how you're viewing the outlook there heading into the end of the year and into next year?

在車輛控制方面，你們的兩個大客戶報告稱 DIFM 低迷，或者專業業務仍然存在，但只是低迷，而你們的數字非常好。只是想了解你們所看到的情況，本季車輛控制方面的 POS 是多少？總的來說，您如何看待今年年底和明年的前景？

Sure. So yeah, some of the [traded] customers have been speaking about what their market has looked like. And they are tending to say that DIFM nondiscretionary product is outperforming and those are obviously the categories that we're in. They're seeing more pressure on front room product and retail and DIY. The POS that we've seen through the quarter has been pretty consistent with what we've seen for the year, which has been relatively flattish.

當然。所以，是的，一些[交易]客戶一直在談論他們的市場狀況。他們傾向於說 DIFM 非自由裁量產品表現出色，而這些顯然是我們所處的類別。我們在本季看到的 POS 與我們今年看到的情況非常一致，今年相對持平。

So as we look at our sales exceeding that or their purchases from us exceeding that, what that really reflects is this kind of slow evolutionary expansion of their footprint, of their assortment as they look to have the best inventory forward deployed. So it's not necessarily a stocking change that they're doing. It's just it's evolutionary, building out new stores and putting more inventory into each individual store. So that's that small delta between their sell-through and their purchases from us.

因此，當我們看到我們的銷售額超過這個數字或他們從我們這裡購買的產品超過這個數字時，真正反映的是他們的足跡和品種的緩慢進化擴張，因為他們希望提前部署最好的庫存。因此，他們所做的不一定是更換庫存。這只是一種漸進式的發展，建立新的商店並為每個單獨的商店投入更多的庫存。這就是他們的銷售量和從我們這裡購買的產品之間的微小差異。

Got it. And temperature control, if my memory serves me correct, we had a longer-than-expected summer, which went into some of the fall months and you had some strong demand and inventories, I think we're in really good shape heading into the off-season. How are we looking at this year inventories and temperature control?

知道了。還有溫度控制，如果我沒記錯的話，我們度過了一個比預期更長的夏季，進入了秋季的一些月份，並且需求和庫存強勁，我認為我們在進入秋季時的狀態非常好淡季。我們如何看待今年的庫存和溫度控制？

Yes. So this year, we've actually come out of the -- I assume you're referring to customer inventory or our inventory? Customer inventory?

是的。所以今年，我們實際上已經擺脫了——我想你指的是客戶庫存還是我們的庫存？客戶庫存？

Customer inventory.

客戶庫存。

Sorry, you broke up -- customer, okay. So what we see is actually last year, what happened was because the season started out slow and then they basically did their entire season's worth of sales in the third quarter, they came out of last year healthy, but a little bit light.

抱歉，你們分手了——顧客，好。所以我們看到的實際上是去年的情況，發生的情況是因為這個季節開始緩慢，然後他們基本上在第三季度完成了整個季節的銷售，他們從去年開始健康，但有點清淡。

This year, as that had been the trend coming into the quarter, both them and us we're able to maintain that throughout the period. And so they ended -- so sell-in basically match sell-through and they came out in a good position.

今年，由於這是本季的趨勢，他們和我們都能夠在整個期間保持這一趨勢。他們就這樣結束了——所以賣出基本上與賣出一致，他們處於一個很好的位置。

Got it. And then lastly, on engineered solutions, the commercial vehicle had a really strong quarter. It looks like some of the other areas were a little flattish to down. Maybe just talk about commercial vehicle and then your comments about things -- it sounds like incrementally softening potentially in the fourth quarter?

知道了。最後，在工程解決方案方面，商用車的季度表現非常強勁。看起來其他一些區域有點平坦。也許只是談談商用車，然後談談你對事情的評論——聽起來第四季可能會逐漸軟化？

Well, first, in terms of the different end markets. And as you look at our quarterly results across those 4 subsegments that we report in, there's a fair amount of movement among them. And so I would say that this quarter is just kind of more of the same as there's always going to be a little bit of lumpiness across these different end markets.

首先，就不同的終端市場而言。當您查看我們報告的這 4 個細分市場的季度業績時，您會發現其中存在相當大的變化。因此，我想說，本季的情況大致相同，因為這些不同的終端市場總是會出現一些波動。

And -- but the area where you are seeing probably a little bit more softness is in construction, agricultural equipment, and you know who some of the big players are and what they're reporting. So that's what you're seeing across the different subsegments.

而且 - 但你可能看到的領域可能更加疲軟的是建築、農業設備，你知道一些大參與者是誰以及他們正在報告什麼。這就是您在不同細分市場中看到的情況。

I wouldn't spend too much time worrying about what happens in any given quarter across them. Overall, what we're seeing is that their production schedules are continuing to be a little bit softer than historic and that can create a headwind for us, and we're navigating through that.

我不會花太多時間擔心他們的任何特定季度會發生什麼。總體而言，我們看到他們的生產計劃繼續比歷史水平稍軟一些，這可能會給我們帶來阻力，我們正在克服這個問題。

And as we've said, the long term, it tends to take care of itself. We're going up against a very strong comp of last year's fourth quarter.

正如我們所說，從長遠來看，它往往會自行解決。我們面臨的是去年第四季非常強勁的競爭。

Got it. If I could just squeeze one more in here. Looking out to '25, I know you guys are not providing any guidance, but a lot of moving pieces and even not including Nissens in the mix. So we have -- interest rates are coming down a bit, which should help on the factoring side, and you should have some carryover costs for the new DC. So just trying to get a sense of things we should maybe be thinking about for next year from a modeling perspective?

知道了。如果我能再在這裡擠一個就好了。展望 25 年，我知道你們沒有提供任何指導，而是提供了許多令人感動的內容，甚至不包括 Nissens。因此，我們的利率有所下降，這應該對保理方面有所幫助，並且您應該為新的 DC 承擔一些結轉成本。那麼，只是想從建模的角度來了解我們明年應該考慮的事情嗎？

Yes. Scott, to your point, we're not providing any guidance on '25 at this point. I think in terms of items you're looking at, those are the right things to focus on. I would just point out on interest rates. We continue to follow that like everyone does. And while rates, I think, started to come down a bit, in the middle of the third quarter, they went back up as expectations change. So we're still watching that 360-day rate to see what will happen in 12 to 15 months.

是的。 Scott，就您的觀點而言，我們目前尚未提供有關 '25 的任何指導。我認為就您正在查看的項目而言，這些是值得關注的正確事項。我只想指出利率。我們將像每個人一樣繼續關注這一點。我認為，雖然利率在第三季中期開始略有下降，但隨著預期的變化，利率又回升了。因此，我們仍在關注 360 天的成長率，看看 12 到 15 個月後會發生什麼。

(Operator Instructions) And it appears we have no further questions at this time. I'll turn the program back over to Tony Cristello for any additional -- I apologize, we do have a question from Carolina Jolly with Gabelli.

（操作員說明）目前看來我們沒有其他問題了。我會將節目交還給托尼·克里斯泰洛（Tony Cristello）以獲取任何額外的信息——我很抱歉，我們確實有來自卡羅萊納·喬利（Carolina Jolly）和加貝利（Gabelli）的問題。

Just wanted to talk -- I know that there's been some conversations around some softening in Europe. Have you been able to work with the Nissens team as the deal is closing to just -- to best work with that team and in that market?

只是想談談——我知道已經有一些關於歐洲經濟軟化的討論。隨著交易臨近，您是否能夠與 Nissens 團隊合作，以便在該市場上與該團隊進行最佳合作？

So let me start with the caveat that we haven't closed this deal yet, and so anything I can share with you is really getting more directional than specific. But I think it's important to note, in general, and you see it here with everything we know about the North American aftermarket that they're going talk in generalities across a whole host of different product categories and across all the different countries in the region.

因此，首先我要警告的是，我們尚未完成這筆交易，因此我可以與您分享的任何內容實際上都更具方向性，而不是具體內容。但我認為值得注意的是，總的來說，您可以在這裡看到我們對北美售後市場的了解，他們將在整個不同產品類別以及該地區所有不同國家中進行一般性討論。

And Nissens is similar to SMP's business in that it is largely nondiscretionary, but it is a little bit over-indexed towards temperature-related product. And in Europe, there too, they had a very strong summer, which has favorable impact on their potential business.

Nissens 與 SMP 的業務類似，它在很大程度上是非自由裁量的，但它對溫度相關產品的索引有點過度。在歐洲，他們也度過了一個非常強大的夏季，這對他們的潛在業務產生了有利的影響。

So again, as we said, we're going to start sharing a lot more information with them once they are truly part of SMP, which we hope is soon. And so more to come on that.

因此，正如我們所說，一旦他們真正成為 SMP 的一部分，我們將開始與他們分享更多信息，我們希望很快就能實現。未來還會有更多這樣的事情發生。

And we have no further questions on the queue at this time. I will turn the program back over to Tony Cristello for any additional or closing remarks.

目前我們在隊列中沒有其他問題。我會將節目交還給托尼·克里斯泰洛，以供補充或結束語。

Okay. Thank you. I want to thank everyone for participating in our call today. I understand there's a lot of information presented and we'll be happy to answer any follow-up questions you may have. Our contact information is available on our press release or Investor Relations website. And I hope everyone has a great day. Thank you.

好的。謝謝。我要感謝大家今天參加我們的電話會議。據我所知，其中提供了大量信息，我們很樂意回答您可能提出的任何後續問題。我們的聯絡資訊可在我們的新聞稿或投資者關係網站上找到。我希望每個人都有美好的一天。謝謝。

Thank you. This does conclude today's program. Thank you for your participation. You may disconnect at any time, and have a wonderful day.

謝謝。今天的節目到此結束。感謝您的參與。您可以隨時斷開連接，祝您有美好的一天。