TTM Technologies Inc (TTMI) 2021 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for standing by. Welcome to the TTM Technologies Third Quarter 2021 Financial Results Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded today, October 27, 2021. Sameer Desai, TTM's Vice President of Corporate Development and Investor Relations, will now review TTM's disclosure statement.

女士們、先生們，午安。謝謝你的支持。歡迎參加 TTM Technologies 2021 年第三季財務業績電話會議。 （操作員說明）謹此提醒，本次會議將於今天（2021 年 10 月 27 日）進行錄製。

Thanks, James. Before we get started, I would like to remind everyone that today's call contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements related to TTM's future business outlook. Actual results could differ materially from these forward-looking statements due to one or more risks and uncertainties, including factors explained in our most recent annual report on Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

謝謝，詹姆斯。在開始之前，我想提醒大家，今天的電話會議包含 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》含義內的前瞻性陳述，包括與 TTM 未來業務前景相關的陳述。由於一種或多種風險和不確定性，實際結果可能與這些前瞻性陳述有重大差異，包括我們最新的 10-K 表格年度報告和向美國證券交易委員會提交的其他文件中解釋的因素。

These forward-looking statements are based on management's expectations and assumptions as of the date of this presentation. TTM does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any of these statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or other circumstances, except as required by law. Please refer to the disclosures regarding the risks that may affect TTM, which may be found in the reports on Form 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, the registration statement on Form S-4 and the company's other SEC filings.

這些前瞻性陳述是基於管理階層截至本簡報發布之日的預期和假設。 TTM 不承擔公開更新或修改任何這些聲明的義務，無論是由於新資訊、未來事件或其他情況，除非法律要求。請參閱有關可能影響 TTM 的風險的揭露，這些資訊可以在表格 10-K、10-Q、8-K 的報告、表格 S-4 的註冊聲明以及公司其他 SEC 備案文件中找到。

We will also discuss on this call certain non-GAAP financial measures such as adjusted EBITDA. Such measures should not be considered as a substitute for the measures prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP, and we direct you to the reconciliation of non-GAAP to GAAP measures included in the company's press release, which was filed with the SEC and is available on TTM's website at www.ttm.com. We have also posted on our website a slide deck, which we will refer to during our call. I will now turn the call over to Tom Edman, TTM's Chief Executive Officer. Please go ahead, Tom.

我們也會在本次電話會議上討論某些非公認會計準則財務指標，例如調整後的 EBITDA。此類措施不應被視為替代根據 GAAP 準備和提出的措施，我們會指導您對公司新聞稿中包含的非 GAAP 與 GAAP 措施進行協調，該新聞稿已向 SEC 備案並可獲取請訪問TTM 網站www.ttm.com。我們還在網站上發布了幻燈片，我們將在電話會議期間參考。我現在將把電話轉給 TTM 執行長 Tom Edman。請繼續，湯姆。

Thank you, Sameer. Good afternoon, and thank you for joining us for our third quarter 2021 conference call. I'll begin with a review of our business strategy, followed by highlights from the quarter and a discussion of our third quarter results. Todd Schull, our CFO, will follow with an overview of our Q3 2021 financial performance and our Q4 2021 guidance. We will then open the call to your questions.

謝謝你，薩米爾。下午好，感謝您參加我們的 2021 年第三季電話會議。我將首先回顧我們的業務策略，然後是本季的亮點並討論我們第三季的業績。我們的財務長 Todd Schull 隨後將概述我們 2021 年第三季的財務表現和 2021 年第四季的指導。然後我們將開始電話詢問您的問題。

In the third quarter of 2021, TTM generated revenues and non-GAAP EPS within the guided range despite a challenging supply chain and labor environment. Year-on-year growth was led by strong demand in automotive, data center computing and medical, industrial and instrumentation end markets. These results were achieved despite an unprecedented number of operational headwinds, including supply chain constraints for ourselves and our customers, inflationary pressures, and labor and logistic challenges in North America, resulting in production inefficiencies, and power restrictions in China.

2021 年第三季度，儘管供應鏈和勞動力環境充滿挑戰，但迅達的收入和非 GAAP 每股收益仍處於指導範圍內。年成長主要得益於汽車、資料中心運算以及醫療、工業和儀器儀表終端市場的強勁需求。儘管面臨前所未有的營運阻力，包括我們自己和客戶的供應鏈限制、通膨壓力以及北美的勞動力和物流挑戰，導致生產效率低下，以及中國的電力限制，但仍取得了這些成果。

Our global operations teams have responded to these immense challenges with a remarkable focus on delivering the customer commitments while flexibly responding to frequent surprises. We have been actively managing supply constraints and higher raw material costs through such measures as supplier diversification, ongoing operational efficiency efforts and quotation adjustments to mitigate the impact.

我們的全球營運團隊應對了這些巨大的挑戰，特別著重於履行客戶承諾，同時靈活應對頻繁出現的意外情況。我們一直在透過供應商多元化、持續提高營運效率和報價調整等措施積極管理供應限制和較高的原材料成本，以減輕影響。

The overall impact to our cost of goods sold was larger in Q3 than Q2 and continues to be elevated in Q4 since higher laminate and other raw material prices in the first half of the year takes some time to work through our suppliers and our inventory. Furthermore, raw material prices continued to rise in Q3, although at a diminished rate of increase. Production inefficiencies in North America further exacerbated our costs and output challenges in the third quarter and will continue to do so in the fourth quarter.

第三季對我們銷售商品成本的整體影響比第二季更大，並且在第四季度繼續上升，因為上半年層壓板和其他原材料價格上漲需要一些時間來消化我們的供應商和庫存。此外，第三季原物料價格持續上漲，但漲幅有所放緩。北美的生產效率低下進一步加劇了我們第三季的成本和產量挑戰，並將在第四季繼續如此。

Power restrictions in China did not have a material effect on the third quarter as these impacts came late in the quarter, right before the planned October holidays. Coming out of the holidays, we have not experienced restrictions, but we are continuing to closely monitor the situation as we approach the winter season in China.

中國的電力限制並未對第三季產生重大影響，因為這些影響是在本季末、即計劃的十月假期之前發生的。假期結束後，我們沒有受到限制，但隨著中國冬季的臨近，我們將繼續密切關注情況。

Next I would like to provide an update on our long-term strategy. TTM is on a journey to transform our business to be less cyclical and more differentiated. We believe that over time, investors will be rewarded with more stable growth, strong cash flow performance and improving margins. As part of this strategic transition, we sold our mobility business last year. We are now able to generate more consistent cash flow with our strong set of technologies and broad exposure to longer cycle end markets. A key part of our ongoing strategy will be to add capabilities and products that are complementary to our current offerings, both internally and through acquisitions. As such, we continue to invest organically in differentiated product technology solutions from our advanced technology center, RF&S business unit and microelectronics businesses. Looking forward, our balance sheet is in a strong position to pursue further acquisitions as well as to support our organic investment needs.

接下來我想介紹我們長期策略的最新情況。 TTM 正在努力將我們的業務轉型為更少的周期性和更具差異化的業務。我們相信，隨著時間的推移，投資者將獲得更穩定的成長、強勁的現金流表現和不斷提高的利潤率。作為這項策略轉型的一部分，我們去年出售了行動業務。現在，我們能夠憑藉強大的技術和對較長週期終端市場的廣泛接觸，產生更穩定的現金流。我們持續策略的關鍵部分是透過內部和收購增加與我們目前產品互補的能力和產品。因此，我們繼續對先進技術中心、RF&S 業務部門和微電子業務的差異化產品技術解決方案進行有機投資。展望未來，我們的資產負債表處於有利地位，可以進一步收購並支持我們的有機投資需求。

I would also like to update you on the COVID situation. The vaccine rollout in the United States initially had initially resulted in a decline in new COVID cases. However, the delta variant created another surge in late summer and early fall. In addition, many parts of the world have much lower vaccination rates and the rise of the delta variant led to significantly increasing case counts, resulting in a number of countries imposing lockdowns during the summer. More recently, case counts in the U.S. and Asia are declining and lockdowns in Asia are being lifted.

我還想向您通報新冠肺炎疫情的最新情況。美國疫苗的推出最初導致了新冠病例的下降。然而，三角洲變種在夏末秋初又造成了另一次激增。此外，世界許多地區的疫苗接種率要低得多，而三角洲變種的增加導致病例數大幅增加，導致許多國家在夏季實施封鎖。最近，美國和亞洲的病例數正在下降，亞洲的封鎖正在解除。

At TTM, we are seeing similar trends and are using a data-driven process, monitoring vaccination rates and local case counts to determine safety precautions at our facilities. Our global manufacturing facilities have been operating throughout the pandemic. But in Q3, we dealt with a rising number of cases and resulting quarantines, which along with the general labor shortages contributed to production inefficiencies and capacity constraints in North America. We are presently adjusting to the next normal in which we learned to live with COVID-19, while continuing to support our customers and keeping our employees safe.

在 TTM，我們看到了類似的趨勢，並正在使用數據驅動的流程，監測疫苗接種率和當地病例數，以確定我們設施的安全預防措施。我們的全球製造工廠在整個疫情期間一直在運作。但在第三季度，我們處理的病例數量不斷增加，並導致了隔離，再加上勞動力普遍短缺，導致北美生產效率低下和產能限制。我們目前正在適應下一個常態，我們學會瞭如何應對新冠肺炎 (COVID-19)，同時繼續支持我們的客戶並確保我們員工的安全。

Like many other companies, we continue to see more challenges in attracting and retaining labor. Our employees are paramount to the success of TTM, and we actively endeavor to demonstrate their value to our company through a combination of financial and nonfinancial methods. We continue to be hopeful that the expiration of elevated unemployment benefits in the U.S. increased vaccination rates and our strong company culture will encourage potential employees to join TTM as we work to support our customers.

與許多其他公司一樣，我們在吸引和留住勞動力方面繼續面臨更多挑戰。我們的員工對於迅達的成功至關重要，我們積極努力透過財務和非財務方法相結合來展示他們對我們公司的價值。我們仍然希望，美國高額失業救濟金到期將提高疫苗接種率，而我們強大的公司文化將鼓勵潛在員工加入迅達，同時我們將努力為客戶提供支援。

Now I'd like to review our end markets. All historical end market disclosures exclude the divested mobility business unit and the 2 EMS plants which halted production in December of 2020. For more details on end market disclosures, please refer to Page 4 of our earnings presentation, which is posted on our website. The aerospace and defense end market represented 31% of total third quarter sales compared to 37% of Q3 2020 sales and 33% of sales in Q2 2021.

現在我想回顧一下我們的終端市場。所有歷史終端市場揭露不包括剝離的行動業務部門和 2020 年 12 月停止生產的 2 個 EMS 工廠。航空航太和國防終端市場佔第三季總銷售額的 31%，而 2020 年第三季銷售額為 37%，2021 年第二季銷售額為 33%。

We continue to experience a positive defense climate with our A&D program backlog at $723 million compared to $625 million a year ago. The solid demand in the defense market is a result of our strong strategic program alignment and key bookings for ongoing franchise programs.

我們繼續經歷積極的國防氛圍，我們的 A&D 計劃積壓金額為 7.23 億美元，而一年前為 6.25 億美元。國防市場的強勁需求是我們強有力的戰略計劃調整和正在進行的特許經營計劃的關鍵預訂的結果。

We saw significant bookings in the quarter for an AN/SPY-6 AESA radar program, and our overall book-to-bill for A&D was 1.32. On a year-on-year basis, A&D revenues declined due to commercial aerospace weakness, defense program timing and production inefficiencies in North America. We expect sales in Q4 from this end market to rebound and represent about 32% of our total sales. Given the year-over-year weakness in commercial aerospace as well as the labor challenges in North America, we do not expect to meet this year's growth target of 2% to 4%.

本季我們看到 AN/SPY-6 AESA 雷達專案的訂單量很大，我們 A&D 的整體訂單出貨比為 1.32。與去年同期相比，由於商業航空航太疲軟、國防計畫時間表和北美生產效率低下，航空航太和國防收入有所下降。我們預計第四季度該終端市場的銷售額將反彈，約占我們總銷售額的 32%。鑑於商業航空航太同比疲軟以及北美的勞動力挑戰，我們預計無法實現今年 2% 至 4% 的成長目標。

The medical industrial instrumentation end market contributed 20% of our total sales in the third quarter compared to 19% in the year ago quarter and 19% in the second quarter of 2021. The MI&I market exceeded $100 million in Q3 revenue and performed much better than expectations as medical and industrial customers continued to revamp. For the fourth quarter, we expect MI&I to be 18% of revenues with continued strong orders from the medical and industrial markets. However, revenue will be limited by capacity constraints and component shortages. Given the strength in this end market in the first 9 months of the year and the fourth quarter forecast, we expect to exceed the 2% to 4% growth target for 2021.

醫療工業儀器終端市場占我們第三季總銷售額的 20%，去年同期為 19%，2021 年第二季為 19%。隨著醫療和工業客戶的不斷調整，人們的期望也不斷提高。由於醫療和工業市場訂單持續強勁，我們預計第四季度 MI&I 將佔營收的 18%。然而，收入將受到產能限制和零件短缺的限制。鑑於今年前 9 個月該終端市場的強勁勢頭以及第四季度的預測，我們預計將超過 2021 年 2% 至 4% 的成長目標。

The automotive sales represented 18% of total sales during the third quarter of 2021 compared to 13% in the year ago quarter and 18% during the second quarter of 2021. Automotive grew 57% year-over-year. We are aware that the shortage of semiconductors has been limiting automotive production. But this phenomenon has not directly affected our business since we do not purchase semiconductors. However, we are monitoring this situation closely and are starting to see a modest reduction in our PCB demand as more automotive OEMs are reducing production plans due to the semiconductor shortage. We expect automotive to contribute 18% of total sales in Q4.

汽車銷量佔 2021 年第三季總銷量的 18%，去年同期為 13%，2021 年第二季為 18%。我們知道半導體的短缺一直限制著汽車生產。但這種現象並沒有直接影響我們的業務，因為我們不購買半導體。然而，我們正在密切關注這一情況，並開始看到我們的 PCB 需求略有減少，因為越來越多的汽車原始設備製造商因半導體短缺而減少了生產計劃。我們預計第四季汽車銷售額將佔總銷售額的 18%。

Networking and communications accounted for 16% of revenue during the third quarter of 2021. This compares to 17% in the third quarter of 2020 and 15% of revenue in the second quarter of 2021. We saw relative strength on a year-on-year basis in networking compared to telecom as the 5G build-out in China continues to be weak. In Q4, we expect this end market to be 15% of revenue as telecom demand continues to be soft.

網路和通訊佔 2021 年第三季營收的 16%。 ，因此與電信相比，網路基礎設施仍處於劣勢。由於電信需求持續疲軟，我們預計第四季該終端市場將佔營收的 15%。

Sales in the data center computing end market represented 14% of total sales in the third quarter, compared to 13% in Q3 of 2020 and 14% in the second quarter of 2021. This end market was up 29% year-on-year due primarily to growth from our data center customers. We expect revenues in this end market to represent approximately 15% of fourth quarter sales as strong data center demand continues to drive year-on-year growth.

資料中心計算終端市場的銷售額佔第三季總銷售額的 14%，而 2020 年第三季為 13%，2021 年第二季為 14%。來自我們資料中心客戶的成長。由於強勁的資料中心需求持續推動年成長，我們預計該終端市場的營收將佔第四季銷售額的 15% 左右。

Next I'll cover some details from the third quarter. All of the following operations metrics exclude the mobility business unit and the 2 EMS plants that we close. This information is also available on Page 5 of our earnings presentation.

接下來我將介紹第三季的一些細節。以下所有營運指標均不包括行動業務部門和我們關閉的 2 家 EMS 工廠。此資訊也可在我們的收益簡報的第 5 頁上找到。

During the quarter, our advanced technology business, which includes HDI, Rigid Flex and RF Subsystems and Components, accounted for approximately 29% of our revenue. This compares to approximately 29% in the year ago quarter and 31% in Q2. We are continuing to pursue new business opportunities and increase customer design engagement activities that will leverage our advanced technology capabilities in new programs and new markets.

本季度，我們的先進技術業務（包括 HDI、剛性柔性和射頻子系統及組件）約占我們收入的 29%。相比之下，去年同期約為 29%，第二季約為 31%。我們將繼續尋求新的商機並增加客戶設計參與活動，這些活動將在新項目和新市場中利用我們的先進技術能力。

Capacity utilization in Asia Pacific was 91% in Q3 compared to 63% in the year ago quarter and 88% in Q2. Our overall capacity utilization in North America was 50% in Q3 compared to 61% in the year ago quarter and 49% in Q2. Our top 5 customers contributed 28% of total sales in the third quarter of 2021 compared to 29% in the second quarter of 2021. We did not have any customers above 10% in the quarter.

第三季亞太地區的產能利用率為 91%，去年同期為 63%，第二季為 88%。第三季我們在北美的整體產能利用率為 50%，去年同期為 61%，第二季為 49%。我們的前 5 名客戶在 2021 年第三季貢獻了總銷售額的 28%，而 2021 年第二季為 29%。

At the end of Q3, our 90-day backlog, which is subject to cancellations, was $594.8 million compared to $437.8 million at the end of the third quarter last year and $553.1 million at the end of Q2. Our PCB book-to-bill ratio was 1.29 for the 3 months ending September 27. Our backlog is higher than our revenue forecast due to uncertainty around both labor and supply chain challenges for our customers and ourselves.

截至第三季末，我們的 90 天積壓訂單（可能被取消）為 5.948 億美元，而去年第三季末為 4.378 億美元，第二季末為 5.531 億美元。截至 9 月 27 日的 3 個月，我們的 PCB 訂單出貨比為 1.29。

I'd like to conclude by again thanking our employees for continuing to contribute to TTM and our critical mission of inspiring innovation with our customers. Despite the raw materials and labor-related challenges we are facing, our business performed in line with what we expected as a direct result of our employees' and our supply chain partners' concerted efforts to support TTM and our customers.

最後，我要再次感謝我們的員工繼續為迅達做出貢獻，並感謝我們與客戶一起激發創新的重要使命。儘管我們面臨與原材料和勞動力相關的挑戰，但我們的業務表現符合我們的預期，這是我們的員工和供應鏈合作夥伴共同努力支持迅達和客戶的直接結果。

Now Todd will review our financial performance for the third quarter. Todd?

現在托德將回顧我們第三季的財務表現。托德？

Thanks, Tom, and good afternoon, everyone. I will be reviewing our financial results for the third quarter, which are also shown in the press release distributed today as well as on Page 7 of our earnings presentation, which is posted to our website.

謝謝湯姆，大家下午好。我將回顧我們第三季的財務業績，這些業績也顯示在今天發布的新聞稿以及發佈在我們網站上的收益報告第 7 頁上。

For the third quarter, net sales were $556.8 million compared to $513.6 million from continuing operations in the third quarter of 2020. The year-over-year increase in revenue was due to strong growth in our automotive, data center computing and medical, industrial and instrumentation end markets, which more than offset a decline in our aerospace and defense end market and the headwind from the closure of our 2 EMS facilities, which contributed $20.5 million of revenue in Q3 of 2020 and no revenues this year. Excluding the impact of the EMS closure, revenues of our -- for our ongoing business grew 12.9% year-on-year.

第三季的淨銷售額為 5.568 億美元，而 2020 年第三季持續經營業務的淨銷售額為 5.136 億美元。市場，這足以抵消我們的航空航天和國防終端市場的下滑以及我們的2 個EMS 設施關閉帶來的不利影響，這兩個設施在2020 年第三季度貢獻了2050 萬美元的收入，但今年沒有收入。排除 EMS 關閉的影響，我們持續業務的營收年增 12.9%。

GAAP operating income for the third quarter of 2021 was $32.2 million compared to GAAP operating loss from continuing operations of $40.3 million in the third quarter of last year, which included a goodwill impairment charge of $69.2 million. On a GAAP basis, net income in the third quarter of 2021 was $21 million compared to GAAP operating loss from continuing operations of 40 -- excuse me, $21 million or $0.19 per diluted share. This compares to a net loss from continuing operations of $61.5 million or $0.58 per diluted share in the same quarter last year.

2021 年第三季的 GAAP 營業收入為 3,220 萬美元，而去年第三季持續經營業務的 GAAP 營業虧損為 4,030 萬美元，其中包括 6,920 萬美元的商譽減損費用。以 GAAP 計算，2021 年第三季淨利為 2,100 萬美元，而 GAAP 持續經營業務營運虧損為 40 美元——對不起，為 2,100 萬美元，稀釋後每股收益為 0.19 美元。相較之下，去年同期持續經營業務淨虧損為 6,150 萬美元，即稀釋後每股虧損 0.58 美元。

The remainder of my comments will focus on our non-GAAP financial performance. Our non-GAAP performance excludes our divested mobility business unit, nonroutine tax items, M&A related costs, restructuring costs, certain noncash expense items and other unusual or infrequent items. We present non-GAAP financial information to enable investors to see the company through the eyes of management and to facilitate comparisons with expectations in prior periods.

我其餘的評論將集中於我們的非公認會計準則財務表現。我們的非公認會計準則績效不包括我們剝離的行動業務部門、非常規稅務項目、併購相關成本、重組成本、某些非現金費用項目和其他不尋常或不常見的項目。我們提供非公認會計準則財務信息，使投資者能夠透過管理層的視角了解公司，並便於與前期預期進行比較。

Gross margin in the third quarter was 17.2% compared to 18.4% in the third quarter of 2020. The year-on-year decline was largely due to production challenges in North America and foreign exchange headwinds in our China facilities. During the quarter, we did experience significant material cost increases, but we were able to substantially mitigate the profit impact of those increases through customer price increases and manufacturing efficiencies.

第三季的毛利率為 17.2%，而 2020 年第三季的毛利率為 18.4%。在本季度，我們確實經歷了材料成本的大幅上漲，但我們能夠透過提高客戶價格和提高製造效率來大幅減輕這些上漲對利潤的影響。

Selling and marketing expense was $15.1 million in the second quarter or 2.7% of net sales versus $15.3 million or 3% of net sales a year ago. Third quarter G&A expense was $29.2 million or 5.2% of net sales compared to $26.9 million or 5.2% of net sales in the same quarter last year. In the third quarter of 2021, R&D was $4 million or 0.7% of revenues compared to $5.2 million or 1% in the year ago quarter.

第二季銷售和行銷費用為 1,510 萬美元，佔淨銷售額的 2.7%，而去年同期為 1,530 萬美元，佔淨銷售額的 3%。第三季管理及行政費用為 2,920 萬美元，佔淨銷售額的 5.2%，去年同期為 2,690 萬美元，佔淨銷售額的 5.2%。 2021 年第三季度，研發費用為 400 萬美元，佔營收的 0.7%，去年同期為 520 萬美元，佔營收的 1%。

Our operating margin in Q3 was 8.6%. This compares to 9.1% in Q3 of 2020. Interest expense was $10.6 million in the third quarter, a decrease from $12.9 million in the same quarter last year due primarily to lower levels of debt as we repaid $400 million of our term loan and our $250 million convertible bond in the second half of 2020. During the quarter, there was a negative $0.7 million of foreign exchange impact below the operating line. Government incentives and interest income reduces to a negative $0.1 million and a negligible impact to EPS. This compares to a loss of $2.5 million or $0.02 of EPS in Q3 last year.

我們第三季的營業利益率為 8.6%。相較之下，2020 年第三季為9.1%。的債務，債務水平較低。政府激勵和利息收入減少至負 10 萬美元，對每股盈餘的影響可忽略不計。相比之下，去年第三季虧損 250 萬美元，每股收益虧損 0.02 美元。

Our effective tax rate was 1.1% in the third quarter as we now estimate our tax rate for 2021 to be 7%. Third quarter net income was $36.5 million or $0.34 per diluted share. This compares to third quarter 2020 net income of $26.8 million or $0.25 per diluted share. Adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter was $68.6 million or 12.3% of net sales compared with third quarter 2020 adjusted EBITDA of $67.2 million or 13.1% of net sales.

我們第三季的有效稅率為 1.1%，目前我們估計 2021 年的稅率為 7%。第三季淨利為 3,650 萬美元，或攤薄後每股收益 0.34 美元。相比之下，2020 年第三季淨利為 2,680 萬美元，即稀釋後每股收益 0.25 美元。第三季調整後 EBITDA 為 6,860 萬美元，佔淨銷售額的 12.3%，而 2020 年第三季調整後 EBITDA 為 6,720 萬美元，佔淨銷售額的 13.1%。

Depreciation for the quarter was $21 million. Net capital spending for the quarter was $19.8 million. Cash flow from operations was $18.6 million, lower-than-expected due to higher inventories caused by longer transit times and lower hub pools by our customers. Accounts receivables were also higher-than-expected due to timing of customer payments.

該季度的折舊為 2100 萬美元。該季度淨資本支出為 1,980 萬美元。營運現金流為 1,860 萬美元，低於預期，原因是運輸時間較長和客戶的樞紐池減少導致庫存增加。由於客戶付款的時間安排，應收帳款也高於預期。

Our balance sheet and liquidity positions remain very strong. Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the third quarter of 2021 were $529.8 million. And our net debt divided by last 12 months EBITDA was 1.5x. During the third quarter, we repurchased 2.1 million shares of our common stock under our previously announced $100 million stock repurchase program at an average price of $13.71 per share for a total of $28.9 million. As of the end of the third quarter, we have spent a total of $35 million for stock repurchases.

我們的資產負債表和流動性狀況仍然非常強勁。截至 2021 年第三季末，現金及現金等價物為 5.298 億美元。我們的淨債務除以過去 12 個月的 EBITDA 為 1.5 倍。第三季度，我們根據先前宣布的 1 億美元股票回購計劃，以每股 13.71 美元的平均價格回購了 210 萬股普通股，總計 2,890 萬美元。截至第三季末，我們總共花了3,500萬美元用於股票回購。

Now I'd like to turn to guidance for the fourth quarter. As Tom stated earlier, we will continue to face elevated cost pressures in the fourth quarter as price increases in the first half of the year takes some time to work through our suppliers and our own inventory. Furthermore, raw material prices continue to rise, though at a slower rate. We also expect continuing production efficiencies and efficiencies in North America.

現在我想談談第四季的指導。正如湯姆早些時候所說，我們將在第四季度繼續面臨較高的成本壓力，因為上半年的價格上漲需要一些時間來消化我們的供應商和我們自己的庫存。此外，原物料價格持續上漲，但上漲速度較慢。我們也預期北美地區的生產效率和效率將持續提高。

Additionally, TTM has a 52, 53-week fiscal calendar, and 2021 is a 53-week year. The extra week will be included in our fourth quarter. Note, however, that the extra week is the holiday week after Christmas and includes New Year's. As such, the revenue benefit is modest at best, but we do incur an extra week of operating expenses.

此外，TTM 有 52 週、53 週的會計日曆，2021 年是 53 週的一年。額外的一周將包含在我們的第四季中。但請注意，額外的一周是聖誕節後的假期週，包括新年。因此，收入收益充其量是微不足道的，但我們確實多了一周的營運費用。

Given that, we expect total revenue for the fourth quarter of 2021 to be in the range of $530 million to $570 million. And we expect non-GAAP earnings to be in the range of $0.28 to $0.34 per diluted share. The EPS forecast is based on a diluted share count of approximately 107 million shares. Our share count guidance includes dilutive securities such as options and RSUs, but no shares associated with our warrants as the current stock price is under the strike price of $14.26. We expect that SG&A expense will be about 8.9% of revenue in the fourth quarter and R&D to be about 0.9% of revenue. We expect interest expense to total approximately $11 million. Finally, we estimate our effective tax rate to be between 5% and 10%.

有鑑於此，我們預計 2021 年第四季的總營收將在 5.3 億美元至 5.7 億美元之間。我們預計非 GAAP 攤薄後每股收益將在 0.28 美元至 0.34 美元之間。 EPS 預測是基於約 1.07 億股的稀釋股數。我們的股份數量指導包括期權和 RSU 等稀釋性證券，但沒有與我們的認股權證相關的股份，因為當前股價低於 14.26 美元的執行價格。我們預計第四季SG&A費用將佔營收的8.9%左右，研發費用將佔營收的0.9%左右。我們預計利息支出總計約 1,100 萬美元。最後，我們估計我們的有效稅率在 5% 到 10% 之間。

To assist you in developing your financial models, we offer the following additional information. During the fourth quarter, we expect to record amortization of intangibles of about $10.2 million, stock-based compensation expense of about $5.3 million, non-cash interest expense of approximately $0.5 million, and we estimate depreciation expense will be approximately $22.4 million. Finally, I'd like to announce that we will be participating virtually in the Baird Industrials conference on November 9 and the Bank of America Leveraged Finance Conference on November 30.

為了幫助您開發財務模型，我們提供以下附加資訊。在第四季度，我們預計無形資產攤銷約為 1,020 萬美元，股票補償費用約為 530 萬美元，非現金利息費用約為 50 萬美元，我們預計折舊費用約為 2,240 萬美元。最後，我想宣布，我們將以虛擬方式參加 11 月 9 日舉行的貝爾德工業會議和 11 月 30 日舉行的美國銀行槓桿金融會議。

That concludes our prepared remarks, and now we'd like to open the line for questions. James?

我們準備好的發言就到此結束，現在我們要開始提問。詹姆士？

(Operator Instructions) And we'll take our first question today from Jim Ricchiuti with Needham & Company.

（操作員說明）今天我們將回答 Needham & Company 的 Jim Ricchiuti 提出的第一個問題。

Just wanted to go through the sequential decline in gross margins. I mean, obviously, there are several contributing factors. But I'm wondering if maybe you could help us by trying to parse it out, maybe quantify some of those factors, which had a bigger impact, whether it was higher cost or lower utilization in North America or potentially mix?

只是想經歷毛利率的持續下降。我的意思是，顯然有幾個影響因素。但我想知道您是否可以幫助我們嘗試解析它，也許量化其中一些影響更大的因素，無論是北美較高的成本還是較低的利用率，或者可能是混合因素？

Sure, Jim. As we highlight the results, our revenue was down about $10.6 million sequentially, led by A&D, which was down about $11 million. Automotive was down slightly, and that was offset by strength in medical industrial instrumentation. So a net number, down about $10.6 million on revenue. Our gross margin decreased about 74 basis points to 17.2%. And what's really driving that, well, some of it is the revenue decline, okay? So that hurts our margin a bit. But really, the production inefficiencies in North America, driven primarily by various related labor challenges, whether that's COVID direct or the inability to acquire the staffing levels that we needed, were really the big contributors. And that resulted in our gross profit being down about $6 million sequentially. And those 2 items, revenue and the production inefficiencies in North America, were about a 50-50 split.

當然，吉姆。正如我們所強調的那樣，我們的收入比上一季下降了約 1,060 萬美元，其中 A&D 下降了約 1,100 萬美元。汽車產業略有下降，但被醫療工業儀器的強勁成長所抵消。因此淨收入下降了約 1,060 萬美元。我們的毛利率下降約 74 個基點至 17.2%。真正推動這一趨勢的部分原因是收入下降，好嗎？所以這有點損害了我們的利潤。但事實上，北美的生產效率低下，主要是由各種相關的勞動力挑戰造成的，無論是新冠疫情直接造成的，還是無法獲得我們所需的人員配置水平，都是造成這種情況的主要原因。這導致我們的毛利連續下降約 600 萬美元。北美地區的收入和生產效率低下這兩項大約是 50:50 的比例。

Got it. And just a follow-up, just with respect to some of the labor challenges here in the U.S., doesn't sound like that is improving much in the near term. So I'm wondering how we should think about those pressures in Q4. Will they be more significant pressures? Or do you see them easing somewhat? Is it something you're anticipating improving in the early part of '22?

知道了。只是針對美國的一些勞動力挑戰的後續行動，聽起來短期內並沒有太大改善。所以我想知道我們應該如何考慮第四季的這些壓力。它們會帶來更大的壓力嗎？或者您認為它們有所緩解嗎？您預計在 22 年初會有所改善嗎？

So Jim, this is Tom. Let me just address -- just let me address Q4 and then talk a little bit about the longer term situation there. We mentioned -- and I think this is being experienced by a number of companies. As you know, a substantial part of our production does come out of North America, that's really what we're talking about here. And the impacts in Q3 were compounded by COVID. So we had -- yes, we were dealing with labor shortages. We also had to deal with a spike in COVID cases and the resulting quarantines. As we go forward into Q4, the good news is at least we're seeing that case count come down. So that will be an improvement in the labor situation.

吉姆，這是湯姆。讓我談談——讓我談談第四季度，然後談談那裡的長期情況。我們提到過——我認為許多公司都在經歷這種情況。如您所知，我們的生產的很大一部分確實來自北美，而這正是我們在這裡討論的內容。新冠疫情加劇了第三季的影響。所以我們——是的，我們正在應對勞動力短缺的問題。我們還必須應對新冠病例激增以及由此導致的隔離。當我們進入第四季度時，好消息是至少我們看到病例數下降。這將改善勞動力狀況。

The other impact of this is that we are able now to get tiger teams and have since the last quarter, been able to get tiger teams into some of our facilities that were more challenged in North America. That takes time to effect itself in terms of production yield improvements, but we expect to start to see that those improvements pay off as well as we come through Q4 and into next year. What we can't really forecast is the material situation in terms of material shortages and whether that situation improves, also whether the inflation and what happens with the inflationary trends there. So we can't really forecast that piece. And the other piece, of course, is logistics and logistics challenges.

這樣做的另一個影響是，我們現在能夠招募老虎隊，並且自上個季度以來，我們能夠讓老虎隊進入我們在北美面臨更多挑戰的一些設施。這需要時間才能提高產量，但我們預計這些改進將在第四季度和明年開始得到回報。我們真正無法預測的是物質短缺方面的物質狀況以及這種情況是否有所改善，以及通貨膨脹是否以及那裡的通貨膨脹趨勢會發生什麼。所以我們無法真正預測那件事。當然，另一塊是物流和物流挑戰。

So what I'm really saying is, yes, there's a piece of the situation that will improve and we can see improving in Q4 around labor. But the overall labor shortage will still be a challenge. And then you've got the ongoing impacts of materials logistics challenges going forward into Q4 as well. And of course, we -- our teams, our operational teams, as I mentioned, are doing a fantastic job of adjusting on the fly in some cases to meet customer demand. And I would remain optimistic that, of course, our supply chain partners will work through some of their challenges here as we go into next year. But certainly, for the fourth quarter, that's going to remain a challenge that we need to confront.

所以我真正想說的是，是的，部分情況將會改善，我們可以看到第四季勞動力的改善。但整體勞動力短缺仍將是個挑戰。然後，您還會看到第四季度材料物流挑戰的持續影響。當然，正如我所提到的，我們的團隊、我們的營運團隊在某些情況下在動態調整方面做得非常出色，以滿足客戶的需求。當然，我仍然樂觀地認為，隨著我們進入明年，我們的供應鏈夥伴將克服他們面臨的一些挑戰。但當然，對於第四季度，這仍然是我們需要面對的挑戰。

Our next question will come from William Stein with Truist Securities.

我們的下一個問題將來自 Truist Securities 的 William Stein。

First, I'm hoping you can give us an update on lead times. I think typically, your lead times are very short, but -- and I don't think they extended the way semi and other component companies did in this cycle that we're still in the midst of, I guess. But if you can update us as to the trajectory there and the sort of pacing of things like pull in expedite versus pushouts and cancels?

首先，我希望您能為我們提供有關交貨時間的最新資訊。我認為通常情況下，你們的交貨時間非常短，但是 - 我認為他們沒有像半成品和其他零件公司那樣延長我們仍然處於這個週期中的方式，我猜。但是，您能否向我們介紹那裡的最新發展軌跡以及諸如拉入加急與推出和取消之類的事情的節奏？

Yes, sure, Will. Yes, the demand environment continues to be really robust. If you look at the commercial demand environment for our Asia facilities, our Asia facilities I think with the exception of one facility pretty much booked through the fourth quarter. You can see that reflected, of course, in the strength of the backlog. So we're looking at substantial lead time extensions there, Will. It depends again on the facility, but you're looking at, I would say, on average 16 weeks plus in those facilities. North America also generally very, very tight in terms of demand and facilities that you're absolutely right, would be on average 4 weeks kind of lead time in the past 3 weeks to 4 weeks. Now you're looking at lead times that stretch into next year as we book into those facilities.

是的，當然，威爾。是的，需求環境仍然非常強勁。如果你看看我們亞洲設施的商業需求環境，我認為除了一個設施外，我們的亞洲設施在第四季度幾乎被預訂。當然，您可以看到這反映在積壓的數量上。所以我們正在考慮大幅延長交貨時間，威爾。這又取決於設施，但我想說的是，您在這些設施中平均工作了 16 週以上。北美在需求和設施方面通常也非常非常緊張，您是絕對正確的，在過去 3 週到 4 週內平均交貨時間為 4 週。現在，當我們預訂這些設施時，您所看到的交貨時間會延長到明年。

So certainly, the demand climate remains overall very strong. I talked about one area that continues to be a concern is commercial aerospace. That's probably the one market where we've continued to see real softness. But outside of that, really, really strong demand environment.

因此，可以肯定的是，整體需求環境仍然非常強勁。我談到了一個持續受到關注的領域是商業航空航太。這可能是我們持續看到真正疲軟的市場。但除此之外，需求環境確實非常強勁。

Follow-up, if I can. The density of buybacks versus M&A and any commentary on the M&A pipeline? I think it's been -- I think it's been a while since you did a significant deal. But any update there, please?

如果可以的話，跟進一下。回購與併購的密度以及對併購管道的任何評論？我想你已經有一段時間沒有完成一項重大交易了。但有更新嗎？

Sure. I can talk about the M&A environment. Todd, maybe you can comment on the buyback. Obviously, both critical parts of our balance sheet strategy and we balance the 2. In terms of M&A, the strategy very much, Will, remains in place as we look at potential assets that would help to satisfy some of the strategic needs of the company. One of those is looking at our footprint capabilities and the printed circuit board space as we look at the need to move beyond our existing footprint into Europe, into Southeast Asia. That's one area. The even greater focus on adding to our RF engineering expertise, both on the commercial side and on the aerospace and defense side, looking at opportunities to build on that capability.

當然。我可以談談併購環境。托德，也許你可以對回購發表評論。顯然，我們的資產負債表策略的兩個關鍵部分都是我們平衡的。其中之一是考慮我們的足跡能力和印刷電路板空間，因為我們正在考慮超越現有足跡進入歐洲、進入東南亞的需要。那是一個區域。我們更加重視增加我們的射頻工程專業知識，無論是在商業方面還是在航空航天和國防方面，尋找機會來發展這種能力。

We have not -- as you pointed out, we have not had a major acquisition event here for a period of time. And that's really not -- we have a decent pipeline in the works. But that pipeline, then you need to work it, you need to see those opportunities come to fruition. And also, we still are dealing with an inflated expectation environment in terms of seller expectations out there. And the second area of focus for us is to really meet not only our strategic needs, but also to make sense to the company financially as we run cash flow projections and put a valuation to these assets. So you have to clear both. And at that point -- at this point, the second is more challenging, I'd say, to fulfill. I will tell you that we continue to work that pipeline. It's still a very active process.

正如您所指出的，我們已經有一段時間沒有在這裡舉行重大收購活動了。事實並非如此——我們正在開發一條不錯的管道。但是這條管道，然後你需要工作它，你需要看到這些機會實現。而且，就賣家期望而言，我們仍然面臨過高的期望環境。我們關注的第二個領域是，不僅真正滿足我們的策略需求，而且在我們進行現金流預測並對這些資產進行估值時，在財務上對公司有意義。所以你必須清除兩者。在這一點上，我想說，在這一點上，第二個任務更具挑戰性。我會告訴你，我們將繼續努力推進這項工作。這仍然是一個非常活躍的過程。

And just to add on to that, when we look at our capital allocation structure and our plans going forward, we recognize that our company has really matured over the last 5 years, and we're at a different place than where we were before. Notwithstanding the challenges that we talked about, our execution is relatively consistent and the markets that we're participating in are pretty attractive. That really affords us an opportunity to have a multipronged allocation strategy rather than just one option only. Our first choice, without a doubt, is to find opportunities to grow the company both organically or inorganically. But we feel now we've reached a point in our life that we can also have a shareholder return element to that capital allocation strategy, one that we can keep up as we go forward at some modest level.

除此之外，當我們審視我們的資本配置結構和未來計劃時，我們認識到我們的公司在過去五年中確實已經成熟，而且我們所處的位置與以前不同。儘管有我們談到的挑戰，但我們的執行相對一致，而且我們參與的市場非常有吸引力。這確實為我們提供了一個多管齊下的分配策略的機會，而不僅僅是一種選擇。毫無疑問，我們的第一選擇是尋找有機或無機發展公司的機會。但我們覺得現在我們已經達到了人生的一個階段，我們也可以在資本配置策略中加入股東回報元素，我們可以在適度的水平上繼續前進。

We've talked about the fact that we announced the program. We hadn't had a whole lot of activity in the first quarter or 2 for various reasons, which we talked about in the past. We were in the market much more actively hearing in the last quarter and have now spent about 1/3 of our total program amount that was approved and authorized by the Board of $100 million. So that program is still in force that's out there, and we'll continue to take opportunities to buy back our stock when it makes sense. But we don't believe it's mutually exclusive to M&A. We think we can balance the 2, and that is our intention going forward.

我們已經討論過我們宣布該計劃的事實。由於各種原因，我們在第一季或第二季沒有進行太多活動，我們過去曾討論過這一點。上個季度，我們在市場上更加積極地聽取意見，現在已經花費了董事會批准和授權的 1 億美元計劃總金額的約 1/3。因此，該計劃仍然有效，我們將繼續抓住機會在有意義的時候回購我們的股票。但我們並不認為這與併購是互相排斥的。我們認為我們可以平衡兩者，這就是我們未來的意圖。

Our next question will come from Srini Pajjuri with SMBC Nikko Securities.

我們的下一個問題將來自 SMBC Nikko Securities 的 Srini Pajjuri。

Tom, a question about your backlog versus your revenue guidance. I guess, last quarter, they were pretty similar. I think I get why you're guiding your revenue a little bit below your backlog. But given that, you said labor situation is actually improving sequentially. I'm a little bit surprised that you're not guiding for somewhat similar revenue as your backlog. So if you could talk about what sort of utilization you're assuming for Q4, especially given that you said you have an extra week. And then what's causing that discrepancy? I think that will be helpful.

湯姆，關於您的積壓訂單與收入指導的問題。我想，上個季度，它們非常相似。我想我明白為什麼你的收入指引略低於積壓訂單。但考慮到這一點，你說勞動力狀況實際上正在逐步改善。我有點驚訝的是，您沒有指導與積壓訂單類似的收入。因此，您是否可以談談您對第四季度的利用率有何看法，特別是考慮到您說您還有一周的時間。那麼是什麼導致了這種差異呢？我認為這會有幫助。

Sure. Yes, the -- on the labor front, yes, the good news is that COVID cases have been trending downward. But that does not negate the fact that we still have significant labor challenges out there, both in terms of turnover and also in terms of labor availability. And those challenges will continue in the fourth quarter, at least from our advantage point. We also have to take into account the prospects of the supply chain material shortages continuing to impact us and with various facilities and the logistics challenges. So that -- as we look at our production capabilities, we have to factor these elements in. And frankly, that leads us to be a little bit conservative on the revenue side. And I would add that, as Todd pointed out, that additional week is really a -- it's a holiday week. So you really -- you're looking at certainly additional expense. The opportunity to push out more revenue is pretty limited during that period of time. And so that doesn't really have much impact on us.

當然。是的，在勞工方面，是的，好消息是新冠病例呈現下降趨勢。但這並不能否認我們仍然面臨巨大的勞動力挑戰，無論是在營業額方面還是在勞動力供應方面。這些挑戰將在第四季度繼續存在，至少從我們的優勢點來看。我們還必須考慮供應鏈材料短缺的前景繼續影響我們以及各種設施和物流的挑戰。因此，當我們審視我們的生產能力時，我們必須考慮這些因素。我想補充一點，正如托德指出的那樣，額外的一周實際上是一個假期週。所以你真的——你肯定會考慮額外的費用。在此期間，推出更多收入的機會相當有限。所以這對我們來說並沒有太大影響。

Also Todd mentioned, we did build some inventory last quarter, this quarter, we're looking at a situation where we're going to draw -- if anything, draw down inventories that's certainly our goal here, make sure that our inventories are properly in line to generate the cash that we need to as a company. So you put all that together. And I'd say from a revenue standpoint, again, we're comfortable where we are. It's great to be in an environment, such a positive demand environment. We are working now to make the solid improvements that we need to operationally to have an impact on that backlog as we go into next year.

托德還提到，上個季度我們確實建立了一些庫存，本季度我們正在考慮一種情況，我們將提取庫存——如果有的話，減少庫存這當然是我們的目標，確保我們的庫存正確。所以你把所有這些放在一起。我想說，從收入的角度來看，我們對目前的狀況感到滿意。身處在這樣一個環境，​​這樣積極的需求環境真是太好了。我們現在正在努力進行切實可行的改進，以便在進入明年時對積壓的訂單產生影響。

Todd, anything to add?

托德，有什麼要補充的嗎？

No, I think you hit it. There's a lot of holidays in the fourth quarter. So when you look at it on a production day basis, Q4 to Q3, there's very little difference, even though it sounds like on paper there's an extra week.

不，我認為你擊中了它。第四季有很多假期。因此，當您以生產日為基礎（從第四季度到第三季度）查看時，幾乎沒有什麼區別，儘管紙面上聽起來好像多了一周。

Got it. And then on the cost mitigation actions that you implemented, can you maybe talk about where we are in that process? And how receptive your customers have been because it's no secret that the supply chain has been going through an inflationary pressures. I think it's well understood. And I'm just curious as to where we are in that process and how receptive the customers will be?

知道了。然後，關於您實施的成本降低措施，您能否談談我們在過程中的進展？您的客戶的接受度有多高，因為供應鏈一直在承受通膨壓力，這已不是什麼秘密。我覺得很好理解。我只是好奇我們在這個過程中處於什麼位置以及客戶的接受程度如何？

Sure. I think, again, this is an area that our teams have been working tirelessly on. And it's a lot of -- like you said, generally recognized, but that doesn't mean that customers are pleased when they have to face a price increase. And so what we have been doing here is really coordinating between our supply chain, our operations teams and the sales team, make sure that we are as transparent as possible communicating with our customers about the increased cost pressures that we have felt.

當然。我再次認為，這是我們團隊一直不懈努力的領域。正如您所說，這是眾所周知的，但這並不意味著客戶在不得不面對價格上漲時感到高興。因此，我們在這裡所做的實際上是在我們的供應鏈、營運團隊和銷售團隊之間進行協調，確保我們盡可能透明地與客戶溝通我們感受到的日益增加的成本壓力。

As Todd said, with those cost pressures filter in through the course of the year certainly will continue in the fourth quarter. The third quarter, we did see some additional increases broad-based, but not as extreme. Fortunately, as the first half of the year. And so then you move over to the pricing side. We did a good job in Q3. I think we characterized that we were 75 percentage-ish in terms of progress at the beginning of Q3 and passing on cost increases, we were able to pretty much close that gap in Q3. In Q4 again, the bar goes up, and we have an additional challenge as we have conversations with our customers.

正如托德所說，隨著這些成本壓力在今年的過程中不斷滲透，第四季肯定會持續下去。第三季度，我們確實看到了一些廣泛的額外成長，但沒有那麼極端。幸運的是，正如上半年一樣。然後你就轉向定價方面。我們在第三季做得很好。我認為我們的特點是，在第三季初的進展方面，我們的進度約為 75%，並且轉嫁成本增加，我們幾乎能夠在第三季縮小這一差距。在第四季度，標準再次上升，當我們與客戶進行對話時，我們面臨額外的挑戰。

I would add that, as you remember, about 50% of our business is noncontractual. So we're able to adjust quote models immediately as we forecast increases. And -- or is contractual but contains material escalation clauses. It's the balance of the 50% that we're talking about here, which is contractual. We had varying levels of contractual negotiation frequency. And it's that piece that we've really been working on. As a company. This is an interesting time in the fourth quarter because a number of our annual type contracts, particularly in automotive, come up for negotiation in the fourth quarter. So I know our sales teams and business units will be working very hard this quarter on communicating with our customers and trying to really be forward-looking as we look at ongoing impacts here of an inflation of a newly inflationary environment.

我想補充一點，正如您所記得的，我們大約 50% 的業務是非合約業務。因此，我們能夠在預測價格上漲時立即調整報價模型。 And--or 是合約性的，但包含重大升級條款。就是我們這裡說的50%的餘額，這是合約上的。我們的合約談判頻率各不相同。這就是我們一直在努力的作品。作為一家公司。第四季度是一個有趣的時刻，因為我們的許多年度合同，特別是汽車領域的合同，都會在第四季度進行談判。因此，我知道我們的銷售團隊和業務部門將在本季非常努力地與客戶溝通，並在我們研究新通膨環境的持續影響時努力保持前瞻性。

And I just might add to that, Srini. I was just going to add the other part of it, not -- are mitigating -- I use the word mitigating activities because it's not just all about pricing, right? We have other measures that we are working very hard to try to use to help offset the pain of higher raw material costs be that looking at alternative suppliers, driving or gaining efficiencies as we build volume to help offset some of that negative cost and driving just cost controls in general within our facilities to try to minimize the pain because pricing is a tough road to go. Customers, like Tom pointed out, they understand it, but they don't like it. And so you have to make sure you're doing everything you can to reduce the need to go to them, right? But we've been working all of those angles against the middle, if you will, to try to mitigate. And we've done a good job here in Q2 and Q3. I think both quarters, we accomplished the goal. We're looking at Q4 and hoping to get to the same place, but there's still a little bit of work to be done. Did you have a follow-on, Srini?

我想補充一點，斯里尼。我只是想添加它的另一部分，而不是——正在緩解——我使用“緩解活動”這個詞，因為這不僅僅與定價有關，對吧？我們正在努力採取其他措施來幫助抵消原材料成本上漲的痛苦，例如尋找替代供應商，在我們增加產量的同時提高或提高效率，以幫助抵消部分負面成本，並推動我們的設施內總體上進行成本控制，以盡量減少痛苦，因為定價是一條艱難的道路。正如湯姆指出的那樣，顧客理解這一點，但他們不喜歡它。所以你必須確保你正在盡一切努力減少去找他們的需要，對嗎？但如果你願意的話，我們一直在從所有這些角度來反對中間，試圖緩解這種情況。我們在第二季和第三季做得很好。我認為兩個季度我們都實現了目標。我們正在關注第四季度，希望能達到同樣的目標，但仍有一些工作要做。你有後續嗎，斯里尼？

Yes. Just one, Tom. There's been a lot of noise about potential subsidies for the semiconductor industry and domestic manufacturing. I'm just curious if you have had any discussions in Washington and if you foresee potentially TTMI benefiting from any sort of subsidy that might come out of there.

是的。只有一個，湯姆。關於半導體產業和國內製造業的潛在補貼有許多爭議。我只是好奇你們是否在華盛頓進行過任何討論，以及你們是否預見到 TTMI 可能會從那裡可能提供的任何形式的補貼中受益。

Yes. Let me -- a couple of comments on that. I think on the aerospace and on the defense side in particular, I think there's a better understanding out there and really reflected in legislation, the budgetary legislation around the defense spend -- defense as we look at next year. Around the weaknesses that the supply chain faces in terms of PCB production in North America, I think that's certainly of concern to our defense customers. And so I think it's a positive to see that there's a developing understanding in Congress and within the defense department of how critical printed circuit boards are to the capabilities into our infrastructure needs as a country. So we'll see how that develops in terms of specific legislation activity.

是的。讓我對此發表一些評論。我認為在航空航太領域，特別是在國防方面，我認為人們有了更好的理解，並真正反映在立法中，圍繞國防支出的預算立法——正如我們明年所看到的那樣。關於北美 PCB 生產供應鏈面臨的弱點，我認為這肯定是我們的國防客戶所關心的。因此，我認為看到國會和國防部內部對印刷電路板對於滿足我們作為一個國家的基礎設施需求的能力的重要性的認識不斷加深，這是一件積極的事情。因此，我們將看看具體立法活動的進展如何。

I'd highlight another aspect, which you mentioned, Srini. As you think about -- and as Congress looks at semiconductors, we've certainly been encouraging and educating around the need to broaden that definition to think not just about chips, but about the broader electronics manufacturing infrastructure. We like to say that chips don't float is a saying that we use, which really is -- I think it's important that be recognized that there needs to be an entire support structure around chips. We'll see, again, where the -- how the legislation ends up. I think that there has been a broadening of definitions to include microelectronics, and that's a positive and we'll see what really comes out of Congress this year. But overall, we're certainly encouraged to see that there is more attention being paid to this issue now.

我想強調你提到的另一個方面，斯里尼。正如您所想的那樣，當國會審視半導體時，我們當然一直在鼓勵和教育擴大這一定義的必要性，不僅要考慮晶片，還要考慮更廣泛的電子製造基礎設施。我們喜歡說晶片不會漂浮，這是我們使用的一種說法，這確實是——我認為重要的是要認識到晶片周圍需要有一個完整的支撐結構。我們將再次看到立法的最終結果。我認為定義已經擴大到包括微電子學，這是積極的，我們將看到今年國會的真正結果。但總的來說，我們當然很高興看到現在人們對這個問題給予了更多的關注。

Our final question will come from Mike Crawford with B. Riley Securities.

我們的最後一個問題將由 B. Riley 證券公司的 Mike Crawford 提出。

Just before I ask about defense, can I just again hear your answer about why the midpoint of your fourth quarter guidance would be $45 million below to 90-day backlog you have right now?

在我詢問防禦問題之前，我能否再次聽聽您的回答，為什麼您的第四季度指導中位數將比您目前的 90 天積壓訂單低 4500 萬美元？

No. Sure. Yes. So the backlog, as we look at the backlog, that it is technically a 90-day backlog, but we are looking at a quarter, particularly in North America, where we have some ongoing challenges related to labor to material availability and logistics challenges. And so as we looked at the revenue projections for the fourth quarter, we need to include those challenges. And so there's a bit of a shortfall, if you will, from the revenue as compared to the backlog.

不確定。是的。因此，當我們查看積壓訂單時，從技術上講，這是 90 天的積壓，但我們正在關註一個季度，特別是在北美，我們在勞動力、材料可用性和物流方面面臨著一些持續的挑戰。因此，當我們研究第四季度的收入預測時，我們需要考慮到這些挑戰。因此，如果你願意的話，與積壓訂單相比，收入存在一些短缺。

Okay. And I suppose in a different environment, sometimes you might actually book and ship and you could actually have a quarter that's above the backlog? Or is it always some kind of shortfall relative to backlog?

好的。我想在不同的環境中，有時您可能實際上會預訂並發貨，並且您實際上可能有一個高於積壓訂單的季度？或者相對於積壓，總是存在某種短缺？

This is an unusual circumstance, Mike. I'll be blunt. We saw a little bit of this last quarter. If you remember, our backlog was pretty close to matching revenue last quarter. And we spoke about again, about the need to be careful and we were proven right in the third quarter, but it was really, as we looked at the third quarter, and we knew we were in the summer, we were already seeing challenges on the labor front, and we anticipated that. So this is, again, a second quarter of this. It is unusual. Usually, we would have a portion of our revenue that we can book in the quarter and ship. But I talked a little bit will asked about the extended lead times. That's absolutely part of this. You can see an indication is lead time stretch that we're just going to have real challenges booking and shipping within the quarter. So it really does end up doing our best to ship as much of our backlog out during the course of the quarter as possible. So yes, a little bit unusual.

這是一個不尋常的情況，麥克。我會直言不諱。我們在上個季度看到了一些這樣的情況。如果你還記得的話，我們的積壓訂單與上季的收入非常接近。我們再次談到需要小心，我們在第三季度被證明是正確的，但實際上，當我們看到第三季度時，我們知道我們正處於夏季，我們已經看到了挑戰勞工方面，我們預料到了這一點。這又是第二季。這是不尋常的。通常，我們可以將部分收入在季度中預訂並發貨。但我談了一點會詢問延長交貨時間的問題。這絕對是其中的一部分。您可以看到交貨時間延長的跡象，表明我們在本季內的預訂和運輸將面臨真正的挑戰。因此，我們最終確實盡力在本季度內盡可能多地運送積壓的訂單。所以是的，有點不尋常。

Okay. So -- and then somewhat related, but when you're talking about TTM's growth expectations for vertical win markets. I look at aerospace and defense, where you had a 1.32 book-to-bill in the quarter, a near $100 million year-over-year jump in defense backlog, yet you're saying you expect to go slower than the industry's 2% to 4% growth rate. But is that just for fiscal '21? Is that what you mean by FY '21 view? Or you can't -- I don't think, expect to grow slower than the industry in the next couple of years?

好的。因此，有些相關，但是當您談論 TTM 對垂直獲勝市場的成長預期時。我看看航空航太和國防領域，本季的訂單出貨比為 1.32，國防積壓訂單年增近 1 億美元，但您卻表示預計增速將低於該產業 2%至 4% 的成長率。但這只適用於 21 財年嗎？這就是您所說的 21 財年觀點嗎？或者你不能——我不認為，期望未來幾年的成長速度會慢於產業？

Absolutely, Mike. Yes, we're -- that is, as you know, we have grown for the past several years, 3 years, 4 years, we've been growing well above that rate, actually ever since the Viasystems acquisition, so you can step back to 2016 and take a look at the numbers. And we've been growing well above that rate. This year, in aerospace and defense, we got hit by a couple of things. One is commercial aerospace weakness. And that has an impact on several of our facilities that really were focused on that area, primarily assembly needs in that area. And that -- so those facilities were impacted. And then the other piece of this has been dealing with some of the ongoing challenges, production efficiency challenges in North America. Certainly, that's heightened here in this past quarter.

當然，麥克。是的，我們——也就是說，正如你所知，我們在過去幾年、三年、四年裡一直在成長，實際上自從收購Viasystems 以來，我們的成長速度遠高於這個速度，所以你可以一步一步回到2016年，看看這些數字。我們的成長速度遠高於這個速度。今年，在航空航太和國防領域，我們受到了一些事情的打擊。一是商業航空航天的弱點。這對我們真正專注於該領域的幾個工廠產生了影響，主要是該領域的組裝需求。所以這些設施受到了影響。另一方面是應對一些持續存在的挑戰，即北美的生產效率挑戰。當然，這種情況在上個季度有所加劇。

As we go into next year, certainly, from a capital planning standpoint, we are planning on growth. We see a strong backdrop here in terms of program backlog to go out and service. As you know, we have capital capability, with balance sheet capability to grow in aerospace and defense, and we have differentiated technology offerings here. So our plan is to continue to grow in aerospace and defense. I'm hopeful that next year, we'll also see that turn in commercial aerospace and start to see at least some meaningful sequential improvements that will help feed into that story as well.

當然，當我們進入明年時，從資本規劃的角度來看，我們正在規劃成長。我們在這裡看到了在計劃積壓和服務方面的強大背景。如您所知，我們擁有在航空航太和國防領域發展的資本能力和資產負債表能力，並且我們在這裡擁有差異化的技術產品。因此，我們的計劃是繼續在航空航太和國防領域發展。我希望明年，我們也將看到商業航空航太領域的轉變，並開始看到至少一些有意義的連續改進，這些改進也將有助於推動這個故事。

Mike, it's Todd here. Just one other thing I'd highlight. Aerospace and defense, unlike our commercial business, when we book orders, those orders are not necessarily for shipment in the next 90 days. Oftentimes, those orders are shippable in the next 1 year to 2 years. And so it's -- although the foundation, if you look at the program backlog for aerospace and defense, over $700 million is a great number. It's not all shippable. And so you kind of have to look at the balance quarter-to-quarter, and that plays into a little bit of some of the challenges that we saw this year. But when you look at the program depth and the strength over the next couple of years, it's very favorable, but you could have little blips quarter-to-quarter.

麥克，我是托德。我要強調的另一件事是。航空航太和國防與我們的商業業務不同，當我們預訂訂單時，這些訂單不一定會在未來 90 天內出貨。通常，這些訂單可在未來 1 到 2 年內出貨。因此，儘管基金會的情況是這樣的，但如果你看看航空航太和國防領域的計畫積壓，你會發現超過 7 億美元是一個很大的數字。並不是所有的東西都可以出貨。因此，您必須逐季度查看平衡情況，這在我們今年看到的一些挑戰中發揮了作用。但是，當你看看未來幾年的計劃深度和強度時，你會發現這是非常有利的，但每個季度可能會出現一些小波動。

Okay. And we saw Boeing today a firm production increases in next year, and we're hearing the same from Airbus. So I'm sure you'll be fine. Thank you very much.

好的。今天我們看到波音公司明年的產量將穩定增加，我們也從空中巴士公司聽到同樣的消息。所以我相信你會沒事的。非常感謝。

Thank you, Mike. Appreciate it.

謝謝你，麥克。欣賞它。

That will conclude today's question-and-answer session. I will now turn the call over to Tom Edman for any additional closing remarks.

今天的問答環節到此結束。我現在將把電話轉給湯姆·埃德曼（Tom Edman），請其發表任何補充的結束語。

Thank you. I'd just like to close by summarizing some of the points that I made earlier. First, we delivered revenues and earnings in line with guidance despite production and labor inefficiencies in North America and supply chain challenges. Second, our end market diversification enabled solid year-on-year growth of 13% for our ongoing business. And third, we used our strong cash position to repurchase our stock. So in closing, I'd like to thank you, our investors, again, our employees, our customers and our supply chain partners for your continued support to TTM. Thank you very much.

謝謝。最後，我想總結一下我之前提出的一些觀點。首先，儘管北美的生產和勞動力效率低下以及供應鏈面臨挑戰，但我們的收入和收益仍符合指引。其次，我們的終端市場多元化使我們的持續業務實現了 13% 的年比穩健成長。第三，我們利用強大的現金狀況回購了我們的股票。最後，我要再次感謝您、我們的投資者、我們的員工、我們的客戶和我們的供應鏈夥伴對迅達的持續支持。非常感謝。

This concludes today's call. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與。您現在可以斷開連線。