Universal Stainless & Alloy Products Inc (USAP) 2024 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good day and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Universal Stainless second-quarter Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the conference over to your first speaker today, June Filingeri. Please go ahead.

您好，感謝您的支持。歡迎參加環球不銹鋼第二季電話會議。（操作員指示）請注意，今天的會議正在錄音。現在，我想將會議交給今天的第一位演講者 June Filingeri。請繼續。

Thank you, Jacinda. Good morning. This is June Filingeri of Comm-Partners, and I also would like to welcome you to the Universal Stainless conference call and webcast. We are here to discuss the company's second quarter 2024 results reported this morning. With us from management are Chris Zimmer, President and Chief Executive Officer; John Arminas, Vice President and General Counsel; and Steven DiTommaso, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

謝謝你，傑辛達。早安.我是 Comm-Partners 的 June Filingeri，歡迎您參加 Universal Stainless 電話會議和網路廣播。我們在這裡討論今天上午報告的公司 2024 年第二季業績。與我們一起出席的管理層有總裁兼首席執行官克里斯·齊默 (Chris Zimmer)、副總裁兼總法律顧問約翰·阿米納斯 (John Arminas) 和副總裁兼首席財務官史蒂文·迪托馬索 (Steven DiTommaso)。

Before I turn the call over to management, let me quickly review procedures again. After management has made formal remarks, we will take your questions. Our conference operator will instruct you on procedures at that time. Also, please note that in this morning's call, management will make forward-looking statements. Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, I would like to remind you of the risks related to these statements, which are more fully described in today's press release and in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

在我將電話轉給管理層之前，請允許我再次快速回顧程序。管理層發表正式演講後，我們將回答您的問題。我們的會議操作員將在那時指導您有關程序。另外，請注意，在今天上午的電話會議上，管理層將做出前瞻性陳述。根據 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》，我想提醒您注意這些聲明相關的風險，這些風險在今天的新聞稿和公司向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件中進行了更詳細的描述。

With these formalities complete, I would now like to turn the call over to Chris Zimmer. Chris, we are ready to begin.

這些手續辦完後，我現在想把電話轉給克里斯·齊默 (Chris Zimmer)。克里斯，我們準備開始了。

Thank you, June. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us. The second quarter was a period of significant achievement for Universal. Sales reached a record $82.8 million, gross margin hit an all-time high of 25.4% of sales, record net income of $8.9 million or $0.90 per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA was a record $18.5 million or 22% of sales. Our ability to achieve this level of sales and profitability is the direct result of our strategic focus and capital investment in our aerospace market capacity and capabilities, namely in premium alloys and other critical products for commercial aircraft and defense applications.

謝謝你，六月。大家早安，感謝大家的收看。第二季是環球影業有重大成就的時期。銷售額達到創紀錄的 8,280 萬美元，毛利率達到銷售額的 25.4% 的歷史新高，淨收入達到創紀錄的 890 萬美元或每股 0.90 美元，調整後 EBITDA 達到創紀錄的 1,850 萬美元或銷售額的 22%。我們能夠實現這一銷售和盈利水平，直接得益於我們對航空航天市場容量和能力的戰略重點和資本投資，即對商用飛機和國防應用的優質合金和其他關鍵產品的投資。

That focus has delivered a richer product mix and a broader base of customer approvals in a market with substantial growth potential for the foreseeable future. As evidence of our progress, we achieved record aerospace market sales of $68.6 million in the second quarter representing 83% of total sales with premium alloys at 25% of total sales, mainly driven by aerospace.

這一重點在可預見的未來具有巨大成長潛力的市場中帶來了更豐富的產品組合和更廣泛的客戶認可基礎。作為我們取得進步的證據，我們在第二季度實現了創紀錄的 6,860 萬美元的航空航天市場銷售額，佔總銷售額的 83%，其中優質合金佔總銷售額的 25%，主要由航空航天推動。

An important profitability driver is the targeted and sustainable margin improvement projects we continue to put in place. These projects, combined with the change in our mix towards aerospace and premium products, represent a structural change in the level of margin we are achieving. The acceleration of our margins in the second quarter and the growth of our adjusted EBITDA, which increased 47% quarter-over-quarter, and 135% year-over-year are indicators of this new level of profitability.

一個重要的獲利驅動力是我們持續實施的有針對性的、可持續的利潤率提升項目。這些項目，加上我們向航空航太和高端產品轉變，代表著我們所實現的利潤水準的結構性變化。我們第二季利潤率的加速成長和調整後 EBITDA 的成長（季增 47%，年成長 135%）顯示我們的獲利能力已達到新的水平。

Additionally, our second quarter benefited from higher base selling prices, along with stabilizing commodity prices. We continue to invest in our premium alloy capacity, and we are adding a second 18-ton furnace shell for the VIM at our North Jackson facility in the middle of 2025 and a new box furnace this quarter to support growth at the forge.

此外，我們第二季受惠於基本銷售價格的上漲以及商品價格的穩定。我們將繼續投資於我們的優質合金產能，並將於 2025 年中期在北傑克遜工廠為 VIM 添加第二個 18 噸爐殼，並於本季度添加一個新的箱式爐，以支持鍛造廠的成長。

We also remain fully focused on managing working capital and generating positive cash flow to fund our strategic capital expenditures as well as paying down debt. In the second quarter, net cash generated by operating activities totaled $7.3 million and total debt reduction was another $3 million, bringing the total debt reduction over the past four quarters to $15 million, a decrease of 16%. Backlog remained solid at $297 million at the end of the second quarter versus $325 million at the end of the first quarter.

我們也將繼續全力專注於管理營運資金和產生正現金流，以資助我們的策略資本支出以及償還債務。第二季度，經營活動產生的淨現金總額為730萬美元，總債務減少300萬美元，使過去四個季度的總債務減少額達到1,500萬美元，減少了16%。第二季末積壓訂單金額保持穩定，為 2.97 億美元，而第一季末為 3.25 億美元。

We are continuing to work with customers to manage order entries in order to pull in lead times, which better serves them while strengthening our competitiveness. From an operations standpoint, total production in the second quarter was up 4% sequentially that follows a 12% sequential increase in the first quarter as we further benefit from our capital modernization projects throughout the plants.

我們將繼續與客戶合作管理訂單輸入，以縮短交貨時間，從而更好地為他們服務，同時增強我們的競爭力。從營運角度來看，第二季總產量較上季成長 4%，而第一季則較上季成長 12%，這得益於我們進一步受益於整個工廠的資本現代化項目。

Through those projects, we are realizing process improvements and an increased stability in our manufacturing process, enabling our production levels to ramp. There was positive news on the workforce front earlier this month with the signing of a new five-year collective bargaining agreement with the hourly production and maintenance employees at our North Jackson facility. It's a good contract serving the best interest of our employees, our customers and our shareholders.

透過這些項目，我們實現了流程改進和製造流程穩定性的提高，從而使我們的生產水準得以提升。本月初，勞動力方面傳來了積極的消息，我們與北傑克遜工廠的計時生產和維護員工簽署了一項新的五年集體談判協議。這是一份很好的合同，符合我們員工、客戶和股東的最大利益。

The capabilities of our North Jackson facility and our capital investments there have an essential role in our growth strategy. A further positive development in the second quarter was the return of Universal Stainless to the Russell 2000 and 3000 indexes. We believe it reflects our substantial progress over the past year in achieving our growth objectives and in building value for our shareholders.

我們北傑克遜工廠的能力和我們在那裡的資本投資在我們的成長策略中發揮著至關重要的作用。第二季度的另一個積極發展是環球不銹鋼公司重返羅素 2000 和 3000 指數。我們相信，這反映了我們過去一年在實現成長目標和為股東創造價值方面取得的實質進展。

Turning to our end markets. Let me begin with aerospace. Second quarter sales were a record $68.6 million, up 14% from the first quarter and up 34% from the second quarter of 2023. Year-to-date sales increased 29% to $128.8 million. I've just returned from the Farnborough Air Show where the enthusiasm and optimism about the future of the aerospace market demand remains as strong as ever.

轉向我們的終端市場。我先從航空航天說起。第二季銷售額創下 6,860 萬美元的新高，較第一季成長 14%，較 2023 年第二季成長 34%。年初至今的銷售額成長了 29%，達到 1.288 億美元。我剛從範堡羅航展回來，人們對未來航空航太市場需求的熱情和樂觀情緒依然一如既往地強烈。

The importance of the show for Universal was the opportunity to make further inroads in expanding our base of major customer approvals as well as in deepening current customer relationships on both commercial, aerospace and defense, we were successful on both fronts. As expected, Boeing and Airbus announced major deals at the show.

此次展會對環球影業的重要性在於，我們有機會進一步擴大主要客戶認可基礎，並深化商業、航空航太和國防領域的現有客戶關係，我們在這兩方面都取得了成功。正如預期的那樣，波音和空中巴士在展會上宣布了重大交易。

There were encouraging wins for Boeing, including an order for 20 787 Dreamliners for Japan Airlines, an order for 20 777-9s from Qatar Airlines. Airbus also won orders, including one from Japan Airlines for both wide-body aircraft and a single-aisle 321NEOs. Boeing's focus at the air show was on safety, quality and their plan to meet customer commitments.

波音公司取得了令人鼓舞的勝利，包括日本航空訂購 20 架 787 夢幻飛機，卡達航空訂購 20 架 777-9 飛機。空中巴士公司還贏得了日本航空的訂單，其中包括一架寬體飛機和一架單通道 321NEO 飛機。波音公司在航展上的重點是安全、品質以及履行客戶承諾的計畫。

While Boeing recently pushed back, by a few months, their production plans for the 737 MAX, COO, Stephanie Pope, told reporters at the air show that they are seeing significant improvement in the flow of their 737 factory, and she confirmed their production target of a steady rate of 38 737 MAX airplanes per month by the end of this year. They also plan to return to producing 5 787s per month later this year as the supply of parts continues to improve.

儘管波音公司最近將其 737 MAX 的生產計劃推遲了幾個月，但首席營運官 Stephanie Pope 在航展上告訴記者，他們看到 737 工廠的流程有了顯著改善，並確認了他們的生產目標，即到今年年底每月穩定生產 38 架 737 MAX 飛機。隨著零件供應的不斷改善，他們還計劃在今年稍後恢復每月生產 5 架 787 飛機的產量。

To date, Boeing has continued to work with the supply chain to ensure reliability and sufficient inventory for the ramp-up in production rates. While our customers are closely monitoring the recent pushback in production target dates, we have only seen minimal order adjustments, and there have been no cancellations.

迄今為止，波音公司一直與供應鏈持續合作，以確保可靠性和充足的庫存，從而提高生產力。雖然我們的客戶正在密切關注最近生產目標日期的推遲，但我們只看到最小的訂單調整，並且沒有取消訂單的情況。

Confidence in aerospace demand is based on the fundamentals underpinning the commercial airplane and defense aerospace market, which point to an extraordinary and sustainable growth opportunity. Not only has air travel recovered to pre-COVID levels, but TSA screened a record 3 million passengers on July 7. The surge in air travel and forecast of continued growth are driving up demand from airlines for new, more fuel-efficient planes to replace aging aircraft and support their fleet expansion plans.

對航空航天需求的信心是基於商用飛機和國防航空航太市場的基本面，這表明存在非凡且可持續的成長機會。航空旅行不僅恢復到了新冠疫情之前的水平，而且美國運輸安全管理局 (TSA) 在 7 月 7 日對乘客進行了安檢，創下了 300 萬名乘客的記錄。航空旅行的激增和持續增長的預測正在推動航空公司對新型、更省油的飛機的需求，以取代老舊的飛機並支持其機隊擴張計劃。

The need is increasingly urgent as airlines have had to postpone route expansions as they await overdue deliveries. Somewhat ironically, the delay in new planes is driving another aerospace segment, the parts aftermarket and MRO, which we estimate to be about 5% to 10% of our aerospace business. The potential size of the commercial aerospace market can be seen in the combined net bookings of Boeing and Airbus, which totals more than 14,000 aircraft. All of this translates into a substantial need for premium alloys today and in the years to come. Strong fundamentals are also driving demand in defense.

由於航空公司等待逾期交付，不得不推遲航線擴張，因此這種需求變得越來越迫切。諷刺的是，新飛機的延遲卻推動了另一個航空航太領域，即零件售後市場和 MRO，我們估計這部分約占我們航空航太業務的 5% 至 10%。從波音和空中巴士的合併淨訂單量（總計超過 14,000 架飛機）可以看出商用航空市場的潛在規模。所有這些都意味著現在和未來幾年對優質合金的巨大需求。強勁的基本面也推動了國防需求。

Ongoing geopolitical conflicts have resulted in record global military spending, which reached $2.4 trillion in 2023, including increased military budgets at NATO countries. In the US, $884 billion defense budget for 2024 is aimed at modernizing weapon systems and technology and expanding capacities and capabilities for advanced jet fighters, military helicopters, drones and combat vehicles, all require specialty and premium alloys.

持續的地緣政治衝突導致全球軍費開支創歷史新高，2023年達到2.4兆美元，其中包括北約國家的軍事預算增加。在美國，2024 年 8,840 億美元的國防預算旨在實現武器系統和技術的現代化，並擴大先進噴射戰鬥機、軍用直升機、無人機和作戰車輛的能力，所有這些都需要特種和優質合金。

The defense industry is a growing and increasingly important part of our aerospace sales representing 15% to 20%. That demand, combined with strength in commercial aerospace and the extensive number of new OEM approvals that we have received in recent years are the primary drivers of our overall growth. Our company is in the strongest position we have been in to respond to the aerospace market opportunities.

國防工業在我們的航空航太銷售額中佔 15% 至 20%，是一個不斷增長且日益重要的組成部分。這種需求，加上商用航空航太領域的實力以及我們近年來獲得的大量新 OEM 批准，是我們整體成長的主要驅動力。我們公司目前處於最有利的地位，可以應對航空航太市場的機會。

Turning to the balance of our markets. Heavy equipment market sales were $5.2 million or 6.3% of the second quarter sales, which is 11% lower than the first quarter. Customers remain hesitant to build inventory in the face of changing market demand for EVs versus hybrids and gas engine vehicles. GM, for example, saw second quarter sales strengthen in gas-powered vehicles, while the pace of growth of their EV models slowed. Given the slowing pace of EV demand growth, they are pushing back plans for a new Buick electric vehicle, although they do plan to introduce other new EV models in the coming months.

轉向我們的市場平衡。重型設備市場銷售額為 520 萬美元，佔第二季銷售額的 6.3%，比第一季下降 11%。面對電動車、混合動力車和燃氣引擎汽車的市場需求變化，客戶仍然不願增加庫存。例如，通用汽車第二季燃氣動力汽車的銷量有所成長，而電動車車型的成長速度則有所放緩。鑑於電動車需求成長放緩，他們推遲了新款別克電動車的計劃，儘管他們計劃在未來幾個月推出其他新款電動車車型。

Model changeovers are a positive driver of tool steel demand, whether for gas-powered, hybrid or electric vehicles. We expect our heavy equipment market sales to pick up later in the year and in 2025, demand to return to historic robust sales levels post-election, once the automotive industry has better clarity and direction and the confidence to make substantial investments into new production lines.

無論是燃氣動力、混合動力還是電動車，車型轉換都是工具鋼需求的積極推動力。我們預計，我們的重型設備市場銷售額將在今年稍後回升，到 2025 年，一旦汽車行業有了更清晰的方向和信心對新生產線進行大量投資，需求將在選舉後恢復到歷史強勁的銷售水平。

Energy market sales totaled $5.1 million in the second quarter or 6.2% of sales, which is 15% lower than the first quarter, but up 17% from the second quarter last year. The energy category combines our oil and gas and power generation sales, which we reported separately prior to 2024 and better reflects our strategy in the energy market as we have shifted production capacity to aerospace products in recent quarters. We plan to increase our energy market sales in future quarters as our production capacity continues to expand.

第二季能源市場銷售額總計 510 萬美元，佔銷售額的 6.2%，比第一季下降 15%，但比去年第二季成長 17%。能源類別結合了我們的石油和天然氣以及發電銷售額，我們在 2024 年之前分別報告了這些銷售額，並且由於我們最近幾個季度將生產能力轉移到航空航天產品，因此更好地反映了我們在能源市場的戰略。隨著生產能力的不斷擴大，我們計劃在未來幾季增加能源市場的銷售。

General industrial markets totaled $3.3 million or 4% of sales in the second quarter, which is 22% lower than the first quarter, but up 3% from the second quarter last year. We had expected our sales in this market to grow, which are mainly from semiconductor manufacturing, but general industry demand continues to remain modest. The long-term prospects in this market remain positive as US semiconductor sales are continuing to gain traction amid the rapid development of AI and as semiconductor manufacturing returns to the US with the help of the CHIPS Act.

第二季一般工業市場總額為 330 萬美元，佔銷售額的 4%，比第一季下降 22%，但比去年第二季成長 3%。我們曾預期該市場的銷售額將會成長，主要來自半導體製造業，但整體產業需求仍保持溫和。由於美國半導體銷售在人工智慧的快速發展下持續成長，且在《晶片法案》的幫助下半導體製造業回歸美國，該市場的長期前景依然樂觀。

We expect our general industrial sales to improve post-election and remain poised to benefit from strengthening market dynamics in 2025. Looking at the balance of the year, our strong backlog puts us in a great position to increase sales next quarter and further expand our margins, generating more free cash flow from operations. Now let me turn the call over to Steve for his report on our financials.

我們預計，選舉後我們的一般工業銷售將會改善，並將繼續受益於 2025 年加強的市場動態。縱觀今年的餘額，我們強勁的積壓訂單使我們處於有利地位，可以在下個季度增加銷售額並進一步擴大利潤率，從而從營運中產生更多的自由現金流。現在，讓我將電話轉給史蒂夫，請他報告我們的財務狀況。

Thanks, Chris. Good morning, everyone. As you can see in the numbers, our sales growth has continued in the second quarter, consistent with our expectations. This is fueled by the effort from our team to execute on a robust market for our aerospace products, delivering record top line quarterly sales of $82.8 million. Our overall shipment volume increased compared with the first quarter by 2%.

謝謝，克里斯。大家早安。正如您在數據中看到的，我們的銷售額在第二季度繼續成長，這與我們的預期一致。這是由我們的團隊努力在強勁的航空航太產品市場上取得的成果，實現了創紀錄的 8,280 萬美元的季度銷售額。我們的整體出貨量與第一季相比成長了2%。

This included a strong increase in the aerospace end market shipments, partly offset by lower shipments in the heavy equipment end market, driven by soft demand and lower shipments of conversion services. Our expectation is strong recovery for heavy equipment in 2025 after completion of the US election cycle later this year. Additionally, continuous improvement projects layered throughout the organization have delivered lower costs and better yields. This has delivered record profitability as measured by gross margin, operating income, net income, EBITDA or adjusted EBITDA.

其中包括航空航太終端市場出貨量的強勁成長，但受需求疲軟和改裝服務出貨量下降的影響，重型設備終端市場出貨量下降部分抵消了這一增長。我們預計，在今年稍後美國大選週期結束後，重型設備將在 2025 年強勁復甦。此外，整個組織層層所推動的持續改善計畫已實現更低的成本和更高的效益。以毛利率、營業收入、淨收入、EBITDA 或調整後 EBITDA 來衡量，這實現了創紀錄的獲利能力。

Our diluted earnings per share of $0.90 trails only the fourth quarter of 2017, which benefited from tax adjustments driven by new tax laws and two quarters from much earlier in the company's history, when the diluted share total was much lower. Gross margin totaled $21 million in the [second] quarter or 25.4% of sales, compared with 18.9% of sales last quarter and 14.3% in the [second] (corrected by company after the call) quarter of last year.

我們的每股攤薄收益為 0.90 美元，僅落後於 2017 年第四季度，該季度受益於新稅法推動的稅收調整，以及公司歷史上更早的兩個季度，當時的攤薄股本總額要低得多。第二季毛利率為 2,100 萬美元，佔銷售額的 25.4%，而上一季的毛利率為 18.9%，去年同期（公司在電話會議後進行了修正）的毛利率為 14.3%。

The significant sequential improvement is primarily driven by three sustainable factors. First, the impact of cost and yield initiatives executed to specifically improve product profitability. Also a richer mix of aerospace products and finally, the ongoing recognition of our higher base prices.

這一顯著的環比改善主要得益於三個可持續因素。首先，為提高產品獲利能力而實施的成本和效益措施的影響。此外，航空航太產品的組合也更加豐富，最後，我們更高的基本價格也得到了持續認可。

Our expectation is to continue to drive profitable growth for the foreseeable future through execution of the margin project initiatives while maximizing our supply to aerospace and defense. Selling, general and administrative costs totaled $8.2 million in the second quarter compared with $7.4 million in the first quarter and $6.8 million in the second quarter of last year.

我們的期望是，透過執行利潤項目計劃，同時最大限度地增加對航空航天和國防的供應，在可預見的未來繼續推動獲利成長。第二季銷售、一般及行政費用總計 820 萬美元，而第一季為 740 萬美元，去年同期為 680 萬美元。

Quarterly SG&A has increased compared to 2023 due to higher employee-related costs, business insurance expenses and audit and accounting support expenses. We expect SG&A to approximate $8.5 million per quarter through the second half of this year. Our operating income for the quarter is $12.8 million, which is a company record.

由於員工相關成本、商業保險費用以及審計和會計支援費用增加，季度銷售、一般及行政費用與 2023 年相比有所增加。我們預計今年下半年每季銷售、一般及行政費用約為 850 萬美元。本季我們的營業收入為 1,280 萬美元，創下了公司最高紀錄。

We committed on our last two calls that we will see meaningful operating income growth each quarter as the impact of the margin initiatives fall through to the income statement, and we realize the benefit of the 16 price increases that were announced over the last three years. There is more good to come from both of those factors in the balance of the year.

我們在最近兩次電話會議上承諾，隨著利潤率措施的影響逐漸體現在損益表中，我們每季的營業收入將出現顯著增長，而且我們也意識到了過去三年宣布的 16 次漲價帶來的好處。在今年餘下的時間裡，這兩個因素將帶來更多好處。

We also reduced interest expense by $150,000 to a total of $1.9 million for the quarter. $100,000 of the decrease relates to our lower total debt levels and $50,000 relates to lower average interest rates. Term SOFR, which drives our rate for the majority of our debt was flat, but we achieved a 25-basis point reduction in our spread above SOFR for our bank debt near the end of the first quarter. This reduction benefited Q2 and will benefit our rate going forward.

我們還將本季的利息支出減少了 15 萬美元，至 190 萬美元。其中 100,000 美元的減少與我們較低的總債務水準有關，50,000 美元與較低的平均利率有關。決定我們大部分債務利率的期限 SOFR 保持不變，但在第一季末，我們銀行債務高於 SOFR 的利差減少了 25 個基點。此次減幅對第二季有利，並將有利於我們未來的利率。

And we had the opportunity to reduce the rate by another 25 basis points in Q3 and expect to see that benefit in the Q4 income statement. We recorded income tax expense of $2.1 million for the [second] (corrected by company after the call) quarter, resulting in an effective tax rate of about 19%.

我們有機會在第三季將利率再降低 25 個基點，並預計在第四季損益表中看到這一收益。我們記錄了第二季（電話會議後公司進行了更正）的所得稅費用 210 萬美元，實際稅率約為 19%。

For the year to date, the effective tax rate is 19.3% and includes a projected annual ETR of 20% and $100,000 of a discrete benefit related to share-based compensation items. Net income for the quarter was $8.9 million or $0.90 per diluted share. This more than doubles Q1 diluted EPS and brings the year-to-date figure to $1.33.

今年迄今為止，有效稅率為 19.3%，包括預計 20% 的年度 ETR 和與股權激勵項目相關的 10 萬美元單獨福利。本季淨收入為 890 萬美元，即每股 0.90 美元。這使得第一季稀釋每股收益增加了一倍多，並使年初至今的每股收益達到 1.33 美元。

The current quarter diluted EPS is the highest since Q1 2007 excluding the fourth quarter of 2017, which benefited from the tax adjustment. EBITDA was $17.9 million. Adjusted EBITDA includes an add-back for noncash share compensation and was $18.5 million, a 46% growth over Q1 and the highest level in company history. Our income adjusted for non-cash items generated $16.2 million during the quarter. We grew net working capital by $5 million as AR grew from the timing of our Q2 sales and inventory grew along with increasing VIM melt production to support ramping VIM sales.

本季稀釋每股收益為 2007 年第一季以來的最高水準（不包括受益於稅收調整的 2017 年第四季）。EBITDA 為 1790 萬美元。調整後的 EBITDA 包括非現金股票薪酬的加回，為 1,850 萬美元，較第一季成長 46%，達到公司歷史最高水準。本季度，經非現金項目調整後的收入為 1,620 萬美元。隨著 AR 從我們第二季度銷售時起增長，庫存隨著 VIM 熔體產量的增加而增長，以支持不斷增長的 VIM 銷售，我們的淨營運資本增加了 500 萬美元。

We spent $5.5 million on capital expenditures, bringing year-to-date CapEx to about $11 million. We expect full year 2024 capital expenditures to total approximately $18 million. Our debt paydown was about $3 million in Q2. We expect to pay down our revolver and decrease our net debt each quarter for the rest of the year. That concludes the financial update, and I'll hand the call back to Chris.

我們花了 550 萬美元用於資本支出，使年初至今的資本支出達到約 1,100 萬美元。我們預計 2024 年全年資本支出總額約為 1,800 萬美元。我們第二季償還的債務約為 300 萬美元。我們預計在今年剩餘時間內每季償還循環貸款並減少淨債務。財務更新到此結束，我將把電話轉回給克里斯。

Thanks, Steve. In summary, our sales and profitability reached new levels in the second quarter with record sales of $82.8 million, record gross margin of 25.4%, record net income of $8.9 million or $0.90 per diluted share and record adjusted EBITDA of $18.5 million.

謝謝，史蒂夫。綜上所述，我們的銷售額和盈利能力在第二季度達到了新的水平，銷售額達到創紀錄的 8280 萬美元，毛利率達到創紀錄的 25.4%，淨收入達到創紀錄的 890 萬美元或每股攤薄收益 0.90 美元，調整後 EBITDA 達到創紀錄的 1850 萬美元。

The combination of our focus on aerospace and premium alloys with targeted margin improvement projects, has been transformational as we've created a structural change in the margins we can achieve. That change is sustainable going forward, and we plan to build upon it. We continue to invest in our premium alloy capacity and efficiencies while also reducing debt.

我們對航空航太和優質合金的關注與有針對性的利潤率改善項目的結合已經產生了變革性的影響，因為我們對我們能夠實現的利潤率進行了結構性改變。這種變化是可持續的，我們計劃在此基礎上繼續發展。我們繼續投資於優質合金的產能和效率，同時減少債務。

We remain fully focused on managing working capital, generating positive cash flow to further fund capital investments and debt reduction. For the balance of this year, we continue to see opportunities to grow our top line and expand our gross margin. As I said in today's release, we remain highly optimistic about our growth momentum and strategy for 2025 and beyond. This concludes our formal remarks. Operator, we're ready for questions.

我們將繼續全力專注於管理營運資金，產生正現金流以進一步資助資本投資和減少債務。就今年餘下時間而言，我們將繼續看到增加營業收入和擴大毛利率的機會。正如我在今天的發表會上所說，我們對 2025 年及以後的成長動能和策略仍然非常樂觀。我們的正式發言到此結束。接線員，我們已經準備好回答問題了。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指示）

Phil Gibbs, KeyBanc.

KeyBanc 的 Phil Gibbs。

Hey. Good morning.

嘿。早安.

Hey. Good morning, Phil.

嘿。早上好，菲爾。

The question was just on some of the capital spending initiatives that you have and what you mentioned incrementally this morning. So currently, you have the VARs being commissioned at the current time and then you mentioned more debottlenecking initiatives or growth and size of the potential end of the VIM. That sounds like it's more relegated to next year. But kind of take us through where you are on some of the bigger items this year and then what you announced today and what the goals are.

問題只是關於您所採取的一些資本支出舉措以及您今天早上逐步提到的內容。因此，目前，您正在委託增值轉售商 (VAR)，然後您提到了更多的瓶頸消除舉措或 VIM 潛在終端的成長和規模。這聽起來像是要延後到明年了。但請您向我們介紹今年您在一些重要事項上的進展情況，以及您今天宣布的內容和目標是什麼。

Yeah. Our capital this year, capital spending is going to be in the $18 million neighborhood. You can expect half of that, a little more than half of that to go towards what we call sustainability. So this is the maintenance and the upkeep of legacy equipment. We've got about $4 million going towards modernization projects.

是的。我們今年的資本支出將在 1800 萬美元左右。你可以預期其中的一半，或略多一點，將用於我們所謂的永續發展。這就是遺留設備的維護與保養。我們有大約 400 萬美元用於現代化項目。

So this is the ability for us to be able to implement technology throughout the plants, helping the new generation of workers in the plants work more efficiently and safely and get back to some of the production levels that we had enjoyed when we had, what I call, the pre-COVID workforce and all the tribal knowledge that they contained and these modernization efforts are really starting to take hold as we've been expanding our production levels each quarter.

因此，這使我們能夠在整個工廠實施技術，幫助工廠中的新一代工人更有效率、更安全地工作，並恢復到我們擁有的，我所說的，新冠疫情之前的勞動力和他們所包含的所有部落知識時所享有的一些生產水平，隨著我們每個季度都在擴大生產水平，這些現代化努力開始真正發揮作用。

And finally, the growth in ROI side of the CapEx spending is going to be in the neighborhood of $5 million to $6 million. These are going to be things like furnace capacity, a number of the alloys that we're producing that are more advanced require a little bit more time in the furnaces. So we're adding furnace capacity at the forge and downstream, putting investments into a number of areas that are either down money for investments next year like the VIM or areas to be able to enhance our pull-through on the finishing side. I gave you a little bit of color. Hopefully, that answers it, Phil.

最後，資本支出的投資報酬率的成長將在 500 萬至 600 萬美元左右。這些將是諸如熔爐容量之類的因素，我們生產的許多更先進的合金需要在熔爐中停留更長一點的時間。因此，我們正在增加鍛造廠和下游熔爐的產能，對一些領域進行投資，這些領域要么是為明年的投資（如 VIM）籌集資金，要么是能夠增強我們在精加工方面的拉動能力的領域。我給了你一點顏色。希望這能解答你的疑問，菲爾。

What would you describe as your primary bottleneck right now in terms of capacity or capability? And then secondly, on the labor front, are there any thoughts that you need to add more targeted areas there? Or do you feel like you've got the right set of folks coming up the curve at the moment?

就產能或能力而言，您認為目前的主要瓶頸是什麼？其次，在勞動力方面，您是否認為需要在那裡增加更多有針對性的領域？還是您覺得您現在已經擁有一批合適的人才？

Yeah. So let me talk a little bit about what's been pacing lead times. For our premium products, VIM primary melt has been the area that has really been pacing lead times. We did have a very strong quarter, ramping melt production there. We're on track to have another record production quarter at the VIM here in the third quarter, all in line with what we've got baked into the backlog.

是的。那麼讓我稍微談談交貨時間的安排。對於我們的優質產品，VIM 初級熔化一直是真正控制交貨時間的領域。我們確實有一個非常強勁的季度，提高了那裡的熔體產量。我們預計在第三季度在 VIM 創造另一個創紀錄的生產季度，這一切都與我們積壓的訂單一致。

Aside from VIM melt production pacing lead times, finishing, particularly on small diameters, has been another area that has also been pacing lead times simply because of the nature of the labor intensity of the smaller diameter product. From a labor standpoint, we have seen better stability but I'm not where we want it to be.

除了 VIM 熔體生產節奏交付週期之外，精加工（特別是小直徑的精加工）是另一個也節奏交付週期的領域，這僅僅是因為小直徑產品的勞動強度的性質。從勞動力的角度來看，我們看到了更好的穩定性，但還沒有達到我們想要的水平。

We still have opportunities to continue to pull through and retain workers at a higher level. As we get them working safely and efficiently following instructions and working to the levels that we need them to work at, I think we're really close to getting back to those pre-COVID production levels, which we're just shy of right now. But I expect as we move through the second half of this year into 2025, we'll return to those production levels. So labor has improved. It's stabilized. But I think we can still continue to get better fully staffing up and securing those reliable good workers that we need.

我們仍然有機會繼續渡過難關並留住更高水準的員工。當我們讓他們按照指示安全高效地工作並達到我們需要的工作水平時，我認為我們真的接近恢復到疫情之前的生產水平，儘管我們現在還未達到這個水平。但我預計，隨著我們進入今年下半年並進入 2025 年，我們將恢復到這些生產水準。因此勞動力得到了改善。已經穩定了。但我認為我們仍然可以繼續更好地配備人員並確保我們所需要的那些可靠的優秀工人。

And how should we be thinking about net working capital over the balance of the year? And then within that, have you -- and I know the margins have been obviously outstanding, but was there any misalignment still going on or is that still over? So I guess two questions, one on the net working capital and one on whether or not that there's any raw material misalignment.

我們該如何考慮全年的淨營運資本？然後在這其中，您是否——我知道利潤率顯然非常出色，但是否仍然存在任何錯位，或者這種情況是否已經結束？所以我想有兩個問題，一個是關於淨營運資本，一個是關於是否有原料錯位。

Yes. So you'll see that inventories went up a little bit in the second quarter. The primary driver there is that we did get a little bit ahead of ourselves in melt by design late in the second quarter, knowing that we had some planned annual maintenance outages at our melt shops.

是的。因此你會發現第二季庫存略有上升。主要驅動因素是，我們在第二季末的熔煉設計方面確實有點超前，因為我們知道我們的熔煉車間有一些計劃中的年度維護停機。

So we will bring our inventories and our working capital levels back down to ending first quarter levels by the time we exit the third quarter here. So getting those inventories back under control, getting back realigned on that commitment to grow our top line while keeping our inventory levels flat to down. And remind me your second question there, Phil.

因此，到第三季結束時，我們將把庫存和營運資本水準降至第一季末的水準。因此，我們要重新掌控這些庫存，重新調整承諾，增加我們的營業收入，同時保持我們的庫存水準穩定甚至下降。菲爾，請提醒我你的第二個問題。

Was there any raw material misalignment in the second quarter? And what do you expect in the back half? Thanks.

第二季是否有原料錯配的情況？您對後半部有什麼期待？謝謝。

Yeah, it was very minor. It was only an adverse about $500,000 to $600,000 that we see the misalignment impacting the second quarter. It got to the point where we didn't specifically call it out. So just modestly negative, but we're now seeing enough stability in surcharges and in the raw material flows that I don't expect it to have any type of a misalignment here in the third quarter.

是的，這非常小。我們看到，只有約 50 萬至 60 萬美元的不利差異才會對第二季產生影響。事情已經到了我們不再特別指出的地步。因此，雖然只是略微負面，但我們現在看到附加費和原材料流量足夠穩定，我預計第三季不會出現任何類型的錯位。

Thank you.

謝謝。

You're welcome. Thank you, Phil.

不客氣。謝謝你，菲爾。

Bob Sales, LMK Capital Management.

LMK 資本管理公司的 Bob Sales。

Hi, can you hear me?

嗨，你聽得到我說話嗎？

Yes, hi. Good morning, Bob.

是的，你好。早安，鮑伯。

Good morning. Nice quarter. A couple of questions. First of all, on the premium alloy mix, how much -- if you were to guess, how much of that premium alloy goes into defense versus commercial aero?

早安.不錯的季度。有幾個問題。首先，關於優質合金混合物，如果您猜測的話，有多少優質合金用於國防和商用航空？

The majority. So the premium alloys lend themselves to structural components within defense applications, both on fixed-wing fighter craft and on helicopters. The premium products also lend themselves to the engine part of the business. So obviously, you've got engines and fighter jets, but these premium products are also going into engines that are in the commercial aerospace side of the business. So rough cut, I'd say about two-thirds of those premium products are aligned with defense applications and about one-third of it ultimately into engines for commercial applications.

大多數。因此，優質合金適合用作國防應用中的結構部件，包括固定翼戰鬥機和直升機。優質產品也有助於推動業務的引擎部分。顯然，你們擁有發動機和戰鬥機，但這些優質產品也將用於商業航空航天業務的發動機。粗略地說，我認為這些優質產品中約有三分之二用於國防應用，約有三分之一最終用於商業應用的引擎。

Thank you. Okay. And then can you touch on the backlog a little bit? I think you mentioned -- can you expand on what you mentioned about the fact that order entry, you're working with customers on order entry? I assume that meant that earlier in the year, you were putting more orders into the system that you were constrained by and that's given some -- and you probably have some relief with throughput now, but I'm not sure I'm right. So can you expand on that a little bit?

謝謝。好的。然後可以稍微談談積壓問題嗎？我想您提到過——您能否詳細說明一下您提到的有關訂單錄入的事實，您正在與客戶合作進行訂單錄入？我認為這意味著在今年早些時候，你向系統下達了更多訂單，而這些訂單卻受到了限制，這給了你一些——現在你的吞吐量可能會有所緩解，但我不確定我是否正確。那你能稍微詳細闡述嗎？

Yeah. The primary driver there, as you look back, particularly in 2023, when we hit a high watermark for backlog, at that time, we had premium alloy lead times that were out in the 70- to 80-week range depending upon the size range of products. It makes it very difficult for our customers to plan on demand being that far out with the visibility that they have.

是的。回顧過去，主要的驅動因素是，特別是在 2023 年，當我們的積壓訂單達到最高水平時，當時我們的優質合金交貨時間為 70 到 80 週，具體取決於產品的尺寸範圍。這使得我們的客戶很難根據他們所擁有的可見性來制定遙遠的需求計劃。

So we've been working with customers, assuring them an allocation so that they feel comfortable that they are going to have a spot in line with us, but we've been walking back our lead times. And these days, we've gone from, call it, mid-70s to right around 45- to 50-week lead times on those premium alloys.

因此，我們一直在與客戶合作，向他們保證分配，以便他們感到放心，他們將與我們一起排隊，但我們一直在縮短交貨時間。如今，這些優質合金的交貨時間已從 70 多周縮短至 45 至 50 週左右。

And we've done that just by controlling order entry on a controlled basis, periodically opening up the order book for customers to layer in new orders. So that total level of demand on aggregate of what we expect in the quarters to come, continues to increase. But we've just been walking in the lead times. So this has been very helpful to our customers. It's given them the ability to layer in a higher assurance that the sizes and the grades that they're ordering align with what they need.

我們只是透過在受控的基礎上控制訂單輸入來實現這一點，定期開放訂單簿供客戶分層輸入新訂單。因此，我們預計未來幾季的整體需求水準將繼續成長。但我們只是在提前期行走。這對我們的客戶非常有幫助。這讓他們能夠更有信心地確保他們訂購的尺寸和等級符合他們的需要。

This has been a very good thing for customers. And it's also helped to enhance us from a competitive standpoint. So as we continue to walk those lead times back in and ramp our production levels, it's going to put us in a better position to sustain our growth trajectory.

這對顧客來說是一件非常好的事情。這也有助於提高我們的競爭力。因此，隨著我們繼續縮短交貨時間並提高生產水平，我們將處於更有利的位置來維持成長軌跡。

Okay. And what level do you feel will be -- for your premium, what level do you feel like will be normalized lead times?

好的。您認為您的保費在什麼水平，您認為正常化的交貨時間在什麼水平？

Well, that's a good question because I think we're still in an environment for the foreseeable future. And by that, I mean, years, where we've got an environment where demand is going to outpace supply. And I'm speaking for the industry, not just Universal Stainless.

嗯，這是個好問題，因為我認為在可預見的未來我們仍然處於這樣的環境。我的意思是，在未來幾年裡，我們將面臨需求超過供應的環境。我代表的是整個產業，而不只是環球不銹鋼公司。

So the capacity is going to come as we ramp our efficiencies, and we've got some modest increases that are going into the equipment at our VIM facility to be able to give us more capacity and throughput there. But I suspect that living in the, call it, 10- to 14-month range industry-wide is probably going to be the new norm. A lot of that is going to depend upon the sustained growth and demand of these premium alloys and the ability for Universal and the industry for that matter to continue to ramp our throughput and production levels.

因此，隨著我們提高效率，產能也會隨之提高，而且我們對 VIM 工廠的設備進行了適度的增加，以便能夠為我們提供更多的產能和吞吐量。但我懷疑，整個產業的生存期在 10 到 14 個月之間可能會成為新的常態。這在很大程度上取決於這些優質合金的持續成長和需求，以及環球和整個產業繼續提高產量和生產水準的能力。

Okay. And then lastly on backlog, so we don't draw any erroneous conclusions. Do you expect backlog continues to trend down over the next several quarters as you make improvements? Or do you expect that it will maintain the level that we've seen this quarter?

好的。最後關於積壓，所以我們不會得到任何錯誤的結論。隨著你們的改進，你們是否預期未來幾季積壓訂單將持續呈下降趨勢？或者您預計它將維持本季的水平？

Well, I think my bias would be that it would move sideways to slightly down. I think the one wildcard there is while it's clear that the aerospace and defense business continues to remain extremely strong, we continue to win new pockets of share as we gain approvals, but those markets outside of aerospace continue to be a bit muted. We think that some of it is tied to the election. The market is looking for some certainty moving forward. So we're turning in record results right now, and we're not quite firing on all cylinders.

嗯，我認為我的觀點是它會橫向移動並稍微向下。我認為，唯一的不確定因素是，雖然航空航太和國防業務顯然繼續保持強勁，隨著我們獲得批准，我們繼續贏得新的市場份額，但航空航太以外的市場仍然有些低迷。我們認為其中一些與選舉有關。市場正在尋求一些向前發展的確定性。因此，我們目前取得了創紀錄的成績，但我們還沒有完全發揮出最佳水準。

Once that tool steel plate market, our heavy industry market starts to pick back up, energy market, semiconductor that will help to bolster up our backlog, and it's going to help to fuel the top line as well, too. I've got a bit of a conservative approach. I'm not sure that we'll see that economic benefit in those other markets for us until the latter half of 2024 going into '25. But if the markets wake up and they decide that they want to start surging on order entry, we're poised and ready to be able to meet that demand.

一旦工具鋼板市場、重工業市場、能源市場、半導體開始回暖，這將有助於增加我們的積壓訂單，也將有助於推動營收成長。我採取了有點保守的態度。我不確定直到 2024 年下半年進入 2025 年我們是否能在其他市場看到經濟效益。但如果市場甦醒過來並決定開始在訂單輸入時飆升，我們已經準備好並準備好滿足這一需求。

Thank you and congratulations on the performance.

謝謝您並祝賀您的演出。

Thanks, Bob. I appreciate it.

謝謝，鮑伯。我很感激。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指示）

Phil Gibbs, KeyBanc.

KeyBanc 的 Phil Gibbs。

Well, thank you. My question was around the comments in the release on the sustainable cost improvement or efficiencies that you garnered as part of your gross profit margin outcome, something certainly that appeared new to the discussion. So maybe talk a little bit about what that means and why you highlighted it this quarter. Thanks.

好的，謝謝你。我的問題是關於新聞稿中關於你們在毛利率結果中獲得的可持續成本改進或效率的評論，這在討論中無疑是新內容。那麼也許可以稍微談談這意味著什麼以及為什麼你在本季強調這一點。謝謝。

Okay. Sure. Yeah, these -- I'm going to have Steve talk a little bit about it. He's worked closely with our industrial engineers, technology and operations group quantifying these initiatives to reduce material costs, ops costs, improve yields. So Steve, do you want to touch base a little bit on these initiatives and why we're just now calling it out?

好的。當然。是的，這些——我將讓史蒂夫稍微談談這件事。他與我們的工業工程師、技術和營運團隊密切合作，量化這些舉措，以降低材料成本、營運成本並提高產量。那麼史蒂夫，你想稍微談談這些舉措以及我們為什麼現在才提出這些舉措嗎？

Sure. So we implemented some specific projects in our -- in 2023 as part of our 2024 plan to drive margin improvement. So some examples of those are actively reviewing heat charge makeups for our melt shops, and we trialed and successfully implemented lower cost methods of melting product without sacrificing quality. Another example would be yield improvement. So we carved out subsets of our product categories.

當然。因此，我們在 2023 年實施了一些具體項目，作為 2024 年提高利潤率計劃的一部分。因此，其中一些例子是積極審查我們熔煉車間的熱負荷組成，並且我們試驗並成功實施了在不犧牲品質的情況下熔煉產品的低成本方法。另一個例子是產量提高。因此，我們將產品類別劃分為子集。

We attacked our flat rolled plate business and some different components of our round bar business to drive yield improvement. So as I describe those, right, melt and yield improvement, they took some time and effort to implement. They work through our inventory and reach the P&L upon shipment. So we're really starting to see the benefits of those projects pop in Q2, which is why we're calling them out now. They're a significant part of that margin improvement, and we wanted to highlight them to drive home the message that they're sustainable. These are things that we've implemented and won't go away.

我們專注於平板軋製業務和圓棒業務的一些不同組成部分，以提高產量。正如我所描述的那樣，熔化和產量的提高需要花費一些時間和精力來實現。他們透過我們的庫存進行工作，並在發貨時達到損益。因此，我們確實開始看到這些項目的好處在第二季度顯現，這就是我們現在呼籲它們的原因。它們是利潤率提高的重要組成部分，我們希望強調它們，以傳達它們是可持續的訊息。這些都是我們已經實施並且不會消失的事情。

So lastly for me, kind of on a different track. You've been adding capability to the operations recently and then also over time, when you made the big acquisition a decade plus ago to sort of get you where you are with North Jackson. So there's certainly interest in building certain capabilities for the industry and then there's sort of a limited asset set of places that can do these things. Has that drawn more interest in the M&A environment? Is there -- do you think the M&A environment could get more active?

所以最後對我來說，這是一種不同的軌跡。最近，你們一直在增強營運能力，而且隨著時間的推移，十多年前你們進行了大規模收購，使北傑克遜達到了現在的水平。因此，人們確實有興趣為該行業建立某些能力，但只有有限的資產才能做這些事情。這是否引起了人們對併購環境的更多興趣？您認為併購環境會變得更活躍嗎？

I think, one by one by one, we've seen obviously, with the titanium operations that used to be out there in the marketplace, Latrobe or Ladish things like that over time, PCC, things have kind of gotten gobbled up. So there's sort of a lack of -- kind of a lack of assets out there seemingly in your wheelhouse. But are there any thoughts that there should be more consolidation in the market? Is that something that's being talked about more broadly by the industry?

我認為，我們顯然已經看到，隨著時間的推移，市場上的鈦業務，例如拉特羅布或拉迪什的業務，PCC 的業務，都逐漸被吞併。因此，您的駕駛室內似乎缺少某種資產。但是否有人認為市場應該進一步整合？這是業界廣泛討論的議題嗎？

Yeah. I think you're spot on, on the idea that what we do is a unique spot in the specialty metals industry. There's not a lot of players out there doing what we do. We know about Acerinox acquiring Haynes. It looks like that deal is getting ready to go through final approvals and to happen.

是的。我認為您說得很對，我們所做的事情在特種金屬行業中佔有獨特的地位。並沒有多少球員能像我們一樣。我們知道 Acerinox 收購了 Haynes。看起來該交易即將獲得最終批准並即將生效。

As a public company, we're always susceptible to having those types of discussions. But I can tell you that our focus right now has been around executing on our strategy. We've got a big backlog that we need to be able to eat into that I think is going to continue to drive better results. As we look around the industry and opportunities for us to be able to supplement our growth where we can find capacities, we're utilizing them. Assets out there in the marketplace that had historically supported automotive demand, for example, being able to partner up with some people that help us on the finishing side.

作為一家上市公司，我們總是容易受到此類討論的影響。但我可以告訴你，我們現在的重點是執行我們的策略。我們有大量積壓訂單，需要處理這些訂單，我認為這會繼續帶來更好的結果。當我們環顧整個行業並尋找能夠補充我們成長的機會時，我們會找到能力並加以利用。市場上的資產歷來支持汽車需求，例如，能夠與一些在最後階段幫助我們的人合作。

And we do that in kind too, wherever we've got some available capacities, we'll offer out those conversion services to other customers. But you're right, the market is tight. VIM supply is tight, demand is fantastic, and it's only going to get stronger. But this is an industry that needs to find a way to grow. It needs to find a way to support all these planes that we need to build. But in short, our focus right now is just being able to execute, realize the full potential of the assets that we have. A very organic structure there but keeping our eyes open on ways that we can find partners to help us accelerate that growth.

我們也以實物方式做到這一點，只要我們有可用的容量，我們就會向其他客戶提供這些轉換服務。但您說得對，市場確實緊張。VIM 供應緊張，需求旺盛，而且只會越來越強勁。但這個產業需要找到發展之路。它需要找到一種方法來支持我們需要建造的所有這些飛機。但簡而言之，我們現在的重點只是能夠執行，充分發揮我們所擁有的資產的潛力。那裡的結構非常有機，但我們一直在關注尋找合作夥伴來幫助我們加速成長的方式。

Thanks, Chris, and team. Appreciate it.

謝謝克里斯和團隊。非常感謝。

Bob Sales, LMK Capital Management.

LMK 資本管理公司 (LMK Capital Management) 的 Bob Sales。

Hey, Chris. I did have one more question for you. You don't consistently tell Denny Oates that this business is really easy to run, do you?

嘿，克里斯。我還有一個問題想問你。您不會一直告訴丹尼·奧茨 (Denny Oates)，這項業務實際上很容易經營，對嗎？

No. I've been having fun in a new role. We've got a really good team here. So it's made a successful transition a lot easier to me because we've got a really good team here.

不。我非常享受這個新角色。我們這裡有一支非常優秀的團隊。因此，由於我們這裡有一支非常優秀的團隊，因此對我來說成功過渡變得容易得多。

I'm sure Denny is listening, so I couldn't resist the question.

我確信丹尼正在聽，所以我無法抗拒這個問題。

Thank you. I'm showing no further questions at this time. I would now like to turn the call over back to Chris Zimmer for closing remarks.

謝謝。我目前沒有其他問題。現在我想將電話轉回給克里斯·齊默 (Chris Zimmer) 做結束語。

Thank you. Thank you, everyone, for joining us this morning. The first half of 2024 was one of substantial progress and momentum, and we're focused on continuing to achieve both of those during the rest of this year. I look forward to updating you all on the progress during our third quarter call. Thanks, and have a great day.

謝謝。感謝大家今天上午加入我們。2024 年上半年我們取得了實質進展，發展勢頭強勁，我們將致力於在今年剩餘時間內繼續實現這兩個目標。我期待在第三季電話會議上向大家通報進度。謝謝，祝您有愉快的一天。

Thank you for your participation in today's conference. This does conclude the program. You may now disconnect.

感謝大家參加今天的會議。該計劃確實就此結束。您現在可以斷開連線。