沃博聯公司 (WBA) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good morning. My name is Krista, and I'll be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. First Quarter 2024 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions)

早安.我叫克里斯塔，今天我將擔任你們的會議接線生。此時，我謹歡迎大家參加 Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. 2024 年第一季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）

Thank you. I will now turn the conference over to Tiffany Kanaga, Vice President of Global Investor Relations. Tiffany, you may begin your conference.

謝謝。我現在將會議交給全球投資者關係副總裁 Tiffany Kanaga。蒂芙尼，你可以開始你的會議了。

Good morning. Thank you for joining us for the Walgreens Boots Alliance earnings call for the first quarter of fiscal year 2024. I'm Tiffany Kanaga, Vice President of Global Investor Relations.

早安.感謝您參加我們的 Walgreens Boots Alliance 2024 財年第一季財報電話會議。我是全球投資者關係副總裁 Tiffany Kanaga。

Joining me on today's call are Tim Wentworth, our Chief Executive Officer; and Manmohan Mahajan, our Interim Global Chief Financial Officer. In addition, John Driscoll, President of U.S. Healthcare; Rick Gates, Senior Vice President and Chief Pharmacy Officer at Walgreens; and Tracey Brown, President of Walgreens retail and Chief Customer Officer, will participate in Q&A.

參加今天電話會議的有我們的執行長 Tim Wentworth；以及我們的臨時全球財務長 Manmohan Mahajan。此外，美國醫療保健總裁約翰·德里斯科爾（John Driscoll）；里克蓋茲 (Rick Gates)，沃爾格林 (Walgreens) 高級副總裁兼首席藥房官；沃爾格林零售總裁兼首席客戶長 Tracey Brown 將參與問答。

As always, during the conference call, we anticipate making projections and forward-looking statements based on our current expectations. Our actual results could differ materially due to a number of factors, including those listed on Slide 2 and those outlined in our latest Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement after this presentation, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise.

與往常一樣，在電話會議期間，我們預計會根據當前的預期做出預測和前瞻性陳述。由於多種因素，包括投影片 2 中列出的因素以及我們向美國證券交易委員會提交的最新 10-K 表格中概述的因素，我們的實際結果可能會存在重大差異。我們沒有義務在本次演示後公開更新任何前瞻性聲明，無論是由於新資訊、未來事件、假設變更或其他原因。

You can find our press release and the slides referenced on this call in the Investors section of the Walgreens Boots Alliance website.

您可以在沃爾格林博姿聯盟網站的投資者部分找到我們的新聞稿和本次電話會議引用的幻燈片。

During this call, we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures. These measures are reconciled to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures, and the reconciliations are set forth in the press release. You may also refer to the slides posted to the Investors section of our website for reconciliations of non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP measures discussed during this earnings call.

在本次電話會議中，我們將討論某些非公認會計準則財務指標。這些指標與最直接可比較的公認會計原則財務指標進行了調節，並在新聞稿中闡述了調節情況。您也可以參考我們網站投資者部分發佈的投影片，以了解非 GAAP 衡量標準與本次財報電話會議中討論的最具可比性的 GAAP 衡量標準的對帳情況。

I will now turn the call over to Tim.

我現在將把電話轉給蒂姆。

Thanks, Tiffany, and good morning, everyone. When I joined you for the last earnings call in October, I had not yet begun my role as CEO, but I shared how I believe that leading WBA is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity with a tremendous brand, legacy and neighborhood presence. Today, 10 weeks into my tenure, I am even more certain of my decision.

謝謝蒂芙尼，大家早安。當我在 10 月參加最後一次財報電話會議時，我還沒有開始擔任首席執行官，但我分享了我如何相信領導 WBA 是一個千載難逢的機會，擁有巨大的品牌、遺產和社區影響力。今天，在我上任十週後，我對自己的決定更確定了。

I am pleased to be here today to share our results, our outlook and my broader convictions around how we can build on our strong pharmacy foundation to partner across health care services and drive sustainable value.

我很高興今天能夠在這裡分享我們的成果、我們的前景和我對如何建立強大的藥學基礎以在醫療保健服務領域開展合作並推動可持續價值的更廣泛信念。

As you are by now aware, WBA started fiscal 2024 with on-plan results despite a weak retail environment in the U.S. First quarter adjusted EPS came in at $0.66, reflecting execution and cost discipline in U.S. Retail Pharmacy, continued strong performance in International and progress with profitability initiatives in U.S. Healthcare. We are maintaining full year adjusted EPS guidance against a challenging backdrop. I must give credit here to the hard work and dedication of our teams. We are navigating the accumulating consumer pressures from inflation and depleted savings and somewhat slower-than-anticipated market trends in pharmacy script volumes, including impacts from a weaker respiratory season and Medicaid redetermination.

如您所知，儘管美國零售環境疲軟，WBA 在2024 財年伊始仍按計劃實現了業績。第一季度調整後每股收益為0.66 美元，反映出美國零售藥房的執行力和成本紀律、國際業務的持續強勁表現和進展與美國醫療保健領域的獲利計劃。在充滿挑戰的背景下，我們維持全年調整後每股盈餘指引。在這裡，我必須讚揚我們團隊的辛勤工作和奉獻精神。我們正在應對通貨膨脹和儲蓄枯竭帶來的不斷累積的消費者壓力，以及藥房處方數量略低於預期的市場趨勢，包括呼吸季節疲軟和醫療補助重新確定的影響。

Retail customers in the United States are under stress and making deliberate choices to seek value, evidenced in our own brands up 90 basis points in the quarter, while demand for seasonal and discretionary categories remains weak.

美國的零售客戶面臨壓力，並做出深思熟慮的選擇來尋求價值，這一點從我們的自有品牌在本季度上漲 90 個基點可見一斑，而對季節性和非必需品類的需求仍然疲軟。

At the same time, our teams executed well during the quarter on delivering pharmacy services, including vaccines and maintaining our overall share of script volume in the U.S. International was once again a bright spot in the quarter, building on last year's solid growth. Upside was led by Boots U.K. with further share gains in retail, while both retail and pharmacy delivered gross profit improvement despite inflationary cost pressures. Germany also achieved share gains.

同時，我們的團隊在本季度在提供包括疫苗在內的藥房服務方面表現良好，並保持了我們在美國國際腳本量的總體份額，在去年穩健增長的基礎上再次成為本季度的亮點。上漲空間由Boots U.K.引領，零售業份額進一步上漲，而零售和製藥業儘管面臨通膨成本壓力，但毛利均有所改善。德國也取得了份額成長。

In U.S. Healthcare, we are on track to achieve significant year-on-year profit improvement. VillageMD is rapidly realigning operating costs with sales. The team is executing on several initiatives, from revenue cycle management to procurement with operational actions spanning the organization. As VillageMD focuses on increasing density in their highest opportunity markets, remember the previously announced plans to optimize their footprint and exit approximately 60 clinics in nonstrategic markets. As of today, they are nearly halfway there, having already exited 27.

在美國醫療保健領域，我們有望實現利潤同比顯著改善。 VillageMD 正在迅速調整營運成本與銷售額。該團隊正在執行多項計劃，從收入週期管理到跨組織的營運行動採購。由於 VillageMD 專注於增加機會最大的市場的密度，請記住先前宣布的優化其足跡並退出非戰略市場中約 60 家診所的計劃。到今天為止，他們已經完成了將近一半的任務，已經退出了 27 強。

Additionally, VillageMD is driving patient panel growth and achieved 23% year-over-year growth in full risk lives and 9% growth in fee-for-service volumes. Work is underway to implement targeted marketing efforts, leveraging Walgreens' expertise and patient touch points, and we expect benefits over time as we learn and further develop our provider-based risk strategy.

此外，VillageMD 正在推動患者群體的成長，全風險生命年增 23%，服務收費量增加 9%。正在利用沃爾格林的專業知識和患者接觸點實施有針對性的行銷工作，隨著我們學習和進一步製定基於提供者的風險策略，我們預計隨著時間的推移會受益。

So macroeconomic conditions are clearly difficult for retailers, and I fully acknowledge the structural headwinds in our core pharmacy business and the growing pains in our Healthcare segment. None of this is a surprise to me. I came to WBA eyes wide open with a clear mandate to act with everything on the table in terms of putting our business on the right track.

因此，宏觀經濟狀況對零售商來說顯然很困難，我完全承認我們核心製藥業務的結構性阻力以及我們醫療保健領域的成長陣痛。這一切對我來說並不意外。我來到 WBA 時睜大了眼睛，帶著明確的使命，要採取一切行動，讓我們的業務走上正軌。

In that context, we are taking swift actions to rightsize costs and increase cash flow across the company. We remain on pace toward $1 billion in cost savings this year. Our U.S. organizational efforts have resulted in a planned headquarter support office workforce reduction of approximately 20%. Over the past 2 months, we have prioritized projects and capital spend to focus on the customer-facing activities that matter most.

在這種情況下，我們正在迅速採取行動，調整成本並增加整個公司的現金流。今年我們仍朝著節省 10 億美元成本的目標邁進。我們在美國的組織工作已計劃將總部支援辦公室的員工人數減少約 20%。在過去的兩個月裡，我們優先考慮了專案和資本支出，並專注於最重要的面向客戶的活動。

First quarter CapEx was over $100 million lower year-over-year, on track to a $600 million reduction for the full year. We also remain on schedule to deliver $500 million in working capital benefits in fiscal 2024.

第一季資本支出較去年同期減少超過 1 億美元，全年可望減少 6 億美元。我們也按計畫在 2024 財年提供 5 億美元的營運資本利得。

An additional meaningful and necessary step to strengthen our long-term balance sheet and cash position, today, we are announcing a 48% reduction in our quarterly dividend payment to $0.25 per share starting in March. This action will free up capital to invest in driving sustainable growth in the pharmacy and health care businesses, as well as paying down debt. At the same time, we will continue to deliver a competitive dividend yield as the Board and I continue to view the dividend as a critical component to overall attractiveness of WBA to many of our shareholders.

今天，我們宣布從 3 月開始將季度股息支付減少 48%，至每股 0.25 美元，這是加強我們長期資產負債表和現金狀況的另一個有意義且必要的步驟。此舉將釋放資金用於投資推動製藥和醫療保健業務的可持續成長以及償還債務。同時，我們將繼續提供具有競爭力的股息收益率，因為董事會和我繼續將股息視為 WBA 對許多股東的整體吸引力的關鍵組成部分。

Our financial flexibility is also supported by other strategic actions, with some already underway and others under consideration. In November, we monetized an additional portion of our Cencora stake with nearly $700 million of proceeds. We also took advantage of the higher interest rate environment to secure a full buy-in for the Boots pension plan with legal and general to ensure the benefits of all 53,000 members. A buyout scheduled in calendar 2025 will eliminate the company's plan, obligations and commitments.

我們的財務靈活性也得到其他策略行動的支持，其中一些行動已經在進行，有些正在考慮中。 11 月，我們將 Cencora 股份的另一部分貨幣化，收益近 7 億美元。我們也利用較高的利率環境，以合法和一般的方式確保Boots退休金計畫得到全額支持，以確保所有53,000名成員的利益。計劃於 2025 年進行的收購將消除該公司的計劃、義務和承諾。

Furthermore, we continue to evaluate our existing portfolio, sharpening our strategic focus on the U.S. Retail Pharmacy and Healthcare with our remaining investments in Cencora, BrightSpring and other minority interests providing financial flexibility.

此外，我們繼續評估我們現有的投資組合，加強我們對美國零售藥房和醫療保健的戰略重點，同時我們對 Cencora、BrightSpring 和其他少數股東權益的剩餘投資提供了財務靈活性。

Let me be clear. We have hard work ahead of us in our journey to simplify and strengthen WBA, but also good momentum with important early actions that we've taken. And there are a number of building blocks already in place for a sharper health care strategy, positioning us well for long-term profitable growth.

讓我說清楚。在簡化和加強 WBA 的過程中，我們面臨著艱鉅的任務，但我們早期採取的重要行動也帶來了良好的動力。為了製定更清晰的醫療保健策略，我們已經建立了許多基礎設施，為我們的長期獲利成長做好了準備。

Walgreens is a dependable, trusted and convenient local health care destination for patients, and we have the ability and, frankly, the market mandate to be a valued independent partner of choice in health care services. As John Driscoll detailed last quarter, we are leveraging our local presence to engage with patients across our thousands of stores and through our assets across the care continuum on behalf of payors, providers and pharma to help them achieve their objectives at scale. I can tell you from my early days with the team and from meetings with our partners and prospects, there is a lot to be excited about here.

沃爾格林 (Walgreens) 是患者可靠、值得信賴且方便的當地醫療保健目的地，坦白說，我們有能力、也符合市場要求，成為醫療保健服務領域有價值的獨立合作夥伴。正如約翰·德里斯科爾（John Driscoll）上季度詳細介紹的那樣，我們正在利用我們在當地的影響力與數千家商店的患者進行互動，並透過我們代表付款人、提供者和製藥公司的整個護理連續體的資產，幫助他們大規模實現目標。我可以告訴你，從我早期與團隊合作的經驗以及與我們的合作夥伴和潛在客戶的會面來看，這裡有很多值得興奮的地方。

But our competitive advantage is not just our neighborhood footprint and convenience with 10 million customers visiting us at Walgreens in store or online every day. Our stores are access points on the best corners in America. And more specifically, we have over 85,000 people on our teams who directly engage with patients and are trusted providers in their communities. Walgreens has the unique ability through our well-established physical presence and iconic brand for our people to drive trusted, meaningful connections.

但我們的競爭優勢不僅僅在於我們的社區足跡和便利性，每天有 1000 萬顧客光臨沃爾格林店內或網上。我們的商店是美國最好的角落的入口。更具體地說，我們的團隊中有超過 85,000 名員工，他們直接與患者接觸，並且是社區中值得信賴的提供者。沃爾格林擁有獨特的能力，透過我們完善的實體存在和標誌性品牌，為我們的員工建立值得信賴、有意義的聯繫。

We are enabling pharmacists to spend less time on tasks and more time on meaningful interactions and providing essential care, from health screenings to immunizations to diagnostic testing and treatment. Our network of micro fulfillment centers is helping to stabilize staffing and pharmacy hours, reduce workflow pain points and free up capacity to drive the outcomes that matter most to our patients and partners.

我們使藥劑師能夠花更少的時間在任務上，而將更多的時間花在有意義的互動上，並提供從健康篩檢到免疫接種到診斷測試和治療的基本護理。我們的微型履行中心網絡正在幫助穩定人員配置和藥房工作時間，減少工作流程痛點，並釋放能力來推動對我們的患者和合作夥伴最重要的結果。

You'll remember in October we mentioned a pause in the rollout to optimize productivity. We are happy with our continued progress and the importance of these centers in our overall strategy. We are also piloting virtual pharmacy to redefine connected care, further increase patient access, enhance workplace flexibility, and extend our pharmacist reach.

您會記得我們在 10 月提到暫停部署以優化生產力。我們對我們的持續進步以及這些中心在我們整體策略中的重要性感到高興。我們也正在試行虛擬藥房，以重新定義互聯護理，進一步增加病患的接觸機會，增強工作場所的靈活性，並擴大我們藥劑師的覆蓋範圍。

Finally, we are partnering with academia, and specifically, key schools of pharmacy to explore ways to attract, recruit and create a dynamic workplace for the next generation of pharmacists. Our relationships with pharmacy deans are integral to our strategy and can help us advance the profession, and so we are forming an advisory council to guide us in our transformation. I look forward to personally working with the deans with our first meeting in March to ensure Walgreens is the preferred employer in the pharmacy space. And I want to thank our pharmacy teams for their tireless efforts on the front lines of health care delivery in this country.

最後，我們正在與學術界，特別是重點藥學院合作，探索吸引、招募下一代藥劑師並為其創造一個充滿活力的工作場所的方法。我們與藥局院長的關係是我們策略不可或缺的一部分，可以幫助我們推動產業發展，因此我們正在組建一個諮詢委員會來指導我們的轉型。我期待在三月的第一次會議上親自與院長們合作，以確保沃爾格林成為藥房領域的首選雇主。我要感謝我們的藥局團隊在這個國家的醫療保健服務第一線所做的不懈努力。

Let me give you one example of how we can build on our established assets in a capital-efficient way to expand services and support patients and partners: our clinical trials offering. We are partnering with pharma companies and leveraging our community presence and patient engagement to help drive greater patient diversity in clinical research. In a short span, we are already improving participation and equity at double the national average. To date, we have signed over 25 contracts, with a robust pipeline of opportunities ahead.

讓我給您一個例子，說明我們如何以資本高效的方式利用現有資產來擴展服務並支持患者和合作夥伴：我們的臨床試驗產品。我們正在與製藥公司合作，並利用我們的社區存在和患者參與來幫助推動臨床研究中患者的多樣性。在很短的時間內，我們的參與度和公平性已經達到全國平均的兩倍。迄今為止，我們已簽署超過 25 份合同，未來還有大量機會。

Shields is another example of our strength serving hospital systems and has consistently delivered strong margin accretive results ahead of plan. Sales were up 27% in the first quarter, driven by meaningful growth at existing customers as well as new partner contract signings. We expect Shields to continue to leverage and benefit from the rapid growth in the broader specialty market and our intense focus on accelerating hospital-owned specialty pharmacy programs.

Shields 是我們為醫院系統服務的實力的另一個例子，並且始終提前實現了強勁的利潤成長成果。在現有客戶大幅成長以及新合作夥伴合約簽署的推動下，第一季銷售額成長了 27%。我們預計 Shields 將繼續利用更廣泛的專業市場的快速成長以及我們對加速醫院擁有的專業藥房計畫的強烈關注並從中受益。

Our specialty pharmacy assets will be an important focus going forward. And while we have work to do, we are pleased to be executing our next steps with gene and cell therapy. The FDA anticipates approval of more than 20 gene and cell therapies by 2025, and this is an exciting opportunity for patients with rare conditions and for Walgreens specialty pharmacies. In the coming months, you will hear more from us on our initiatives in specialty.

我們的專業藥局資產將成為未來的重要焦點。雖然我們還有工作要做，但我們很高興能夠在基因和細胞療法方面執行下一步。 FDA 預計到 2025 年將批准超過 20 種基因和細胞療法，這對於患有罕見疾病的患者和沃爾格林專業藥房來說是一個令人興奮的機會。在接下來的幾個月中，您將聽到我們更多關於我們在專業領域的舉措。

Finally, let me touch on reimbursement models and dynamics. We continue to see the benefits of more comprehensive and responsive discussions with payors as they are realizing the broad set of value drivers that WBA can deliver. We are committed to and entering into pay-for-performance contracts beyond core dispensing as we advance our adherence and outcomes capabilities within our pharmacy platform.

最後，讓我談談報銷模式和動態。我們繼續看到與付款人進行更全面、更積極的討論的好處，因為他們正在認識到 WBA 可以提供的廣泛價值驅動因素。隨著我們在藥房平台內提高我們的依從性和結果能力，我們致力於並簽訂核心配藥以外的按績效付費合約。

In addition, we welcome and will work with payor and PBM partners on any model that recognizes and reimburses pharmacies for the unmatched value we provide patients, including pharmacy services, as well as those models that can ensure more transparency and predictability in reimbursement.

此外，我們歡迎並將與付款人和PBM 合作夥伴合作，建立任何認可和補償藥房我們為患者提供的無與倫比的價值的模型，包括藥房服務，以及那些可以確保報銷更具透明度和可預測性的模型。

With that, I'll hand it over to Manmohan to review our financial results and recent execution in further detail.

這樣，我將把它交給曼莫漢，以進一步詳細審查我們的財務表現和最近的執行情況。

Thank you, Tim, and good morning, everyone. Overall, first quarter results were in line with our expectations. Sales increased 8.7% on a constant currency basis. U.S. Retail Pharmacy grew at 6.4%. International delivered 4.4% growth. And U.S. Healthcare pro forma sales increased 12%.

謝謝蒂姆，大家早安。整體而言，第一季業績符合我們的預期。以固定匯率計算，銷售額成長 8.7%。美國零售藥局成長 6.4%。國際成長 4.4%。美國醫療保健預計銷售額將成長 12%。

Adjusted EPS of $0.66 declined 44% on a constant currency basis, mainly driven by lower U.S. retail sales and a 21 percentage point headwind from a higher adjusted effective tax rate. Strong international growth and improved profitability in our U.S. Healthcare segment positively impacted adjusted EPS.

以固定匯率計算，調整後每股收益為 0.66 美元，下降 44%，這主要是由於美國零售銷售下降以及調整後有效稅率提高帶來的 21 個百分點的不利影響。強勁的國際成長和美國醫療保健部門獲利能力的提高對調整後每股收益產生了積極影響。

GAAP net loss for the first quarter included $278 million after-tax charge for fair value adjustments on variable prepaid forward derivatives related to Cencora shares. Remember, in the first quarter of last year, we recognized a $5.2 billion after-tax charge for opioid-related claims and lawsuits and a $0.9 billion after-tax gain on sale of Cencora shares.

第一季 GAAP 淨虧損包括與 Cencora 股票相關的可變預付遠期衍生性商品公允價值調整的 2.78 億美元稅後費用。請記住，去年第一季度，我們確認了阿片類藥物相關索賠和訴訟的 52 億美元稅後費用，以及出售 Cencora 股票的 9 億美元稅後收益。

Now I will cover the U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment. Sales increased 6.4% versus the prior year quarter, driven by brand inflation in pharmacy and higher contributions from pharmacy services. Sales growth was partially offset by a 6.1% decline in the retail business.

現在我將介紹美國零售藥局細分市場。受藥局品牌擴張和藥局服務貢獻增加的推動，銷售額較上年同期成長 6.4%。銷售成長被零售業務下降 ​​6.1% 部分抵銷。

AOI declined 37.2% year-on-year, mainly driven by lower retail sales volume and margin, including higher levels of shrink. AOI was positively impacted by execution in our pharmacy services and progress on cost savings initiatives.

AOI 年減 37.2%，主要是由於零售量和利潤率下降，包括更高程度的收縮。 AOI 受到我們藥房服務執行和成本節約計劃進度的積極影響。

Let me now turn to U.S. Pharmacy. Pharmacy comp sales increased 13.1%, mainly driven by brand inflation and higher contribution from pharmacy services. COVID-19 vaccines have now shifted to a commercial model consistent with other vaccinations. Comp scripts grew 1.8%, excluding immunizations, in line with the overall prescription market.

現在讓我談談美國藥局。藥局銷售額成長 13.1%，主要是由於品牌擴張和藥局服務貢獻增加所推動。 COVID-19 疫苗現已轉向與其他疫苗一致的商業模式。不包括免疫接種的處方藥增加了 1.8%，與整體處方藥市場一致。

The ongoing impact of Medicaid redeterminations and a weaker flu and respiratory season continued to negatively impact overall market growth. Third-party data showed flu, cold and respiratory activity was down 13.5% compared to the prior year quarter.

醫療補助重新確定的持續影響以及流感和呼吸道季節的疲軟繼續對整體市場成長產生負面影響。第三方數據顯示，流感、感冒和呼吸系統活動與去年同期相比下降了 13.5%。

Within Pharmacy Services, our vaccines portfolio, which includes flu, COVID, RSV and other routine vaccinations, performed well in the quarter. Pharmacy adjusted gross profit declined slightly in the quarter, with margin negatively impacted by reimbursement pressure,, net of procurement savings and brand mix impacts.

在藥局服務領域，我們的疫苗組合（包括流感、新冠肺炎、呼吸道合胞病毒和其他常規疫苗）在本季表現良好。本季藥局調整後毛利略有下降，扣除採購節省和品牌組合影響後，利潤率受到報銷壓力的負面影響。

Turning next to our U.S. Retail business. Challenging macroeconomic conditions and an anticipated slow start to the cough, cold, flu season contributed to a weaker retail performance year-on-year. Comparable sales declined 5% in the quarter.

接下來談談我們的美國零售業務。充滿挑戰的宏觀經濟狀況以及預計咳嗽、感冒、流感季節的緩慢開始導致零售業績年比疲軟。本季可比銷售額下降 5%。

There are 3 main drivers. First, a weaker respiratory season had an impact of approximately 160 basis points through the health and wellness category. Cough, cold, flu serves as a primary trip driver. As a result, we also experienced lower attachment sales due to the weaker season, which are incremental to the 160 basis points impact. Second, customers continue to pull back on discretionary spending, and actively seek out promotional opportunities. As a result, we saw an approximately 90 basis points impact from weaker holiday seasonal sales. Lastly, our decision to close most of our stores on Thanksgiving this year to further support our store team members led to a headwind of about 60 basis points.

有3個主要驅動力。首先，呼吸季節較弱對健康和保健類別產生了約 160 個基點的影響。咳嗽、感冒、流感是主要的出行驅動因素。因此，由於淡季，我們的配件銷售也有所下降，這增加了 160 個基點的影響。其次，客戶持續減少可自由支配的支出，並積極尋找促銷機會。因此，我們看到假期季節性銷售疲軟帶來了約 90 個基點的影響。最後，我們決定在今年感恩節關閉大部分商店，以進一步支持我們的商店團隊成員，這導致了約 60 個基點的逆風。

While these factors resulted in lower sales across all categories, we experienced more pronounced declines in consumables and general merchandise and in health and wellness.

雖然這些因素導致所有類別的銷售額下降，但消費品和一般商品以及健康和保健品類的銷售額下降更為明顯。

Retail gross margin was negatively impacted by 110 basis points due to higher shrink. Retail shrink continues to be a systemic issue across the retail industry.

由於收縮幅度加大，零售毛利率受到 110 個基點的負面影響。零售萎縮仍然是整個零售業的系統性問題。

Turning next to the International segment. And as always, I will talk in constant currency numbers. The International segment performed better than our expectations in the quarter. Total sales increased 4.4%, with Boots U.K. up 6.2% and Germany wholesale growing 3.7%. Segment adjusted gross profit increased by 7%, outpacing sales growth, with Boots U.K. driving strong retail growth. Adjusted operating income grew 15%, including the impact from inflationary cost pressures.

接下來轉向國際部分。像往常一樣，我將用不變的貨幣數字來談論。國際部門本季的表現優於我們的預期。總銷售額成長 4.4%，其中 Boots 英國成長 6.2%，德國批發成長 3.7%。部門調整後毛利成長 7%，超過銷售額成長，Boots UK 推動了強勁的零售成長。調整後營業收入成長了 15%，其中包括通膨成本壓力的影響。

Let's now cover Boots U.K. in detail. Comp pharmacy sales grew 0.8%. Comp retail sales increased 9.8%, with growth across all categories, led by beauty and health and wellness. We also saw a year-on-year growth across all store formats, with flagship and travel locations performing particularly well. Boots increased retail market share for the 11th consecutive quarter, led by beauty. Boots.com sales increased 17.5% year-on-year and represented 19.2% of our U.K. retail sales.

現在讓我們詳細介紹一下 Boots U.K.。藥局銷售額成長 0.8%。比較零售額成長 9.8%，所有類別均實現成長，其中以美容和健康保健為主導。我們也看到所有商店業態都實現了同比增長，其中旗艦店和旅遊店表現尤其出色。 Boots 零售市佔率連續 11 個季度成長，其中美妝產品領先。 Boots.com 銷售額年增 17.5%，占我們英國零售的 19.2%。

Turning next to U.S. Healthcare. U.S. Healthcare segment results were in line with our expectations. This is the second consecutive quarter of significant improvement in AOI and adjusted EBITDA compared to prior year.

接下來轉向美國醫療保健。美國醫療保健部門的表現符合我們的預期。與去年相比，這是 AOI 和調整後 EBITDA 連續第二季顯著改善。

First quarter sales of $1.9 billion increased by 95% compared to the prior year, reflecting the acquisition of Summit Health by VillageMD and growth across all businesses. On a pro forma basis, segment sales increased 12%. VillageMD sales of $1.4 billion were up 14% on a pro forma basis. The year-on-year increase was driven by growth in full risk lives, better same clinic performance, and increased productivity in the Summit Health multi-specialty business.

第一季銷售額為 19 億美元，較上年成長 95%，反映出 VillageMD 收購 Summit Health 以及所有業務的成長。按預計，該部門銷售額增加了 12%。 VillageMD 銷售額預計成長 14%，達 14 億美元。年比成長的推動因素包括全風險生命的成長、同一診所績效的改善以及 Summit Health 多專業業務生產力的提高。

Shields increased sales by 27% as new health system contracts and expansion of existing partnerships led to a 42% increase in the number of patients on service in the quarter versus the prior year.

由於新的醫療系統合約和現有合作夥伴關係的擴大，導致本季接受服務的患者數量比上一年增加了 42%，Shields 的銷售額增加了 27%。

Adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $39 million, reflecting investment in VillageMD, partly offset by profitable growth at Shields and CareCentrix. Adjusted EBITDA increased $84 million compared to last year, with improvement across all businesses. We are making progress to accelerate profitability at VillageMD, and profit growth from all other businesses contributed positively in the quarter.

調整後 EBITDA 為 3,900 萬美元虧損，反映了對 VillageMD 的投資，但部分被 Shields 和 CareCentrix 的獲利成長所抵消。調整後 EBITDA 與去年相比增加了 8,400 萬美元，所有業務均有所改善。我們正在努力加快 VillageMD 的獲利能力，所有其他業務的利潤成長為本季做出了積極貢獻。

Turning next to cash flow. Overall, free cash flows were in line with our expectations. Operating cash flow in the quarter was negatively impacted by anticipated seasonal inventory build and timing of payor reimbursement. Capital expenditures declined by $104 million versus the first quarter of fiscal '23.

接下來轉向現金流。整體而言，自由現金流符合我們的預期。本季的營運現金流量受到預期季節性庫存建設和付款人償還時間的負面影響。與 2023 財年第一季相比，資本支出減少了 1.04 億美元。

Free cash flow was down $671 million versus the prior year, driven by the phasing of working capital and lower earnings, partially offset by lower capital expenditures. As Tim mentioned, we are on track to reduce capital expenditures by approximately $600 million year-over-year and to deliver working capital improvement of $500 million.

自由現金流較前一年減少 6.71 億美元，因為營運資本分階段和收入下降，但資本支出下降部分抵銷了這一影響。正如 Tim 所提到的，我們預計將年比減少約 6 億美元的資本支出，並實現 5 億美元的營運資本改善。

I will now turn to guidance. We are maintaining our fiscal '24 adjusted EPS guidance. We expect certain incremental tailwinds and headwinds in a challenging environment compared to our prior outlook.

我現在轉向指導。我們維持 24 財年調整後每股盈餘指引。與我們先前的展望相比，我們預期在充滿挑戰的環境中會出現一定的增量順風和逆風。

On the tailwinds, with strong execution to date, we now expect pharmacy services to deliver ahead of our initial plan. We also anticipate an improvement in our full year adjusted effective tax rate as a result of tax planning initiatives, with a revised range of 15% to 17%, compared to the prior outlook of 19% to 20%.

順勢而為，憑藉迄今為止的強勁執行力，我們現在預計藥房服務將提前於我們最初的計劃交付。我們也預計，由於稅務規劃舉措，全年調整後有效稅率將有所改善，修正範圍為 15% 至 17%，而先前的預期為 19% 至 20%。

On the headwinds. First, we expect the pullback in consumer spending and shifting behaviors will continue to impact our retail sales in the U.S. in the short term, while improving in the second half. We now expect retail comp sales for fiscal '24 to decline low single digits compared to the prior outlook of flat. Second, we expect approximately $125 million in reduced sale and leaseback gains versus our prior outlook. As we explained in October, this is the last year of anticipated sale leaseback transactions. Lastly, we also forecast slightly lower overall market volume growth for prescriptions compared to our previous expectations.

逆風而行。首先，我們預期消費者支出的回落和行為的轉變將在短期內繼續影響我們在美國的零售銷售，同時在下半年有所改善。我們現在預計 24 財年的零售銷售將比之前持平的預期下降低個位數。其次，與我們先前的預期相比，我們預計售後回租收益將減少約 1.25 億美元。正如我們在 10 月所解釋的，這是預期售後回租交易的最後一年。最後，與我們先前的預期相比，我們也預測處方藥的整體市場銷售成長略有下降。

Importantly, as we build on the first quarter progress in U.S. Healthcare, we continue to expect segment adjusted EBITDA to be breakeven at the midpoint of the guidance range. This represents an increase of $325 million to $425 million over fiscal '23. The improvement is mainly driven by actions taken to accelerate profitability at VillageMD, robust growth at Shields, and cost discipline.

重要的是，隨著我們在美國醫療保健第一季取得進展的基礎上，我們繼續預計部門調整後的 EBITDA 將在指導範圍的中點實現盈虧平衡。這意味著比 23 財年增加了 3.25 億美元至 4.25 億美元。這項改善主要得益於 VillageMD 為提高獲利能力而採取的行動、Shields 的強勁成長以及成本控制。

Next, I will discuss factors impacting the phasing of earnings in the second quarter versus second half of the fiscal year. In the second quarter, we will be lapping adjusted EPS of $1.16 in the prior year quarter.

接下來，我將討論影響第二季與本財年下半年獲利階段的因素。在第二季度，我們的調整後每股盈餘將達到去年同期的 1.16 美元。

Three factors are expected to have an outsized impact on the year-over-year comparison. First, we anticipate lower contributions from sale and leaseback activity. Second, we're incorporating impacts of consumer pressures on spending and sentiment, and higher shrink on our retail business. Lastly, we expect these headwinds to be partly offset by a lower tax rate in the second quarter due to the phasing of tax planning initiatives.

預計有三個因素將對年比產生巨大影響。首先，我們預期售後回租活動的貢獻將會減少。其次，我們正在考慮消費者壓力對支出和情緒的影響，以及零售業務的進一步萎縮。最後，我們預期這些不利因素將被第二季因分階段稅務規劃措施而降低的稅率所部分抵銷。

Looking ahead to the second half of fiscal '24, there are 4 key drivers for our improving earnings profile. First, as we have previously discussed, we expect actions to lower our cost base will continue to ramp over the year. Second, we expect U.S. Healthcare segment profitability will scale over the balance of the year, mainly driven by benefits from optimizing the clinic footprint, growing patient panels and realigning cost at VillageMD, and growth across all of the businesses.

展望 24 財年下半年，我們的獲利狀況改善有 4 個關鍵驅動因素。首先，正如我們之前所討論的，我們預計降低成本基礎的行動將在今年繼續增加。其次，我們預計美國醫療保健部門的獲利能力將在今年餘下時間裡擴大，這主要是受到優化診所足跡、擴大患者群體和重新調整 VillageMD 成本以及所有業務成長帶來的好處的推動。

Third, we cautiously expect modest level of retail market growth against an easier second half comparison. Finally, our tax rate was elevated in the first quarter. We expect favorability in the remainder of the year.

第三，我們謹慎預期零售市場將出現溫和成長，下半年則較為輕鬆。最後，我們第一季的稅率有所提高。我們預計今年剩餘時間會出現有利的情況。

With that, let me now pass it back to Tim for his closing remarks.

現在，讓我將其轉交給提姆，讓他作結束語。

To summarize what you've heard from us today, we executed on our plans in the first quarter despite the challenging environment, and we also recognize there is still plenty of work to be done. The future of health care and of this company both require innovative new thinking. My headline to you is that everything is on the table to deliver greater shareholder value. We have the experience and the license to deeply examine our business and make the changes that position us well going forward.

總結一下您今天從我們這裡聽到的情況，儘管環境充滿挑戰，我們還是在第一季執行了我們的計劃，我們也認識到仍有大量工作要做。醫療保健和公司的未來都需要創新的新思維。我向你們傳達的主要內容是，為了實現更大的股東價值，一切都擺在桌面上。我們擁有豐富的經驗和資格來深入審視我們的業務並做出有利於我們未來發展的變革。

Having spent time with our team members and our business, I'm encouraged by the significant opportunity to build on our legacy pharmacy strength and our trusted brand, to evolve health care and the customer experience. We are not pivoting away from our position as the premier neighborhood retail pharmacy, but we are instead redefining what we can do to help payors, providers and pharma achieve their goals. The reasons I joined WBA weren't just validated in these discussions, they are even more true than I had anticipated.

在與我們的團隊成員和我們的業務共度時光後，我對利用我們傳統藥房實力和值得信賴的品牌、發展醫療保健和客戶體驗的重大機會感到鼓舞。我們並沒有放棄作為首要社區零售藥局的地位，而是重新定義我們可以做些什麼來幫助付款人、提供者和製藥公司實現他們的目標。我加入 WBA 的原因不僅在這些討論中得到了證實，甚至比我預想的還要真實。

I have a strong team in place to drive execution who are effectively working together to deliver for all of our stakeholders while I work through several leadership transitions. In the coming weeks and months, we look forward to engaging with you, our customers, our fellow teammates and our shareholders as we are listening, learning and moving quickly to create sustainable value.

我擁有一支強大的團隊來推動執行，在我經歷幾次領導層換屆期間，他們有效地共同努力，為所有利害關係人提供服務。在接下來的幾週和幾個月裡，我們期待與您、我們的客戶、我們的隊友和股東合作，傾聽、學習並迅速採取行動，創造可持續的價值。

Now I would like to open the line for questions.

現在我想開通提問專線。

(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from the line of Lisa Gill from JPMorgan.

（操作員說明）您的第一個問題來自摩根大通的 Lisa Gill。

I want to go back to your comments around the reimbursement model. You talked about pay-for-performance, you talked about the unmatched value transparency, predictability. How much of that do you think can be driven by Walgreens and Walgreens putting a new model in place? And as we think about just what's happened with the margins in drug retail over a number of years, what do you think can be a sustainable margin when we think about the drug retail business?

我想回到您對報銷模式的評論。您談到了按績效付費，您談到了無與倫比的價值透明度、可預測性。您認為沃爾格林和沃爾格林實施新模式可以在多大程度上推動這方面的發展？當我們思考多年來藥品零售的利潤發生了什麼時，當我們考慮藥品零售業務時，您認為可持續的利潤是多少？

Lisa, first of all, as it relates to sort of how much can Walgreens drive market shift, I think we certainly, as a major retail player and partner to PBMs and health plans, are in a position to bring value to the table in different ways that they will look at and determine -- help them win in their marketplaces. And so I actually think we can play a fairly significant role in the relationships that we have, the contracts that we write and the risk that we're willing to take in terms of the value we know we will create at the back of the store with the way we can interact with patients on behalf of those payors.

麗莎，首先，因為這關係到沃爾格林能在多大程度上推動市場轉變，我認為，作為主要的零售參與者以及PBM 和健康計劃的合作夥伴，我們當然有能力在不同的領域帶來價值。他們將考慮和確定的方式——幫助他們在市場上獲勝。因此，我實際上認為我們可以在我們擁有的關係、我們編寫的合約以及我們願意承擔的風險方面發揮相當重要的作用，因為我們知道我們將在商店後面創造價值我們可以代表付款人與患者互動的方式。

So I don't think, as you know, any change in a reimbursement model is a speedy change. But I think there's very, very strong clear messaging in the marketplace from us and others that would point to the fact that the way that retail pharmacies will create value in the next 10 years isn't going to simply be lowering the cost of -- the unit cost of the drugs that we're purchasing and distributing because, quite frankly, that largely now is not where the real gains can be made for payors and for patients.

因此，正如您所知，我認為報銷模式的任何變更都不是快速變更。但我認為，我們和其他人在市場上發出了非常非常明確的訊息，表明零售藥局在未來 10 年創造價值的方式不僅僅是降低成本——我們購買和分發的藥品的單位成本，因為坦率地說，現在很大程度上不是支付者和患者能夠獲得真正利益的地方。

And so from our standpoint, we're going to drive hard at it. We can work inside of, and we've proven, we're inside of cost-plus models now, transparent models now. We have a very robust cash program. And we think we're a terrific partner to others that want to win in the marketplace with these more innovative models that they have talked about and that they are pushing into the market. So I feel super good.

因此，從我們的角度來看，我們將努力推動這一目標。我們可以在成本加成模型、透明模型的內部工作，而且我們已經證明，我們現在處於成本加成模型的內部。我們有一個非常強大的現金計劃。我們認為，對於其他希望透過他們談論過的、正在推向市場的更具創新性的模式贏得市場的人來說，我們是一個很棒的合作夥伴。所以我感覺超級好。

Now in terms of -- I'm not going to give you guidance on the, as you would expect, on the margins for drugs, other than to say that most of the -- if you look at the innovation and reimbursement in pharmacy that's likely to evolve, it's likely to evolve in such a way that the margin per drug is going to be largely based on how much service do we provide to patients that's receiving it. And I think we've seen what that looks like in models like specialty. We've also seen, when it disconnects, what it looks like. And those are things that we're working against as well, where we're not compensated for the kind of services we provide.

現在，正如您所期望的那樣，我不會為您提供有關藥品利潤率的指導，而是說，如果您看看藥房的創新和報銷，那麼大部分很可能會發展，每種藥物的利潤將主要取決於我們為接受藥物的患者提供多少服務。我認為我們已經在專業模型中看到了這一點。我們也看到了當它斷開連接時的樣子。這些也是我們正在努力解決的問題，我們提供的服務沒有得到補償。

And we are pretty confident that the value that we can build in what we call our pharmacy services, but also our use of pharmacists to help patients take the drugs and stay on them safely and get the benefits and make sure the payors are getting what they're paying for, we're super well positioned to evolve those models as a leader.

我們非常有信心，我們可以在我們所謂的藥房服務中建立價值，而且我們使用藥劑師來幫助患者服用藥物並安全地服用藥物並獲得福利並確保付款人得到他們想要的東西付出代價，我們處於非常有利的位置，可以作為領導者發展這些模式。

And congrats on your first quarter.

恭喜你的第一季。

Your next question comes from the line of George Hill from Deutsche Bank.

您的下一個問題來自德意志銀行的喬治希爾。

Yes. I'll echo Lisa's sentiment, is welcome aboard, Tim. I guess, Tim, as you look at the business from where you stand right now, you've kind of said that everything is on the table. But I guess, could you spend a little bit talking about what you think is part of the Walgreens core business, the WBA core business, and kind of what might be ancillary? And kind of maybe talk about how you're spending your time and where you think your strategic focus is most important to be spent right now.

是的。我同意麗莎的觀點，歡迎加入，提姆。提姆，我想，當你從你現在所處的位置審視業務時，你已經說過一切都在桌面上。但我想，您能否花一點時間談談您認為沃爾格林核心業務、WBA 核心業務以及可能的輔助業務的一部分？也許可以談談你如何度過你的時間，以及你認為你的策略重點現在最重要的花在哪裡。

Sure. Thanks, George. I appreciate the question. That's a great way to ask what's on the table. And from that standpoint, let me answer your question though. Because we have a terrific group of assets that I think are going to be, on a go-forward basis, critical. But again, let me be clear, I'm 60 days in. We have a lot of work to do. We're working to get our cash flows, our balance sheet, all of our financial models aligned with being able to invest in our company to growth -- to grow.

當然。謝謝，喬治。我很欣賞這個問題。這是詢問桌面上的內容的好方法。從這個角度來看，讓我回答你的問題。因為我們擁有一組出色的資產，我認為從長遠來看，這些資產將至關重要。但再次強調一下，我已經 60 天了。我們還有很多工作要做。我們正在努力讓我們的現金流量、我們的資產負債表和我們所有的財務模型與能夠投資我們公司以實現成長——成長一致。

The first and most easy answer is our stores. And so lest anyone think that where we were headed was a meaningful pivot away from being committed to a community-based engagement model with patients, both with what we do in pharmacy and what we do to create a great experience for them in the front of our store, that is central, a central element to what we will have going forward, and that is not on the table.

第一個也是最簡單的答案是我們的商店。因此，以免有人認為我們的方向是一個有意義的轉變，不再致力於與患者建立基於社區的參與模式，無論是我們在藥房所做的工作，還是我們為他們創造良好體驗所做的工作我們的商店是中心，是我們未來發展的核心要素，但這不在談判桌上。

Now what is on the table is what's the right footprint in stores. And we've announced already that, for example, this year, we're going to optimize our footprint by roughly 200 stores and we're on track to do that. We will continually look at sort of the model through the lens of where do we need to be and where do we not need to be, and what is creating value and what is destroying value. But there's no question for me that we are going to be a major community-based, neighborhood, point of engagement for patients with human beings touching human beings, which I believe is the long term how health care in this country is going to evolve.

現在擺在桌面上的是商店中正確的足跡。例如，我們已經宣布，今年我們將優化大約 200 家商店的足跡，並且我們正在按計劃實現這一目標。我們將不斷地透過我們需要在哪裡、不需要在哪裡、什麼在創造價值、什麼在破壞價值的視角來審視這個模型。但對我來說，毫無疑問，我們將成為一個主要的以社區為基礎的、鄰裡的、人與人接觸的病人的接觸點，我相信這是這個國家醫療保健的長期發展方式。

Besides that, though, we very much -- and you've seen -- I get asked, why did you come off the couch that you were sitting on to get back into the CEO chair? It was real simple. Walgreens called me. I had 3 years of experience during the worst pandemic, hopefully, in my life with the pharmacy services part of our business, with the vaccines that my family and I were able to obtain. And so for me, I viewed Walgreens as a fundamental public health utility as much as a business, and something that literally has the potential to be meaningful, not just in a pandemic, but on a go-forward basis. And we have proven that with our pharmacy services businesses.

除此之外，我們非常——你也看到了——有人問我，你為什麼從沙發上站起來，重新坐回執行長的椅子上？這真的很簡單。沃爾格林打電話給我。在最嚴重的疫情期間，我有 3 年的經驗，希望在我的一生中，我的製藥服務是我們業務的一部分，我和我的家人能夠獲得疫苗。因此，對我來說，我認為沃爾格林既是一家基本的公共衛生事業，也是一家企業，而且它確實有潛力有意義，不僅在大流行中，而且在未來的基礎上。我們已經透過我們的藥房服務業務證明了這一點。

So we are clearly investing around being able to both free up pharmacists, centralize certain activities and so forth using technology, to then expand the things that we can do in store, be they testing, be they -- including working with LabCorp, but also using our own employees, vaccines and adherence programs and other things that we do to counsel patients.

因此，我們顯然正在圍繞能夠利用技術解放藥劑師​​、集中某些活動等進行投資，然後擴大我們在商店中可以做的事情，無論是測試還是測試——包括與 LabCorp 合作，但也使用我們自己的員工、疫苗和依從性計劃以及我們為患者提供諮詢的其他事情。

Besides that, though, we have a really terrific cluster of businesses in CareCentrix and in Shields where we're adding value to payors in areas where they're taking risk and where they're looking for partnership. And those assets are, in my first glance, providing real value to the marketplace and have potential synergy with one another and with our retail pharmacy model.

除此之外，我們在 CareCentrix 和 Shields 擁有非常出色的業務集群，我們在付款人承擔風險和尋求合作夥伴的領域為他們增加價值。乍一看，這些資產為市場提供了真正的價值，並且彼此之間以及與我們的零售藥房模式具有潛在的協同作用。

So again, backing all the way up though, again, there are a number of other things there. The clinical trials business that I mentioned in my prepared remarks, super interesting, leverages some of our assets, capital efficient. And I think that that's the way I'll zoom out here and just leave you with the thought that says, I don't want to detail every asset we have. We've got lots of really good stuff. We also have investments in things like VillageMD that we're actively managing.

所以，再次強調，儘管如此，還有很多其他的事情。我在準備好的發言中提到的臨床試驗業務非常有趣，利用了我們的一些資產，資本效率高。我認為這就是我將這裡縮小的方式，只是讓你這樣想：我不想詳細說明我們擁有的每一項資產。我們有很多非常好的東西。我們也投資了我們正在積極管理的 VillageMD 等項目。

But what I would say is this, the lens that we're going to put on these things is, do they create sustained value for payors, patients, health systems, PBMs? And if they do, can we get a fair return for the capital that we're going to invest in them? And if the answer is we can't get a fair return, we're not a charity, so we won't do it. But I see a lot of opportunities for us to meaningfully create high return on capital investments in the services business.

但我想說的是，我們要關注這些事情的是，它們是否為付款人、患者、衛生系統、PBM 創造持續的價值？如果他們這樣做了，我們投資他們的資本能否獲得公平的回報？如果答案是我們無法獲得公平的回報，我們不是慈善機構，所以我們不會這樣做。但我看到我們有很多機會在服務業務中有意義地創造高資本投資回報。

And that's the -- I think the headline I put out there is that we are going to evolve our services, our strategy, from a health care standpoint to a health services strategy, which I think a retail pharmacy basis for that. I thought a PBM basis was terrific to build a health services business. I think a retail pharmacy base is a fabulous base to build a health services business from because of the engagement.

這就是——我認為我提出的標題是，我們將把我們的服務、我們的策略從醫療保健的角度發展到健康服務策略，我認為這是零售藥局的基礎。我認為 PBM 基礎對於建立健康服務業務非常有用。我認為零售藥局基地是建立健康服務業務的絕佳基地，因為它的參與度很高。

Okay. And if I could have a quick follow-up. I guess, do you think of the care delivery business as kind of core to the business in the way you frame the person-to-person aspect?

好的。如果我能快速跟進的話。我想，按照您建立人與人方面的方式，您是否認為護理服務業務是業務的核心？

When you -- would you define when you say care delivery?

當你－你會定義什麼時候要說護理服務嗎？

The Village and some of the assets?

村莊和一些資產？

So we like that investment. We're working closely with them. And as Manmohan mentioned in his prepared remarks, there's no question that they have put themselves on a good path, both in terms of their costs and their footprint, getting to a place where they're going to be meaningfully growing and profitable. So we like that as an investment.

所以我們喜歡這項投資。我們正在與他們密切合作。正如曼莫漢在他準備好的演講中提到的那樣，毫無疑問，無論是在成本還是足跡方面，他們都走上了一條良好的道路，達到了有意義的增長和盈利的地步。所以我們喜歡將其作為一項投資。

I think that as a future growth area for us beyond the village investment, which we're very committed to, I would not expect to see us investing in additional primary care assets in our portfolio of investments.

我認為，作為我們非常致力於的鄉村投資之外的未來成長領域，我不希望看到我們在投資組合中投資額外的初級保健資產。

Your next question comes from the line of Charles Rhyee from TD Cowen.

您的下一個問題來自 TD Cowen 的 Charles Rhyee。

Yes. And welcome, Tim, back. Tim, I wanted to touch on sort of your comments around specialty. Obviously, given you're in specialty from your prior roles, would love to hear a little bit more about this. You talked a little bit extensively about it and potentially the path for Walgreens to be a significantly bigger player in this segment.

是的。歡迎蒂姆回來。提姆，我想談談您對專業的評論。顯然，鑑於您在之前的職位中具有專業知識，因此很想聽到更多有關此的信息。您對此進行了廣泛的討論，並討論了沃爾格林在這一領域成為更大參與者的潛在途徑。

If I'm not mistaken, I think Shields is one of the few specialty pharmacies that has sort of access to almost all the limited distribution specialty drugs in the market. And sort of -- given sort of the shifting channel dynamics in this market over the next few years, particularly with, I would say, some ongoing regulatory scrutiny in this space, what kind of opportunities do you think this could create for Walgreens and Shields in particular?

如果我沒記錯的話，我認為 Shields 是少數幾家能夠獲得市場上幾乎所有有限分銷特殊藥物的專業藥房之一。考慮到未來幾年該市場通路動態的變化，特別是在這個領域正在進行的一些監管審查，您認為這可以為沃爾格林和希爾茲創造什麼樣的機會尤其？

I'll start, and then I'll actually let John speak a little bit more, because John has been very close to the Shields business, which has just been a terrific great management team and a great partner to health systems.

我先開始，然後我實際上會讓約翰多說一點，因為約翰與希爾茲業務關係非常密切，該公司是一個非常出色的管理團隊，也是衛生系統的出色合作夥伴。

First, let me clarify one thing, which is that actually we -- Walgreens specialty have access to the limited distribution drugs and Shields has access to us. And so what Shields is able to do is actually work on behalf of the health systems to build networks and to manage the patients and the pharmacy programs that are really important to these health systems. If you look at their underlying economics, quite often, that can be many times the only place that they're actually earning a profit. And so we become a very, very important partner.

首先，讓我澄清一件事，實際上我們——沃爾格林專業公司可以使用有限分發的藥物，希爾茲也可以使用我們。因此，希爾茲能夠做的實際上是代表衛生系統建立網絡並管理對這些衛生系統非常重要的患者和藥房計畫。如果你看看他們的基本經濟原理，很多時候，這可能是他們真正賺取利潤的唯一地方。因此我們成為一個非常非常重要的合作夥伴。

Our Walgreens specialty assets inside that mix, I'll speak to just for a second. We have community, a central fill. We are building a gene and cell therapy, because pharma has essentially indicated strong interest in working with us in that space. And so we think we've got great core assets. I think that one of the things that's been underway, under John and Rick working together, has been really making sure that we've got those assets focused very, very pointedly on the payor market. And since I got here, we've had a number of wins where we were put into the network of large Blue Cross Blue Shield regional plans as a participant.

我將簡單介紹一下我們沃爾格林在該組合中的專業資產。我們有社區，有中央填充。我們正在建立一種基因和細胞療法，因為製藥公司基本上表現出了與我們在該領域合作的強烈興趣。因此，我們認為我們擁有強大的核心資產。我認為，在約翰和里克的共同努力下，正在進行的事情之一是真正確保我們將這些資產非常非常有針對性地集中在付款人市場上。自從我來到這裡以來，我們已經取得了許多勝利，我們作為參與者被納入大型 Blue Cross Blue Shield 區域計劃網絡。

That's not sufficient from where I'm sitting, though. We've got to be able to win more than our fair share of those patients based on the service that we provide, the cost we can deliver. And we're working through sort of our models to figure out what we need to do to enhance our access to patients.

不過，從我現在的位置來看，這還不夠。根據我們提供的服務和我們可以提供的成本，我們必須能夠贏得超過我們公平份額的患者。我們正在透過某種模型來找出我們需要做什麼來增強我們接觸患者的機會。

That being said, though, Shields is a key enabler to a specialty strategy as a potential component for these pharmacies. And John, if you want to just give any additional color there?

儘管如此，希爾茲是這些藥房潛在組成部分的專業策略的關鍵推動者。約翰，你是否想在那裡添加任何額外的顏色？

I think you nailed it, Tim. I think the only thing I'd add is we're not just growing with payors, we're growing beyond Blues plans, with other payors. And it -- and what Shields does an exceptionally good job and in a growing market is leveraging a clinical pharmacy model, which delivers more adherence and better outcomes.

我想你已經成功了，提姆。我想我唯一要補充的是，我們不僅與付款人一起成長，我們還與其他付款人一起超越藍調計劃。希爾茲在不斷成長的市場中做得非常出色，那就是利用臨床藥局模式，提供更多的依從性和更好的結果。

And so it's really a great example, very -- where there's a lot of detail involved of we're being paid for performance, and that's growing in terms of building on Walgreens franchise with large hospital systems and small hospital systems around America. But it's based on execution, which I think there's still a lot of runway both from a payor and from a health system perspective, and obviously, the underlying especially drug market that is only going to get larger and more complicated, which I think plays to the Shields and the Walgreens strengths.

因此，這確實是一個很好的例子，其中涉及很多細節，我們根據績效獲得報酬，並且在沃爾格林與美國各地的大型醫院系統和小型醫院系統的特許經營權的基礎上不斷發展。但這是基於執行的，我認為從支付者和衛生系統的角度來看，仍然有很多跑道，而且顯然，潛在的特別是藥品市場只會變得更大、更複雜，我認為這會發揮作用希爾茲和沃爾格林的優勢。

Great. And if I could just follow up on George's question. Tim, you kind of said that you probably are looking to invest in more care delivery assets, kind of like VillageMD, but could we expect more type of partnerships with entities like Pearl as a way to kind of expand continued access to care?

偉大的。如果我能跟進喬治的問題就好了。提姆，您曾說過，您可能正在尋求投資更多的護理服務資產，例如VillageMD，但我們是否可以期望與Pearl 這樣的實體建立更多類型的合作夥伴關係，作為擴大持續獲得護理服務的機會？

Yes is the short answer. We recognize that VillageMD represents, and City, represent a fabulous sandbox for us to build services, test them, and by the way, demonstrate that they perform and help them achieve their objectives, while at the same time putting us in a position of growing. And from our perspective, that is a starting point to being a partner of choice for any number of -- as you know, Village has certain geographies they're very deep in, but there are geographies they're not in at all. And there are large provider opportunities for us to partner in similar ways in those marketplaces to grow our business and, importantly, help them grow theirs.

是的，這是簡短的答案。我們認識到，VillageMD 和 City 代表了一個神話般的沙箱，讓我們可以構建服務、測試服務，並順便證明他們的表現並幫助他們實現目標，同時使我們處於不斷發展的境地。 。從我們的角度來看，這是成為許多人選擇合作夥伴的起點——正如您所知，Village 有他們非常深入的某些地區，但也有他們根本不涉足的地區。我們有大量的供應商機會在這些市場中以類似的方式合作，以發展我們的業務，更重要的是，幫助他們發展他們的業務。

Your next question comes from the line of Eric Percher from Nephron Research.

您的下一個問題來自 Nephron Research 的 Eric Percher。

On pharmacy, we've been hearing from Walgreens and the pharmacy services are the key to driving better reimbursement for several years. And it looks like we're seeing that in vaccines today, broader reimbursement pressure continues. And you have a peer saying that you've hit a floor on unit cost offsets. Independents are saying the same and it can't go lower. Do you share the view that we've hit a floor that reimbursement pressure has reached a level you can't go past in '24 or '25? And perhaps more important, given your PBM experience, does Walgreens have the leverage needed to drive more fair reimbursement or new models?

在藥房方面，我們一直聽到沃爾格林的意見，藥房服務是多年來推動更好報銷的關鍵。看起來我們今天在疫苗方面看到，更廣泛的報銷壓力仍在繼續。您的一位同行說您的單位成本抵銷已達到最低限度。獨立人士也這麼說，不能再低了。您是否同意這樣的觀點：我們已經達到了報銷壓力已經達到了 24 或 25 年無法逾越的水平？也許更重要的是，考慮到您的 PBM 經驗，沃爾格林是否擁有推動更公平報銷或新模式所需的影響力？

So listen, in my 25 years at PBM, the floor just kept moving lower, not just for retailers, but frankly, for all the players in the system, right, whether that be rebates or acquisition costs, et cetera. And so we don't accept that -- we think that there is very little left, let's put it that way, in the tank.

所以聽著，在我從事 PBM 的 25 年裡，底線一直在降低，不僅對零售商而言，而且坦率地說，對系統中的所有參與者而言，無論是回扣還是採購成本等等。所以我們不接受這一點——我們認為罐子裡已經所剩無幾了，這麼說吧。

In terms of if I'm a PBM and I'm trying to deliver value to my marketplace, the levers that I have include retail network design. And what I -- my point would be is squeezing the retailer beyond sort of where it's economically sensible for the retailer, by itself, there isn't much left there. And so to do that doesn't produce enough value for the PBM to go win on that basis. It's way, way more effective to win on creation of more certainty around value beyond unit costs.

就如果我是 PBM 並且我正在努力為我的市場提供價值而言，我擁有的槓桿包括零售網路設計。我的觀點是，將零售商擠壓到對零售商來說經濟合理的程度之外，就其本身而言，已經沒有多少了。因此，這樣做並不能產生足夠的價值讓 PBM 在此基礎上獲勝。透過創造超越單位成本的更多確定性價值，可以更有效地贏得勝利。

So I think we're close -- I'm not going to say we're close to the floor, but we are in this -- and we've had a very successful 2024 negotiations with the various PBMs and are 95% along the way of being done for '24 and have some good indications for '25. And again, we are -- we believe we can help drive a transition in the marketplace over time to a more value-based model, which will frankly show well to -- through to the end users and the patients.

所以我認為我們已經接近了——我不會說我們已經接近談判的結果，但我們已經在這裡了——而且我們已經與各個 PBM 進行了非常成功的 2024 年談判，並且進展順利 95% '24的完成方式，並為'25 有一些好的跡象。再說一次，我們相信，隨著時間的推移，我們可以幫助推動市場轉向更基於價值的模式轉變，坦白說，這將很好地向最終用戶和患者展示。

And so from my standpoint, I'll never declare there's a floor. And as I've said to our team, guess what, we still have to compete. We don't get to not compete just because the reimbursement model changes. We will compete, though, on things that we're actually very good at and that we can control. And I think that as I look forward in the next 3 or 4 years, we can play a leadership role in that in a way that helps PBMs win.

因此，從我的角度來看，我永遠不會宣布有底線。正如我對我們的團隊所說的，你猜怎麼著，我們仍然必須競爭。我們不能因為報銷模式改變就停止競爭。不過，我們將在我們實際上非常擅長並且可以控制的事情上競爭。我認為，展望未來 3 到 4 年，我們可以在這方面發揮領導作用，幫助 PBM 獲勝。

Let me be clear. Our job is to help PBMs win. I want more prescriptions coming through our stores, and that does not happen simply by being a great patient experience. It happens by being a great payor partner. And that's the place that we're going to be focused. And we are listening carefully and trying to understand what are the payors trying to do in order to, therefore, configure the places we create value.

讓我說清楚。我們的工作是幫助 PBM 獲勝。我希望我們的商店能提供更多的處方藥，而這並不是僅僅透過提供良好的患者體驗就能實現的。這是透過成為優秀的付款人合作夥伴來實現的。這就是我們要關注的地方。我們正在仔細傾聽並試圖了解付款人想要做什麼，以便配置我們創造價值的地方。

And as you've seen, 2 very large PBMs have said at least -- and I think they're responding, it's really interesting to me, to more pull from the marketplace than we may have experienced historically as it relates to either pass-through or transparent models, and therefore, announcing these programs that they're putting out in the marketplace that we can play very, very effectively in. So the fact that there may be more marketplace pull there only presents for me a sense of urgency for our team to do what we've already done and accelerate additional value creation that we can, A, be paid for, and B, that our payers can go out and win with.

正如你所看到的，兩個非常大的PBM 至少說過——我認為他們正在回應，這對我來說真的很有趣，從市場上獲得的拉力比我們歷史上可能經歷過的更多，因為它與任何一個通行證有關——通過或透明的模型，因此，宣布他們在市場上推出的這些計劃，我們可以非常非常有效地參與其中。因此，那裡可能有更多的市場吸引力這一事實只會給我帶來一種緊迫感我們的團隊要做我們已經做過的事情，加速創造額外的價值，我們可以，A，獲得報酬，B，我們的付款人可以出去並贏得勝利。

Rick, do you want to...

瑞克，你想...

Yes, Charles, this is Rick.

是的，查爾斯，這是瑞克。

Rick add some color.

瑞克添加一些顏色。

Yes. Sorry, Eric. The one thing I'll add is that we've been very successful at making sure that we are negotiating straight and core dispensing as one rate and anything else, value add, is a separate rate. So when you think about pay-for-performance contracts or you think about any of our services like vaccinations or test, test and treat, those are completely separate reimbursements that we're getting. So we've been very specific on how we contract so that we can be laser sharp on how we look at the unit economics of our scripts dispensing.

是的。對不起，埃里克。我要補充的一件事是，我們非常成功地確保我們正在談判直接和核心分配作為一個費率，而其他任何東西，增值，都是一個單獨的費率。因此，當您考慮按績效付費合約或考慮我們的任何服務（例如疫苗接種或測試、測試和治療）時，這些都是我們獲得的完全獨立的報銷。因此，我們對如何簽訂合約非常具體，這樣我們就可以清楚地了解如何看待腳本分配的單位經濟效益。

That's where I was going.

那就是我要去的地方。

Your next question comes from the line of Ann Hynes from Mizuho Securities.

您的下一個問題來自瑞穗證券的 Ann Hynes。

Thanks for the question. So just Tim, a follow-up on the reimbursement model because, obviously, it's a big focus for investors. I think you mentioned in Lisa's question that you think it would take some time. Do you have a guesstimate on how long you would take it to implement?

謝謝你的提問。提姆是報銷模式的後續行動，因為顯然這是投資人關注的焦點。我想你在麗莎的問題中提到你認為這需要一些時間。您是否預計需要多長時間才能實施？

And maybe putting your payor hat on since that was the majority of your career, why do you think payers would be open to such a change? What would be the main drivers for them? And maybe what would be the benefit for them longer term. And what would be the benefit for Walgreen longer term?

也許戴上你的付款人帽子，因為這是你職業生涯的大部分時間，為什麼你認為付款人會對這樣的改變持開放態度？他們的主要驅動力是什麼？從長遠來看，也許會為他們帶來什麼好處。從長遠來看，沃爾格林能獲得什麼好處？

So how long to implement? As you know, PBM and health plan selling cycles are not short. And so what I would expect is to see material potential change within a year or 2. And probably -- but you'd also see for new sales midyear for small groups and stuff that churns more regularly, I think you could see a fairly quick uptake to the extent that the market is looking for this.

那麼要實施多久呢？如您所知，PBM 和健康計劃的銷售週期並不短。因此，我期望在一兩年內看到重大的潛在變化。而且可能 - 但你也會看到年中小團體的新銷售以及更頻繁地流失的東西，我認為你可以看到一個相當快的變化吸收程度達到市場所尋求的程度。

And again, I say that cautiously because we've seen before with transparent -- I remember in 2005, I think, as a PBM, I wrote the -- we joined the Towers Watson collaborative and it was -- we were doing traditional deals within 6 months alongside of the transparent because the market actually didn't want the risk shifted to them. They wanted the risk being held by the PBM.

再說一次，我謹慎地說，因為我們以前見過透明的——我記得在2005 年，我想，作為一名PBM，我寫了——我們加入了韜睿惠悅合作，而且是——我們正在進行傳統交易6個月內就透明了，因為市場實際上不希望風險轉移給他們。他們希望風險由 PBM 承擔。

So in this case though, I think that the plan designs that the market have largely evolved to are creating this underlying demand to give patients the pass-through of the cost plus experience so that they don't have an odd surprise when they go to the pharmacy counter of paying more for the drug than actually they would if they were a cash payor.

因此，在這種情況下，我認為市場在很大程度上發展的計劃設計正在創造這種潛在需求，為​​患者提供成本加體驗的轉嫁，這樣他們在就診時就不會感到奇怪的驚喜。藥房櫃檯支付的藥品費用比現金支付者實際支付的費用高。

So I do think that the employers don't like the employees coming into their benefits office asking questions about how good are my benefits, if, in fact -- this is my experience at the pharmacy counter. And that's causing some demand. Again, I'd let the PBM speak for themselves as to why they've launched these programs. But I would suspect that, that's a piece of it. I think as well, the regulatory environment continues to evolve. And I think that it is very appropriately responsive to some of the concerns that exist there.

所以我確實認為雇主不喜歡員工進入他們的福利辦公室詢問我的福利有多好，如果事實上這是我在藥房櫃檯的經歷。這引起了一些需求。再次，我會讓 PBM 自己解釋為什麼他們啟動了這些計劃。但我懷疑，這就是其中的一部分。我認為監管環境也在不斷發展。我認為它非常恰當地回應了那裡存在的一些擔憂。

So I don't think it's going to be -- this is not a 6-month implementation. We are prepared and already have sat down and had conversations to support these models, and we could convert to a cost-plus model overnight. So we are a willing player in terms of what we would need to do to compete and win patients on a cost-plus basis.

所以我認為這不會是——這不是一個為期 6 個月的實施。我們已經做好準備，並且已經坐下來進行對話來支持這些模型，我們可以在一夜之間轉換為成本加成模型。因此，我們願意在成本加成的基礎上競爭並贏得病患。

Why payers would do it? Again, I think I've just -- I've answered that for you in terms of it comes down to providing a benefit in a labor market that's fairly tough competitive-wise to folks that are valued. And so they want the benefit -- the pharmacy benefits, the most used benefit, they want it to be valued. And they want it to be understood and they don't want it to be confusing. And so I think these models offer a pathway to achieve that.

為什麼付款人會這樣做？再說一次，我想我剛剛——我已經為你回答了這個問題，歸根結底是在勞動市場上提供福利，這對那些有價值的人來說競爭相當激烈。所以他們想要這種好處──藥局的好處，最常用的好處，他們希望它受到重視。他們希望它被理解，並且不希望它令人困惑。所以我認為這些模型提供了實現這一目標的途徑。

What's in it for us is being paid fairly for the services we're providing at the back of the store, and not subsidizing in a large-scale way the products that the patients are getting in a way that's not economic for us.

對我們來說，我們在商店後面提供的服務得到了公平的報酬，而不是以對我們來說不經濟的方式大規模補貼患者獲得的產品。

And I think the big change there, if you go back, there was an appropriate amount of incentive being created in the system to dispense generics, for lots of obvious and good reasons. If you go back 25 years ago, the generic wave was -- people didn't believe would happen. We had to do generic sampling in the PBM industry to even convince physicians that they were okay to dispense and easy to dispense.

我認為那裡發生了巨大的變化，如果你回顧一下，系統中會產生適當的激勵措施來分發仿製藥，原因有很多明顯且充分的理由。如果你回到 25 年前，一般的浪潮是──人們不相信會發生。我們必須在 PBM 行業進行通用抽樣，甚至讓醫生相信他們可以進行配藥並且易於配藥。

And so that's different now. You've got 90-plus percent generic dispensing rates in most places. And the need to cross-subsidize and force essentially the profit on to the generic side in exchange for a subsidy on the brand, particularly with the new brands that are coming out, just doesn't work anymore for the pharmacies or, frankly, for the patients in high deductible plans. And so I think those powers will align to force this time a set of changes around reimbursement that may well stick.

現在情況不同了。大多數地方的通用配藥率都超過 90%。而且需要進行交叉補貼，將利潤基本上轉移到仿製藥方面，以換取對品牌的補貼，特別是對於即將出現的新品牌，這對於藥房來說不再適用，或者坦率地說，對於高免賠額計劃中的患者。因此，我認為這些權力將聯合起來，迫使這次圍繞報銷進行一系列可能會持續下去的改變。

Your next question comes from the line of Kevin Caliendo from UBS.

您的下一個問題來自瑞銀集團的 Kevin Caliendo。

In your prepared remarks around guidance, you mentioned that your expectations were, around market growth in the pharmacy, maybe being a little bit lower now. I just love any clarity on what that meant and what might be driving that. And then secondly, more a strategic question for Tim. Given your history and everything else as you think about pharmacy services, does it benefit Walgreens to actually own a PBM?

在您準備好的關於指導意見的評論中，您提到您對藥房市場成長的期望現在可能有點低。我只是喜歡清楚地了解這意味著什麼以及可能是什麼推動了這一點。其次，對蒂姆來說，這更是一個戰略問題。考慮到您的歷史以及您考慮藥房服務時的其他一切，實際擁有 PB​​M 對沃爾格林有好處嗎？

Well, I'll turn the first part of your question over to Manmohan and then be happy to answer the second part.

好吧，我會將你問題的第一部分轉給曼莫漢，然後很樂意回答第二部分。

Sure. As you think about the prescription market growth, as we shared the outlook in October, our guidance was that we're going to grow in line with market on the prescription side. What we've continued to see in the first quarter is the market is growing at a lower pace. And that's really driven by 2 factors. First is the weaker respiratory season, and the second is the impact or continued impact of Medicaid redetermination. So as we're thinking about the full year now versus October, we expect the overall market growth to slow down roughly around 50 bps versus previous estimates.

當然。當你考慮處方藥市場的成長時，正如我們在 10 月分享的前景一樣，我們的指導是我們將與處方藥市場的成長保持一致。我們在第一季繼續看到的是市場成長速度放緩。這實際上是由兩個因素驅動的。首先是呼吸季節較弱，其次是醫療補助重新確定的影響或持續影響。因此，當我們考慮全年與 10 月相比時，我們預計整體市場成長將比先前的估計放緩約 50 個基點。

And as it relates to owning a PBM, I don't think that that's the best path for us, quite frankly. We -- I love -- and you've heard me say this in the past lives, I love being independent. I love being someone who can work across the ecosystem in a way that doesn't create anything but trust. And having a small PBM, the economics of delivering really good service and really good costs favor large PBMs for really obvious reasons. They produce a lot of value by scale. And so buying a second-tier PBM for us does not make sense. I would much rather work with every PBM than own a small one.

由於它與擁有 PB​​M 相關，坦白說，我認為這對我們來說不是最佳方式。我們──我愛──你在前世聽過我這樣說過，我喜歡獨立。我喜歡成為一個能夠在整個生態系統中工作的人，這種方式除了信任之外不會創造任何東西。擁有小型 PBM，提供真正優質服務和真正良好成本的經濟效益有利於大型 PBM，原因非常明顯。它們按規模創造了大量價值。所以購買第二層的 PBM 對我們來說沒有意義。我寧願與每一個 PBM 一起工作，而不是一個小 PBM。

Understood. Can I ask a quick follow-up, if possible. This morning, Lilly announced a new program called Lilly Direct. I don't even know if you guys were able to see it. But it sounds like something that maybe you could participate in. They're talking about having a third-party online pharmacy fulfillment services, and they're going to use existing pharmacy -- existing pharmacies to help dispense. I don't know if you've had a look at that. But is that something that you're talking about in terms of some of the services you might be able to offer or work with something like this? Or how would this impact Walgreens?

明白了。如果可能的話，我可以要求快速跟進嗎？今天早上，禮來公司宣布了一項名為 Lilly Direct 的新計劃。也不知道大家有沒有看到。但這聽起來像是你可以參與的事情。他們正在談論擁有第三方線上藥局履行服務，他們將使用現有的藥局——現有的藥局來幫助配藥。我不知道你是否看過這部。但這是您所談論的一些您可能能夠提供或使用類似服務的服務嗎？或者這會對沃爾格林產生什麼影響？

No, it's a great question, and we did see it this morning. And my preface is, as I've mentioned, we can work inside of almost any reimbursement model and be a service provider to payors as well as patients as well as pharma. With that said, I can toss it over to Rick, who can speak a little bit as it relates to sort of how we think about that program and others like it that may evolve in the market.

不，這是一個很好的問題，我們今天早上確實看到了。正如我所提到的，我的前言是，我們幾乎可以在任何報銷模式中工作，並成為付款人、患者以及製藥公司的服務提供者。話雖如此，我可以把它交給 Rick，他可以講一點，因為這涉及到我們如何看待該項目以及市場上可能發展的其他類似項目。

I think, Tim, you hit I think what we can talk about right now. I think what I would say is that, obviously, transparency for consumers and anything that lowers drug cost to consumers, we think is a good thing. And so obviously, we are supportive of those types of programs. We work with all of our partners, be it payor, PBM or pharma partners in order to help deliver against those. So is it an opportunity? Absolutely, and we certainly would support and work with Lilly on that.

我想，蒂姆，你擊中了我想我們現在可以談談。我想我想說的是，顯然，對消費者的透明度以及任何降低消費者藥品成本的事情，我們認為是一件好事。顯然，我們支持此類計劃。我們與所有合作夥伴（無論是付款人、PBM 或製藥合作夥伴）合作，協助解決這些問題。那麼這是一個機會嗎？當然，我們當然會在這方面支持禮來公司並與之合作。

Thanks so much for all the details on this call. It's been great.

非常感謝您提供本次通話的所有詳細資訊。太棒了。

Your next question comes from the line of Elizabeth Anderson from Evercore ISI.

您的下一個問題來自 Evercore ISI 的 Elizabeth Anderson。

Nice to work with you again, Tim. Just maybe double-clicking on what you've talked about in terms of the pay-for-performance contracts that you've done so far. Can you tell maybe -- and maybe this is a question for Tim and for Rick, like sort of where focus on the contracts that you've signed has really focused on those contracts? And then as we think about the total opportunity, like do you have a sense of like what percent of those contracts have some sort of element of that now and sort of as we think about the broader opportunity for that to improve going forward?

很高興再次與你合作，提姆。也許只需雙擊您迄今為止所簽訂的績效工資合約中所討論的內容即可。你能說出也許嗎——也許這是蒂姆和里克的問題，就像對你簽署的合約的關注真正集中在那些合約上？然後，當我們考慮總機會時，您是否知道現在這些合約中有多少百分比具有某種元素，以及當我們考慮未來改進的更廣泛機會時？

Yes, I will let Rick answer, other than to say I had a conversation last week with the CEO of a very, very large payor who wanted to sit our teams down to actually look at 2025, and how we may work together, particularly on Medicare Advantage, with them. And so there is a lot of -- some of the other dynamics in the marketplace that are macro now are going to then bubble back through our contracting process and the kind of conversations that we can come to the table creatively with.

是的，我會讓里克回答，除了說我上週與一家非常非常大的付款人的首席執行官進行了一次談話，他想讓我們的團隊坐下來實際審視2025 年，以及我們如何合作，特別是在醫療保險優勢，與他們一起。因此，現在市場上的一些其他宏觀動態將透過我們的簽約流程以及我們可以創造性地進行的對話而回歸。

Rick, in terms of the current state of play, you want to address that?

Rick，就目前的情況而言，您想解決這個問題嗎？

Yes. And I would just say that, obviously, most of the pay-for-performance contracts still sit within the Medicare Part D space. So obviously, we not only contract on specific deliverables, but we obviously plan operationally on how we're going to deliver against the ones that make sense so that we can deliver value within the ecosystem.

是的。我只想說，顯然，大多數按績效付費合約仍然屬於醫療保險 D 部分範圍。顯然，我們不僅就特定的交付成果簽訂合同，而且我們顯然還計劃如何交付有意義的交付成果，以便我們能夠在生態系統內交付價值。

We are starting to see in the Medicaid space that they are starting to have contracts come through. And obviously, generally then it would move into the commercial space.

我們開始在醫療補助領域看到他們開始簽約。顯然，一般來說它會進入商業領域。

I think just reiterate what Tim said, I think we are having conversations and, obviously, our ability to deliver on these pay-for-performance contracts gives us more credibility to actually enter in more going forward.

我想重申一下蒂姆所說的，我認為我們正在進行對話，顯然，我們履行這些按績效付費合約的能力使我們更有可信度，可以真正進入更多的未來。

Our last question today will be from Brian Tanquilut from Jefferies.

今天我們的最後一個問題將來自 Jefferies 的 Brian Tanquilut。

Brian, your line is open.

布萊恩，你的線路已開通。

Your next question comes from the line of Stephanie Davis from Barclays.

你的下一個問題來自巴克萊銀行的史蒂芬妮戴維斯。

Tim, I've got one last one on the cost plus model, just given your background in PBM and payor world. I'd be curious about your perspective on market share opportunities in this model. Is it status quo given it's a line of one of your peers? Or is there a way to structure those to increase relative attractiveness or kind of gain some share as well?

提姆，我有最後一篇關於成本加成模型的文章，剛剛介紹了您在 PBM 和付款人領域的背景。我很好奇您對這個模型中的市場份額機會的看法。考慮到這是你的一位同行的路線，它是現狀嗎？或者有沒有辦法建造這些以增加相對吸引力或獲得一些份額？

Sure. I appreciate the question. The way that we view every opportunity is how do we gain share with it. What I like is competing on unit price is a fairly straightforward exercise, and we continue to do that. Competing on the underlying cost to deliver the basic service is something again that we understand and live with.

當然。我很欣賞這個問題。我們看待每一個機會的方式就是我們如何利用它來獲得份額。我喜歡的是單價競爭是一個相當簡單的做法，我們將繼續這樣做。我們再次理解並接受在提供基本服務的基礎成本上競爭。

Hard to differentiate on those 2. We will always be the low-cost provider. That's one of the goals that we have and we are driving toward in our pharmacy business. But what I really like is the models that are being discussed and evaluated, and I think being pulled into the market, will allow differentiation on how well you leverage other assets and what assets you have. And in that respect, we've got 123-year head start on some folks as it relates to building out a trusted brand that patients will respond to.

很難區分這兩點。我們將永遠是低成本提供者。這是我們在製藥業務中所擁有和正在努力實現的目標之一。但我真正喜歡的是正在討論和評估的模型，我認為被拉入市場將使您在利用其他資產的程度以及您擁有的資產方面產生差異化。在這方面，我們比一些人領先 123 年，因為這關係到建立一個值得患者回應的值得信賴的品牌。

I'm really compelled by the kind of response that we are able to get on behalf of payors, for example, in our Walgreens Health business, when we use our brand and have our pharmacists call a patient and suggest to them, on behalf of one of our plans, that a flu shot would be a good idea for a Medicare Advantage patient, or that perhaps complete -- coming to the store and getting a Cologuard test and actually completing it and showing that we can get 50% plus response rates, even with something as challenging as a Cologuard test. To me that shows the kind of thing that we can do better than anybody that will differentiate us as these contracts with payors broaden out from pure unit cost. And so I feel really, really good about where we sit as an ability to do that to gain access to patients and, therefore, gain share.

我真的很感動於我們能夠代表付款人獲得的那種回應，例如，在我們的沃爾格林健康業務中，當我們使用我們的品牌並讓我們的藥劑師代表付款人給患者打電話並向他們提出建議時我們的計劃之一是，流感疫苗對於Medicare Advantage 患者來說是一個好主意，或者可能是完整的- 來到商店並進行Cologuard 測試並實際完成測試並表明我們可以獲得50 % 以上的回應率，即使是像 Cologuard 測試這樣具有挑戰性的事情。對我來說，這表明我們可以比任何人做得更好，這將使我們與眾不同，因為與付款人的這些合約超出了純粹的單位成本。因此，我對我們所處的位置感到非常非常滿意，因為我們有能力接觸到患者，從而獲得份額。

Thank you. I will now turn the call over to Tim Wentworth, Chief Executive Officer, for closing remarks.

謝謝。我現在將把電話轉交給執行長 Tim Wentworth 致閉幕詞。

Great. Thank you. So in summary, and thanks for dialing in. We are pleased with our first quarter results, but we recognize we have a lot of work to do. It is still early. The market continues to be, particularly for retailers, challenging. I think we're responding really very well. And we have a very supportive Board. You've seen the changes we've already been supported to make, and we have additional things that we are looking to do.

偉大的。謝謝。總而言之，感謝您的撥通。我們對第一季的業績感到滿意，但我們認識到我們還有很多工作要做。現在還早。市場仍然充滿挑戰，尤其是對於零售商而言。我認為我們的回應非常好。我們有一個非常支持我們的董事會。您已經看到了我們已經在支持下做出的改變，我們還有其他事情要做。

We are on a path, but we are nowhere near the even the halfway point of the kind of things that we believe we can do long term to build a really powerful health services company on the back of and leveraging an excellent community asset that today we call a retail pharmacy.

我們正走在一條道路上，但我們相信我們可以長期做一些事情，以建立一個真正強大的醫療服務公司，並利用今天我們所擁有的優秀社區資產，我們還遠未達到一半。致電零售藥房。

And so from that standpoint, the exciting thing for me is not only that we are on that path and that the results so far have been what we would have hoped for despite being very challenging and having to make some very, very difficult decisions.

因此，從這個角度來看，對我來說令人興奮的事情不僅在於我們走在這條道路上，而且到目前為止的結果是我們所希望的，儘管充滿挑戰並且必須做出一些非常非常困難的決定。

But to me, the thing that I go home and get excited about every day is, after we talk to payors and we talk to the marketplace, we talk to pharma, and we find out the level of need and interest they have in Walgreens being a preferred partner. And I think over the coming quarters, we will be able to give you greater clarity as it relates to what that's going to look like in our future, and we look forward to doing that. Thanks very much.

但對我來說，我每天回家感到興奮的事情是，在我們與付款人和市場交談之後，我們與製藥公司交談，我們發現他們對沃爾格林的需求和興趣程度首選合作夥伴。我認為在接下來的幾個季度中，我們將能夠向您提供更清晰的信息，因為這與我們未來的情況有關，我們期待這樣做。非常感謝。

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for your participation, and you may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與，您現在可以斷開連接。