沃博聯公司 (WBA) 2024 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Walgreens Boots Alliance Second Quarter 2024 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) Please be advised today's conference is being recorded.

美好的一天，感謝您的支持。歡迎參加 Walgreens Boots Alliance 2024 年第二季財報電話會議。 （操作員指示）請注意，今天的會議正在錄製中。

I would now like to hand the conference over to your speaker today, [Chris Dale], Group Vice President, Finance Planning and Analysis. Please go ahead.

現在我想將會議交給今天的發言人，財務規劃與分析集團副總裁 [Chris Dale]。請繼續。

Good morning. Thank you for joining us for the Walgreens Boots Alliance Earnings Call for the Second Quarter of Fiscal 2024. I'm Chris Dale, Group Vice President of Financial Planning and Analysis, filling in for Tiffany.

早安.感謝您參加沃爾格林博姿聯盟 2024 財年第二季度收益電話會議。我是克里斯·戴爾 (Chris Dale)，負責財務規劃和分析的集團副總裁，代理蒂芙尼 (Tiffany) 的職務。

Joining me on today call are Tim Wentworth, our Chief Executive Officer; Mary Langowski, President of U.S. Healthcare; and Manmohan Mahajan, Global Chief Financial Officer. In addition, Rick Gates, Senior Vice President and Walgreens Chief Pharmacy Officer; 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；瑪麗‧蘭戈斯基 (Mary Langowski)，美國醫療保健總裁；以及全球財務長曼莫漢‧馬哈詹 (Manmohan Mahajan)。此外，沃爾格林高級副總裁兼首席藥房官里克·蓋茨(Rick Gates)；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.

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。

We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements after this presentation, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise. You can find our press release and the slides referenced on this call in the Investors section of the Walgreens Boots Alliance website.

我們沒有義務在本次演示後公開更新任何前瞻性陳述，無論是由於新資訊、未來事件、假設變更或其他原因。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. We encourage you to review the comparable GAAP measures and reconciliation to non-GAAP values in the other earnings materials we provided.

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。我們鼓勵您查看我們提供的其他獲利資料中的可比較 GAAP 指標以及與非 GAAP 值的調整。

I will now turn the call over to Tim.

我現在將把電話轉給蒂姆。

Thanks, Chris, and good morning, everyone. WBA's second quarter operational results were in line with our expectations despite continued challenges in the U.S. retail environment. Adjusted EPS of $1.20 reflects good execution and cost discipline in our U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment, continued strong performance in International, our first quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA in U.S. Healthcare and positive impacts from tax planning benefits.

謝謝克里斯，大家早安。儘管美國零售環境持續面臨挑戰，但 WBA 第二季營運表現符合我們的預期。調整後每股收益為1.20 美元，反映出我們美國零售藥局業務的良好執行力和成本紀律、國際業務的持續強勁表現、美國醫療保健業務第一季調整後的EBITDA 為正數，以及稅務規劃福利的正面影響。

During the quarter, we recognized a $5.8 billion after-tax noncash goodwill impairment charge, net of noncontrolling interest, related to our investment in VillageMD. This charge is excluded from any of our adjusted non-GAAP earnings measures. We are narrowing full year adjusted EPS guidance to a range of $3.20 to $3.35. This guidance reflects a challenging retail environment in the U.S. and our decisions to both wind down the sale-leaseback program and to sell additional shares of Cencora in a further effort to simplify our financial reporting.

本季度，我們確認了與 VillageMD 投資相關的 58 億美元稅後非現金商譽減損費用（扣除非控股權益）。此費用不包括在我們任何調整後的非公認會計準則獲利指標中。我們將全年調整後每股盈餘指引縮小至 3.20 美元至 3.35 美元。這項指引反映了美國充滿挑戰的零售環境，以及我們決定逐步結束售後回租計畫並出售 Cencora 額外股份，以進一步簡化我們的財務報告。

We expect these impacts to be partially offset by execution in Pharmacy Services and tax favorability. We have recently solidified our leadership team, which I believe has the capabilities and commitment to best lead WBA into its future.

我們預計這些影響將被藥局服務的執行和稅收優惠部分抵銷。我們最近鞏固了我們的領導團隊，我相信他們有能力和承諾最好地領導 WBA 走向未來。

Once again, I'm excited to welcome our newest WBA leaders who were announced this quarter: Elizabeth Burger as Chief Human Resources Officer; Lanesha Minnix as Chief Legal Officer; and Mary Langowski as President of U.S. Healthcare. They join Manmohan Mahajan, who was confirmed as our Chief Financial Officer; and Beth Leonard, who was named our Chief Corporate Affairs Officer in rounding out our Executive Committee.

我再次很高興地歡迎本季宣布的 WBA 最新領導者：伊麗莎白·伯格 (Elizabeth Burger) 擔任首席人力資源長； Lanesha Minnix 擔任首席法務官；瑪麗·蘭戈斯基 (Mary Langowski) 擔任美國醫療保健總裁。他們加入了 Manmohan Mahajan，後者被確認為我們的財務長；貝絲·倫納德 (Beth Leonard) 被任命為我們的首席企業事務官，完善了我們的執行委員會。

Together, our executive committee is comprised of individuals that bring an established track record of operational excellence and are all based together in Chicago, working to drive collaboration and acting with urgency to drive results. Over the next 3 months, we will continue the intense review of our portfolio of assets in an effort to ensure that each contributes to the growth we aspire to deliver and drives our go-forward strategy to be the leading retail pharmacy and health services partner that creates deep relationships and trust.

我們的執行委員會由擁有卓越營運記錄的個人組成，他們都駐紮在芝加哥，致力於推動協作並採取緊急行動以取得成果。在接下來的三個月裡，我們將繼續對我們的資產組合進行嚴格審查，以確保每項資產都有助於我們渴望實現的成長，並推動我們的前進策略，成為領先的零售藥房和健康服務夥伴，建立深厚的關係和信任。

Let me share further detail on the progress happening across our businesses to date. In our U.S. Retail Pharmacy business, we are navigating a challenging backdrop and exploring innovative pathways to boost profitability and growth. Within retail, our U.S. customer is confronting considerable pressure from multiyear inflationary trends and depleted household savings with U.S. household debt at record levels and delinquency rates on the rise.

讓我進一步詳細介紹我們業務迄今為止所取得的進展。在我們的美國零售藥局業務中，我們正在應對充滿挑戰的背景，並探索創新途徑來提高獲利能力和成長。在零售領域，我們的美國客戶正面臨著多年通膨趨勢帶來的巨大壓力，以及家庭儲蓄枯竭，美國家庭債務達到創紀錄水平，拖欠率不斷上升。

Our shopper is making deliberate choices to seek value resulting in channel shifting behavior. We're responding to these market dynamics by making investments in key value items and focusing our capabilities to engage with customers in an intelligent, targeted way. Additionally, we have implemented initiatives to improve front-end performance.

我們的購物者正在做出深思熟慮的選擇來尋求價值，從而導致管道轉移行為。我們透過對關鍵價值項目進行投資並集中我們的能力以智慧、有針對性的方式與客戶互動來應對這些市場動態。此外，我們也實施了提高前端效能的措施。

We are leaning into the massive and timely opportunity to increase own brand penetration now standing at 17.1%, up 95 basis points year-over-year. We expect that we can further expand with a meaningful margin advantage over national brands. We plan to deepen our partnership with a reduced set of national suppliers, carefully selecting who we work with alongside our own brands.

我們正抓住巨大且及時的機會來提高自有品牌的滲透率，目前該滲透率已達 17.1%，較去年同期成長 95 個基點。我們預計我們可以進一步擴張，並比國家品牌具有顯著的利潤優勢。我們計劃深化與減少的國內供應商的合作夥伴關係，並仔細選擇與我們自己的品牌合作的供應商。

Operationally, we're intensely focused on the customer experience and meeting customers where, when and how they want to shop. That means enhancing the experience not only in-store but ordering online for pickup in-store and also same-day delivery, where over 80% of orders are received in less than an hour.

在營運方面，我們高度關注客戶體驗，並滿足客戶想要的購物地點、時間和方式。這意味著不僅要增強店內體驗，還要增強線上訂購、店內取貨和當日送達的體驗，超過 80% 的訂單在一小時內收到。

Additionally, we are empowering our store managers and field leaders to share in our company's anticipated growth and increase their ability to impact areas that matter most to their stores and their customers. To do this, we are realigning incentives in an effort to place much greater weight on individual store performance.

此外，我們還授權我們的商店經理和現場領導者分享我們公司的預期成長，並提高他們影響對其商店和客戶最重要的領域的能力。為此，我們正在重新調整激勵措施，更加重視單一商店的表現。

Moving to Pharmacy. We delivered another quarter of strong execution with outperformance in pharmacy services led by our vaccines portfolio. While market growth was slower than originally anticipated, we maintained market share. Our 11 micro fulfillment centers currently support 4,600 stores, which is over half our footprint. Earlier this year, we talked about pausing the rollout of additional micro-fulfillment centers as we work to optimize the model that gives our pharmacists and technicians the ability to spend more time on customer-facing activities and less time on core dispensing.

搬到藥房。我們又一個季度表現強勁，在以疫苗產品組合為首的製藥服務領域表現出色。儘管市場成長慢於最初預期，但我們保持了市場份額。我們的 11 個微型配送中心目前為 4,600 家商店提供服務，占我們足跡的一半以上。今年早些時候，我們討論了暫停推出額外的微型配送中心，因為我們正在努力優化模型，使我們的藥劑師和技術人員能夠將更多的時間花在面向客戶的活動上，並減少核心配藥的時間。

We're seeing benefits such as improved NPS scores, patient retention and adherence. Not only is this better for the patient, it improves team member retention and talent acquisition as they perform more of the clinical activities that they are so well trained to do. We are focused on creating an environment that makes us the practice setting of choice for pharmacists.

我們看到了 NPS 分數提高、患者保留率和依從性等好處。這不僅對患者更好，而且還可以提高團隊成員的保留率和人才獲取，因為他們可以執行更多經過良好訓練的臨床活動。我們致力於創造一個環境，​​使我們成為藥劑師選擇的實踐環境。

In fact, earlier this month, we kicked off our first Dean's Advisory Council meeting with the mission of reenergizing and evolving the definition of community pharmacy as demand for pharmacy services increases while the industry faces a pronounced labor shortage. We are on a mission to achieve provider status for our pharmacists given their influence which was so clearly highlighted during the pandemic.

事實上，本月早些時候，我們召開了第一次院長諮詢委員會會議，其使命是隨著藥房服務需求的增加，同時該行業面臨明顯的勞動力短缺，重新振興和發展社區藥房的定義。鑑於我們的藥劑師的影響力在疫情期間如此明顯地凸顯出來，我們的使命是為我們的藥劑師實現提供者地位。

This would allow them to be reimbursed for providing select health care services to patients. These are highly trained clinical professionals just 5 miles or less for most Americans, whose scope of practice goes well beyond dispensing medications and includes immunizations, patient counseling and point-of-care testing for infectious diseases.

這將使他們能夠因向患者提供精選的醫療保健服務而獲得補償。這些都是訓練有素的臨床專業人員，距離大多數美國人僅 5 英里或更遠，他們的業務範圍遠遠超出了配藥範圍，還包括免疫接種、患者諮詢和傳染病的即時檢測。

As an example of what is ultimately possible, in the U.K., the NHS Pharmacy First Service, which launched on January 31, expands the role of Boots pharmacists throughout England to advise and prescribe for the treatment of 7 common health conditions. This model serves as a use case of new ways to fully deploy pharmacists' capabilities to lighten the burden on the broader health care system.

作為最終可能實現的一個例子，在英國，NHS Pharmacy First Service 於 1 月 31 日推出，擴大了 Boots 藥劑師在英格蘭各地的作用，為 7 種常見健康狀況的治療提供建議和處方。該模型是充分利用藥劑師能力以減輕更廣泛的醫療保健系統負擔的新方法的用例。

Speaking of value, there is real opportunity for change and transparency in reimbursement models to help slow the inflationary pressures on drug prices and our patient's wallets. We already operate in the number of cost-plus and other alternative reimbursement models very successfully and welcome any model that reimburses us for the unmatched value we provide patients.

說到價值，報銷模式確實有機會進行改變和提高透明度，以幫助減緩藥品價格和患者錢包的通膨壓力。我們已經在多種成本加成和其他替代報銷模式中非常成功地運作，並歡迎任何為我們為患者提供無與倫比的價值而報銷的模式。

We are having more active and constructive conversations with PBMs and other payers around cost-plus models. Many of these discussions are still in early stages, but they share a general theme. There is value to all from a transparent, predictable model where what patients pay at the counter is rationally tied to the cost of the drug. We don't expect an industry shift to happen overnight as there are a number of dynamics that need to be worked out, but it's especially encouraging to see PBMs and payers open to these models.

我們正在與 PBM 和其他付款人圍繞成本加成模型進行更積極和建設性的對話。其中許多討論仍處於早期階段，但它們有一個共同的主題。透明、可預測的模型對所有人都有價值，在該模型中，患者在櫃檯支付的費用與藥物成本合理相關。我們預計行業轉變不會在一夜之間發生，因為有許多動態需要解決，但看到 PBM 和付款人對這些模型持開放態度尤其令人鼓舞。

Now turning to U.S. Healthcare. We have reached an important milestone delivering our first ever quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA and another quarter of significant year-on-year growth. Shields continues to deliver strong top and bottom line performance as their differentiated model is driving significant value for health system partners, which has resulted in several recent long-term extensions. VillageMD's actions to accelerate profitability, including recent rightsizing of their cost structure, optimizing their clinic footprint and growing patient panels, are driving improvement in adjusted EBITDA.

現在轉向美國醫療保健。我們已經達到了一個重要的里程碑，實現了有史以來第一個季度調整後的 EBITDA 正值，並且又一個季度實現了同比顯著增長。 Shields 繼續提供強勁的營收和利潤績效，因為其差異化模式正在為衛生系統合作夥伴帶來巨大價值，這導致了最近幾次的長期延期。 VillageMD 為提高獲利能力而採取的行動，包括最近調整成本結構、優化診所規模和擴大患者群體，正在推動調整後 EBITDA 的改善。

Full-risk lives grew by 19% year-on-year in the second quarter. As Village prioritizes density in their highest opportunity markets, they decided in January to exit a total of approximately 160 clinics inclusive of the 60 that had been previously communicated. As of today, they have already exited 140 locations. Manmohan will discuss in more detail our recent reevaluation of our investment in VillageMD.

第二季全風險壽險年增19%。由於 Village 優先考慮機會最大的市場的密度，因此他們在 1 月決定退出總共約 160 家診所，其中包括先前通報的 60 家診所。截至今天，他們已經退出了 140 個地點。 Manmohan 將更詳細地討論我們最近對 VillageMD 投資的重新評估。

Shifting to International. The business once again performed well, demonstrating strong and consistent execution highlighted by meaningful retail comp growth at Boots UK and a 12th successive quarter of market share gains.

轉向國際。該業務再次表現出色，展示了強大而一致的執行力，Boots UK 的零售業績顯著增長以及市場份額連續第 12 個季度增長。

Finally, let me offer further detail on the progress of our swift actions to rightsize the WBA cost structure and increase cash flow across the company. We have a very high degree of visibility into the $1 billion in cost savings this year as actions already taken to date will account for a significant majority of the total. We're driving savings primarily in our U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment in 3 ways: organizational initiatives, including support office workforce reductions, location optimization, and additional pharmacy and retail operating model improvements.

最後，讓我進一步詳細介紹我們為調整 WBA 成本結構和增加整個公司現金流而採取的迅速行動的進展。我們對今年 10 億美元的成本節省有非常高的了解，因為迄今為止已採取的行動將佔總數的絕大多數。我們主要透過 3 種方式推動美國零售藥局部門的節省：組織舉措，包括支援辦公室勞動力減少、位置優化以及額外的藥房和零售營運模式改進。

We are also working to improve cash flow by prioritizing projects and capital spend. In the first half, CapEx was $250 million lower than the prior year period. We are on track to deliver a $600 million reduction for the full year and $500 million in working capital benefits in fiscal 2024.

我們也致力於透過優先考慮項目和資本支出來改善現金流。上半年，資本支出比去年同期減少 2.5 億美元。我們預計在 2024 財年全年減少 6 億美元的資金，並減少 5 億美元的營運資金收益。

Next, I'd like to introduce Mary Langowski, to say a few words. She will then hand it over to Manmohan to review our financial results in further detail.

接下來我想介紹Mary Langowski，簡單說一下。然後她會將其交給曼莫漢，以進一步詳細審查我們的財務表現。

Thank you, Tim. Good morning, everyone. I'm excited to join you all today, and I'm thrilled to be a part of this iconic company. I've spent 25 years in the health care, government and retail sectors. My career is focused on leading teams to unlock new areas of growth, commercialize new products and health care services and accelerate execution through financial discipline.

謝謝你，提姆。大家，早安。我很高興今天能加入你們，也很高興能成為這家標誌性公司的一員。我在醫療保健、政府和零售業工作了 25 年。我的職業生涯專注於領導團隊開拓新的成長領域，將新產品和醫療保健服務商業化，並透過財務紀律加快執行速度。

I've been fortunate to have worked with some of the most successful Fortune 50 and health care growth companies that have sought to embrace and drive change to improve the health care system. At CVS Health, I led and executed a strategy to expand health care services, leveraging the company's core assets, including leading aspects of CVS' acquisition of Aetna.

我很幸運能夠與一些最成功的財富 50 強和醫療保健成長型公司合作，這些公司一直尋求擁抱和推動變革以改善醫療保健系統。在 CVS Health，我領導並執行了一項擴大醫療保健服務的策略，利用公司的核心資產，包括 CVS 收購 Aetna 的領先方面。

Most recently, I was CEO of Solera Health, a leading digital health technology company serving payers and employers, where I led a transformation of the business, launching new condition product lines, a new technology platform and a new economic model to support sustained growth.

最近，我擔任Solera Health 的首席執行官，這是一家為付款人和雇主提供服務的領先數位健康技術公司，我領導了業務轉型，推出了新條件產品線、新技術平台和新經濟模式，以支援持續增長。

My vantage point of working across providers, pharma, payers and retail has made one thing clear. Very few companies have the platform access and reach of Walgreens. Since the announcement, I have heard from health plans, health systems and others who see an opportunity to partner with Walgreens. They know the value of our community presence, the role our pharmacists can play and the need for higher touch, more frequent and lower-cost engagement to drive better health outcomes.

我在供應商、製藥公司、支付者和零售領域工作的優勢清楚地表明了一件事。很少有公司擁有沃爾格林的平台存取權和影響力。自從宣布這一消息以來，我收到了健康計劃、衛生系統和其他人的來信，他們認為有機會與沃爾格林合作。他們知道我們社區存在的價值，我們的藥劑師可以發揮的作用，以及需要更高的接觸、更頻繁和更低成本的參與來推動更好的健康結果。

Health care is changing and consumer expectations are changing. In the face of that, we believe Walgreens is still the best position to be the most convenient entry point into the health care system. And our position as an independent partner able to work with any health plan or PBM is a true strength that we will capitalize on.

醫療保健正在發生變化，消費者的期望也在改變。面對這種情況，我們相信沃爾格林仍然是進入醫療保健系統最方便的切入點的最佳位置。作為能夠與任何健康計劃或 PBM 合作的獨立合作夥伴，我們的地位是我們將利用的真正優勢。

Finally, I want to congratulate the team on achieving positive adjusted EBITDA in U.S. Healthcare this quarter. It's a significant milestone, and we will continue to build on this progress to drive value for our shareholders, customers and patients. Thanks to Tim and the Board for this opportunity.

最後，我要祝賀團隊本季在美國醫療保健領域實現正調整 EBITDA。這是一個重要的里程碑，我們將繼續在此基礎上繼續努力，為我們的股東、客戶和患者創造價值。感謝蒂姆和董事會提供的這個機會。

I'll now turn it to Manmohan.

現在我將把它交給曼莫漢。

Thank you, Mary, and good morning, everyone. Overall, second quarter operational results were in line with our expectations. Sales grew 5.7% on a constant currency basis. U.S. Retail Pharmacy increased 4.7%, International was up 3.2% and U.S. Healthcare delivered pro forma sales growth of 14%.

謝謝你，瑪麗，大家早安。整體而言，第二季經營業績符合我們的預期。以固定匯率計算，銷售額成長 5.7%。美國零售藥局成長 4.7%，國際成長 3.2%，美國醫療保健預計銷售額將成長 14%。

Adjusted EPS of $1.20 increased year-over-year by 2.8% on a constant currency basis, reflecting improved profitability in our U.S. Healthcare segment, impact of cost savings, and a lower adjusted effective tax rate, offset by the lower U.S. retail performance and lower sale leaseback gains. The lower adjusted effective tax rate reflects the initial recognition of a deferred tax asset in certain international jurisdictions.

以固定匯率計算，調整後每股收益為 1.20 美元，年增 2.8%，反映出我們美國醫療保健部門盈利能力的提高、成本節約的影響以及調整後有效稅率的降低，但被美國零售業績下降和銷售回租收益。較低的調整後有效稅率反映了某些國際司法管轄區對遞延稅資產的初步確認。

GAAP net loss for the second quarter included a $5.8 billion noncash impairment charge related to Village MD goodwill. During the fourth quarter of fiscal '23, we disclosed that our annual goodwill impairment test for our Village MD reporting unit resulted in its fair value exceeding its carrying value by a narrow margin. As a result, we have been closely monitoring the performance of the business for potential indicators of impairment.

第二季 GAAP 淨虧損包括與 Village MD 商譽相關的 58 億美元非現金減損費用。在 23 財年第四季度，我們揭露，我們對 Village MD 報告單位的年度商譽減損測試導致其公允價值小幅超出其帳面價值。因此，我們一直在密切監視該業務的業績是否有潛在的減損跡象。

In February, we received a downward revised longer-term forecast from Village MD management, including the impact of closing approximately 160 clinics, inclusive of the 60 previously communicated slower-than-expected trends in patient panel growth and multi-specialty productivity and recent changes in Medicare reimbursement models. These impacts were partly offset by actions taken in an attempt to rightsize the cost structure.

2 月份，我們收到了 Village MD 管理層向下修正的長期預測，包括關閉約 160 家診所的影響，其中包括之前通報的 60 家患者群體增長和多專業生產力低於預期的趨勢以及最近的變化醫療保險報銷模式。這些影響被為調整成本結構而採取的行動部分抵銷了。

Given this revised forecast, we performed an interim test of VillageMD reporting unit goodwill that resulted in a fair value below its carrying value. Accordingly, we recognized a $12.4 billion noncash goodwill impairment charge prior to the attribution of loss to noncontrolling interests. On an after-tax basis and net of 47% noncontrolling interest, this resulted in a net loss of $5.8 billion in the quarter. And this charge is excluded from non-GAAP earnings measures.

鑑於此修訂後的預測，我們對 VillageMD 報告單位商譽進行了中期測試，結果公允價值低於其帳面價值。因此，我們在將損失歸因於非控制權益之前確認了 124 億美元的非現金商譽減損費用。以稅後計算，扣除 47% 的非控制權益，這導致本季淨虧損 58 億美元。這筆費用不包括在非公認會計準則獲利指標中。

The fair value of the business was determined using a combination of the income and market approaches. The impairment charge is due to the lower than previously expected longer-term financial performance expectations, challenged market multiples for Village MD's peer group, which have continued to decline and increased discount rates.

該業務的公允價值是採用收入法和市場法相結合的方式確定的。減損費用是由於長期財務表現預期低於先前的預期、Village MD 同業集團的市場倍數受到挑戰（市場倍數持續下降）以及折現率上升。

As a reminder, our share of VillageMD's net assets carrying value also included a $2 billion gain recognized on the equity interest owned by the company immediately prior to the acquisition of majority equity interest in Village MD during the first quarter of fiscal '22. This goodwill write-off is noncash, and we do not believe it will have a significant impact on our financial position or our ability to invest across businesses going forward.

提醒一下，我們在 VillageMD 淨資產帳面價值中所佔的份額還包括在 22 財年第一季度收購 Village MD 多數股權之前該公司所擁有的股權確認的 20 億美元收益。這種商譽沖銷是非現金的，我們認為這不會對我們的財務狀況或我們未來跨業務投資的能力產生重大影響。

During the first half of fiscal '24, we have seen positive financial impacts from the recent actions taken by Village MD management team to accelerate profitability. We believe the focused approach on improving performance in core markets as well as rightsizing the cost structure will provide VillageMD a platform for future growth. The second quarter also included a $455 million noncash impairment charge related to certain long-lived assets in the U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment.

在 24 財年上半年，我們看到 Village MD 管理團隊最近為加速獲利而採取的行動產生了積極的財務影響。我們相信，專注於提高核心市場績效以及調整成本結構的方法將為 VillageMD 提供一個未來成長的平台。第二季還包括與美國零售藥局部門某些長期資產相關的 4.55 億美元非現金減損費用。

As part of a deep-dive exercise over the last several months, we concluded during the quarter that instead of continuing to build a new technology platform for pharmacy operations in the U.S., it would be better to modernize our existing system over time with new capabilities in an agile and capital-efficient manner with much lower disruption risk. As a result, we recognized the charge against the underlying software and development assets.

作為過去幾個月深入研究的一部分，我們在本季度得出的結論是，與其繼續為美國的製藥業務建立新技術平台，不如隨著時間的推移透過新功能對我們現有的系統進行現代化改造。以敏捷且資本高效的方式，同時降低中斷風險。因此，我們確認了針對基礎軟體和開發資產的費用。

Finally, similar to last quarter, we recognized a $474 million gain on the sale of Cencora shares, partly offset by a $396 million after-tax noncash charge for fair value adjustments on variable prepaid forward derivatives related to Cencora shares.

最後，與上季類似，我們確認了出售 Cencora 股票的 4.74 億美元收益，部分被 Cencora 股票相關的可變預付遠期衍生性商品公允價值調整的 3.96 億美元稅後非現金費用所抵銷。

Now let's move on to the first half highlights. Sales increased 7.2% on a constant currency basis. Adjusted EPS declined 20.5% on a constant currency basis due to softer U.S. retail performance and lower sale leaseback gains, partly offset by improved profitability in U.S. Healthcare and a lower adjusted effective tax rate.

現在讓我們繼續回顧上半場的精彩時刻。以固定匯率計算，銷售額成長 7.2%。由於美國零售業績疲軟和售後回租收益下降，調整後每股收益按固定匯率計算下降了 20.5%，但美國醫療保健盈利能力提高和調整後有效稅率降低部分抵消了這一影響。

GAAP net loss was $6 billion compared to a loss of $3 billion in the first half of fiscal '23. As I explained earlier, the first half of fiscal '24 included certain noncash impairment charges. The prior year period included a $5.4 billion after-tax charge for opioid-related claims and lawsuits partly offset by a $1.4 billion after-tax gain on the sale of Cencora shares.

GAAP 淨虧損為 60 億美元，而 23 財年上半年的虧損為 30 億美元。正如我之前所解釋的，24 財年上半年包括某些非現金減損費用。上一年期間包括阿片類藥物相關索賠和訴訟產生的 54 億美元稅後費用，部分被出售 Cencora 股票獲得的 14 億美元稅後收益所抵消。

Now let me cover U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment. Note that all comparable figures are on a leap year adjusted basis for all segments. Sales grew 4.7% year-on-year driven by brand inflation in pharmacy prescription volume and a higher contribution from pharmacy services, which was partly offset by a 4.5% decline in the retail business.

現在讓我介紹一下美國零售藥局部門。請注意，所有細分市場的所有可比較數據均按閏年調整。由於藥房處方量的品牌膨脹和藥房服務的貢獻增加，銷售額同比增長 4.7%，但零售業務下降 ​​4.5% 部分抵消了這一增長。

AOI declined 29.5% versus the prior year quarter due to lower retail sales volume, elevated levels of shrink and lower sale leaseback gains, partially offset by continued progress on cost savings initiatives. Looking ahead, we are winding down the sale leaseback program, and we do not anticipate any material benefit going forward. Sale leaseback gains, net of incremental rent expense, were an approximately $125 million headwind to AOI in the quarter.

AOI 較上年同期下降 29.5%，原因是零售量下降、收縮程度加大以及售後回租收益下降，但成本節約舉措的持續進展部分抵消了這一影響。展望未來，我們將逐步結束售後回租計劃，預計未來不會帶來任何實質利益。扣除增量租金費用後，出售回租收益對 AOI 本季造成約 1.25 億美元的不利影響。

Let me now turn to U.S. pharmacy. Pharmacy comp sales increased 8.7%, mainly driven by brand inflation, volume growth and contribution from pharmacy services. Comp scripts grew 2.9%, excluding immunizations, in line with the overall prescription market. The ongoing impact of Medicaid redeterminations continued to negatively impact overall market growth.

現在讓我談談美國藥局。藥品銷售成長 8.7%，主要受到品牌擴張、銷售成長和藥品服務貢獻的推動。不包括免疫接種的處方藥成長了 2.9%，與整體處方藥市場一致。醫療補助重新確定的持續影響持續對整體市場成長產生負面影響。

Pharmacy Services performed better than expectations, driven by our vaccines portfolio. Pharmacy adjusted gross profit was down slightly versus the prior year quarter with margin negatively impacted by brand mix impacts and reimbursement pressure net of procurement savings.

在我們的疫苗產品組合的推動下，藥局服務的表現優於預期。藥局調整後的毛利與去年同期相比略有下降，利潤率受到品牌組合影響和扣除採購節省後的報銷壓力的負面影響。

Turning next to our U.S. Retail business. We continue to see a challenging retail environment with a shift in discretionary spend away from the drug channel as consumers seek value. Comparable retail sales declined 4.3% in the quarter.

接下來談談我們的美國零售業務。我們繼續看到充滿挑戰的零售環境，隨著消費者尋求價值，可自由支配的支出正在從藥品管道轉移。本季可比零售額下降 4.3%。

There were 3 main drivers. First, as consumers continue to pull back on discretionary spending, we saw an impact of approximately 170 basis points from weaker sales in holiday seasonal and general merchandise categories.

有 3 個主要驅動力。首先，隨著消費者繼續減少可自由支配支出，我們發現假期季節和一般商品類別的銷售疲軟帶來了約 170 個基點的影響。

Second, as expected, we saw a weaker than normal respiratory season, which directly impacted comparable sales by approximately 90 basis points. Third-party data showed flu, cold and respiratory activity was down 6% compared to the prior year quarter. In addition, as cough, cold, flu serves as a primary trip driver, there was also an incremental impact from the lower attachment sales.

其次，正如預期的那樣，我們看到了比正常情況弱的呼吸季節，這直接影響了可比較銷售額約 90 個基點。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 6%。此外，由於咳嗽、感冒、流感是主要的出行驅動因素，附件銷售的下降也產生了增量影響。

Lastly, weather conditions in January led to a headwind of approximately 40 basis points in the quarter. Retail gross margin declined year-on-year, impacted by higher shrink partly offset by benefits from category performance improvement program.

最後，一月份的天氣狀況導致本季出現約 40 個基點的逆風。零售毛利率年減，這是受到較高收縮的影響，但部分被品類績效改善計畫的收益所抵銷。

Turning next to the International segment. And as always, I will talk in constant currency numbers. The International segment again exceeded our expectations in the quarter. Total sales grew 3.2% with Boots UK increasing 3% and Germany wholesale up 5.3%. Segment adjusted gross profit increased by 3.2%. Adjusted operating income was down 32%, entirely due to lapping the real estate gains in the year ago period with underlying growth offsetting inflationary 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。本季國際業務再次超出了我們的預期。總銷售額成長 3.2%，其中 Boots 英國成長 3%，德國批發成長 5.3%。部門調整後毛利成長3.2%。調整後營業收入下降 32%，完全是由於去年同期房地產收益的增長以及潛在增長抵消了通膨壓力。

Let's now cover Boots UK in detail. Comp pharmacy sales were up 1.7%. Comp retail sales increased 5.9% and with all categories showing growth, led by beauty and personal care. Across formats, destination health and beauty, flagship and travel locations performed particularly well. Boots.com sales increased 16.8% year-on-year and represented over 17% of our U.K. retail sales.

現在讓我們詳細介紹一下 Boots UK。藥局銷售額成長 1.7%。比較零售額成長 5.9%，所有類別均呈現成長，其中以美容和個人護理類別為首。在各個業態中，目的地健康與美容、旗艦店和旅遊地點表現尤其出色。 Boots.com 銷售額較去年同期成長 16.8%，占我們英國零售額的 17% 以上。

Turning next to U.S. Healthcare. The U.S. Healthcare segment delivered its first quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA. This was the third consecutive quarter of significant year-on-year improvement in adjusted EBITDA. Second quarter sales of $2.2 billion increased 33% compared to the prior year quarter, aided by the acquisition of Summit Health. On a pro forma basis, segment sales increased 14%. Village MD sales of $1.6 billion grew 20% on a pro forma basis. The year-on-year increase was driven by same clinic performance and growth in full-risk lives.

接下來轉向美國醫療保健。美國醫療保健部門第一季實現了正向調整 EBITDA。這是調整後 EBITDA 連續第三個季度同比顯著改善。由於收購 Summit Health，第二季銷售額為 22 億美元，較去年同期成長 33%。按預計，該部門銷售額增長了 14%。 Village MD 銷售額預計成長 20%，達 16 億美元。同比增長是由相同的診所表現和全風險生命的增長所推動的。

Shields sales were up 13% as new health system contracts and expansion of existing partnerships led to an over 40% increase in the number of patients on service in the quarter versus the prior year. Adjusted EBITDA was $17 million, an improvement of $127 million compared to last year, mainly driven by Village MD and Shields. We believe VillageMD continues to make progress to accelerate profitability by rightsizing its cost structure and growing its patient panel. Shields saw robust adjusted EBITDA growth compared to the prior year period.

Shields 銷售額增加了 13%，因為新的醫療系統合約和現有合作夥伴關係的擴展導致本季度接受服務的患者數量比上一年增加了 40% 以上。調整後 EBITDA 為 1,700 萬美元，比去年增加 1.27 億美元，主要由 Village MD 和 Shields 推動。我們相信，VillageMD 透過調整成本結構和擴大患者群體，繼續在加速獲利方面取得進展。與去年同期相比，希爾茲的調整後 EBITDA 成長強勁。

Turning next to cash flow. Operating cash flows in the first half of fiscal '24 was negatively impacted by roughly $700 million in payments related to legal matters, $380 million entity premium contributions related to Boots' pension plan and underlying seasonality. Capital expenditures declined by $250 million versus the first half of fiscal '23.

接下來轉向現金流。 24 財年上半年的營運現金流受到約 7 億美元與法律事務相關的付款、與 Boots 退休金計畫相關的 3.8 億美元實體保費繳款以及潛在季節性因素的負面影響。與 2023 財年上半年相比，資本支出減少了 2.5 億美元。

As a result, free cash flow was down by approximately $2 billion versus the prior year. We expect second half free cash flow improvement compared to the first half driven by several factors. First, we expect lower payments related to legal matters in the second half of fiscal '24. Second, we remain on track to reduce capital expenditure by approximately $600 million year-over-year.

因此，自由現金流比前一年減少了約 20 億美元。我們預計下半年自由現金流將較上半年改善，原因有很多。首先，我們預計 24 財年下半年與法律事務相關的付款將會減少。其次，我們仍有望年減約 6 億美元的資本支出。

Third, we expect to deliver working capital improvement of $500 million during fiscal '24. While we did see some benefit of these initiatives during the first half of '24, we expect the majority of these benefits will impact the second half. Lastly, similar to prior years, we believe the underlying working capital seasonality in the U.S. Retail Pharmacy and International segments will have a favorable impact on the second half of the year compared to the first half.

第三，我們預期在 2024 財年實現營運資本改善 5 億美元。雖然我們確實在 24 年上半年看到了這些措施的一些好處，但我們預計其中大部分好處將影響下半年。最後，與往年類似，我們認為美國零售藥局和國際業務的潛在營運資金季節性將對下半年產生比上半年有利的影響。

I will now turn to guidance. We are narrowing our fiscal '24 adjusted EPS guidance to $3.20 to $3.35. The updated range incorporates a challenging U.S. retail environment, lower sale leaseback gains and reduced Cencora equity income, offset by the execution in pharmacy services and a lower adjusted effective tax rate.

我現在轉向指導。我們將 24 財年調整後每股盈餘指引範圍縮小至 3.20 美元至 3.35 美元。更新後的範圍包括充滿挑戰的美國零售環境、較低的售後回租收益和減少的 Cencora 股權收入，但被製藥服務的執行和較低的調整後有效稅率所抵消。

On the tailwinds, we continue to see strong execution in our pharmacy services business, which has delivered results ahead of our initial plan to date. In addition, we now expect our adjusted effective tax rate to be under 5%.

順勢而為，我們繼續看到我們的藥房服務業務執行力強勁，迄今為止，該業務已經提前取得了成果。此外，我們現在預計調整後的有效稅率將低於 5%。

On the headwinds, we expect the challenging retail backdrop will continue to negatively impact our U.S. retail sales in the short term. We now expect fiscal '24 retail comp sales to be down approximately 3%. Second, with the early wind down of the sale-leaseback program, no material gains are expected in the future.

不利因素是，我們預計充滿挑戰的零售環境將在短期內繼續對我們的美國零售銷售產生負面影響。我們現在預計 24 財年零售公司銷售額將下降約 3%。其次，隨著售後回租計畫的提前結束，預計未來不會有實質收益。

Third, the block sale of Cencora shares in February will reduce equity earnings going forward. Lastly, as discussed with the first quarter results, we forecast slightly lower market growth in U.S. pharmacy business compared to our initial guidance.

第三，2 月 Cencora 股票的集體出售將減少未來的股權收益。最後，正如第一季業績所討論的那樣，我們預計美國製藥業務的市場成長將略低於我們最初的指引。

Importantly, based on the progress made in the U.S. Healthcare segment through the first half, 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.

重要的是，根據美國醫療保健領域上半年取得的進展，我們繼續預計該領域調整後的 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。

Next, I will provide additional details on the factors impacting earnings in the second half. In the second half, we will be lapping adjusted EPS of $1.66 in prior year period. We expect several key factors to impact the year-over-year comparison.

接下來，我將詳細介紹影響下半年獲利的因素。下半年，我們的調整後每股盈餘將達到去年同期 1.66 美元。我們預計有幾個關鍵因素會影響年比比較。

First, the wind down of the sale-leaseback program is expected to be a significant headwind in the second half. Second, we will lap incentive accruals reduction in the third and fourth quarter of fiscal '23.

首先，售後回租計畫的結束預計將成為下半年的重大阻力。其次，我們將在 23 財年第三季和第四季減少應計獎勵。

Third, our updated guidance implies a higher tax rate over the remainder of the year. The U.S. Healthcare segment remains on track to achieve $165 million of year-over-year adjusted EBITDA improvement in the second half based on the midpoint of the guidance range. And finally, within our U.S. Retail Pharmacy business, we expect year-on-year improvement in the second half driven by cost savings initiatives.

第三，我們更新的指導意味著今年剩餘時間的稅率更高。根據指引範圍的中位數，美國醫療保健部門下半年仍有望實現 1.65 億美元的調整後 EBITDA 年比改善。最後，在我們的美國零售藥局業務中，我們預計在成本節約措施的推動下，下半年將出現年比改善。

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 wrap up, we have hard work ahead of us in our journey to simplify and strengthen WBA, but we are encouraged by our progress. This team has a clear mandate to act with everything on the table to put our business on the right track. We are well positioned to drive capital-efficient growth rooted in our retail pharmacy footprint and build out an asset-light health services strategy to deliver care for communities and create value for partners.

總而言之，在簡化和加強 WBA 的道路上，我們面臨著艱鉅的任務，但我們對我們的進步感到鼓舞。團隊有明確的授權，要採取一切行動，使我們的業務走上正軌。我們處於有利地位，能夠推動根植於零售藥房足跡的資本效率成長，並制定輕資產健康服務策略，為社區提供護理並為合作夥伴創造價值。

We've kicked off our strategic planning work. Over the next 3 to 6 months, this team is undergoing an in-depth analysis to determine the actions necessary to achieve what we believe will be the optimal portfolio with a focus on maximizing growth potential and generating cash flow. We are reviewing every business through a longer-term lens focused on strategic fit, synergy potential, financial upside and new or complementary capabilities.

我們已經開始了策略規劃工作。在接下來的 3 到 6 個月內，團隊正在進行深入分析，以確定實現我們認為的最佳投資組合所需的行動，重點是最大化成長潛力並產生現金流。我們正在從長期角度審視每項業務，重點關注策略契合度、協同潛力、財務優勢以及新的或互補的能力。

We are taking a thoughtful approach fueled by a sense of urgency to finding opportunities to unlock value or validate existing pathways. In my 5 months with WBA, I have been most impressed with our 330,000 team members' commitment to our company. In my experience, it's very hard to get that. That pride is foundational to our future growth, ability to consistently execute and create sustainable long-term shareholder value. That dedication also gives me and our team great confidence in our future.

在緊迫感的推動下，我們正在採取深思熟慮的方法，尋找釋放價值或驗證現有途徑的機會。在 WBA 的 5 個月裡，讓我印象最深刻的是我們 33 萬名團隊成員對公司的承諾。根據我的經驗，很難做到這一點。這種自豪感是我們未來發展、持續執行和創造可持續長期股東價值的能力的基礎。這種奉獻精神也讓我和我們的團隊對我們的未來充滿信心。

Now I would like to open the line for questions. Operator?

現在我想開通提問專線。操作員？

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from Lisa Gill with JPMorgan.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自摩根大通的 Lisa Gill。

I have a multipart question. I just really want to start with your comments where you talked about boosting profit and growth. You talked about new reimbursement models. You talked about provider status. So you talked about a lot of different things that you think can come into play. Can you maybe just talk about your line of sight and timing to get there? Would be the first part.

我有一個由多個部分組成的問題。我真的很想從您談到提高利潤和成長的評論開始。您談到了新的報銷模式。您談到了提供者狀態。所以你談到了很多你認為可以發揮作用的不同事情。您能談談您的視線和到達那裡的時間嗎？將是第一部分。

And then secondly, I want to say welcome to Mary. Mary, as we think about the profitability and we think about capitation and the commitment of Village in the capitated markets, the comments were made today around the number of closings now, 140 locations closed. Can you maybe just talk about what you see as the future of capitation?

其次，我想對瑪麗表示歡迎。瑪麗，當我們考慮盈利能力，考慮按人頭付費以及 Village 在按人頭付費市場的承諾時，今天的評論是圍繞目前關閉的數量進行的，關閉了 140 個地點。您能否談談您對按人頭付費的未來的看法？

And then putting that all together, I just really want to understand how to think about the progression going into '25. Tim, I know you have a big strategic review coming. I know you're not ready to give guidance on '25. But are there kind of some building blocks to think about when we think about the progression of the back half of '24 going into '25?

然後把所有這些放在一起，我真的很想了解如何思考進入 25 年後的進展。提姆，我知道您即將進行重大策略審查。我知道你還沒準備好在 '25 上提供指導。但是，當我們考慮 24 年後半段進入 25 的進展時，是否有一些建造模組需要考慮？

Thanks, Lisa. A lot there. So I'll take the first part and probably have Rick Gates add a little color. We'll have Mary take your few questions, then Manmohan go ahead and talk about the back half of the year into '25.

謝謝，麗莎。那裡有很多。所以我會選擇第一部分，並可能讓瑞克蓋茲添加一點色彩。我們將讓瑪麗回答你的幾個問題，然後曼莫漢繼續談論 25 年下半年的情況。

In terms of new reimbursement models, growth, et cetera, et cetera. Clearly, as we said I think last quarter, we're now just coming into the '25 conversations that are more structured with payers, particularly PBMs as it relates to reimbursement.

在新的報銷模式、成長等方面。顯然，正如我們上季度所說，我們現在剛剛進入 25 年與付款人（尤其是與報銷相關的 PBM）進行更結構化的對話。

And what I would say, which is what I've said in my prepared remarks as well, is we are having very constructive conversations as well as ad hoc conversations with certain payers which continue to lead me to believe and our team to have confidence that there are multiple ways for us to create value for payers and that the pressures on reimbursement -- that there's a clear acknowledgment, let me say it that way, that just playing the way we've been playing for the last 25 years is not going to work.

我想說的是，這也是我在準備好的發言中所說的，我們正在與某些付款人進行非常有建設性的對話以及臨時對話，這繼續讓我相信，我們的團隊有信心我們有多種方式為付款人創造價值，而且還面臨著報銷壓力——我們明確承認，讓我這麼說吧，僅僅按照我們過去25 年的方式進行比賽是行不通的。上班。

And I think everyone acknowledges that in the conversation of how we help the PBMs win in their marketplaces with this drive to higher transparency, more member friendliness and so forth, really actually aligns us quite well in those conversations. I don't know, Rick, if you want to take -- add any color to those conversations, your team is obviously very close to them.

我認為每個人都承認，在我們如何幫助 PBM 在其市場中獲勝的對話中，我們致力於提高透明度、提高會員友好度等，這實際上使我們在這些對話中保持了良好的一致性。我不知道，里克，如果你想為這些對話添加任何色彩，你的團隊顯然與他們非常接近。

Yes. Lisa, this is Rick. And I'll just add, we are just in earnest starting up the calendar year '25 negotiations. But I will say you also talked about some of the expanded services. We have gotten traction not only on our adherence based programs and our performance against those to continue to get more adherence based contracts going forward. Vaccines have been a very strong part of what we're doing.

是的。麗莎，這是瑞克。我想補充一點，我們正在認真啟動 25 年的談判。但我想說你也談到了一些擴展的服務。我們不僅在基於遵守的計劃以及我們的績效方面獲得了關注，以繼續獲得更多基於遵守的合約。疫苗一直是我們所做工作的重要部分。

But we're working very closely in the selling cycle right now when it comes to testing, test and treat as we expand those opportunities across the country as well, and that's a state-by-state really process that we're going through until there's a federal provider status, which Tim talked about in his remarks.

但我們現在在銷售週期中非常密切地合作，在測試、測試和治療方面，我們也在全國範圍內擴大這些機會，這是我們正在經歷的一個逐州的真正過程，直到蒂姆在講話中談到了聯邦提供者身分。

And then -- and thanks, Rick. So bottom line, Lisa, in this area, we're realistic. We know that the longer-term structural changes that are very likely to occur will take multiple years, and we're prepared -- we're also working with our distributor to reconfigure the way that we work with them to ensure that we are, again, making sure that the value that flows to us as well as through us is what it should be.

然後——謝謝，里克。所以，麗莎，最重要的是，在這個領域，我們是現實的。我們知道，很可能發生的長期結構性變化將需要多年的時間，我們已經做好了準備——我們還在與我們的經銷商合作，重新配置我們與他們合作的方式，以確保我們，再次，確保流向我們以及透過我們流動的價值是應有的。

Mary, I'll let you just briefly comment on Lisa's second question.

瑪麗，我讓你簡單評論麗莎的第二個問題。

Thanks, Lisa. I'll just say -- reiterate what I said in my opening remarks, that payers and health systems are approaching us and are very interested in working with Walgreens to help them drive MedEx savings. We've got unmatched assets in the marketplace given our reach with consumers, and that's something that a lot of the traditional players in the health system don't have. So we'll be working with them and having conversations in the coming months.

謝謝，麗莎。我只想說——重申我在開場白中所說的話，即付款人和衛生系統正在與我們聯繫，並且非常有興趣與沃爾格林合作，幫助他們節省 MedEx 費用。鑑於我們對消費者的影響力，我們在市場上擁有無與倫比的資產，而這是醫療系統中許多傳統參與者所沒有的。因此，我們將在未來幾個月與他們合作並進行對話。

We had some of those underway. I expect them to accelerate meaningfully with Mary's arrival. And by the way, this is an appropriate time for me to also thank John Driscoll. In my prepared remarks, I did not do that. And of course, John actually helped me find and recruit Mary. John did a lot of terrific work during his time here at WBA. I look forward to continuing to work with him in a different role as an adviser through the end of the year. So thank you to John.

我們正在進行其中一些工作。我希望隨著瑪麗的到來，他們會顯著加速。順便說一句，現在也是我感謝約翰·德里斯科爾的時候。在我準備好的發言中，我沒有這樣做。當然，約翰實際上幫助我找到並招募了瑪麗。約翰在 WBA 期間做了很多出色的工作。我期待在今年年底繼續以顧問的不同角色與他合作。所以謝謝約翰。

And then finally, Manmohan, I'm sure Lisa is not the only one with the question as it relates to the second half. And so you take that.

最後，曼莫漢，我確信麗莎不是唯一一個提出這個問題的人，因為它與下半場有關。所以你就接受吧。

Sure, Tim. So Lisa, this is Manmohan. As you think about the building blocks for '25, let me start by saying, we're not providing FY '25 guidance on this call. As you heard in Tim's prepared remarks, we are working through a strategic review with the executive team in place now and a detailed 3-year plan. And so we will share that input over the next 3 to 6 months.

當然，提姆。麗莎，這是曼莫漢。當您思考 25 財年的建造模組時，我首先要說的是，我們不會就此電話會議提供 25 財年的指導。正如您在蒂姆準備好的演講中聽到的那樣，我們正在與現已就位的執行團隊進行戰略審查，並製定詳細的三年計劃。因此，我們將在接下來的 3 到 6 個月內分享這些意見。

But let me share some themes as you think about the second half and as you think about '25. In terms of second half, a couple of things to point out that I think are obvious and you understand. One is we do not expect any meaningful contributions from sale leaseback in the second half. And so it's pretty clean in terms of not including any sale leaseback gains from that perspective.

但是，讓我分享一些當你思考下半年和 25 世紀時的主題。就下半場而言，有幾件事需要指出，我認為是顯而易見的，你也明白。一是我們預計下半年售後回租不會產生任何有意義的貢獻。因此，從這個角度來看，不包括任何售後回租收益，這是相當乾淨的。

And second is the lower adjusted effective tax rate, the timing of that played out for us in the second quarter. And so we do expect a much more normalized tax rate in the second half. Now as you think about bridging into '25, a couple of things to consider.

其次是調整後的有效稅率較低，這點發生在第二季。因此，我們確實預計下半年稅率將更加正常化。現在，當您考慮過渡到 25 世紀時，有幾件事需要考慮。

First, U.S. Healthcare growth, you see that we're maintaining our guidance on adjusted EBITDA which is at the midpoint of the range, $375 million increase year-over-year in fiscal '24. And so we do see, as we look ahead into '25, we do see growth continuing in healthcare.

首先，美國醫療保健成長，您會發現我們維持對調整後 EBITDA 的指導，該指引處於範圍的中點，24 財年同比增長 3.75 億美元。因此，我們確實看到，當我們展望 25 年時，我們確實看到醫療保健領域持續成長。

Village, we expect to continue to drive growth as they focus on the core markets as well as continue on their cost actions that they are going through this year. So that's one part. Shields obviously continues to grow throughout the year, and we do expect them to continue to grow into fiscal '25.

Village，我們預計將繼續推動成長，因為他們專注於核心市場，並繼續實施今年正在採取的成本行動。這就是一部分。 Shields 顯然全年都在持續成長，我們確實預計它們將在 25 財年繼續成長。

Second, cost savings, the actions we have taken in the first half will have a ramp-up effect in the second half. We're not done yet. We continue to make decisions to rightsize our cost structure here at WBA. And so we do expect a wraparound effect of that into fiscal '25.

第二，節省成本，上半年我們採取的行動，下半年會起到推波助瀾的作用。我們還沒完成。我們持續做出調整 WBA 成本結構的決策。因此，我們確實預計這將在 25 財年產生全面影響。

Third, retail business in the U.S., as I shared in my prepared remarks, we have seen headwinds persisting for longer than expected in the U.S. retail environment. And we have lowered our expectation for the second half or for the full year fiscal '24 to a negative 3% comp.

第三，美國的零售業務，正如我在準備好的演講中所分享的那樣，我們看到美國零售環境中的逆風持續的時間比預期的要長。我們已將下半年或 24 財年全年的預期下調至負 3%。

Now within that, we do expect slight improvement over time in the second half as the actions that Tracey and the team are taking will take hold and will drive certain level of improvement. So you have to think about what that is going to be into '25.

現在，我們確實預計下半年會略有改善，因為特雷西和團隊正在採取的行動將會發揮作用，並將推動一定程度的改進。所以你必須考慮 25 年後會發生什麼。

And then maybe the last piece on this is our business does have some seasonality. And so pharmacy services business, which has really performed strong throughout the first half, that does generate significantly higher contributions in the first half compared to the second half of the year.

也許最後一點是我們的業務確實有一些季節性。因此，上半年表現強勁的醫藥服務業務，與下半年相比，上半年的貢獻確實明顯較高。

Cough, cold, flu season does have both impact on our pharmacy business in the U.S. as well as on the retail business in the U.S. and the timing of that on a more normalized basis does play out more in the first half than in the second half. And lastly, just on the seasonality piece, another example is Boots, which does have higher contributions in holiday seasons in the first half. So you got to factor those. I just want to make sure you have those themes.

咳嗽、感冒、流感季節確實對我們在美國的藥房業務以及美國的零售業務都有影響，而且在更加正常化的基礎上，上半年的影響確實比下半年更大。最後，就季節性而言，另一個例子是 Boots，它在上半年的假期季節確實有較高的貢獻。所以你必須考慮這些因素。我只是想確保你有這些主題。

Our next question comes from Charles Rhyee with TD Cowen.

我們的下一個問題來自 Charles Rhyee 和 TD Cowen。

I wanted to drill down a little bit more on the retail segment, U.S. retail here. Tim, you talked about a number of things, right, trying to increase own brand, realign around a number of national brands as well. Maybe can you talk about how quickly some of those can be implemented here, particularly as you think about realigning around fewer national brands, like how long would that process take?

我想更深入地了解零售領域，即美國零售業。提姆，你談到了很多事情，對吧，試圖增加自己的品牌，並圍繞一些民族品牌進行重組。也許你能談談其中一些措施在這裡實施的速度有多快，特別是當你考慮圍繞更少的國家品牌進行重新調整時，例如這個過程需要多長時間？

And then you mentioned that vaccines has been leading in the pharmacy services part of the business. Is there any way you can give us a sense on when we look at U.S. retail AOI maybe not quantitatively, but qualitatively to a sense of how you would split the contribution between, let's say, pharma services, traditional front end and pharmacy?

然後您提到疫苗在製藥服務業務中一直處於領先地位。當我們審視美國零售 AOI 時，您是否可以透過某種方式讓我們了解，也許不是定量地，而是定性地了解如何在製藥服務、傳統前端和藥房之間分配貢獻？

Thanks, Charles. To your second question, we're not prepared today to break that out. Obviously, we build from that. And I think over time, we're going to be looking to give you incremental visibility to key operating metrics that would help you model some of that out. What I can tell you is the vaccine and test and treat and so forth portfolio is very meaningful in terms of our overall back of the store reimbursements and our growth.

謝謝，查爾斯。關於你的第二個問題，我們今天不准備對此進行澄清。顯然，我們以此為基礎進行建構。我認為隨著時間的推移，我們將尋求為您提供關鍵營運指標的增量可見性，這將幫助您對其中一些指標進行建模。我可以告訴你的是，疫苗、測試和治療等產品組合對於我們的整體後台報銷和成長非常有意義。

If you think about it, it's actually quite amazing, 5 to 10 years ago and let's go 10 years ago, pharma had pretty much abandoned vaccines on a large-scale basis. A lot of the companies had moved away. There was not a strong, strong incremental demand. Today, we see it as one of the key areas of innovation inside pharma companies.

如果你仔細想想，這其實是相當驚人的，5到10年前，我們10年前，製藥公司幾乎已經大規模放棄了疫苗。很多公司都搬走了。沒有非常非常強勁的增量需求。如今，我們將其視為製藥公司內部創新的關鍵領域之一。

And the exciting part for us that is underappreciated is that in every case, those companies look to their core ability to get to patients as being able to leverage what we do at Walgreens and what our industry does. And we have a unique position in that the conversations I have with the CEOs of major pharma companies that are driving these innovations suggest to me that, that model where we're paid fairly for the work that we do at the back of the store is a model that the future not only needs, but it's going to reward our shareholders.

對我們來說，令人興奮但未被充分認識的部分是，在每種情況下，這些公司都將其吸引患者的核心能力視為能夠利用我們在沃爾格林所做的事情以及我們行業所做的事情。我們擁有獨特的地位，我與推動這些創新的主要製藥公司的首席執行官的對話表明，我們為商店後面所做的工作獲得公平報酬的模式是未來不僅需要這種模式，而且還將回報我們的股東。

As it relates to U.S. retail, I'll turn it over to Tracey other than to say -- that is one of a number of key areas for us, the idea of SKU rationalization alongside of growing private label. I think you've got to look at both of those things, and we are moving rapidly on a lot of things.

由於它與美國零售業相關，我將把它交給 Tracey，而不是說——這是我們的許多關鍵領域之一，SKU 合理化的想法以及不斷增長的自有品牌。我認為你必須考慮這兩件事，而且我們在很多事情上都在迅速進展。

We announced last week a change in store manager compensation for 2024. Initially, that was thought it needed until '25 to get it right, and we found a way to get it done now so that we could unleash the energy of our key field-based leadership in our stores. And so what I've seen is our ability -- and we saw it during COVID, our ability to execute quickly when we've got a goal, when we've got a clear ability to create value is something that I've actually been pleasantly surprised by since I've joined the company.

我們上週宣布了 2024 年商店經理薪酬的變化。最初，我們認為需要到 25 年才能實現這一目標，我們現在找到了一種方法來完成它，以便我們可以釋放我們關鍵領域的能量 -我們商店的領導地位。所以我看到的是我們的能力——我們在新冠疫情期間看到了，當我們有一個目標，當我們有明確的創造價值的能力時，我們快速執行的能力是我實際上已經看到的自從我加入公司以來，我感到很驚喜。

And Tracy has been leading the -- along with -- I've terrorized a few national brands myself in a few meetings lately, in terms of saying that we're looking for partners, and we aren't going to be a partner to everybody. We want somebody that is going to be everything to us rather than something for everyone.

特雷西一直在領導——和——我自己在最近的幾次會議上恐嚇了一些全國性品牌，說我們正在尋找合作夥伴，但我們不會成為他們的合作夥伴。大家。我們想要一個能夠成為我們一切的人，而不是適合每個人的東西。

So with that, Tracey, do you want to give a little color on the whole national brand strategy?

那麼，Tracey，您想為整個國家品牌策略增添一些色彩嗎？

Yes. Good morning, Charles. Yes. So as it relates to our own brand expansion, as Tim has indicated, we have been accelerating this at a rapid pace. And if you've been tracking, our own brand penetration has been growing quite nicely.

是的。早上好，查爾斯。是的。因此，正如蒂姆所指出的，這與我們自己的品牌擴張有關，我們一直在快速加速這一進程。如果您一直在跟踪，我們自己的品牌滲透率一直在增長得相當不錯。

To your question around how quickly, there are some things that we can do very quickly. One of those, again, Tim mentioned around embracing and incentivizing our frontline team members to really showcase their own brand products and what is important to the consumers in their market.

對於你關於多快的問題，有些事情我們可以很快完成。其中之一，蒂姆再次提到了擁抱和激勵我們的一線團隊成員真正展示自己的品牌產品以及對市場中的消費者重要的東西。

The second is, in terms of store reach and shelf depth, we can move on those quite quickly. And then the third area is around new product innovation. And this is the part that actually takes a little bit longer. But just to give you a little bit of color, we launched 37 new products in Q2.

第二個是，就商店範圍和貨架深度而言，我們可以很快地推進這些工作。第三個領域是新產品創新。這部分實際上需要更長的時間。但為了帶給大家一點色彩，我們在第二季推出了 37 款新產品。

And what this means for us is as the consumers' behavior continue to focus on looking at value and finding own brand and being willing to lean into own brand, this is working out quite nicely for us. We are feeling quite good about the level of depth that we can go with own brands.

這對我們來說意味著，隨著消費者的行為繼續專注於價值、尋找自有品牌並願意依賴自有品牌，這對我們來說效果很好。我們對自有品牌的深度水平感覺非常好。

Our next question comes from Eric Percher with Nephron Research.

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

I appreciate the commentary on pharmacy services and reimbursement model. So a follow-up for Tim and Rick. It's interesting to hear you call out looking beyond payer and PBM to the manufacturers and this core ability to get to patients. I'd love to get your updated view on LillyDirect. And if the goal is to expand access, does it make sense to include retail, do you view it possible to have direct relationships given PBM contracts? Any perspective there would be appreciated.

我很欣賞對藥房服務和報銷模式的評論。這是提姆和里克的後續行動。聽到您呼籲超越付款人和 PBM ，關注製造商以及這種接觸患者的核心能力，這很有趣。我很想了解您對 LillyDirect 的最新看法。如果目標是擴大准入範圍，那麼將零售納入其中是否有意義？您認為根據 PBM 合約是否有可能建立直接關係？任何觀點將不勝感激。

Sure. Thanks. I'll start and turn it over to Rick. First of all, I would prefer that Dave and the Lilly team talk about their strategy. But that being said, first of all, I'd point out we have a direct relationship with literally every American. And it may not be in their funded benefit in all cases, but they come into our stores for a lot of other things.

當然。謝謝。我會開始並把它交給里克。首先，我希望戴夫和禮來團隊談論他們的策略。但話雖這麼說，首先我要指出的是，我們幾乎與每個美國人都有直接的關係。這可能並非在所有情況下都符合他們的資助利益，但他們進入我們的商店還有很多其他目的。

And so I love where we start when it comes to looking at programs where pharma companies may want to go direct to patients for a particular product where the normal supply chain reimbursement model, et cetera, isn't working effectively. I think if you look at the GLP-1s, for example, the adherence on those drugs over a reasonable periods of time is not what I believe anybody would hope for. Not the patients, not the payers to the extent that that's a paid-for product and certainly not the innovators.

因此，我喜歡我們在研究專案時從哪裡開始，在這些專案中，製藥公司可能希望直接向患者提供特定產品，而正常的供應鏈報銷模式等無法有效發揮作用。例如，我認為如果你看看 GLP-1，我相信沒有人會希望在合理的時間內堅持使用這些藥物。不是病人，不是付費產品的付款人，當然也不是創新者。

And so we are uniquely positioned to be a partner. It's one thing to have a distribution partner. It's another thing to have a clinically aligned partner that can actually help a patient work their way through safely because I believe the companies that made these products also want to ensure that they retain a high safety profile. Otherwise, there will be other issues downstream, which are not what anybody would want.

因此，我們擁有獨特的優勢，能夠成為合作夥伴。擁有經銷合作夥伴是一回事。擁有一個臨床上一致的合作夥伴實際上可以幫助病人安全地度過難關是另一回事，因為我相信製造這些產品的公司也希望確保它們保持高安全性。否則，下游還會出現其他問題，這不是任何人想要的。

So we think we are a natural partner for those things. And Rick, I'll let you add any color there, but -- from our perspective, again, our ability to work on a product basis, direct with pharma is unencumbered by any of our other relationships. Rick?

所以我們認為我們是這些事情的天然合作夥伴。里克，我會讓你在那裡添加任何顏色，但是 - 從我們的角度來看，我們在產品基礎上直接與製藥公司合作的能力不受我們任何其他關係的阻礙。瑞克？

Yes. The only thing I'd add is you said we have relationships with every consumer who walks into our store, we have a relationship with every pharma company. And I think what they see with us is that we are a natural partner. We roll up our sleeves. We help them solve what they're really trying to solve for.

是的。我唯一要補充的是，你說我們與每一位走進我們商店的消費者都有關係，我們與每家製藥公司都有關係。我認為他們認為我們是天然的合作夥伴。我們捲起袖子。我們幫助他們解決他們真正想要解決的問題。

And I think that's a natural place for us to fit because we are an independent provider. If you think about it that way, we don't have any other assets vertically integrated. And so I think we're a natural partner for them. And I think they see us as a willing partner to help them really drive programs in the market.

我認為這對我們來說是一個自然的選擇，因為我們是一家獨立的提供者。如果你這樣想的話，我們沒有其他垂直整合的資產。所以我認為我們是他們天然的合作夥伴。我認為他們將我們視為願意幫助他們真正推動市場項目的合作夥伴。

Was this what drove the comment on your distributor relationship profile changing?

這是否導致對您的經銷商關係概況的評論發生變化？

No, really nothing to add. I mean we've had a long-standing relationship with Cencora. I did prior in another life. And that relationship has always got to be organic and dynamic because the market changes.

不，真的沒什麼好補充的。我的意思是我們與 Cencora 有著長期的合作關係。我以前在另一世做過。由於市場不斷變化，這種關係必須始終是有機的、動態的。

And while a long-term relationship is a great context into which to operate, it's important that as well, we sit down as we do with Cencora and look at not only where is it working, but where might it work a bit better, and more importantly, over the next 3 years, where are the changes in the marketplace likely to manifest, and how do we make sure that we retain a contemporary and a competitive situation as it relates to our cost structure, as it relates to the services that we receive, as it relates to the things that we can provide as a good partner.

雖然長期合作關係是良好的營運環境，但同樣重要的是，我們要像對待 Cencora 一樣坐下來，不僅看看它在哪裡發揮作用，還看看它在哪裡可以做得更好，以及更重要的是，在接下來的三年裡，市場可能會發生哪些變化，以及我們如何確保我們保持當代和競爭的局面，因為這與我們的成本結構有關，因為它與我們提供的服務有關。我們收到，因為這與我們作為良好合作夥伴可以提供的東西有關。

So all of those things are things that we throw on the table. And I look forward to working with how my team does with Bob in his new role, I congratulate Steve, who had a terrific run there and was a great partner for me over a lot of years, but again, you can't just sit still, and we're not going to.

所以所有這些事情都是我們丟到桌面上的。我期待著我的團隊與鮑勃在新職位上的合作，我祝賀史蒂夫，他在那裡表現出色，多年來一直是我的優秀合作夥伴，但同樣，你不能只是坐著不過，我們不會這麼做。

Our next question comes from Kevin Caliendo with UBS.

我們的下一個問題來自瑞銀集團的 Kevin Caliendo。

I wanted to talk about the sort of second half guidance and what it implies as we think about the headwinds and tailwinds from that base into fiscal '25. So if we take that sort of midpoint, $1.42, there's no sale leasebacks there. Presumably, tax would be a headwind? Or would it sort of be -- I guess what I'm asking like some headwinds and tailwinds from that base, whether it's tax, we understand core is probably going to be a headwind, maybe 340B?

我想談談下半年的指導，以及當我們思考從該基數到 25 財年的逆風和順風時，它意味著什麼。因此，如果我們採用中點 1.42 美元，則不存在售後回租。據推測，稅收將是一個阻力？或者它會是 - 我猜我要問的是來自該基礎的一些逆風和順風，是否是稅收，我們知道核心可能會是逆風，也許是 340B？

And then the second question that I have above and beyond taking that run rate is, was there any effect from the changes in PBM reimbursement, like the timing for the retail segment because of DIR fees going away, meaning did it change the cadence at all or impact the cash flows at all?

然後，除了運行率之外，我提出的第二個問題是，PBM 報銷的變化是否有任何影響，例如零售部門的時間安排，因為 DIR 費用取消，這意味著它是否改變了節奏或完全影響現金流？

Yes. Let me take the guidance first, and then Rick can talk about DIR a little bit more. So from a guidance perspective, as you think about the midpoint of the range you're calculating in the second half and thinking about '25, the first, on the tax rate side, we expect fairly normalized tax rate for the second half. We did have a significant benefit that we recognized in the second quarter and timing of that played out here. So that, I think, is -- there is no more headwind from taxes if that's your starting point for fiscal '25.

是的。讓我先接受指導，然後 Rick 可以再稍微談談 DIR。因此，從指導的角度來看，當您考慮下半年計算的範圍的中點並考慮 25 年的第一個稅率時，我們預計下半年的稅率將相當正常化。我們確實在第二季度認識到了一個顯著的好處，並且在這裡發揮了作用。因此，我認為，如果這是 25 財年的起點，那麼稅收就不會再帶來阻力。

And then, yes, as I said, I think a couple of themes to consider. First is U.S. Healthcare growth, significant growth expected. We're maintaining guidance in fiscal '24. And as we look out, we do see growth continuing, both at Shields as well as at Village as they concentrate on their core markets and continue to drive the cost down in the business.

然後，是的，正如我所說，我認為有幾個主題需要考慮。首先是美國醫療保健的成長，預計將顯著成長。我們維持 24 財年的指引。正如我們所看到的，我們確實看到 Shields 和 Village 都在持續成長，因為他們專注於核心市場並繼續降低業務成本。

Our own cost savings initiatives. We've talked about $1 billion of cost savings in the year, and now we're on track to achieve that. And there are actions that we'll continue to take in the second half. And so you will see a wraparound benefit into '25 as well as the new initiatives that will continue on cost efficiency side.

我們自己的成本節約舉措。我們已經談到今年可以節省 10 億美元的成本，現在我們正在實現這一目標。我們將在下半年繼續採取一些行動。因此，您將看到 25 年的全面效益以及將在成本效率方面繼續實施的新措施。

I talked about retail, negative 3% comp expected for the year as we thought about the second half guidance or second half implied guidance. And so we do see, however, it improving over time slightly. And so going into '25, the actions that Tracy just talked about and team is taking, they will take hold. And I think that we do expect some improvement in '25 for that.

我談到了零售業，當我們考慮下半年指導或下半年隱含指引時，預計今年的複合成長率為負 3%。然而，我們確實看到它隨著時間的推移而略有改善。因此，進入 25 年，特雷西剛才談到的行動和團隊正在採取的行動將發揮作用。我認為我們確實期望 25 年在這方面有所改善。

And then seasonality, I think you got to factor in as well. You talked about earlier in the call around vaccines portfolio. Obviously, there's seasonality there. Cold, cough, flu, there's seasonality there, and Boots there is seasonality there. So those are maybe some of the themes that you want to consider.

然後季節性，我認為你也必須考慮。您在早些時候的電話會議中談到了疫苗組合。顯然，那裡有季節性。感冒、咳嗽、流感，那裡有季節性，Boots那裡也有季節性。這些可能是您想要考慮的一些主題。

Yes. And just to answer on the DIR fees and the impacts that we might be seeing there, outside of, obviously, cash flow, which obviously works its way out throughout the year. We really aren't seeing a negative impact on reimbursement.

是的。只是為了回答 DIR 費用以及我們可能會看到的影響，顯然，除了現金流之外，現金流顯然會在全年中發揮作用。我們確實沒有看到報銷受到負面影響。

By and large, what we're seeing is that we're contracting for the rates that we were performing against either historically and/or even if there was a negative impact on reimbursement, we're signing pay-for-performance contracts that we have the ability to overperform on. So I would say that DIR fee has been really neutral to us when you look at it from a reimbursement perspective.

總的來說，我們所看到的是，我們正在按照我們過去執行的費率簽訂合同，並且/或即使對報銷產生負面影響，我們也正在簽署按績效付費的合同有能力超越。所以我想說，從報銷的角度來看，DIR 費用對我們來說確實是中性的。

Our next question comes from George Hill with Deutsche Bank.

我們的下一個問題來自德意志銀行的喬治·希爾。

And I kind of have a couple of what I call kind of brief quick questions. First, for Rick, I guess I would ask, when we think about potential changes to the reimbursement model, you touched on this, I guess, could you talk about the push and pull a little bit on those discussions. Manmohan, I guess I would ask just if you could make a quick comment on earnings cadence between fiscal Q3 and Q4.

我有幾個我稱之為簡短的快速問題。首先，對於里克，我想我會問，當我們考慮報銷模式的潛在變化時，您談到了這一點，我想您能否談談這些討論的推動和拉動。曼莫漢，我想我想問你是否可以對第三財季和第四財季之間的盈利節奏做出快速評論。

And Tim, I know I'm throwing in a lot here, but just kind of an update on portfolio strategy. A lot of us look at the company and do some of the parts analysis -- there's an argument to be made that you're getting the core U.S. business for free, given the value of the other assets, kind of just want to know how you're thinking about the portfolio and how you unlock value.

提姆，我知道我在這裡投入了很多，但只是投資組合策略的更新。我們很多人都會關注這家公司並進行一些零件分析——有一種觀點認為，考慮到其他資產的價值，你可以免費獲得美國的核心業務，只是想知道如何您正在考慮投資組合以及如何釋放價值。

Great. Thanks. I'll have Rick take the first part of your question, and then I'll have Manmohan take the second, and I'll take the third.

偉大的。謝謝。我會讓瑞克回答你問題的第一部分，然後我會讓曼莫漢回答第二部分，我會回答第三部分。

George, thanks for the question. And the push pull when it comes to some of the reimbursement model changes, I would say we obviously work with PBMs hand in hand to understand what payers are looking for in a marketplace and the ecosystem. If, obviously, they're looking for a standard-based reimbursement model, it's an AWP-based model, we have those with them. If they're looking for cost-plus models or other types of reimbursement models, we work with them to make sure they have those solutions to go to payers that may be looking for it.

喬治，謝謝你的提問。當涉及到一些報銷模式變化時，我想說的是，我們顯然與 PBM 攜手合作，以了解付款人在市場和生態系統中尋找什麼。顯然，如果他們正在尋找基於標準的報銷模型，那就是基於 AWP 的模型，我們已經為他們提供了這些模型。如果他們正在尋找成本加成模式或其他類型的報銷模式，我們會與他們合作，確保他們向可能正在尋找的付款人提供這些解決方案。

So right now, I think it's an opportunity for us to continue to put different types of models in the market and then see what payer uptake really looks like and then really try to advance those models as we move forward.

所以現在，我認為這對我們來說是一個機會，可以繼續在市場上推出不同類型的模型，然後看看付款人的實際情況如何，然後在我們前進的過程中真正嘗試推進這些模型。

Yes. From a cadence perspective, I think what we're looking at here is fairly balanced here in third and fourth quarter. And then finally, the portfolio...

是的。從節奏的角度來看，我認為我們在這裡看到的第三和第四季相當平衡。最後，投資組合...

Let me be real clear, because I don't think it was ambiguous, but we have been, over the last several months, digging deeply into the core business as well as every piece of our portfolio. Obviously, the big chunks you know what they are and what their brand names are and so forth. But also looking at our store footprint, looking at, as you heard before, our suppliers and our assortment, looking at manager compensation, looking at workflow design and pharmacies and working with deans as well as looking at our automation.

讓我說得很清楚，因為我認為這並不含糊，但在過去的幾個月裡，我們一直在深入研究核心業務以及我們投資組合的每一個部分。顯然，你知道它們是什麼以及它們的品牌名稱等等。但也要關注我們的商店足跡，正如您之前聽說的那樣，關注我們的供應商和我們的產品組合，關注經理薪酬，關注工作流程設計和藥房，與院長合作以及我們的自動化。

And -- but when you step back to the large piece, to your sum of the parts question, obviously, we're very conscious of the fact we have about a half a dozen things that need to either fit, they need to synergize, they need to offer upside in a long-term runway for growth, either by themselves or perhaps combined with other things. They need to unlock capabilities that we would otherwise not be able to have unlocked or else we need to find a better place for them.

而且——但是當你回到大的部分，回到你的各個部分的總和問題時，顯然，我們非常意識到這樣一個事實，我們有大約六個東西需要適合，它們需要協同作用，他們需要為長期成長提供優勢，無論是自身或與其他因素結合。他們需要解鎖我們無法解鎖的能力，否則我們需要為他們找到更好的地方。

And so from our perspective, I can tell you that, for example, Mary on the U.S. Healthcare side, which has its own collection of assets independent from Boots and Shields and CareCentrix and the businesses that you know that we have, Mary has been doing a complete strip down of every one of those businesses and looking at, is it staffed right, is it built for growth, do the market support growth. And this is going to culminate in part, and let me be really clear, I don't want to send a message that there's some big bang coming.

因此，從我們的角度來看，我可以告訴你，例如，美國醫療保健方面的瑪麗，擁有自己的資產集合，獨立於 Boots and Shields 和 CareCentrix 以及你知道我們擁有的業務，瑪麗一直在做對每一項業務進行徹底剝離，看看它的人員配置是否合適，它是否是為成長而建立的，市場是否支援成長。這將在某種程度上達到高潮，讓我非常明確的是，我不想傳達一個訊息，即將發生大爆炸。

But when we sit down with our Board at the end of April, we are going to give them outside in context about the forces in health care over the next 5 to 10 years. We're going to then look at how does that impact the people that we serve, both the payers, the health systems, the consumers, the patients, pharma companies, and then we're going to make a series of either recommendations or next steps so that the Board is very clear where we're headed in some things.

但是，當我們在四月底與董事會坐下來時，我們將向他們介紹未來 5 到 10 年醫療保健領域的力量。然後我們將研究這對我們所服務的人們有何影響，包括付款人、衛生系統、消費者、患者、製藥公司，然後我們將提出一系列建議或下一步以便董事會非常清楚我們在某些​​事情上的發展方向。

We have some things already underway as part of this as we go from examining things to testing markets and so forth. I'm not going to get detailed at this point about that other than to say, again, it's dynamic, it is across the company, and I'm super excited to have a fully staffed executive committee based here in Chicago to do it alongside me.

作為其中的一部分，我們已經在進行一些事情，從檢查事物到測試市場等等。我現在不會詳細說明這一點，只是再說一次，它是動態的，它是整個公司的，我非常高興能在芝加哥有一個人員齊全的執行委員會來一起做這件事我。

Our next question comes from Michael Cherny with Leerink Partners.

我們的下一個問題來自 Leerink Partners 的 Michael Cherny。

So maybe along the lines of the push and pull between your previous guidance versus the updated guidance. Just a couple of things. First, on the dynamics behind the retail decline, I know you talked about same-store growth, but are you seeing any changes in what you're expecting on economics on a same-store script basis in the back half of the year?

因此，也許沿著先前的指導與更新的指導之間的推拉關係。只是幾件事。首先，關於零售下滑背後的動力，我知道您談到了同店成長，但您是否看到下半年同店經濟的預期發生任何變化？

And then just on the healthcare AOI as well. I know you highlighted the strong EBITDA performance. I would have thought with the accelerated pace of VillageMD closures that you might see a better second half ramp. Is there any other puts and takes we should think about within the healthcare business that leads to the dynamics of your current expectations versus year-to-date performance?

然後還有醫療保健 AOI。我知道您強調了強勁的 EBITDA 表現。我以為隨著 VillageMD 關閉速度的加快，你可能會看到下半年更好的坡道。在醫療保健業務中，我們是否應該考慮任何其他的看跌期權和看跌期權，這些看跌期權和看跌期權會導致您當前的預期與今年迄今為止的業績的動態變化？

I'll have Manmohan take that.

我會讓曼莫漢拿走那個。

Yes, sure. So look, as you think about the second half implied guide, a couple of factors to consider. And I'll go through in order. Retail is the biggest factor from a second half perspective. We have seen the challenging environment continues to persist for longer than expected. And so we are lowering our expectation. I think we were at low single digits, now we're expecting negative 3% comp. So that is going into it.

是的，當然。因此，當您考慮下半年隱含指南時，需要考慮幾個因素。我將按順序進行介紹。從下半年的角度來看，零售是最大的因素。我們看到充滿挑戰的環境持續的時間比預期的要長。所以我們正在降低我們的期望。我認為我們的業績處於低個位數，現在我們預計負 3% 的補償。這就是我們要討論的內容。

Our decision to early wind down the sale-leaseback program, as well as our decision to sell Cencora shares through block trade versus using a VPF structure, variable prepaid forward structure is creating additional headwinds as I think about the guidance we provided last quarter. So those are 3 headwinds. And the offset to that from a full year perspective is obviously one of the factors is the favorable tax rate we have in the year.

考慮到我們上季度提供的指導，我們決定提前結束售後回租計劃，以及我們決定透過大宗交易出售 Cencora 股票，而不是使用 VPF 結構、可變預付遠期結構，這些都帶來了額外的阻力。所以這是三個不利因素。從全年的角度來看，抵銷這一影響的因素顯然是我們今年的優惠稅率。

Now the timing of that has played out in the second quarter. Now you had some specific questions on the script and how do we think about that. If you think about the second quarter, our comp script growth ex-immunization of 2.9%, fairly consistent with where market was, we're holding our share. And as we think about the second half of the year, we expect us to continue to grow in line with the market and hold the share. So that's kind of the expectation we have on the script side.

現在這個時機已經在第二季發揮出來了。現在你對劇本有一些具體的問題，我們如何看待這個問題。如果你想想第二季度，我們的綜合腳本成長了 2.9%（扣除免疫後），與市場情況相當一致，我們正在持有我們的份額。當我們考慮下半年時，我們預計我們將繼續與市場保持一致成長並保持份額。這就是我們對劇本方面的期望。

On healthcare, Village continues to take decisions to rightsize their cost structure and think about their clinical footprint and they did make the decision to exit certain more locations. To us, we are very pleased with reaching the first quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA in the segment. We want to be -- we want to take a prudent approach for the next half. And so therefore, we just continue to maintain the guidance we have.

在醫療保健方面，Village 繼續做出調整其成本結構的決定，並考慮其臨床足跡，並且他們確實決定退出更多某些地點。對我們來說，我們非常高興該領域第一季實現正調整 EBITDA。我們希望在下半年採取謹慎的態度。因此，我們只是繼續維持現有的指導。

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, this does conclude the Q&A portion of today's conference. I'd like to turn the call back over to Tim for any closing remarks.

謝謝。女士們、先生們，今天會議的問答部分到此結束。我想將電話轉回給提姆，讓他發表結束語。

Thank you, operator. And thank you for your questions and your time today. As we close, I just want to just quickly remind you what you've heard today. Our second quarter operational results were in line with our expectations despite continued challenges in the U.S. retail environment.

謝謝你，接線生。感謝您今天的提問和抽出時間。在我們結束之際，我只想快速提醒您今天所聽到的內容。儘管美國零售環境持續面臨挑戰，但我們第二季的營運表現符合我們的預期。

We drove solid execution. I'm very, very proud of the team and cost discipline in our U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment with continued strong performance in International, and we had our first quarter of positive adjusted EBITDA in U.S. Healthcare.

我們推動了紮實的執行力。我對美國零售藥局部門的團隊和成本紀律以及國際業務持續強勁的表現感到非常非常自豪，而且我們在美國醫療保健部門的第一季度調整後的 EBITDA 為正數。

Now driven by our recently solidified leadership team, I would remind all of you that there -- one member of the team actually is starting in 2 weeks. But basically, now we're all around the table. We are -- we have come together to be committed to an intense review in the coming months and to the hard work that's going to ensure that each asset in our portfolio advances our expansion into the fastest-growing areas of health care.

現在，在我們最近鞏固的領導團隊的推動下，我想提醒大家，團隊中的一名成員實際上將在兩週後開始工作。但基本上，現在我們都在談判桌旁。我們齊心協力，致力於在未來幾個月進行深入審查，並努力工作，以確保我們投資組合中的每項資產都能推動我們向成長最快的醫療保健領域的擴張。

And as you saw this quarter, we are willing to revalue things that we take a second look at and make difficult decisions, and we're going to do that not in one big bang, but as it becomes obvious to us on a situation-by-situation basis that we can act. And as I said before, everything is on the table as we identify opportunities that unlock value, validate existing pathways and lead WBA into a successful future. We look forward to continuing to keep you updated on our progress. And again, thank you.

正如您在本季度看到的那樣，我們願意重新評估我們重新審視並做出艱難決定的事情，我們不會一次性做到這一點，而是當我們在一種情況下變得顯而易見時——我們可以根據情況採取行動。正如我之前所說，當我們尋找釋放價值的機會、驗證現有途徑並帶領 WBA 走向成功的未來時，一切都已擺在桌面上。我們期待繼續向您通報我們的最新進展。再次謝謝您。

Ladies and gentlemen, this does conclude today's presentation. You may now disconnect, and have a wonderful day.

女士們、先生們，今天的演講到此結束。您現在可以斷開連接，並度過美好的一天。