Petco Health and Wellness Company Inc (WOOF) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good day and welcome to Petco's first-quarter 2026 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) Please note this event is being recorded.

大家好，歡迎參加 Petco 2026 會計年度第一季財報電話會議。（接線員指示）請注意，本活動將被錄音。

I would now like to turn the conference over to Roxanne Meyer, Vice President, Investor Relations and Treasury. Please go ahead.

現在我想把電話會議交給投資人關係與財務資金部副總裁 Roxanne Meyer。請開始。

Good afternoon, and welcome to Petco's first-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings conference call. Joining me on the call today are Joel Anderson, Petco's Chief Executive Officer; and Sabrina Simmons, Petco's Chief Financial Officer.

各位下午好，歡迎參加 Petco 2026 會計年度第一季財報電話會議。今天與我一同出席的有 Petco 執行長 Joel Anderson，以及 Petco 財務長 Sabrina Simmons。

In addition to the earnings release, we've posted a slide presentation on our website at ir.petco.com.

除了財報新聞稿之外，我們也已在網站 ir.petco.com 上發布簡報投影片。

I'd like to remind everyone that on this call, we will make certain forward-looking statements, which are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. These risks and uncertainties include those set out in our earnings materials and SEC filings.

提醒各位，本次電話會議中我們將發表若干前瞻性陳述，這些陳述受到多項風險與不確定性影響，可能導致實際結果與陳述內容出現重大差異。相關風險與不確定性包括我們財報資料與向美國證券交易委員會（SEC）申報文件中所列者。

In addition, on today's call, we will refer to certain non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations of these measures can be found in our earnings release, presentation, and SEC filings.

此外，在今天的電話會議中，我們將提及若干非 GAAP 財務衡量指標。這些指標的調節表可在我們的財報新聞稿、簡報以及 SEC 申報文件中查閱。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Joel.

接下來，我把電話交給 Joel。

Thanks, Roxanne, and good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining us to discuss our first-quarter results. Our strong Q1 results provide an encouraging early validation of our Phase 3 Reach for the Sky strategy. We returned the business to a positive comp for the quarter while expanding our profitability, performing better than our quarterly outlook for both top line and adjusted EBITDA.

謝謝你，Roxanne，各位下午好。感謝各位加入我們，一起討論第一季的業績。我們強勁的第一季表現，為我們第三階段「Reach for the Sky」策略提供了令人振奮的早期驗證。本季我們讓業務回到同店銷售成長為正，同時提升獲利能力；無論在營收端或調整後 EBITDA 方面，表現都優於我們對本季的展望。

We were particularly pleased to see the improvement in our consumables business, while our differentiated services business once again delivered strong results and continues to be a growth engine for us. This solid start to the year gives us deep confidence that our growth initiatives are taking hold. It speaks directly to our innovation pipeline, rigorous execution, smarter marketing, and most importantly, the advantages of our wholly owned omnichannel ecosystem.

我們特別高興看到消耗品業務的改善；同時，我們具差異化的服務業務再次交出強勁成績，並持續成為我們的成長引擎。這一年良好的開局，讓我們對成長計畫正在奏效充滿信心。這直接反映了我們的創新產品管線、嚴謹的執行、更聰明的行銷，以及最重要的——我們全資擁有的全通路生態系所帶來的優勢。

In light of our solid first quarter, we are pleased to reaffirm our full-year outlook and remain confident in our ability to drive consistent top-line results. Sabrina will take you through our financial details shortly. But first, I want to spend some time updating you on the progress we've made across our strategic four pillars, which are positioning Petco for long-term profitable growth.

鑑於第一季表現穩健，我們很高興重申全年展望，並對推動穩定的營收表現仍具信心。稍後 Sabrina 會帶各位了解財務細節。不過在此之前，我想花一些時間更新我們在四大策略支柱上的進展，這些支柱正讓 Petco 站上長期、可獲利的成長軌道。

Let's begin with our first pillar, compelling product. While we are still in the early innings of evolving our product mix and the flow of our merchandise, we have begun to introduce real newness to our aisles and we are seeing evidence that it is resonating with pet parents. Specifically, you should now see several of our main drive aisle end caps converted to new product and identified with a yellow new logo.

先從第一個支柱——具吸引力的產品——談起。雖然我們仍處於調整產品組合與商品流轉的早期階段，但我們已開始在走道中導入真正的新品，也看到這些新品正引起毛孩家長的共鳴。具體而言，各位現在應該可以看到我們幾個主要動線走道端架已改為陳列新品，並以黃色的「新品」標誌識別。

From a top-line perspective, we saw outperformance in the cat category this quarter. We anticipated the recent spike in demand for cat products. And as a result, we invested to make Petco the destination for cat parents. It was a key contributor to the improved sequential trends we saw in consumables overall. You will see cat newness ramping up even further in Q2 with exciting additions in areas such as furniture, beds, and bowls, but also in novelty items such as cat trees.

從營收角度來看，本季貓品類表現優於預期。我們預見近期貓用品需求的激增，因此投入資源，讓 Petco 成為貓咪家長的首選目的地。這也是我們看到整體消耗品業務連續趨勢改善的重要貢獻因素。第二季貓品類的新品將進一步加速，包含家具、睡墊與碗盆等令人興奮的新增品項，也包括像貓跳台等新奇商品。

We also continue to lead in the fresh frozen space. During the quarter, we added significant incremental freezer capacity to support the momentum in this category. We hold a distinct advantage in this category driven by the breadth of our offerings, our key brand partnerships and a wide range of price points. We have positioned Petco as a premier destination for pet nutrition, which we believe will serve us well as the pet humanization trend continues to pick up speed. Our expertise in dedicated in-store teams offer a level and type of service that you simply cannot find at grocery stores, big box competitors, or online.

我們在冷藏冷凍鮮食領域也持續領先。本季我們新增了大量的冷凍櫃容量，以支撐該品類的成長動能。我們在此品類具備明顯優勢，來自於產品供給的廣度、關鍵品牌合作夥伴關係，以及多元的價格帶。我們已將 Petco 定位為寵物營養的首選目的地；隨著寵物擬人化趨勢持續加速，我們相信這將對我們非常有利。我們在門市配置的專業團隊所提供的服務水準與型態，是你在超市、大型量販競爭對手或線上通路都找不到的。

As a reminder, those that buy fresh food from us make over four more trips per year and spend over 50% more annually than drive food-only customers. Further, we experienced strength in seasonal categories. Specifically, in flea and tick, we saw our strongest start of the season in five years.

提醒各位，向我們購買鮮食的顧客，每年會多來店超過四次，且年度消費金額比僅購買主食的顧客高出 50% 以上。此外，我們在季節性品類也表現強勁。以除蚤除蜱為例，我們迎來五年來最強的季初開局。

While this was partially aided by weather patterns, for Petco, it's an ecosystem story. We capture over-the-counter sales, vet sales, and grooming through our flea and tick packages all supported by a cohesive marketing push.

雖然這部分受惠於天氣型態，但對 Petco 而言，這是一個生態系的故事。我們透過除蚤除蜱套裝方案，同時帶動非處方銷售、獸醫銷售與美容服務，並由一致性的行銷推廣加以支撐。

In addition, as we previously announced, we launched our New Gardening with your Pet earlier this quarter. This performed above expectations with live house plants performing well. Looking ahead, we have an exciting pipeline for both Q2 and the back half of the year.

另外，如同我們先前宣布的，我們在本季稍早推出「New Gardening with your Pet」。其表現優於預期，其中活體室內植物銷售表現亮眼。展望未來，我們在第二季以及下半年都擁有令人期待的產品管線。

In consumables, we are leaning into emerging customer trends like high protein diets as well as new treats for dogs and cats. We've also recently launched several new supplements categories, such as for hip and joint care, liver health, and a holistic care line based on the growing trend of health and longevity in the pet space, which we see as an important extension of the humanization trend.

在消耗品方面，我們正加大投入新興顧客趨勢，例如高蛋白飲食，以及犬貓的新零食。我們近期也推出多個新的保健品類別，例如髖關節與關節保養、肝臟健康，以及一條整體照護產品線，呼應寵物領域日益成長的健康與長壽趨勢；我們認為這是擬人化趨勢的重要延伸。

In supplies, we are introducing newness across categories, including grooming, toys, and collars and leads.

在用品方面，我們也在多個品類導入新品，包括美容、玩具，以及項圈與牽繩。

Within the grooming category, we relaunched our own brand Well and Good, which was completed last week. This represents the beginnings of our investment in private label starting to show up in our stores. It includes new formulas without harsh chemicals as well as fresh packaging for our shampoos, conditioners, and balms, all supported by marketing. And finally, in June, we'll be rolling out sports inspired collection, celebrating the World Cup and USA soccer.

在美容品類中，我們重新推出自有品牌 Well and Good，並已於上週完成。這代表我們對自有品牌的投資開始在門市中展現成果。該系列包含不含刺激性化學成分的新配方，以及我們洗毛精、潤絲精與護膚膏的全新包裝，並由行銷活動加以支持。最後，在 6 月，我們將推出運動靈感系列，慶祝世界盃與美國足球。

Moving on to our second pillar, services at scale. Simply put, services are an important growth engine of ours. They are a massive point of differentiation and a competitive advantage. Through our wholly owned services model, we own the entire pet journey. And it isn't just about our vet hospitals, which continue to see solid gains in sales productivity, it's also about our clinics, grooming, and training.

接著談第二個支柱——規模化服務。簡而言之，服務是我們重要的成長引擎，也是巨大的差異化與競爭優勢。透過我們全資擁有的服務模式，我們掌握寵物旅程的每一個環節。而這不僅是關於我們的獸醫醫院——其銷售生產力持續穩健提升——也包括我們的診所、美容與訓練服務。

Grooming is a strong annuity business for us and continues to perform well. To build on that momentum, we expanded our care reminders directly into our app late in the first quarter, a highly effective and frankly, obvious way to drive what is already a sticky repeat business even more frequently and consistently.

美容是一項對我們而言具年金特性的強勁業務，並持續表現良好。為了延續這股動能，我們在第一季末將照護提醒功能直接擴展到 App 中；這是一種非常有效、坦白說也很直覺的方法，讓本就黏著度高的回購型業務能更頻繁且更穩定地發生。

Another call out was the puppy dog package. We began to offer in the first quarter in which a significant number of the customers that came in were new. We will continue to offer this throughout the year.

另一個值得一提的是幼犬套裝方案。我們在第一季開始提供，其中有相當比例的到店顧客是新客。我們將在全年持續提供此方案。

In the second quarter, we are driving excitement with the rollout of our Well & Good grooming products I just referenced as well as a new Disney Stitch grooming package, which includes scented shampoo and [Spritz] conditioner, teeth bushing, nailed buffing, and a seasonal bandana. Together, these initiatives are intended to ensure that our salons remain a premier destination for pet parents and a highly defendable driver of reoccurring foot traffic.

在第二季，我們將透過推出我剛提到的 Well & Good 美容產品，以及全新的 Disney Stitch 美容套裝方案來帶動話題。該套裝包含香氛洗毛精與 [Spritz] 潤絲精、刷牙、磨指甲，以及季節性頭巾。這些舉措旨在確保我們的美容沙龍持續成為毛孩家長的首選目的地，並成為帶動重複來店人流的高度可防禦驅動因素。

On the vet hospital side, the strong performance we are driving today helps fuel our future expansion plans, which are on track to resume in 2027. We continue to see improving productivity across our footprint and we are on track to optimize about 25 significantly underutilized hospitals this year.

在獸醫醫院方面，我們目前所推動的強勁表現，有助於支撐未來的擴張計畫；該計畫正按進度，預計於 2027 年恢復。我們持續看到整體據點的生產力改善，並正按計畫在今年優化約 25 家明顯使用率不足的醫院。

Crucial to this effort is our veterinarian team, and we are pleased to share that Doctor Days which is a combination of hiring additional doctors and adding hours per doctor continues to improve. Because of our scale, depth of expertise, unique ecosystem, and the flexibility we offer, we believe Petco is an employer of choice for veterinarians and vet techs looking to build long-term careers.

這項努力的關鍵在於我們的獸醫團隊，我們很高興分享，「Doctor Days」（結合增聘醫師與提高每位醫師工時）持續改善。憑藉我們的規模、專業深度、獨特的生態系，以及我們所提供的彈性，我們相信 Petco 是獸醫與獸醫技術員建立長期職涯的首選雇主。

As we discussed last quarter, cross-selling continues to be a major and largely untapped opportunity between our clinics and the rest of the store. A great example of this clinical presence driving our broader business is our vet diet category, which performed extremely well this quarter, tying beautifully back into our veterinary ecosystem. Looking ahead, we believe we have several strong catalysts and opportunities in Q2 designed to drive ongoing traffic to our clinics.

如同我們在上一季所討論的，診所與門市其他業務之間的交叉銷售，仍是一個重大且在很大程度上尚未被充分開發的機會。臨床據點帶動我們更廣泛業務的一個絕佳例子是處方／獸醫飲食（vet diet）品類，本季表現極為出色，並與我們的獸醫生態系完美連結。展望未來，我們相信在第二季有數個強勁的催化因素與機會，旨在持續為我們的診所帶來人流。

In mid-April, we launched the new Petco clinic packages, which offers bundles of services such as routine shots, which we are excited to see gaining early traction.

在四月中旬，我們推出全新的 Petco 診所套裝方案，提供包含例行疫苗等服務的組合，我們很高興看到其在初期已獲得不錯的市場反應。

Additionally, to drive traffic and care during National Pet Month in May, we offered free microchips, with the number of pets getting microchips up 71% versus last year. Looking beyond these near-term drivers, we are incredibly optimistic about the long-term growth opportunity within our wholly owned vet business and the immense value it brings to the Petco ecosystem.

此外，為了在五月「全國寵物月」期間帶動來客與照護服務，我們提供免費植入晶片，使得植入晶片的寵物數量較去年增加 71%。超越這些短期驅動因素，我們對於自有獸醫業務的長期成長機會，以及其為 Petco 生態系帶來的巨大價值，感到非常樂觀。

Our third pillar is our trusted store experience. The work is underway to build our basket size through better cross-selling and customer engagement. For example, we are now empowering our groomers with customer data to facilitate sales across the entire store. They can see a customer's last food purchase history. This allows our partners to have informed personalized conversations that drive cross-category sales and importantly, can help enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty over time.

我們的第三大支柱是值得信賴的門市體驗。我們正著手透過更好的交叉銷售與顧客互動來提升客單價。例如，我們現在讓美容師能運用顧客資料，以促進全店範圍的銷售。他們可以看到顧客上一次購買飼料的紀錄。這使我們的夥伴能進行有依據且個人化的對話，帶動跨品類銷售；更重要的是，長期而言也有助於提升顧客滿意度與忠誠度。

In terms of customer engagement, we feel in-store experiences are how we best appeal to our core customer, the passionate explorer. This quarter, we hosted popular events such as Pictures with the Easter Bunny. We continued that effort with weekly store events throughout May to celebrate National pet months, including Mother's Day photos and weekly brand casting events.

在顧客互動方面，我們認為門市體驗是我們最能吸引核心顧客——「熱情探索者」——的方式。本季我們舉辦了多項受歡迎的活動，例如與復活節兔子合影。我們在五月持續推動每週門市活動以慶祝「全國寵物月」，包括母親節拍照活動以及每週的品牌試用／體驗活動。

Finally, our fourth pillar, an integrated omnichannel model. We are pleased with the headway we've made and our ongoing work to improve retail fundamentals in our omnichannel model compared to last year. By removing friction from the online checkout process, we have been seeing improved digital traffic.

最後，我們的第四大支柱是整合式全通路模式。我們對已取得的進展感到滿意，且相較去年，我們持續改善全通路模式中的零售基本功。透過移除線上結帳流程的摩擦點，我們看到數位流量有所提升。

We achieved sales growth in omnichannel even while lapping the nonproductive, unprofitable sales we were still generating through 1Q last year. Looking ahead, we see ongoing opportunities to increase site speed and optimize shipping windows for our customers.

即使在比較基期包含去年第一季仍透過非生產性、無利可圖的銷售所帶來的影響下，我們的全通路仍實現銷售成長。展望未來，我們看到持續提升網站速度並為顧客優化配送時窗的機會。

The key call out is BOPUS, which was up strongly year over year. This is our differentiation in action, building loyalty through e-commerce but physically bringing the customer into our stores to experience our services, community, and the cross-selling opportunities our partners provide.

需要特別指出的是 BOPUS（線上下單、到店取貨），年增表現強勁。這正是我們差異化的具體展現：透過電商建立忠誠度，同時把顧客實際帶進門市，體驗我們的服務、社群，以及由門市夥伴提供的交叉銷售機會。

Speaking of loyalty, I'm thrilled to share that we are relaunching our loyalty programs later this quarter, officially branded as Petco Perks. During our pilot phase, our biggest learnings was simplifying, removing friction, and making the program distinctly customer-friendly had a massive impact. Petco Perks uniquely leverages our entire ecosystem, spanning both merchandise and services. The program will be heavily focused on personalized offers based on factors like shopping frequency and customer lifetime value, a strategy that successfully drove higher sales and stickiness during our pilot.

談到忠誠度，我很興奮地分享：我們將在本季稍晚重新推出忠誠計畫，正式品牌命名為 Petco Perks。在試點階段，我們最大的學習是：簡化流程、移除摩擦點，並讓計畫明顯更以顧客為中心，會帶來巨大的影響。Petco Perks 獨特之處在於能運用我們完整的生態系，涵蓋商品與服務。該計畫將高度聚焦於個人化優惠，依據如購物頻率與顧客終身價值等因素制定；這項策略在試點期間成功帶動更高銷售與更強黏著度。

In conclusion, the first quarter served as an initial proof point of our inflection to growth. While the broader macro environment remains dynamic, we remain hyper focused on controlling what we can control, and our results prove that our self-help strategy is successfully navigating this environment.

總結而言，第一季是我們轉向成長的初步驗證。儘管整體宏觀環境仍具動態變化，我們仍高度專注於掌控可控事項，而我們的成果證明，自助改善（self-help）策略正成功引領我們穿越此環境。

We are executing on our Phase 3 Reach for the Sky strategy. While we are pleased with these initial results, we are still in the early innings of what is a long, exciting journey.

我們正在執行第三階段「Reach for the Sky」策略。雖然我們對這些初步成果感到滿意，但這段漫長且令人振奮的旅程，我們仍處於早期階段。

We have immense opportunity to deliver product newness, capitalize on cross-channel shopping, grow our differentiated services business, and provide the most personalized experience possible to the passionate explorer and their pets.

我們擁有巨大的機會來推出產品新意、把握跨通路購物趨勢、擴大我們具差異化的服務業務，並為「熱情探索者」及其寵物提供盡可能個人化的體驗。

I want to take a moment to deeply thank our teams across the organization. Your hard work, adaptability, compassion for pets are what make these results possible. Our focus remains firmly on driving sustainable, longer-term top-line growth and on delivering shareholder value.

我想花點時間由衷感謝全公司各團隊。你們的辛勤付出、適應力，以及對寵物的關懷，讓這些成果得以實現。我們的重點仍堅定放在推動可持續、較長期的營收成長，並為股東創造價值。

As we look ahead, we are pleased with the momentum our initiatives are generating, positioning us to continue to deliver positive comps. I look forward to our second-quarter call and sharing with you the continued progress we are making with our Reach for the Sky strategy.

展望未來，我們對各項計畫所帶來的動能感到滿意，這使我們有望持續交出正向同店表現。我期待第二季電話會議，並與各位分享我們在「Reach for the Sky」策略上持續取得的進展。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Sabrina to take you through the details.

接下來，我把電話會議交給 Sabrina，請她帶各位了解細節。

Thank you, Joel. Good afternoon, everyone. As we discussed, our primary goal is to build a stronger retail and financial foundation, which supports our focus on regrowing our top line in Phase 3 and driving sustainable, profitable growth. As such, we are committed to delivering upon our economic model for the full year in 2026 and are pleased to report that we're off to a solid start.

謝謝你，Joel。各位下午好。如同我們所討論的，我們的首要目標是建立更強健的零售與財務基礎，以支撐我們在第三階段聚焦於重啟營收成長，並推動可持續且具獲利性的成長。因此，我們致力於在 2026 全年達成我們的經濟模型目標，並很高興回報我們已取得穩健的開局。

Turning to first-quarter results. Net sales were up 0.2% to $1.5 billion. Importantly, the first quarter marked a return to positive comp sales with a 0.7% comp providing evidence that our initiatives across our four growth pillars are beginning to take hold. The spread between comp and net sales reflected the 16 net store closures in 2025 and four net closures in Q1. We ended the quarter with 1,378 stores in the US.

接著看第一季業績。淨銷售額年增 0.2% 至 15 億美元。重要的是，第一季同店銷售回到正成長，年增 0.7%，顯示我們四大成長支柱的各項措施開始發揮效果。同店與淨銷售之間的差異，反映了 2025 年淨關閉 16 家門市，以及第一季淨關閉 4 家門市。我們在本季結束時於美國共有 1,378 家門市。

Moving on to margin results. First quarter gross profit dollars were $574.4 million, while our gross margin rate expanded 21 basis points to 38.4% as we executed with discipline.

接著看毛利表現。第一季毛利金額為 5.744 億美元；在我們嚴守紀律執行下，毛利率擴張 21 個基點至 38.4%。

Moving on to expenses. For the quarter, SG&A was $549.8 million or 36.7% of net sales, leveraging 34 basis points. The $3.8 million improvement in expenses year over year was driven by declines in G&A despite investments in marketing to support our omni-related initiatives.

接著看費用。本季 SG&A 為 5.498 億美元，占淨銷售 36.7%，費用率槓桿改善 34 個基點。費用年減 380 萬美元，主要來自 G&A 下降，儘管我們仍增加行銷投資以支持全通路相關計畫。

For Q1, our expanded gross margin and expense leverage resulted in operating profit of $24.6 million or a 50.5% improvement versus prior year. Operating margin rate improved 55 basis points year over year. Adjusted EBITDA increased $7.9 million or 8.8% year over year to $97.3 million and our adjusted EBITDA (inaudible) balance sheet and cash flow.

第一季，毛利率擴張與費用槓桿帶動營業利益達 2,460 萬美元，較去年提升 50.5%。營業利益率年增 55 個基點。調整後 EBITDA 年增 790 萬美元或 8.8%，至 9,730 萬美元；以及我們的調整後 EBITDA（聽不清）資產負債表與現金流。

First-quarter ending inventory was down 1.9% year over year on top of a 5.2% decline last year. It's worth noting that inventory dollars were down year over year even with sales growth of 0.2%, reflecting our ongoing discipline and execution.

第一季期末庫存年減 1.9%，是在去年已下降 5.2% 的基礎上再度下降。值得注意的是，即使淨銷售成長 0.2%，庫存金額仍較去年下降，反映我們持續的紀律與執行力。

Our first-quarter ending cash balance was $167 million, an increase of approximately $33 million versus the first quarter last year. For the quarter, free cash flow was an outflow of $69 million.

第一季期末現金餘額為 1.67 億美元，較去年第一季增加約 3,300 萬美元。本季自由現金流為流出 6,900 萬美元。

While our first-quarter cash flow is historically our lowest, we wanted to call out two contributing factors. First, capital expenditures increased $10 million versus last year but are in line with the full-year guidance we've provided. Second, as planned, inventory investments increased to support our growth, but we are pleased overall that inventory levels remain well controlled.

雖然第一季的現金流歷來是全年最低點，我們想特別指出兩個影響因素。第一，資本支出較去年增加 1,000 萬美元，但仍符合我們所提供的全年指引。第二，如同規劃，我們增加庫存投資以支持成長，但整體而言我們很高興庫存水位仍維持良好控管。

Moving on, total liquidity for the first quarter was $654.4 million, up versus the prior year. For the quarter, total debt was $1.48 billion, down over $100 million compared to Q1 last year. As many of you have heard me state, after completing our opportunistic debt refinancing, we have extended our maturities out to 2031 and achieved a more optimal mix of fixed to floating rate debt which provides us with ample flexibility. Importantly, we remain laser focused on our goal of reducing our leverage ratio to 2 times.

接下來，第一季的總流動性為6.544億美元，較去年同期增加。本季總負債為14.8億美元，較去年第一季減少逾1億美元。正如各位多次聽我提到的，在完成我們把握時機的債務再融資後，我們已將到期日延長至2031年，並達成更理想的固定利率與浮動利率債務組合，為我們提供充足的彈性。重要的是，我們仍然高度聚焦於將槓桿比率降至2倍的目標。

And now turning to our outlook. While the external environment continues to evolve, our solid foundation enables us to remain agile, and we are well-positioned to deliver on our financial commitments this year. Therefore, we are reaffirming our full-year sales and adjusted EBITDA outlook.

現在談到我們的展望。儘管外部環境持續演變，我們穩固的基礎使我們能保持敏捷，我們也已做好準備在今年兌現我們的財務承諾。因此，我們重申全年銷售額與調整後EBITDA的展望。

Specifically, we continue to expect net sales of flat to up 1.5% compared to last year as our growth initiatives take hold and build over the course of the year. We continue to expect adjusted EBITDA to be between $415 million and $430 million.

具體而言，隨著我們的成長計畫逐步落地並在全年持續累積，我們仍預期淨銷售額與去年相比持平至成長1.5%。我們仍預期調整後EBITDA介於4.15億至4.30億美元之間。

Looking out, we wanted to outline some updates to our underlying full-year assumptions. First, we now expect fuel prices to remain at approximately current levels for the remainder of the year. Recall that our prior full-year outlook assumes higher fuel prices through the first quarter only.

展望未來，我們想說明對全年基礎假設的一些更新。首先，我們現在預期燃料價格在今年剩餘期間將大致維持在目前水準。請回想我們先前的全年展望僅假設第一季燃料價格較高。

Next, our outlook includes the benefit of a tariff refund received in May. The refund represents only a portion of the IEPA tariffs we paid through February 2026. Our full-year guidance assumes no additional tariff refunds beyond what we've received to date. Further, our outlook also assumes that the current tariff policies remain for the balance of the year.

其次，我們的展望納入了5月收到的關稅退稅利益。該退稅僅代表我們截至2026年2月所支付IEPA關稅的一部分。我們的全年指引假設除目前已收到者外，不再有額外的關稅退稅。此外，我們的展望也假設現行關稅政策在今年剩餘期間維持不變。

With regard to other line items, the following assumptions remain unchanged for the full year: net interest expense, about $125 million; depreciation and amortization, about $200 million; capital expenditures, about $140 million, with an ongoing focus on ROIC; net store closures between 15 and 20, weighted toward the back half of the year; and finally, we still expect the full-year spread between total sales and comp sales to be about 50 basis points that will vary by quarter.

至於其他損益項目，以下全年假設維持不變：淨利息費用約1.25億美元；折舊與攤銷約2.00億美元；資本支出約1.40億美元，並持續聚焦ROIC；淨關店數介於15至20家，且主要集中在下半年；最後，我們仍預期全年總銷售與同店銷售之間的差距約為50個基點，並將隨季度而變動。

Moving on to the second quarter. We are comfortable with current consensus estimates for net sales implying growth of about 0.3% versus the prior year. We expect adjusted EBITDA to be between $110 million and $112 million.

接著談第二季。我們認為目前市場一致預估的淨銷售額（意味著較去年同期成長約0.3%）是合理的。我們預期調整後EBITDA介於1.10億至1.12億美元之間。

As you think about your models, we wanted to flag some considerations to be helpful. First, recall last year's Q2 reflected peak adjusted EBITDA growth including peak gross margin expansion. And last year's second quarter commentary, I flagged an approximate $9 million benefit in SG&A from a semiannual actuarial true-up. This was related to employee optimization work. This year, we do not expect to anniversary this benefit.

在各位建立模型時，我們想提示幾點供參考。首先，請記得去年第二季反映了調整後EBITDA成長的高峰，並包含毛利率擴張的高峰。而在去年第二季的評論中，我曾提到SG&A因半年一次的精算調整（true-up）而約有900萬美元的利益，這與員工優化工作相關。今年我們預期不會再出現這項利益的同期比較效應。

Finally, on tariffs and higher fuel costs. A simple way to think about these factors is that the tariff refund roughly offset incremental tariffs and higher fuel cost expected in the second quarter, thereby neutralizing one another in the quarter.

最後，關於關稅與較高的燃料成本。簡單來看，關稅退稅大致抵銷了第二季預期增加的關稅與較高燃料成本，因此在本季彼此相互抵銷、影響中性。

In closing, I want to thank our teams for their dedication and discipline in executing on our transformation this quarter, including a return to positive comparable sales growth.

最後作結，我要感謝我們的團隊在本季以投入與紀律執行轉型，包括同店銷售重回正成長。

We will now open up the call for your questions.

接下來我們將開放提問。

(Operator Instructions) Michael Lasser, UBS.

（接線員指示）Michael Lasser，UBS。

Good evening. Thank you so much for taking my question. When you look across the different categories between consumables, hard goods, services as well as the different species of animals that you serve, where was there a change or an inflection in your market share versus what Petco had been experiencing last year? And how do you see those market share trends continuing to unfold? Thank you.

晚安。非常感謝讓我提問。當你們觀察不同品類（消耗品、硬體商品、服務），以及你們服務的不同動物種類時，相較於Petco去年所經歷的情況，你們的市占率在哪些地方出現了變化或轉折點？你們又如何看待這些市占率趨勢接下來的發展？謝謝。

Thanks, Michael. I think as you -- as I reflect back on the quarter, I think less about market share a little bit and I think more about the sequential improvements. And we saw improvements in all three of those categories, both consumables, supplies and companion animals and services.

謝謝你，Michael。我想當我回顧本季時，我比較不會把焦點放在市占率本身，而是更著重於逐季的改善。我們在這三個類別都看到改善，包括消耗品、用品與伴侶動物，以及服務。

So I think those are all really good early indicators that the new strategy is taking hold, and the customer is reacting positively to it. While we haven't yet started to gain on market share, which is part of lapping the last year, we are really seeing that the market share decline moderate significantly, and that's showing up in the sequential improvements in all three areas.

因此，我認為這些都是非常好的早期指標，顯示新策略正在發揮作用，且顧客對此有正向反應。雖然我們尚未開始提升市占率（其中一部分是因為要與去年同期比較），但我們確實看到市占率下滑明顯趨緩，而這也反映在三個領域的逐季改善上。

Understood. Thank you for that, Joel. My follow-up question is on the outlook. You exceeded at least the consensus forecast for the first quarter. you positive like you had anticipated, you are simply reiterating the full year outlook. So is there something that you're seeing currently in the business or have seen as of late that is influencing your conservatism or your decision not to flow through the upside from the first quarter to the full year?

了解。謝謝你，Joel。我的追問是關於展望。你們第一季至少超過了市場一致預期；你們的表現如預期轉正，但你們只是重申全年展望。所以，你們目前在業務上看到什麼，或近期看到什麼，影響了你們較為保守的態度，或是你們決定不把第一季的上行表現反映到全年？

Hey, Michael, it's Sabrina. And that's a great question. To our own range, we are really pleased that in the first quarter, we beat a couple of million, $3 million at the high end. The environment has continued to evolve, and there's a lot of different new cycles going on.

嗨，Michael，我是Sabrina。這是個很好的問題。就我們自己的區間而言，我們對第一季在高端超出幾百萬美元、約300萬美元感到非常滿意。外部環境仍在演變，且有許多不同的新循環正在發生。

We're super pleased that in the face of that, we are reaffirming our full-year guidance and in particular, one of the big changes from when we initially laid out that guidance is fuel, right? So we are actually absorbing that second half fuel within our reaffirmation of the full year. So again, we're very pleased that we're able to do that through our discipline.

我們非常高興的是，在這樣的情況下，我們仍重申全年指引。特別是，與我們最初提出該指引時相比，其中一個重大變化是燃料，對吧？因此，我們其實是在重申全年指引的同時，吸收了下半年燃料成本的影響。再次強調，我們很高興能透過紀律做到這一點。

Understood. Thank you so much, and good luck.

了解。非常感謝，祝你們順利。

Thank you, Michael.

謝謝你，Michael。

Kate McShane, Goldman Sachs.

Kate McShane，Goldman Sachs。

Hi, good afternoon. Thanks for taking our questions. We wanted to ask just with regards any kind of changes within the quarter by the consumer, what you saw across income cohorts? And any kind of consumer behavior with trading down?

嗨，午安。謝謝讓我們提問。我們想請教，關於本季消費者是否有任何變化，你們在不同收入族群中觀察到什麼？以及消費者是否有任何「向下轉換」（trading down）的行為？

Yeah, Kate, great question. And I think like every retailer, we're watching the consumer trends closely. I would remind you and everyone on the call for that matter that Petco serves customers across all income demographics. We have a really nice offering from both value all the way to premium brands.

是的，Kate，這是個好問題。我想和所有零售商一樣，我們也密切關注消費者趨勢。我也想提醒你以及在電話會議上的各位，Petco服務涵蓋所有收入族群的顧客。我們的產品組合從高性價比到高端品牌都有很好的提供。

And as we look back on the quarter, I would say there was nothing material amongst income demographics that performed differently. It was pretty consistent across all.

回顧本季，我會說在不同收入族群之間，沒有任何實質上表現不同的情況；整體相當一致。

So in total, we didn't see really any different change in behavior.

因此，整體而言，我們沒有看到行為上有任何不同的變化。

Thank you. And then a follow-up question is just with regards to the pricing environment. I think you have a retailer out there that's talking about getting a little bit more aggressive on pricing. Just how does that influence anything in terms of your strategy or what you're thinking and just kind of in conjunction with that, it sounds like you're going to get a fair amount of tariff refunds here. It will be neutralizing in Q2 as you laid out, but could we see maybe tariff refunds be used for any kind of pricing investment as we get into the back half of the year?

謝謝。接著追問關於定價環境。我想市場上有一家零售商提到要在定價上更積極一些。這會如何影響你們的策略或你們的思考？另外，聽起來你們將會收到相當多的關稅退稅。正如你們所說，第二季會是中性，但當我們進入下半年時，是否可能看到你們把關稅退稅用於某種定價投資？

Yeah, I'll start on the pricing piece, Kate. And just say, similar to when we were faced with tariffs last year, we told you all we don't really react on our pricing to any one event. So we are always reviewing our pricing architecture. Our lens is always customer first. We're always, of course, reviewing the competition. We make adjustments as necessary, but we're not having plans to do anything in reaction to any event.

好的，Kate，我先談定價的部分。我想說，類似於去年我們面對關稅時，我們也告訴各位，我們不會因為單一事件就調整定價。我們會持續檢視我們的定價架構；我們的視角永遠是以顧客為先。我們當然也會持續檢視競爭態勢，並在必要時做出調整，但我們沒有計畫因任何事件而採取反應式的作法。

And then with regard to the tariffs, we are not counting on any further refunds. I think you all know there's a date coming up here in a few days, where there can be some appealing of the whole refund process. So we thought it prudent not to count on any of that.

接著談到關稅部分，我們不預期會再有任何進一步的退稅。我想各位都知道，幾天後有一個日期屆時可能會對整個退稅流程提出上訴。所以我們認為謹慎起見，不把任何這類可能性納入考量。

So none of that is in our assumptions. Should it come, fantastic. We can update you on our next quarter call.

所以這些都不在我們的假設之中。若真的發生，那就太好了。我們可以在下一季的電話會議上向各位更新。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Kaumil Gajrawala, Jefferies.

Kaumil Gajrawala，Jefferies。

Hey, guys. Thank you for taking the question. I guess the first thing is your positive comps, your cost structure has changed quite a bit over the sort of recent years. What is the comp level that we should be looking for to allow it to sort of really lever yourself down the P&L?

嗨，各位。謝謝讓我提問。我想第一點是，你們的同店表現轉正，而你們的成本結構在近幾年也有相當大的變化。要讓你們在損益表上真正產生槓桿效益、把費用率有效壓下來，我們應該期待的同店成長大概需要到什麼水準？

Yeah. Great question, Kaumil. The beauty of our model is we don't really need super high comps to make the economic model work. We're talking low-single-digit comps to be able to nicely leverage our SG&A, maintain our healthy margins, and drive that operating profit growth.

是的，Kaumil，問得很好。我們模式的優勢在於，其實不需要非常高的同店成長就能讓經濟模型成立。我們談的是低個位數的同店成長，就能很好地槓桿化我們的SG&A、維持健康的毛利率，並推動營業利益成長。

So we're really pleased that we've managed the expense structure such that we can deliver with that low-single-digit profile.

所以我們很高興，我們已把費用結構管理到能在這種低個位數成長的輪廓下交出成果。

Okay, got it. And then on these oil prices, and I guess not moving guidance because of the price of oil, by the way, not moving guidance is the right idea. Obviously, it's just been one quarter, but the idea of absorbing the cost of oil, is that because of increases from prices from your suppliers? Or is it just a concern about things that are going to come your way over the course of the rest of the quarters?

好的，了解。接著談油價，以及我想你們不因油價而調整財測——順帶一提，不調整財測是對的。當然這才一個季度，但你們提到吸收油價成本，這是因為供應商漲價所帶來的影響嗎？還是你們擔心在接下來幾個季度會有更多成本壓力出現？

Yeah, mostly, I'm addressing the direct cost to our transportation to our supply chain. So it will impact us most directly from our inbound which lags by the way, through our P&L a bit because it first goes into inventory and shows up on the P&L as cost of goods sold when we sell it. But the immediate impact of fuel to our transportation is to our outbound, so our DC to our stores and also our parcel business. So that's the piece that is most direct that we're looking at.

是的，主要我指的是我們供應鏈運輸的直接成本。它對我們最直接的影響會來自入庫運輸（順帶一提，這會在損益表上有些滯後，因為它先進入存貨，等商品售出時才會以銷貨成本反映在損益表上）。但燃油對運輸的即時影響是在出庫端，也就是從配送中心到門市，以及我們的包裹業務。所以我們最直接關注的是這一塊。

I got it. Thank you.

了解，謝謝。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Oliver Wintermantle, Evercore ISI.

Oliver Wintermantle，Evercore ISI。

Thanks very much. Joel, what was the biggest contributor to pushing comps from negative to positive this quarter. Is it improved transactions? Is it mix? Or is it price AUR? If you could give us a little bit more detail on what actually drove the comps positive this quarter.

非常感謝。Joel，本季同店從負轉正的最大貢獻因素是什麼？是交易量改善？是組合？還是價格／AUR（平均單價）？可否再多給我們一些細節，究竟是什麼推動本季同店轉正？

Yeah, I'd rather talk about it first from the strategy side, and then Sabrina can go into the specifics on the mix side of it because what's really important to remind everybody is, and I called this out last quarter, this is largely a self-help year for Petco. And what really -- let's just call Q1 a trifecta, right? We delivered positive comps. We improved profitability, while outperforming on the outlook.

是的，我想先從策略面來談，然後再請Sabrina就組合面的細節補充。因為我想提醒大家很重要的一點——我在上一季也特別提到——今年對Petco而言很大程度上是「自助改善」的一年。而真正推動的因素——我們就把第一季稱作「三連勝」吧：我們交出同店轉正、獲利能力提升，同時也優於原先展望。

And so what really drove that is the execution against all four of the pillars. And so we saw strengths in all of those. And it's resonating with the customer. And given we're in the early innings of that, I kind of have line of sight to the future, and I'm pretty excited about what's still to come with the rest of our strategy.

而真正帶動這些的，是我們在四大支柱上的執行力。因此我們在每一項都看到強勁表現，並且正在與顧客產生共鳴。鑑於我們才剛進入初期階段，我對未來有相當清晰的能見度，也對策略後續仍將帶來的成果感到非常振奮。

Yeah. And from a comp lever perspective, I'd just point out that UPT was quite strong. basket actually improved and the trend in transactions improved, but I would call out that, that remains a really good opportunity for us.

是的。從同店的槓桿因子來看，我會指出UPT（每筆交易件數）相當強勁。客單其實也有改善，交易筆數的趨勢也改善了，但我也要強調，交易筆數仍然是我們很好的機會點。

Got it. And on the gross margin side, a similar question there. Could you maybe give us a little bit more detail what drove the gross margins? Was it mix, was it merch margin, something like that? And then as you mentioned, the second quarter is a little bit tougher compares, but I think the third quarter as well. So maybe a gross margin outlook for the year, how we see it. Thank you very much.

了解。那在毛利率方面也問一個類似的問題：可否再多說明一下是什麼推動毛利率？是組合、商品毛利，或其他因素？另外如你所提，第二季的比較基期較具挑戰，我想第三季也是。能否談談全年毛利率的展望，我們應該如何看待？非常感謝。

Of course, we don't guide forward to gross margin in particular. I did try to be helpful on the second quarter outlook, just to remind that the entire second quarter last year was a bit unusual for the reasons I outlined.

當然，我們不會特別針對毛利率提供前瞻指引。我確實試著在第二季展望上提供一些協助，提醒大家去年第二季整季因我所說明的原因而有些不尋常。

With regard to the first quarter, I would say we continue to use every lever at our disposal. So it's back to Phase 2 never ends retail fundamentals, so negotiating with our vendors making sure we're getting good costing, watching our promotions, our clearance, our markdowns, all of those levels sort of across the board, culminate in delivering on our margin.

至於第一季，我會說我們持續運用手上所有可用的槓桿。也就是回到第二階段「零售基本功永無止境」：與供應商談判、確保取得良好成本；控管促銷、清倉、折價等各個層面。這些全方位的努力加總起來，最終體現在我們的毛利表現上。

Thanks very much, and good luck.

非常感謝，祝順利。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Steven Zaccone, Citi.

Steven Zaccone，Citi。

Great. Good afternoon. Thanks very much for taking my question. Joel, you talked about effort that's underway to build the basket size with cross-selling and customer engagement. Curious if you could talk a bit about timing there? Is this something that can build over the next couple of quarters? Is this a multiyear initiative just to get better cross-selling within the store?

好的，下午好。非常感謝讓我提問。Joel，你提到正在推動透過交叉銷售與顧客互動來提升客單。想請教一下時程：這會在接下來幾個季度逐步建立起來嗎？還是這是一個多年期的計畫，目標是把門市內的交叉銷售做得更好？

Yeah. I mean, we are just getting started on that, Steven. So it clearly has got tailwinds in front of us. And the biggest reason I called it out, and I think I talked about it a couple of calls before, we used to run services in center of the store. It's separate organizations.

是的，我們才剛開始做這件事，Steven。所以很明顯前方還有順風。之所以我特別提出來——我想我在前幾次電話會議也提過——我們過去是把服務業務放在門市中央區域運作，而且是不同的組織。

And really, as we've dissected the business and look for areas of opportunity. The integration between our services and our center store teams a real opportunity for us, and cross-selling is one example. And prior and the example I used is our grooming associates didn't have access or couldn't see a customer's consumables purchases as an example.

而當我們拆解業務、尋找機會點時，我們發現服務團隊與中央賣場（center store）團隊之間的整合對我們而言是一個很大的機會，而交叉銷售只是其中一個例子。我之前舉的例子是，我們的美容（grooming）同仁無法存取、也看不到某位顧客的消耗品購買紀錄。

Why is that important? Well, a groomer would notice their hair and skin and might see that they should be recommending sensitive skin consumables that that's not what they're using today. And the fact that they couldn't see it, our groomers couldn't be helpful to the customer.

為什麼這很重要？因為美容師會注意到毛髮與皮膚狀況，可能會建議顧客改用敏感肌配方的消耗品，但那可能不是顧客目前正在使用的產品。由於看不到這些資訊，我們的美容師就無法更有效地協助顧客。

So giving them access to that is just one great example of certainly a cross-selling opportunity for us, but a way to be really helpful for our customer and the health of their pet. So real opportunity going forward for us.

因此讓他們能存取這些資訊，就是一個很好的例子：這當然是我們的交叉銷售機會之一，但更重要的是，這能真正幫助顧客與寵物健康。所以未來對我們而言是很大的機會。

Okay, great. The follow-up I had is just on the industry overall. I mean, we're only one quarter into the year, but there has been mixed commentary across the pet landscape. As you think about industry growth forecast for '26, how do you think things are playing out versus expectations? You talked about cat outperforming and Fresh & Frozen doing well. But how do you think the year is kind of shaping out relative to expectations from an industry perspective?

好的，很好。我接著想追問的是整體產業。我知道今年才過一季，但在寵物產業各家公司之間的說法有些分歧。你怎麼看2026年的產業成長預測？相較於原先預期，現在的發展如何？你提到貓類表現較佳、Fresh & Frozen（鮮食與冷凍）做得不錯。但從產業角度來看，你覺得今年的走勢相對於預期大致如何？

Yeah. Look, clearly, we're not seeing adoption trends growing at this point with the exception of cat. But I think it's -- I reminded earlier on this call, this is a self-help year for Petco. So we aren't beholden to the industry growing to achieve our objectives for this year. We'll take the tailwinds if they come. But right now, we're really driving our pillars, our Reach for the Sky strategy to make a difference on that.

是的。你看，很明顯目前我們沒有看到領養（adoption）趨勢在成長，貓類是例外。但我想——我在本次電話會議前面也提醒過——今年對Petco而言是自助改善的一年。因此，我們不需要仰賴產業成長來達成今年的目標；如果順風來了我們當然樂於接受。但就目前而言，我們正透過我們的各項支柱、我們的「Reach for the Sky」策略來推動改變。

Okay. Thanks for the detail. Best of luck.

好的。謝謝你提供的細節。祝你一切順利。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Steve Forbes, Guggenheim Securities.

Steve Forbes，Guggenheim Securities。

Good afternoon, Joel, Sabrina. I appreciate the comments around optimizing the services business, but curious if you can maybe just take a step back and how do you expand on what you're exactly doing in the 25 underutilized hospitals today, what you're seeing with the customer post sort of those changes? And if there's any way to sort of size up how you see or contextualize the opportunity ahead based on sort of the number of customers today, engaging in services relative to the total pool of customers engaging in the product.

下午好，Joel、Sabrina。感謝你們對於優化服務業務的評論，但我想請你們或許先退一步，能否再展開說明一下：目前在那 25 家利用率偏低的醫院，你們究竟在做哪些事情、在這些變動之後你們看到客戶端有哪些反應？另外，是否有辦法就機會規模做個量化或脈絡化的說明——例如以目前參與服務的客戶數，相對於整體使用產品的客戶池，來看你們如何看待未來的機會？

Yeah. A lot to unpack there, Steve. So I'll try and answer your question completely. And if I miss anything, come back at me.

是的，Steve，這裡面要拆解的點很多。我會盡量完整回答你的問題；如果我漏了什麼，再提醒我。

Look, I think earlier in our vet growth, we were in a phase where we were just trying to hit the number of openings. And the focus and opportunity I saw when I got here was really more on optimization and driving productivity before we start the growth up.

你看，我認為在我們早期的獸醫業務成長階段，我們處於一個只想達成開店數量目標的階段。而我來到這裡後看到的重點與機會，其實更在於先做優化、提升生產力，再重新啟動成長。

Having said that, we're in a much different position today, nearly 300 hospitals. We have 1,400 clinics, meaning we're in all our other stores with vaccination clinics. And so I think it's an asset I didn't fully appreciate before I joined. And we're really now operating at scale, Steven.

話雖如此，我們今天的位置已經很不一樣了：接近 300 家醫院。我們有 1,400 個診所，意思是我們在其他所有門市都有疫苗接種診所。所以我覺得這是一項我加入之前沒有完全體會到的資產。而我們現在確實是在規模化營運了，Steven。

But having said that, we've got the opportunity to have more flexible schedules. So we've been really good at opening up the schedule. So if a customer needs a bet appointment, we can't make them wait two weeks or they'll go somewhere else.

不過即便如此，我們仍有機會提供更彈性的排班。所以我們一直很擅長把可預約時段打開。因為如果客戶需要看診，我們不能讓他們等兩週，否則他們就會去別的地方。

The teams have done a really good job changing that, optimizing doctor days, being more flexible with that, opening up more days in the week. And so all of those are really driving the productivity. And with that, that will just serve us better as we start to open up new hospitals, which are still on track for 2027, but really excited about the phase we're in right now for hospitals.

團隊在這方面做得非常好：調整並優化醫師出診日程、讓排班更有彈性、把一週內更多天的門診開出來。這些都在推動生產力提升。而這也會在我們開始開設新醫院時更有利；新醫院仍按計畫在 2027 年推進，但我們對目前醫院所處的這個階段感到非常興奮。

Did I capture everything you asked?

我有把你問的都涵蓋到嗎？

Yeah. I mean, obviously, you can explore for a while. But as we think about the return to that hospital growth in 2027, most of us have sort of the prior maturation expectations of the vet hospital. I'd be curious, just based on sort of the initiatives underway and sort of what you're seeing, if there has been a directional improvement and if we can think about a better ROI or a shorter payback period? Or just any sort of initial thoughts on the conviction behind returning to that hospital growth?

有。我是說，當然你們可以談很久。但當我們思考 2027 年回到醫院成長時，多數人對獸醫醫院先前的成熟期假設仍有印象。我想請教，基於目前正在推動的各項措施以及你們看到的情況，是否已經出現方向性的改善？我們是否可以期待更好的投資報酬率（ROI）或更短的回收期？或者，對於重啟醫院成長這件事，你們目前的初步想法與信心來源是什麼？

I'll chime in there a little bit and just add that the improvement we've seen in these later year cohorts is significant. So we've learned lessons the tough way when we expanded very quickly in the early 2020s and we've been honing the model ever since. So it's absolutely true that we are improving and shortening that maturity curve in the recent cohorts.

我補充一下：我們在較後期年度的這些同批（cohort）看到的改善非常顯著。我們在 2020 年代初期快速擴張時，確實是用比較辛苦的方式學到教訓，而之後一直在打磨這個模式。所以可以很肯定地說，近期批次的成熟曲線確實在改善並縮短。

I'll also add, though, I just keep emphasizing to everyone, we have a great opportunity with this existing fleet to keep improving the return on those assets, to keep optimizing the fleet. That continues to be a terrific opportunity in addition to future growth. It's not just that like we have these 25, which we are super focused on. and we're done. We keep improving the entire fleet. And so that's a really important opportunity.

不過我也要再強調一次：我們在既有門店/院所組合（fleet）上有很大的機會，持續提升這些資產的報酬、持續優化整體組合。除了未來成長之外，這本身就是一個非常棒的機會。並不是說我們只專注這 25 家，做完就結束；我們會持續改善整個組合。所以這是一個非常重要的機會。

Yeah, I think that's a great call, Sabrina. And I think all those learnings on both optimizing existing how to improve the productivity of the 25 we're concentrating, all those learnings are going into shortening the ROI curve or improving the ROI curve, I should say, as we start to open new hospitals next year.

是的，我覺得你說得很好，Sabrina。我認為這些學到的經驗——不論是優化既有院所、或是提升我們聚焦的那 25 家的生產力——都會用來縮短 ROI 曲線，或者應該說提升 ROI 曲線，因為我們明年開始開設新醫院時就會把這些做法帶進去。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Yeah. Thanks, Stephen.

好的。謝謝你，Stephen。

Simeone Gutman, Morgan Stanley.

Simeone Gutman，Morgan Stanley。

Hi. This is Skylar Tennant on for Simeone Gutman. Thank you for taking our question. So your outlook looks to contemplate a slightly stronger earnings profile in the second half of the year. Can you touch on how much of the progression is driven by initiatives you've already outlined contributing versus potentially some incremental margin opportunities that haven't yet been fully realized. Thank you.

嗨，我是代替 Simeone Gutman 的 Skylar Tennant。謝謝讓我們提問。你們的展望似乎預期下半年獲利表現會稍微更強。能否談談，這樣的改善有多少是來自你們已經說明過的各項措施所帶來的貢獻？以及是否還有一些尚未完全實現的額外毛利/利潤率機會可能帶來增量？謝謝。

Sure. If you think about our Q1 actual at 97% and the midpoint of our Q2 at 111 and our midpoint for our full year adjusted EBITDA guide, they have sort of break out 49% to 51%, which honestly, from a historical perspective, is very much in line. So what we've guided to is not unusual. And I'm actually very happy to say that because I always like to pull forward as much as we can, the earnings into the first half, so you're not looking at a big hockey stick.

當然。如果你看我們第一季實際為 97%，第二季指引中點為 111，以及全年調整後 EBITDA 指引中點，拆分大概是 49% 到 51%；老實說，從歷史角度來看這非常一致。所以我們給出的指引並不反常。而我其實很高興能這麼說，因為我一向希望能把獲利盡可能往上半年拉，讓你們不會看到下半年出現很大的「曲棍球桿」式跳升。

So with this guide so far, we've already, in some ways, de-risked because we're looking at -- even with all of our initiatives coming in, we're looking at a very balanced year in terms of first half, second half profitability.

因此，以目前這份指引來看，我們在某種程度上已經降低風險，因為即使把所有措施的貢獻都納入，我們看到的是一個在上半年、下半年獲利能力相對均衡的一年。

Okay, great. Thank you. And you highlighted some stronger performance in the cat category and suggested the demand pickup was largely expected. Could you just unpack the underlying drivers there a bit, please?

好的，很好，謝謝。你也提到貓品類表現更強，並表示需求回升大致在預期之內。能否請你再拆解一下背後的驅動因素？

Yes. When I mean expected, it's -- we saw this trend really improving last year. So the merchants jumped on this already last year. and really got after it in Q1 with newness. And so that really played well with the strong year-over-year sales growth. And as I said in my prepared remarks, we're actually leaning in further with other categories in cat as we haven't seen trend go the other way at all. So we're really excited about cat.

可以。我所謂「在預期之內」是指——我們去年就看到這個趨勢在明顯改善。所以商務團隊去年就已經開始跟進，並在第一季透過新品導入積極推進。這也很好地帶動了強勁的年對年銷售成長。正如我在事先準備的發言中提到的，我們其實還會在貓的其他品類上進一步加碼，因為我們完全沒有看到趨勢反轉。所以我們對貓品類非常興奮。

And specifically, I just show it to you that we're just getting better at being trend-right as merchants, and they're doing a really good job identifying where we can differentiate, where we should drive newness and cat was a great example.

更具體地說，這也顯示我們作為商務團隊在掌握趨勢方面做得越來越好；他們在辨識我們可以差異化的地方、以及應該推動新品的地方做得非常出色，而貓品類就是一個很好的例子。

Great. Thank you.

很好，謝謝。

Thank you. And I think, operator, that concludes our call today. And appreciate everyone getting on.

謝謝。我想，接線員，今天的電話會議就到這裡。也感謝大家撥空參與。

As you can tell from Sabrina and I, we are really excited about the early results of our Reach for the Sky strategy and returning back to positive comps while still improving our productivity.

從 Sabrina 和我你們也看得出來，我們對「Reach for the Sky」策略的早期成果感到非常振奮；在持續提升生產力的同時，我們也回到同店銷售（comps）為正的軌道。

Look forward to seeing you all on our Q2 call. Thank you very much, and have a great night.

期待在第二季電話會議再與各位見面。非常感謝，祝各位晚安。

The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect.

本次會議到此結束。感謝您參加今天的簡報。您現在可以中斷連線。