Q3 2023 Smith & Nephew PLC Trading Statement Call Transcript

The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.

Question: Graham Doyle - UBS Investment Bank, Research Division - Analyst : So just from what you're saying, and obviously, you changed the guidance from at least 17.5% to around 17.5%. It kind of implies something like a 20 to 30 basis points lowering in that target, seemingly driven by China and some issues over a short period of months. So could you contextualize that because annualizing that would be kind of worrying when we think about next year. So maybe just contextualize what's actually happened there? And then how much is attributable to it? And I'll just follow up with the 2025 question after, if that's okay.

Question: Graham Doyle - UBS Investment Bank, Research Division - Analyst : Just onto 2025, so I'm just thinking of the things that have changed from when you set that guidance at the start of the year is obviously VBP itself is new. And then it sounds to me, based on the original guidance, the margin base for the end of this year is going to be lower versus where you were originally. It sounded like when we talked, I think it was the Q1 call that the 20% target in 25% had fat or had excess in it. Would you be able to share with us the degree of space you have in that number because obviously, you're taking a kind of newer headwinds, but you still seem very confident on it. And it was something we said at Q1 as well, we talked about VBP. So would you be able to just to give us real confidence in how we think about modeling that. So we know that you've got numerous levers that could have theoretically gotten you to 21% or 22% and then we can kind of work back that way rather than starting at 20% as the optimum and sort of taking a headwinds of that?