Mercedes, Co. has the following quarterly financial information. 4th Quarter 3rd Quarter 2nd Quarter 1st Quarter Sales revenue $ 913,800 $ 923,300 $ 921,600 $ 929,400 Cost of goods sold 305,100 317,700 317,300 322,500 Operating expenses 248,300 259,700 257,900 262,000 Interest expense 3,900 3,900 3,900 3,800 Income tax expense 84,900 87,800 87,800 90,300 Average number of common shares outstanding 796,030 791,064 792,670 806,000 Stock price when Q4 EPS released $ 24 a. Calculate the gross profit percentage for each quarter. (Do not round your intermediate calculations and round your final answer to 2 decimal places.)

Mercedes, Co.

Gross profit percentage for each quarter:

= Gross profit / Sales x 100

                                4th Quarter    3rd Quarter   2nd Quarter  1st Quarter

Gross profit             $ 608,700       $ 605,600     $ 604,300    $ 606,900

Sales revenue         $ 913,800       $ 923,300      $ 921,600    $ 929,400

Gross profit $            66.61%             65.59%           65.57%        65.30%

Explanation:

a) Data and Calculations:

                                 4th Quarter    3rd Quarter   2nd Quarter  1st Quarter

Sales revenue          $ 913,800       $ 923,300      $ 921,600    $ 929,400

Cost of goods sold     305,100            317,700          317,300       322,500

Gross profit             $ 608,700       $ 605,600     $ 604,300    $ 606,900

Operating expenses 248,300           259,700         257,900      262,000 Interest expense           3,900                3,900              3,900          3,800

Income tax expense   84,900              87,800             87,800       90,300

Average number of common

 shares outstanding 796,030            791,064          792,670     806,000

b) The Gross profit percentage of Mercedes, Co for each quarter is calculated as the gross profit divided by sales revenue, and then multiplied by 100.  To obtain the gross profit, the cost of goods sold is deducted from the sales revenue.  The gross profit represents a financial measure that shows the performance of management in controlling the cost of goods sold in comparison with the sales revenue.  It is from the gross profit that operating expenses, interests, and taxes will be offset to arrive at the net income.

in 2001, dell computer became the world’s largest personal computer vendor, continuing to

gain market share and post profits in an industry struggling with slumping sales and billions of

dollars in losses. dell sells 90% of its pcs directly to the final customer, largely bypassing the

reseller channel that accounts for most of the world’s pc sales. this direct customer relationship

is the key to dell’s business model, and provides distinct advantages over the indirect sales

model. dell’s direct relationship with the customer allows it to tailor its offerings to customer

needs, offer add-on products and services, and use the internet to offer a variety of customer

services. in addition, dell’s pcs are built to customers’ specifications upon receipt of an order,

giving dell additional advantages over indirect pc vendors who must try to forecast demand and

ship products based on those forecasts. dell’s direct sales and build-to-order model has achieved

superior performance in the pc industry in terms of inventory turnover, reduced overhead, cash

conversion, and return on investment (kraemer, et al., 2000).

explanation:

they can see what that city is producing and to also see if they can some how get that product. like gold in africa.