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# A company s two divisions performed with remarkable

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Director
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A company s two divisions performed with remarkable [#permalink]

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27 Sep 2010, 20:04
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A company’s two divisions performed with remarkable consistency over the past three years: in each of those years, the pharmaceuticals division has accounted for roughly 20 percent of dollar ales and 40 percent of profits, and the chemicals division for the balance.

Which of the following can properly be inferred regarding the past three years from the statement above?

a) Total dollar sales for each of the company’s divisions have remained roughly constant.
b) The pharmaceuticals division has faced stiffer competition in its markets than has the chemicals division.
c) The chemicals division has realized lower profits per dollar of sales than has the pharmaceuticals division.
d) The product mix offered by each of the company’s divisions has remained unchanged.
e) Highly profitable products accounted for a higher percentage of the chemicals division’s sales than of those of the pharmaceuticals divisions.

Think before you go for the answer
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27 Sep 2010, 21:33
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a) Total dollar sales for each of the company’s divisions have remained roughly constant.
We do not know the the total dollar sales for the divisions. Wrong answer.

b) The pharmaceuticals division has faced stiffer competition in its markets than has the chemicals division.
The statement says nothing about competition in the markets.

d) The product mix offered by each of the company’s divisions has remained unchanged.
It doesn't matter if the product mix offered by each of the company’s divisions remained the same or not.

c) The chemicals division has realized lower profits per dollar of sales than has the pharmaceuticals division.
The pharmaceuticals division has accounted for 20% of the total dollar sales and 40% of the profits while the chemicals division has accounted for 80% of the total dollar sales and 60% of the profits. So we can infer that the pharma division made more profits per dollar of sales than the chemicals division did.

e) Highly profitable products accounted for a higher percentage of the chemicals division’s sales than of those of the pharmaceuticals divisions.
If the chemicals division's products were highly profitable compared to those of the pharma division, then the chemicals division should have made much more profits on the total dollar sales than the pharma division. However, this was not the case.

I go for C.
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27 Sep 2010, 23:52
suyashjhawar wrote:
A company’s two divisions performed with remarkable consistency over the past three years: in each of those years, the pharmaceuticals division has accounted for roughly 20 percent of dollar ales and 40 percent of profits, and the chemicals division for the balance.

Which of the following can properly be inferred regarding the past three years from the statement above?

a) Total dollar sales for each of the company’s divisions have remained roughly constant.
b) The pharmaceuticals division has faced stiffer competition in its markets than has the chemicals division.
c) The chemicals division has realized lower profits per dollar of sales than has the pharmaceuticals division.
d) The product mix offered by each of the company’s divisions has remained unchanged.
e) Highly profitable products accounted for a higher percentage of the chemicals division’s sales than of those of the pharmaceuticals divisions.

Think before you go for the answer

I think it should be A because the the entire percentages are based on total dollar sales value, if they remain constant

A is the one I go for. It is the sole assumption on which the statements are based. For a period of three years and key word "each of those years"

rest all go out of the way.

D was an option here but somehow it looked vague to me here. A is the only option which atleast qualifies.

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28 Sep 2010, 06:57
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C

A is not the right choice. The question is talking about 20% and 80% total sales between the two divisions.
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28 Sep 2010, 08:13
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suyashjhawar wrote:
A company’s two divisions performed with remarkable consistency over the past three years: in each of those years, the pharmaceuticals division has accounted for roughly 20 percent of dollar ales and 40 percent of profits, and the chemicals division for the balance.

Which of the following can properly be inferred regarding the past three years from the statement above?

a) Total dollar sales for each of the company’s divisions have remained roughly constant.
b) The pharmaceuticals division has faced stiffer competition in its markets than has the chemicals division.
c) The chemicals division has realized lower profits per dollar of sales than has the pharmaceuticals division.
d) The product mix offered by each of the company’s divisions has remained unchanged.
e) Highly profitable products accounted for a higher percentage of the chemicals division’s sales than of those of the pharmaceuticals divisions.

Think before you go for the answer

If "S" is sales and "P" is profit:
$$Pharma = 0.4*P/0.2*S = 2P/S$$
$$Chemic = 0.6*P/0.8*S = 3P/4S$$

Thus, the chemical division realizes a lower profit per sales than that of the Pharma. C.
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28 Sep 2010, 08:23
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This seems like such a math question. I read through all of the answer choices and read E. I thought E was the right answer but it seemed to easy then looked back at C. C is the answer for sure. Pharma: 20% of "ales" but makes up 40% of profits.
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28 Sep 2010, 09:02
MBAUncle wrote:
suyashjhawar wrote:
A company’s two divisions performed with remarkable consistency over the past three years: in each of those years, the pharmaceuticals division has accounted for roughly 20 percent of dollar ales and 40 percent of profits, and the chemicals division for the balance.

Which of the following can properly be inferred regarding the past three years from the statement above?

a) Total dollar sales for each of the company’s divisions have remained roughly constant.
b) The pharmaceuticals division has faced stiffer competition in its markets than has the chemicals division.
c) The chemicals division has realized lower profits per dollar of sales than has the pharmaceuticals division.
d) The product mix offered by each of the company’s divisions has remained unchanged.
e) Highly profitable products accounted for a higher percentage of the chemicals division’s sales than of those of the pharmaceuticals divisions.

Think before you go for the answer

If "S" is sales and "P" is profit:
$$Pharma = 0.4*P/0.2*S = 2P/S$$
$$Chemic = 0.6*P/0.8*S = 3P/4S$$

Thus, the chemical division realizes a lower profit per sales than that of the Pharma. C.

Guys you cannot make those calculations unless the total sales value is constant. We dont know the changes which happened in share out of the total value across all years.
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28 Sep 2010, 09:39
sauravdas wrote:
Guys you cannot make those calculations unless the total sales value is constant. We dont know the changes which happened in share out of the total value across all years.

A company’s two divisions performed with remarkable consistency over the past three years.
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28 Sep 2010, 10:17
OA is C friends.Rightly pointed by many.

Pharmaceuticals division made 40% profit on only 20 % of sales while chemicals division making up the balance made 60% of profits on 80% of sales. Thus chemicals division made a lower profit per dollar of sale than the pharmaceuticals division, hence Choice C.
No info about total dollar sales, so A incorrect nor about the severity of competition so B incorrect. No info is provided about the mix of products nor about the breakdown between highly profitable and not highly profitable products. So neither D nor E.
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28 Sep 2010, 10:29
suyashjhawar wrote:
OA is C friends.Rightly pointed by many.

Pharmaceuticals division made 40% profit on only 20 % of sales while chemicals division making up the balance made 60% of profits on 80% of sales. Thus chemicals division made a lower profit per dollar of sale than the pharmaceuticals division, hence Choice C.
No info about total dollar sales, so A incorrect nor about the severity of competition so B incorrect. No info is provided about the mix of products nor about the breakdown between highly profitable and not highly profitable products. So neither D nor E.

Thanks for posting the questions, these are great. Keep up the good work.
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28 Sep 2010, 11:09
OE?
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28 Sep 2010, 11:42
Dawgie wrote:
suyashjhawar wrote:
OA is C friends.Rightly pointed by many.

Pharmaceuticals division made 40% profit on only 20 % of sales while chemicals division making up the balance made 60% of profits on 80% of sales. Thus chemicals division made a lower profit per dollar of sale than the pharmaceuticals division, hence Choice C.
No info about total dollar sales, so A incorrect nor about the severity of competition so B incorrect. No info is provided about the mix of products nor about the breakdown between highly profitable and not highly profitable products. So neither D nor E.

Thanks for posting the questions, these are great. Keep up the good work.

Even i loved this question.Kudos waiting
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28 Sep 2010, 11:53
suyashjhawar wrote:
Dawgie wrote:
suyashjhawar wrote:
OA is C friends.Rightly pointed by many.

Pharmaceuticals division made 40% profit on only 20 % of sales while chemicals division making up the balance made 60% of profits on 80% of sales. Thus chemicals division made a lower profit per dollar of sale than the pharmaceuticals division, hence Choice C.
No info about total dollar sales, so A incorrect nor about the severity of competition so B incorrect. No info is provided about the mix of products nor about the breakdown between highly profitable and not highly profitable products. So neither D nor E.

Thanks for posting the questions, these are great. Keep up the good work.

Even i loved this question.Kudos waiting

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28 Sep 2010, 14:42
Hard to understand the question. Are there words missing or something? "dollar ales" and "and the chemicals division for the balance"??? Maybe I can't think straight anymore and need to take a break...

Anyway, I think it is C.
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28 Sep 2010, 19:57
Lethal wrote:
Hard to understand the question. Are there words missing or something? "dollar ales" and "and the chemicals division for the balance"??? Maybe I can't think straight anymore and need to take a break...

Anyway, I think it is C.

Typo error .....its sales.Sorry for that.
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Re: A company s two divisions performed with remarkable [#permalink]

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05 Sep 2015, 20:50
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Re: A company s two divisions performed with remarkable   [#permalink] 05 Sep 2015, 20:50
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