Egg Limited Accountant, Mr Montague, has assembled the following data from the company’s last five sets of historical cost accounts.

Requirement You are required to prepare a report for Mr Montague on the company’s financial state and progress over the period based on the information in the report, and commenting on its possible limitations if there have been price changes in the period.

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2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 Net profit margin: Profit before tax and interest Revenue 5.6% 5.4% 4.9% 5.1% 5.3% Return on capital employed: Profit before tax and interest Total assets less current liabilities Interest cover: 12.3% 13.5% 11.8% 14.3% 14.3% Profit before interest and tax Interest 2.4 5.2 5.5 6.0 2.9 Dividend cover: Earnings Ordinary dividend Gearing: Debt 2.3 2.1 1.8 2.0 2.7 Equity Debt Equity non-controlling interests Quick ratio: Current assets less inventory Current liabilities 60.7% 57.2% 44.5% 12.8% 34.6% 56.3% 54.0% 41.9% 11.1% 32.4% 68.6% 68.2% 72.5% 109.4% 90.2%