Barbara Baggins, owner of the Hobbit Hotel, is new to the hotel business. She thought that her knowledge and experience in real estate development would help her evaluate the success of her investment in the hotel. Three months into the fiscal year, the hotel was earning a profit, but Barbara wasnt sure whether the return on her investment was high or low. Which of the following standards would provide Barbara with a baseline against which to compare the hotels financial ratios for the quarter?

a) industry averages

b) budgeted ratio goals

c) ratios from a past period

d) official standards set by government regulations