E9-12 Inventory analysis Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) compete against each oth- er in general merchandise retailing, gas stations, pharmacies, and optical centers. Below is selected financial information for both companies from a recent year's financial statements (in millions): Wal-Mart Costco $485,651 365,086 $116,199 Sales Cost of goods sold Inventory, beginning of period Inventory, end of period 101,065 44,858 8,456 8,908 45,141 Determine for both companies (1) the inventory turnover and (2) the days' sales in inven- tory. Round to one decimal place. b. Compare and interpret the inventory metrics computed in (a). a