Northwood Company manufactures basketballs. The company has a ball that sells for $42. At present, the ball is manufactured in a small plant that relies heavily on direct labor workers. Thus, variable expenses are high, totaling $25.20 per ball, of which 60% is direct labor cost. Last year, the company sold 44,000 of these balls, with the following results: Variable expenses 1,108,800 margin Required: 1-a. Compute last year's CM ratio and the break-even point in balls. (Do not round intermediate calculations.) 1-b. Compute the the degree of operating leverage at last year's sales level. (Round your answer to 2 decimal places.)