O'Grady Apparel Company was founded nearly $150$ years ago when an Irish merchant named Garrett O'Grady landed in Halifax with an inventory of heavy canvas, which he hoped to sell for tents and wagon covers. Instead, he turned to the sale of harder wearing clothing.

Today, the O'Grady Apparel Company is a small manufacturer of fabrics and clothing whose common shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange. In $2008,$ the Nova Scotia$-$based company experienced sharp increases in sales in both domestic and European markets, resulting in record earnings. Sales rose from $$15\mathrm{.}9$ million in $2007$ to $$18\mathrm{.}3$ million in $2008$ with earnings per share of $$3\mathrm{.}28$ and $$3\mathrm{.}84,$ respectively.

The European sales represented $29$ percent of total sales in $2008,$ up from $24$ percent the year before and only $3$ percent in $1998,1$ year after foreign operations were launched. Although foreign sales represent nearly one$-$third of total sales, the growth in the domestic market is expected to affect the company most markedly. For $2009,$ management expects sales to surpass $$21$ million, and earnings per share are expected to rise to $$4\mathrm{.}40.($Selected income statement items are presented in Table $1.)$

TABLE $1$ Selected Income Statement Items

$\backslash$table$[[,2006,2007,2008,\backslash$table$[[$Projected$],[2009]]],[\backslash$table$[[$Net sales$],[$Net income after$],[$taxes$]],$$$13,860,000,$$$15,940,000,$$$18,330,000,$$$21,080,000$