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[The following information applies to the questions displayed below.] Simon Companys year-end balance sheets follow.

At December 31	Current Yr					1 Yr Ago			2 Yrs Ago
Assets
Cash		$	27,220			$	33,441		$	34,848
Accounts receivable, net			82,917				55,681			44,187
Merchandise inventory			99,192				74,329			49,494
Prepaid expenses			8,766				8,352			3,720
Plant assets, net			252,677				234,035			212,851
Total assets		$	470,772			$	405,838		$	345,100
Liabilities and Equity
Accounts payable		$	118,394			$	68,587		$	45,098
Long-term notes payable secured by mortgages on plant assets			90,275				94,276			76,267
Common stock, $10 par value			162,500				162,500			162,500
Retained earnings			99,603				80,475			61,235
Total liabilities and equity		$	470,772			$	405,838		$	345,100

The companys income statements for the Current Year and 1 Year Ago, follow.

For Year Ended December 31	Current Yr						1 Yr Ago
Sales				$	612,004					$	482,947
Cost of goods sold	$	373,322					$	313,916
Other operating expenses		189,721						122,186
Interest expense		10,404						11,108
Income tax expense		7,956						7,244
Total costs and expenses					581,403						454,454
Net income				$	30,601					$	28,493
Earnings per share				$	1.88					$	1.75

For both the Current Year and 1 Year Ago, compute the following ratios:

(3-a) Times interest earned. (3-b) Based on times interest earned, is the company more or less risky for creditors in the Current Year versus 1 Year Ago?