Simon Company's year-end balance sheets follow.

At December 31	Current Yr				1 Yr Ago			2 Yrs Ago
Assets
Cash		$	34,326		$	40,943		$	42,223
Accounts receivable, net			101,519			72,367			55,160
Merchandise inventory			125,088			96,575			62,397
Prepaid expenses			11,505			10,640			4,644
Plant assets, net			321,238			291,265			266,376
Total assets		$	593,676		$	511,790		$	430,800
Liabilities and Equity
Accounts payable		$	149,304		$	85,628		$	57,434
Long-term notes payable secured by mortgages on plant assets			109,379			115,357			94,255
Common stock, $10 par value			163,500			163,500			163,500
Retained earnings			171,493			147,305			115,611
Total liabilities and equity		$	593,676		$	511,790		$	430,800

1. Express the balance sheets in common-size percents. (Do not round intermediate calculations and round your final percentage answers to 1 decimal place.) 2. Assuming annual sales have not changed in the last three years, is the change in accounts receivable as a percentage of total assets favorable or unfavorable? 3. Assuming annual sales have not changed in the last three years, is the change in merchandise inventory as a percentage of total assets favorable or unfavorable?

SIMON COMPANY
Common-Size Comparative Balance Sheets
December 31
	Current Year		1 Year Ago		2 Years Ago
Assets
Cash		%		%		%
Accounts receivable, net
Merchandise inventory
Prepaid expenses
Plant assets, net
Total assets		%		%		%
Liabilities and Equity
Accounts payable		%		%		%
Long-term notes payable secured by mortgages on plant assets
Common stock, $10 par
Retained earnings
Total liabilities and equity		%		%		%