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

At December 31	Current Year	1 Year Ago	2 Years Ago
Assets
Cash	$ 36,748	$ 40,869	$ 43,876
Accounts receivable, net	103,404	72,251	57,922
Merchandise inventory	126,110	99,333	63,556
Prepaid expenses	11,374	11,166	4,730
Plant assets, net	327,065	297,675	268,716
Total assets	$ 604,701	$ 521,294	$ 438,800
Liabilities and Equity
Accounts payable	$ 146,053	$ 85,456	$ 59,659
Long-term notes payable	112,547	121,097	95,035
Common stock, $10 par value	162,500	162,500	162,500
Retained earnings	183,601	152,241	121,606
Total liabilities and equity	$ 604,701	$ 521,294	$ 438,800

The companys income statements for the current year and one year ago, follow.

For Year Ended December 31	Current Year		1 Year Ago
Sales		$ 786,111		$ 620,340
Cost of goods sold	$ 479,528		$ 403,221
Other operating expenses	243,694		156,946
Interest expense	13,364		14,268
Income tax expense	10,219		9,305
Total costs and expenses		746,805		583,740
Net income		$ 39,306		$ 36,600
Earnings per share		$ 2.42		$ 2.25

(1) Compute debt and equity ratio for the current year and one year ago.

(2-a) Compute debt-to-equity ratio for the current year and one year ago. (2-b) Based on debt-to-equity ratio, does the company have more or less debt in the current year versus one year ago?

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