An article in Financial Analysts Journal discusses results of a regression analysis of average price per share P on the independent variable X/k, where X/k is the contemporaneous earnings per share divided by firm-specific discount rate. The regression was run using a random sample of 213 firms listed in the Value Line Investment Survey. The reported results are
P = 16.67 + 0.68X
k(12.03)
where the number in parentheses is the standard error. Is there a linear relationship between the two variables?