Kelley Company reports $$1,525,000$ of net income and declares $$213,500$ of cash dividends on its preferred stock for the year. At year$-$end, the company had $280,000$ weighted$-$average shares of common stock.

What is the company$$s basic earnings per share $($EPS$)?$

In the prior year, Kelley had a basic earnings per share $($EPS$)$ of $$4\mathrm{.}48.$ Did Kelly improve its earnings per share $($EPS$)$ in the current year?