The table below contains selected information from recent financial statements of The Home Depot, Inc., and Lowe's Companies, Inc., two companies in the home improvement retail industry ($ in millions):

Required:
Calculate the gross profit ratio, the inventory turnover ratio, and the average days in inventory for the two companies using the most recent fiscal year data. Compare your calculations for the two companies, taking into account the industryaverages.

Home Depot 2/1/09 2/3/08 /30/09 2/21/08 $71,288 77,349 $48,230 $48,283 47,298 51,352 31,729 31,556 10,673 ,7318 7,611 Lowe's Net sales Cost of goods sold Year-end inventory 8,209 Industry averages; Gross profit ratio Inventory turnover ratio Average days in inventory 33% 91