Fundamentals of Financial Accounting 4th Edition by Fred Phillips,Robert Libby,Patricia Libby

Exercise 56

Comparing Financial Information
Refer to the financial statements of The Home Depot in Appendix A and Lowe's in Appendix B at the end of this book, or download the annual reports from the Cases section of the text's Web site at www.mhhe.com/phillips4e.
Required:
1. Did Lowe's sales revenues increase or decrease in the year ended January 28, 2011, as compared to the previous year By how much Calculate this change as a percentage of the previous year's sales revenues. Is the trend in Lowe's sales revenues more or less favorable than The Home Depot's
2. State the amount of the largest expense on the income statement of Lowe's for the year ended January 28, 2011, and describe the transaction represented by the expense. Did this expense increase or decrease and by what percentage, as compared to the previous year Is the trend in Lowe's largest expense more or less favorable than the trend for The Home Depot's largest expense