Which situation below might indicate a company has a low quality of earnings?

PM Manufacturing produces a chemical pesticide and uses process costing

There are three processing departments-Mixing, Refining, and Packaging. On January 1, the first department-Mixing-had no beginning inventory. During January, 40,000 fl. oz. of chemicals were started in production. Of these, 34,000 fl. oz. were completed, and 6,000 fl. oz. remained in process. In the Mixing Department, all direct materials are added at the beginning of the production process, and conversion costs are applied evenly through the process. The weighted-average method is used. At the end of the month, PM calculated equivalent units in the Mixing Department as shown below: EQUIVALENT UNITS Equivalent Units Equivalent Units Units accounted for Direct Materials Costs Conversion Costs Completed and transferred out 34,000 34,000 34,000 Ending work-in-process* 6,000 6,000 3,600 40,000 40,000 37,600 * Percent complete for direct materials costs: 100% Percent complete of completion for conversion costs: 60% During January, the Mixing Department incurred $49,000 in direct materials costs and $213,000 in conversion costs. How much was the cost per equivalent unit for materials and for conversion costs? (Use the weighted average method and round your answer to the nearest cent.) A) $8.17 per EP for direct materials and $5.33 per EUP for conversion costs B) $1.23 for materials and $6.26 for conversion C) $1.44 for materials and $6.26 for conversion D) $1.23 for materials and $5.66 for conversion

An organization that sells or markets new securities issued by businesses to individuals and institutional investors is called a (n)

a. mutual fund b. investment bank c. insurance company d. brokerage firm