A plc is a company which is listed on the UK Stock Exchange. Your client, Mr B, currently owns 300 shares in A plc. Mr B has recently received the published financial statements of A plc for the year ended 30 September 1998. Extracts from these published financial statements, and other relevant information, are given below. Mr B is confused by the statements.

He is unsure how the performance of the company during the year will affect the market value of his shares, but is aware that the published earnings per share (EPS) is a statistic which is often used by analysts in assessing the performance of listed companies.