To determine Marie Bain's break-even point for her fresh water delivery business, we need to calculate the number of barge loads that will cover both the fixed and variable costs.
The break-even point in business is the point at which total revenue equals total costs, resulting in neither profit nor loss.
Step-by-step Solution:
Identify Fixed and Variable Costs:
Fixed Costs (FC): $3,000,000
Variable Cost per barge load (VC): $50,000
Selling Price per barge load (SP): $80,000
Break-even Formula: The formula for calculating the break-even point in units (in this case, barge loads) is given by: Break-even point (units) = Selling Price per unit − Variable Cost per unit Fixed Costs
Insert the values into the formula: Break-even point = 80 , 000 − 50 , 000 3 , 000 , 000 Break-even point = 30 , 000 3 , 000 , 000
Calculate: Break-even point = 100
Therefore, Marie Bain needs to ship 100 barge loads to reach her break-even point.
Multiple-choice Answer: (D) 100 barge loads