Below are some financial statistics for Google, the Web search engine provider, and Burlington Northern Santa Fe, a large North American railroad (all numbers in thousands, except per share amounts).
Burlington Northern
Google Santa Fe
Total stockholders' equity, Dec. 31, 2004 $2,929,056,000 $9,311,000,000
Common shares outstanding, Dec. 31, 2004 193,176,000 376,800,000
Market price, Dec. 31, 2004 $193 per share $ 47 per share
a. Determine the price-book ratio for each company. Round to two decimal places.
b. Explain the difference in the price-book ratio between the two companies.