For which of the following are ratios not regularly used for comparison?

Ratios are fundamental tools used to analyze and compare financial performance and operational efficiency. They are particularly valuable for benchmarking within an industry, historical performance, and evaluating internal goals.

When considering comparisons involving "other companies outside of your industry," it becomes less meaningful to use ratios. This is because different industries can exhibit significantly different financial characteristics, cost structures, and operational metrics. Ratios are designed to provide insights relevant to specific contexts, and comparing them across unrelated industries can lead to inaccurate conclusions. For instance, a high ratio in one sector might be standard practice in another sector, leading to potentially misleading interpretations if compared.

In contrast, comparisons to prior periods allow companies to assess trends over time, comparisons with companies in the same industry benefit from similar operational structures, and comparing against internal goals focuses on measuring performance against set objectives. Each of these makes use of ratios effectively, whereas comparing to companies outside of your industry does not yield reliable insights.