Hi All,

"Range" questions come from the broader category of statistics, which will show up a couple of times on the GMAT. The range of a group of numbers is the difference between the largest number and the smallest number.

Based on the original number of shares, the range would be: 112 - 45 = 67

However, the prompt tells us that two of the values in the table are going to change. After the changes, the values will be:

V 68
W 112
X 36
Y 118
Z 45

Now the range is 118 - 36 = 82

The INCREASE in the range requires us to compare the "new" range to the "old" range: 82 - 67 = 15

Final Answer: D

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

BTGmoderatorDC wrote:Stock - Number of shares
V ------------------- 68
W ----------------- 112
X ------------------- 56
Y ------------------- 94
Z ------------------- 45

The table shows the number of shares of each of the 5 stocks owned by Mr Sami. If Mr Sami was to sell 20 shares of Stock X and buy 24 shares of stock Y, what would be the increase in the range of the numbers of shares of the 5 stocks owned by Mr. Sami?

A 4
B. 6
C. 9
D. 15
E. 20

We recall that the formula for range is:

Range = greatest value - least value

Since the greatest number of shares is 112 and the least number of shares is 45, before selling stock X and buying stock Y, the current range is 112 - 45 = 67.

After 20 shares of stock X are sold and 24 shares of stock Y are purchased, the greatest number of shares is 94 + 24 = 118 and the least number of shares is 56 - 20 = 36. The new range would be118 - 36 = 82. Thus, the increase in the range is 82 - 67 = 15 shares.

Answer: D