Right, which is why I said "mature company" (who is hopefully, by then, issueing dividends :-D). At the same time, if a company issues dividends it can't afford

Right, which is why I said "mature company" (who is hopefully, by then, issueing dividends :-D). At the same time, if a company issues dividends it can't afford to pay (cough Citi cough) this can be devastating to a Company's prospects. At it's core, the whole reason stocks are worth anything to begin with is the anticipation of future dividends (DCF).