<prompt> Human: what is the benefit of a company that pays out dividends? doesnt that lessen the cash the company has?  <response>: Dividends are income for the stock owners. The point of business is to generate profits. Dividends are those profits.Some companies in the growth stage dont issue dividends because they think that capital is better used for growing, RD, and if their industry is changing rapidly and they dont know if theyll need the cash or not in the near future. 