Critically evaluate the following statements:

• A substantial percentage of the companies listed on the NYSE and the NASDAQ don't pay dividends, but investors are nonetheless willing to buy shares in them.
• Managers should not focus on the current stock value because doing so will lead to an overemphasis on short-term profits at the expense of long-term profits.
• Playing the stock market is like gambling. Such speculative investing has no social value, other than the pleasure people get from this form of gambling.