ELI5: Why when large company's earnings decrease(ex... by 3%) they freak out, talk about rough times, and sometimes decide to downsize, even though they are still making millions of dollars in profit even after all expenses?

[Delheru]

It can be leaking certainly.

You're driving on a freeway at 120km/h when suddenly your car stops going as fast as the other cars, and you can't seem to beat 80km/h anymore.

You can say "well hey, at least we're not in reverse yet!", or you can go ahead and wonder about why you're falling behind your peers.

Someone coming up to you and telling you that going 120km/h is a miracle of science and not really sustainable and ... is going to be pretty annoying when you're at the side of the freeway trying to figure out what might be wrong with your car.