No, I think you have it incorrect. As long as revenue > costs and internal expenditures, you make money by dividends. That's the whole reason we buy stocks. Price growth is ultimately just a projection of the belief in higher future dividends.

I'd just like to point out that if you believe in roughly efficient markets, if your enterprise maintains its value, if you amass a pile of cash, that will be reflected in your share price.

The dividends come directly out of that share price whenever issued. You can theoretically amass a pile of money that would make Smaug blush, and this will increase your share price to reflect. But that cash isn't being reinvested, it's only going to increase linearly with respect to that cash position. Which is why in many circumstances investors frown upon it.

There are also stocks with high dividends, which are paid out based on profit and not by the stock increasing in value.

This is obviously ignoring the fact many people either make horrible financial decision or are too poor to invest in stocks.

I'd like to retort this because I think it's important to have a bit of perspective here:

1. Population growth doesn't imply market growth.

If I sell polio treatment, my market are the number of people with polio, which thankfully hasn't been correlated with population growth.

2. Market growth doesn't imply revenue growth.

Competition.

3. Revenue growth doesn't imply profit growth.

Say, for example, I run a company building cheap computers for the children of low-income families. As I move into new countries and expand my revenue I might want to, instead of increasing profits, make my computers cheaper so more children have access to them.

2 and 3 are usually not true when companies are trying to maximize profits, but I don't think 1 should be at all rare.

Anyway, this is besides where the discussion was meant to go, but thought I'd share.

The revenue is used somehow. The board decides how. And shareholders elect board members.

Thus, if growth stalled, but there was excess revenue, the board would need to decide where it goes. It could be used to help growth revive, by using it to invest in future prospects, it could choose to use it towards employee compensations, maybe if it believes its required to retain talent, or it could choose to give it to shareholders as dividend.

If the board does make decisions the shareholders don't like, they can eventually be booted out and replaced by a new one.

This isn't a new problem you are talking about. Stocks have worked like this since they have existed.

Go take a look at any major company that "stopped growing" but is still making money, and see how it works.