It is different, but otherwise GE would just what, pile up the money? Cancelling dividends is only a drag on a stock if it's a sign that they can't afford to pay them regularly. In a hypothetical scenario where GE decided 20 years ago to stop paying dividends (to enable a better apples:apples comparison of stock price over time), they would have been just as profitable for that time period but today their balance sheet would have a ton more cash. I'm just calling into doubt whether that would have negatively impacted their share price or outlook at all.

It's all academic anyway, I think we're saying the same thing.