I don't know what cartoonish depiction of shareholders you are alleging here but they probably wouldn't be very happy to have a sudden 50% drop in profits without any prior planning or intimation.
I'd be very pissed off if dividends or bond yields from across the industry dropped 50% overnight.
Of the largest shareholders of major corporations are mutual funds, pension funds and such that fund people who are completely dependent on investment income to live. A policy that causes a 50% change in profits would be a massive shock to those people.