Comment by somewhereoutth

Stocks represent a share of a productive asset - the (presumably successful) underlying business. That business includes capital goods and other assets having intrinsic value themselves, and also the value created by organising them together. The profits can be distributed as dividends, or used to grow the asset (buy more machines or whatever).

Of course speculation muddies the waters, but you can see how important annual accounts etc are - to ensure the business really has the value it is being ascribed.