Profit margin is very important in this context, because it's indicative of how much of the money you pay as a customer turns into profit in some shareholder's pocket. If you're using profits as justification for the claim that some company is gouging you, profit margin is a much more relevant metric than total profits. HP is much more profitable than Facebook, but I don't think anyone would argue that they're gouging customers. They sell products at razor-thin margins in an insanely competitive market.