IANAL, but as far as I understand a company director only has a 'duty to promote the success of the company' in the UK [1]. I think it is similar in the US. 'Success of the company' doesn't strictly have to mean making a profit, if the shareholders don't want it to.

[1] http://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2013/01/07/companies-do-n...