GROUP SSA

The dawn of a new era

Understanding Dividend Dates, Light
A basic, boiled-down, bare bones review of dividend dates.

    
     To receive a dividend you must purchase the stock before the close of trading on the day before  the ex-dividend date.

     For normal dividends, the ex-dividend date is two business days before the record date.  For dividends of 25% or more of a stock's price, the ex-dividend date is the first business day after the payment date.

     Note: The three day settlement period (T+3) does not apply to ex-dividend dates, as they are real-time dates - buy before the ex-date, you qualify for the dividend; buy on or after the ex-date, you don't qualify for the dividend.

     Extended Hours Trading
     Extended hours trading (both pre-market trading and after hours trading) does not affect dividend rules.  The statement in the previous paragraph still applies: buy before the ex-date (no matter if in pre-market trading, regular hours trading or after hours trading) you qualify for the dividend; buy on or after the ex-date (whether in pre-market trading, regular hours trading, or after hours trading) you don't qualify for the dividend.

                   Click Here For a More Detailed Explanation
                             of How Dividend Dates Work
     

Click Here For an Explanation of
Why Dividends Are Not Free Money

Click Here To Read  Owner vs. Owner Of Record:
At What Point Do You Become The Owner Of A Stock?

Click Here To Read  Dividend Dates FAQ

Click Here To Read  What Are Special Dividends?

 

 Comments (17)  

9.07.11

LOGIN
groupssa.com is a secure and personalized environment. Please provide your username and password. If you have forgotten your username or password, we can resend your login credentials to your email address.
Username:[Required]	*
Password:[Required]	*
Remember my credentials:

DEFINITIONS

Business Day
A day on which the stock exchanges and the banks, agencies & depositories for securities in New York State are open for business. Any day on which the stock exchanges are open but the banks are closed is not counted as a business day for the purpose of calculating dividend ex-dates.

Conditional Dividend/Distribution A dividend or distribution conditional upon an event or circumstance that has not yet happened at the time of declaration.

Declaration Date                           The date a dividend is declared by the company.  The amount of the dividend is also declared except in some cases of a conditional dividend.

Deferred Ex-Dividend Date
An ex-dividend date that occurs one business day after the payment date. 

Distribution
The payment of cash or securities that are not part of a company's earnings.                                 

Dividend
A payment of earnings to shareholders.

Due Bill
A statement of money owed.

Ex-Dividend/Distribution Date     The first day on which a stock trades without the right to receive the dividend/distribution.

Normal Dividend/Distribution
A dividend/distribution amounting to less than 25% of a company's stock price.

Owner of record
The registered owner of a security on the Record Date.

Payment Date                               The day the dividend payment is
made.

Record Date                                 The day a buyer of a stock must be the registered owner (owner of record) to receive a dividend.

Special Dividend                           A dividend that is not regularly scheduled.

T+3 Settlement Rule
The requirement that securities transactions be settled in three business days.  (Before June 7, 1995, securities transactions were settled in five business days.)

free hit counters