Financial Terms / ex dividend date

What is an Ex-Dividend Date?

The ex-dividend date is the day when a company declares a dividend and is set one business day before the record date for a stock.

Formula

EXDIV = Record Date - Dividend Payment Date

How do I calculate the ex dividend date?

In order to find the ex-dividend date of a company, investors should look for the date the stock will go ex-dividend in the company's financial reports. The ex-dividend date is the date when the company's stock price adjusts to reflect the amount of dividends paid out. To calculate the ex-dividend date, subtract the dividend payment date from the record date. The record date is the day the company takes a "snapshot" of shareholders who are entitled to receive the dividend. 

Investors can use Sourcetable to easily calculate the ex-dividend date. They should take into account the dividend payment date, record date, and the payment date for an accurate calculation.

What is Ex-dividend date?

Ex-dividend date is the day before the trade's original record date. It is set by the stock exchanges.

What is the record date?

The record date is the day that the transfer of the stock's ownership is completed.

Who sets the ex-dividend date and the record date?

The stock exchanges set the ex-dividend date and the board of directors of a company sets the record date.

Key Points

How do I calculate ex dividend date?
EXDIV = Record Date - Dividend Payment Date
Stage 1: Declaration of Dividend
The first stage of the dividend process is the declaration of the dividend by the company. This is when the company publicly announces the amount of the dividend and the date it will be payable.
Stage 2: Record Date
The record date is the day that a company looks at the records of its shareholders to determine who is eligible to receive the dividend. Shareholders who own their stock prior to this date will be eligible to receive the dividend.
Stage 3: Ex-Dividend Date
The ex-dividend date is the day after the record date. On this date, the stock begins trading without the right to receive the declared dividend. This is the point at which the dividend is said to be "ex-dividend."
Stage 4: Payment Date
The payment date is the date when the dividend is actually paid out to shareholders. This is typically several weeks after the ex-dividend date.

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