Understanding Equitrans Midstream's Ex-Dividend Date

Equitrans Midstream (NYSE:ETRN) declared a dividend payable on February 12, 2021 to its shareholders as of January 22, 2021. It was also announced that shareholders of Equitrans Midstream's stock as of February 3, 2021 are entitled to the dividend. The stock is expected to become ex-dividend 1 business day(s) before the record date. The ex-dividend date for Equitrans Midstream will be on February 2, 2021. The company's current dividend payout is at $0.15. That equates to a dividend yield of 8.39% at current price levels.

The Significance Of An Ex-Dividend Date

An ex-dividend date signals when a company's shares cease to trade with its current dividend payout. There is a small intermission period before the company announces a new dividend. Usually, a company's ex-dividend date falls one business day before its record date. Investors should keep this in mind when purchasing stocks because buying them on or after ex-dividend dates does not qualify them to receive the declared payment. Newly declared dividends go to shareholders who have owned that stock before the ex-dividend date. Most ex-dividend dates operate on a quarterly basis.

Equitrans Midstream's Dividend Performance

Over the past year, Equitrans Midstream has experienced an overall downward trend regarding its dividend payouts and yields. Last year on February 10, 2020 the company's payout was $0.45, which has since decreased by $0.3. Similarly, Equitrans Midstream's dividend yield last year was 13.87%, which has since declined by 5.48%.
Companies use dividend yields in different strategic ways. Some companies may opt to not give yields altogether to reinvest in themselves. Other companies may opt to increase or decrease their yield amounts to control how their shares circulate throughout the stock market.

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