On November 17, 2020, Western Asset Managed (NYSE:MMU) declared a dividend payable on March 1, 2021 to its shareholders. Western Asset Managed also announced that shareholders on the company's books on or before February 19, 2021 are entitled to the dividend. The stock will then go ex-dividend 1 business day(s) before the record date. The ex-dividend date for Western Asset Managed is set for February 18, 2021. The company's current dividend payout sits at $0.04, equating to a dividend yield of 4.31% at current price levels.

Ex-dividend dates are when company shares stop trading with their current dividend payouts in preparation for those companies to announce new ones. 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.

Over the past year, Western Asset Managed has seen its dividend payouts remain the same and its yields climb upward overall. Last year on October 22, 2020 the company's payout sat at $0.04, which has returned to its value today. Western Asset Managed's dividend yield last year was 4.26%, which has since grown by 0.05%.
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.