Analyzing Saratoga Investment's Ex-Dividend Date

Saratoga Investment SAR declared a dividend payable on April 22, 2021 to its shareholders as of March 22, 2021. It was also announced that shareholders of Saratoga Investment's stock as of April 8, 2021 are entitled to the dividend. The stock is expected to become ex-dividend 1 business day(s) before the record date. Saratoga Investment has an ex-dividend date planned for April 7, 2021. The company's current dividend payout sits at $0.43. That equates to a dividend yield of 7.18% at current price levels.

The Significance Of Ex-Dividend Dates

An ex-dividend date is when a company's shares stop trading with its current dividend payout in preparation for the company to announce a new one. 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.

Understanding Saratoga Investment's Dividend Performance

Over the past year, Saratoga Investment has experienced an overall downward trend regarding its dividend payouts and yields. Last year on January 23, 2020 the company's payout was $0.56, which has since decreased by $0.13. Similarly, Saratoga Investment's dividend yield last year was 8.99%, which has since declined by 1.81%.
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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