Fundamental Glossary / Dividend Metrics
Ex-Dividend Date
The first date on which the shares trade without the right to the declared dividend.
Formula
Buyers on or after the ex-dividend date do not receive that dividend. Buyers before it do, if they are holders on the record date. In India's T+1 settlement the exchange sets the ex-date so that a purchase still settles in time for the record date.
What it means
On the ex-dividend date the share price normally opens lower by about the dividend amount, all else equal, because the cash is no longer attached to the share.
The gap is not a loss to a holder who receives the dividend. It is the dividend leaving the share price and arriving as cash, before tax.
How to read it
Buying just before the ex-date to "capture" the dividend earns the cash and a matching drop in price, plus tax. It is not a free yield.
What to watch
Corporate actions such as splits have their own ex-dates. Confirm you are looking at the dividend ex-date. Settlement holidays can shift the calendar.
This note explains the term. It is not a research recommendation, a target price, or a comment on any security. Ratios and regulatory thresholds change; use the latest filing or circular for a live figure.