From the Desk of: Imran Omer

Dividend Dates
A corporation's Board of Directors must declare all dividends. Four dividend-related dates are
important to this process:

Declaration Date
The declaration date is the date that the dividend is announced by the Board of Directors. The
declaration statement includes the size of the dividend, the date of record and the payment date
(see below). Once the dividend has been declared, the company has a legal responsibility to pay
it.

Date of Record (or Record Date)

Once a company announces a dividend, it sets a date of record on or before which you must be
on the company's books in order to receive the declared dividend. On the date of record, the
company will determine its shareholders, or "holders of record," and the company will use this
date to establish to whom it will send financial reports, proxy statements and other information.

Ex-Dividend Date (or Ex-Date)

After the company sets the date of record, the ex-dividend date is set by either the stock
exchange or the National Association of Securities Dealers. If an investor purchases a stock on or
after its ex-dividend date, he or she will not receive the declared cash dividend; instead, the seller
of the stock will be entitled to that dividend. Investors who purchase the stock before the ex-
dividend date will receive the dividend.

For example, stock ABC recently announced a cash dividend with an ex-dividend date of
December 7. If you purchase 100 shares of ABC stock on December 7 (on or after the ex-
dividend date) you will not receive the dividend; the person from whom you bought the shares
will receive the dividend. If, however, you purchase the shares on December 5 (before the ex-
dividend date) you will be entitled to receive the next dividend. The ex-dividend date for stocks
is typically set two business days before the date of record. A stock's price may increase by the
dollar amount of the dividend as the ex-date approaches. On the ex-dividend date, the exchange
may reduce the price per share by the dollar amount of the dividend.

Payment Date (Payable Date)

The payment date is the scheduled date on which a declared dividend will be paid. Only
shareholders who owned the stock before the ex-dividend date are entitled to the dividend.

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 From the Desk of: Imran Omer

The following table illustrates an example of the relationship between these important dividend-
related dates:

Type Declaration Date Ex-Dividend Date Record Date Payment Date

Date Oct. 15, 2012 Dec. 5, 2012 Dec. 7, 2012 Dec. 11, 2012
The date by which you
The date before which
The date the must be on the The date the
you must own the stock to
Notes dividend is company\'s books as a dividend is paid
be entitled to the
announced. shareholder to receive to shareholders.
dividend.
the dividend.

Example from PSX:

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