Benzinga | Dec 8, 2020 10:16AM EST

Ex-Dividend Date Insight: Medical Properties Trust

Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) declared a dividend payable on January 7, 2021 to its shareholders as of November 12, 2020. It was also announced that shareholders of Medical Properties Trust's stock as of December 10, 2020 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 Medical Properties Trust is set for December 9, 2020. The company's current dividend payout sits at $0.27, equating to a dividend yield of 5.56% at current price levels.

Understanding Ex-Dividend Dates'

Ex-dividend dates signal when company shares cease to trade with their current dividend payouts. There is a small intermission period before companies announce new dividends. 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. Typically, companies will announce and implement new dividend yields on a quarterly basis.

Medical Properties Trust's Dividend Payouts And Yields

Over the past year, Medical Properties Trust has experienced an overall upward trend regarding its dividend payouts and yields. Last year on December 11, 2019 the company's payout was $0.26, which has since grown by $0.01. Similarly, Medical Properties Trust's dividend yield in last year was 5.03%, which has since grown by 0.53%.

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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