Benzinga | May 25, 2021 10:49AM EDT

Ex-Dividend Date Insight: Avista

On May 11, 2021, Avista (NYSE:AVA) declared a dividend payable on June 15, 2021 to its shareholders. Avista also announced that shareholders on the company's books on or before May 27, 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 Avista is set for May 26, 2021. The company's current dividend payout sits at $0.42, equating to a dividend yield of 3.57% at current price levels.

The Significance Of An Ex-Dividend Date

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. Typically, companies will announce and implement new dividend yields on a quarterly basis.

Understanding Avista's Dividend Payouts And Yields

Over the past year, Avista has seen its dividend payouts climb upward and its yields trend downward. Last year on May 28, 2020 the company's payout sat at $0.41, which has since increased by $0.02. Avista's dividend yield last year was 4.06%, which has since decreased by 0.49%.

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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