🇺🇸 Mastercard Incorporated (MA) — Next Ex-Dividend Date

The dividend-capture window for MA

To receive the $0.87 dividend, shares must be owned before the ex-dividend date (Thu Oct 8, 2026). But dividend-capture trading isn't about collecting the dividend — it's about the run-up: dividend stocks tend to drift upward in the days before their ex-dividend date as income buyers accumulate, then drop by roughly the dividend amount on the ex-date itself.

The optimal entry sits in the trading days shortly before the ex-dividend date, and the exit before the ex-dividend price drop. Exact dated buy/sell windows for MA are shown to Pro subscribers and on the tracked calendar.

What the ex-dividend date means

The ex-dividend date is the cutoff set by the exchange: buy MA on or after Thu Oct 8, 2026 and the upcoming $0.87 payment goes to the previous owner. On the morning of the ex-date the share price typically opens lower by about the dividend amount — which is why holding through the ex-date to "collect" the dividend often nets out to zero or worse. The run-up strategy exits before that drop. See the FAQ for how the strategy works, or the live performance page for how alerts have resolved.

MA dividend — frequently asked questions