We seem to be having a fairly positive start to the trading week for ASX shares and the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). So far this Monday, the ASX 200 has put on a decent 0.32% and is up to around 6,917 points. But something else is happening to the Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) share price.
Macquarie shares appear to be having a rather awful Monday so far today. The ASX 200 bank closed at $170.37 a share last week. But today, Macquarie shares opened at $168.14 and have dipped down to $167.10 at the time of writing, a good 1.92% lower than last week's close.
So why are Macquarie shares getting such a shunning today?
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Macquarie share price tumbles as ex-dividend date arrives
Well, the answer is that it is not as bad as it seems. Macquarie shares have just traded ex-dividend for the financial giant's upcoming interim dividend.
As we covered last week, Macquarie is scheduled to pay out its latest dividend next month, on 13 December. This will be a shareholder payment worth $3 a share, partially franked at 40%. That's a pleasing increase over 2021's interim dividend of $2.72 per share and the final dividend of $1.40 per share that investors enjoyed back in July.
But next month's dividend is now closed to new investors. That's because Macquarie's ex-dividend date for this payment is today. This means that new investors won't be eligible to receive this payment.
As such, the value of the dividend is no longer included in the Macquarie share price. This is why we are seeing such a steep fall for Macquarie shares during today's session.
Investors have until 9 November to decide if they want to receive a cash payment or else opt for the optional dividend reinvestment plan (DRP) if they wish to receive new Macquarie shares in lieu of cash.
As of last week's closing share price, this latest shareholder payment will give Macquarie shares a dividend yield of 2.58%.
Macquarie Group shares have lost 20.7% year to date in 2022 so far and 16.6% over the past 12 months. The ASX 200 bank share remains up by 71% or so over the past five years.
