Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) is one of the more interesting shares on the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJ). It is often described as an ASX bank share, but doesn't traditionally offer the hefty, fully-franked dividends of its big four cousins.
Still, Macquarie has certainly left plenty of dividend investors quite satisfied in recent years. Right now, the Macquarie share price sports a trailing dividend yield of 4.31%. That's nothing to turn one's nose up at, of course.
It was only earlier this month that Macquarie reported its latest earnings for the half-year ending 30 September 2023.
As we covered at the time, these earnings weren't too well received by the markets. Macquarie reported a 39% slide in net profits to $1.42 billion. As well as an 8% drop in net operating income to $7.91 billion.
Macquarie did announce a $2 billion share buyback program as well. However, it also declared that its next interim dividend would be worth $2.55 per share, partially franked at 40%. That's a 15% drop over the $3 per share interim dividend investors enjoyed last year.
Still, that interim dividend still represents a decent paycheque for dividend investors.
How to secure the next Macquarie dividend
However, anyone wishing to bag this fresh Macquarie dividend had better be quick about it. That's because Macquarie shares are scheduled to trade ex-dividend for this payment this coming Monday, 13 November.
When a company trades ex-dividend, new investors are cut off from eligibility for the upcoming paycheque. So if you want to receive this latest interim dividend from Macquarie, you need to own the shares before this happens. That means that you will need to have those shares in your brokerage account by the close of trading today.
When a company goes 'ex-div', it represents a loss of inherent value, as the dividend payment leaves Macquarie's books, never to return. So expect a sizeable share price drop for Macquarie shares on Monday, regardless of what the market does. This is the normal course of events for an ex-dividend day.
Eligible Macquarie investors will then see this latest dividend arrive in their bank accounts on 19 December next month. Just in time for Christmas.
However, eligible shareholders who wish to receive additional Macquarie shares in lieu of a cash payment have until 15 November to enrol in Macquarie's optional dividend reinvestment plan (DRP).
At today's share price of $162.98 (at the time of writing), Macquarie shares remain down 1.03% in 2023 to date.
