The distribution of a section of a company’s earnings to its shareholders is known as its dividends. Dividends are a portion of earnings chosen by the company’s board of directors and can be issued in the form of shares of stock, cash payment or property. When a company makes a profit it can reinvest this money back into the company and/or distribute the profits to its shareholders. If a company decides to pay its shareholders dividends, a fixed amount per share is designated and shareholders will receive this amount at a specific date. The ex-dividend date determines when trading in the underlying stock no longer includes an entitlement to the upcoming dividend payment and therefore on the ex-dividend date the value of the underlying share will decrease by the approximate dividend value. Anyone already holding a position in the underlying stock prior to and going into the ex-dividend date will be entitled to receive, or required to pay, the dividend depending on whether they are long or short. Anyone opening a position on the ex-dividend date will not be entitled to, or required to pay, the dividend.