# 🕝 Dividends

By [Let Them Eat Cake](https://paragraph.com/@ltecake) · 2022-06-21

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**TL,DR: Dividends, like leftovers, are pleasant result of surplus**

Dividends / Leftovers

*   excess product or profit
    
*   factored into the product value
    
*   not always available
    

Eatamology

From the Latin “dividendum” which translates to divisible item, dividends represent leftover profits that can be split up between shareholders.

Financials When a company has paid its expenses and has leftover profits, it can choose to reinvest the money in research and development (R&D), new equipment, or other internal investments like buying $1,500,000,000 worth of Bitcoin (see Tesla). Blue chips often take a alternate path, returning the money to shareholders in the form of dividends. These payments are scheduled and increase the value of shares because they indicate the company is not only financially stable, but also that it’s willing to share its profits directly with investors.

Where to Find Investors that hold preferred stock and blue chip stocks are the most likely recipients of dividends.

Ex Dividend Date / Last Call The Ex Dividend Date is the day when a shareholder is no longer eligible for a previously announced dividend. Let’s say the family is gathered around for leftovers. If you show up after the announced time - you are not going to get any food. Future leftovers are never guaranteed, so the value of a product is only associated with dividends before the Ex Dividend Date occurs.

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*Originally published on [Let Them Eat Cake](https://paragraph.com/@ltecake/dividends)*