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Dividends and buybacks

Special dividends, payout changes and share buybacks: how companies hand cash back to shareholders and what each choice says about the business.

A company that earns more cash than it can reinvest has three ways to give it back: a regular dividend, a one-time special dividend or a share buyback. Each sends a different signal. A regular dividend is a promise investors expect to see kept, a special dividend is explicitly a one-off, and a buyback can be paused whenever the board changes its mind.

The mechanics matter for anyone holding or trading the shares: record and ex-dividend dates, the price drop on the ex-date, option adjustments for large payouts and the tax year in which the cash arrives. Our coverage follows the announcements, the dates and what the payout says about the company's plans for its cash.