Quick Take

Every dividend capture starts with one thing: knowing the ex-dividend date. Miss it, and you miss the payout. But here’s the good news — you don’t need to spend hours digging through filings or stock screens. With the right process, you can scan for ex-dates in under three minutes flat.

This post shows you how.

Why Ex-Dates Matter

The ex-dividend date is the line in the sand. Own the stock before that date, and you qualify for the dividend. Buy it on or after, and you’re out.

For Yield Raiders, this is the mission clock. Everything else — entry, capture, exit — is built around this date.

Step-by-Step: A 3-Minute Ex-Date Scan

1. Go Straight to a Dividend Calendar

   • Sites like DividendCalendar.org or MarketBeat’s dividend calendar list upcoming ex-divs.

   • Pro tip: bookmark your favorite — don’t waste time Googling every week.

2. Set Your Filters

   • Narrow the list to stocks that fit your trading style:

     • Yield range (e.g., 4%–20%)

     • Market cap (small, mid, large)

     • Sector (if you like financials, REITs, or energy plays)

3. Sort by Date

   • You’re only interested in stocks going ex-div in the next 5–10 trading days.

4. Create Your Shortlist

   • Write down or export 5–10 candidates.

   • Don’t overthink yet — this is recon, not a final decision.

Boom. Three minutes. You now have a working hit list of potential capture plays.

⚔️ Raider’s Edge Tip

Don’t fall for “calendar overwhelm.” Hundreds of ex-dates pop up every month. You don’t need all of them — just the ones that match your rules. A quick scan + filters = quality over quantity.

Example: A Fast Recon Run

Let’s say it’s Monday morning. You run a DividendCalendar.org scan:

• ORC → Ex-div in 4 days, 20% yield

• KO → Ex-div in 7 days, 3.2% yield

• AGNC → Ex-div in 5 days, 15% yield

That’s your starting list. From there, you can do the deeper work: chart checks, fundamentals, and trade planning. But the scan itself took less than 3 minutes.

Why You Still Need the Book

Scanning for ex-dates is just the first step. The real money is in:

• Knowing which stocks rebound fast (and which sink).

• Using the Dividend Capture Trade Log to track patterns.

• Running a Capture Chain Calendar so you always have the next play lined up.

That’s all inside my book:

Get 20% Returns with Dividend Capture: A Smarter, Safer Strategy for Consistent Cash Flow

And when you grab the book, you also get the complete Raider’s toolkit free: Trade Log, Capture Chain Calendar, Trade Tracker, and more.

[Get the book + free toolkit here — and never miss an ex-date again.]

✅ Final Word

Dividend capture doesn’t start with complicated analysis — it starts with a fast, focused ex-date scan. Three minutes, one calendar, and you’re already ahead of most traders.

The rest of the system? That’s where the book and tools come in.