Dividend

What a dividend is, how it relates to DPS, and why it does not change share count.

A dividend is a distribution of company (or fund) profit to shareholders, often quoted as DPS — amount per share.

The payout usually does not reduce your share count; it is cashflow. Around ex-date the share price often adjusts by roughly the gross dividend.

For portfolio return, dividends belong in cashflow (e.g. XIRR), separate from realized sale P&L.