Why Dividend Stock Raises Matter for Investors

Microsoft's Significant Dividend Increase

Microsoft, the technology giant, recently announced an 11% increase in its dividend, setting its annual cost at around $25 billion. This move keeps Microsoft among the top global-dividend payers. For context, a dividend is a portion of a company's earnings distributed to shareholders, typically in the form of cash. For example, if a company has a $4 dividend per share, and you own 100 shares, you receive $400.