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Dividend Return Calculator

Work out dividend income from a holding and the yield it represents on your cost.

About Dividend Return Calculator

Yield on cost measures your own income against what you paid and rises over time as dividends grow. Current yield is what the market offers today and is the right basis for a new purchase. Long-term holders often quote a high yield on cost, but only the current yield tells you whether the shares are still attractive to buy.

Formula

Dividend Return

Yield on cost = dividend per share ÷ price you paid; current yield uses today’s price

yield on cost
Your personal yield, which rises as dividends grow
current yield
What a new buyer would receive today

Worked example

With the default values below, Dividend Return Calculator returns Annual Dividend Income of $1,600.00. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Shares heldminimum 0
500
Annual dividend per shareminimum 0
3.2
Price you paid per shareminimum 0.01
45
Current share priceminimum 0.01
62

Results

Annual Dividend Income
$1,600.00
Yield on Your Cost
7.111%
Yield at the Current Price
5.161%
Average Monthly Income
$133.33
Average Quarterly Income
$400.00

Step by step

  1. 1Values used
  2. 2Dividend Return
  3. 3Annual Dividend Income= 1,600.00
  4. 4Yield on Your Cost= 7.111
  5. 5Yield at the Current Price= 5.161
  6. 6Average Monthly Income= 133.33
  7. 7Average Quarterly Income= 400.00

Assumptions and limits

  • The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
  • In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax or fees or charges into account.
  • Figures are rounded for display to 3 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.
  • This is an estimate for general information and not professional financial, tax or legal advice. See the full disclaimer for the limits that apply to this kind of calculator.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is Dividend Return calculated?

Yield on cost = dividend per share ÷ price you paid; current yield uses today’s price Yield on cost measures your own income against what you paid and rises over time as dividends grow. Current yield is what the market offers today and is the right basis for a new purchase.

Why does Dividend Return matter?

Long-term holders often quote a high yield on cost, but only the current yield tells you whether the shares are still attractive to buy.

What values do I need to enter?

This calculator takes 4 inputs: Shares held, Annual dividend per share, Price you paid per share, Current share price. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.

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