Feel free to ask this stuff in the weekly/weekend threads, helps...

Feel free to ask this stuff in the weekly/weekend threads, helps keep the clutter down

1)
To determine whether you should get a dividend, you need to look at two important dates. They are the "record date" or "date of record" and the "ex-dividend date" or "ex-date."

When a company declares a dividend, it sets a record date when you must be on the company's books as a shareholder to receive the dividend. Companies also use this date to determine who is sent proxy statements, financial reports, and other information.

Once the company sets the record date, the ex-dividend date is set based on stock exchange rules. The ex-dividend date for stocks is usually set one business day before the record date. If you purchase a stock on its ex-dividend date or after, you will not receive the next dividend payment. Instead, the seller gets the dividend. If you purchase before the ex-dividend date, you get the dividend.

As long as you purchase a stock prior to the ex-dividend date, you can then sell the stock any time on or after the ex-dividend date and still receive the dividend. A common misconception is that investors need to hold the stock through the record date or pay date.

Ex-dividend dates are the single most important date to consider whenever buying a dividend-paying stock.


2)
You’ve answered your own question I think - yes some people do dividend cycling as a form of investment strategy. I have read about this topic but do not personally know anyone who does this, not a very discussed topic on HC that I’ve witnessed.
As you say, some go up, most go down, some flat etc. - sometime the divvy amount is higher than the gap down on open so you’d still be ‘making money’ - or like you say if the stock is in a atro f uptrend it’ll bounce from a divvy sell off in short order, i guess each to their own on the strategy, whether you wait or just sell on open - if you wait it becomes a divvy/STT hybrid strategy as opposed to pure divvy trading, so I guess the answer is just pusrue whatever appeals to you most (or whatever you understand best) as a starting point then refine from there.

I have no idea what a reasonable expectation for returns would be, but very interested to hear how it pans out for you if you give it a go

The above is all IMO and my understanding of divs, but I am not experienced in this thing so others might have more to add. I would note you might also want to look at the divvy classifications for each play and tax implications.

PS - what’s the screening site?