Microsoft shareholders are getting a bigger quarterly check. The company’s board declared a dividend of 98 cents per share on September 15, 2026, an increase of 7 cents, or 8 percent, over the prior quarter’s payout.
The raise lifts Microsoft’s annualized dividend to 3.92 dollars per share from 3.64. The next payment goes out on December 10, 2026, to shareholders of record at the close of business on November 19, which is also the ex-dividend date.
The setup
The announcement arrived one day before the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark rate by a quarter point on September 16, the first increase in more than three years. Rate headlines have dominated trading this week, but dividend mechanics move on their own calendar. Record dates and payment dates are fixed, and income investors who want the December payment must own shares before the November ex-date.
Microsoft has now raised its dividend in 23 consecutive years, according to MarketBeat dividend records. That streak covers the 2008 financial crisis, a global pandemic, and multiple rate cycles. Few companies of its size can match that consistency.
Key numbers
| Metric | Previous | New |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly dividend | $0.91 | $0.98 |
| Annualized dividend | $3.64 | $3.92 |
| Increase | — | +8 percent |
| Indicated yield at $497.73 | 0.73% | 0.79% |
| Record date | — | November 19, 2026 |
| Payment date | — | December 10, 2026 |
At a recent share price of 497.73, the new payout yields 0.79 percent. That sits well below the S&P 500 average, but Microsoft compensates with growth rather than starting yield. Here is what the raise produces at current prices.
| Position size | Approx. shares | Old annual income | New annual income |
|---|---|---|---|
| $100,000 | 200 | $728.00 | $784.00 |
| $500,000 | 1,002 | $3,647.28 | $3,927.84 |
For every 200 shares held, the raise adds 56 dollars a year. A half-million-dollar Microsoft position collects about 3,928 dollars annually at the new rate, roughly 280 dollars more than before.
What to watch
Watch the November 19 ex-dividend date. Shares purchased on or after that date will not receive the December 10 payment, a detail that trips up income investors every quarter.
Watch the rate backdrop. Goldman Sachs expects the Federal Reserve to deliver another quarter-point increase in October, according to market commentary this week. The 10-year Treasury yield ended above 5 percent after the Fed decision, then slipped back below it on September 17 as stocks rallied. Higher short-term rates raise the opportunity cost of low-yielding dividend stocks.
Watch capital allocation announcements. Microsoft continues to direct most of its cash toward data center investment and buybacks rather than a high payout ratio, and that discipline is what keeps dividend increases funded.
Bottom line
Microsoft is a dividend-growth holding, not an income stock. A 0.79 percent yield will not fund a retirement distribution on its own, and it was never designed to. The case for owning the payout is the 8 percent growth rate, the two-decade streak of increases, and the balance sheet behind it. Income investors who need current cash flow should pair it with higher-yielding names.
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