Quick Read
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Baker Hughes and Diamondback have the strongest cash coverage: Baker Hughes' free cash flow covers its dividend several times over, though debt tripled to $17.5 billion.
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Starbucks pays out about 114% of GAAP earnings, leaving the thinnest cushion of the five dividend stocks.
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Nexstar offers the biggest yield at about 4%, but $11.4 billion in debt and a TEGNA antitrust trial weigh on it.
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The first of five ex-dividend deadlines lands on Tuesday, November 10, and the last falls three trading days later on November 13. The payouts below are listed for payment between November 16 and November 27, so anyone who wants one of these checks has less than a week to own the shares.
How it works:you must own shares before the ex-dividend date, meaning you buy by the close of the prior trading day. The pay date is when the cash hits your account.
Baker Hughes (BKR): First Deadline Is Monday
Baker Hughes( NASDAQ:BKR ) has a $0.23 quarterly dividend listed for payment on November 20. The ex-dividend date is November 10, so Monday, November 9, is the last day to buy. The $0.92 annualized payout works out to a yield of about 1.98% at $46.37. Part of that yield comes from a falling share price: the stock dropped 14.93% over the past week and 18.83% over the past month.
Coverage is comfortable. The annual dividend equals roughly 33% of trailing diluted EPS of $2.75. Third-quarter free cash flow of $769 million covered the roughly $228 million quarterly dividend cost several times over. The concern is the balance sheet: long-term debt tripled to $17.5 billion after the Chart Industries acquisition, which helps explain why the payout has stayed at $0.23 since early 2025.
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Apple (AAPL): Tiny Yield, Rock-Solid Coverage
Apple( NASDAQ:AAPL ) has a $0.27 dividend listed for payment on November 16, the first in this group. The ex-dividend date is November 12, so purchases must settle by Wednesday, November 11. At a 0.32% yield, Apple is the lowest income name on this list. Buyers are paying for growth, and the dividend is a side benefit.
That small check is about as safe as dividends get. The $1.08 forward annual payout is about 11% of trailing EPS of $9.46. Fiscal fourth-quarter EPS of $2.10 beat the $1.98 estimate on revenue of $114.48 billion, up 11.7% year over year.
Diamondback Energy (FANG): Fresh Raise, Same Deadline as Apple
Diamondback Energy( NASDAQ:FANG ) raised its base dividend 7.3% to $1.18, listed for payment on November 19. The ex-dividend date is November 12, so buy by Wednesday, November 11. The $4.72 annualized base works out to about 2.55% at $184.92. The stock slipped 10.42% over the past week but remains up 25.1% year to date.
On GAAP earnings, the base dividend uses about 64% of trailing EPS of $7.43. Cash flow looks much stronger: third-quarter free cash flow of $2.15 billion dwarfs a quarterly base dividend cost of roughly $330 million, and Diamondback still bought back $251 million of stock. The risk is oil prices. Q3 realized crude was $87.30 per barrel, and past payouts have swung widely, from $3.37 in November 2023 to $0.90 a year later.
Starbucks (SBUX): Tightest Payout Ratio in the Group
Starbucks( NASDAQ:SBUX ) has a $0.63 dividend listed for payment on November 27, the day after Thanksgiving. The ex-dividend date is November 13, so purchases must settle by Thursday, November 12. The yield is 2.38%, and management called the latest increase its 16th consecutive annual increase.
This name has the lowest coverage here. The $2.52 forward payout equals about 114% of trailing GAAP EPS of $2.21 and roughly 93% of fiscal 2026 non-GAAP EPS of $2.72. Fiscal 2027 EPS guidance of $3.15 to $3.25 would bring that ratio down to about 79% at the midpoint, and fiscal 2026 operating cash flow came in at $4.99 billion. The dividend holds up as long as the turnaround keeps delivering, leaving less room for error than the other four names.
Nexstar Media Group (NXST): Highest Yield, Heaviest Debt
Nexstar Media Group( NASDAQ:NXST ) offers the largest check in the group: $1.86 per share, listed for payment on November 27. The ex-dividend date is November 13, so buy by Thursday, November 12. The $7.44 annual rate yields about 3.96% at $187.97.
The payout uses about 67% of trailing EPS of $11.05, though Q3 GAAP EPS of $7.92 missed the $11.87 estimate. Cash coverage is stronger. Nine-month adjusted free cash flow hit $1.1 billion against $171 million in dividends. The burden is $11.4 billion of debt and 4.04x net leverage after the TEGNA deal. Management prioritized debt repayment over the dividend. An antitrust trial over TEGNA is set for July 6, 2027, and the dividend has held at $1.86 for eight straight quarters.
Miss These Dates, and You Miss the Check
Going after one quarterly payment is the lowest reason to own a stock, because share prices typically drop by about the dividend amount on the ex-dividend date. Use the deadline to decide whether a business deserves a place in an income portfolio: Diamondback and Baker Hughes show the largest cash reserves, while Starbucks and Nexstar call for closer monitoring. If you don't own the shares by the close of trading before each ex-dividend date, someone else gets this round of payments.
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