I see dividend growth investors asking for dividend calendars quite often. I have seen a few dividend calendars for US dividend stocks but haven’t really seen any for Canadian dividend stocks. Since it seems to be hard to find a Canadian dividend calendar, I figured I’d spend the time and create one myself.
Since there are many Canadian companies that pay dividends regularly, I want to narrow down the scope of the Canadian dividend calendar. With that in mind, I decided to take a look at the Canadian dividend all star list from DGI&R (Dividend Growth Investing & Retirement) and create the calendar based on the Canadian dividend all star list.
I then used Morningstar.ca and Dividend History to check for dividend payment months and tabulated the information in an Excel spreadsheet.
Note: For some reason I couldn’t get the latest all star list so I used the Feb 2021 list. It’s not be the latest version but I think it’ll do the job.
What are dividends
When a company makes profits, there are a few ways of sharing these profits with its shareholders. The company can reinvest the money in the business, try to grow the business, and reward its shareholders by increasing the share price. The company can also share part of the profit with shareholders via a cash distribution, or a dividend.
For dividend payments, companies usually pay out quarterly dividends. Some companies, like REITs, income trusts, pay out monthly dividends. There are also a few companies that pay out dividends semi-annually or annually.
To make things more confusing, although some companies pay dividends quarterly, these payments may not be exactly every three months. Occasionally companies may decide to pay dividends in a different quarterly interval. Most of the time, it’s due to tax reasons (i.e. defer Dec dividend payment to the new year).
What are ex dividend dates
As a dividend investor, here are some of the key dividend dates you want to pay attention to.
- Dividend Announcement Date: This is the date when a company formally announces how much dividends it will pay out. Dividends must be approved by the shareholders before they can be paid.
- Ex-Dividend Date: This can also be called the ex-date. The ex-dividend date or ex-date is the date that the dividend eligibility expires. For example, if the ex-dividend date is on October 8, someone that buys the stock on the ex-dividend date (i.e October 8) or after this date won’t be eligible to receive the dividends.
- Record Date: The record date is set one day after the ex-dividend date. This date helps the company to determine which shareholders are eligible to receive a dividend.
- Payment Date: This is the date when the company issues the dividend payment. This is when the dividend cash is credited to the investor’s account.
When it comes to dividends, many people get confused with the ex-dividend date. What is the ex dividend date? Let’s create an example, if a company declares the ex dividend date as Thursday, Oct 8, you need to purchase the stock before this date, not on this date to be eligible to receive the next dividend payment.
Why? The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires a trade to settle in two business days for a trade to settle (T+2). So when you purchase a stock, you technically don’t “own” the stock until three days later.
Canadian Dividend All Star List
There are currently 99 stocks on the Canadian dividend all star list and the dividend frequency (M = monthly, Q = Quarterly):
Ticker | Company | Streak (Years) | Dividend Freq |
CU.TO | Canadian Utilities | 49 | Q |
FTS.TO | Fortis Inc | 47 | Q |
TIH.TO | Toromont Industries Ltd | 31 | Q |
CWB.TO | Canadian Western Bank | 29 | Q |
ACO-X.TO | Atco Ltd., Cl.I, | 27 | Q |
TRI.TO | Thomson Reuters | 27 | Q |
EMP-A.TO | Empire Company Ltd | 26 | Q |
IMO.TO | Imperial Oil | 26 | Q |
MRU.TO | Metro Inc | 26 | Q |
CNR.TO | Canadian National Railway | 25 | Q |
ENB.TO | Enbridge Inc | 25 | Q |
SAP.TO | Saputo Inc. | 23 | Q |
CNQ.TO | Canadian Natural Resources | 20 | Q |
TRP.TO | TC Energy Corporation | 20 | Q |
CCL-B.TO | CCL Industries Inc. | 19 | Q |
FTT.TO | Finning International | 19 | Q |
TCL-A.TO | Transcontinental Inc | 19 | Q |
RBA.TO | Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Inc | 18 | Q |
CCA.TO | Cogeco Communications Inc. | 17 | Q |
T.TO | Telus Corporation | 17 | Q |
CGO.TO | Cogeco Inc | 16 | Q |
IFC.TO | Intact Financial | 16 | Q |
SJ.TO | Stella-Jones Inc. | 16 | Q |
ADW-A.TO | Andrew Peller Ltd. | 15 | Q |
XTC.TO | Exco Technologies Ltd | 15 | Q |
BYD.TO | Boyd Group Services Inc. | 14 | Q |
EMA.TO | Emera Incorporated | 14 | Q |
ENGH.TO | Enghouse Systems Limited | 14 | Q |
BIP-UN.TO | Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP | 13 | Q |
FNV.TO | Franco-Nevada Corp | 13 | Q |
TCS.TO | Tecsys Inc. | 13 | Q |
BCE.TO | BCE Inc | 12 | Q |
TD.TO | Toronto Dominion Bank | 10 | Q |
ATD-B.TO | Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc | 11 | Q |
BEP-UN.TO | Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners LP | 11 | Q |
LGT-B.TO | Logistec Corporation | 11 | Q |
MG.TO | Magna International Inc | 11 | Q |
NA.TO | National Bank | 11 | Q |
WCN.TO | Waste Connections Inc. | 11 | Q |
AQN.TO | Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. | 10 | Q |
BNS.TO | Bank of Nova Scotia | 10 | Q |
CM.TO | Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce | 10 | Q |
CTC-A.TO | Canadian Tire Corp Ltd A Nvtg | 10 | Q |
DOL.TO | Dollarama Inc. | 10 | Q |
EQB.TO | Equitable Group Inc | 10 | Q |
EIF.TO | Exchange Income Corporation | 10 | M |
GRT-UN.TO | Granite REIT | 10 | M |
GCG-A.TO | Guardian Capital Group Ltd. | 10 | Q |
HDI.TO | Hardwoods Distribution Inc. | 10 | Q |
KEY.TO | Keyera Corp. | 10 | M |
MIC.TO | Sagen MI Canada Inc. | 12 | Q |
SYZ.V | Sylogist Ltd. | 11 | Q |
RY.TO | Royal Bank of Canada | 10 | Q |
TFII.TO | TFI International Inc. | 10 | Q |
AP-UN.TO | Allied Properties REIT | 9 | M |
BMO.TO | Bank of Montreal | 9 | Q |
BAM-A.TO | Brookfield Asset Management Inc | 9 | Q |
CAR-UN.TO | Canadian Apartment Properties REIT | 9 | M |
FCD-UN.V | Firm Capital Property Trust | 9 | M |
FN.TO | First National Financial Corp | 9 | M |
WN.TO | George Weston Ltd | 9 | Q |
IIP-UN.TO | InterRent REIT | 9 | M |
L.TO | Loblaw Companies Limited | 9 | Q |
PPL.TO | Pembina Pipeline | 9 | M |
STN.TO | Stantec Inc | 9 | Q |
BPY-UN.TO | Brookfield Property Partners L.P. | 8 | Q |
CGI.TO | Canadian General Investments, Limited | 8 | Q |
CRT-UN.TO | CT REIT | 8 | M |
MAL.TO | Magellan Aerospace Corporation | 8 | Q |
ONEX.TO | Onex Corp | 8 | Q |
OTEX.TO | Open Text Corporation | 8 | Q |
PKI.TO | Parkland Corporation | 8 | M |
PBH.TO | Premium Brands Holdings Corp | 8 | Q |
SIS.TO | Savaria Corporation | 8 | M |
CPX.TO | Capital Power Corporation | 7 | Q |
GWR.TO | Global Water Resources Inc. | 7 | M |
INE.TO | Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. | 7 | Q |
MFC.TO | Manulife Financial Corporation | 7 | Q |
SGR-UN.TO | Slate Grocery REIT | 7 | M |
SRU-UN.TO | SmartCentres REIT | 7 | M |
CSH-UN.TO | Chartwell Retirement Residences | 6 | M |
FSV.TO | FirstService Corporation | 8 | Q |
GSY.TO | goeasy Ltd. | 6 | Q |
GWO.TO | Great-West Lifeco Inc. | 6 | Q |
MFI.TO | Maple Leaf Foods Inc. | 6 | Q |
POW.TO | Power Corporation of Canada | 6 | Q |
QBR-B.TO | Quebecor Inc. | 6 | Q |
QSR.TO | Restaurant Brands International | 6 | Q |
QSP-UN.TO | Restaurant Brands International Partnership | 6 | Q |
RAY-A.TO | Stingray Digital Group Inc. | 6 | Q |
SLF.TO | Sunlife | 6 | Q |
AEM.TO | Agnico Eagle Mines Limited | 5 | Q |
BAD.TO | Badger Daylighting Ltd. | 5 | M |
CP.TO | Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd | 5 | Q |
H.TO | Hydro One Limited | 5 | Q |
MRG-UN.TO | Morguard North American REIT | 5 | M |
SVI.V | StorageVault Canada Inc. | 5 | Q |
X.TO | TMX Group Limited | 5 | Q |
WBR.TO | Waterloo Brewing Ltd. | 5 | Q |
It is nice to see that there are so many Canadian companies that have increased dividends for more than ten years. It’s also amazing that Canadian Utilities and Fortis have increased dividends for more than 40 years.
Canadian dividend calendar – Canadian dividend payout dates
As mentioned, I went through the 99 Canadian dividend all star list and used Morningstar.ca and Dividend History to check the dividend payment months and dividend payout dates. The payment months are recorded in an Excel spreadsheet to allow for an overall view.
What I found from this exercise:
- 18 Canadian dividend stocks pay out monthly dividends
- 81 Canadian dividend stocks pay out quarterly dividends
- Out of the 81 quarterly payers, 11 stocks pay out irregular quarterly dividends. These dividend stocks are – Sapputo (SAP.TO), Stella-Jones (SJ.TO), Tecsys Inc (TCS.TO), Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.B), Waste Connections (WCN.TO), Sagen MI Canada (MIC.TO), Loblaw (L.TO), Quecbecor (QBR.B), Restaurant Brand International (QSR.TO), Restaurant Brand International Partnership (QSR.UN), Waterloo Brewing (WBR.TO)
- One company, Power Corp (POW.TO) seemed to have different dividend distribution months over the last few years.
February is the month with the lowest number of companies paying out dividends. May, August, and November follow behind February closely in terms of a low number of companies paying out dividends. Funny enough, this seems to line up with our monthly dividend income trend.
The monthly dividends breakdown is as follow:
- January: 51 companies pay out dividends, including Canadian Natural Resources, TC Energy, Telus, TD, and Bank of Nova Scotia.
- February: 28 companies pay out dividends, including Emera, National Bank, Royal Bank, and Power Corp.
- March: 54 companies pay out dividends, including Canadian Utilities, Fortis, Atco, Enbridge, Intact Financial, Magna International, Waste Connection, and Sunlife.
- April: 53 companies pay out dividends, including CIBC, Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp, and Loblaw.
- May: 30 companies pay out dividends, including Cogeco, Dollarama, and Bank of Montreal.
- June: 55 companies pay out dividends, including Canadian National Railway, Canadian Tire, and Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners.
- July: 50 companies pay out dividends, including Empire, Imperial Oil, BCE, and Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.
- August: 30 companies pay out dividends, including Waste Connections, SmartCentre REIT, and Keyera.
- September 54 companies pay out dividends, including Canadian Western Bank, Brookfield Asset Management, Open Text Corporation, and goeasy Ltd.
- October: 52 companies pay out dividends, including Saputo, Telus, and Premium Brands Holding Corp.
- November: 30 companies pay out dividends, including Metro, Enghouse Systems Limited, and Parkland Corporation.
- December: 53 companies pay out dividends, including Thomson Reuters, CCL Industries Inc, Exco Technologies Ltd, and Manulife Financial.
Canadian dividend calendar – Overview
Here’s an overview of the Candian dividend calendar.
Company | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
Canadian Utilities | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Fortis Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Toromont Industries Ltd | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Canadian Western Bank | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Atco Ltd., Cl.I, | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Thomson Reuters | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Empire Company Ltd | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Imperial Oil | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Metro Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Canadian National Railway | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Enbridge Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Saputo Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Canadian Natural Resources | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
TC Energy Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
CCL Industries Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Finning International | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Transcontinental Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Cogeco Communications Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Telus Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Cogeco Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Intact Financial | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Stella-Jones Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Andrew Peller Ltd. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Exco Technologies Ltd | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Boyd Group Services Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Emera Incorporated | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Enghouse Systems Limited | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Franco-Nevada Corp | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Tecsys Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
BCE Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Toronto Dominion Bank | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Logistec Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Magna International Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
National Bank | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Waste Connections Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Bank of Nova Scotia | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Canadian Tire Corp Ltd A Nvtg | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Dollarama Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Equitable Group Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Exchange Income Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Granite Real Estate Investment Trust | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Guardian Capital Group Ltd. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Hardwoods Distribution Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Keyera Corp. | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Sagen MI Canada Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Sylogist Ltd. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Royal Bank of Canada | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
TFI International Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Allied Properties REIT | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Bank of Montreal | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Brookfield Asset Management Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Canadian Apartment Properties REIT | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Firm Capital Property Trust | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
First National Financial Corp | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
George Weston Ltd | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
InterRent REIT | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Loblaw Companies Limited | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Pembina Pipeline | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Stantec Inc | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Brookfield Property Partners L.P. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Canadian General Investments, Limited | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
CT REIT | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Magellan Aerospace Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Onex Corp | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Open Text Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Parkland Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Premium Brands Holdings Corp | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Savaria Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Capital Power Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Global Water Resources Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Manulife Financial Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Slate Grocery REIT | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
SmartCentres REIT | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Chartwell Retirement Residences | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
FirstService Corporation | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
goeasy Ltd. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Great-West Lifeco Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Maple Leaf Foods Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Power Corporation of Canada | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Quebecor Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Restaurant Brands Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Restaurant Brands Partnership | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Stingray Digital Group Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Sunlife | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Agnico Eagle Mines Limited | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Badger Daylighting Ltd. | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Hydro One Limited | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Morguard North American REIT | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
StorageVault Canada Inc. | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
TMX Group Limited | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||||||||
Waterloo Brewing Ltd. | Y | Y | Y | Y |
Since I wanted this post to be a resource for Canadian dividend investors, I have decided to share the master Canadian dividend calendar. It is also easier to work in the spreadsheet than looking at the table above. You can download the master spreadsheet here.
Building a dividend portfolio
It’s understandable that some dividend investors prefer receiving dividend income each month and prefer to build their dividend portfolio that way. It’s definitely a nice feeling to see dividend pay cheques deposited in your investment account each month.
If I take the 10 best Canadian dividend stocks that I selected, the monthly dividend payment would look something like this:
Only two companies, Royal Bank and National Bank, pay out dividends in February, May, August, and November. Since there are only ten dividend stocks, two of them have to be repeated.
If we want to have a different company logo for each month, we can add two companies that pay dividends on these four months. Looking at the list I’d pick Emera and Enghouse Systems and the Canadian dividend calendar would look something like this:
If you are looking to build your dividend portfolio, I’d suggest checking out these articles:
- How to start investing in dividend stocks
- How to start dividend investing with as little as $1,000
- Dividend FAQs
Some investors may want to get dividends each month. For those investors, you may want to take a look at the 13 Best Canadian monthly dividend stocks that I put together.
Summary – Canadian Dividend Calendar
This post has turned out a bit longer than I anticipated due to all the tables and information. I hope many of you will find this Canadian dividend calendar useful.
A word of caution, rather than focusing on receiving dividends each month, dividend investors should focus on investing high quality dividend paying stocks to pay safe and reliable dividends. Focus on the long term stability and growth of the dividends, rather than whether you get paid each month or not.
Please let me know if you find this information useful by leaving a comment or send me an email.