If you’re building a passive income stream from U.S. dividend stocks, the days right before a company’s ex-dividend date matter: you have to own the shares before that date to collect the next payout. Below are six dividend-paying stocks whose ex-dividend dates fall this week (October 6–8, 2026), with their yield, payment details, and — just as important — how safe each dividend actually looks.
How ex-dividend dates work (quick refresher)
- To receive the upcoming dividend, you must buy the stock before the ex-dividend date — buying on or after that date means you miss that payment.
- On the ex-dividend date itself, the share price typically drops by roughly the dividend amount, since that value has just been paid out.
- A single quarterly dividend is not a reason to buy a stock you wouldn’t otherwise want to hold — dividend capture around one payout rarely beats simply owning (or not owning) the business for the right reasons.
The 6 stocks, in order of ex-dividend date
JPMorgan Chase (JPM)
- Yield: 1.78% (trailing)
- Ex-dividend date: October 6, 2026
- Payment: $1.65/share (raised from $1.50) — pay date October 31, 2026
- Coverage: Very safe. Trailing diluted EPS of $23.33 comfortably covers the $6.60 annualized dividend. CET1 capital ratio of 14.3%, plus a new $50 billion buyback authorization in July 2026.
First Bancorp (FNLC)
- Yield: 4.47%
- Ex-dividend date: October 6, 2026
- Payment: $0.38/share — pay date October 16, 2026
- Coverage: The cleanest on this list — payout ratio of roughly 45% of trailing EPS ($3.41). Net interest margin has expanded for eight consecutive quarters, though non-performing assets ticked up to 0.54%.
Upbound Group (UPBD)
- Yield: 9.94%
- Ex-dividend date: October 6, 2026
- Payment: $0.39/share — pay date October 27, 2026
- Coverage: This is the risky one. GAAP payout ratio is around 101%, and the stock is down 26.7% over the past year. Quarterly free cash flow of $84 million against a ~$22.7 million dividend cost suggests the cash picture is better than the GAAP payout ratio implies, but this is a high-yield-high-risk pick, not a “safe” one.
Comcast (CMCSA)
- Yield: 6.07%
- Ex-dividend date: October 7, 2026
- Payment: $0.33/share — pay date October 28, 2026
- Coverage: Payout ratio of about 42% of trailing EPS, and 2025 free cash flow of $21.89 billion dwarfs the $4.89 billion paid in dividends. The caveat: dividend policy is less predictable following the NBCUniversal/Sky separation, and the stock is down almost 20% over the past year.
Manhattan Bridge Capital (LOAN)
- Yield: 12.2%
- Ex-dividend date: October 8, 2026
- Payment: $0.11/share — pay date October 15, 2026
- Coverage: Shaky. The quarterly dividend was already trimmed from $0.115 to $0.11, EPS of $0.43 covers only about 102% of the forward annualized dividend, and operating cash flow is running below the dividend. The double-digit yield reflects real risk, not just a bargain.
Millicom (TIGO)
- Yield: 3.44% regular, plus a $1.50/share interim dividend expected in early 2027
- Ex-dividend date: October 8, 2026
- Payment: $0.75/share regular dividend — pay date October 15, 2026
- Coverage: Regular dividend is about 75% of trailing EPS, and equity free cash flow guidance of roughly $1.1 billion covers total payments. Note: Millicom is domiciled in Luxembourg, so dividends carry a 15% Luxembourg withholding tax rather than the usual U.S. rate.
Safe coverage vs. high yield, high risk
Grouping these by how comfortably the dividend is covered, rather than just by yield:
- Solid coverage: JPMorgan Chase, First Bancorp, Comcast — lower-to-moderate yields, but the dividend is well supported by earnings and cash flow.
- High yield, real risk: Upbound Group and Manhattan Bridge Capital — double-digit or near-double-digit yields, but payout ratios near or above 100% mean the dividend has less of a cushion if earnings slip.
- In between: Millicom — a reasonable regular yield with decent coverage, plus a one-off interim dividend, but with foreign withholding tax to account for.
Notes for European investors
- U.S. dividends are subject to a 30% withholding tax by default, typically reduced to 15% once your broker has a W-8BEN form on file — most European brokers handle this automatically when you open the account.
- Millicom’s dividend is taxed differently: a 15% Luxembourg withholding tax applies instead of the U.S. rate.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Dividend yields, payout ratios, and ex-dividend dates can change on short notice — always confirm the current figures directly with your broker or the company’s investor relations page before making a decision. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of capital, and a dividend payment is never guaranteed.
