Sydney, Feb 23, 2026, 18:47 AEDT — Market closed
- AGL finished Monday’s session 2.7% lower, ending at A$10.31.
- Shares go ex-dividend Tuesday, tied to a 24-cent interim payment.
- Tuesday’s anticipated reset is on traders’ radar after a sluggish session; they’re also scanning the broader tape.
AGL Energy Ltd (AGL.AX) dropped 2.7% to settle at A$10.31 on Monday, shaving off 29 Australian cents over the session. (Reuters)
AGL heads into its next session set to trade ex-dividend on Tuesday, according to a filing. The 24 Australian cent interim dividend is fully franked, with a record date of Feb. 25 and payment scheduled for March 26. (Company Announcements)
The “ex-dividend” date draws the boundary. If you pick up shares on or after that day, you’re out of luck for the next payout. Around the ex-date, stocks typically drop about as much as the dividend—but it’s rarely a perfect match.
AGL shares dropped while the broader Australian market also retreated, with the S&P/ASX 200 slipping 0.6%. Utilities lagged, the sub-index down roughly 1.0%. (Reuters)
AGL announced its interim dividend on Feb. 11, alongside first-half earnings showing underlying net profit after tax reached $353 million. The company also tightened its FY26 underlying EBITDA guidance, now forecasting $2.02 billion to $2.18 billion—adjusted for what it classifies as one-off items. “The strength of our first half result was delivered by our excellent operational performance,” CEO Damien Nicks said. (ASX Announcements)
The company is rolling out a $50 million cost-out initiative, aiming for the full impact to land in FY27. According to Sandstone Insights analysts, “The new cost-out programme implies a nearly 7%-8% reduction in group costs,” following AGL’s result. (Reuters)
Tuesday’s numbers are pretty clear: that 24-cent dividend equals roughly 2.3% of where the stock settled on Monday. Once it trades ex-dividend, a drop of that size wouldn’t be out of the ordinary.
Dividend mechanics won’t do much to protect investors if markets sour. Should risk appetite remain weak or power markets shift unfavorably for retailers, share prices can drop well past the dividend, and losses may persist.
Earnings sensitivity is the other wild card. Margins in the National Electricity Market often react fast—weather shifts, wholesale price jolts, network bottlenecks, any of these can change the outlook in a hurry.
