Does AstraZeneca (AZN) Pay a Dividend? (2026)
Last updated July 2026
Short answer
Yes. AstraZeneca (AZN) pays a dividend yielding about 1.88% as of July 2026, paid twice a year. The latest payment on record was $2.15 per share, ex-dividend February 19, 2026. The forward annual rate is roughly $3.19 per share, about $188 a year on a $10,000 position before tax. The payout takes about 47% of earnings. Figures are approximate and dated; verify the current number with your broker.
Does AstraZeneca (AZN) pay a dividend?
Yes. AstraZeneca distributes a dividend yielding roughly 1.88% as of July 2026, paid twice a year. The most recent payment on record was $2.15 per share, with an ex-dividend date of February 19, 2026. Annualized, that is about $3.19 per share.
Figures are approximate and tied to the asOf date; confirm live numbers before acting. AstraZeneca trades as a growth-oriented large-cap pharma, so its valuation reflects confidence in the pipeline delivering on the $80 billion 2030 goal more than any single current metric. A patent cliff early next decade means today's revenue base is not guaranteed to persist, so how you weigh future launches matters more than trailing multiples.
AZN dividend at a glance
| 2026-02-19 | $2.153 |
| 2025-08-08 | $1.03 |
| 2025-02-21 | $2.1 |
| 2024-08-09 | $1.00 |
| 2024-02-22 | $1.97 |
| 2023-08-10 | $0.93 |
AZN dividend data as of July 2026, sourced from Yahoo Finance and may be delayed. Yield moves with price and payout; confirm the current dividend and ex-date with AZN's investor relations page before relying on it.
Is the AZN dividend covered?
AstraZeneca paid out about 47% of its earnings as dividends, so the payout is comfortably covered. That is the range most established dividend payers sit in: enough profit is retained to keep funding the business, with room to raise the dividend if earnings grow.
Coverage is the question worth asking before yield. A dividend is only as good as the earnings behind it, and the highest yields on any screen are often the ones closest to being cut. Walnut is informational and is not an investment adviser.
How the AZN dividend has changed
The latest payment of $2.15 per share compares with $2.10 in the equivalent payment a year earlier (February 21, 2025). That is a change of 2.5% over the year.
A single year says little on its own. What dividend-growth investors track is the multi-year record: whether the payout has risen through a downturn, and whether the raises have kept pace with inflation. That record is on AZN's investor relations page.
What AZN's dividend means for you
- Income: about $188 a year per $10,000 invested, before tax.
- Yield is a ratio, not a payment: it rises when the share price falls. A jump in yield without a raise in the dividend means the stock got cheaper, which may or may not be good news.
- Total return: for AZN the dividend is one part of return and price change is usually the larger part. Compare total return, not yield, when weighing it against another holding.
- Reinvest or take the cash: a DRIP compounds the position automatically; taking the cash gives you income now. Either way it is taxable in a taxable account.
- If you want more yield: dedicated dividend names and funds target higher, steadier payouts. See the best dividend stocks and best dividend ETFs.
How AZN dividends are taxed
Dividends from US common stock are usually qualified, which means they are taxed at long-term capital-gains rates rather than as ordinary income, as long as you held the shares for more than 60 days in the 121-day window around the ex-dividend date. Distributions from REITs and BDCs generally do not qualify and are taxed as ordinary income. Inside an IRA, Roth, or 401(k) none of this applies while the money stays in the account. Full detail is in how dividends are taxed. This is not tax advice.
The bottom line on the AZN dividend
AstraZeneca (AZN) pays about 1.88%, or roughly $3.19 per share a year. At that level the dividend is a modest supplement rather than the reason to own it: the case rests on total return. For the full picture see the AZN guide. Walnut can show how AZN fits your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.
Investing in AstraZeneca with AI
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FAQ
Does AstraZeneca (AZN) pay a dividend?
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Yes. AstraZeneca pays a dividend yielding roughly 1.88% as of July 2026, paid twice a year. The most recent payment on record was $2.15 per share with an ex-dividend date of February 19, 2026. That works out to a forward annual rate of about $3.19 per share. Yields move with the share price, so verify the current figure with your broker or AZN's investor relations page before relying on it.
What is AZN's dividend yield?
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About 1.88% as of July 2026. On a $10,000 position that is roughly $188 of dividend income a year before tax. For context, the S&P 500 yields around 1.2%, so AZN yields meaningfully more than the broad market. A higher yield is not automatically better: it can reflect a falling share price as easily as a generous payout, so it is worth checking why the number is what it is.
How often does AZN pay its dividend?
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AstraZeneca pays twice a year. The most recent payment on record had an ex-dividend date of February 19, 2026. To receive a given payment you have to own the shares before the ex-dividend date, not on the pay date. Confirm upcoming dates on AZN's investor relations page, because boards can change both the amount and the timing.
When is AZN's ex-dividend date?
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The ex-dividend date recorded in our July 2026 data pull is August 7, 2026. The ex-dividend date is the cutoff: buy on or after it and the seller keeps that payment, not you. Buying just before the ex-date to capture the dividend does not create free money, because the share price typically drops by roughly the dividend amount when the stock goes ex. Check AZN's investor relations page for the next confirmed date.
Has AstraZeneca raised its dividend recently?
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Yes. The latest payment of $2.15 per share is above the $2.10 paid in the same slot a year earlier, an increase of about 2.5%. One raise is not a policy, though: check the multi-year record on AZN's investor relations page, since a long streak of increases is what dividend-growth investors actually look for.
Is AZN's dividend safe?
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AstraZeneca paid out about 47% of its earnings as dividends, so the payout is comfortably covered. That is the range most established dividend payers sit in: enough profit is retained to keep funding the business, with room to raise the dividend if earnings grow. Nobody can guarantee a dividend: boards cut them, and a high yield is sometimes the market pricing in exactly that. Walnut is not an investment adviser and this is not a recommendation.
How much would I earn in dividends from a $10,000 position in AZN?
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At a yield of about 1.88%, roughly $188 a year before tax, spread across 2 payments. That is a snapshot, not a promise: the amount changes when the company changes its payout, and your yield on cost is fixed at the price you paid, not at today's price.
Are AZN dividends qualified for tax purposes?
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Dividends from US common stock are usually qualified, meaning they are taxed at the lower long-term capital-gains rates, provided you held the shares for more than 60 days in the 121-day window around the ex-dividend date. Distributions from REITs, BDCs, and some pass-through structures are generally taxed as ordinary income instead. In an IRA or Roth the question does not arise. See our guide to how dividends are taxed. This is not tax advice.
Should I reinvest AZN dividends?
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Most brokers offer automatic reinvestment (a DRIP) that puts each AZN payment straight back into more shares, often fractional ones. Reinvesting compounds the position and is the standard choice when you do not need the cash yet. Taking the cash makes sense when you are spending the income or want to direct it elsewhere. Either way the dividend is taxable in a taxable account in the year it is paid, even if you never see the money.
Does AstraZeneca pay a dividend?
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Yes. AstraZeneca pays a regular dividend, typically in two installments a year, and the recent yield has been in the low-2% range. That is modest for a large pharma but backed by big, growing cash flows. Because it is a UK company, payout timing and any foreign-tax considerations can differ from a US-domiciled stock, so check the latest declared dividend and how it is handled in your account before assuming any figure.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Dividend figures on this page come from a July 2026 data pull and are approximate; verify the current yield, amount, schedule, and policy with AZN's investor relations page or your broker before acting on them.