Editorial Policy & Standards

Data-first reporting

Every SmarterDividends news article is anchored to a confirmed event in our dividend dataset — an increase, cut, initiation or special dividend. The financial figures in each story (per-share amounts, percentage changes, yields, ex-dividend dates, growth streaks) are taken directly from that structured data, not estimated or generated. We do not publish a story without an underlying data event.

Sourcing & context

Around the core figures, we add context — the reason for a change, company background, and relevant history — researched from credible primary and secondary sources, including company investor-relations releases, regulatory filings and reputable financial outlets. Material factual claims are linked to their sources within each article.

Accuracy & oversight

• Figures are validated against our source data before publication.
• Coverage is filtered for quality — we deliberately exclude noisy or unreliable signals (for example, variable-payout vehicles whose distributions naturally fluctuate) rather than mislabel them as news.
• Our research is technology-assisted and produced under consistent editorial standards and review.

Research notes and commentary

• Research notes (dividend cuts, increases, the State of Dividends and others) are generated directly from our dataset. Each note states its definitions and method, and preliminary notes are marked as such until the period closes.
• The commentary on research notes and dividend history pages is drafted with AI from a fixed set of figures computed from our data. A draft is published only if every number in it appears in those figures, and it is discarded if it contains a recommendation, a forecast or promotional language.
• Commentary is refreshed when the underlying record changes, such as a new payment, and shows the date it was last updated.
• Changes caused by stock splits are excluded from dividend increases and cuts, and years in which an ex-dividend date fell into a neighbouring year are flagged rather than reported as a change in the dividend rate.

Independence

Our coverage is editorially independent. We do not accept payment to write about, favor, or omit any specific company. Where a page contains advertising or affiliate links, that does not influence our data or reporting.

Not investment advice

SmarterDividends provides information and research only. Nothing we publish is a recommendation to buy or sell any security. See our full disclaimer.

Corrections

We correct errors promptly. If you spot an inaccuracy in our data or a news article, email corrections@smarterdividends.com with the page and the issue, and we will review and update it.