Ex-dividend means that a share is traded without the right to the next upcoming dividend. Anyone who buys the share on or after the ex-dividend date will no longer receive the announced dividend. Only investors who owned the share before that date are entitled to the dividend. 

The price of a share usually falls on the ex-dividend date by approximately the amount of the dividend. 

When a company pays a dividend, a specific date is set to determine who is entitled to the payment. This is the ex-dividend date. From that moment on, the upcoming dividend is no longer attached to the share. Because money is paid out of the company to shareholders, the market price usually adjusts. The decline is often approximately equal to the dividend amount per share, although the final price movement can also be influenced by supply and demand. 

Short example:

Suppose a share costs €50 and the company announces a dividend of €2 per share. The day before the ex-dividend date, you buy the share for €50. You are then entitled to €2 in dividend.

On the ex-dividend date, the share usually opens around €48, because the €2 dividend is no longer attached to the share. Anyone who buys the share from that day onward for €48 will no longer receive the announced dividend.

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