Guides / FTSE 250 dividend yields: what the index yield means and how to read a company's yield

FTSE 250 dividend yields: what the index yield means and how to read a company's yield

A dividend yield is a year's dividends per share divided by the share price, shown as a percentage. The FTSE 250 also has one index-level yield, which FTSE Russell publishes on its factsheet as a snapshot. Any single figure you find will soon be out of date.

By MarketFrame · Published 20 October 2026 · Updated 20 October 2026

Short answer: first check which kind of yield you are looking at. It is either one company's yield, which you can work out yourself, or the index's yield, which FTSE Russell publishes. Then check what sits inside the number: whose dividends, which year, any one-off payments, and the date it was calculated. This page gives no live figures and no company names. It shows you how to read the numbers when you find them.

Two things people mean by FTSE 250 dividend yield

The phrase covers two different numbers:

A company's yield: what one FTSE 250 company pays in dividends, measured against its own share price.
The index's yield: one figure for the whole FTSE 250, published by FTSE Russell, the index provider.

LSEG describes the FTSE 250 as made up of mid-sized companies that are not in the FTSE 100, and says it represents about 15% of UK market capitalisation. The index yield covers that whole group, so it says little about any single company. A company's yield says nothing about the rest of the index. Before you compare two yields, make sure both are the same kind. For background on the index itself, see what is the FTSE 250 index.

How a dividend yield is calculated

The sum has three steps:

Add up the dividends per share for a year.
Divide by the share price.
Multiply by 100 to get a percentage.

An illustrative example, using made-up numbers and no real company: a share pays 10p a year in dividends and trades at 200p. 10 divided by 200 is 0.05, so the yield is 5%.

The dividend is the amount paid per share, not the company's total payout. The price is the price on the day you do the sum. That means every yield is a snapshot, and it is out of date as soon as the price moves.

Where the index-level yield is published

FTSE Russell publishes a factsheet for the FTSE 250. Under Index Characteristics it has a field called Dividend Yield %, next to the number of constituents and the index's net market capitalisation. That is the official figure, from the company that calculates the index.

Two habits help:

Use the factsheet itself. Other sites copy the figure and then leave it unchanged while the index moves on.
Keep the date with the number. The factsheet gives figures for a fixed point in time. A yield with no date cannot be checked, because you cannot tell whether it is from last month or two years ago.

The same factsheet gives the review schedule (see below) and splits the index by industry, which helps explain why its yield differs from other indices.

Why a company's yield can move without the dividend changing

The share price is the bottom of the sum, so the yield moves every time the price moves, even if the dividend stays the same.

Using the illustrative numbers again: the dividend stays at 10p and the price falls from 200p to 160p. The yield goes up from 5% to 6.25%. The company is paying exactly what it paid before.

This is the most common way a yield misleads. A yield can look generous because the market has marked the shares down, and that fall may reflect worries about the business, including whether the dividend can last. A high yield is a question to look into, not good news in itself. Highest dividend stocks: what a high yield tells you covers this in more depth.

Why FTSE 250 yields can look different from FTSE 100 yields

The two indices hold different companies, so their published yields describe different groups:

Different members. By definition, FTSE 250 companies are the mid-sized companies outside the FTSE 100.
Different industry mix. Each factsheet splits the index by industry. If one index has more of its weight in industries that pay large dividends, its yield will lean that way.
Different dividend policies. Some companies pay out a large share of their profits. Others pay little or nothing and put the money back into the business. One index figure averages all of these together.

So a gap between the two published yields tells you about how the two groups are made up. It does not tell you which index is "better".

The group also changes. The FTSE 250 factsheet lists its review dates as quarterly, in March, June, September and December. Companies can move in and out at each review, so the companies behind the index yield one quarter may not be the same the next.

Trailing, forecast and special dividends: reading the label

A yield figure should say which dividends it uses:

Trailing: dividends already paid over a past period, usually the last 12 months. It describes the past.
Forecast: dividends someone expects the company to pay. It is an estimate, and estimates can be wrong.
Including a special: a one-off payment on top of the regular dividend.

Special dividends are the easiest way to be misled. Illustrative numbers: a company normally pays 10p and one year adds a 6p special. At a 200p share price, the trailing yield that year is 8%. If the special is not repeated, the trailing yield drops back towards 5% a year later, even though the regular dividend has not changed. Companies usually say in their own announcement whether a payment is regular or special, so check the announcement when a yield looks unusually high.

To be paid a dividend you need to hold the shares before a set date. Ex-dividend date meaning in the UK explains the timetable.

Reading a yield alongside dividend cover and company announcements

A yield shows what a company has paid relative to its price. To judge how comfortably that payout is funded, look at dividend cover: earnings per share divided by dividends per share. Illustrative numbers: earnings of 20p and a dividend of 10p give cover of 2 times. Cover close to or below 1 means the company is paying out about as much as it earned, or more.

The primary source is always the company itself. Its results announcements and investor relations site give the declared dividend, the payment dates and any written dividend policy. Read the policy in the company's own words rather than a summary of it.

A routine that works for any FTSE 250 yield:

Work out the yield yourself from the declared dividends and today's price.
Check whether it is trailing or forecast, and whether a special dividend is included.
Ask whether a falling share price explains a high figure.
Look at the dividend cover.
Confirm the dividend details in the company's own announcements.

Where to look next on MarketFrame

To find out which companies are in the index, start with the FTSE 250 list of companies and why it goes stale. MarketFrame's daily news analysis covers FTSE 100 companies, which is a different group from the FTSE 250. Each morning, FTSE news scores the tone of the coverage for each company from -10 to +10. News tone describes the coverage. It is not a share-price forecast or a dividend forecast, so do not read it as one. Everything on this page is general information, not advice to buy, sell or hold any share.

Questions people ask

What is the dividend yield of the FTSE 250?

FTSE Russell publishes it on the FTSE 250 factsheet as "Dividend Yield %", under Index Characteristics. The figure is a snapshot that changes as prices, dividends and membership change. Take it from the current factsheet and quote it alongside the factsheet's date.

How do I find the dividend yield of a FTSE 250 company?

Add up the dividends per share the company has declared for a year, divide by the current share price and multiply by 100. Take the dividend amounts from the company's own results or dividend announcements. Note whether a special dividend is included in the total.

Is a higher dividend yield better?

Not automatically. A yield can be high because the share price has fallen, or because a one-off special dividend is included. Look at dividend cover and the company's own dividend policy to see what is behind the number. This is general information, not a view on any share.

Why does a dividend yield change when the dividend has not?

Because the share price is the bottom of the sum. When the price falls, the same dividend gives a higher yield. When the price rises, the yield falls. The payout itself has not changed.

Where can I see the FTSE 250 constituents and their dividends?

FTSE Russell publishes index information, and each company's investor relations site shows its own dividend history. Membership is reviewed every quarter, so any list you copy goes out of date. Our guide to the FTSE 250 list explains where to find a current one.