how does pro rata apply to dividends per share 
it s typically executed on a pro rata basis when a company distributes dividends consider a majority shareholder such as a founder or key executive who owns 50 of a company s total 1 000 shares the company is issuing a 1 dividend the majority shareholder would receive 500 in value of the 1 000 in dividends the formula would be as follows 50 100 x 1 000 500 