If you want to receive the next Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) dividend, then you will have to get a wriggle on.

That's because it won't be long until the mining giant's shares go ex-dividend.

When a share goes ex-dividend, it means that the rights to an upcoming dividend payment are now settled.

As a result, if you were to buy its shares on that date (and beyond), you would not receive the dividend on pay day. Instead, it would end up being paid to the seller of the shares, even though they no longer own them.

For Rio Tinto's upcoming dividend, the company has named Thursday 6 March as its ex-dividend date. This means that you would have to buy its shares before the market close on Wednesday to qualify to receive the payout.

But what is Rio Tinto paying to shareholders? Let's take a look.

The Rio Tinto dividend

Last month, Rio Tinto released its full year results and declared a fully franked final dividend of US$2.25 (A$3.62) per share.

This brought its full year dividends to US$4.02 per share, which was down 7.6% from US$4.35 per share a year earlier.

In total, this means that US$6.5 billion (A$10.5 billion) is being returned to Rio Tinto shareholders in the form of dividends for FY 2024.

Commenting on its returns, the broker said:

Operational performance and our balance sheet remained robust in 2024, allowing US$6.5 billion to be declared as dividends to shareholders. This underpinned our ability to reach an agreement in October for the proposed acquisition of Arcadium Lithium in an all-cash deal. Subject to completion, this transaction will give us the platform to create a world-class lithium business. We expect the deal to close in March 2025.

What's next?

As I mentioned above, if you want to qualify for this dividend, you will need to own Rio Tinto's shares before the ex-dividend date of Thursday 3 March.

After which, you can look forward to receiving a pay check from the mining giant next month on 17 April. Based on its current share price of $115.17, this final dividend equates to an attractive dividend yield of 3.15%.

Looking further ahead, Goldman Sachs expects an increase in Rio Tinto's dividend to US$4.30 per share in FY 2025, then US$4.31 per share in FY 2026, and finally US$4.73 per share in FY 2027.

Goldman also sees plenty of value on offer with its shares. It has a buy rating and $143.70 price target on them at current levels. This implies potential upside of 25% for investors.