Editing Dividend (section)

===Trusts{{anchor|Dividends from trusts}}===
In [[real estate investment trust]]s and [[royalty trust]]s, the distributions paid often will be consistently greater than the company earnings. This can be sustainable because the accounting earnings do not recognize any increasing value of real estate holdings and resource reserves. If there is no economic increase in the value of the company's assets then the excess distribution (or dividend) will be a [[return of capital]] and the [[book value]] of the company will have shrunk by an equal amount. This may result in [[capital gain]]s which may be taxed differently from dividends representing distribution of earnings.

The distribution of profits by other forms of [[mutual organization]] also varies from that of [[joint-stock company|joint-stock companies]], though may not take the form of a dividend.

In the case of [[mutual insurance]], for example, in the United States, a distribution of profits to holders of [[Participating policy|participating life policies]] is called a ''dividend''.
These profits are generated by the investment returns of the insurer's general account, in which premiums are invested and from which claims are paid.<ref>{{cite web|quote="In short, the portion of the premium determined not to have been necessary to provide coverage and benefits, to meet expenses, and to maintain the company's financial position, is returned to policyowners in the form of dividends."|url=http://www.newyorklife.com/cda/0,3254,10542,00.html|title=What Are Dividends?|publisher=[[New York Life]]|access-date=29 April 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511213614/http://www.newyorklife.com/cda/0,3254,10542,00.html|archive-date=11 May 2008}}</ref> The participating dividend may be used to decrease premiums, or to increase the cash value of the policy.<ref>{{cite book|pages=591|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F1hk6UFlsUsC|isbn=978-0-471-22092-3|oclc=    52323583|editor=Fabozzi, Frank J.|year=2002|title=Handbook of Financial Instruments|publisher=Wiley|chapter=24, Investment-Oriented Life Insurance|author=Hoboken, NJ}}</ref>
Some life policies pay nonparticipating dividends.
As a contrasting example, in the United Kingdom, the surrender value of a [[with-profits policy]] is increased by a ''bonus'', which also serves the purpose of distributing profits.
[[Life insurance]] dividends and bonuses, while typical of mutual insurance, are also paid by some joint stock insurers.

Insurance dividend payments are not restricted to life policies. For example, general insurer [[State Farm Insurance|State Farm]] Mutual Automobile Insurance Company can distribute dividends to its vehicle insurance policyholders.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.statefarm.com/about/media/media_releases/auto_dividends.asp|title=State Farm Announces $1.25 Billion Mutual Auto Policyholder Dividend|publisher=[[State Farm]]|date=1 March 2007}}</ref>