[broiler]

You are comparing apples and oranges.

In a stock dividend, you are receiving more stock, which is a capital asset. You already own shares of the corporation issuing the dividend. A stock dividend does not decrease your overall basis in the stock. The basis is merely spread out across a greater number of shares.

Rakeback is no way related to a capital asset. Rakeback is a refund of your expenses for playing. You are receiving cash from an entity in which you have no ownership interest. Therefore, the payment cannot be a dividend, which would not receive capital gain treatment in this situation as the poker sites do not have securities that would qualify for the reduced dividend rate treatment. A return of any deduction item will always be income of the same type as the deduction.