Corporate social responsibility and shareholder value implications

Abstract

The study assesses the implications for shareholder value induced by investing in companies promoting corporate social responsibility (CSR) among members of the Greek CSR Firm Network which consistently pursues CSR strategies. Alternative dynamic volatility models to identify the best fit that adequately describes the risk-return profile of these stocks were estimated, while the EGARCH model which takes into account asymmetric volatility effects was found to be statistically satisfactory in explaining CSR risk and return. The impact of volatility appears to be persistent though varying across Greek CSR companies and shareholder value hence may fluctuate considerably, as CSR stocks may not necessarily present a low risk asset class