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The Financial Returns to Making the Cut: An Examination of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens List

Despite the proliferation of lists and rankings that recognize firms for superior performance in a certain domain, empirical studies have been limited in their ability to causally evaluate whether inclusion on these lists actually increases shareholder value. Using a quasi-experimental design, we address this limitation by examining how investors respond to firms that are just barely included or excluded from the 100 Best Corporate Citizens list. Contrary to prevailing expectations, our findings indicate that firms that just barely make the list experience negative abnormal returns compared with firms that just barely miss the cut. These results highlight an important, yet overlooked distinction in prior literature between CSR implementation and CSR recognition. We discuss additional implications of our findings for scholars of CSR and organizational theory and identify practical considerations for managers.