Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) ratings on the ex ante cost of capital of more than 2,300 listed US companies in a panel from 2003 to 2010. It examines whether financial markets value continuous investment in CSR activities through...

This paper investigates the effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) ratings on the ex ante cost of capital of more than 2300 listed US companies in a panel from 2003 to 2010. It examines if financial markets value continuous investment in corporate social responsibility activities...