Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Investor Returns: Evidence from Listed Real Estate Companies in China

This study addresses the issue of how corporate social responsibility (CSR) influences investor returns in China's listed real estate companies.The objective is to evaluate whether CSR creates or reduces financial value, considering both overall effects and ownership differences.The scope covers panel data from 2018 to 2023, with CSR disaggregated into five dimensions constructed through the entropy weight method.The technique relies on the generalized method of moments (GMM), which accounts for dynamic persistence and potential endogeneity.The results indicate that environmental, social, economic, and voluntary dimensions positively affect investor returns, while the stakeholder dimension exerts a negative effect.Further analysis highlights systematic differences between state-owned and privately owned enterprises.The policy implication is that firms should prioritize strategic CSR activities, while regulators should design ownership-sensitive disclosure frameworks to foster sustainable and value-driven governance.