IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/finana/v86y2023ics1057521923000029.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Retail investor attention and corporate innovation in the big data era

Author

Listed:
  • Hao, Jing

Abstract

This paper explores the corporate governance role of retail investor attention from the perspective of corporate innovation. Using a sample of Chinese listed firms from 2011 to 2019, we find that retail investor attention significantly promotes corporate innovation. Thisresult ise robust to a series of robustness checks to address potential endogeneity concerns. I further conclude that the impact of retail investor attention on corporate innovation is mainly through alleviating a firm's financial constraints and deterring agency costs. In addition, such effects are more pronounced in firms with higher media and analyst coverage as well as those with more overconfident CEOs. The results provide empirical evidence of the corporate governance function of individual investors in the current digital era.

Suggested Citation

  • Hao, Jing, 2023. "Retail investor attention and corporate innovation in the big data era," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:finana:v:86:y:2023:i:c:s1057521923000029
    DOI: 10.1016/j.irfa.2023.102486
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1057521923000029
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.irfa.2023.102486?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Stein, Jeremy C, 1988. "Takeover Threats and Managerial Myopia," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 96(1), pages 61-80, February.
    2. Gustavo Manso, 2011. "Motivating Innovation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 66(5), pages 1823-1860, October.
    3. Vicki Wei Tang, 2018. "Wisdom of Crowds: Cross‐Sectional Variation in the Informativeness of Third‐Party‐Generated Product Information on Twitter," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(3), pages 989-1034, June.
    4. Li, Xiao & Shen, Dehua & Zhang, Wei, 2018. "Do Chinese internet stock message boards convey firm-specific information?," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 1-14.
    5. Allen, Franklin & Qian, Jun & Qian, Meijun, 2005. "Law, finance, and economic growth in China," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(1), pages 57-116, July.
    6. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1997. "A Survey of Corporate Governance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(2), pages 737-783, June.
    7. Hao, Jing & He, Feng, 2022. "Corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance and green innovation: Evidence from China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 48(C).
    8. Chang, Xin & Chen, Yangyang & Wang, Sarah Qian & Zhang, Kuo & Zhang, Wenrui, 2019. "Credit default swaps and corporate innovation," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(2), pages 474-500.
    9. Balsmeier, Benjamin & Fleming, Lee & Manso, Gustavo, 2017. "Independent boards and innovation," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(3), pages 536-557.
    10. Robert M. Bushman & Christopher D. Williams & Regina Wittenberg‐Moerman, 2017. "The Informational Role of the Media in Private Lending," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(1), pages 115-152, March.
    11. Guo, Bing & Pérez-Castrillo, David & Toldrà-Simats, Anna, 2019. "Firms’ innovation strategy under the shadow of analyst coverage," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(2), pages 456-483.
    12. Berkman, Henk & Cole, Rebel A. & Fu, Lawrence J., 2010. "Political Connections and Minority-Shareholder Protection: Evidence from Securities-Market Regulation in China," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 45(6), pages 1391-1417, December.
    13. Efraim Benmelech & Eugene Kandel & Pietro Veronesi, 2010. "Stock-Based Compensation and CEO (Dis)Incentives," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 125(4), pages 1769-1820.
    14. Xuan Tian & Tracy Yue Wang, 2014. "Tolerance for Failure and Corporate Innovation," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 27(1), pages 211-255, January.
    15. Joon Mahn Lee & Jung Chul Park & Timothy B. Folta, 2018. "CEO career horizon, corporate governance, and real options: The role of economic short‐termism," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(10), pages 2703-2725, October.
    16. Sunder, Jayanthi & Sunder, Shyam V. & Zhang, Jingjing, 2017. "Pilot CEOs and corporate innovation," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(1), pages 209-224.
    17. Alexander Dyck & Adair Morse & Luigi Zingales, 2010. "Who Blows the Whistle on Corporate Fraud?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 65(6), pages 2213-2253, December.
    18. Viral V. Acharya & Ramin P. Baghai & Krishnamurthy V. Subramanian, 2014. "Wrongful Discharge Laws and Innovation," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 27(1), pages 301-346, January.
    19. Liu, Baixiao & McConnell, John J., 2013. "The role of the media in corporate governance: Do the media influence managers' capital allocation decisions?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 110(1), pages 1-17.
    20. Tsang, Albert & Wang, Kun Tracy & Liu, Simeng & Yu, Li, 2021. "Integrating corporate social responsibility criteria into executive compensation and firm innovation: International evidence," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    21. James R. Brown & Gustav Martinsson, 2019. "Does Transparency Stifle or Facilitate Innovation?," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(4), pages 1600-1623, April.
    22. Merton, Robert C, 1987. "A Simple Model of Capital Market Equilibrium with Incomplete Information," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 42(3), pages 483-510, July.
    23. Malmendier, Ulrike & Tate, Geoffrey, 2008. "Who makes acquisitions? CEO overconfidence and the market's reaction," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(1), pages 20-43, July.
    24. Renata Konadu & Samuel Owusu‐Agyei & Theophilus A. Lartey & Albert Danso & Samuel Adomako & Joseph Amankwah‐Amoah, 2020. "CEOs' reputation, quality management and environmental innovation: The roles of stakeholder pressure and resource commitment," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(6), pages 2310-2323, September.
    25. Ciabuschi, Francesco & Perna, Andrea & Snehota, Ivan, 2012. "Assembling resources when forming a new business," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 65(2), pages 220-229.
    26. David Hirshleifer & Ming Jian & Huai Zhang, 2018. "Superstition and Financial Decision Making," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 64(1), pages 235-252, January.
    27. Michael S. Drake & Jacob R. Thornock & Brady J. Twedt, 2017. "The internet as an information intermediary," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 543-576, June.
    28. Florian Ederer & Gustavo Manso, 2013. "Is Pay for Performance Detrimental to Innovation?," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 59(7), pages 1496-1513, July.
    29. Muninger, Marie-Isabelle & Hammedi, Wafa & Mahr, Dominik, 2019. "The value of social media for innovation: A capability perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 116-127.
    30. Philippe Aghion & Nick Bloom & Richard Blundell & Rachel Griffith & Peter Howitt, 2005. "Competition and Innovation: an Inverted-U Relationship," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 120(2), pages 701-728.
    31. He, Feng & Ma, Yaming & Zhang, Xiaojie, 2020. "How does economic policy uncertainty affect corporate Innovation?–Evidence from China listed companies," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 225-239.
    32. Feng, Xunan & Johansson, Anders C., 2019. "Top executives on social media and information in the capital market: Evidence from China," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 824-857.
    33. W. Brooke Elliott & Stephanie M. Grant & Frank D. Hodge, 2018. "Negative News and Investor Trust: The Role of $Firm and #CEO Twitter Use," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(5), pages 1483-1519, December.
    34. Caroline Flammer & Aleksandra Kacperczyk, 2016. "The Impact of Stakeholder Orientation on Innovation: Evidence from a Natural Experiment," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 62(7), pages 1982-2001, July.
    35. Philippe Aghion & Jean Tirole, 1994. "The Management of Innovation," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 109(4), pages 1185-1209.
    36. Zhang, Xiaotao & Wang, Ziqiao & Hao, Jing & Liu, Jiubiao, 2022. "Stock market entry timing and retail investors' disposition effect," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    37. Szczygielski, Krzysztof & Grabowski, Wojciech & Pamukcu, Mehmet Teoman & Tandogan, Vedat Sinan, 2017. "Does government support for private innovation matter? Firm-level evidence from two catching-up countries," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(1), pages 219-237.
    38. Lily Fang & Joel Peress, 2009. "Media Coverage and the Cross‐section of Stock Returns," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 64(5), pages 2023-2052, October.
    39. Wen, Fenghua & Xu, Longhao & Ouyang, Guangda & Kou, Gang, 2019. "Retail investor attention and stock price crash risk: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    40. Wei Xiong & Jialin Yu, 2011. "The Chinese Warrants Bubble," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(6), pages 2723-2753, October.
    41. Alberto Galasso & Timothy S. Simcoe, 2011. "CEO Overconfidence and Innovation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 57(8), pages 1469-1484, August.
    42. Jiang, Xuanyu & Yuan, Qingbo, 2018. "Institutional investors' corporate site visits and corporate innovation," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 148-168.
    43. Acharya, Viral V. & Amihud, Yakov & Litov, Lubomir, 2011. "Creditor rights and corporate risk-taking," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 102(1), pages 150-166, October.
    44. Ding, Rong & Hou, Wenxuan, 2015. "Retail investor attention and stock liquidity," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 12-26.
    45. Gillan, Stuart L., 2006. "Recent Developments in Corporate Governance: An Overview," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 12(3), pages 381-402, June.
    46. La Porta, Rafael & Lopez-de-Silanes, Florencio & Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert, 2000. "Investor protection and corporate governance," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 3-27.
    47. D. Daniel Keum, 2021. "Innovation, short‐termism, and the cost of strong corporate governance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(1), pages 3-29, January.
    48. repec:cup:jfinqa:v:46:y:2011:i:06:p:1545-1580_00 is not listed on IDEAS
    49. Daniel Andrei & Michael Hasler, 2015. "Investor Attention and Stock Market Volatility," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 28(1), pages 33-72.
    50. David Aboody & Baruch Lev, 2000. "Information Asymmetry, R&D, and Insider Gains," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(6), pages 2747-2766, December.
    51. Charles J. Hadlock & Joshua R. Pierce, 2010. "New Evidence on Measuring Financial Constraints: Moving Beyond the KZ Index," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 23(5), pages 1909-1940.
    52. Fan, Joseph P.H. & Rui, Oliver Meng & Zhao, Mengxin, 2008. "Public governance and corporate finance: Evidence from corruption cases," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(3), pages 343-364, September.
    53. He, Jie (Jack) & Tian, Xuan, 2013. "The dark side of analyst coverage: The case of innovation," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 109(3), pages 856-878.
    54. Wei Xiong & Jialin Yu, 2011. "The Chinese Warrants Bubble," Working Papers 1398, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Econometric Research Program..
    55. Harrison Hong & Jeremy C. Stein, 1999. "A Unified Theory of Underreaction, Momentum Trading, and Overreaction in Asset Markets," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 54(6), pages 2143-2184, December.
    56. Vivian W. Fang & Xuan Tian & Sheri Tice, 2014. "Does Stock Liquidity Enhance or Impede Firm Innovation?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 69(5), pages 2085-2125, October.
    57. Almeida, Heitor & Hsu, Po-Hsuan & Li, Dongmei & Tseng, Kevin, 2021. "More Cash, Less Innovation: The Effect of the American Jobs Creation Act on Patent Value," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 56(1), pages 1-28, February.
    58. Daniel Ferreira & Gustavo Manso & André C. Silva, 2014. "Incentives to Innovate and the Decision to Go Public or Private," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 27(1), pages 256-300, January.
    59. Zhong, Rong (Irene), 2018. "Transparency and firm innovation," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(1), pages 67-93.
    60. Lili Dai & Rui Shen & Bohui Zhang, 2021. "Does the media spotlight burn or spur innovation?," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 26(1), pages 343-390, March.
    61. Lian Fen Lee & Amy P. Hutton & Susan Shu, 2015. "The Role of Social Media in the Capital Market: Evidence from Consumer Product Recalls," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(2), pages 367-404, May.
    62. Ayyagari, Meghana & Demirgüç-Kunt, Asli & Maksimovic, Vojislav, 2011. "Firm Innovation in Emerging Markets: The Role of Finance, Governance, and Competition," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 46(6), pages 1545-1580, December.
    63. An, Zhe & Chen, Chen & Naiker, Vic & Wang, Jun, 2020. "Does media coverage deter firms from withholding bad news? Evidence from stock price crash risk," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    64. He, Feng & Yan, Yulin & Hao, Jing & Wu, Ji (George), 2022. "Retail investor attention and corporate green innovation: Evidence from China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    65. He, Feng & Qin, Shuqi & Liu, Yuanyuan & Wu, Ji (George), 2022. "CSR and idiosyncratic risk: Evidence from ESG information disclosure," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 49(C).
    66. Hailiang Chen & Prabuddha De & Yu (Jeffrey) Hu & Byoung-Hyoun Hwang, 2014. "Wisdom of Crowds: The Value of Stock Opinions Transmitted Through Social Media," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 27(5), pages 1367-1403.
    67. Du, Hanyu & Hao, Jing & He, Feng & Xi, Wenze, 2022. "Media sentiment and cross-sectional stock returns in the Chinese stock market," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    68. He, Feng & Feng, Yaqian & Hao, Jing, 2022. "Information disclosure source, investors’ searching and stock price crash risk," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 210(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ming, Yaxin & Li, Yubo & Liu, Nian & Li, Jing, 2023. "Retail investor attention and corporate environmental performance: Evidence from china," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    2. He, Feng & Feng, Yaqian & Hao, Jing, 2023. "Corporate ESG rating and stock market liquidity: Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 129(C).
    3. Yixuan Chen & Shanyue Jin, 2023. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Green Technology Innovation: The Moderating Role of Stakeholders," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-20, May.
    4. Zhang, Xiaotao & Li, Guoran & Li, Yishuo & Zou, Gaofeng & Wu, Ji George, 2023. "Which is more important in stock market forecasting: Attention or sentiment?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lili Dai & Rui Shen & Bohui Zhang, 2021. "Does the media spotlight burn or spur innovation?," Review of Accounting Studies, Springer, vol. 26(1), pages 343-390, March.
    2. Zhang, Ping & Wang, Yiru, 2023. "The bright side of analyst coverage on corporate innovation: Evidence from China," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    3. Ching-Hung Chang & Qingqing Wu, 2021. "Board Networks and Corporate Innovation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 67(6), pages 3618-3654, June.
    4. Dongying Du & Xiaojian Tang & Huaiming Wang & Joseph H. Zhang & Stephanie Tsui & Dongjie Lin, 2022. "CEO organizational identification and corporate innovation investment," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 62(3), pages 4185-4217, September.
    5. Huang, Hua & Tao, Yunqing & Wang, Xueping & Feng, Chen & Ye, Yongwei, 2023. "Do board reforms in parent firms boost subsidiaries’ innovation?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    6. Qing Wan & Xiaoke Cheng & Kam C. Chan & Shenghao Gao, 2021. "Born to innovate? The birth‐order effect of CEOs on corporate innovation," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(9-10), pages 1846-1888, October.
    7. Lyu, Xiaoliang & Ma, Jiameng & Zhang, Xiaochen, 2023. "Social trust and corporate innovation: An informal institution perspective," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    8. Hedy Jiaying Huang & Ahsan Habib & Sophia Li Sun & Ying Liu & Huiting Guo, 2021. "Financial reporting and corporate innovation: a review of the international literature," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(4), pages 5439-5499, December.
    9. Kong, Dongmin & Zhang, Bohui & Zhang, Jian, 2022. "Higher education and corporate innovation," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    10. Wu, Qiang & Dbouk, Wassim & Hasan, Iftekhar & Kobeissi, Nada & Zheng, Li, 2021. "Does gender affect innovation? Evidence from female chief technology officers," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(9).
    11. Daniel Bradley & Incheol Kim & Xuan Tian, 2017. "Do Unions Affect Innovation?," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 63(7), pages 2251-2271, July.
    12. Xiangchao Hao & Qingbin Meng & Kaijuan Gao & Kam C. Chan, 2020. "The impact of initial public offerings on innovations: Short‐termism or initial governance force exit?," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 41(6), pages 924-942, September.
    13. Chen Lin & Sibo Liu & Gustavo Manso, 2021. "Shareholder Litigation and Corporate Innovation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 67(6), pages 3346-3367, June.
    14. Hasan, Iftekhar & (Stan) Hoi, Chun-Keung & Wu, Qiang & Zhang, Hao, 2020. "Is social capital associated with corporate innovation? Evidence from publicly listed firms in the U.S," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    15. Nguyen, Lily & Vu, Le & Yin, Xiangkang, 2020. "The undesirable effect of audit quality: Evidence from firm innovation," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 52(6).
    16. D. Daniel Keum, 2021. "Innovation, short‐termism, and the cost of strong corporate governance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(1), pages 3-29, January.
    17. Guo, Bing & Pérez-Castrillo, David & Toldrà-Simats, Anna, 2019. "Firms’ innovation strategy under the shadow of analyst coverage," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(2), pages 456-483.
    18. Lily Nguyen & Le Vu & Xiangkang Yin, 2021. "Share repurchases and firm innovation," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(S1), pages 1665-1695, April.
    19. Wu, Chunying & Xiong, Xiong & Gao, Ya & Zhang, Jin, 2022. "Does social media coverage deter firms from withholding bad news? Evidence from stock price crash risk," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    20. Gao, Xin & Xu, Weidong & Li, Donghui, 2022. "Media coverage and corporate risk-taking: International evidence," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:finana:v:86:y:2023:i:c:s1057521923000029. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/620166 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.