Financial Performance and Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from Mexican Stock Market Firms (2014–2024)

Javier Nieves Almanza; Roberto Yoan Castillo Dieguez

doi:10.21678/jb.2026.2723

Authors

Javier Nieves Almanza Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro
Roberto Yoan Castillo Dieguez Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21678/jb.2026.2723

Keywords:

Corporate Social Responsibility, Financial performance, ESG, Mexican Stock Exchange, Random Forest, Probit Model, ANCOVA

Abstract

This study analyzes the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR), measured through ESG scores, and the financial performance of companies listed on the S&P/BMV Index of the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) during the period 2014 n–2024. Using a quantitative, longitudinal, and non-experimental approach, covariance models (ANCOVA), random forest algorithms, and probit models were applied to evaluate the influence of sustainable practices on key indicators such as ROA, ROE, EBITDA, liquidity, leverage, and volatility. The results reveal a positive and significant association between ESG and profitability indicators (ROA and ROE), while the rest of the indicators present heterogeneous effects. The random forest model confirms the predictive relevance of the ESG score, and the probit model indicates a higher probability of high financial performance among companies with better sustainable practices, although without robust statistical significance. reinforce the strength of the findings. These results, reinforced by cross-validation and robustness tests, confirm that CSR can be a competitive advantage, contributing to both the economic and social objectives of companies.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Abdallah, M. A. (2021). Beyond dichotomous approach, experts method compatibles with an information system view for developing a valid corporate governance index. Journal of Corporate Governance Research, 5(1), 18. https://doi.org/10.5296/jcgr.v5i1.18208

Adkins, L. C. (2008). Small sample performance of instrumental variables probit estimators: A Monte Carlo investigation. Oklahoma State University, Department of Economics and Legal Studies in Business (Issue 0807). https://ideas.repec.org/p/okl/wpaper/0807.html

Al frijat, Y. S., & Elamer, A. A. (2025). Human capital efficiency, corporate sustainability, and performance: Evidence from emerging economies. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 32(2), 1457–1472. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.3013

Allen, F., Barbalau, A., Chavez, E., & Zeni, F. (2025). Leveraging the capabilities of multinational firms to address climate change: a finance perspective. Journal of International Business Studies, 56(4), 461–480. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-024-00748-w

Arango-Home, M. C., González-Ruiz, J. D., & Valencia-Arias, A. (2023). Relationship between women on board directors and economic value added: Evidence from Latin American companies. Sustainability, 15(17), 13179. https://doi.org/10.3390/su151713179

Aydoğmuş, M., Gülay, G., & Ergun, K. (2022). Impact of ESG performance on firm value and profitability. Borsa Istanbul Review, 22, S119–S127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bir.2022.11.006

Bachrach, D. G., Vlachos, P. A., Irwin, K., & Morgeson, F. P. (2022). Does “how” firms invest in corporate social responsibility matter? An attributional model of job seekers’ reactions to configurational variation in corporate social responsibility. Human Relations, 75(3), 532–559. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726720971036

Barauskaite, G., & Streimikiene, D. (2021). Corporate social responsibility and financial performance of companies: The puzzle of concepts, definitions and assessment methods. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 28(1), 278–287. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2048

Belarmino, A., Whalen, E. A., & Guzzo, R. F. (2024). The impact of message framing on perceptions of controversial CSR in hotels. International Hospitality Review. https://doi.org/10.1108/IHR-12-2022-0062

Ben Saad, S., & Belkacem, L. (2022). How does corporate social responsibility influence firm financial performance? Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society, 22(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1108/CG-10-2020-0467

Benlemlih, M., Bitar, M., Erragragui, E., & Peillex, J. (2021). New Evidence on the Relationship Between Corporate Social Responsibility and the Use of Equity Capital. Management International, 25(2), 200–217. https://doi.org/10.7202/1077792ar

Bolibok, P. M. (2024). Does firm size matter for ESG risk? Cross-sectional evidence from the banking industry. Sustainability, 16(2), 679. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16020679

Bonsu, M. O.-A., Guo, Y., & Zhu, X. (2024). Does green innovation mediate corporate social responsibility and environmental performance? Empirical evidence from emerging markets. Journal of Applied Accounting Research, 25(2), 221–239. https://doi.org/10.1108/JAAR-10-2022-0271

Bouten, L., Cho, C. H., Michelon, G., & Roberts, R. W. (2017). CSR performance proxies in large-sample studies: “Umbrella advocates”, construct clarity and the “validity police.” SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3107182

Breiman, L. (2001). Random forests. Machine Learning, 45(1), 5–32. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010933404324

Chen, L. (2025). Generalized ordinal regression models for seismic fragility analysis. Earthquake Engineering & Structural Dynamics, 54(6), 1717–1736. https://doi.org/10.1002/eqe.4332

Cheng, X. (2024). A comprehensive study of feature selection techniques in machine learning models. Insights in Computer, Signals and Systems, 1(1), 65–78. https://doi.org/10.70088/xpf2b276

Chowdhury, M. A. F., Abdullah, M., Azad, Md. A. K., Sulong, Z., & Islam, M. N. (2023). Environmental, social and governance (ESG) rating prediction using machine learning approaches. Annals of Operations Research. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10479-023-05633-7

Coelho, R., Jayantilal, S., & Ferreira, J. J. (2023). The impact of social responsibility on corporate financial performance: A systematic literature review. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 30(4), 1535–1560. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2446

Costa, V. G., & Pedreira, C. E. (2023). Recent advances in decision trees: an updated survey. Artificial Intelligence Review, 56(5), 4765–4800. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10462-022-10275-5

D’Amato, V., D’Ecclesia, R., & Levantesi, S. (2021). Fundamental ratios as predictors of ESG scores: a machine learning approach. Decisions in Economics and Finance, 44(2), 1087–1110. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10203-021-00364-5

D’Amato, V., D’Ecclesia, R., & Levantesi, S. (2022). ESG score prediction through random forest algorithm. Computational Management Science, 19(2), 347–373. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10287-021-00419-3

Deng, D., Wu, Y., & Qin, L. (2023). CSR preference, market competition, and corporate financial performance. Managerial and Decision Economics, 44(3), 1396–1409. https://doi.org/10.1002/mde.3754

Dohrmann, M., Martinez‐Blasco, M., Moring, A., & Margarit, J. C. (2024). Environmental performance and firm performance in Europe : The moderating role of board governance. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 31(6), 5863–5880. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2898

Dzage, E. J., & Szabados, G. N. (2024). The relationship of corporate social responsibility with business performance—a bibliometric literature review. Sustainability, 16(7), 2637. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16072637

Esparza-Rodriguez, S. A., Esquivel Fernández, E., Chavez Gallegos, G. M., Garcia Tapia, G., & Raziel Rodríguez, P. (2024). Conceptual model of the participation of Mexican SMEs in the Stakeholder Capitalism of the post-COVID19 era. Revista Del Centro de Investigación de La Universidad La Salle, 16(61), 145–176. https://doi.org/10.26457/recein.v16i61.3877

Fadele, A. A., & Rocha, A. (2025). Quantitative research measurements classifications (pp. 131–154). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-91431-7_5

Firmino, A. L., & Peixoto, F. M. (2025). The impact of ESG performance on greenhouse gas emission performance in Latin America. Revista Contabilidade & Finanças, 36(97). https://doi.org/10.1590/1808-057x20242089.en

Flammer, C. (2013). Corporate social responsibility and shareholder reaction: The environmental awareness of investors. Academy of Management Journal, 56(3), 758–781. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2011.0744

Freeman, R. E. (2010). Strategic management: A stakeholder approach. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/DOI: 10.1017/CBO9781139192675

Godinez-Reyes, N. L., González-Samaniego, A., & Valenzo-Jiménez, M. A. (2025). Corporate social responsibility and financial performance in Latin America: a Systematic Literature Review, 2000-2023. Análisis Económico, 40(103), 187–203. https://doi.org/10.24275/uam/azc/dcsh/ae/2025v40n103/Godinez

Gove, S., Junkunc, M., Bruyaka, O., Kabbach de Castro, L. R., Larraza‐Kintana, M., Mingo, S., Song, Y., & Thakur Wernz, P. (2017). Reexamining CEO duality: The surprisingly problematic issues of conceptualization and measurement. Corporate Governance: An International Review, 25(6), 411–427. https://doi.org/10.1111/corg.12190

Greene, W. (2024). Models for ordered choices. Handbook of Choice Modelling (pp. 393–425). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781800375635.00023

Halabaku, E., & Bytyçi, E. (2024). Overfitting in machine learning: A comparative analysis of decision trees and random forests. Intelligent Automation & Soft Computing, 39(6), 987–1006. https://doi.org/10.32604/iasc.2024.059429

Hamdoun, M., Achabou, M. A., & Dekhili, S. (2022). Could CSR improve the financial performance of developing countries’ firms? Analyses of mediating effect of intangible resources. European Business Review, 34(1), 41–61. https://doi.org/10.1108/EBR-09-2019-0236

Hernández-Sampieri, R., & Torres, C. P. M. (2018). Metodología de la investigación (Vol. 4). McGraw-Hill Interamericana México^ eD. F DF.

Hluszko, C., Barros, M. V., Souza, A. M. de, Ramos Huarachi, D. A., Castillo Ulloa, M. I., Moretti, V., Puglieri, F. N., & de Francisco, A. C. (2024). Sustainability in practice: Analyzing environmental, social and governance practices in leading Latin American organizations’ reports. Cleaner Production Letters, 7, 100069. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.CLPL.2024.100069

Iazzolino, G., Bruni, M. E., Veltri, S., Morea, D., & Baldissarro, G. (2023). The impact of ESG factors on financial efficiency: An empirical analysis for the selection of sustainable firm portfolios. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 30(4), 1917–1927. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2463

Ioannou, I., & Serafeim, G. (2011). The consequences of mandatory corporate sustainability reporting. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1799589

Lara, I. A. (2021). Responsabilidad social empresarial para la competitividad de las organizaciones en México. Mercados y Negocios, 22(43), 97–118. https://doi.org/10.32870/myn.v0i43.7546

Leal Filho, W., Dibbern, T., Pimenta Dinis, M. A., Coggo Cristofoletti, E., Mbah, M. F., Mishra, A., Clarke, A., Samuel, N., Castillo Apraiz, J., Rimi Abubakar, I., & Aina, Y. A. (2024). The added value of partnerships in implementing the UN sustainable development goals. Journal of Cleaner Production, 438, 140794. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.140794

Lemana, P., Matemane, R., & Mokabane, M. (2025). The evolution of research on corporate social responsibility and financial performance: a bibliometric analysis. Cogent Business & Management, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2025.2507230

Liang, Y., Xue, C., & Zhang, J. (2023). The impact of ESG ratings on stock liquidity risk: Evidence from the Chinese market. Review of Integrative Business and Economics Research, 12(4). https://doi.org/10.58745/riber_12-4_1-16

López Pérez, G., García Sánchez, I. M., & Zafra Gómez, J. L. (2024). A systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis of eco‐innovation on financial performance: Identifying barriers and drivers. Business Strategy and the Environment, 33(2), 1321–1340. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3550

López Sarabia, P., Rojas Padilla, S., & González Díaz, R. (2021). How Covid-19 has accelerated the garment and financial investment industries’ adoption of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) standards. The Future of Companies in the Face of a New Reality (pp. 37–62). Springer Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-2613-5_3

Méndez, A. B., Rodríguez, M. del P., & Cortez, K. A. (2019). Factores determinantes de la responsabilidad social empresarial (RSE). Caso aplicado a México y Brasil [Determining factors of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Case applied to Mexico and Brazil]. Análisis Económico, 34(86 SE-Artículos), 197–217. https://doi.org/10.24275/uam/azc/dcsh/ae/2019v34n86/Mendez

Min, K. H., & Leong, L. W. (2024). Does CSR perception matter to brand loyalty? The mediating roles of brand trust and brand image. Vision: The Journal of Business Perspective. https://doi.org/10.1177/09722629241237399

Momparler, A., Carmona, P., & Climent, F. (2025). Catalyzing sustainable investment: Revealing ESG power in predicting fund performance with machine learning. Computational Economics, 65(3), 1617–1642. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10614-024-10618-0

Montesinos López, O. A., Montesinos López, A., & Crossa, J. (2022). Overfitting, model tuning, and evaluation of prediction performance. Multivariate Statistical Machine Learning Methods for Genomic Prediction (pp. 109–139). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-89010-0_4

Moussa, A. S., & Elmarzouky, M. (2024). Beyond compliance: How ESG reporting influences the cost of capital in UK firms. Journal of Risk and Financial Management, 17(8), 326. https://doi.org/10.3390/jrfm17080326

Murè, P., Spallone, M., Mango, F., Marzioni, S., & Bittucci, L. (2021). ESG and reputation: The case of sanctioned Italian banks. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 28(1), 265–277. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2047

Nguyen, T. H., Vu, Q. T., Nguyen, D. M., & Le, H. L. (2021). Factors influencing corporate social responsibility disclosure and its impact on financial performance: The case of Vietnam. Sustainability, 13(15), 8197. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13158197

Ospina-Mateus, H., Marrugo-Salas, L., Castilla Castilla, L., Castellón, L., Cantillo, A., Bolivar, L. M., Salas-Navarro, K., & Zamora-Musa, R. (2023). Analysis in circular economy research in Latin America: A bibliometric review. Heliyon, 9(9). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e19999

Ospina-Patiño, C., González-Ruiz, J. D., & Marín-Rodríguez, N. J. (2023). Sustainable practices and financial performance in Latin America: An analysis of environmental scores. Revista CEA, 9(21), e2792. https://doi.org/10.22430/24223182.2792

Panchal, D. B., Krishnamoorthy, B., & Bhattacharyya, S. S. (2025). Exploring the causal complexity of business models with organizational performance: a study for the pharmaceutical industry. The TQM Journal, 37(6), 1579–1595. https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-12-2023-0427

Porter, M. E., & Kramer, M. R. (2019). Creating shared value. Managing Sustainable Business (pp. 323–346). Springer Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1144-7_16

Possebon, E. A. G., Cippiciani, F. A., Savoia, J. R. F., & de Mariz, F. (2024). ESG Scores and performance in Brazilian public companies. Sustainability, 16(13), 5650. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16135650

Pronti, A., Auci, S., & Mazzanti, M. (2024). Adopting sustainable irrigation technologies in Italy: a study on the determinants of inter- and intra-farm diffusion. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 33(2), 299–322. https://doi.org/10.1080/10438599.2023.2183854

Rahat, B., & Nguyen, P. (2023). Does ESG performance impact credit portfolios? Evidence from lending to mineral resource firms in emerging markets. Resources Policy, 85, 104052. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resourpol.2023.104052

Rahman, Md. M. (2023). Sample size determination for survey research and non-probability sampling techniques: A review and set of recommendations. Journal of Entrepreneurship, Business and Economics; Vol 11 No 1 (2023). http://scientificia.com/index.php/JEBE/article/view?path=

Rajesh, R., Rajeev, A., & Rajendran, C. (2022). Corporate social performances of firms in select developed economies: A comparative study. Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, 81, 101194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seps.2021.101194

Renneboog, L., Ter Horst, J., & Zhang, C. (2008). Socially responsible investments: Institutional aspects, performance, and investor behavior. Journal of Banking & Finance, 32(9), 1723–1742. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2007.12.039

Serolin, A. (2023). Effect of corporate social responsibility, leverage, firm age and size on firm value. Research of Economics and Business, 1(2), 95–104. https://doi.org/10.58777/reb.v1i2.81

Shaikh, I. (2022). Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practice and firm performance: An international evidence. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 23(1), 218–237. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2022.16202

Sharma, D., & Chakraborty, S. (2024). Corporate social responsibility and financial performance: moderating impact of product market competition. Indian Journal of Finance, 18(7), 8. https://doi.org/10.17010/ijf/2024/v18i7/174030

Sosa, M., Ortiz, E., & Cabello, A. (2022). ESG green equity finance risk and links in Mexico: Conditional volatility and Markov switching vector analyses. Revista Mexicana de Economía y Finanzas, 17(4), 1–21. https://doi.org/10.21919/remef.v17i4.788

Thomsen, S. (2023). Sustainable corporate governance. An overview and an assessment. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4459225

Uyar, A., Gerged, A. M., Kuzey, C., & Karaman, A. S. (2024). Do CSR performance and reporting facilitate access to debt financing in emerging markets? The role of asset structure and firm performance. Review of Accounting and Finance, 23(2), 157–185. https://doi.org/10.1108/RAF-01-2023-0020

Waddock, S. A., & Graves, S. B. (1997). The corporate social performance-financial performance link. Strategic Management Journal, 18(4), 303–319. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199704)18:4<303::AID-SMJ869>3.0.CO;2-G

Weber, M. (2008). The business case for corporate social responsibility: A company-level measurement approach for CSR. European Management Journal, 26(4), 247–261. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.EMJ.2008.01.006

Weston, P., & Nnadi, M. (2023). Evaluation of strategic and financial variables of corporate sustainability and ESG policies on corporate finance performance. Journal of Sustainable Finance & Investment, 13(2), 1058–1074. https://doi.org/10.1080/20430795.2021.1883984

Yang, H., Wang, D., & Huo, S. (2025). Research on the impact of corporate ESG performance on corporate profitability (pp. 140–152). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-96-3236-7_13

Ziegler, A., & Schröder, M. (2010). What determines the inclusion in a sustainability stock index? Ecological Economics, 69(4), 848–856. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2009.10.009

Zúñiga, L. (2024). El efecto de la responsabilidad social corporativa sobre el valor de mercado de las empresas en Latinoamérica. Contaduría y Administración, 70(1), 487. https://doi.org/10.22201/fca.24488410e.2025.5008