Corporate Science, Innovation and Firm Value

Abstract

It can be observed that many R&D performing firms produce scientific knowledge and discloseresearch outcomes in scientific journals. At the micro-level, prior work identified several potentialbenefits of such a strategy like superior access to informal information networks or the opportunity ofrecruiting the best PhD graduates. However, scientific research is costly and subject to considerableuncertainty with respect to the outcomes, and the disclosure may lead to spillover effects that decreasethe ability of firms to generate returns of their R&D investments. Overall, it remains unclear if andunder what conditions science-oriented strategies are beneficial for firms. We address this gap andexamine the impact of scientific activities on the firm’s market value using accounting data for USfirms from Compustat and matched patent and scientific publication data. We find evidence for apositive impact of scientific publication stocks on the firm value beyond the effects of R&D, patentstocks and patent quality.