Environmental, Social and Governance Information Disclosure Strategy of the Ten Main Spanish Listed Companies

Abstract

Purpose: This article aims to investigate the environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) disclosure strategy and its impact on the financial performance of the top ten companies in terms of operating income/turnover volume. Methodology/Approach: The study methods used include parametric correlations and logistic regression analysis focusing on data from Spanish listed companies in 2019-2020. Findings: The findings show that IBEX35 companies need to improve web transparency in ESG reporting and a significant relationship was found between financial indicators and ESG transparency. Companies with the best positions in liquidity and return on assets rank first in non-financial indicators. Finally, it was found that the sector of the company was a significant variable. Research Limitation/Implication: The findings of this research will help define the ESG strategy and understand the relationship between ESG and financial results. One limitation is that the information on the websites changes frequently. However, the results may contribute to being a point of reference for future studies. Originality/Value of paper: To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous research has been conducted to assess the ESG information disclosure strategy based on its web transparency and the financial performance of major Spanish companies.