Effects of smart agricultural production investment announcements on shareholder value: Evidence from China

The advent of the era of the smart economy has made agricultural production more intelligent. An increasing number of companies have launched a series of investment activities aimed at smart agricultural production (SAP). However, whether smart agricultural production investment (SAPI) impacts the stock market has yet to be confirmed. Therefore, based on the sample data of 118 listed companies in China from 2010 to 2019, this study empirically examines the impact of SAPI announcements on shareholder value, as indicated by abnormal returns of stocks. Further, we tested the moderating effect of certain characteristic factors on abnormal stock returns. The research results illustrate a significant positive connection between SAPI announcements and shareholder value. Moreover, considering the announcement content and company factors, this study investigates the impacts of different investment targets and industries on the market reaction to SAPI announcements. We find that non-agricultural companies have a more positive market reaction to SAPI than agricultural companies; the higher the liability-asset ratio, the more positive will be the stock market reaction to SAPI.