The aim of this study is to analyze the effect exerted by corporate social strategies on (shortterm and long-term) corporate financial performance (CFP). To this end, we use data on firms listed in the Stoxx Europe 600 index and Stoxx Europe Sustainability index from 2007 to 2010. On the sample data, we implement random and fixed effects panel data methodology corrected by heteroskedasticity, serial correlation, and/or cross-sectional dependence. The results obtained show that the implementation of corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy, the level of economic development of the country and firm size determine CFP. In addition, the investment in research and development influences the return on assets while the company's financial slack affects the Tobin's Q. So, companies that contribute to sustainable development incur higher CFP.

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Pension plans and funds represent a substantial part of the welfare systems in both Europe and Spain. One of the most important factors in the choice of a plan or fund is its performance, since if high returns are obtained; the participant will receive higher payments when the contingency covered by the plan or fund occurs. The main objective of this paper is therefore to analyse the performance of individual pension plans. To this end, we apply a multi-index model based on an extension of Jensen's alpha to a sample of data corresponding to 521 pension plans for the period between January 2006 and December 2010. The results obtained show that the performance of Spanish pension plan managers is, in general, close to zero. This suggests that in the Spanish pension plan market, the value added by active management does not compensate for its associated costs. Our analysis of whether the size and age of the plan might explain performance indicates that both factors are not related to risk-adjusted return. On the other hand, pension plan performance improves slightly when fees are not deducted, and positive risk-adjusted returns are obtained in some cases.