Abstract
Hong and Kacperczyk (2009, The price of sin: The effects of social norms on markets. Journal of Financial Economics 93(1), 15-36) document that 'sin stocks' (alcohol, tobacco, and gambling) earn relatively high returns on a risk-adjusted basis. We revisit their original study with an updated sample. Contrary to the stylized facts that prominent anomalies attenuate out-of-sample or in the post-publication period (McLean and Pontiff 2016, Does academic research destroy stock return predictability? The Journal of Finance 71, 5-32), we document that the superior performance of sin stocks has persisted over the most recent decade (2009-2018). This is consistent with the increased popularity of socially responsible investing over recent decades, pushing more norm-constrained investors away from sin stocks. Further analyses suggest that sin stocks outperform in low-liquidity states and in high-uncertainty states and are recession-proof. Overall, our work supports the shunned stock hypothesis and indicates the price of sin stocks is alive and well.