Jump volatility and firm-specific investor sentiment

Abstract

Literature on investor sentiment has predominantly been conducted at the market level. Recent studies employing firm-level sentiment have increasingly turned to textual analysis; however, the suitability of this type of proxy is still unverified. We utilize the Chinese stock market data from 2015 to 2023, aiming to discern whether the jump component of realized volatility possesses characteristics of investor sentiment. Our analysis reveals a pronounced short-term persistence in jump volatility, particularly, among stocks that are hard to value and those with minimal institutional ownership. Further, we find that stocks exhibiting high monthly jump volatility consistently exhibit underperformance over extended periods, corroborating the hypothesis of sentiment-induced temporary mispricing phenomena. Significantly, our findings advocate for the adoption of the jump component of realized volatility as a proxy for firm-specific investor sentiment, offering a novel perspective in the sentiment analysis literature.